When I was younger I was an overweight, unhealthy, and unhappy basketball player/tomboy. I loved candy and McDonald's. Candy was my kryptonite; I snuck it into my room so no one knew I was eating it. Life is so much harder when you are overweight. You are judged more, looked down upon, and not to mention, bullied. I have always been sporty, but my food choices were what never failed to drag me down constantly. I did not realize I was overweight until 6th grade. To lose weight and to get into shape, I joined cross country and track. Running slimmed me down a bit but I was still eating as if I was a dog (eating anything and everything...except healthy foods of course!). The real turning point for me was the summer going into my freshman year of high school. This was finally my realization of, "I need to clean up my diet." Unfortunately my obsession with healthy eating sneakily transformed into an eating disorder. The only meal I ate was post-training for cross country; this so-called "meal" consisted of only popcorn. An unsubstantial diet along with an intense all cardio training regimen broke my body down leaving me with a permanently injured hip. Excessive, competitive cardio and obsessive diets have controlled and essentially destroyed my life. Weightlifting gives me a new confidence. Not worrying about losing weight or how "thin" I look has really motivated me to transform myself into a better person inside and out! As long as I can maintain this healthy lifestyle, I will feel confident, strong, and beautiful. Weight is a number, waist line is a number, results are REAL.