That's Fit

Pushing Myself to Do More

Ashley Wisniewski — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Success Stories, Tipping the Scales

"I can do more than I think."

Is this my mantra, epiphany or moment of greatness? Regardless of what I call it, it's my new motto, and I'm sticking to it.

On Tuesday nights, I settle in to watch "The Biggest Loser" with some really awesome, fun and knowledgeable folks via the Twitter world. On the most recent "Biggest Loser," one tweeter asked a question about what we had learned from watching it.

"I can do more than I think" was my answer, and in the few days following, I've noticed that I find myself repeating my new motto.

In my workouts, when I feel like stopping, I have started to remind myself that I can do more, that I can push more, that I can give more. For example, in my cycling class this week when the instructor said to increase our gears, at first I thought it wasn't possible. I was going as hard and fast as my legs could push! Then I started thinking about doing more, and I did. I ended up being able to push through two more gear changes.

This short, seven-word message sticks with me because I want more. I want to reach my goal weight, I want to run multiple races and I want to be healthy. To get there, I have to push myself to new limits and continually strive to do more than I think I'm capable of doing.

I am capable of reaching my goals, and I am capable of making this a lifestyle change. There are days, sometimes weeks, where it feels like I'm failing or that I'm not getting the results that I want. There are times when I really want to throw in the towel, walk away and fall back into my old habits. Unfortunately, there are also times when I sabotage my success.

But then I have moments of clarity and remember that not only can I do more than I think I can accomplish, but I deserve more. I deserve a happy, healthy life. We weren't put on this earth to be unhealthy and miserable. We were put here to move, do great things and reach our full potential -- whatever that means to you. For me, it means leading a satisfied life. Part of a satisfied life for me is being physically fit and healthy.

I am not an expert, but from my experiences, I have learned that sometimes we need to be our own cheerleader. There are times when giving up would be easier, but that doesn't mean it's the best solution. Often I need to remind myself that I did the hardest part and committed myself to making changes. It is easy to complain about my weight, my lack of physical fitness or other aspects of my life, but what am I willing to do to fix it? I am going out on a limb, but I would be willing to bet we are all greater, better and stronger than we think or realize.

Perhaps when you and I are thinking about giving up or think that we can't run that extra minute or don't know how we will resist a food that tempts, we can remember that we can all do more than we think. I know that I can -- and will -- do more than I ever thought possible.

A Gift From a Friend Helped Chris Lose 135 Pounds

Martha Edwards — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motivation, Success Stories

Chris Before

Name: Chris Waters

Age: Turned 40 in October

Height: 6 feet, 4 inches

Before Weight: 377 pounds

How I Gained It: I've been overweight all my life. Growing up, I was always the heavy one. I've always liked to eat, even from an early age. My family has a history of alcoholism and addiction, and I had an eating addiction. I ate to feel better. Pizza was always my downfall; I could eat a whole large pizza and not think a thing about it. I was also a regular at the all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. I tended to make friends with people who could eat like me -- they became my eating partners.

My mother was an overweight child, so she never wanted me to follow in her footsteps, but I did anyway. My mom was truly my best friend -- we were very close. Unfortunately she passed away 13 years ago from colon cancer.

From Workaholic to Walkaholic: How Suzy Lost 50 Pounds

Martha Edwards — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motivation, Success Stories

Suzy Before

Name: Suzy Ashford

Age: 47

Height: 5 feet, 6 inches

Before Weight: 210 pounds

How I Gained It: I'd been trim and fit pretty much my whole life, but then something changed: I started working from home. My job involves sitting at the computer all day, so I began putting on ridiculous amounts of weight. I was so busy, I didn't notice or even care that I was eating too much -- in fact, food helped me deal with stress while I was working. When I was feeling stressed, I reached for the cookies. And it wasn't just stress that caused me to eat -- when everything was going well and running smoothly, I'd have a mini celebration with a cookie or a piece of cake or something sweet. I always had some way to rationalize my poor food choices.

Breaking Point: I was the heaviest I'd ever been, and I'd gotten to the point where I was disgusted with myself when I looked in the mirror. One day, I'd just had enough. I said to myself, "OK, I have to make a choice -- do I want to be overweight or do I want to get a grip on my mindless eating habit and do something about it?"

