My Journey: Part I

Hi, I'm Jennifer and I am addicted to...unhealthy food. 

I'd be curious to know people's initial reaction to that.  Is she serious? Is that real? Surely it's just a joke. 

No joke.  It's real.  Trust me!   

  I have struggled with weight my ENTIRE life. My whole life, from the time I can remember. I grew up in the 80's and 90's. I grew up in the fads of Jane Fonda, Richard Simmons, and Chrissy from Three's Company and that damned thigh machine. Slim Fast, Metabolife, Cabbage Soup were all at some point a big part of my life.  In all the years I can remember being fat, I can also remember the diets I was on.  From the time I was 10 years old I was on a diet. 

  Being young, I was just told this isn’t how you are supposed to look, take this and you’ll be fine.  As I got older I had my own “Ah Ha” moments.  And they were just that, moments in time.  I had plenty of “serious” talks with family and friends, “this is the time, this is the moment.  I’m not going into my 20’s like this…..not turning 25 like this…..not going into my 30’s looking like this.”  They didn’t work. 

 In July 2012 I started walking 20-30 minutes in the morning with my brother.  Just had a thought one day; the secret was (to myself) that it wasn’t really for me, it was to help him get up and going in the morning.  I went to his house early in the morning, we walked and then I went home and did 45 minutes of a workout dvd.  It was perfect! I had someone counting on me to meet them so I had someone other than me to be accounted to and I was ‘secretly’ getting healthy too.  July 2012.  No “Ah Ha” moment.  No, “This is the day.” I had nothing like that. 

 The dvd was getting old, so I joined a ladies only gym that was within my budget.  And I just went.  I can’t tell you what motivated me in the beginning, I have no idea.  But I didn’t ask myself why I just continued on. 

 It was October and I was 4 months in with no soda products or fast food.  That alone was amazing.  I will absolutely equate it to an alcoholic in the program going without a drink for the same time.  I got Meningitis and was in the hospital for four days.  I couldn’t work out; I had little choice with the hospital food. 

My momentum was gone.