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In the last few days I've had a bunch of people asking for my weight loss "secret".  Well here it is.............. READY????  

The secret is..... There isn't one.... ha.  No for real.  I did it like the doctors tell you to - I exercised and I didn't eat crap.   Here's my story I'll be posting on Spark People (www.sparkpeople.com) next week on my one year anniversary (which I think is the 10th or 11th - I can't remember, but my first recorded weight was on 1/11 so we'll go with that) but I thought I'd post it here for others that have been asking.

Me in Sept 2009 in New Orleans:

One year ago I decided I wanted to lose weight.  Why?  I don't know.  I never had a "moment" like other's have described (not fitting in an airline seat, having a health scare, etc.).  I just decided one day I was over it and I really wanted to wear cute clothes again (sounds completely superficial I know!).  I found www.sparkpeople.com while searching online for "free diet websites".  I looked on Spark for awhile and joined.  It was overwhelming at first - the website itself has so much info you have to take it all in a little at a time.  There are tons of articles about everything from nutrition to exercise.  I devoured the information.  I learned as much as I could about what to eat and what not to.  I started tracking my calories.  I didn't even exercise at first.  I simply watched what I ate.  I lost 4 lbs the first week and went "WHOA!"  I gradually added exercise into my routine and started out doing Pilates  and work out dance videos on Instant Netflix.  I've learned to LOVE Pilates and now I do it so much I don't even need to videos anymore.  Luckily in 2010 MN got an early Spring and I started walking - our walk around the neighborhood was about 1-2 miles depending on the "loop" we took.   My first goal was to be down 20 pounds by my birthday in March - and I did it!  20 lbs in 2 months.  WOW.  My clothes were getting baggy and people started noticing at work - that is definitely motivation!  I lost another 20 pounds by June and then I hit a plateau.   I didn't gain weight, but I wasn't losing it as fast.  I knew at a certain point my weight loss would slow down.  Finally by the end of August I'd lost 50 pounds!   Now as of today, one year later, I am down 70 pounds.  I went from a size 22 to a size 10!!!!  I feel so much more confident!!  I'm curvy and I like it (and I'm pretty sure my husband does too, lol) - my goal isn't to be "skinny" - my goal is to be fit and healthy.  I feel so honored when people ask me how I've done it.  I love spreading "the Spark".  :-) 

How I changed in 2010:

70 lbs lighter!

Size 22 to a size 10.

Waist size went from 44 to 30 inches!

Hips went from 52 to 40 inches!

I have collar bones!

I have biceps!

I rarely eat red meat anymore - my diet consists of mostly turkey and chicken with some white fish and salmon thrown in.

I eat local and organic as much as possible.

I grew my own herbs and plan to grow even more in 2011.

I LOVE shopping (this isn't necessarily a good thing). 

I rarely have back pain.

I've had less colds this year.

Lowered my blood pressure. 

I can wear leggings!

I can wear riding boots!

I can elliptical for 25 minutes and not get winded.

I can go up 6 flights of stairs at work and not get winded.

I've learned to like wheat pasta and brown rice.

I rarely drink pop (I don't even buy it anymore).

I now look up the menus for restaurants before I go out to eat so I can know how many calories I'm eating (its ridiculous how many calories you consume when you *think* you're eating a healthy salad.)

30 pounds lost in April 2010

50 pounds lost in August 2010

Zombie Pub Crawl 2010 - about 55 lbs lost

Christmas 2009 vs 2010 - 65 pounds lost (size 22 vs 10)

Goals for 2011:

Lose 15-20 more pounds (or so) and tone up.

Maintain my weight loss.

Try new things (snowshoeing, cross country skiing).

Join a CSA this summer to get locally grown eggs and veggies.

Utilize the farmer's market and support local farmers.
Continue eating less processed foods.

3 things I've seen/read that totally changed my outlook on what I eat:  "Food, Inc." - its on Instant Netflix... watch it... but not while you're eating; "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto" by Michael Pollan; and "Food Rules" by Michael Pollan.

I've had lots of help accomplishing my weight loss.  Lucas is a good sport and eats all my experiments.  ♥  He walked with me, went to the gym with me and even tried Pilates with me (which actually made me laugh so I didn't always get alot of working out done).  My coworkers are always cognizant of what I eat and if we have pot lucks they bring healthy stuff - for my birthday pot luck they brought veggie trays, fresh fruit, diet cake, etc.  It was so awesome.  My mom always has "stuff" I like on hand at her house when we visit too.   Thank you to all of you for supporting me. :-) 

As Jillian would say on Biggest Loser:  "Unless You Puke, Faint or Die, Keep Going!"