Pictures and Changes

Here is my collection of pictures that document my journey to becoming fitter and healthier:

Growing up I was a normal weight with long legs. I loved swimming and dancing.

My issues with weight began in middle school. I was hitting puberty and my body was changing but ahead of every other girl I knew. I felt ashamed of my changing body -- the hips and boobs. I developed bad posture as a result of trying to hide my breasts.

This was taken before my junior prom. I had the hardest time finding a dress. This is actually the second dress I bought. I had gained too much weight to wear the other.

This was right before graduation from high school. I was big and I knew it. I didn't like the way I looked. I had decided/accepted that I was a heavy girl. I thought I'd never be the normal girl size.

This picture was taken in December 2004. I didn't care about weight and didn't think about it. However, I never liked the way I looked in pictures but never connected the two. In this picture I am smaller than I was my senior year in high school so I thought everything was fine.

This picture was taken in July 2005. I thought this was the best I was ever going to look.

This picture was taken on one of the best days of my life. Too bad I didn't look my best.

These pictures were taken in July and August 2006. I was engaged and knew the wedding was coming. I had began planning the wedding but was not planning or doing things to lose weight. I think I thought it would just happen. However, when I saw the engagement pictures I cried (big tears) because I thought I looked so fat in the pictures. The night I saw the pictures, I decided that I didn't want to be upset looking at my wedding pictures so I decided I needed to lose weight.

This picture was taken in May 2007. I had spent the last 5 months working to lose weight and had lost about 15 pounds. I looked good and felt good. However, I was not confident enough with my body to buy or wear a bikini.

On my wedding day (July 2007)... I had lost the weight and felt and looked great! My only regret with the wedding planning process was that I wished I had lost the weight before going dress shopping (June 2006). I was so discouraged going dress shopping when I was heavier that I hired someone to make the wedding dress for me. It turned out beautifully! But I never experienced that "wow" moment when I put the perfect dress on.

Between getting married (July 2007) and November 2008, I slowly gained weight. I thought that the only purpose for working out was to lose weight. So when I didn't need to lose weight for a big event, I lost focus and motivation to workout and eat well. I probably gained about 5-8 pounds during that time.... happy, married weight, I guess.

In November 2008, I had an appointment with my OBGYN we discussed that I probably have PCOS. This will likely make getting pregnant difficult. She suggested that keeping my weight down will help me in getting pregnant. When I realized and processed that piece of information, everything about working out and nutrition changed! I slowly stopped eating processed foods and re-focused on working out. I began running and set running goals. I wanted to run a 5K!

These pictures was taken in late May 2009 after running our first 5K. I was excited to have completed it. We both never saw ourselves as runners so to have run a 5K is AMAZING to us!

Later that month I wore a bikini for the first time in about 10 years.

In the months that followed the 5K, we trained for and ran an 8K in Husband's hometown. I felt strong, proud and happy with my body.



I still have many fitness and weight loss goals. I want to run a 10K and a half-marathon. I would love to gain more muscle mass. I want my body to be healthy and strong. I want Husband and I to continue to become healthier and I want to be able to have a fit family. I want to encourage others to be healthy!

This journey towards fitness/health has been amazing! I have learned so much and continue to learn, which I love! Like any journey there have been peaks and valleys