From Fat to Athletic

I feel a lot stronger and athletic after my weight loss. It's not perfect, but I do see improvements in my muscles. I'm able to do things I never would be able to do before with the extra weight.

I've been practicing doing chin-ups. I use a weight-assisted machine and eventually I won't need the assistance to do them. Push ups were always difficult for me. I can't do them properly just yet, but I practice daily. Push ups are such a good work out that I want to be able to do them correctly. I do the modified version and gradually, I'm getting closer to doing the traditional push up. It's a good sign of strength and physical fitness to be able to do them.

Also, I do lunges, something I never could do when overweight. Lunges would have been so tough on my knees then. My knees have gotten so much stronger that lunges are not a problem now. I'm not perfect with these either, but it is helping my legs a lot!

The strength training is still going well. Results are slow but I am taking classes to make sure I have the proper form.

I have never been this athletic, even in high school. Who would have thought I would be doing at least 10,000 steps a day everyday and going to the gym five times a week? A few years ago, I couldn't go faster than 4.5 MPH on the treadmill. I was lucky to do 20 minutes a couple times a week. I use the treadmill at speeds of 8.5 MPH, sometime 9 MPH. I can do a 5K in about 22 minutes. When I did my first 5K last year, I came in at 36 minutes.

I continue to strive for a flatter stomach through strength training, exercise and drinking lots of water! In the process I have become a much better athlete!