Always, weighing more than her peers, Jacqueline Rappaport took for granted she was predestined to be heavy. "I was a comfort eater and whenever I was disappointed, I would eat," she remembers. By the end of her first semester at college, she weighed as much as 165 pounds.
Her turning point
In the course of the winter break, Jacqueline tried to wear her pre-college size-12 jeans and couldn’t get the zipper up. That pushed her into a depression. "My parents noticed that I was unhappy, and told me I could either feel sorry for myself or do something about it," she recalls.
Her weight-loss & exercise plan
Within one month off from school, Jacqueline introduced some changes. "My mother, a lifelong health enthusiast, encouraged me to begin the day in a positive way," she says. Jacqueline started to go for a half-hour walk every morning, followed by a reasonable breakfast. "When I ate health diet, I had an motivation to stay on track for the rest of the day," she explains. Jacqueline’s mother also took her grocery shopping and demonstrated her how to include fruits, vegetables and whole grains into her diet.
Making success happen
When Jacqueline came back to college, she was already 5 pounds lighter. "At school, I filled up my dorm room fridge with soy milk, fruit and low fat trail mix," she recalls. In the canteen, Jacqueline looked only for healthy foods, such as whole-wheat tortillas, grilled vegetables, smoked salmon and brown rice.
Jacqueline used to wake up at 6 in the morning and jog around the campus before going to class. "I was aware that if I exercised in the morning, I could go out and spend some nice time with my friends in the evening and not feel guilty," she explains. "If I couldn’t exercise in the morning, I would get in a workout between classes."
As the weeks passed, Jacqueline noticed the big difference: "My clothes were looser and my friends kept complimenting me on the changes," she claims. Jacqueline also observed the mental boost she obtained thanks to exercising. "My grades rocketed due to the fact that I could focus better on my studies," she claims. "I was on a winning streak in each aspect of my life."
When she returned home for summer break, Jacqueline had lost 30 pounds and carried on with her healthy habits. By the time she came back to school three months later, Jacqueline had achieved her goal weight of 120 pounds. "I feel energetic and toned," she recalls. "I eventually have a body with womanly curves I love."