Were bread and butter more important to me than looking good and feeling healthy? The answer was no. I wanted to be the lean, athletic girl I used to be. It was then that I decided to give up the sweets and start walking.

Seeing Herself on TV Motivated Michele to Slim Down

Martha Edwards — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motivation, Success Stories

Michele Before

Name: Michele

Age: 41

Height: 5 feet, 5 inches

Before Weight: 289 pounds

How I Gained It: There were two reasons for my weight gain: I was an alcoholic and I was depressed. Drinkers don't care what they eat after they get their buzz on, and I ate and drank whatever I wanted. I was also very stressed -- I had bills pilling up and looked toward food and alcohol for comfort.

Eventually I hit 289 pounds. I was never heavy growing up; it was only later in life that I stopped caring about my health. Plus, I was always in relationships with drinkers, which never helped.

Breaking Point: My family was on ABC's Wife Swap in 2005, and seeing myself on TV was a shock. I realized then that I had to change my eating and drinking habits.

How I Lost It: Life was hard for me after being on the show, but a few months after watching myself on national television, I decided it was time to straighten my life up.

I began by putting together my own low-fat and high-fiber diet that will guarantees anyone weight loss. However, I don't believe in the word diet, because there is no "miracle diet." It's all about eating healthy foods and getting in the nutrients our bodies need -- it's a lifestyle change. I changed the way I was eating, cut my calorie intake and started keeping a daily log.

Michele Now

I made a point of eating foods enriched in fiber, which kept me full throughout the day and helped me cut down the amount of calories I was eating. I also made sure I was eating lots of protein because protein is needed to build muscle. I learned that women tend to consume way too much salt on a daily basis, so I became educated on which foods were high in salt so I could watch my salt intake, as well.

I also started doing regular cardiovascular exercise. I was 289 pounds, so I couldn't do much at first, but I started with 10 minutes on the treadmill a day -- now I do five miles a day, but it took many little steps to get to that point.

It worked! It took me about a year to get down to 120 pounds, and I've managed to maintain that for the last six years. I live in Taylor, Mich., and everyone to this day still asks me how I lost so much weight.

Eating Whole Foods Helped Anna Lose 75 Pounds

Martha Edwards — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Success Stories

Anna Before

Name: Anna Pecoraro

Age: 35

Height: 5 feet, 4 inches

Before Weight: 210 pounds

How I Gained It: I gained my extra weight by overeating, making bad food choices, bingeing on comfort foods and not being active. I was stuck in a cycle of self destruction that I did not know how to break: the more I ate, the worse I felt about myself, which would in turn cause me to eat more. My health issues became amplified with each of my pregnancies, as I just made my weight problem worse with every sugary treat. I had no one to blame for my actions but myself.

Growing up, the people in my life would try every fad diet and weight-loss plan there was. The diets would work for a while but the extra weight would eventually come back. I honestly believed it was impossible to reach a healthy weight and maintain it.

Breaking Point: My breaking point happened when I realized I had two tiny sets of loving eyes watching me slowly self-destruct. I was only in my early 30s, but I was suffering from a host of weight-related health issues. I felt completely out of control. I knew I had to do something but didn't know what.

Many people said I couldn't do it, I wouldn't do it, I couldn't stick with it, etc. They believed I would fail because I wasn't strong enough. They were wrong because once I found the courage within myself to act, I became unstoppable.

How I Lost It: My children were my main motivation; I wanted to teach them that goals are attainable with hard work, commitment and effort. I also needed them to know that being healthy and strong is more important then being skinny. But before I could do this, I had to first change myself.

To do this, I changed my relationship with food and my attitude about exercise. I realized I had to stop making excuses. I put my plan into action by hitting the local library to get informed on healthy ways to lose weight. I disregarded all the healthy eating plans that wanted me to buy their products -- instead, I started eating clean. That meant cutting out the processed food and opting instead for fresh fruit, vegetables, lean meats and whole grains.

