Bridgette lost 72 pounds and is today’s featured weight loss success story. She says:
“These photos are from Valentine’s Day 2011 and Valentine’s Day 2013. What a difference it makes when you take some time to love yourself first! I’ve lost a total of 72 pounds over the past year by working out (Curves, Zumba, Turbo Kick, and more), and eating healthier meals.
I started out by limiting my carb intake to only those in fruits and vegetables. I included a lean protein with each meal and ate 5 small meals a day. After a few months, I gradually began to add back in whole grains. I used MyFitnessPal and SparkPeople to track my calorie intake and exercise calories burned. I worked out 5-6 days a week, by starting with fitness games on my Wii at home and a free month trial at Curves. Then I then joined Curves, started doing Zumba and also started taking Turbo Kick classes. What also helped me was joining a weight loss contest sponsored by a local hospital. The program offered a lot of free support through lectures, cooking demonstrations, a weekly exercise bootcamp class, and an online community forum. Now I workout out 3-4 days a week and I’m mainly concentrating on toning.”
chelsea says
Lookin great. what a difference it make to be healthier. im on my way there to
Schacona says
Awesome, Awesome Job! Congratulations Bridgette in making it happen for yourself… True Inspiration! I love it…
Miriam says
Congratulations, u look great!!!
Tracie says
Wonderful you look good keep up the great work.
Yummekia says
You look wonderful!!!
Vanessa Roberts says
You look fabulous… Good job
Tawana Lowery says
You look fabulous!!! You are definitely a motivater.
stacy campbell says
Awesome, great job!
Denise says
Beautiful!
felicia says
You look Great……keep up the good work…..
Michele says
Great job, keep it up!
Renae says
Wow,
Bridgett you look amazing… I wish I could be a little more consistent..
Renae says
How many calories where you taking in? My problem is I’m not eating the right foods, because I don;t really cook, and if I do for the kids, I’m being tempted
Bridgette says
I started out with 1200-1300 cals per day. I increased my cals on days I did intense workouts to up to 1500-1600. See my response below for some meal ideas.
Selina says
Good job
Keisha says
You look amazing
Cherron says
good job you look amazing.
Aisha says
Hi Bridgette,
You look amazing!:)
Can you give some examples of your 5 small meals??
Bridgette says
For the most part, I eat some pretty basic foods. I will break it down by each meal and go from there. I generally have 3 meals and 2 snacks each day for a total of 1200-1300 calories. This is not a complete list, because I like finding and trying new things. But this will give you a good idea of what I eat.
Breakfast (~300 calories)
• GNC Total Lean Shake (vanilla bean, blueberries & cream, strawberry and cookies & cream are my favorites – 180 calories when mixed with 8oz. water) mixed with Walden Farms 0 calorie syrups (strawberry or caramel) for added flavor
• Better Oats Oat Fit oatmeal (cinnamon roll, maple brown sugar – these are 100 calories a pack)
• Instant flavored Cream of Wheat (Cinnabon is my favorite)
• Fiber One 80 Calorie Honey Squares with ½ cup skim milk
• Omelet (liquid egg whites, spinach, mushrooms, yellow/red/orange peppers, parmesan or mozzarella cheese in any combination)
• Turkey bacon (Butterball brand 2 slices = 30 cal) or turkey sausage (2 patties = 100 cal)
• Fruit (blueberries, strawberries, apple, grapes, pineapple, kiwi, banana, pear and an orange are my favorites for breakfast)
• Emerald or Blue Diamond 100 calorie pack natural almonds or walnuts & almonds
• Low carb tortilla (great for making an omelet wrap)
Some days I have a shake by itself, or blended with fruit.
If I have oatmeal or Cream of Wheat, I mix blueberries, a diced apple or nuts in it.
If I have an omelet, I have either bacon or sausage and a fruit with it.
Morning Snack (~100 – 200 calories)
• Yogurt (Fiber One 50 calorie, Activia Light, Chobani Champions, Aldi’s nonfat Greek are my favorites)
• Special K bar
• Light string cheese, cheddar cheese, or Colby/jack cheese sticks
• Fruit
• Laughing Cow wedges
• Low fat wheat thin crackers
Lunch (~300 calories)
• GNC Total Lean Shake (vanilla bean, blueberries & cream, strawberry and cookies & cream are my favorites – 180 calories when mixed with 8oz. water)
• Salad with Walden Farms 0 calorie dressing
• Tuna in pouch
• Chicken breast strips
• Healthy Choice thin sliced deli chicken or turkey
• Boiled egg
• Baby carrots, grape tomatoes, cucumbers with dressing
• Serving of veggies (broccoli, green beans, etc.)
• Fruit
• Yogurt
• Cheese
• Flat Out bread
• Healthy Life bread
Afternoon Snack (~100 – 200 calories)
• Aldi’s Fit & Active 100 calorie baked cheese crackers
• Quaker mini rice cakes or Aldi’s Fit & Active mini rice cakes
• Laughing Cow Cheese
• Emerald or Blue Diamond 100 calorie pack natural almonds or walnuts & almonds
• Fruit
• Lean Cuisine Garden Vegetable Dip & Pita Bread or Spinach Artichoke Dip & Pita Bread
• Protein bars, less than 200 cals with low fat, low sodium
Dinner (~300 calories)
• Lean meat (3 – 4 oz) – chicken, turkey, ground turkey, beef, pork
o I love precooked items because I don’t like to spend a lot of time cooking. My favorites are from Sams (John Soules beef fajita or chicken strips and Butterball turkey medallions).
• Seafood (3 – 4 oz) – shrimp, crab meat, lobster meat, tilapia, salmon
• Vegetables (1 – 2 cups) – fresh or frozen
o I buy a lot of frozen veggies when on sale. They are great for stir fries and quick side dishes. Get the no sauce added kind.
• Brown rice
o Birds Eye makes a steamable bag of frozen brown rice either plain or with veggies. They are quick and easy.
• Low carb tortillas (great for making wraps, pizza, quesadillas, etc.)
• Flat Out bread
• A lot of the same stuff on the Lunch list also.
Desserts (~100 – 150 calories)
• Skinny Cow ice cream cups
• Healthy Choice frozen Greek yogurt
• Sugar Free jello with Fat Free Cool Whip
• Weight Watchers frozen strawberry yogurt bars
• Weight Watchers ice cream sandwiches
• Aldi’s 14 calorie fruit & ice cream swirl bars
• Fruit (my favorite is to sprinkle a sliced apple with cinnamon, microwave until soft, top with FF Cool Whip, ice cream, Walden Farms 0 calorie caramel syrup, or crumbled Special K bar)
I hope this can help you some.
Best regards,
Bridgette
Mo says
Thank you for Sharing your menu list and congratulations on your weight loss. It’s inspiring.
Jan says
Awesome. Thank you sharing your testimony and menu.