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Introduction Text My health story... As a former chubby 49 year-old wife and mother who hated to exercise and couldn't stay away from sweet and chocolate temptations, I'm here to tell you that IT IS POSSIBLE TO CHANGE!!! I am 55 now and have been enjoying a new healthy lifestyle for five years. Since deciding in April of 2009 that I wanted to be more fit at 50 than I was at 20 (but wasn't sure that I believed it was possible), I've lost 25 pounds, which returned me to my high school weight, and I've also become healthy and fit! With attitude changes and a focus on health, I've learned that I love Pilates, kick-boxing, strength-training, as well as step and interval classes. In January 2010, I had lost 10 pounds more than my original goal and knew that I didn't want or need to lose more. Thankfully, I settled at in the high one-teens without having to adjust my calories significantly, and loved the healthy nutrition choices that had become my normal diet. I am happy to say that I've been able to stay within a five pound range for four years, thanks to a much improved metabolism, and other "keys to success," such as SparkPeople's Nutrition Tracker, the support of my Spark friends and fitness buddies. I am confident that I CAN MAINTAIN a healthy weight and fitness level throughout my move into what I think will truly be "golden years." You can do it, too, and if you'll friend me, I'll do my best to become one of your encouragers through the process. Lessons learned: 1. Tracking every calorie eaten was my most important key to success. 2. Using the nutrition tracker tool had the added bonus of not only counting calories, but also helping me to learn which foods added the most nutritional punch to my diet. 3. It is absolutely possible to change your metabolism in a positive way, in spite of being 50 and approaching menopause. 4. I love exercise when it involves a social aspect - fitness classes were my key to metabolism change. 5. It is extremely important to have a support group as you undertake healthy lifestyle goals. SparkPeople friends, teams, coaches, and articles were, and continue to be, what I need to maintain success! While there are plenty of other lesson's learned, these seem to be the ones that I always share when people ask me how I did it.

Current goal: After an osteopenia diagnosis prior to menopause, in spite of significant strength training, I decided to allow my body weight to go up to the mid-range of a healthy BMI for me. Through that process, I got lax and gained a little more than intended, and now have a few pounds to lose. Current goal weight is 126-127, with at least 150 of cardio a week and 2-3 sessions of body weight strength training (such as Pilates) a week.

In addition to maintaining a very active lifestyle where my goal is to to get at least 10,000 steps a day and climb at least 10 flights of stairs a day (as measured on my fitbit), I do the following to maintain: Mentally track calories every day to ensure that I don't go way out of range, and also participate in two or three fitness classes a week.

Though I've traveled on five of the seven continents, I've lived within 100 miles of Raleigh, NC my entire life.

Married to the man of my dreams since April 18, 1982. We met on my first day of college and it was love at first sight. We have two sons, 31 and 34 who continue to bring us joy. We finally got our daughter in May of 2008 when our older son married his college sweetheart, and will got our second daughter in June 2015 when our younger son married his soulmate. In April 2016, the newlyweds gave us our first grandchild, a girl. She got her first cousin, also a girl, four months later. 2016 was a great year, and we're expecting our next grandchild -- a boy! -- early 2019! Hobbies: Sailing, exercising with others, sewing, crafting, reading, gardening and yard work.

Add a Link Diane Raleigh, NC Powerful Prism Panthers Team Co-Captain BLC 19, 20 , 24 - 27 & 29. Member, BLC 17, 18, 21 - 23, 28 & 38 <link>www.blcpanthers.com</link> <link>www.fitbit.com/user/23HJ37</link> Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow" ~ Mary Anne Radmacher
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