You know I love me a good transformation story.  And this one is extra special to me because it’s a real-life friend.  Meet my beautiful friend, Candice.  I’ve known her since she was a baby and have been friends with her family since forever.  A few months ago, I saw a series of inspirational Facebook posts coming through my feed, all from Candice.  Then I saw a series of “before and after” pictures, also from Candice.  Then more inspirational posts, and more pictures.  And I was all, WHAT IS GOING ON WITH HER?  

So, I (along with a hundred other people, apparently) messaged her and asked her to share her story.  She did. And it’s with great pleasure that I share it with you today.  

~Sandy 

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In April 2015, I was considering lap band or gastric bypass surgery. I had done a lot of research on both, and I felt that would be the best option for me. I registered with a local hospital for weight loss surgery, and I was about to start the paperwork, when out of nowhere, I unexpectedly lost my health insurance.

Little did I know this would be MY BLESSING IN DISGUISE.

At first, I was scared and beyond upset. I was on several different meds and had been hospitalized multiple times in the year leading up to that for my insanely high blood pressure and many other health issues with which I suffered every single day, due to my morbid obesity. My weight had gotten out of hand and was affecting my daily life. I was just masking it with all those meds.

I’m only 5’1″ and, at the time, I weighed 256 lbs. My BMI (Body Mass Index) was 48.5, which is off the charts–even higher than morbid obesity! Without health insurance and a way to pay for the surgery, I had to make a life or death decision.

So, I made up my mind, then and there, to do it myself!

 

The first thing I did was completely stop all fast food and pop (soft drinks). I had lived off both for years. Instead, I started drinking tons of water (up to a gallon a day), and cooking at home.  I wasn’t even cooking “diet foods.”  I was  just cooking whatever I felt like making.

Then I started doing a lot of cardio. I bought a FitBit and started walking.  And I started DANCING!  Dancing is a great work out y’all–just doing it at home, in my comfy clothes, while making dinner, doing dishes, cleaning, whatever! I also  got a cheap workout bike from someone, which stays in my living room, and also a few sets of light hand weights. So if I’m watching TV, I can just hop on that, grab my weights, and be active. The key is to just KEEP MOVING!  It doesn’t have to be intense workouts or anything. I never even had to join a gym.

All those things combined took me from 256 lbs to 149 lbs in just ten months!  NO gym memberships! NO diet foods! Just PURE DETERMINATION!

 

I made up my mind every. single. day. to eat at home, and to be more active, and the pounds just fell off! Literally!

My best advice?  CONSISTENCY IS KEY! You have to make up your mind each and every day.  And before you know it, a week goes by, then a month… Your mind and stomach WILL ADJUST to the change in diet. And soon you won’t even have the desire to eat or drink what you did before! (I’ve tried, and it ended up making me sick, since I’ve purged my body of all those fast food toxins, and stopped feeding myself sugar all day long with my constant soda intake.).

The first four weeks were the most difficult. I was super moody and had horrible headaches (since my body was in detox), but after that, it got so much better, and it truly was smooth sailing from there. I believe it’s MIND OVER BODY! So once you make up your mind to completely change your daily habits, you will achieve whatever it is you want to achieve! You will look back a year from now and be so thankful you did.

I would also like to add, I now have a BMI of 28 (down 20 points!), am completely off all those meds, and I’m feeling better than ever! Hopefully, I inspired some of you.  If you have questions, feel free and ask me. Thanks for taking the time to read this.

MAKE THE CHANGE TODAY!

Much Love,

Candice

 

 

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Hey Guys, it’s Sandy again.  Isn’t this tremendous?  You know what my favorite part was?  The dancing.  I can picture Determined Candice, sautéing her veggies and DANCING in her kitchen.  I just love this so much.

I’ve led many of you through fitness challenges and counseled many others of you through email or phone calls.  So I KNOW YOUR STRUGGLES.  I know many of you have a difficult time preparing home-cooked meals and staying active, in particular.  I pray Candice’s story is an inspiration to you, that you really CAN and SHOULD do this.  You don’t need fancy equipment or a gym membership.  You don’t need to stop eating carbs.  (Candice says she still sometimes eats chips, bread, and white rice–but not every day, and not in excess.) You just need to make consistently good food choices and keep moving!

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25 Little Things You Can Do to Reach Your Fitness Goals