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maintain weight loss

Arica has maintained her weight loss of over 100 pounds

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Update 2015: We shared Arica‘s weight loss story in May 2014 (she lost 107 pounds). She wrote in today to let us know that she’s he’s maintained her weight loss and started a group to help others.

Learn more about her weight loss journey in the original post.

Arica before and after

Hello everyone. My names is Arica. I was featured on this site last year. I am two years out from having the Sleeve Gastrectomy. Before weight loss surgery, I weighed 234 lbs. My lowest weight was 127 pounds and I’ve maintained a weight in the 130s for the last year. I exercise 5 days a week. I do not eat fast food, fried food, red meat, sweets or drink pop/juice. I’ve earned this body!

Healthy eating and fitness have become my new life style. I want to help other people achieve their goal of living a better life so I created a fitness group. It’s called Go Hard Or Go Home. This is the group that you join if you’re SERIOUS about LOOSING WEIGHT, HEALTHY EATING & FITNESS. We don’t coddle. We don’t procrastinate. We don’t whine. We don’t make EXCUSES. We Do give hard love. We DO achievements. BIG & SMALL. We do what’s necessary to get the results that we want. In this group… We GO BIG OR GO HOME!

Update Jan 2016: “I became a personal trainer with an additional cert in fitness nutrition. I would like to take this knowledge and help others reach their goal to be healthy. I specialize in bariatric patients. You can inbox me or email me at fitthisfitness@yahoo.com”

arica before and after

Mickey lost 62 pounds

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Weight Loss Story of the Day: Mickey lost 62 pounds and went from a size 18 to a size 10.  She also maintained her weight loss for a whole year.  Check out her story to find out how she did it…

Mickey before and after

Nov 5, 2012 is The day I said enough is enough! The day I said I choose to be happy! The day I said I choose to be healthy! The day I said I want to inspire! The day I said I’m never going to give up! The day I said I never want to look in the mirror again to see what I’m looking at!! I meant it! I mean it! I’m still doing it!  Never going back! Doesn’t matter if I’m not where I want to be! What matters is I’m nowhere where I used to be!! 

I had to change just about everything I was doing. I threw everything in the garbage that was junk and unhealthy and started new. I used meal replacements (Herbalife) for breakfast and lunch ate a sensible dinner – 4-8oz protein, 2 cups of veggie 1/2 complex carbs and had 2 snacks in between. 

I completed 4 rounds of Insanity. I also incorporated running outside and when it got cold I went to the gym. I worked out 5 days a week for about 1:45 hours each time. (Example: Cardio 60 mins and then weight training for 45 mins.)

I was 5’2″ weighing 222 pounds it went to size 18. Today I weigh 160 pounds and I’m wearing a size 10.  I lost the weight in 1 year and maintained my weight loss the next year. Now I’m back and going hard to lose more pounds and tone. New results coming soon.

If I could do it so could you! It’s possible! Never compare your journey to someone else’s!  This is why I smile. This is why I love helping people on their weight-loss journey! My advice to others would be to…
1. Have monthly goals and write them down.
2.Dont hide the fact your trying to lose weight. Let your friends and family know your changing your lifestyle to a more healthier one.
3. Track your journey. Take weekly pics and measurements. You’d be amazed of watching the process and how all the small numbers add up to a new you!

Instagram: @blknricanluv

Mickey blknricanluv

Update: Leslie shares how she lost 22 more pounds

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Update March 2016: Leslie lost more than 120 pounds and has kept the weight off for 2 years. I will never give up still at it sending blessings your way! Your vision is impacting the lives of many and I’m one of them!

