Black Weight Loss Success

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Kelli lost 109 pounds

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Today’s’ featured weight loss story: Kelli lost 109 pounds with the tried and true method of eating right and exercising.  She is preparing for her first marathon in October.  She shared her story with us.  Check it out:

I started my weight loss journey two years ago. I took on the challenge because I wanted to lose 30 pounds by my 30th birthday.  Although I didn’t reach my goal, I kept going. I have a family history of high blood pressure, diabetes, kidney disease and heart disease. I wanted to become a inspiration to myself. I knew there wasn’t a magic weight loss pill or weight loss surgery I could take.  Therefore, I wanted to be accountable and do it the old fashioned way with exercising and eating right. On this journey, I’ve done exercise bootcamps, 5k runs,water aerobics and hip hop aerobics.  I also go to the gym. Currently, I do hip hop aerobics 3 times a week for an hour, 45 min.  My gym sessions are twice a week. I gave up fast food, red meat, pork, and sodas. I’ve gained more self confidence and respect in myself after my weight loss. I’m now preparing first my first marathon in October 2013. I’m not perfect, there are days when I eat foods I know I shouldn’t but I still hold my self accountable. My mother passed away April 2013 from congestive heart failure, I’m so blessed she got a chance to see my transformation. My starting weight was 305 pounds.  My weight now is 196 pounds.

Kelli weight loss success

Is Sugar Addiction Real? How do You Fight It?

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A recent study conducted by Harvard’s David Ludwig found that sugar can, in fact, be quite addicting. Why? You see, foods high in sugar content raise blood sugar dramatically – more than other types of foods. This spike in blood sugar stimulates a portion of the brain that is infamous for additions – even hard-core addictions like gambling or drug abuse.

Simply craving and consuming sugar wouldn’t be such a hardship if it weren’t so unhealthy. Consuming large amounts of sugar can lead to weight gain and a host of illnesses including Type 2 diabetes, cancer, and high blood pressure. And, as with all addictions, the more sugar you consume, the more you will crave it.

How to Fight Sugar Addiction

Willpower alone will not stop sugar addiction, you must develop a fail-proof plan that will serve you well even when you’ve exhausted your willpower. Follow these 5 tips for eliminating sugar from your diet and stopping sugar addiction:

  1. Find unlikely and hidden sources of sugar in your diet by reading food labels. You would be surprised by how many foods contain hidden sources of sugar. Learn all the names of sugar and carefully scan all nutrition labels before purchase. If you eliminate hidden sources of sugar, you can further control the roller coaster ride of blood sugar spikes followed by intense cravings.
  2. Stock your kitchen with healthy foods to eliminate temptation. It’s also a good idea to create menus and a grocery list to keep you on track. It’s a lot harder to stray from a solid game plan than it is a vague concept of eating better.
  3. Eat more fruit. Not only will fruit satisfy your sweet tooth, it is also a healthy way to add a flavorful twist to otherwise boring dishes. Unlike processed sugar, the natural sugar found in fruit will not cause unhealthy spikes in blood glucose levels.
  4. Cut out or dilute sugar wherever possible. If you consume a lot of sugary drinks, cut the sugar content by adding less sugar or adding seltzer. Gradually reduce the sugar content of your drinks while cutting down the number of times you imbibe to eliminate this source of sugar from your diet.
  5. Combat cravings by finding healthy substitutes. Foods high in protein such as nuts and peanut butter are a good place to start. Not only will these foods stop cravings, they will keep you feeling full.

The more you eliminate sugar from your diet, the less often you will crave it. As your blood sugar levels become constant, you will find that you have more control over your cravings and that you have been able to successfully overcome sugar addiction. Granted, it doesn’t get better overnight, but if you take small, gradual steps to fight sugar addiction, you will find that the battle only gets easier as time goes on.

