I am excited to be here. Like most of you, I have had a journey with my weight. Ups and downs!
I just turned 35 last week. I am a mother of two and happily married. I work as a banking consultant.
Growing up, I was rail thin. I ate everything that wasn't nailed down. It actually became part of my identity, "look at how much she can eat and how skinny she is." When I graduated high school I weighed 112 and I was working at a candy store that made homemade fudge and chocolates...which I snacked on every day!
Then I went to college and I stabilized at 125 for the first 3 years. I was exercising regularly and eating more healthily....until my senior year when I moved into a house with a couple of great cooks who cooked and ate a LOT. I ballooned up to 135 that year.
Fast forward to marriage...more weight as I ate man portions with my new hubby...then a stressful job and meals that were few and far between, but LARGE when finally eaten!
Then, I went through infertility and lost 3 babies to miscarriage, but managed to carry my son to term. Oh, boy...did I EAT while pregnant with him!! I weighed 195 lbs the day I had him.
I exercised and exercised after him, but was also battling a lifelong heart condition that was really irritated after pregnancy. I managed to get down to 140. But, after 2 more subsequent lost pregnancies, adopting my beautiful daughter, and the stress of balancing a family and career, I eventually dropped exercise and began to eat junk, again.
Last year, I began exercising again, but very modestly as my heart issues were still under poor control.
This March, I had a 2nd heart surgery to try and correct the heart rhythm problem I've had most of my life. So far, it seems to have been successful! The only downside is that without my heart flying into fast and erratic episodes...my metabolism is different. Obviously, a healthier heart is MOST important. Since I was cleared to take up exercise I have been trying to do some each week. I need to do it more. And I'm working to de-friend chips and other salty/fatty junk, fried foods, white carbs, etc. I am working hard to eat small and frequent meals and way up the veggies and drink lots of water.
One thing I am really wanting to explore is Pilates. I want to build my core strength and flexibility. I belong to Lifetime Fitness and love it there, but haven't tried their Yoga/Pilates studio yet.
My goal is to be a healthier and hotter girl at 35 than I was at 25