Every journey has a beginning...

About 5 weeks ago I decided I was tired of being "the fat chick". I've been overweight most of my life, and I suppose I've let it define me. Or at least part of me.

I'd tried to lose weight in the past, but with little to no result. I just wasn't trying hard enough, my heart wasn't in it. I've tried one or two fad diets, and even at one point joined a gym. Sure, I was exercising, but it wasn't enough.

This time, I'm doing things differently. I joined up at MyFitnessPal and began tracking everything I put in my mouth. It's become almost an obsession, tracking what I eat. It holds me accountable, and I think it's helping to keep me on the right track. In the past 5 weeks I've lost 18 of the 114-124 pounds that I want to lose.

So far, my plan is simple:

• Eat healthy, low calorie foods
• Track everything I eat and stay under a certain calorie threshold
• Exercise 5-6 days of the week

I have found some wonderful low calorie recipes online, and I exercise by both walking and by doing the "Sweatin to the Oldies" videos. When the weather warms up some, I want to start the Couch to 5K program as well.
This is just the beginning of a life-long journey to get healthy and improve my overall well-being. I'll be updating as much as I can with my progress and struggles (as I am sure there will be many). I'll also be posting my successes and disappointments. I want to document this journey as best I can.

Lastly, this is me last summer, before starting this journey. I don't know what exact weight I was at the time of this photo, but my starting weight 5 weeks ago was 254 lbs. My guess is it was somewhere around there. I'll post another pic when I hit my first goal of 50 gone.