Where I Started...

This was taken on September 25, 2010 at my birthday party.  I turned 30 the next day.  This year, more than any other, I evaluated who I was and what I wanted to be... what GOD wanted me to be.  I felt a strong calling to "start over" and get back down to the basics.  That included my health.

This spring, I tipped the scale weighing 227 pounds... weighing more than I EVER had before (even 9 months pregnant).  I was a size 20 jean and wearing XXL.  I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia in April.  I was depressed, tired and sore ALL THE TIME.  I knew something had to change before it was too late.

I had heard that after 30 it is harder to change your weight and your lifestyle habits.  It gets even harder after 40.  I knew I needed to embrace this year as a chance to change what I looked like and what I felt like.

In this picture I weighed 212 pounds.  Still way too much, but I had been working toward the goal to weigh less with roller coaster results.  I'm proud of what progress I had made this summer, but I wanted the results to be permanent.  I knew my LIFESTYLE had to change, not just my diet... and not just this year, but for all the years to come.