The Beginning

 Everybody has to start somewhere, right?! Well, let me give you a tiny overview of my weight loss and health journey. 

21 years old and just graduated nursing school:

I remember standing at the nursing desk and my friend saying she "couldn't eat the donuts" a doctor had brought in for us. I said, "why in the world would you NOT want a donut?!" She says, "I'm on a diet..." I said I have never done that before, what do you mean? This is my first memory of myself and thinking, "do I need to diet?"

The only exercise I had intentionally done was softball. Even in high school, that fell to the wayside. From this point on, I've worried about my weight. 

The day of the donuts set the groundwork for what was to come. AND THEN OF COURSE, I became pregnant within that first six months after college. I gained 35 pounds- respectable and appropriate. But, after the delivery, I felt TERRIBLE about myself. I was able to lose 40 pounds after the birth of my son. I feel my success was because my husband was overseas and my son wasn't asking for chicken nuggets and macaroni cheese quite yet! lol. I went to the YMCA 3x a week and did cardio 20-30 minutes on an elliptical and resistance 30-60 minutes. 

Once my husband came home from the army, the weight slowly packed back on. Then in 2007, I was diagnosed with Lupus. I had to take high dose steroids and an oral chemotherapy to help suppress the lupus activity. Ever since this time, the weight loss has been a significant struggle AND nothing has been consistent or easy.