A great success story from Moline Illinois. I found this story in the Quad City Times
When people ask Jane Anderson how she managed to lose 102 pounds, she always senses some disappointment when they hear her response.
“Everyone is looking for the quick fix,” she said. “There is no easy way.”
The 32-year-old mother of two said she shed the weight by eating sensibly and exercising.
“I tried everything that everyone else has tried,” she said, but in the end, changing her lifestyle worked for her.
In high school, Mrs. Anderson was involved in cheerleading, basketball and softball. She said she had always been athletic.
“It definitely was not me to be that heavy,” she said. But, when her mother died in 1995, she turned to food for comfort. Before she knew it she was up to 281 pounds. “It's something I battled for many years,” she said. “I've been brought up around food. Food is the solution to everything.”
When she saw her wedding pictures in 2000, she wasn't happy with how she looked. Working as a hairdresser, the weight began to take its toll on her body. She had pain in her knees. She was hurt and insulted when a doctor told her bluntly that if she wanted her knees to feel better she should lose weight. “Then I realized, that's what it was,” she said. “I started losing weight, and I had no knee problems.”
She began by joining Weight Watchers three years ago. She belonged for six to eight months; long enough to learn the tools she needed to keep going. She also began walking outside. She lost 40 pounds on Weight Watchers.
“The first half coming off was the easy half,” she said.
Then a year-and-a-half ago she joined a Fitness First Plus in East Moline and began exercising with a trainer who helped her work hard. “You definitely get pushed harder than you would push yourself,” she said. “You're never going to do as much on your own.” She made exercise a priority and always found time for the gym, even going at 5:30 a.m. some days.
“There's never a good time to exercise. That's always an excuse,” she said. “Now I love it. That's my hour to have peace and quiet.”
For Mrs. Anderson, gastric bypass surgery was never an option.
“I'm not one for unnecessary pain,” she said. “There's so many risks. I didn't believe in taking any unnecessary risks.” Since she had been athletic, Mrs. Anderson said she knew she was capable of losing the weight. Mrs. Anderson said she would like to lose another 10 to 15 pounds, and that the changes she has made to her eating habits are permanent. She tells others to have patience in losing weight. “Don't expect it to happen over night,” she said. “It's going to take dedication and hard work to do it the old-fashioned way.”
Staff writer Amy Thon can be reached at (309) 786-6441, Ext. 208.
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