"I lost 90 pounds but gained so much..."

"my fitness hero" campaign with American Recall Center

My story begins in a Brooklyn kindergarten gym. I'm pretty sure it was then that my long journey with my weight and body image insecurities began. When your not picked to be on the gym teams and when your are snickered at for not running as fast as the rest of your classmates it is understandably heart breaking for any person, but especially hurtful for a child. I used to eat cream cheese as an after school snack and don't recall if I ever knew what those labels on the back of packages even meant. In junior high school when my friends went to the beach in the summers I'd lie and say I hated the sand. I would stay behind all because I couldn't handle the thought of being in a bathing suit. In high school when all my friends were off to prom I said prom was not "my thing" and didn't attend. I grew up feeling sad. I questioned if I was beautiful and the words of others often made me feel I was not. I grew up wanting to look like my girlfriends, tall and skinny. I just wanted to be able to shop in stores that were not "plus sized".  I often would start out on a diet but I just couldn't find the motivation to stick with it. I think back now and I'm unsure why I wasn't able to. I guess I just was so upset with myself that I gave up on myself, I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel and never ever thought I could love myself. 

 some pictures of me before

Luckily I eventually had that moment; the moment when everything falls into place, when all things seems to click together and your wake up call comes. I met Anthony in 2007. From day one he couldn't keep his eyes off me (this time is was for good reason, unlike the kids in kindergarten). He told me I was beautiful every single day and made me smile. He made me feel a love that I never thought would be possible for myself. Less than a year after meeting we were engaged and a year after that Anthony was diagnosed with diabetes. By this point I was at my heaviest at 210 pounds (I am 5ft 2). Both Anthony and myself had gotten comfortable in our relationship and perhaps fell into bad habits such as 3AM bagel store runs, and eating cartons of ice cream while watching movies. Anthony's diagnosis was the wake up call I waited my entire life for. It was for me a blessing in disguise and I am only PROUDLY able to say that today because through weight management alone my now husband has been able to get his diabetes controlled. He today is considered only borderline and together we have worked hard to hear those words. I am not only proud of Anthony but proud that we came together as a couple to get healthy and fit.

Our engagement party (both at our heaviest weights)

Today I am 26 years young and look in the mirror several times daily and smile. I am lucky enough to have not one but two fitness hero's. I have two people who push me every single day to keep on going, to stay motivated. First, my husband. I have learned more from this man than he probably even knows. Anthony has taught me how to love myself, how to be kind to myself, to take a deep breath every once in a while and keep on going forward. He reminds me often not to get stuck on the hard days, to brush them off and just keep working towards my goals. I do not believe in coincidences in life. I do believe in everything happening for a reason. I do believe that my husbands diagnoses saved my life and resulted in adding years on to his.

My second fitness hero is the shy, sad kindergarten cutie. It is this little girl that I carry with me in my heart every single day. She reminds me how far I have come and motivates me to keep on going. Yes, I am my hero. I am just a regular person. I am not a physical trainer, I am not a motivational speaker, I am not a nutritionist. However, over the course of this fitness journey I have learned so much. My Sundays which used to be dedicated to bagels and laying around the house are now dedicated to food prep, and strength training. Saturday mornings I jump out of bed at 6:30am instead of sleeping in after a long work week because I have a boxing class to make. In my free time I am constantly looking for motivation. This now comes in quotes, new workouts, and  learning from other people on the fitness journey.I still have the days where I have to remind myself that this is not a race. This from day one was a lifestyle change and therefor unlike a "diet" this has no end. I still have my bad days BUT what is most important is that I now am able to pick myself back up. I love myself enough to not give up.

The beach is now my happy place and I LOVE wearing a bikini

I have lost almost 90 pounds HOWEVER I have gained so much in the process. 

I am so super excited to be part of the "my fitness hero" campaign with American Recall Center. I am really is passionate about healthy living and fitness and hope by sharing my story others can find the inspiration they need to get healthy. Perhaps someone reading can relate to my journey and just needs a little motivation to get started. Just remember we all need to start somewhere; dig deep, find the motivation, and take baby steps to reach your goals. Even small progress is better than no progress at all.
http://www.recallcenter.com/hip-replacement/