Renee lost 28 pounds

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Zumba Instructor Renee lost 28 pounds and has kept the weight off for 2 1/2 years.  Here is what she shared with us:

I’m Renee and married with 3 girls. I’m a Zumba instructor and took a look back at my photos from a decade ago and couldn’t believe the size I was. I lost 28 pounds and been maintaining for 2.5 years. It was important to be at a healthy weight because of the current diseases that are actively on the rise such as Type 2 Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Cancer due to the type of foods we eat. Diabetes also runs in my family with age. I had to take a stand to break that cycle.

McDonalds was banned from our household for over 8 years. I teach my children to incorporate vegetables with every meal (including breakfast – except cold/hot cereals…lol).

A little more detail about me: rallen.zumba.com/

Renee weight loss before and after

Stephanie lost 146 pounds with weight loss surgery

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Let’s show some BWLW love to Stephanie who lost 146 pounds with gastric bypass surgery.  She no longer suffers from hypertension, diabetes and sleep apnea.  Her motivation was her husband and two children.  Here is what she shared with us:

My name is Stephanie and I’m from Orlando FL. I am a 30 year old wife and mother of two. All my life, I struggled with my weight, starting in elementary school.  Even as an adult, I was teased about my weight. At the age of 27, I was diagnosed with hypertension, diabetes and sleep apnea.  These conditions were constantly getting worse. During this time, my weight was 361 pounds.  I had to do something quick, so I began taking lipotropic b12 shots and getting lots of exercise.  With this and eating right, I got down to 305 pounds. The weight loss was steady and I was feeling a lot better.

Then I had a slip and fall accident and injured my knee.  A month later I was in a car accident and injured my back which left me unable to exercise. The weight began to come back until I was back at 351 pounds. At that point, I felt helpless.  I continued to do the injections but they no longer worked.  I tried hcg and had really bad side effects from that, so had to stop. Me and my doctor then decided that we had tried all other options and she referred me for gastric bypass weight loss surgery.

On August 30 2012, I had my surgery.  I have since lost 146 pounds. Now, I can play around with my children. I can dance. I can fit on roller coasters. I no longer suffer with hypertension, diabetes, or sleep apnea. My motivation was my children and my husband. I wanted to be here for them as long as I possibly can. My current weight is 205 pounds. The workouts I do is on the Xbox Kinect. I do dance games like Dance Central and Zumba. I also do workouts with DVDs by Jillian Michaels and Jane Fonda.  I workout on the treadmill, run and do yoga as well. I try to stick to a fat free,no sugar, no carb, high protein diet with lots of organic fresh fruits and vegetables.

A lot of people like to think WLS patients try to take the easy way out but let me tell you nothing about this has been easy. I still have to eat healthy. I still have to exercise in order to lose weight. I still have cravings like a person with a normal size stomach but it takes a lot of will power to say no. I am just happy to be able to live life to its full potential finally. Thank you for reading my story.

Stephanie weight loss surgery

Karen lost 30 pounds

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Let show some Black Women Losing Weight love to Karen who has lost 30 pounds.  She was motivated by a diagnosis of diabetes.  Here is what she shared with us:

I changed my eating habits.  I stopped eating pork.  Now I eat chicken, fish and less beef.  I also eat a lot of vegetables and have cut down on sweets.  I don’t drink soda, only water or sweet tea.  I walk 2 – 3 miles, 3 days a week and I workout two days a week.  In addition, I trained myself to eat small portions so now I get full fast with less food. My motivation was my doctor telling me I have diabetes and I might have to take insulin.  She said that  if I lose the weight, I can over come diabetes. Being overweight, you start having high blood pressure and diabetes.  I didn’t want that for myself.  I’m 41 years old and I feel that the older you get the harder it’s is to get the weight off. Thank you so much for taking the time to listen and for having a page for us.  When I see your page, it encourages me even more.

