My name is Michelle Rogers. For most of my life I had been fighting with my body weight. I was either gaining weight or trying to lose it. I wasn't happy with myself, and I certainly wasn't able to fully enjoy life. Not only did I feel bad physically, but I felt terrible emotionally. I also knew I wasn't able to be the best I could be, and with failure after failure in losing weight, I just felt so hopeless to overcome it.
One day in 2008, I was looking through ads online and saw a treadmill (跑步机) for $100. This time I decided to start small and keep it doable. The first week I started walking 15 minutes on the treadmill at a fixed time every day. The next week I did 16 minutes. Each week I added a minute. Gradually, I increased speed as well as time. Once I got to 30 minutes, the weight started dropping off.
I didn't lose weight at first, but I didn't give up like I did in the past. I realized I started feeling better. My legs were getting stronger. I didn't feel as painful as I used to when I got up from my desk. All the efforts I'd been putting into fitness made me want to start eating healthier, too. I began with small changes as well. After these years I started listening to my body. It was refusing food and habits that were bad for me.
Today, the extra weight is gone. I still exercise every morning. I look and feel the best I have never done. Every area of my life has improved and benefited from this change. Not only do I have my youthful energy and health back, but also I have more confidence than I have ever had.
Overweight since her teens, Carol Jackson lost 35 pounds in her late teens but put it all back on and then some when she had her son. She said it was because of a sweet tooth and a large portion size. "I could eat a pint of ice cream and not even think about it, " the married mother of four added.
She knew she had to do something, but the death of her best friend from complications(并发症) related to bariatric surgery(减肥手术) caused her to stay away from the help she needed. "It took me five years to realize I can't live life like this, " Jackson said, finally deciding to have bariatric bypass surgery in 2012. "My kids love the new me, " Jackson said. "And, my youngest child, who is 8 and a little overweight, has been encouraged by me. We walk the track when it is warm as a family outing. " She adds, "I knew I had to do something about my health because I had to be around for them and watch them grow and experience life. "
After a lifetime of junk food, sweets and out-of-control portions, Jackson had to learn a new way of eating. Now, she starts the day with a breakfast of hard-boiled eggs for the protein. Lunch is usually a salad and dinner is a protein shake(蛋白质奶昔). She walks two to three miles at least a few times a week, does Zumba twice a week and rides her bike for a half-hour three times a week.
"I wish I'd been more concerned about my weight when I was younger. I wish it hadn't gotten to this point. But, I'd do the surgery again in a heartbeat. My life is so much better now, " Jackson said.
