This is my story! My name is Emily, I am 25 years old and I am overweight! I have been overweight all my life! And I have not been happy with myself all my life. I have always thought that I am not pretty and it's been hard growing up being overweight!
Me and my siblings
Me and my Grandpa Cavalier
I struggle losing weight. I have tried lots of different things! I have joined Curves, I have bought work out videos, and I have eaten healthy and counted calories. And I must admit I have lost some weight but I never could keep it off. I was once in a competition at work to loose weight and I lost weight and got to the lowest weight ever in my life but I didn't keep it off long which was depressing. It's because I love food. But during that journey in the competition I learned something … I learned I love to run.
Before weight loss competition
After
I have always had this desire to run but I didn't know how to start running. I was way overweight and I couldn't breathe while I tried to run. But when I started to lose the weight I gave it a shot! I got up to running six miles a day! Now that is super big for a person like me who is heavy!
But sadly today I couldn't
run six miles if I tried; I would most likely pass out! Now you may be asking
why I quit running six miles a day. I actually have a very good answer for that
… I left my normal life and everyday schedule to go serve the Lord and served
an LDS Mission!
It was the best experience of my life! I tried to keep up the running but it was too hard with my companions. But I do remember at the beginning of my mission telling my mission companion “Everyone is a runner''! And it's so true! Anyone can be a runner if they choose to be!
Texas Houston East Mission
August 2010 - February 2012
It was the best experience of my life! I tried to keep up the running but it was too hard with my companions. But I do remember at the beginning of my mission telling my mission companion “Everyone is a runner''! And it's so true! Anyone can be a runner if they choose to be!
It's like my older sister
Melanie; she is a runner! She was overweight and she tried some of the same
things I did and the weight would come off a little bit but come right back on!
That was until she decided to start running! And now she can run anything! She has even run a marathon! I'm so proud of my sister and I look up to her a lot!
And to be honest, I am also very jealous that she can go run anytime of the day and just run as many miles as she wants and I can't. It's hard on my knees and my back and it's hard to breath. For some time now I have been telling myself, “One day I will be like my sister. One day!” But you know everyone says that, “One day I will start working out,” “One day I will do this craft,” “One day I will clean out the garage,” and “One day I will travel the world!” But that's not good enough! What about NOW! May that day be NOW!
My sister Melanie - Christmas 2005
That was until she decided to start running! And now she can run anything! She has even run a marathon! I'm so proud of my sister and I look up to her a lot!
Melanie - 2013
Rock n' Roll Marathon, Seattle Washington
And to be honest, I am also very jealous that she can go run anytime of the day and just run as many miles as she wants and I can't. It's hard on my knees and my back and it's hard to breath. For some time now I have been telling myself, “One day I will be like my sister. One day!” But you know everyone says that, “One day I will start working out,” “One day I will do this craft,” “One day I will clean out the garage,” and “One day I will travel the world!” But that's not good enough! What about NOW! May that day be NOW!
And so that's what I am
doing, I'm making my desire real by starting to run today! I'm tired of being
the overweight girl. I'm tired of people making fat jokes about me. I'm tired
of not being able to shop anywhere and wear the cute clothes in stores. I'm
tired of not being able to date and I would love a guy to look at me and think
I'm cute and not think wow, she is over overweight or heavy; I don't want to
date her! So the time is now to change my life and RUN! RUN those pounds off
and be beautiful and be happy with myself!
So what made me want to start
today? I was shopping in Wal-Mart and I saw this bright neon shirt that said
RUN!
I just fell in love with it. So I bought it and made a goal to change my life today! I wrote my sister Melanie an e-mail asking for her advice to help me be where she is at today! She wrote me back a sweet and very encouraging of how excited she was for me to start this journey to RUN! She gave me tips and a chart of how I need to start running to build up to where she is at!
I just fell in love with it. So I bought it and made a goal to change my life today! I wrote my sister Melanie an e-mail asking for her advice to help me be where she is at today! She wrote me back a sweet and very encouraging of how excited she was for me to start this journey to RUN! She gave me tips and a chart of how I need to start running to build up to where she is at!
So today I can run 2.5 miles
and that is awesome! Is it easy … well yes and no. When you start running you
feel like you can run for miles but your body isn't used to it so pretty soon you
feel like you want to give up and quit.
But you can't quit, you have to keep pressing forward to achieve your
goal! And when I want to give up I always look at my shirt and I see the word
RUN and that helps me to keep going. I then think of my sister Melanie and how
I know she would be encouraging me to keep going just like she did during a 5k
she and I did before my mission!
I know I can do this! I know I will reach my
goal to be a runner! And one day I will run a marathon like my sister Melanie!
But I have a long road ahead of me!
Melanie and Me - June 2010
Sounds to Narrows 5K - Tacoma, Washington
So I figured, why not write
about this journey and about my experience of becoming a runner. Hopefully this
will help me see how far I have come, help me be happy with life, and help me
not be depressed about how I feel and look! And I think sharing my feelings
will be much better than keeping them bottled up inside like I have done all my
years growing up!
So here is to a new
beginning and a new journey in my life! Let’s start to RUN!
This was wonderful, beautiful,and encouraging. I know your sister and think she is a great roll model to have. Good luck on your journey. You got this! And remember there will be times you have to not think but just DO! I would.love to see how you progress. I am in the middle of trying to loose some weight myself. You go girl!!
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