Okay, here goes… My name is Destini. I am a 27 year old Graphic Designer/IT Nerd. Just over 4 years ago I met the love of my life, and lo and behold… we’re getting married this September!! When I first met my man I was 110 lbs., but with the comfort of love, restaurant dating and happiness, that quickly changed.My journey for healthy living started in November 2009, when I went to see my doctor and weighed in at 164 lbs. That was a devastating day, but also a wake-up call. Something needed to change, even more so with my best friend’s February wedding fast approaching.
At the suggestion of a friend who had lost weight with Herbal Magic, I contacted them. I’m not sure whether Herbal Magic is a gimmick or not, but I know it worked for me. They taught me a lot about my body and healthy choices for food. REAL FOOD. However, the initial cost is quite high and there is a constant need for supplements, which can be a significant factor in making it work for some people. You invest a lot, and I knew personally I couldn’t afford to not make it work. My program was for one full year. My goal for the weight loss portion of Herbal Magic was to lose 30 lbs. at 2 lbs. per week for 15 weeks. After reaching my goal, I’d be moved to stabilization for 8 weeks where they would slowly raise my calories, followed by maintenance for the rest of the year. I actually lost the 30 lbs. in less than 15 weeks, so I was able to continue losing more weight on top of that.
After I was moved into stabilization I stopped going. Now, this isn’t something I’d recommend for everyone. But my reasoning for stopping was that I wanted to know that I could do this on my own and without the supplements. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone else unless they feel quite confident with their body. When I was finished with Herbal Magic in April 2010, I weighed in at 129lbs. And I was very, very happy with no regrets!
I was able to keep the weight off, though it did go up and down over the next 7 months. During this time my boyfriend (now fiancé) proposed to me and we set our wedding date for September 24th, 2011!! If you haven’t been engaged or planned a wedding, let me tell you this: Everything goes SOO fast. All of a sudden, 16 months to our wedding date became 9 months and soooo much needed to be done. Including things I felt I needed to do with myself.
So this brings us to December 11th, 2010. My best friend (who is also my maid of honor) and I went to start “browsing” for wedding dresses. I saw this wedding dress in a store window and contacted the store to find out the number. I knew from the moment I saw it that it was “the one”. I tried it on and fell in love! I put down the deposit on it that day. The only things I felt that needed some TLC were my arms and my back. I may have lost the weight, but still had some extra “meat” (as I call it) that remained from my heavier times. This got me to contact my personal trainer whom I had oddly met dancing at a local club. We set a date and time to meet at the YMCA. To say I was nervous is an understatement. I’d never been an avid gym member so this would be something new. On December 15th I weighed in at 131lbs, a little more than when I left Herbal Magic, but all in all a good starting point.
Fast forward to today…I’m about 6 weeks into my program with my lovely personal trainer Kim. So far it’s been a hard, sweaty journey but I’m starting to see results and couldn’t be happier. With my social and wedding quickly approaching, my goals have never been more clear, which brings me to why I am doing this blog; I know losing weight is never easy. Dieting and working out is INCREDIBLY hard. I know if it wasn’t for other people’s stories of inspiration and encouragement I wouldn’t be where I am today.
I have decided to document this journey all the way to my wedding day, not only with stories of working out, but also with healthy recipes that I enjoy and my wedding plans. Every day, people get engaged, they create healthy choice goals, and they struggle/succeed with it all. This is my journey; this is my story of running to the aisle.
