I have a small frame and have been petite my whole life, until I hit menopause and found myself in an unhappy relationship. The pounds started packing on everywhere!
Breaking away was hard, but being alone and happy was far better than being with the wrong person and miserable.
Yet, there I was in mid-life – single, alone and my clothes were almost three sizes larger than they had ever been before.
What to do? I could keep buying larger sized clothing, but when I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror one day I was instantly depressed. This wasn’t me. I didn’t feel comfortable being lumpy and pudgy and saggy. I didn’t sleep well and I was facing depression. I didn’t care what other people thought of me, but I did care what I thought of me. And I didn’t feel good about myself in this condition.
Four months ago I started a new regimen that turned my life around. And today I am back to my petite shape, back to my original clothing size – and feeling fantastic about myself again. I am happy! Happiness is certainly not based just on body image and size, it’s a perfect balance of mental, spiritual and physical. When any one gets completely out of alignment, it can throw everything off. 
I did not use hypnosis, fad diets, pills or hormone therapy, here’s what I did:
I changed my eating habits.
- Sunday through Friday I eat strictly healthy, low-fat foods. Lots of salads, fruits, vegetables and lean meats (chicken and fish). I don’t eat bacon, cheese, sweets, breads, white potatoes, pasta, fast foods, fried foods or junk foods. Keep the fat-content and calories down, plenty of protein.
- Saturday is my FREE DAY. All those things I can’t have the rest of the week, I CAN have on Saturday. If someone brings homemade cookies to work, I put one in a baggy and save it for Saturday. Buy me chocolates for Valentine’s Day? I’ll eat them on Saturday. But even then, I ration it, not too much. Your FREE day is up to you. Pick one day and stick to it.
- I joined a gym and rotate my workouts so I have a variety, and am hitting all areas of my body. To get to my desired weight, I went every day after work and on weekends averaging 6 days a week. Now that I’m where I want to be, I can trim that back to 4-5 days a week to maintain.
- Portion control. “Don’t eat for the body you have, eat for the body you want.” I cut everything in half. Instead of eating a whole protein bar before the gym, I ate half of one. The same with every meal. This caused the quickest weight drop of all. I didn’t think I was eating very much to start, but apparently, I was. Cut it in half! Having the person you share meals with supporting you, and eating the same way you do, and working out as much as you do, can make all the difference in the world. Why not be healthy together?