My approach to eating can be summed up this way: The more natural the better, especially when it comes to feeding my family. Our bodies were meant to eat fresh fruits and colorful vegetables, not artificial food dyes, preservatives or processed sugars. Although I had weight loss in mind when I began, it was important to me to make changes gradually and involve my family. The children helped me plan meals, shop for groceries and prepare healthy meals. I tried to make healthy eating fun so the whole family would want to stick with the changes. Portion control was also key. I personally eat five small meals a day to avoid being hungry. I keep only healthy foods in our home to avoid temptation.

Anna Now

But getting healthy is about more than what you eat, it's about moving your body too. When I started my journey I was very out of shape and couldn't do much, but I didn't let that stop me. One cold March morning I bundled up my little ones, put them in a stroller and went for my first one mile walk. That was the first of hundreds of walks that would lead to a healthier me. Eventually, I started leaving the kids with my husband in the evenings so I could jog or run. Once I found the courage and confidence to move and started seeing my self get stronger, I knew it was time for my first gym membership. I looked at gyms for a few months and found a perfect fit -- A small gym with a family-like atmosphere was just what I needed. Plus they offer child care.

These days, I train five days a week and I really love challenging myself. I keep track of all my workouts to help keep me motivated because I can look back and reflect on how far I have come. I also keep my exercise routine fresh to prevent boredom -- I'm always trying new exercises, machines, equipment and fitness classes. Some people see fitness as work but I see it as a time for self discovery, a time to reconnected with my body and a time to clear my mind.

I'm not the only one who's reaped the benefits of this new lifestyle -- My husband, who was unsupportive at first, has lost 40 pounds himself and is now a big source of support for me.

There's no way around it -- getting healthy takes work, commitment and effort, but believe me, it's all worth it. I am stronger, faster, healthier today then I have ever been and I have no intention of ever going back to my old habits. I don't know everything about healthy living but I am constantly learning and growing. I am a work in progress and hope to be for a long time to come.

After Weight: 135 pounds

Anna has maintained her weight loss for over two years now.

More Success Stories:
Cutting Carbs Helped Chris Drop 125 Pounds
Ben Chose Life and Beat Obesity and Depression
Philip Quit Smoking and Lost 100 Pounds

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Philip Quit Smoking and Lost 100 Pounds

Martha Edwards — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motivation, Success Stories

Philip Before

Name: Philip Wilson

Age: 33

Height: 5 feet, 11 inches

Before Weight: 302 pounds

How I Gained It: I have struggled with weight issues my entire life -- in fact, my weight started spiraling out of control when I started grade school. I used to stay at a friend's house after school until my parents got off work. I would eat dinner there, then come home and eat a second dinner. By 9 or 10 years old, I was overweight and wearing husky clothes.

But I really started to pack it on in high school. Once I had my own car, I could get fast food any time I wanted. My parents were never home so we kids fended for our dinner most of the time. Working at McDonald's didn't help, either -- we ate anything we wanted. I was tipping the scale at about 240 by the time I graduated high school, and I had started smoking to boot.

But that wasn't even the tip of the iceberg. I went wild in college: For four years I stuffed my face with all-you-can eat wing nights, Chinese buffets and enough beer to last me a lifetime. When I graduated college, I weighed close to 300 pounds, and I stayed there for a while.

Breaking Point: While buying some new pants for work, I came to the realization that my 46-inch waist was beastly. How the hell had I let my weight and health get so far out of control? I was also smoking a pack of cigarettes a day, and I had recently started having bouts of dizziness, weakness and fatigue. I went to a neurologist about the dizziness. She told me I had poor posture and it was putting pressure on nerves in my neck, so she sent me to a physical therapist, who recommended I join a gym to work those muscles. I played football in high school, so I'd had lots of experience lifting weights in gyms before. But when I joined the gym this time, something changed.

How I Lost It: Once I joined the gym, I changed my life completely. I quit smoking and lost more than 100 pounds. It's rare to quit smoking and lose weight -- it's usually the exact opposite. But I knew my life had to change.

Losing weight was all about my lifestyle, and I realized that lifestyle was going to have to change for good, not just for a temporary period. I needed to change the way I ate, thought and moved.

One of the first steps was finding thing to do. I needed hobbies to take my mind off the food cravings. So I started reading books, going for walks, surfing the Internet -- basically whatever it took to get keep out of the cupboard or fridge. Music and my iPod saved me.

