Erica lost 68 pounds

Weight Loss Story: Erica lost 68 pounds. After some rude comments from an old coworker gave her a wakeup call, she decided to get back to healthy eating and working out for the benefit of her family and herself. Check out what she shared with us about changing her eating habits, working out with trainers and working through the rough times.

My name is Erica R. and I started my weight loss journey last year in January 2015. I was always up for a food or workout challenge. However, I let myself go and became complacent with myself until I had a rude awakening from an old coworker! I knew then I had to get back into the swing of things, no only because of a slick comment but for myself and my family!

I started off weighing 236 pounds and I’m currently weighing in at 168 pounds! My height: 5 feet tall. My journey has taken about a year. So, here I am today, still grinding and reaching my goals. One day at a time!

Along with working out, I had to change my eating habits tremendously in order to see any results!  I cut back on eating out. I started counting calories and I cut back on a lot of fried foods, red meats and soda. I mainly eat turkey, chicken and seafood. There were weeks when I followed a meal plan that was designed for me by my trainer and it was a low carb plan that included of lots of protein.

A wise man once told me that you can’t out exercise a bad diet! I worked out with a trainer (Derron Flood) for about 5 months, 2-3 days a week. I would also go to bootcamp classes he offered and bootcamp classes at the YMCA. After six months of working with my trainer and losing nearly 35 lbs, I had to stop due to financial reasons and workout on my own along with a friend. I continued to utilize the YMCA classes and machines.

When things calmed down, I was able to start working out with another trainer (Body by Ken) to help me get pass my plateau. I knew I needed to switch things up to see more progress! I worked out with the Body by Ken bootcamp for Women three days a week which consists of boxing, lots of running and cardio! After that, I started working out on my own at the YMCA by going to different classes such as cycling, bootcamp, fusion fit and powercut (3-4 days a week and sometimes twice a day)

Advice for those who want to lose weight: I highly recommend never giving up. The weight didn’t come overnight and it won’t come off overnight! It takes hard work and dedication! Eat healthy and live by the saying that “We are what we eat!”

Instagram: @e_mylifestyle
Facebook: Erica Peele Ryan

This pic was taken on July 27, 2015 on the right and Jan 24, 2016 on the left!