My Name is Sarah Kretsinger. I am CPA - I work in the tax department of UPS. I'm 30 years old - I'll be 31 on September 25. I live in the Dallas Metroplex. Since people do tend to ask, I am single with no children.
I'm really very much a homebody. I love reading Christian novels, and watching movies. I recently found the Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel......my dvr is still mad at me about that. My favorite type of movies are the screwball comedies from the 40's. I wanted to marry Cary Grant, Gregory Peck or Sean Connery when I grew up....until I realized they were all about 50 years older than me. So now I'm still waiting for Pierce Brosnan to find me.
I've always struggled with my weight in that I've always been overweight. I wasn't too much into sports. I did one summer of little league and decided that wasn't for me. I would rather curl up on the couch and escape into a good book. I was always one of the heavier people in my class. I think I went from small to XL without stopping in between. I remember when I was 12 my aunt gave me some hand-me down clothes she no longer wanted. Granted I grew height wise fast so we were the same height by that time, but it's still hard to admit I weighed the same as a grown up that had 3 children when I was just beginning the teenage stage.
By the time I graduated college, got my cpa license, and had time to breath and do other things I was over 300 pounds. I think my heaviest weight was 315. It was at that point that I gave up. I thought there is no going back from this, no way to fix it so why try. Eventually I decided enough was enough. The breaking point for me came Thanksgiving 2009 – I was celebrating Thanksgiving with my aunt and cousins. I was at the “kiddie” table with my cousins and moved slightly in my chair and there was this craaack and SNAP and somehow I went from sitting on this chair to laying on the chair on the ground. I was beyond embarrassed. If there was a video camera we could have one first place on America’s Home Videos – but then would have had to use the winning money to pay for my funeral. I just thank God no one laughed. But I was still humiliated. And I realized it was time for a change.
I knew it was time for exercise. I could no longer avoid it. However I didn’t want to join a gym because I thought everyone would be looking at the fat girl that was failing. So I was going to lose weight before I joined the gym (don’t ask me about that logic). So I asked my doctor about what diets might work and she only came back with weight loss surgery. I didn’t like that idea. I hadn’t tried it on my own yet – I can be stubborn and determined when I have to be.
So I asked my mom to pay for a year’s membership at the gym. Because as an extra incentive – I knew if I did not go to the gym after that my mom would get mad that I wasted her money. And I don’t like it when my mom is mad at me. She also paid for the first three personal training sessions because I had no clue what to do or how to do it so I knew I needed help.
I have paid for sessions after that because if I spend the money I will get my money’s worth. So they are definitely good incentive. Expensive incentive but well worth it. I don’t slack when I’m with the trainer.
I started slow. I did cardio pretty much every day - 30 minutes on the recumbent bike. The recumbent bike is the lazy man’s exercise machine so I loved it. It’s like sitting in a recliner and peddling your feet. However even with no resistance and no incline I was still sweating and out of breath at the end of the 30 minutes. Slowly over time I increased the resistence. Then I switched my cardio to the elliptical machine and worked my way up the incline and resistance. Now I mix it up between glider (I only do 20 minutes because it is still brutal) and the eliptical and treadmill. I do cardio 7 days a week for minimum 30 minutes - sometimes longer depending on how much time between when I get there and when class starts. Some weeks I get busy and do cardio 5 days a week.
I meet with a personal trainer once a week. And I do different classes - spin (cycle), LIFT, kickboxing, and zumba - 4 days a week. Sometimes I'll skip class and try and work out on my own. It just depends if I'm ready to be honest and push myself with weights and reps or if I want to exercise in a group.
It's still a little hard to get out of my comfort zone - I still think people are watching me and judging me as the fat girl but I know if they are watching me it's probably to see what I'm doing. Cause when I do cardio I watch to see what other people do in case I want to try it. I still have to push myself to try the new scary classes - I've been to boot camp Friday nights and hated every second of it, but you DEFINITELY feel like you've accomplished something when you make it through the entire hour. I’ve made it through one class and haven’t been back since, but I know I can make it through and that’s a great feeling.
So far I’ve shed 82 pounds and am working for about 80 more to be at the healthy weight for my height. I look forward to sharing my journey with others and I hope it encourages them to start or continue their own journey because we are not alone in our struggles. Like I said in my mission statement, I want this to be a place where I can share what I’m going through as well as other people share openly and honestly without fear of judgment. So if you have questions or comments please feel free to post them. Also I’m addicted to face book and plan on creating a page for this blog there so if you want to comment or ask a question there that’s good too.