Philip Now

I also stopped drinking sugar-filled soda and eating fast food. Instead, I load up on lean healthy protein like chicken, unsalted nuts and low-fat cottage cheese. I also supplement my protein intake with extra whey powder. And I eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. My favorites are berries and fresh spinach, which I combine together to make incredible salads.

Instead of filling up on three big meals, I eat six smaller meals a day: breakfast, lunch, dinner and three snacks in between. Breakfast is usually plain oatmeal with strawberries, some almonds and a cup of green tea with honey. Lunch is often a whole-wheat turkey sandwich with broccoli and maybe some baked chips. Dinner will be something like balsamic chicken with steamed veggies. Snacks include things like low-fat and low-sugar yogurt, baby carrots, bananas, cottage cheese or granola. I also take a multivitamin and omega-3 supplements daily.

Most importantly, I work out. The more muscle I have, the more fat I burn at rest. I work out four times a week -- that's three weight training sessions and one cardio session. I do a full body workout every time I go to the gym, working every major muscle group: chest, back, legs and arms. Each of my workouts lasts about an hour with my cardio session lasting 45 minutes.

I don't think of this as a diet. It's a change to the way I live my life. My late father used to tell me, "Bub, you eat to live, not live to eat." He was absolutely right!

After Weight: 194 pounds

Philip has maintained his weight loss for more than three years now.

More Success Stories:
Linda Lost 100 Pounds By Cheating on Her Diet
Michael Took Control and Lost Nearly 400 Pounds
Kim Lost 100 Pounds and Now Fitness Is Her Life

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Managing Stress Helped Bonnie Lose 30 Pounds

Martha Edwards — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motivation, Success Stories

Bonnie Before

Name: Bonnie Crowe

Age: 47

Height: 5'6"

Before Weight: 162 pounds

How I Gained It: Too much of my daily life was focused on the next meal. I was living to eat rather than eating to live. I would wake up and wonder, "What will be the first thing I eat today." Finishing breakfast, I would wonder what's for lunch and then dinner. I had a family and children so I used them as my excuse to keep the food flowing. I became a very good cook. But as it is in all families, there was always someone who didn't like the meal, and instead of throwing it away, I would eat it, plus my own share. My portion sizes were way out of control.

My weight fluctuated, but it didn't climb drastically -- rather, it slowly crept up on me, and the years went by, and once I entered middle age, I wasn't sure there was anything I could do about it.

Breaking Point: I once read that weight gain was the product of unresolved issues. I believe this is true, especially in my case. I felt I had no control over my life, and my weight suffered because of it.

My breaking point came when I lost my dad, brother and sister all within five years. It made me realize that we have only a small amount of time on this earth. Our whole lifetime is made up of single days. What we do with the day from when we wake to when we sleep is all our lives are. With limited time, I decided to quit waiting for my life to get better. I knew it was time to take control of the things I had no control over. I guess you could say I made lemons into lemonade.

How I Lost It: It sounds unusual, but my journey to a healthy weight started by going to college. I'd always wanted to go to school. I had no idea how I was going to compete with the young kids just getting out of school, but I did. I started on the bottom and worked my way through one semester at a time. I got good grades. I found I could do it. I faced this scary monster, and I did it! It occurred to me that I could do anything, be anything.

But going back to school only brought me halfway to the life change that I needed to make. I felt like I wasn't in charge of anything in my life. My marriage was crumbling, and our finances were in a mess, and once I started confronting those issues, I knew I had the power to change and take charge. I ended up going through a divorce and living with my aging mother, but the freedom to control my own life made such a difference.

Bonnie Now

That's when the weight started coming off. I was less stressed, so I wasn't reaching for food to help medicate my mood. I also began walking regularly and I quit watching TV. I have not turned a TV on in 10 months. I began spending time more time with friends and now have regular beach dates with them. I used to struggle with losing even a single pound, this time, it came off with ease.

As for eating, I gradually changed how I viewed food -- now I no longer live to eat, I just eat to live. Whereas I used to stuff myself to the maximum every single day, now I only eat until I am no longer hungry. I've also cut out sweets -- I've found that the longer I go without them, the less I want them. I don't drink soda, and I won't ever again. Guess what? I don't even miss it. I've switched to water. I've also stopped cooking as much, and I only eat meat about twice a week -- instead, I stock up on seafood and vegetables.

