My story in pictures

Judyb said:
Wow! So you married at 17? And you're expecting your 3rd child? And still married?

You are definitely the exeption that proves the rule!!!!

I'm so happy for you!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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lol Thanks.. We have had our hard times, as most all marriages do. I guess for me I feel blessed beyond words to have found a man that loved me before I even knew how to love me. He saw past the very thing I couldn't, which was my weight and saw me for beautiful - when that word to me was laughable at best. Our plans had called for a longer engagement then what we had. Not even two months after he asked me to marry him we found out our son Garren was on his way. The doctors assumed that because of my size (almost 380) that my birth control just wasn't enough. I was on the pill - same dose as any "normal" sized person. So we sped up getting married, and never looked back. While our son wasn't planned our daughter and now this baby (recently found out another boy!!) were very planned!

I say all the time that my body lost over 200 pounds, but not my mind. The men that now fall over themselves to open doors for me or ask me out (dispite my ring), just piss me off. I know more often then not they would have been the very ones cracking jokes about how huge I was - or not even looking at me twice. While my husband never even saw the weight to begin with. I think we glean a lot of strength in our marriage from that aspect alone. Though I know it has taken him some adjusting. LOL Where I use to be fairly shy and just "the jolly fat girl" - I now am gaining more confidence as I have lost my weight. Public affection use to be something I would NEVER have shown, because I didn't want HIM being made fun of. Now that isn't so much a issue to me - I feel I am somebody he can be proud of. He just trys to beat in my head that he has been proud of ME since day one. Still hard for me to believe! The emotional side of things have proven to be taking longer then the physical aspects.
 
Serena C said:
Amber, do you have any objection to my linking to your slideshow from my blog? I've been gathering some of the more inspiring stories and photos I've run across and would love to include yours if you don't mind. If you'd rather not, no problem. I'll wait to hear from you in this thread or by PM. Thanks!
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Sorry it has taken me so long to find the form again! Until the site emailed me I thought I had lost my link to here for good! I have is saved now.. lol But if you are still doing it - I wouldnt mind in the least. Sorry it took so long to get a reply from me!
 
fav_grps said:
Unbelievable, truly speaking on first look i could'nt believe that these pics are original i thought they are pics of 2 different persons, but this is truly awesome, you are the greatest inspiration here in this forum. But please share your experience (what you did, what you did'nt, how u feel after such a massive change).
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Thanks! I suppose after seeing the same old obese face in the mirror my WHOLE life it is nice to hear so many people say they found it hard to believe its the same person. I recall as a 10-12 year old child praying that God would give me cancer, because cancer made people to sick to eat and made them lose a lot of weight. Then I would finish off my prayer with "then please make me healthy so I don't die". The hardest part of being pregnant is certainly the weight gain - mentally. But eating healthy has kept me from reaching a huge gain thus far.

My "experience" is a long one, spanning over 21 years now. I have had weight problems from as far back as I can recall. The first time I recall being made to feel "different" from other kids was in pre-k. We were all running up a hill to the play yard one afternoon, and I lacked behind the others. Some kid turned around and innocently told me I was slow because I was so fat. That's the earliest memory I have of feeling out of place over how much I weighed. I am really the only person in my family with weight issues. My mother met her "life's weight struggle" toping off at 180. Which to me would have been a dream come true. It was certainly hard to hear her walk around the house downing herself for being 180 - when my weight was climbing all the time. She would walk around saying "fat cow" and other things - to herself. I suppose she never noticed the damage it caused me. Father wise - I didn't meet him until I was around age 11. When I was 12 he told me in front of 3 strangers that I was to fat to be his daughter. Our relationship was dotted at best - and many years after we didn't have any contact. It has been very hard to see him attempt to have a relationship with me now - now that I have lost so much weight. This time I hard to guard myself and reject HIM. Letting him know that I couldn't build a relationship with him after so much hurt. Because damn it - I was the same lost little girl that needed her "daddy" at 378 that I am now at 170. I loved the same, and saw life the same, and had the same fears. --I guess that's enough depressing crap-- I think we all have our stories of hurt. But for so many years I let myself think that "If *I* hadn't let myself get so fat, my dad would love me". Now being a mother myself I just don't see how he had it within himself to tell his CHILD she was to fat to love.

