First Post :]

Hello! 

Let me start out my introducing myself to those of you who don’t know me.  My name is Katie and I’m 23 years old.  This blog is going to be about my journey to become healthy and lose my extra weight.  I thought it might be therapeutic and helpful for me to express my feelings in writing and if I’m lucky I’ll help someone else.

Ever since middle school I was heavier than the average teenage girl.  I mean when your lunch options at school are cheese fries, pizza, and popcorn chicken what do you expect to happen?  Yeah I ate those on a daily basis for 3 years and then when high school came around I did the same for the next 4 years.  Then once I hit 16 had money and a car I started eating out at fast food restaurants because it was easier than cooking and tasted delicious.  So eating lots of unhealthy foods, not being physically active, and being in a committed relationship all helped me pack on even more weight.  Of course I wasn’t happy with my weight, but I was also not ready to change my habits.

February 2010 a friend of mine told me about this iPhone app called “Lose It.”  I started using it on February 16^th at 185.4 pounds, which was my heaviest.  I mean all you had to do was log your food, exercise, and stay within the calorie budget.   Within the first 2 weeks I’d lost 8 pounds!  Seeing the weight come off like that kept me inspired to keep going.   I started to workout 3-5 times a week and was slowly starting to enjoy it.  By June 2010 I’d lost 30 pounds and was on the fast track to reaching my goal.  I was still 23.4 pounds away from my goal, but I hadn’t been so happy or confident with myself in years.

That June my Mom was diagnosed with Lung Cancer and my whole world flipped upside down.  My eating patterns we’re always brought on by emotions or just being bored.  So when she had to go through surgery and then start chemotherapy I started to eat and care less about myself.  I realize that wasn’t a great idea, but I wasn’t as strong as I thought I was.  I made it through Thanksgiving time only having gained about 5 pounds, which wasn’t to terribly bad.  But, then the weight started to slowly creep back on over time more and more.  Once it started to come back it was like I couldn’t seem to keep myself accountable to “Lose It” anymore.   I was pushing myself so hard working out that one day I just pushed myself to the limit and quit going to the gym as well.

Now it’s May 25, 2011 and I’m at 165 pounds.  I’ve gained back 9.6 pounds and I’m still struggling to lose the weight and eat healthy.  This past year hasn’t been easy since my Mom’s cancer has only gotten worse and has now become terminal.  I do not want to use that as an excuse, but in a way it is part of the reason I’ve not been able to get back on track.  The other thing I think that is holding me back is fear.  I’ve been this overweight person for so many years I’m scared I can’t succeed.  I’ve got some amazing friends who’ve lost the weight, but everyone does it at there own pace.  I don’t want anything keeping me back from the girl I know I can and should be. 

So now that you know about me and a little bit about how my journey started, you are more than welcome to follow me on the rest of my journey to get healthy, lose weight, and to maintain my healthy lifestyle.  I promise not to write this much everyday :].  I have an amazing support system which consists of my family, amazing boyfriend, and friends.  But, I can always use more support and or advise.

~Katie