How I got to this point... Unfortunately...

I was lucky enough to have a pretty darn good body (not that I always appreciated it) for the first 22 years of life. I started gaining weight on a constant basis when I got engaged and married. Living with girls made keeping my body slim EASY! We all ate relatively healthy, didnt eat crazy amounts of food and made workout "dates" all the time! I lived next door to my best friend Emma so it was easy to live like her- we were inseperable and since she has an awesome lifestyle with food and exercise, I just fell into her lifestyle and it was soooo easy to stay skinny.

Then BOOM. I started living with my husband Andrew and it wasnt the same at all. Andrew eats alot and constantly craves good cheesy greasy food and so do I. Bad combination. If he was eating it, I felt like I could also. We also have a super bad habit of staying in on the weekends with alcohol and yummy foods and watch movies and tv... Fast forward a year and a half and CRAP. Here I am. I weighed about 130lbs in highschool. I weighed about 140lbs thru college... marriage put on more weight. I remember showing off my engagement ring to my grandpa and commented "it is too big! I am going to have to go get it resized!!" My grandpa chuckled and said "No hunny, youre getting married. Wives get fat so dont worry about it!" HAHA! I had no idea how unfortuately correct he really really was with his sarcastic joke! Boo.

I hit a low point when I was out with friends and a guy friend had too much to drink and laid it on me- "Why have you gained so much weight?" OUCH! (dont focus on this part- he felt awful and is a super nice guy so unfortunately I cant hate him at all lol) but I was so butt hurt! So mad someone else noticed!! and mostly angry that IT WAS TRUE. You think this would have been my rock bottom but nope. I just got sad and felt bad for myself and emotional ate like it was my job. I weighed myself at 167lbs. F*(&*&^!! I hadnt weighed myself since college!! OMG HOW DID IT GET THIS BAD? I knew I was chunky but geez. That is almost 30 extra pounds I lug around under my skin EVERY DAY. Also at this point, I was having constipation problems for the first time in my life. I started to use laxatives almost daily because I felt so bloated and didnt know what to do. When Andrew found out about the laxatives, he made me switch to fiber pills for my health. I was taking 5 fiber pills (the reccommended dosage) twice a day just to attempt to feel normal. And it barely worked. I still felt NASTY! and bloated and fat.

I had been following a bunch of "fit inspiration pages" on Instagram and randomly came across this chick from Miami Flordia that was starting a HerbaLife Challenge. Out of curiosity I started following her. And watched her journey. In three months she has transformed her body completely. And her confidence and personality is beyond contagious! I knew I wanted what she had got for herself. I knew I should have started when she did but I also knew that I was finally ready to really commit to a lifestyle change because of what happened a week and a half ago-
MY ROCK BOTTOM: My engagement ring and wedding ring would barely come off my finger. F&^*#!! These were loose November 2011 and now?? They BARELY fit!! It was a relief taking them off, with them on I felt as if I was losing circulation in my finger. HELL NO. I love those rings. I love being married to Andrew and I am proud to wear my rings and I am not giving up on myself anymore!! Unfortunately the whole self pity thing was not magically making me skinny. Who would thunk it?

Herbalife is an easy lifestyle change:
Breakfast- Morning detox tea, breakfast shake, multivitamin and cell activator
Lunch- Multivitamin and a healthy "colorful" lunch of fruits veggies and protein
Dinner- Dinner shake, multivitamin and cell activator
Healthy snacks when needed (veggies fruits nuts)

The cost of the package with shipping and handling is 210.02$ thru me. (I had thought it was cheaper but just realized you need one canister of meal replacement for breakfast and one for dinner to make the whole package 30 days) It really is a great deal because youre paying for your breakfast, coffee (you drink the morning detox tea for energy also and trust me- you dont miss coffee at all!! no coffee!!), multivitamin (in three daily doses so you absorb it better) and dinner. All you need to purchase on your own is a daily lunch and healthy snacks if needed.

I have done it for a total of 7 days including today. I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! I have stopped using fiber pills COMPLETELY! I honestly didnt even realize this until today! What a blessing and what a freaking nasty thought that I was having to use them because the way I was caring for myself :( I have a ton of energy without paying for starbucks and I am HAPPY AGAIN! I had fallen depressed for awhile. I hated myself and what I had become so I didnt want to go out and have to dress cute. It would take me an hour trying on multiple outfits and having Andrew console me when I gave up, cried about being fat and ended up just wearing his large tshirts and my running shorts... I am so ready for this change! I am not gunna lie- I was hoping for a change in one week but honestly I will have to wait a little longer but that is okay with me!! I am working hard and ready for a real change. Theres something empowering about going over with the boys to watch football and not drinking a beer! "I cant, I am on herbalife!" NO BEER! Not needed!!! I will drink a little vodka but only on special occasions so that I love my lifestyle and not resent it. I want to keep up my social aspects of food because those are enjoyable and make me happy! If I have a family dinner then I will eat a shake for breakfast and lunch so that I may enjoy dinner socially.

Anyways- Here is my starting picture. Taken December 5th by Andrew. I will take the same pictures with the same camera in the same spot weekly. I will probably start taking measurements also. This public journey is for two reasons.
1. I tend to work better under public humiliation. I have dug myself so deep into HerbaLife that I have to stay on it! I have to prove to myself and others that I can make a change and I WILL!
2. If I can help one person to get motivated to change their life also. Being chunky/fat SUCKS. Your clothes dont fit. You get tired doing simple things. You avoid bathing suit situations. You emotional eat. You use your weight as an excuse to NOT workout. So STOP! Lets do this together!!

I am 5'7in just FYI

If anyone decides to take this journey with me you do not only get the products- you get my cell number for 24/7 support. I know inner demons about food and health. I deal with them still. I am fighting thru them and I will help you do the same.