Background

The earliest memory I have of being "fat" was in elementary school. I was a pudgy kid; and the taunts of "Miss Piggy" reverberated in my ears for years.

Later in elementary school, and then throughout junior high and high school, I was very involved in sports. This was a blessing and a curse, as it enabled me to eat (basically) whatever I wanted, without seeing or feeling the after-effects of my poor nutrition choices. I wore a size 4 or 6 (if memory serves me correctly).

Even in college, I went to a large University where walking 5+ miles per day to get to classes, bus stops, etc was common. Although the walking was good exercise, the alcohol, late night munchies, and bad eating habits carried over from high school. Without the hours and hours of strenuous exercise, my body wasn't able to burn all of the calories I was ingesting. Thus began the weight gain. The "college uniform" of jeans, flip flops, and loose t-shirts every day is not conducive to body-awareness. Plus, my body gains weight very evenly, so I wasn't "tipped off" to my change in proportion until i saw a full-length picture of myself.

My junior year of college (2004), I went on the "South Beach" diet (i.e. low carb, high protien). I went from 160 pounds to 140 by eliminating sugars, flour, starches etc. Unfortunately, I LOVE CARBS! Potatoes? YES! Pasta? You betcha! Bread? Uh-huh! As you can guess, the weight came back on the minute I re-introduced carbs into my daily diet.

After getting engaged to my wonderful (now) Hubby in 2006, I joined Weight Watchers at Work. My starting weight was 170 pounds. I lost around 20 pounds, and weighed around 155 at my wedding in 2007.

After the wedding, Hubby and I both slipped into complacency. (Shocking, I know!) At our one-year anniversary (2008), I pulled out the (dusty, forgotten) scale, and to my horror, I weighed even more than when I had started WW before the wedding.

Thus began my 2nd go at WW@Work. I started this (most recent) stretch of the journey at 178 pounds (March 2008) and this time, I'm committed to seeing it through.

I want to reach a healthy BMI.
I want to feel confident in a swimsuit.
I want to not have tightness in my chest.
I want to be a positive role model for my parents, Hubby, and (someday) Children.

I look forward to finding friends along this journey, and wish you all success in your own endeavors.