Lose 50 lbs in 4 months

Amber did Amazing Beating Hitch Fit’s Record for Most Weight Loss in 4 Months for a Female at 50.2 lbs!! She shows you that through hard work and proper nutrition amazing results can happen.  We are very proud of you Amber!!
Week 1 
Weight- 314 lbs
Stomach- 53.5″
Hips- 65″
End of week 16
Weight- 263.8
Stomach- 47.5″
Hips- 55″

I have always had a strange relationship with my body. Growing up (as young as 6) I always thought I was so terribly fat. I would hide my body and cry at how terrible I felt about myself. However, I was never “FAT”… I maybe needed to tone my muscles but I was at a relatively healthy weight.
Then the trials of adulthood started and I turned to food for comfort. I unexpectedly lost my mom at 19 and gained around 60 lbs in the months after. In my 20s, as my marriage fell apart, I gained another 75 lbs. I was gaining weight and letting my food addiction take control. I still acknowledged myself as fat just like I had my whole life… but the tables had turned. Now, I wasn’t seeing just how overweight I had become. How I saw myself and my reality were very different and I refused to accept it.
I ignored the limitations I had put on myself. I couldn’t tie my shoes. I couldn’t fit comfortably in a bathroom stall. I was kicked off a rollercoaster, and I nearly had to purchase a second airplane seat on my way to my wedding to my 2nd husband. I also ignored the decline in my health… I lost feeling in part of my leg long ago. My feet were constantly painfully swollen. I had cuts and bruises that took months to heal. My anxiety and depression were becoming uncontrollable. I was in denial that I was dying… Killing myself with the very thing I turned to for support. I kept telling myself that one day I’ll figure it out. I would yo-yo diet. I would go to the gym and try to eat healthy only to see slow or no progress and give up after a month or two. I really WANTED to be healthy but I always blamed my failure on everything but the truth…. I needed help!

There was no real ah-ha moment. Nothing clicked. No big event that made me decide to take control. We simply had a wellness event at work and I met Karen from Hitch Fit Overland Park. I skimmed by because I knew I couldn’t afford a personal trainer. However, call it fate, Divine intervention, or just dumb luck, but I happened to win 2 free sessions with Karen from that event. It took me months to set up an appointment and I cancelled probably 3 times… I was scared that HitchFit was just another thing I was going to try and fail.
But, I finally met with Karen. Having someone measure me and take my pictures was the hardest thing I have ever done. The shame was unbearable. I think she saw in me the desire to be better and she helped me figure out how to make Hitch Fit work for me and my budget. She helped me get set up with Micah through the online program and that was that. I needed to prove to her, to Micah, and to myself that I could do this. As the weight began to fall off, I was also noticing other side effects that made me want to keep going: my feet were no longer swelling, I wasn’t yawning through the afternoon, I had enough energy to actually spend time with my husband, and much much more. I got the first, “you look great! Have you lost weight?” around week 5 when I had lost 25 lbs. That was the moment I decided I had to do this.
Some days were harder than others. Sometimes I feel like I might lose my mind if I eat one more chicken breast or do one more push up…. But I look back at how far I have come and all of the encouragement and pride I see from my family and friends and from Micah and I push through. My goal is to reach 100lbs lost before my wedding anniversary (April) and 140lbs lost by next Christmas, putting me at my goal weight.


My advice:
1) Don’t wait for your ah-ha moment. It may never come! Stop waiting until “tomorrow” and just lace up your shoes and go!
2) Make it sustainable. When I decided I couldn’t eat one more bite of chicken, I started to venture out. This is not a diet, it truly has to be a lifestyle. In order to live it long term you have to keep trying until you find foods and exercise you enjoy (or don’t hate) doing. If you are just suffering through, you will reach a point where you break. Find ways to make it something you can do every day without suffering (too much)!
3) Transition to positivity. There will be setbacks and bad days. If Micah has taught me anything, its that positive thinking has just as big of an impact on my results as food and exercise. When you have a setback or you fail… Pick yourself up, look back at what you can learn from it, and keep moving forward. Don’t slash 3 good tires just because 1 went flat.
Do it. You will never regret it and you will be amazed at what your body can do when you decide to throw out the excuses and get busy!

Program Choice: Couples Bootcamp