When I was 17 my boyfriend - who I was always trying to push away, asked me to marry him. I turned him down twice. I guess you could say I had issues allowing men to show any kind of affection to me. On his third attempt - I said yes. Two months later we found out we were expecting our son Garren. Saying we sped things up after that is a understatement. I spent my 9 months of pregnancy being told by a OB how stupid it was of me to get pregnant at "your size". It was a long 9 months of self reflection. Knowing how winded I got just getting up to use the restroom - let alone stairs, or chasing a young child. When my son was 6 weeks old we both went into the doctors for a check up. My doctor then told me (as I held my son) that if I continued down the path I was on that he didn't see me living to see 30. I recall holding my 6 week old, perfect son and thinking forward to not being there to see him graduate, marry, have children. Why? Because I liked to eat? I swore that day to my son that he would never burry his mother because she couldn't say no to a cheese burger. I swore to him I wouldn't be a "side line" mom who could only sit and watch his life go by - and not be a part of it. That's when my long road to my transformation started. I guess I have never loved myself enough to make such a commitment and stick to it. But when you are holding a new life - a new life YOU created and love more then life itself, its just something that is hard to even explain. It gave me a drive I never thought I would find on my own.

Many people ask me "what I did". I guess I always find that hard to answer. Because it is really the basic principles that "fad" diets seem to brag you don't have to follow. I didn't wave a magic wand - I didn't drink a liquid diet - I didn't order all my food for only 10 dollars a day - and I certainly did not find my answer in a pill. I think when I finally settled in my mind that all of those things were temporary fixes to what has been a forever problem, it was easier to let go of the "quick fix" hope. I started off by not being able to exercise. Lets face it - at 380 pounds it is hard to walk from one end of the house to another. Working out was a horrible experience for all of my joints. I can only imagine how much worse that pain gets the older somebody with weight problems get, since I myself at the time was 18! I started with simple things. I 100 percent cut soda (yes even diet) out of my life. It is something your body doesn't need on any level. I read once that ONE 12 oz can of regular soda a day (God knows how many I use to down a day) for a year would equal 15 pounds worth of weight gain! !?!?!?! I like to eat to much to waste that much weight on DRINKING!! WATER WATER WATER... I was never a water fan. So to work myself up to it I would get splenda sweet decaf tea and fill a whole big cup of ice and then pour the rest with tea. As it would melt I would get a lot of water. It was a way of building myself up to the intake I needed. Food wise it was a matter really of not having to switch to everything low/no calorie - but learning how to live life every day with food in a healthy way. "No Amber, you cant eat a whole package of oreo cookies - but two or three is a nice treat ever now and again." I feel like if you cut our treats 100 % you are setting yourself up to fail. Sooner or later you break, and when you do - you over do it. MODERATION was a word that took me a while to learn.

Once I lost about 80ish pounds I was able to start working out. Walking seemed to be the best for me. I started off feeling like I could drop dead at 20 minutes of slow walking. I now can jog (me?jog?!) for 2 hours. I use to be the kid who would joke that I would burn in a house fire before "running" out of the house. Once I was able to start working out the weight started to FLY off. So really there is no magic way to do it, other then the same boring things I have been told my whole life. It just took me a long while to find the strength to DO those things. I would love to add more, but my 1 year old daughter is sitting on my lap and making it hard to type! lol

ohh and I am happy to say that I am far from being a side lines mom :) these days! Now that I have re found the forum I will be around :) But its hard to just sit online when the kids are up and running around! Sorry if this is scattered all over the place - I am not really taking time to proof read it, and I really should! Sorry!
 
It is so refreshing to see a person turn their life around without pills, atkins, or the miracle ab machine for only 19.95. It's like a breath of fresh air for me (as a trainer to people just like you) to know you did this out of sheer determination to be a better mom/wife. I also think God answered your chilhood prayer in a way you never imagined.

If you don't mind, I would like to post portions of this story on my blog for some of my clients to see.
 
Amber - what an amazing transformation, good for you!

Have you had to deal with any excess skin issues esp. with three pregnancies?
 
Amazing and incredibly inspirational. You have a beautiful life with your husband and babies. And your hard work at losing this weight truly shows.
 
Trainer4Newbies said:
It is so refreshing to see a person turn their life around without pills, atkins, or the miracle ab machine for only 19.95. It's like a breath of fresh air for me (as a trainer to people just like you) to know you did this out of sheer determination to be a better mom/wife. I also think God answered your chilhood prayer in a way you never imagined.

If you don't mind, I would like to post portions of this story on my blog for some of my clients to see.
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Wow! Go ahead! If my story (rambles) can help somebody else - I am all for it :) Yes - God answered my prayers on every level. All I ever wanted was to be healthy and normal.. I am now both..lol
 
WOOOOWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!! You are absolutely inspirational! Thankyou for having the courage to share your journey with us! You've inspired many i'm sure!
 
you look amazing! you must feel soo good... i am soo inspired by you!!! how much do you weigh now??? thats my new goal weight!!! lol... you are soo gorgeous!!!
 
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Congrats on all the hard work you did to chagne your body. Also congrats on the new baby I have four and I know how hard those trasistions can be. Keep up the good mental strength and smile.
 
wow... that is sooo amazing, you look like a completely different person!! So brave to post the starting pictures and it sure paid off!!! Congrats!! And what a beautiful family you have!!!
 
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