Black woman, early 20s, living in the South. 

It took me ~3 months to lose ~15lbs once I changed my diet. 

I have been maintaining since September 2011. I average about 4 workouts a week, 2 cardio & 2 tone/stretch.  now my workouts are: running/HIIT, yoga, pilates, cardio classes, & the occasional full bod strength training session. my aim is to be fit/active & enjoy moving my body. my diet is more or less the same, with a few more indulgences but everything in moderation :)

I began my fitness/weightloss journey officially on May 30, 2011.  I have struggled with my weight and body image for years, but never to the extreme of disordered eating or obsessive exercise.

I worked out 5-6 days a week and did most of my workouts in a gym to start.  I do pilates, yoga, running (inside), biking (outside), strength training, and a high intensity cardio class (kickboxing, etc) or high intensity interval training.

 I aimed for 150 mins of cardio each week, and at least 180 mins of strength training (5.5 hours of exercise a week total).  

 I didn’t change my diet until July 5th, and saw the difference that made.  

My weakness is sweets, and I let myself have dessert every night (150 calories or less).  I used to eat 1450-1700 calories a day, depending on the level of activity, aiming to net1450 (based on my AMR+BMR).  I used mydailyplate.com.  I don’t have the time to calorie count, but i do track it a bit in my head.  

 I held myself accountable with a google doc to record my daily exercise.  

My stats:

5’2

HW: 147lbs (20)

LW: 115lbs (17)

SW: 143lbs (21, July 5, 2011)

CW: 127-130lbs (Achieved September 18, 2011)

UGW: 125-130lbs; curvy, fit & toned

Measurements:

5/26/11:

• Chest - 37.5
• Waist - 33
• Hips - 42

6/21/11

• Chest - 37
• Waist - 31.5
• Hips - 39.5

9/18/11

• Chest - 35
• Waist - 27.5
• Hips - 37.5