Transformation of the Day: Felicia lost 90 pounds. Like so many other people, she would start each year with a commitment to lose the pounds and eventually give up on her efforts. She took the time to explore options for weight loss and her journey has lead to to a passion for exercise, especially running. She shared her journey in detail, so make sure that you check it out.
Hi, my name is Felicia A. and I would like to share my weight loss story! My motivation was not to weigh 250 pounds. I wanted to get under 200 lbs and stay there. At one point, I knew that I was well over 250 pounds, because I started wearing a size 22/24. During that time, I didn’t get on the scale.
Each year, beginning in 2009 when our state started annual health program called “Scale Back Alabama“, I would attempt to lose weight. It was a four person group effort, because that allowed me to get motivation from others while using the program.
Each year, I would lose a few pounds, get down to a size 18 and become satisfied with that. It became a rollercoaster cycle. I only weighed in at the start of each year for 4 years and never finished the program, because my team never finished the tasks and never went back to weigh out! I never knew how much weight I lost.
In October 2011, I got on the scale and my weight was 247 pounds. I said to myself, “I will not weigh 250 lbs.”, so I started losing weight on my own. I made a commitment that on Jan 1, 2012 I would go to a weight loss clinic for help, and I did just that! During the first week, I lost 10 lbs and my motivation flew out the roof, but they were providing diet pills to help the process. I did that program for three weeks and lost total of 24 pounds without exercising, but I was paying a large sum of money each week. From there, I decided that I didn’t want to have to take pills and I really couldn’t afford the program forever, so I stopped going to the clinic. I kept following the meal plan they’d given me and I continued to lose 1-2 pounds a week. In a year’s time, had reached my goal of being under 200 and had gotten down to 190 pounds.
I changed my eating habits by cutting out fast food, soft drinks or anything sweet. I only treat myself to sweets every now and then. I never ate vegetables before starting this journey. My diet consisted of eating McDonald or Chick-Fil-a daily. I knew I had to cut that out, although it was a hard task, I began to try different vegetables, but my diet consisted mostly of proteins and water.
As I stated before, I did not work out and when I got down to 190 lbs, people told me not to lose anymore weight because I wasn’t looking healthy. I had loose skin and was just a skinny person who still had a lot of fat. This was discouraging. Decided to go to the park and walk and that’s where I saw a friend who was working out in a boot camp with a trainer. I joined them and went 3-5 days a week. I maintained my weight loss and started to look better. The joy and the feelings I got from exercise turned into a passion for working out.
However, when it began to get cold, my exercising decreased and I was at a loss. I wanted to take my toning to another level, so the same friend introduced me to a personal trainer who was doing a free bootcamp at a gym and I went. The motivation and inspiration he gave us just gave me the feeling that I could do more. He included weights in every session of my workout. Even though I wasn’t eating completely clean, after 6 months of working out with him the weight began to come off. From there, I joined that very same gym and begin working out twice a day, 6-7 days a week. My body began to really transform. He introduced me to running too. My first time running, he ran with me and told me that we would do 2 miles, but it actually was 4 mile. I did it, only stopping to walk for about 1/2 mile. Now, I run 5 miles non-stop and have run in our city’s annual 10k Azalea Trail run. I’m decreasing my time every year.
My starting weight was 247 pounds and I now weigh 157 pounds. I am 5 ft, 5.5 inches tall. My transformation took 3 years and I have maintained my success for a year. My advise to others is to be consistent with your eating habits. When it comes to exercise, do not comprise yourself for a moment of pleasure. Believe in you and work on you at all times.
My name is Karina Farias. My highest weight was 167 kilos (368 pounds) and currently weigh 114 kilos (251 pounds). I decided to change my life. I made the decision that I no longer wanted to be obese. That’s when I started to make an effort to learn more about nutrition, which helped me to drop 20 kilos (44 pounds) in six months.
