Taneka lost 60 pounds

Taneka lost 60 pounds. This mom of two found victory after years of struggling with her weight. An emotionally painful family interaction served as a catalyst for her weight loss journey. Check out her story.

My name is Taneka D. I have struggled with weight loss for about 18 years. I have two children, ages 11 years and 8 years old. In my before picture, I weighed 250 pounds and I am 5’3″ tall. My kids and husband motivated me during my mission to lose weight.

I am literally the only overweight person in my family. My mother’s side of the family, my aunts, uncle, grandma, and mom were large, but with age I suppose they have all slimmed down. My mom got the gastric bypass procedure. Last year, I attended a family wedding on my dad’s side of the family and was actually cropped out of a family photo! My feelings were so hurt, but with the pain I knew I had to make this change.

I went to my doctor and told him about my goals. He started me on a prescription medication called Phentermine 37.5 and advised me to make small changes in my diet. I followed up with him monthly. I took Phentermine from November 2015 through January 2016. During that time, I lost 25lbs just by making the changes in my diet. I stopped taking it in January and started walking. From February and March with my healthy diet and walking, I lost 20lbs. In April, I started back on Phentermine and with my diet, exercise, and the medicine I have lost another 15lbs.

In the beginning, I slowly stopped eating beef, pork and bread. Next, I stopped drinking soda and cut out sugar completely. I eat lean turkey and chicken breast. Instead of eating side dishes, like mac and cheese or potatoes, now I have a side salad or fruit. I also drink lots of water.

For exercise, I walked daily for about 30 minutes. I am currently doing a 30 day challenge that includes squats, lunges, crunches, and push ups. I’m trying to incorporate more exercises into my routine that will help me to tone up.

When I started my journey in November of 2015, I weighed 250 pounds. As of today (April, 23, 2016), I weigh 190 pounds! I haven’t been in the 100’s in years!

The best advice I can give about weight loss is to set a lot of smaller goals instead of working towards one large goal. For example, set a 5 or 10lb goal instead of setting a goal to lose 100lbs. Because with the smaller goals you are getting your reward sooner and it gives you motivation for the next 5 or 10lbs. That has really helped me stay on track.

Instagram: @Booney25