My Personal Weight Loss Journey – From Fat to Fit in Four Years

People still don’t believe me when I tell them that I used to weigh 205 pounds, not so long ago. They look at me in complete shock, thinking that I must be exaggerating, or embellishing the truth. Well… that really embarrassing, and rather painful image of me above is the photographic evidence that I am NOT full of shit. That was me… for a long time…

To say I used to eat my feelings is an understatement. I wish that I were the kind of person who just stopped eating when depressed, like those I used to covet. But noooooo… when sad, my stomach morphs into a bottomless Black Hole, the Great Pit of Carkoon in Return of the Jedi, where the Sarlacc rests, slowly digesting his unfortunate prey over 1,000 years. There was no amount of food I would consume which would satiate my endless hunger, mostly caused by many years of an unhappy marriage coupled with a very low self-esteem. I did my best to hide in the back in photos, blocking my body by friends. I wore voluminous clothing… kaftans and Muumuus preferred. I was very unhealthy, both inside and out, and when I finally made the decision to leave my past behind and relocate to Ho Chi Minh City to find my Eat Pray Love, I began my physical and emotional transformation.

What I immediately noticed, upon my arrival to Ho Chi Minh City, was the availability and utter bounty of simply incredible whole food in Vietnam. Processed shit-in-a box is not a thing here, as it is in America. Monsanto and corporate greed do not control Vietnamese food production. Fresh fruit is juicy and naturally sweet. Produce grown in Dalat actually has delicious flavor, and animals bred for consumption here are not jacked up on steroid hormone drugs, shockingly approved in the USA by our own Food and Drug Administration. Not to mention, attempting to eat organic in America is an impossibility for most, as it has become unbelievably cost prohibitive, forcing those who are not extremely wealthy to barely exist in their regional food deserts, controlled by the fast-food industry. Don’t get me wrong, the global fast-food chains are here of course. And from time-to-time, I crave the occasional Big Mac or a Whopper with Cheese… I am an American after all. But let me tell you, they taste VASTLY different in Vietnam, making the occasional indulgence TOTALLY worth the caloric intake.

Within 8 weeks, and 4 days of my arrival in HCMC, I dropped nearly 30 pounds. I did my best to stay clear of carbs, which was really a challenge honestly as rice is a staple food in Asia. I did my best to stick to a high protein and fresh vegetable diet, started walking the “Loop” and the roads of BP Compound 3 times per week for exercise. I engaged in cardio heavy Pilates classes, as well as Water Aerobics, and of course the stifling heat in Saigon was for sure a contributing factor as I was just NOT very hungry and sweat A LOT. And, as a result of my commitment to a new and healthier me, I started feeling more confident in my skin. I could see the weight loss in my face, my neck and my body, and my friends from home began to notice the transformation from the photos I posted on social media. It felt really GREAT to finally begin to feel GOOD about myself again OMG!

I obviously had a long way to go, but at least I was on the road, which kept me motivated to continue.

I will never forget this trip to Hoi An, as it was the first time in God KNOWS how long where I actually put on a bikini and proudly wore it, in PUBLIC, poolside at the Anantara Hotel. This was a serious milestone in my journey, as I really never thought I would EVER have the confidence to don a two piece in public ever again…

But then, I only wanted to rock a bikini at the pool. I was really proud of how far I had come in just a short 4 months’ time… I remember taking this photo, during a trip to Phu Quoc with my nephews before sending them home to the USA to be reunited with their parents during the Covid border closure. I sent it to my now ex-husband, as I wanted to show off how far I had come, and how good I felt, even though we were no longer together, and I had filed for divorce. There was a time when I was convinced that no one could ever possibly want, nor desire me again if I ever left him. Man, was I dead wrong…

Flash forward two years. I was able to maintain my then near 50-pound weight loss and stayed well within in the much healthier range of 158 and 161 for my height of 5’9.5″. However, what was very noticeably different about my appearance was that my body weight shifted and redistributed, making me look slimmer and much more youthful. And, YES… I partake in Botox and Fillers, DUH… and my incredibly gifted angel from Heaven Elly Tran has, without a DOUBT, delivered the Fountain of Youth to my face, but I strongly believe that it is also due to my now routine better eating habits…. And Instagram filters of course… LOL

Flash forward 11 months, now bleach blonde, and attending multiple high-profile events, I long term plateaued at in my mid 150’s, and no matter what I did, I couldn’t seem to break through that benchmark, to lose any more weight. And I finally decided, that was it for me… I’m gonna leave it there, and just be satisfied with my weight as is. I mean I was 53 years old after all… Right? I was all good…

Until…I was asked to appear on TV…

Although I looked perfectly FINE in life, having been in the entertainment industry in my youth, those pesky 15 pounds the camera puts on is really a thing, and seeing myself on National TV made my self-confidence drop a tad… Knowing that I would undoubtedly be asked again to appear on another show in the future, I decided to take the bull by the horns and partake in more drastic measures to lose that final 18 to 20 pounds. And sooooo…. Drum roll please…..

Hey, if it worked for Oprah, the Kardashians and Kelly Osbourne, why not me, right! And, a few months of on, off, and then on again, coupled with a strict Intermittent Fasting regimen plus cutting out carbs, minus a couple of glasses of wine a week of course, et VOILA!

18 pounds down, all my clothes taken drastically in, and in TV mode…

Since my final push, I have been able to maintain my weight by watching what I put in my mouth, Intermittent Fasting a few days per week and walking as much as possible. I am clear that a 65-pound weight loss in 4 years’ time is a FEAT for a now 54-year-old woman, going through alllll the menopause. And, I’m happy to say that I am now done with the dieting. I just wanted to share my personal journey with you all to prove that it is NEVER too late to be the best you that you can be! Whatever that means for you. For me, it meant getting back my body, and my self-confidence. And it feels really incredible to finally feel like I have.