From the Ground Up

Mississippi, the leader in obesity, is where I call home.  My family struggles with weight problems.  Waffle House was open all night in my college town.  McDonald's asked me if I wanted to Super-Size my meal.  Southern hospitality means never refusing food that is offered to you.  Believe me, I've used every excuse in the book!  What I've come to realize is that excuses do not bring about positive change.  If you want positive change, you have to make positive choices.  However, please understand me when I say this...in no way am I insinuating that big isn't beautiful.  Hear and understand this...from my experience, big can be very beautiful but it is not always healthy.  America's leading cause of death is heart disease, which in many cases, is due to excessive, unhealthy weight.  My journey began five years ago, and it will continue the rest of my life.  To start a journey, you must first take a step.  No matter how small or insignificant it may seem at the time, progress has been made.  You deserve more than a life hindered or cut short because of your weight.  I know what you're thinking because I've thought it many, many times.  Your thought process is going something like this...well, I could just run to the store, grab some diet pills, eat 1000 calories each day, burn 500 with exercise, then once I get down to the weight that I want to be I can begin to taper off of the diet pills.  Does anyone see the problem here?  I didn't for a long time and would grow very frustrated every time I gained weight back!  We live in a society that wants and demands things instantly...everything from food to car detail to department store service.  We get impatient waiting in line and grow even more impatient if while we are waiting, facebook takes too long to load on our phones.  Our mentality when attempting to lose weight is the same.  Trust me when I say that a weight loss "quick fix" does nothing but make for a larger hurdle to jump over later.  You may get in those jeans or that bathing suit, but let's be logical people...1000 calories...you are going to stick with eating 1000 calories per day the rest of your life.  I don't think so...at least I couldn't.  This is when I learned that the hard way is the slowest way, but it is also the ONLY way to lose it, keep it off, get fit, and stay healthy.  Follow me as I relive my weight loss journey to lose 110 pounds, discuss what worked for me, and share new struggles and rewards along this lifelong journey.  Start your journey today...and remember...it's not a diet; it's a lifestyle!