I was 240 lbs at 5 feet 5 inches tall.
I felt Broken and Hopeless.

I was living life on the sidelines, too weak to play with my kids, and too tired to walk around the block.

I share these sensitive, personal stories to give you hope if you feel anything similar.

Believe me. I tried everything. Nothing worked. I tried cutting calories, eliminating meat, eating low-fat and whole grains. I did what doctors told me to do — the mainstream “healthy way” to eat and lose weight.

But oddly, I was always hungry and felt weak. I always failed, and I felt like there was something wrong with me. I thought I was a failure because I couldn’t make it. I was ashamed of myself. I thought I was a junk food addict.

I stuff Hot Pockets and Slim Jim’s in my coat pockets as snacks on the go. Snacking kept me going, and felt terribly guilty afterward.

I couldn’t make it up a flight of stairs without stopping. I couldn’t pick up or play with my kids because I was always exhausted. I would sit on the couch and sweat without doing anything. Just existing was work. It was very dark.

I missed so much time with my family. I have a husband and three small kids, and I couldn’t do anything with them. Being over 100 pounds overweight made moving so difficult that I just watched them. I didn’t interact with them. 

I felt worthless as a mom and a wife. Honestly, I gave up thinking that I could ever make a change. I had resigned myself to this depressing, painful, sick way of living was how it was going to be for me.

Here’s clip from class, talking about my situation back then.

If it’s seriously time to change so you can take care of your health, weight, and energy, then Let’s Talk about it.

Then, it all changed when …

— ONE —
I started doing it for the right reasons.

My Christian Coach helped me accept that I was loved by god, no matter what. I had worth. I had value. And I discovered His reasons for my life, which required me to want to get better, as I had completely given up.

For my kids. For my family. For my community. We all matter because we can all help each other. This meaningful look at life got me out of the darkness and led me to do the right things instead of all the short, quick-fix attempts that only leave you miserable.

This internal shift humbled me, helped me out of the dark, and guided me to the answers I needed. So, don’t go it alone.

— TWO —
I stopped cardio and started building strength.

I needed a more effective means to lose weight than cardio, cardio, cardio. I was so out of shape that I couldn’t walk a quarter of a mile. That was when I discovered functional fitness (a form of strength training), and then my energy returned, losing fat in the process.

At first, I was so weak that my first dumbbells were one pound each. I struggled with those for two straight weeks. Then, I moved up to three-pound weights. And that tiny improvement was when I realized that — no matter how hard it was, I could always do something, and the improvements would come.

— THREE —
I changed my eating habits.

In my research, I noticed that the people who strength train to lose weight had diets that were high in animal proteins (and of course, low in junk food). The animal protein part was interesting — very different than all the other diet approaches.

So I tried it and prayed it would help. Ben (my husband) and I started seeing the fat come off and strength return to our bodies. We were healing. We weren’t craving junk as much. We got stronger. We were onto something.

Now, I can piggyback my kids.
We’re also building a new house.

Today, 5 years later, I am using 37.5 pounds to 45 pounds in each arm. I’m 100 pounds lighter, and my diet has improved dramatically, but the best thing of all is that I’m no longer just a spectator in my own life.

I play with my kids, interact with them, and don’t have to stop because I’m out of breath or my knees and back are killing me after three minutes. I’m no longer sitting on the sidelines. I’m finally a part of the family again.

Important: God sees us as people to be cared for and loved, not as failures. Accepting who I was in God, that even though I misstep often, He doesn’t see me as a failure, changed my entire life into something that I truly thought was impossible 5 years ago.

don’t Go it alone.

I had to escape my dark thoughts, look higher, and listen to others.

I promise you that you’re worth it — EVEN if you don’t think so. It will take some work, BUT continuing as you are will only worsen things — and that’s hard work, too. I urge you to decide now to start working on this now.

Get help. Have courage. Have faith. Trust that things will get better if you start even the smallest of efforts. When I stopped trying to “do it my way,” let go of “pleasing others,” and accepted that “God loves me,” then I was more humble, steady, and able to make the changes needed.

I can help you too. Positive changes in dietary choices coupled with strength and mobility (aka functional fitness) are at the heart of wellness. As your coach, I will help you make achievable, sustainable goals, motivate you to stay on track, and be the accountability that you need to keep moving forward.

If you want me to start helping you, then Let’s Talk.

We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”

Remember 2 Corinthians 4:8-10,