Check out her updates below and the original post we did on her story in April 2014.

leslie weight loss journey

Update March 2015: Leslie has lost 22 more pounds for a total of 120 pounds gone.  She wrote in to share this update…

leslie weight loss story

I have lost 120 pounds thus far and I know God ain’t through with me yet! I lost the additional pounds by getting back on my Herbalife Nutrition Plan, working out no less than 3 times a week and adding weight lifting! The biggest lesson I learned is that I was the only person holding myself back from achieving my goals and that with determination and faith all things are possible! The advice I have for others is work with people who have the same goals you have. I suggest they have no negative self talk, stay off the scale and make better choices daily! Treat yourself to one cheat meal a week too!!! Live a little, get out there and enjoy life! My Uupdated Instagram name is: @PriestBaby01 By changing your life, others lives are changed. It starts with the one looking back in the mirror!

Update June 2014:
We shared Leslie’s story back in April of this year.  She was down 71 pounds and now she’s lost an additional 27 pounds for a total of 98 pounds gone.  Here is what she shared with us about her continued progress (check out her updated photos too):

Leslie weight loss

“I lost an additional 27 pounds by taking my efforts up a notch. In terms of eating right, I cut out the starchy foods and ate little to no carbs! I also made sure that I was never eating too late at night. My last meal is usually around 6 PM. Even though I use herbalife products, I had to get more aggressive in terms of my workouts so I committed to doing Chalene Extreme Workouts along with my program. In terms of motivation, I use accountability partners and I meet with a group least 3 times a week to do group workouts! I simply asked a few friends who lives close if they want to workout! We keep each other on point, no excuses! I listen to my body and when it tells me to rest I do! My advice to others is start fresh each week like it’s the first day on your journey! I encourage everyone to burn off the same amount of calories they consumed each day if they are able. If not, at least try to get in 4 workouts a week! I also suggestion snacking on fruits and veggies combined with small portions of protein in between meals. Spend your calories like you spend money. Only spend what’s really needed lol! I’m motivated by prayer, reading of the word and connecting with more individuals who have like minded goals.  I’ve connected with people who are active in this lifestyle of good health!

Read more about how she lost the weight in our previous post on Leslie’s journey.

Leslie before and after Leslie before and after

Update: Ashley lost a total of 75 pounds

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Update: We featured Ashley’s story a year ago when she’d lost 50 pounds.  She wrote in this month to let us know that she has not only maintained her weight loss, but now down 25 more pounds. Check out how she is continuing to transform her body and build a healthy lifestyle below. (Check out her new pics too!)  You can read the original post on how she lost the weight here.

watch me melt instagram ashley

Through consistent clean eating, learning what works best for my body shape, & going hard in the gym (weights & High Intensity Interval Training cardio), I’ve managed to drop tons of inches & body fat.  As you can see it takes time, & I’m still pushing to get my body fat % lower. Follow my journey on Instagram: @WatchMeMelt & Facebook.com/watchmemelt2

Since I sent my last picture, I had to grow mentally and spiritually. I realized that losing weight wasn’t for a birthday, event, vacation, holiday, etc. Instead, it is about living a OVERALL healthier life. With fitness, I learned that I must always continue to push myself. If it is too easy, it will not create the change I am looking for.

I maintain my weight by continuing to eat a clean diet with plenty. I also learned with fitness that you do not need to do endless hours of cardio. I learned to incorporate HIIT training and weights to further sculpt my body.

My biggest challenge has always been food. I love sweets but I have learned about the ingredients in them and how they cause us to continue craving and wanting more. Therefore, I now allow myself to eat sweets in moderation (1 x a week). This helps me to stay focused mentally and on track. I still have a good 20 pounds I would like to lose and I will eventually reach my goal. So far, I am down 75 pounds (25 more since the last story) .

My message to the women who find me inspirational:

1) Learn WHY your changing your eating habits and incorporating healthier foods is good for you. Watch documentaries that talk about animal meat, obesity in America, and the preservatives in packaged foods. We all know that we want to lose weight, but understanding WHY you gained it in the first place will help you to make healthier options.

2) Do it because you want to live an overall healthier life vs just looking good for your family reunion or some other event. Once that event is over, guess what will happen? You will slowly gain that weight (and more) back!

3) Don’t overwhelm yourself. Make small changes and overtime they will become big. Live your life and don’t become obsessed with weight loss. It will happen…trust me!

