In Shape At Last - How I Lost 50 Pounds

Casseroles with cream of mushroom soup... bread with butter and jelly... chips and salsa... ice cream... cheese... mmmmm... as in murder on a diet! Yet these high-cal meals happen to be just a few of our featured dieter's favorite things.

Yes, Yvonne M., a curvy-again California gal, had cornered the market on bad eating habits. The 32-year-old ate huge portions and then went back for seconds... and often thirds. She indulged in high-fat AND high-carb concoctions. And a meal just wasn't a meal without dessert.

“I would look at my cart in the checkout line and think ‘look at all the junk I’m buying,’” Yvonne tells eDiets. There were no fruits and vegetables. The checkout girl must have thought I was terrible. I was terrible!

The out-of-control eating habits sent Yvonne’s weight soaring. At 5’8” and 190 pounds, she felt there was nowhere to go, but down.

Simply getting off the couch was a chore. When she lay in bed at night, she could feel her stomach slide to her side. Her energy level was low and she could barely get through the day without a nap. Yvonne was running on empty calories.

But it wasn't just the physical effects that were taking their toll on Yvonne. Her self-confidence was at an all-time low. Her family had recently moved to California and although she tried to make friends, she felt like she didn't fit in with her peers.

“I felt like the other women I met that were my age saw me as being different," says the stay-at-home mom. "My weight felt like a barrier to building friendships.”

Yvonne felt a glimmer of hope the day her hubby Lane suggested they join a gym. The couple reversed gears and got active. They exercised religiously, yet a year later Yvonne was still fat and floundering. She realized the only way the extra pounds would ever come off -- and stay off -- was through sensible eating.

After browsing through a magazine article spotlighting online weight loss programs, Yvonne opted to try the best. By choosing eDiets, she got a meal plan that was structured yet flexible. (One that included a full menu from which she could pick and choose foods she liked.) She had access to 24/7 support without leaving the comfort of her own home. The best part of all: the cost was small and the payoff huge.

Maintaining my loss over the last year has been really exciting for me," she says. "I've known so many people who lose weight and gain it back. I tried never to think of this as a diet or a temporary thing. This is a lifelong way of living.

“It was a tough year and emotional things happened where I turned to eating sometimes. But when it got tough, I went back to eDiets, got more involved in the challenges and support boards and got back on track. I feel like that's a major hurdle I overcame and a major accomplishment. I feel more confident since Ive proven that I can do it.

With a regimented fitness plan already in place, Yvonne could focus on eating right. She received a weekly meal plan and shopping list. If there was a meal or dish that didn’t tickle her fancy, she could substitute something more to her liking. Everything fell in place fast.

“It was fairly simple," she notes. "There were plenty of recipes to choose from and they were similar to what my family would eat anyway. I just had to make little modifications. It was nice to buy fruits and vegetables and eat them over the course of the week. Before, I would buy them and they would sit because I didn’t know what to do with them. With a structured meal plan, they would actually get prepared and eaten.”

Yvonne stuck to the plan and the weight began to melt away. It was hard to not succeed... not with the constant reinforcement she received on the support boards! After joining eDiets, Yvonne didn’t waste any time in signing up for one of the inter-program challenges, friendly competitions that encourage eDieters to follow the meal plan, exercise regularly and drink the recommended 64 ounces of water daily.

Yvonne swears by the challenges that kept her motivated throughout her weight loss journey. Even today, the peer support is a crutch for Yvonne when the going gets tough.

"It’s easy for me to look around in the world and think nobody else has these problems with food," she says. "I’m not the only person who wants to go home and eat five bowls of cereal. When I go to the support boards, I feel like there are people who have the same challenges I do. They have the same ups and downs. They understand. We support each other.”

Yvonne says having a like-minded mate made it easier to stick with the program.

Now that she’s 50 pounds thinner, Yvonne is going places she’s never gone before. Among her accomplishments: completing a triathlon last spring. She’s currently training for her second grueling biking, running and swimming event.

“This change was the beginning of a whole new life for me," she says. "Building new eating habits and seeing that I have control over what I eat and what I weigh gave me a whole new confidence in myself. I looked at other areas in my life and have continued to grow as a person since then.

“I have more confidence and more energy. I think more clearly. I sleep better. I feel like the real me was hidden in there -- and that I was finally able to come out and be who I want to be.”