Vanda Karam

Howdy!

I'm here to write about my on-going weight loss experience in hopes to help anyone out there struggling with this issue. Here's my story:

Being "skinny" is all I ever wanted. I've been on diet after diet since I was ten years old. Relatives, schoolmates and even strangers reminded me I needed to lose weight every chance they got. It sucked.

I consider myself fairly intelligent. I graduated top of my class and am currently an accountant. How is it that something so basic as eating can defeat me?

Unlike what some "skinny" people think, most obese people, including me, aren't just sitting around each night with a bucket of ice cream in one hand and a bag of chips in the other.

I started junior high weighing almost 190 lbs at 5'5. It was pretty bad. Then, I met Hung Pham, and I fell hard. I skipped meals and actually utilized gym class. I was probably consuming no more than 1000 calories a day. I was on an extreme crash diet and didn't even know it. And in a matter of 3 months, I lost about 40 lbs. That's quite a bit of weight in that amount of time. But, fate had its way, and the next semester, the love of my life moved away.

Since then, I have spiraled out of control, gaining 10lbs or more every year. I graduated college weighing 240 lbs at 5'7. I was mortified that the weight gain wouldn't stop.

I began trying EVERY diet program on the market and seeing all types of dieticians and nutrionists. I wasted so much time and money.

I finally decided to use my best lifeline - God.

I prayed feverently, and finally something clicked. My weight gain wasn't put on overnight, and so I wasn't going to lose it overnight either. This was going to be a long process, and once I accepted that, I would be on the right path.

I truly believe that genetics plays a crucial role in weight loss. I knew something was wrong with my body when I began diligently counting calories and seeing little results. At the end of the day, weight loss is a science, folks. It's a calorie deficit. And for some reason, no matter how little I ate, my body wasn't responding. Some doctors claim that my crash dieting as a teen really messed up my metabolism. Quite frankly, I don't