I wasn't
always fat. I did have a slight weight problem when I hit the
summer before I entered the 3rd grade. I had spent that summer
with my grandma in Florida, and lets just say she made awesome
banana bread! LOL! When I got back from Florida, my mom put me on
a "diet" and made me ride my bike 20 times around our
neighborhood after every meal. Weight wise, I was ok until I hit
the 5th grade, when I choked on a piece of butterscotch candy.
From there, I wouldn't eat because I was afraid I would choke
again, and I lost a lot of weight which put my health in danger.
It wasn't until my parents threatened to take me to the hospital
so that I could be fed through a tube that I started nibbling on
food again. Once again, my weight was what I refer to as
"normal". I can't say I was really skinny, I just wasn't
obese. I can recall stashing food in my bedroom and making stops
into the convenience store on the way to school to get candy bars
and pop tarts. I think I did this because my mom wouldn't let us
have these things at home. I'm not saying we were deprived or
anything, I just couldn't have these things when I wanted. I
stashed my "goodies" for whenever the cravings hit. My
food intake was watched closely by my mom, so there were times
when I was starved out of my mind! I can remember coming home from
school and nobody would be there, so I'd head straight for the
fridge, or for the cake, or something that was left from the night
before. I'd stand in front of the window and eat while I watched
for my mom to come home. I'd then run to my room and pretend
I'd been there the whole time. :)
I guess my real weight
problem started when I got my first job at the age of 16. It was at a
fast food restaurant. I thought it was the greatest thing! See, I hadn't
had much fast food before I got the job, so naturally I had to try
everything! LOL! What made it bad was we got a 50% discount on employee
meals. What made it really bad was when we worked hard, the manager
would give us free meal cards. I hardly ever had to pay for my
meals. I was eating there constantly. Sometimes I would eat dinner
at home, then when I got to work, I'd have a shake and french fries, or
cookies and some chicken nuggets. My choices were never healthy by any
means. LOL!
I graduated from high school
and moved on to a foodless job, but my eating habits didn't change. My
mom decided to enroll us both in Diet Workshop meetings. We both had
about 50 pounds to lose, and my mom successfully made her goal. I on the
other hand lost less than 20 pounds. I couldn't do it. The restrictions
on what I couldn't eat were just too much. I found myself cheating more
and more, and I finally quit.
Over the next 10 years,
I steadily put on 10 pounds a year. I tried various diets, all of
which were part of my "New Year Resolutions".
After the last "diet" failed, I just figured I was
doomed to live out the remainder of my life obese. I had no
energy, my knees and ankles hurt all of the time, I was
experiencing severe headaches and occasional chest pains (I think
that may have been more mental than physical). I honestly didn't
think I would live to see my 30th birthday (I'm 28 now). When I
looked into the mirror, I didn't recognize the person I use to be.
I'd had enough!!! I was ready to seriously change my life.
One night when I was
searching the web for a new diet, I came across a few personal
Weight Watcher web sites. They talked about how each food had a
point value, and I could eat whatever I wanted as long as I
counted the points and still lose weight. The more I read, the
more I wanted to join. I immediately talked to my mom and she said
she had been thinking of joining too! We signed up, and here we
are. This is the first time I've stayed on any plan for more than
a couple of weeks and I'm still enjoying it. I feel like a whole
new person, and I know with each pound I lose, I'm closer to being
the person I really want to be!
If you're reading this
and your story sounds anything like mine or even close, I
challenge you to make a difference in your life to take the first
step to a new you! I know you can do this! I'm going to vanish my
fat twin from my body and I know you can too! I'll see you on the
lighter side! :)
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