Ashley weight loss story

Weight Loss Story of the Day: Bernadette lost 73 pounds

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Weight Loss Story of the Day: Bernadette lost 73 pounds.  She decided that enough was enough and that she wanted to like what she saw in the mirror.  She changed her eating habits and started exercising regularly to reach her goals.  Read more about her weight loss journey:

Bernadette weight loss story

“I’m Bernadette Robinson and I wanted to share my story. I started my weight loss journey in November 2012. I hated my overall look and decided to change it. My starting weight was 267 pounds. After dieting and exercising 3-4 times out the week, I ended dropping down to 194 pounds by March 2013. That’s a total weight loss of 73 pounds and I’ve maintained my weight loss. I knew how hard it was to begin my journey, but that’s the thing. I began and I conquered!

I was looking at myself one day and I was tired if what I was seeing. Fat, rolls, tummy lol. I started eating more vegetables (because lord knows I wasn’t eating nearly as enough as I should have been). I drank lots of water and cut out sodas completely. I also ate smaller portions instead really big meals. For exercise, I worked out at the gym 3 times a week. I workout on the treadmill, elliptical machine and stationary bike.  I do squats, pull-ups and 150 crunches a day. The advice that I would give to others is: If you want to change the way you look, do something about it! I know it is not easy to make that first step, but it does get easier in the long run! Most importantly, do it for YOU.”

Bernadette before and after Bernadette before and after

Donesha’s Story Featured in Women’s Health Magazine

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Update 2016 – 100 pounds gone!

Let’s get ready to DO WORK this week bc nothing is going to WORK but WORK!!! I am still in awe with what God has allowed me to do with my body from the inside/out! ?? Looking as good as I wanted to look on the left on the outside but slowly killing myself on the inside! I had to learn to get over what it LOOKED like & start taking care of myself from the inside/out! I didn’t commit to this lifestyle right away & actually was on a yoyo gaining & losing the same 10lbs. My trainer wanted it for me but I didn’t want it bad enough for myself! You have to want this change to take place & be willing to lose it ALL so that you can gain so much more!!! I am 5’3 & have been over 230lbs & nothing but WORK has placed me where I am today! When I changed my mindset there wasn’t anything that could stop me. I started feeling better, I became a better TT, a better educator & a better person! I am on an assignment by God to help as many people get their health on track & I am not the # of people that follow me bc all that matters is that I inspire someone to get it right while they have a chance. If you ever meet me you will know that I’m just a silly lady in love with taking care of her health & helping others do the same! I pray you go above & beyond for YOURSELF this week!!! Let’s Work!!! #muscles #motivation #dedication #determination #nodaysoff #noexcuses #training #T4ML #gohard #gymrat #running #results #bgr #bgwt #beastmode #fitness #fitchick #fckbeingfat #essence #igfitness #DIEFATDIEE #CARDIO #weights #weightloss #weightlossjourney #polara360 #Nike

A photo posted by training4mylife (@training4mylife) on

Congrats to BWLW inspiration Donesha Bolden for her feature in the June 2014 issue of Women’s Health Magazine.  We featured her story back in Dec 2013. She lost 82 pounds and is still going strong (she lost one more pound since our feature and gained muscle/definition).  She is an inspiration! Check out her update and her new photos below.

Donesha weight loss

“Hi, I wanted to update you with some new pics and the news of my story being featured in Women’s Health Magazine. This is a great accomplish for African American ladies! Thanks for your Facebook, Web & Internet pages because they truly keep me motivated!

I have started a serious weight lifting program with my trainer and I’m working on decreasing my body fat by building muscle. I am currently 138 pounds so there might be a pound or so more gone since I was featured in December. I am a lot leaner since I was featured. One of the most important things that I have learned about weight loss is that if I thought it was hard to get it off its even harder to keep it off. This is not something that has an end date. It’s a lifestyle and I am committed to staying healthy for the rest of my life

In the past, I was that lady that was afraid of looking like a man so in the beginning I was afraid to lift but now I see just how wrong I was about lifting weights. Muscle burns FAT so it’s necessary.” – Instagram: @training4mylife

How did she do it? Click here for more info about how she lost the weight.