Here's my advice to anyone who wants to lose weight and change their life: Find inner beauty first, and outer beauty will follow. Eat to live and keep on moving. Think thin, and you'll feel thin. As for motivation, the scale always helps me stay on track -- seeing the numbers go down is very encouraging. I buy smaller clothes as I need them, but I try to buy cheaply, in case I need a smaller size in the future.

Start every journey with a single step -- I did. And don't be afraid to evaluate your life -- your future and your happiness could be waiting for you while the clock of life is ticking. Find your own happiness, and the rest will follow.

After Weight: 132 pounds

Bonnie has kept the weight off for nearly a year and continues to enjoy school.

More Success Stories:
Kim Lost 100 Pounds and Now Fitness Is Her Life
Oprah Inspired Lisa to Lose 160 Pounds
Maryann Used South Beach Diet to Shed Half Her Weight

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K.C. Swapped Cookies for Yoga and Said Goodbye to 140 Pounds

Martha Edwards — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motivation, Success Stories

Michelle Before

Name: K.C. O'Day is my professional name, but I was born Michelle

Age: Locked in the vault!

Height: 5 feet, 4 inches

Before Size: 24/26

How I Gained It: The answer to the question "why was I fat?" is simple: Too much food and not enough exercise. The better question might be why did I indulge in too much food, and generally, as an adult, ignore exercise, leading to my own obesity? Obesity has to be one of the ugliest-sounding words in our language, one that I shunned for the longest time. Denial, I suppose. "I'm not really that fat, am I?" As long as I could convince myself that there were others who were fatter, I was OK with me, as if good health was a sliding scale. Honestly, part of me just didn't want to notice how unhealthy I was.

So why did I indulge so much? It's a compound answer. Too much highly processed food. Hypothyroidism. Letting the food be in control. I'm only beginning to really face the answers to those questions. Fat feels like failure, and it's hard to admit that. But now I've tasted the other side, and healthier definitely is happier.

Breaking Point: My 13-year-old niece accompanied me and some friends on a trip to New York City. We were really excited about exploring the Met, but as we walked along the streets and through the museum, my knee and my hips began to ache; I needed to sit and rest occasionally. I thought, whoa. That's what old people do, right? I wasn't old. I was obese, and my body was sending me a big message. It would not live long and prosper bearing the extra extra weight. I knew that if I didn't finally get serious, my body would continue to deteriorate. I wanted to be healthy and vibrant and beautiful, which meant things had to change.

Michelle Now

How I Lost It: I never use the word "lost" in relation to my weight. Lost things can find you again. I will not be found by those old pounds.

Like most women, I'd tried it all: Weight Watchers, Cabbage Soup, the Grapefruit Diet, that disgusting liquid diet and anything else that sounded like a miracle. But of course, they weren't. Most had temporary, if any, results, and weren't maintainable in any practical way. The closest success I'd had was with Weight Watchers, but whatever weight I shed always came creeping back. The food was always in control.

About five years ago I read a small post online from a woman who said she'd heard people in England were having great success with a book that came with a hypnosis CD, "I Can Make You Thin" by Paul McKenna. It had only been published in England at the time, but I ordered it on eBay, thinking, "what the heck? I've tried everything else."

It's a very slim book with a few suggestions, like "eat what you want, not what you think you should." I thought, wow. Somebody wants me to eat what I want? This has promise! He also advises you to put down your utensils between bites (awkward at first, but second nature to me now), and eat until you're satisfied.

But the magic was in that hypnosis CD. I started listening to it, and in a few days, I was eating much smaller portions. My body was telling me when it was satisfied. The weight melted away. I was making better, wiser food choices, and eating much less. If I wanted something like French fries, I didn't deny myself. But I ate them as a treat, in moderation.

I committed to exercise, too. At first I spent about 30 minutes a day jogging on the rebounder with five pound weights, but as I became smaller I developed an interest in yoga. So I ordered some Kundalini Yoga DVDs online, and I've been hooked ever since.

