Finding Confidence at 56: A Journey to a Healthier, Happier Life

I was so thin in middle school boys called me chicken legs. I think I was 5’2” and about 75lbs. In 8th grade, I hit puberty and gained lots of needed weight. In my 20s, I worked out nearly every day and loved it. I ran and lifted weights. Then I went back to school and just didn’t have time to work one full-time job and one PT job, go to class, do homework, teach Sunday school and lead a small group, have a boyfriend, and go to the gym. So, I dropped the gym. Other than leading up to my wedding, I never worked out regularly again. I’d gain weight, lose it by reducing calories (thankfully never DEing), then gain again.
By the time Covid hit, I was a size 12 or 14. Since March 2020, I’ve been working from home, and I can’t get motivated to exercise regularly. I’d sometimes walk, but the walking pad, bosu ball, tilt board, bands, and free weights in my house were dusty. I was a size 16 and more than 200lbs at a hair under 5’6”. My knees and ankles hurt when I stood for more than a few minutes. My calves, ankles, and feet swelled terribly, esp when driving. I saw a vein doctor who diagnosed reflux in my right leg and prescribed compression socks, elevating my legs, and walking. I was also pre-diabetic. (My dad and his dad had type 2.)
I have Lyme disease, which I probably contracted in my mid to late 20s but wasn’t diagnosed until 2022. It caused constant joint pain that numerous rheumatologists called fibromyalgia and a “mystery autoimmune” disease or syndrome. Even once the Lyme was under control, being obese caused so much pain. Every pound we lose takes 4lbs of pressure off each knee and 6lbs off each ankle!
Summer/fall 2025, a friend told me about Emerge. She’s super intelligent and does a lot of research, so I signed up. (Yes, I used her referral. 😊) At the same time, a woman in my neighborhood FB group asked if anyone wanted to go walking. We walked 3 miles two or three times a week all of October and a little in November before it got cold. I lost about 5lbs before I took my first d0se.
I began one year ago today. I’ve lost 65lbs and am trying to maintain. I’m wearing size small leggings and joggers, size 28 jeans, and size small or medium tops (I kept my bust which is nice b/c I completely lost my booty…like, it’s just GONE!) My feet and ankles no longer swell, even if I’m driving 6 hours to my hometown or on a flight across the country like I took in February. I never need compression socks. Best of all, at 56 I’m no longer pre-diabetic, and I’m comfortable in my own skin. I love how I look in clothes. I’m confident in a way I haven’t ever been! Nothing hurts that’s not plain ol’ osteoarthritis.
I refuse to stress myself out about nutrition. I don’t count calories or grams of anything. I don’t avoid sugar (I mean, I’m not having cake for breakfast, but I do have a little something sweet most evenings, and you’ll pry my sweet tea from my cold, dead hands). I usually drink about 40-60oz water a day. I eat a lot of fruit and cheese. I make a kefir fruit smoothie a couple times a week with acacia and inulin powders to keep things moving. I’m just happy to be where I am. I’m so grateful GLP-1s are an option; that the medical community finally recognized “eat right and exercise” isn’t a solution for everyone. I literally thank God for Emerge and for my healthier, happier life.