It all started...

At the age of 10.  That is the first time I "knew" I was overweight.  At least compared to my older sisters and in the eyes of my Mom.  During that summer, I was determined to lose weight and my strategy was to distract myself from eating by watching TV.  And watch TV, I did - I had all of my shows lined up and ready for continual viewing.  Game shows to soap operas (All My Children was my favorite) to talk shows to sitcoms.  The only thing I would allow myself to eat was a BLT sandwich for lunch.  I lost weight, but as I'm sure you know, it was temporary.  And unhealthy!!

I thinned out as I grew throughout my teen years but the perception of being fat was already imbedded and no matter what I've weighed throughout my life, it still is.  The strange thing is that in reality, I think there was only one time in my life that I was actually overweight in official BMI terms.

The summer before college, my older brother told me I was going to get fat.  He said all freshman girls do - the freshman 15 is not just a myth!  I was determined to prove him wrong - I was not going to get fat and in fact, I didn't.  I ran almost everyday, lifted weights, was in dance class and ate only salad, popcorn and Diet Coke. That was the beginning of my lifelong addiction to Diet Coke.  I ended up getting sick, going to the campus nurse without a clue as to why I was having stomach problems.  I really had no idea of nutrients.  I thought I was taking care of my body by not being overweight when in fact I was malnourished - who knew?  Why are we not taught about health & nutrition in school on a regular basis?  I think it should be taught every year from kindergarten on.  Trust me, we would benefit as a society if we knew how to treat and take care of our bodies - it is just as, if not more important than the basics - math, English, social studies, etc.  Math isn't killing us as a nation; we are over-eating ourselves to death and lack of basic knowledge is partially to blame.

More to come..