When I started this blog (read my first post!), I wanted to lose 50 pounds and look good for a friend’s wedding. I went to a trainer twice a week, and he gave me some guidelines of what to eat so that I could lose weight and perform my best while working out with him.

I started this blog for a few reasons. I was unhappy at my job at the time, too, and I knew I wanted to do something in publishing that had more to do with the digital/social media side of things. I’d tried a few times to start blogs—a general Tumblr, a blog about politics (I used to live in D.C. and work for Campaigns & Elections magazine)—but I never kept up with any of them.

I had been following a few blogs on Tumblr, and I thought it’d be a good, easy way to post about what I was learning about fitness and nutrition. I was reading as much as I could to learn about why I was doing the exercises I was, and how they’d benefit me. I wanted to know how my nutritional choices would affect my weight loss and my health. It was all I could think about, so it’s probably all I could talk about. I decided to start the blog so that my friends and family didn’t have to hear all about my weight loss, all the time.

I don’t know how I knew this time would be different, but it was. I knew I was making a lifestyle change, but I never knew how much my life would change. I’m training for my first marathon, I went to Chicago for a blogger conference, and I’ve met countless people both in-person and via e-mail through this blog.

The success I achieved with my blog also led to a new job! In April, I started working for Hachette Filipacchi—the company that publishes Elle, Woman’s Day and a variety of other magazines—doing social media.

Shortly after I started at Hachette, I was riding the elevator down at the end of the day with a coworker. I was headed for drinks with a male friend, and I was asking her advice on my outfit. I was wearing a dress that was a little too big for me, so I asked her if she thought I should wear a belt or not. Somehow we started talking about my weight loss, and the other woman in the elevator turned around. The other woman in the elevator just so happened to be Elizabeth Mayhew, the editor-in-chief of Woman’s Day, and she was intrigued by my story!

I turned bright red as my coworker, Lindsay, explained to the EIC how much weight I’d loss and that I had a blog with crazy before-and-after pictures. Elizabeth told me about how they feature before-and-afters in Woman’s Day and said they were interested in profiling me! 

I went back and forth with some questions and photos with Abby, one of the health editors (and one of my faves at WD), and finally, these are the photos that worked the best for print production. The before picture is from my old boss’ wedding in San Diego, a month before I started trying to lose weight; the after picture is 13 months later, at the New York Junior League’s Winter Ball at The Plaza Hotel.

Here it is! (p. 83 in the magazine)

I mostly started this blog for personal reasons, and it has rewarded me in ways I never thought possible—if you’re just finding it, I hope that you realize that it’s totally possible to reclaim your life and your health! It’s hard work, I’m not gonna lie, but it’s so worth it. (Also, if you’re new here, you might want to check out my new top posts page.)