|
|
After |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
Desperate and lost, gaining more weight each year, Niya realized that she didn’t know where to start or how to change. She said a prayer and within weeks was given the answer she was looking for.
I was truly tired of being overweight. I didn’t feel good about the way I looked and was becoming less and less mobile as the pounds came on year after year. My back had gone out the year before due to the excess weight and I was starting to experience an irregular menstrual cycle from the steady gain. Desperate and scared I started praying that I would find something that could help me.
Prayers answered
Just two weeks later I received an interoffice email saying that Weight Watchers was starting an At Work meeting in my office. To say I was reluctant to join would be an understatement. I was downright skeptical. I had tried in the past to lose weight only to regain it and was afraid that this would be just another oppressive diet that I would fail at once again.
With some gentle encouragement from my co-workers I conquered my fear and attended my first meeting. I quickly found out that my fears were completely unfounded and started following the POINTS® Weight-Loss System. I realized immediately that this is not a diet, but a lifestyle change. Weight Watchers is the anti-diet! Suddenly I was elated. I felt so free; liberated from the bondage of past diets and my life long struggle with my weight. I was blown away by the concept of losing weight while enjoying my favorite foods (in moderation, of course). What a concept!
Transformed
I weighed 322.4 pounds when I walked into my first Weight Watchers meeting. I have lost over 90 pounds* since that first day. Although I am not yet at my goal weight I know that I am equipped with the tools that will get me there in time. Everything about me has changed. I have gone from someone who could barely move to one who participates in some form of physical activity daily.
Becoming a more active person was something that evolved in me slowly over time. In the beginning I was not ready to go to a gym to get physical activity in. I needed to start by focusing on simply being more active in my daily life, so I did anything I could. I took stairs and got off the train or bus early. In time and as some weight started to come off I felt ready to join a gym. Today I go to the gym 3 to 4 times a week!
I have truly transformed from someone absolutely uninspired to lose weight to someone who now inspires others. I am so honored by the fact that my journey has inspired others to begin their own weight loss. When someone asks my advice I often tell them to simply take it one day at a time. If you have a lot to lose, try not to think about that, just think about reaching a short term goal. Don't put it off any longer. The longer you do, the worse the problem becomes and the more weight you have to lose. Just know that you can do it and you are so worth it.
Once I reach my goal I hope to become a Weight Watchers leader, so that I can share with others all that Weight Watchers has taught me. I hope to continue to motivate, inspire and equip others to lose weight. I am eternally grateful to have had my prayer answered.
| Niya’s Tips |
|---|
|