Now I'm down 140 pounds and my food choices are predominantly fruits, vegetables and whole grains, but the miracle is that I like eating this way. I like knowing that if I want a cookie, I can have one. But most of the time, I don't want a cookie. When a formerly fat person doesn't want a cookie, let alone a box of them, then something truly miraculous has occurred!

After Size: 8/10

K.C. has maintained her 140-pound weight loss for more than four years now and is never too tired for a trip to NYC these days.

Can hypnosis really help you lose weight? Find out what our expert says.

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Leon Is Changing Family History, One Mile At a Time

Martha Edwards — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motivation, Success Stories

Name: Leon Calvin Antoine

Age: 28

Height: 5 feet, 11 inches

Before Weight: 520 lbs

How I Gained It: I had always been a chubby kid, but I wasn't obese until the age of 18, when I started working in the kitchen at Madison Square Garden -- that was the first stage of my weight-gain bonanza. My weight gain continued steadily as I started my own business and bought a car. Through it all, I was definitely an emotional eater. I would eat when I was happy, upset, angry or bored.

Breaking Point: There were many breaking points. It wasn't just because the floor boards seemed to scream at me at times. It wasn't having to shop for 5XL clothing. It wasn't breaking chair after chair in my house. It also wasn't the swelling my body experienced. My breaking point was realizing that I may not have as much time left as I should have. My father died when he was about 29. I will be 29 this year. He died of heart disease, and so did many of his siblings and relatives. I became determined to not repeat history.

How I Lost It: I always knew what do do -- it just felt like my mouth never allowed me to do it. But in mid-October, I began slowly changing my diet and eating more high-fiber foods. I also started keeping a food diary, and the weight began to melt off. I started working out about two hours a day with my Nintendo Wii -- I didn't use the Wii Fit, though, because it has a weight limit of 330 pounds. I used other Wii applications, such as Wii Sports.

By December 16th, I had I lost nearly 20 pounds and at that time I had lap band surgery. Surgery was my last resort, but I wanted to ensure my weight loss would stick. I developed an infection from the surgery, but I knew I couldn't let that stop me, so I increased my Wii workouts to two and a half hours daily.

My mother and brother are both avid walkers. One day in January, my mother asked me to pick her up after a run across the Brooklyn Bridge. When I got there, she told me she was still on the bridge and she asked me to park the car and walk and meet her halfway. She was nowhere to be seen, so I walked the entire 1.3 miles across the bridge. She wasn't there either -- it turns out she was in Brooklyn the entire time near where I parked. She had finished running the bridge an hour before and this was her sneaky way of pushing me to do all that walking. It worked -- I had to walk another 1.3 miles to get back to car. I was tempted to take the subway but I didn't. It felt so good to do it and the view was breathtaking.

Since that day, I have walked the Brooklyn Bridge at least twice per night (2.6 miles) along with my Wii workouts. I have walked in the rain, snow and frigid temperatures as low as 15 degrees. I feel great. When I first started walking, the span across the bridge it took me 50 minutes. Now it takes me 23 minutes to cross it. I also joined the New York Sports Club and some days I spend up to five hours walking or exercising. Somehow, exercise became so much fun. My emotional eating has turned into emotional exercising.

I know I have a long way to go to reach my goal weight of 187 pounds, but I'm taking it day by day. Please say "hi" or cheer me on if you see me on the Brooklyn Bridge -- I love the encouragement, and it helps keep me going!

Now Weight: 425 pounds and counting

As Leon continues his weight loss journey, he's planning on doing his first walking race with the New York Road Runners Club this May.

Emotional eating is a common problem -- find out how Christopher stopped his and trimmed down 100 lbs.

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Magda Went From Plump to "Perfect 10"

Martha Edwards — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Success Stories

Name: Magda Abt

Age: 30

Height: 5 feet, 4 inches

Before Weight: 160 pounds

How I Gained It: I gained weight because I didn't have any self control - I ate whatever I wanted, and didn't think I would gain weight. I would eat pizza every day, but I wouldn't just stop at one slice -- I'd eat a lot. I never watched my portion sizes.

I also ate tons of candy all day. I was always around people who were eating unhealthy things and so I would too. I was eating way too much sugar.

Breaking Point: My breaking point was when a woman asked me when my baby was due -- but I wasn't pregnant!

