Welcome to my Diet Book!
I am Valerie, a 35-year-old mother of two who has been engaged on a personal-transformation journey for the past year or so.
Like many people, I have been struggling with my weight off and on since adolescence. Ironically and sadly, also like many women I didn’t really have a need to lose weight when I began – but I yo-yoed my way into a big problem. I was fat, unhealthy, unhappy, and disgusted with my life. At my heaviest, I weighed 210 pounds on a 5′4″ frame, and suffered from high blood pressure, GERD, hypoglycemia, joint problems, and a variety of other medical issues directly attributable to my weight.
It wasn’t until last June that I truly realized just how bad I had gotten, and that there was only one way to change things – to really and truly make a change. I was helped to this realization by stumbling across the Biggest Loser Online Club, a weight-loss site spun off from the NBC series. Now, say what you like about the series or its commercialism – this site has been a life-saver.
Since June I have lost around 50 or 60 pounds, but have only kept off about 35. I am, however, holding steady at that 35, and have decided that I am ready to get myself back under control and take care of the last 35. At my height and with my build, my doctor would like for me to weigh 150 pounds. I would like to weigh around 140, but I recognize that with increased muscle mass and tone, I may not need to go so far. So for the moment, my goal is 150, and may be revised as necessary.
This blog is my way of recording the journey as I try to integrate a healthy, successful lifestyle change into a schedule that is hectic at best, and unmanageable at worst. I have not, so far, been successful at integrating my new lifestyle with a recently-acquired second job; the resulting lack of time and sleep and increased stress have been a significant thorn in my side. I am determined, however, to overcome these obstacles – and this blog will hopefully serve as a roadmap for anyone else on the same path.
Wish me luck! (Though of course luck doesn’t enter into it; hard work, common sense and self-discipline are what it’s really about!)
