Amanda

Growing up, I was always chubby. Finally, in my teenage years, the "baby fat" started to disappear. When I became pregnant, the pounds really started to pile on. I guess I didn't realize that only 20 of the 60 pounds I had gained would come off after my baby was born. Although I used to wear size 7 clothes, I was now a size 18. Within weeks after my daughter's birth, I gained even more.

After a couple of months, I managed to get down to a size 14, feeling much better about myself. My husband also seemed to be very happy about the weight loss, however, this did not last long. It got to a point where he would ridicule me so badly about my weight, that I became very self-conscious. I even paid $50.00 a week to some weight loss clinic so that I could eat disgusting pre-packaged food and be humiliated by having to weigh in 3 times a week, all the while sneaking ice cream sandwiches.

Pregnant for the second time and newly divorced, I realized that I needed to do something about my physical appearance. After the birth of my second daughter, I became more realistic about my weight loss plan. I exercised every day and started to eat healthy foods. In no time, I was a size 7 again.

Finally I met the man of my dreams. In this new, happy relationship, I started to become comfortable, cooking "real meals"; going out for steak dinners and everything else that goes with dating. I started to gain the weight back slowly. Now it's 6 years later and 89 pounds heavier. It is hard to motivate yourself when your husband doesn't have a shallow bone in his body and loves me for who I am. So you may be asking yourself, "Why now?" Shocking enough, it's not the way I look in the mirror. I'd be a liar if I said that didn't bother me, however, it's bother me for quite some time and still not motivated me. The reasons I have decided to make the commitment now are this; I sit at a computer or in my car all day and can not stand the way my lower back feels most of the time. I got sick of the discomfort of wearing a bra. I did not like the fact that when I woke up in the morning and stood up out of bed that I would almost fall back down because my feet were numb from poor circulation. Lastly, the biggest reason, FOR MY HEALTH! I have two beautiful daughters who I want to live very long for and who I want to know about living a healthy lifestyle. The last thing that I want for them is to go through some of the emotional turmoil that I have. I want living a healthy and active lifestyle for them to be like second nature.