My Adventure Begins...

Well here I am! I have been looking for a place to begin a new blog ~ I sure do miss my old 360. Many changes have occurred in my life the past few months. I guess you can say, I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I have more or less been overweight since the birth of my first child some 25 years ago. It began as a small "apron" and grew in size, year after year. The larger it became the more home bound I became. I was ashamed, embarrassed to be seen in public - it was much easier to hide out then to feel that shame. I was/am a happy go lucky type of person, I felt comfortable in my home, and in a way I was very happy. But part of me missed the old Bren - the Bren who used to be in sports, the Bren who loved to dance, talk and mingle with others. What happened to her? Where did she go?

Now here I am at age 47 - two more babies followed my first born - my apron stomach became even larger. I was so blessed to have found a very loving man - who loved me for who I was. He is my rock, my soft place to fall. He is on this journey with me, my whole family is.. Zachary is 14 and wee Jessica is 6. I foremost want to be healthy for me, but I also want to be around and watch my children grow. I want to flirt and grow old with my handsome husband... to do all this - I must go on this journey.

I started May 30th - eating lowfat, and walking daily on a new treadmill I purchased. I so love this treadmill - it is like an old friend - I swear it understands me! *lol* The first time on my treadmill - I could only walk for 30 seconds before I had to stop and catch my breath! I know that might sound odd to some of you, but not for me. You see, I have barely "walked" in the past 10 years, other than around the house. I am/was too embarrassed to walk outside - I tried walking in the evening but that was hazardous in the Winter as we average 250+ inches of snow per year.

I decided to check out the Bariatric Center at Marquette General Hospital in April of 2010. I was approved for the surgery and my first major appointment will be August 26th. At this meeting I will meet the doctors, and they will discuss with me the type of surgery they would recommend for me etc... but before that meeting happens I decided I wanted to start my journey alittle bit early. I wanted to be in better shape for my surgery.

On June 2nd I was weighed for the first time.. I had no idea what my weight would be - I thought it was about 525. I weighed in at 461.08 - the heaviest I have ever been. I track my daily meals, and exercise - I have been able to increase both speed and distance on my treadmill - for which I am very proud. I am now able to go for 20 minutes at speed 1.3. I try to go on the treadmill several times per day so I will get at least 30 minutes of exercise per day. I also lift 3 pd. weights and hope to add some aerobic tapes in the near future.

Today, I was weighed for the 5th time.. Beginning weight was 461.08 - on June 16th I weighed in as 450.12 - Loss of 11 pds! :) June 30th I weighed in at 443.08. July 21st - 444.12 and Aug 4th - 437.04! 24 pds lost thus far. I must say I'm pretty proud of that fact. I have cut out all pop, salt, snacks, etc. I eat 3 meals per day, 2 small snacks and only green tea, yogurt, or cup of cheerios past 7:30 p.m.

So this is my beginning.. this will be a journey of a lifetime, to live a lifetime. If you like, you are invited to walk with moi!

Hugs and Love
~Bren~