"I've lost 100 pounds and 12 pants sizes!"
I am a Stellar Fitness success story!! As a
teenager, I remember wearing a size14 pair of
jeans and feeling horrible about my body image.
After gaining a little weight in college, I
looked back at my high-school days and wished
I could fit in those size 14 jeans. After gaining
even more weight, I would always look back and
say "if only I could go back" and
I realized I was never happy in my own skin.
That changed for me several years ago when
I decided I was going to be happy at whatever
weight I was at. And please believe me, I was.
I avoided scales because, after all, they just
reported a number. I found clothes that made
me feel good, but I was frustrated at the lack
of selection in my size. Nevertheless, I had
no desire to lose weight - that is until my
mother started a diet program while I was pregnant
with my second child. Within three months, she
had lost 30 pounds and I thought that maybe
I was ready.
I have never owned a scale. I would turn backwards
on the scale at the doctor's office because
I really didn't want to know the number. By
stepping on that scale in my kitchen on December
31, 2007, I knew I was going to have to accept
the number. That was the hardest part!! After
that, it was easy! When I went for a doctor
checkup in March, I had lost a little over 30
pounds. That was exciting. My clothes were getting
loose and I had to start buying a few new outfits.
By this time, I knew I needed to add a regular
exercise program in order to make this a true
lifestyle change. I decided on Stellar Fitness
because I knew I could get help whenever I needed
it, it was a smaller facility where I wouldn’t
be intimidated, and it was clean. Within ten
weeks of joining, I was able to meet my initial
weight loss goal of 50 pounds to get down to
200. I made that goal and was ready for more.
I met with Chris Nerat for a personal training
session and he was able to start me out on a
program that I was very comfortable doing. The
facility was clean and the people were very
encouraging. I made myself a promise to do a
minimum three workouts a week and have been
fairly successful in maintaining that goal.
He is always giving suggestions and advice to
help me maximize my workout time.
I am nearing my year anniversary of staring
at Stellar Fitness. I’ve gone through
several workout programs and I am continually
challenged by Chris to help keep it fun and
motivating. Since starting on my journey, I’ve
lost 100 pounds and 12 pant sizes. I have made
the decision that I am done losing weight, but
I know I can never be done with exercise. I
know this is a lifestyle change with activity
being very important. I no longer want to sleep
on the couch the minute I get home. It’s
much nicer having the energy since I have two,
young active boys to care for!
When I look back, I cannot believe I let myself
get to a point where I needed to lose 100 pounds.
I feel like me, only better! The rest of my
journey, the maintenance, is going to be difficult
but I know that I have the support from Chris
at Stellar Fitness.
Johanna Zuehls - 2008
Although Stellar Fitness is no longer in
operation, Johanna is now a member of Anytime
Fitness. She continues to be an inspiration
to many of our members and is always a pleasure
to work with.
Chris