Also, one day I tried to put my pants on and I couldn't even get them buttoned-- I had to put a rubber band through the loop instead. I thought, "this is horrible." I know I could buy bigger clothes but I just refused to go past a certain size. I was determined to get back to a size I felt comfortable with, and that's when I discovered Dr. Michael Aziz's Perfect 10 Diet.

How I Lost It: I lost my weight by following Dr. Aziz's diet, and I have now made it my way of life. I found the plan difficult in the first week, then it became easier everyday. I now find it effortless.

The diet focuses on balancing 10 hormones. There are three stages to the diet, including a final maintenance stage. Grains and alcohol are banned for the first part but can be added in gradually. Sweets aren't allowed when you're losing weight but can be enjoyed occasionally once you're in the maintenance phase. However, I've found that I do not miss eating high sugar-content foods like candy, regular ice-cream, or any regular or artificially sweetened soft-drinks. These days, I rely on items like include hard boiled eggs, almonds and seafood -- especially shrimp -- to give me energy. I also enjoy exercising three times a week.

I've given Dr. Aziz's book to everyone I know. It's changed my life. I used to have a lot of lower back pain because all the extra weight I was carrying was all in my stomach. That disappeared when I lost the weight. I feel healthy and alive, and don't feel sluggish anymore. I have so much more energy these days. I'm also a lot more confident now when people look at me -- I feel great!

I took me three months to lose the weight and I still follow the diet because it's a healthier way of life.

After Weight: 125 pounds

Magda has maintained her weight loss for three years by following the Perfect 10 Diet.

Madga's not the only one who's gone from frumpy to fab -- check out how weight loss blogger Amanda lost 70 pounds!

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Lovebirds Lori and Tony Lost Weight Together

Martha Edwards — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Success Stories

Names: Lori and Tony Mendola

Ages: Lori, 52 and Tony, 56.

Heights: Lori is 5 feet, 4 inches; Tony is 5 feet, 6 inches.

Before Weights: Lori was 185.8 pounds and Tony was 318 pounds.

How We Gained It: (In Lori's words) We gained weight because we overate most of the time. In fact, we usually wouldn't leave the table until we felt really full. We never considered portion size.

I had been battling weight issues for quite some time and had suffered from rheumatoid arthritis all of my life. We had both made attempts to "diet" multiple times in the past with little success. The two of us became very frustrated and clueless as to why we could not lose weight and keep it off.

Breaking Point: My weight loss journey was first sparked by the love of my life -- my husband. I thought Tony was headed towards a heart attack, as he was carrying around 318 pounds and was huffing and puffing with every step. My husband is truly my soul mate and I felt his health was now in my hands.

We'd heard from a few friends about Weight Watchers and their philosophy on portion size and eating the right foods. Though we had tried numerous diets before, I was not ready to give up our mission to lose weight, as I knew my husband's life and our enjoyment of life together literally depended on it. We decided to give it one more try and joined Weight Watchers together. Little did we know that this was the beginning of a transformation of our minds, bodies and souls.

How We Lost It: Since joining Weight Watchers, my husband and I have learned that dieting does not work. Instead, we learned the importance of portion size and the proper way to eat. We eat lots of fresh vegetables and fruit, and avoid anything fatty or sugary. I love to bake and have learned to do it in a healthier way -- it still tastes great! Tony is my biggest fan -- he says he feels like he eats in a five-star restaurant every night.

Along with my goal to help my husband lose weight , the benefits of my own weight loss have been incredible -- at 38 pounds lighter, my large joints no longer ached as much. Tony has lost 93 pounds and his blood pressure and cholesterol levels are all now at normal levels. He works out at the gym regularly and walks three to four miles a day.

Our marriage has improved too -- our son Jonathan is mortified to admit that we act like high school sweethearts again.

After Weights: Lori weighs 139 pounds and Tony weighs 199 pounds.

It took Lori and Tony 17 months to slim down. They reached their goal weights in November 2009 -- together.

Lori and Tony aren't the only ones with great success stories -- check out how another Tony managed to lose 100 pounds.

Are you inspired by our That's Fit Success Stories? Motivate others by submitting your own! Share how you've transformed your body through diet and exercise by clicking here.

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