EXTRA says 'Bravo!' to Mandy Muniz

Fresh from her appearance in People magazine's "Half Their Size" issue, Mandy Muniz got to share her journey from 293 to 126 pounds with the folks from EXTRA.



Being in the spotlight is nothing new for Mandy. As a high school drama teacher, she has always encouraged her students to get up on stage and give it their all.

Then Mandy herself started to lead a more sedentary lifestyle after hours. Most days she came home with a bag of fast food, and headed directly for the couch.

At school, she struggled to climb the stairs of the three-story building. She would stop between floors and hide in the corner to catch her breath. Some of the other faculty members shared their concerns about her health, and even gave her business cards of gastric bypass surgeons.

But it only pushed Mandy further into denial, making her efforts to encourage students' activity hypocritical. Her wake-up call came when one of her students asked her to be in his film. When Mandy saw what she *really* looked like on screen at 293 pounds, she could deny it no longer.

But she didn't know where to go from there. She tried every fad diet on the market, with little to no success. Then she saw an ad for L A Weight Loss, and was excited by the idea of eating real foods that weren't pre-packaged.

Yet Mandy was still skeptical that it would work. When she called the Bandera center in San Antonio and they asked how much she wanted to lose, she laughingly said 100 pounds. To her surprise, they said, "OK. Come in and let's get started."

In the personal essay Mandy wrote to me, she says those 100 pounds came off "with ease." So she re-adjusted her goal weight to lose even more. In 18 months, she dropped 157 pounds, 65 inches, and 22 sizes!

Now Mandy has the confidence to proudly take center stage again, and show off her new size 2 figure to the world. Bravo, Mandy!

Here's Mandy at an unhealthy 293 pounds:




And here's the actress at 130 pounds -- worthy of a standing ovation!



FAST FACTS

Name: Mandy Muniz
Hometown: San Antonio, Texas
Age: 31
Height: 5'5"

Starting weight: 293 pounds
Goal weight: 193 pounds
Current weight: 130 pounds
Program start date: April 2005

Biggest motivator: Being able to get up and move with her students.

Biggest obstacle: Making that first phone call to L A Weight Loss.

Old eating philosophy: Days filled with tons of fast food, vending machine snacks, sodas, and foods slathered in butter.

New eating philosophy: Appreciates the value of fresh fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins.

Best thing about losing weight: Having the confidence to get up in front of people, and shopping for clothes off the rack, knowing they'll fit.

Best weight loss secret learned: If you believe it, you can do it!