Karen weight loss before and after

Lashonda lost 145 pounds with weight loss surgery

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Let’s show some BWLW love to Lashonda who has lost 145 pounds with gastric bypass weight loss surgery.  She was motivated by her diabetes and her family history of it.   Here is what she shared with us:

Hey, I lost 145 pounds from Gastric Bypass surgery.  I’m striving to lose more.  My motivation was that at 27 years old I was diagnosed with diabetes and both my parents passed away with it.  I changed my eating habits to smaller portions.  My workout routines: At first my exercise routine was only water aerobics.  That was the jump-start.  Now I do cardio exercise and some weight training, but I do need more in terms of my workout routines.  Thank you for sharing my story!

Lashonda weight loss surgery

Ernestine lost 100 pounds with weight loss surgery

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Let’s show some Black Women Losing Weight Love to Ernestine.  She lost 100 pounds with bariatric weight loss surgery and it has changed her life and her health.  Here is what she shared with us:

Hello, my name is Ernestine, I was 244 pounds last year until I had Bariatric surgery done called the sleeve.  I had the surgery on April 17th 2012 and it has changed my life. It took one year to lose 100 pounds and I would like to lose at least 9 more pounds more.  The reason why I had the surgery was because I had sleep apnea, high blood pressure and sugar diabetes.  I could not stand for a long period of time, my back was always hurting and I couldn’t enjoy life. For 20 years I tried to get pregnant and the doctors kept saying that I would never get pregnant because I had polycycstic ovarian syndrome.   The weight was no help.  I prayed to God for a child and I finally got pregnant in 2004, but my weight kept going up.  I decided to have the surgery because I needed to start taking care of myself and to also be able to take care of the child I always wanted.  I wanted to live, but I was literally dying on my feet.

I’m thanking God everyday for a second chance, I’m learning how to eat healthy and I’m learning how to make the right choices when it comes to eating. I walk everyday with a DVD that my mom got me called “Walk away the Pounds” and I also work out with my stationary bike. I lift 4 pound weights to build up the muscles in my upper part of my body, especially underneath my arms.  I’m also taking karate class and I’m learning how to do kick boxing. Before I lost the weight, I couldn’t shop, do hair, try on new clothes or couldn’t play with my son because I was so tired all the time.  I was sleeping at red lights and sleeping on the job.  I had no energy and now I’m moving much, much, better and I’m getting much sleep without the machine on my face every night.  I’m very blessed and again I’m thanking God for a second chance.

So to anyone who is reading this story I’m asking you to not give up, ask the Lord to guide you in all your decisions and he will. The only reason why I don’t have a picture of me standing when I was heavy was because I did not like taking pictures and I was ashamed of my body, so this was the only one that I could find. Again thanks for giving me the opportunity to tell my story.

Ernestine weight loss surgery

Charlotte lost 60 pounds

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Today’s featured before & after weight loss story:  Charlotte lost 60 pounds.  She was motivated by the possibility of having diabetes to change her eating habits and get healthy.  Here is what she shared with us:

I’m down 60 pounds so far since July 2012! I have more to go. I was borderline diabetic.  I didn’t take it seriously until the doctor said she was more than sure I was over the borderline, because of all the signs and symptoms I was having. The day she tested me I prayed and told God if He would spare me from this disease I would start working out and lose the weight. I’ve seen my aunts and sisters deal with diabetes. Losing their sight, their limbs, kidney failure and having to stick themselves daily. The day I got my results I cried. Cried tears of joy because I didn’t have diabetes. As I cried and while thanking God, I popped in a workout video and haven’t stopped yet.

Along with working out I also used the loseit.com to keep track of my eating. I noticed that when I began cutting back on how much I ate the bulk of the weight began melting off. I stop eating beef years before the weight loss, never ate pork, let the sodas go, cut way back on the sweets and began eating more fruits and veggies. I love my veggies now.  Now, I carry a bag of fruits with me in case I get hungry when I’m away from home. It keeps me from stopping for fast food. Don’t get me wrong, I do have my weak points but I don’t over do it and don’t do it often! When I get to that “I don’t feel like doing this” point, I have my before picture handy and it quickly motivates me to keep moving!  I was at a weight loss plateau for a long time so I decided to join Weight Watchers recently to get the remaining weight off.  I was in a size 24-26 at the beginning of my weight loss journey and now in a size 12!  Fit&Fabulous at 40!