Donesha before and afterDonesha before and after Donesha before and after

Weight Loss Story of the Day: Kimberly lost 90 pounds

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kimberly before and afterUpdate – Shout out to Kim. We have followed her for a few years and she has maintained her 90 lbs weight loss. (read more about how Kim lost the weight below): I wanted to give you an update as to my journey! By the grace of God, I am still down 90 pounds. Oct 10th was my fitness anniversary, marking 4 years that I have been able to keep the weight off. My best advice for others is to love yourself where you are. Getting healthier is the goal, weight-loss is the bonus. To maintain my weight loss I have kept a consistent cardio plan, but I now have added strength training into my workout routine. My toning results are amazing. I still go vegetarian twice a year for a system cleansing and of course I limit my intake any foods that weren’t cooked in a healthy way.

During my weight loss journey, I have had so many women reach out to me to help them start their journey. I always ran from it because I am not a trainer and I don’t have the stereotypical gym body that people associate with health and fitness. Finally, one day I accepted the vision that God gave me and I created “Team Curvy and Healthy”. Team Curvy and Healthy is a empowerment movement for women of all shapes and sizes to embrace their body. So many of us work out 4-7 days a week and eat clean, but we are not stick thin or completely chiseled. Many people are body shamed at the gym that they don’t even want to go. Team Curvy and Healthy is empowering for everyone to love themselves! It’s a movement!


Update May 2014 – Weight Loss Story of the Day:  We featured Kimberly’s story back in 2012 and she has not only maintained her weight loss for 2 years, she’s lost 6 more pounds.  Read more about her journey and check out her weight loss video below:

Check out our original post from 2012 for more info on how she did it.

Kimberly Rainey Weight Loss Story

“You posted my story back in 2012 and I wanted to give you an update. I am now 90 pounds down. Through diet and exercise, I have been able to maintain my weight and even lose more. I still believe in no diet pills, surgery or anything unnatural for weight loss. I try to eat a clean diet.  Every 6 months or so, I go completely vegan for 9 days. I am so excited to see so many women on the path to healthier living. Giving God all the glory, I have had several people thank me as their weight loss inspiration as they have started and STUCK to their plans. I have a updated photo for you. My original YouTube video of Kim Rainey’s weight loss journey is still up and because of your Facebook feature it had over 5,000 views! I am so appreciative of you spreading the word of health and fitness with our sisters!”

kimraineybeforeafter2014

Update: Felicia lost 67 pounds

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Update: We featured Felicia’s story on December 20, 2013.  She has lost an additional 14 lbs and only 4 lbs away from her goal weight. That’s a total weight loss of 67 pounds.Felicia weight loss story
“So much has happened since my original story posted and I had no idea how much of an inspiration I was for other people. I have successfully completed a round of Shaun T’s T25 Beachbody program, as well as became a licensed ZUMBA instructor! I am currently down to 139 pounds (original weight: 206 pounds) and that number on the scale no longer matters to me. I am HAPPY!!!!!! I have received so many positive emails, messages and comments and this website here remains my number one favorite. Thank you for all that you do with highlighting the success of our beautiful black women.”

Read our original post from December to find out how she lost the weight.  Check Felicia out on Instagram: @she_did_that313

Felicia Weight Loss

Original Photo (Dec 2013)

Felicia weight loss blog

 

