Weight Loss Transformation of the Day: Ashley lost 123 pounds with weight loss surgery. At 341 pounds, she decided that it was time to change her life and opted for gastric sleeve surgery. Here is what she shared with us about her journey.
Hello, I wanted to share my weight loss journey. My name is Ashley Brown. I am wife and a mother of two. I reached my highest weight of 345 pounds and I had to make a change after numerous attempts with dieting that failed. I am married to my high school sweetheart and he always loved me the way I was. I just didn’t feel sexy anymore. I stopped wearing heels like I used and I didn’t feel like my bubbly self! The last straw was when my daughter and I went to an amusement park and I couldn’t fit on a ride. She had to get off and her face said a million things to me. Thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes.
I went to a weight loss seminar and met my doctor, Dr. Dovec at GBMC in Towson, Md. First, I was scared of surgery and everyone shunned it. In August 2014, I was 341 pounds and a size 22 (My height is 5’5″.) and I decided to have the gastric sleeve procedure. This weight loss surgery takes 80 percent of your stomach away and leaves you with 20%. After maintaing a healthy diet and exercising, now (April 15) it’s 8 months later and I am 222 pound. I wear a size 12/14 and my ultimate goal is to get to 198 lbs, so I have a little more to go. Having surgery was the best lifestyle change I could have ever made for me and my family.
I changed my eating habits by only having less than 50 grams of carbs, 70-90 grams of protein per day and I only drink water. My exercise routine was the elliptical, treadmill and 30 minute intervals bike. Baked salmon and chicken are my favorite foods with 21 grams of protein. My favorite protein snack would be a boiled egg or beef jerky, both high in protein!
To my other black women out there dealing with a weight loss, I am here to tell you that bariatric surgery is not a quick fix. You have to put in the work in to get the results you want. It still takes dedication and your mind has to be ready to deal with all the changes that come with it. Ladies, do not give up on any journey that you are trying to accomplish.
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