The Moment of Truth

 

Hesitantly, I lifted one foot and then the other onto the scale. It was the first time in months I had mustered enough courage to do this. I had a feeling the news wasn’t going to be good.

 

340 pounds. My moment of truth was revealed between my pudgy legs. I just stared at the number in horror.

How did I get to THAT number? How did I let my problem with food get so out of control? How was I going to bring that number down? How was I going to fix me?

It was time to stop blaming my gene pool for my problem with overeating and start putting a plan into action that would turn my life around.

I was 45-years-old and the excess weight I was carrying around was starting to slow me down faster than I wanted to admit. I had to do something. And fast.

But what? Where should I start?

I knew what hadn’t helped me in the past. The cabbage soup diet, low carb diet, grapefruit diet, Slim Fast and so many other things didn’t work for me. I am not one to join a group or work out my problems on a doctor’s couch. My gal pals are my harshest critics and most treasured confidants but I didn’t even tell them that I was embarking on a life-changing mission to lose at least 180 pounds. I had failed too many times before to overcome my obesity. So I quietly started to do my own research and didn’t tell anyone that I wanted to lose weight. A lot of weight.

This time was different. I was determined. I made the commitment and started to push my oversized butt up the proverbial hill. The harder I worked the lighter the load became.

Several months into the reduced-calorie-and-increased-exercise journey, I began to keep a journal. Paper and pen became my friend, my therapist and on some days, my worst critic. My mistakes, my humor, my reality were scrawled in blue pen as I embarked on a mission to lose the equivalent of another person. I was so tired of my overweight existence.

People ask me all the time how I lost the weight. Everyone wants the quick fix, the golden answer, a secret formula. But there isn’t one, except this: Start eating less and exercising.

My amazing transformation included a healthy dose of self-assessment and self-discipline and a healthy outlook on my relationship with food. It can’t be escaped or used as an escape from whatever is bothering you. Like many Americans I had let food overtake my body and it was starting to kill me.

I want to help you stop letting food overtake yours.

Tip 1: Face your fears and step on the scale. Every journey has a starting point.

Tip 2: Go to the bookstore and find a weight loss plan you think fits your lifestyle and tastes.

Tip 3: Make a commitment to take the time to do what it will take to change your life.

Tip 4: Make a commitment to no longer let food have power or sway over you.

Tip 5: Stay focused on your goal.