Shawana lost 40 and and kept the weight off

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Today’s featured weight loss story: Shawana lost 40 pounds in 2012 and kept the weight off even after having a baby girl earlier this year.  This proud and busy mom of 7 ate healthy and did not go overboard with pregnancy pounds.  Read her story:

shawana weight loss success

“Greetings!! My name is Shawana Livingston and I have been inspired to share my story. I am a 35 year old wife, mother of seven, student and Minister who has had success in losing weight, although I still have a ways to go. I began my transformation in 2011 after weighing in a 280 (the first picture). In the second picture, taken in March 2012, I lost about 40 pounds due to exercise and healthy eating.  I really worked hard, with nothing but exercise and changing my  eating habits. I stopped eating pork and beef and I now enjoy working out, and feeling great. One month after the 2nd picture, we went on family vacation to the beach and we got pregnant on April 1st 2012, coincidentally April Fool’s day!! (God has a great sense of humor:) Instead of over-eating during my pregnancy, I still maintained a healthy routine and only gained six pounds the entire time. I gave birth on January 8th, 2013 to our last little baby girl. I took the third picture about 3 weeks ago to track my progress.

If I could say anything to your followers it would be to stay motivated, despite anything you may come against. I have a busy schedule but always try and make time to do some kind of workout. I am not where I want to be physically, but I can thank God because I am not where I used to be. There has been progress and it is important to celebrate your success, no matter how small. The weight will come off if you stay persistent but you are the only one that can do something about it. Find your inner strength and go for it!!”

6 Essential Habits for Losing Weight and Keeping it Off

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healthy habits weight lossLosing weight is really difficult to start with, but on top of that we all want to keep the weight off for good. There are healthy habits you can adopt NOW in order to increase your chances of keeping the weight off long term. Here are 6 tips that can help.

1. Don’t call what you’re doing a “diet.” This will set you up for failure immediately. Diets are quick, short term solutions for weight loss that usually are not permanent. If you are looking for permanent, long term weight loss, you need to think about it as a lifestyle change. Diets aren’t bad; they can help kick your metabolism into gear so that you can lose weight more easily. But a diet isn’t going to give you long-term success; changes in your lifestyle and food choices will.

2. Set weight loss goals. Goals are one of the most important parts of the weight loss process. The problem is, too many people say “I want to lose x number of pounds.” That is great but sometimes it’s not enough in terms of goal setting. Instead, start making your lifestyle changes gradually and make several mini-goals at a time. Sure, you can say that you want to lose 100 lbs, but it may be easier to stay motivated if you say you want to lose 10 pounds in the next 6 weeks or that you want to be able to walk a mile in addition to losing weight.

3. Reward yourself. …but please don’t make the mistake of rewarding yourself with food. If you can create rewards that are encouraging, but don’t involve messing up your lifestyle changes, they can be really good motivators. Effective rewards are desirable, timely, and contingent on meeting a particular goal. Use several smaller rewards for smaller goals, too. For example, if you went through a month of walking for 30 minutes every day, you can reward yourself with a haircut or a trip to the spa.

4. Figure out why you gained weight in the first place. Your Big WHY! – This is one of the hardest parts of maintaining long-term weight loss, but you do have to do some self evaluation. Why did you start overeating in the first place? What happened that made you want to overeat? Was there a life event/trauma? Were you struggling with a hormonal imbalance like PMS or a chemical imbalance that caused mood issues? Do you have a health issue? What happened to make you start neglecting your diet? Once you figure that out, you need to take steps that help you deal with those issues effectively later on. This will help you prevent similar issues in the future.

5. Understand portion sizes. If you understand how portion sizes are supposed to work, you’re going to be better off. We have an issue in the United States where we fill our plates to overflowing, and you really can’t do this. Even healthy foods can be bad if your portions are too big. A good rule to go by is the “fist rule.” A serving of healthy food is about the size of your fist; the smaller you are the smaller your fist is, and the smaller your portions will be. Keeping a food diary can help control your potions too.

6. Follow the 80/20 rule. You don’t have to be perfect all of the time, trust me. The key is balance and moderation. It’s going to take a lot of effort to maintain this lifestyle, so it’s okay to slack every once in awhile. If you live by healthy habits 80% of the time, slacking a little for the other 20% is okay (as long as you don’t go absolutely crazy and ruin what you did all week). Give yourself a treat on the weekend after being “good” all week.