Blog #1

Below is the first of many blogs of two people in love, and on an amazing journey. "B" stands for "Brian" and "R" stands for Rhonda. They tell their story together....

Lose the Weight to Set the Date

B: I was browsing on Facebook one day and she popped into mind. I had just recently joined myself, searched for and found her profile. I left a message (a generic one) only because I had a bad habit of popping in and out of people’s lives and I didn’t want to act like she didn’t have a reason to be peeved at me because she did. After a few days when I didn’t hear from her, I figured she didn’t want to be bothered. Then she sent me a message back and we exchanged numbers.

R: Two years of getting myself together, 1 year since we spoke. It all started on July 19, 2009 at my cousin’s wedding. The look and vibe of young love that had been through obstacles and still ended in marriage. Wow, I want that. I want someone that I can look at and know that this is my now and forever. I am making that phone call the moment I get back to work, which was two days later. Thank goodness for Facebook and him hunting me down, otherwise I wouldn’t have his number.

B: Maybe 1-1/2 months went by before I noticed a message on my cell and it was from her. I immediately called her back.

R: Tuesday, 21 July 2009, I called him and left a voicemail that morning to “call me, it’s important!” Didn’t hear anything all morning, so I called my girlfriend that afternoon and told her what I was doing. She thought it laughable and said “I want to be on the phone when you ask him…I don’t believe that you’ll do it”. So I tried his number again, voicemail. As I’m telling her that he didn’t answer, he calls. I conference the two of them, after all we’d all hung out at B’s house playing cards for years as friends. I’m not scared to let anyone know that I know what I want and I’m going after it.

B: After some joyful greetings with her and one of her girlfriends, she proceeded to ask me “B…what are you doing October 2010?” I immediately laughed because she knows me well enough to know that was a silly question for me. Then out of nowhere comes “we’re getting married”. I paused, felt that gut feeling that spoke and said to me “you wanted and asked for direction…here it is!” After some other convo, we hung up.

R: So, the call pretty much proceeds like this: “Hey B, what’s up?” He gives some generic replies and then speaks on how good it is to talk to us. We tell him the same. I ask him “so what are you doing October 2010”. My girlfriend is cracking up laughing repeating “I can’t believe that you’re gonna do this”. So I proceed to say “we’re getting married”. He takes about 3-5 seconds and says “ok”. I smile so deeply and my girlfriend is stunned. She says, “I can’t believe he said yes”. We are all laughing and we chat for a little while longer before ending the call.

B: I called her back just to ask her was she serious, she said yes. I began to explain to her how I prayed to my higher power and asked for a different direction, if the road I chose to travel was the wrong one. When she called it all felt too right! My gut instinct has never failed me and I had been through too much to not listen now!



R: “B” immediately calls me back and asks was I serious. I tell him absolutely and repeat the question to him. He says that he is just as serious and he proceeds to tell me how he had just posed a life direction question to himself and divine intervention answered with my phone call.

So fast forward a few months. Family members have always said to me, “you should go on the Biggest Loser television show”. I’m thinking “sure, right, I am never getting on the program”. My family again proceeds to tell me how I really should think about going and I did. I went to auditions. I listened to the couple from Gainesville, VA speak on their experience. I proceed to the room with the other 9 contestants and it didn’t go as well as I wanted. I am the “Biggest Loser”, but not for television.

As mothers generally do, my mom researched and found out that the “Biggest Loser of Montgomery County” was happening soon. Apparently it started in January 2010 and I didn’t know anything about it. The next start date was happening April 11, 2010 @Studio 310 in Gaithersburg, MD. Since, B was initially bothered about how we needed to do the “Biggest Loser” together, signed both of us up for the Montgomery County Loser Challenge. We decided that we needed to “Lose the Weight to Set the Date”. That’s our motto.

On that first day, we woke up nervously excited. We chatted on the way to the studio about how we plan to put forth an effort to this program. I don’t think that either of us truly realized how life changing this whole experience, thus far, was going to be. We got there so early that CeeCee (instructor) was just opening the door and getting settled. She wore an oversized sweatshirt and black fitted exercise pants. I’m thinking to myself that she’s gonna make us work but little did we know how much. When she took off her sweatshirt and turned on the music, she morphed into this super fit goddess on adrenaline. B decided that he was getting in the very front. He said that he needed to face his demons and truly see what he’d allow himself to become. I, on the other hand, took second row. Fortunate but unfortunate for me, I still had full view of my image. So we both had to face some ugly demons that day. After this kick-ass workout, we knew that this was devine design and destiny led. We have been dieing to set a date for our nuptials, but we both knew that we weren’t at our best for one another. This experience is the wake up call we needed. We definitely have many stories to share.

What I've learned about myself in my "weight loss journey"

I've learned:

I am a creature of convienience. While the recipe may look good, I'll buy the ingredients and forget to make the dish. Or, look at it as if it would take all day to cook.

If I don't see it in the fridge, I wont eat it. Resulting in my fridge shelves getting very cluttered.

I'm a grazer. I like to pick all day long.

I don't like large meals. I prefer to graze all day long.

I like to eat infront of the t.v at night.

I love chocolate. It is my xanex.

Sundays are my free for all day. Meaning, if its there, i'll eat it because its Sunday. NO other reason, except that it's Sunday.

My body tells me when I've over eaten for the day. I just don't listen.

To me, dinner is not as important as breakfast.

Alcohol is the devil.

Junk food makes me feel like crap. Maybe that's why I like to eat it at night, because then I can just go to sleep.

Candy stays out of the house. Or I WILL eat it all. No 100 calories packs of Hersheys in this house. 100 calories would result in 700 calories eaten.

I sample my kid's Halloweeen Candy as we are trick or treating.

I don't like gummy candies, fruit snacks, or the other sugary kids foods. So, we keep them out of the house.

Too much Coffee makes me want to eat more.

If I start my day with a good workout, my day is more happy, productive and peaceful.

Working out/Dancing is my Lexapro.

I am most happy when I feel good from the inside out.

After I had my babies and was at my heaviest, I felt trapped inside "this body".

I feel more motivated to reach my goals while I'm helping others to reach theirs.

I'm a serious emotional eater. Happy, Anxious, Stressed, you name it. And it all leads to massive Chocolate intake.

And that's all I can think of for now.

I feel that, by identifying these things that we know about ourselves already, that we can better overcome these obstacles and continue on our weight loss journey. These are my emotional battles that are holding me back from reaching my goals more quickly.

But now that I've said them outloud, perhaps they will be easier to overcome when the time arrises.

What do you know about yourself??

Get Fit, Get Married

Yesterday, I met with two of our Red Team challengers. These two just happened to be engaged and on a mission--together--to lose weight, and change their current lifestyle.
The catch? They will not set a date or begin any wedding planning until they've both lost a significant amount of weight. I've taken "BRAD" (not using real name) on as my personal training client, I am donated my and the Studio's time to "BRAD" to help him get into the best shape of his physical and emotional life.

Follow their journey through this blog. From the time she picked up the phone and asked, "What are you doing one year from now?", to the challenge kick off meeting, all the way through their journey, their triumphs, their stuggles and successes. Follow them to the end where they will be that much closer to reaching their physical goals and will begin wedding planning.

Stay tuned....