Melissa Kellogg chronicles her yo-yo-dieting

Sometimes the stories I hear are so raw and real, they're best expressed by the storyteller. That's why I'm sharing a letter written by Melissa Kellogg, and e-mailed to me by Cheryl LeMar, manager of the L A Weight Loss Center in Evansville, Ind.

Melissa joined L A Weight Loss in the summer of 2005. This is her actual e-mail, in her own words, untouched by me. My only additions are Melissa's before and after photos, and Fast Facts. (Usually I post a PDF of the original letter, but all I have this time around is the e-mail text.)



Hi Cheryl,

I was tall and thin as a young girl, but because I was taller than the rest of my classmates, I always felt fat even though I wasn't. I was always self-conscious about being "big". After I married and had three children, I gradually added the pounds. I eventually lost those pounds, got divorced and gained again. Everytime I had a major life change, I would gain weight. As I got older, I married again and got heavy, then lost the weight again and divorced. I vowed never again for both, but guess what. I got married again, moved from the Evansville area and gained weight. This time I married my best friend and soulmate. It was a fairy tale romance and meeting. We met at my daughter's and son-in-law's wedding. He was my son-in-law's uncle. The nicest man you would ever want to meet. I lived in Evansville and he lived in Massachusetts. We had a long distance romance and married 8 months later. There were adjustments to the marriage-moving again, dealing with 2 step-children and teen-agers at that. . You guessed it, I again gained weight. Then lost some.

I felt like I was the luckiest person in the world. He was truly the love of my life. He loved life, was intelligent, fun and easy-going. Best of all, he loved to dance-one of my passions.

This fairy tale did not have a happy ending. He died suddenly of a heart attack on May 14, 1999 just 3 years after we met. I was devastated. I had a wonderful support group from the church, but I consoled myself with food. I again gained the weight. After my husband's passing, I had so many life changing decisions to make. Should I stay in Mass and stay in the job I loved or move back to Indiana to be closer to my children and grandchildren. I decided on the latter. I moved back in May of 2000 to Ft. Wayne, In. I transferred with my company. I bought a house and was just getting settled. But I was driving to Evansville every 2 weeks to see my children and grandson. Just a couple of months later, I was told my job was being eliminated. AGAIN, another major life change. I moved temporarily to Evansville and stayed with my daughter until I could decide if I wanted to hunt for work in Ft. Wayne or move back to Evansville. I moved. I got a new job, new house and was settled in Evansville again. However, the weight was still there. I would drop a few pounds and gain a few more. After 5 years of being heavy, I made a decision to try LA Weight Loss. I had decided to do this so I could be around to see my grandchildren grow up and to be able to enjoy doing things with them.
On June 1, 2005, I started the program and lost almost 90lbs by the end of January 2006. I am now at 109 lbs lost and feel incredible. I ran the other day for the first time in years. I am able to keep up with the grandkids and have such fun taking them to the park or playing putt- putt, baseball or bowling. I feel like a new woman and I am 55 years young. I say young because I haven't felt this young in years. With all the life changes and the weight, I felt much older than my years. I just recently went to Florida and went out on a wave runner (first time ever). The courage to do this is because I feel so self-confident.

The best part is I have bought all new clothes and I am dancing again. LA Weight Loss is wonderful. It has taught me how to eat right. I am so thrilled that I made that decision last year.

Melissa Kellogg



Here's Melissa before, at 271 pounds:



Look at her now! She looks AMAZING at 162 pounds!!



FAST FACTS

Name: Melissa Kellogg
Hometown: Evansville, Ind.
Age: 55

Starting weight: 271 pounds
Goal weight: 221 pounds
Current weight: 162 pounds
Program start date: June 1, 2005

Biggest temptation: Ice cream.

Biggest motivator: Ending the cycle of yo-yo dieting.

Old eating philosophy: Lots of sweets.

New eating philosophy: More lean meat proteins like chicken and fish.

Best thing about losing weight: Getting back to the things she enjoys, like country line dancing and long walks by the riverfront.

Best weight loss secret learned: Exercise is the key to losing weight and boosting your confidence.