In January 2003 my Mom passed away and I gained a lot of weight right afterward. It was the middle of that year that I reached my all-time high (non-pregnant) weight. I was miserable and I was huge (extra weight on a short 5'2" body really shows, too!). I joined Weight Watchers and did a little swiming at the local YMCA and managed to lose a little weight (20 pounds, but not many inches) but it all came back.

In 2004 I joined Curves and while it was good in the beginning, it quickly became a boring workout and was doing nothing for me. When my 1-year membership expired in April 2005, I joined L.A. Fitness gym and hired a personal trainer. I remember the day I signed up for my trainer. I was scared ... what the heck was I getting myself into?? I had never been a lover of exercise. In fact, I had never even LIKED it! haha. In fact, I would do pretty much anything to avoid it. I told the person that was signing me up that I didn't want a trainer that was going to yell at me or make me cry ROFL so she put me with Carlos. Carlos has been so great from Day 1. Even when he makes me to do crunches on the incline bench (my least favorite!) , or running lines on the basketball court, I appreciate everything he does for me.

For that first year I was working out 5-6x a week (3x a week with my trainer), yet my weight was not going down. My food was out of control. In March of 2006 I started calorie counting, eating low-fat and high (lean) protein, and watching carbohyrate intake. I didn't take it to the point of doing Atkins, which I am FIRMLY against, but I did limit my intake of sugar, potatoes, pasta, and bread. I still ate plenty of carbs, but they were the healthy ones ... fruits, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains. What a difference when you combine healthy eating with exercise (who would have thought! hahaha).

I am now 29 pounds less than last year, but 48 pounds lighter than my all-time high weight the year my mom died. I've gone from a size 16/18 to a size 10. I have gained a lot of lean muscle, which has resulted in a lot of inches lost. I am learning not to gauge my success just by what the scale shows. Inches are so much more important. At one point last summer, a 4-pound weight loss yielded a full size down in clothing. I love what strength training does for a body. For the first time in my life, I actually weigh less than what it says on my driver's license!!!!

I would like to lose 17 more pounds to reach my goal, or be a size 6 ... whichever comes first. I feel great and I am so happy. I am in the best shape of my life and I will not go back to the way I was. One of my biggest regrets is that I didn't do this years ago. But, it's never too late to take control.

You can view my progress pictures up until this point by clicking here.