Charlotte weight loss before & after

Anj’ela lost 146 pounds with weight loss surgery

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Let’s show some BWLW love to Anj’ela who lost 146 pounds with weight loss surgery.  Her motivation was controlling her diabetes and being there for her grandchildren.  Here is what she shared with us:

“Just,wanted to share my story.  I had gastric bypass weight loss surgery on March 22, 2012.  I started off weighing 439 pounds and now I weigh 293 pounds.  To God be the glory!  My motivation was my grandchildren.  I have 4 children (3 are adults) and 2 grandchildren. My diabetes was out of control and I knew I had to do something before I died, so I had the gastric bypass weight reduction surgery.  Now, I just monitor everything I eat.  I have an app on my phone the gives me different exercises to do daily, but mostly I just walk and drink a lot of water.  I turned 40 on the 24th of April and I simply did not want to die.”

Anjela before after weight loss

 

 

Jaymee lost 50 pounds

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Update 2017: We shared Jaymee‘s story back in 2013 and she’s giving us an update on how she’s lost a total of 150 pounds. She decided to have gastric bypass in 2015. “It has not been easy adjusting to this new me and this new way of life. My road has been hard, challenging, and at first regretful. Overall, It’s been worth it.”

jaymee weight loss

Highest weight: 270 pounds
Starting weight: 235 pounds
Current weight: 120 pounds

I’ve battled my weight my entire life. Overall, I’ve lost 150 pounds. In August 2015, I made one of the hardest, yet greatest, decisions of my life. I had Gastric Bypass (RNY) weight loss surgery and it has SAVED MY LIFE.  It has not been easy adjusting to this new me and this new way of life. My road has been hard, challenging, and at first regretful. Overall, It’s been worth it.

No one can live your life for you. You must live it for yourself. I’m happy now. I smile more and I’m forever grateful. Remember, if you fail there is no such thing as a perfect process. Trust your process and continue through it. You will get there. If I don’t inspire anyone, that’s OK because I inspire myself every single day.  That is good enough for me. Out of everything else in life, I CHOOSE HAPPINESS!

To my weight loss Fam, you guys are awesome. Thank you for your inspirational words and motivational support. It got me through my roughest and toughest times. I truly love you guys. Remember, if nobody else believes in you, I believe in you! Most importantly you have to believe in yourself.  – Instagram: @bypassbutterfly

jaymee before and after
“When u forget to give a damn about anyone’s opinions of u #flawsandall #istillloveme #stretchmarks #cellulite #saggyskin #effyourbeautystandards #lovingmybody”

2013: Let’s show some Black Women Losing Weight love to Jaymee who has lost 50 pounds by juicing, regular exercise and cutting out sugars and processed foods.  Here is what she shared with us:

Jaymee before and after weight loss“My story: I had my fifth child June 2011.  I lost baby weight and weighed 220 pounds. After that, I went through postpartum depression and gained a whopping 50 pounds. As you can see, I am/was an emotional eater. Then in May 2012, I lost my father and gained a couple more pounds.  Weighing 273, I was emotionally drained, embarrassed about my body, and I hated what I saw in the mirror. I did yo-yo dieting for years trying anything u can think of. In August 2012, I had to get a tumor removed. I was diagnosed with high cholesterol, diabetes, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and Hidradenitis suppurativa. I take meds for all these ailments. I decided then that I had to get my life together because death was knocking at my door. I’d done a lot of research and was determined to get my life back. I started juicing and cut out sugars and processed foods!! I workout at the YMCA 5 days a week!!  To date, I have lost 50 pounds on my own.  No pills, no laxatives, etc.  This has been a very hard journey. I’ve had some slips ups but I kept moving. I know that I have a long way to go, but I am determined.”

Jaymee weight loss before and after