Lee lost 156 pounds

Transformation of the Day: Lee lost 156 pounds. She began her journey in Sept 2015 after a wake up call on a doctor’s office scale. She cut out fast food, started counting calories, ate lots of veggies and commited to fitness. Her hard work has really paid off. Check out her story.

My name is Lee J. and I am 46 years of age. I began my weight loss journey in September 2015. It was by happenstance and not something that was on my mind to do. When I went to my neighborhood clinic for a 3 month medical visit, my mind was on a weigh in of around 272-275 pounds. That was my usual weight range for the past several years up to that point and I was satisfied at that weight. When the scale read 301 pounds, I was floored and I cried inside. I thought I would weigh in at my usual weight, be on my merry way and get my Big Mac and large fries…lol. Well, things changed for me at that moment and my life changed from then on.

Today, I have successfully lost over 150 pounds through diet and exercise and I can only thank the man up stairs for the strength to go on. No surgical procedures, diet pills or powders. Just the will to leave bad eating behind and leave unhealthy snacking and sodas alone. No turning back for me!

I started my weight loss journey with a strict 1200 calorie diet. I would not advise people to do that, but it’s the choice that I made. I ate low fat meals, mostly of raw vegetables. I stopped my consumption of a lot of bread (white bread). However, at times switched to wheat bread instead. I eat protein rich vegetables and lean meat, like tuna or  turkey. No pork. I bought a George Foreman Grill and began grilling chicken breasts for salads or to eat with meals that I began preparing.

In the past, I was a heavy snacker, ate a lot of sugary foods and drank a lot of soda. That had to change. Also, I haven’t had a Popeye’s or McDonald’s meal since my journey began. Fast foods, like burgers and fried chicken, were foods I consumed daily and a big factor in my weight issues. I had to quit those meals cold turkey. Even though I’ve lost the weight, I still have no desire to return to my old habits of eating fast foods. I eat a clean diet of fruits and vegetables now. It’s a lifestyle change.

I do cardio and strength train with weights. I jog on treadmill or do cardiovascular exercises,  such as jumping rope or jump jacks. My workouts also include abdominal work.

I am 5’3″ and I weigh 145 pounds as of today. The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that no matter your age you can rebuild your body and change the course of bad health. I am now no longer pre-diabetic and my hypertension medicine dosage has been cut in half (hopefully, soon be discontinued). I will be 47 years old soon and I started changing at 45 years old. It’s never too late. I am a walking testimony of what can happen with diligence and when you believe in yourself.

I used the MyFitnessPal app as a guide in my weight loss. I would and have advised others to download the app. It has great information for anyone who wants to get started. I still use it as a guide in eating habits and macro information. Sometimes we can over do our calorie consumption and get discouraged when we don’t see the results we want. Keeping tabs on how much we are eating is important. Diet is 80% of success. Meat can account for a lot of calories in your diet. I eat a lot of vegetables, because when you eat vegetables the concern over calories is not as worrisome. Plus, I eat many of my vegetables raw. My desire is to one day become complete vegetarian.

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