*My Life Story*
My name is Erin and I am 20 years old (I'll be 21 in July of 2004). 2 years ago I was miserable, I lacked self confidence, I hated how I looked and I was always trying to do something drastic to get people to notice me. I always felt like I was the black sheep no matter where I went. Then Easter of 2002 we (my parents, sister and I) were invited out to a now non-existent family member's home to see her granddaughter (my second cousin, my cousin's daughter).
While we were out there I noticed that I had a really hard time keeping up with the baby who was only one years old at the time! My mom was taking pictures of me and the baby but as usual I felt uncomfortable because I felt like I was the biggest person there and as usual I was!
Later that week my mom had the pictures developed and she gave me the picture that had me and the baby in it. I was stunned...I couldn't believe that I had let myself get that way. I was wearing the biggest shirt and the largest pair of pants that I owned and you could still see every fat roll that was on my body. I immediately decided that I wanted to do something about it.
A lot of people say that family pictures, watching themselves on home videos, or even watching an emotional encounter on Oprah inspired them to lose weight. For me it was a photo and the way that I couldn't find any cute clothes to fit me like the normal "skinny" girls my age. There were also something other things that motivated me as well.
I was watching an old TV show rerun when a thought raced through my mind out of nowhere. If that actress can manage to work 10 hours a day, 5 days a week then I can manage to follow a weight loss plan and exercise for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week until I reached my goal.
So as it happened that next weekend I saw an ad on T. V for a local weight loss clinic called Medical Weight Loss and decided that I should check it out. Back in the day I belonged to Weight Watchers when I was only 15 and lost 25 pounds but when winter came I gained it all back plus more! I started Medical Weight Loss in April of 2002 and changed how I ate.
Instead of eating an entire bag of skittles it became ½ of the bag and then pretty soon I cut out candy all together! From April to the end of October I went from 284 pounds down to 242 pounds with very little exercise and watching what I was eating. I was walking around the neighborhood about 5 times a week for 30-60 minutes each day.
I finally decided that I needed more structure back into my life and on October of 2002 I walked into my local Weight Watchers and joined. My leader has always said the hardest thing for anyone to do is too walked thru the doors of their local WW. For joining WW again it has been one of the best experiences of my life (well ok second best).
One of the other things that is a BIG challenge for me to lose weight is that I have been diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) which makes it a lot HARDER to lose weight because I have too much of the wrong kind of hormone in my system. Having PCOS can cause infertility, menstrual problems, excess hair growth and obesity. To see if you have any of the symptoms of PCOS go to http://www.pcosupport.org
When you get to be my age (yeah I'm old right?) you realize that there are a lot of things in life that you are missing out because of your weight...I never could be a cheerleader or play basketball in high school because I was afraid of what people would think about that "fat girl out on the courts" but that didn't stop me from playing tennis...I worked hard every year by go to summer lessons and working my butt of during the season and in the end after four years I managed to have 2 "most improved player Medals" 1 "OAA Medal" and 1 "academic Medal" as well.
I also joined a gym in 2003 and try to work out for at least 45 minutes each day. I only do 15 minutes on a bike, 20 minutes on the elliptical machine and 10 minutes on the treadmill or stair stepper. I also bought myself an early Christmas present of a brand new treadmill! That way when I can't make it to the gym I can work out in the comforts of my own home.
I'll admit gaining 24 pounds from July to the beginning of April was hard but I'm more determined to lose it and lose the rest!
Hopefully I would like to be at my goal weight by my 22nd birthday but if not that is ok...I would just be happy with losing what I have! I can't wait to be healthier, thinner and a happier person for the rest of my life!
~*~ Erin~*~
