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" Donna Lennart, 37  Heaviest weight: 245 Current weight: 162 Lost: 83 pounds Kept it off for: 5 years My story: Although I was never a petite girl, I was always fit because I played basketball from fifth grade through college. But after graduation, I got married and quit playing ball. Then I started eating too many desserts. Everyone has their addiction, and food became mine. In 10 years, my weight crept up from 175 to 245 pounds.  Worst moment: Seeing my son, Brayden, pick up my bad eating habits. As a 1-year-old, he was having fries at McDonald&amp;#039;s because that&amp;#039;s what he saw me putting in my mouth.  Turning point: I read an article in my husband&amp;#039;s health magazine about BMI and life expectancy \u2014 it said that being obese can shorten your life by five to 10 years. That was scary. I didn&amp;#039;t want to miss out on any moments with my son just because of poor eating patterns. After that, every time I was tempted to have a fry, I&amp;#039;d think, I could be here a little bit longer if I just eat better.     How I lost it: My hairdresser told me that Weight Watchers was offering free enrollment, so I decided to join a class in Lexington, KY, where I live. The plan gives each food a certain number of points, and you only get to eat so many points per day. After I came home from the first meeting, I calculated the point value of everything in my kitchen. Anything I didn&amp;#039;t really love went in the trash. If I wanted, I could have pizza every night of the week. But at seven points a slice you start to ask, &amp;quot;Is it worth it?&amp;quot; I treated losing weight like a job and it really worked.  Biggest payoff: In February 2005, I was on the cover of Good Housekeeping for a &amp;quot;Half Her Size!&amp;quot; story. And my husband constantly brags that I look better after 15 years of marriage than on my wedding day.  Stay-Slim Secrets \u2022 Find low-cal favorites. I eat 100-calorie Hostess cakes for a one-point snack. Pizzafree.com makes pizzas that are only four points. \u2022 Weigh yourself twice a day \u2014 every morning and night. It&amp;#039;s the best way to stay on track. \u2022 Exercise, even if it&amp;#039;s only for 10 minutes. Anything is better than nothing. I also lift weights to boost my metabolism.   Chris Spirou, 40  Heaviest weight: 270 Current weight: 140  Lost: 130 pounds Kept it off for: 4 years My story: I come from a Greek background where life revolves around food. So I always ate \u2014 a lot. When I had kids, I wouldn&amp;#039;t eat all day because I was busy running around in my Oceanside, NY, home. But by late afternoon, I&amp;#039;d feel so famished that I&amp;#039;d scarf down the first thing I saw. I&amp;#039;d tell myself, I didn&amp;#039;t have breakfast or lunch, so I can eat half a cake. I ballooned to 270 pounds. Worst moment: Not wanting to attend my own son&amp;#039;s christening. I was sick of people saying things like, &amp;quot;You&amp;#039;re such a pretty girl \u2014 you just need to lose a few pounds.&amp;quot;     Turning point: During my second pregnancy, I developed gestational diabetes. The doctors warned, &amp;quot;At the rate you&amp;#039;re going, you&amp;#039;ll be a full-blown diabetic on insulin in five years.&amp;quot; My sister had just lost weight with Jenny Craig, so I joined, too.  How I lost it: With Jenny Craig, you get three prepared meals a day. In the beginning, it was an adjustment, because I would get one piece of chicken when I was used to eating three. I had to fill up on healthy snacks like fruit and low-fat yogurt. Now I eat grapes and berries like I used to eat chips. After I got down to 200 pounds, I started using a 10-minute Jenny Craig exercise tape. Then I worked up to harder videos, like Tae Bo, which supercharged my weight loss. After a year, I was down to 150 pounds.  Biggest payoff: My blood sugar levels are normal. And after I hit my goal weight, I was asked to be a Jenny Craig counselor. I said yes! Stay-Slim Secrets  \u2022 Fill up on veggies. If a dish calls for a cup of peas, I&amp;#039;ll triple the amount. And I eat salad daily. \u2022 Make healthy snacks accessible. When you buy produce, take 15 minutes to clean everything, chop it up, and put it in Tupperware. \u2022 Exercise in the A.M. Just wake up and go. If you think twice about it, you won&amp;#039;t.  \u2022 Have a cappuccino after dinner instead of dessert. It has fewer calories.   Heather Sims, 35 Heaviest weight: 156 Current weight: 121  Lost: 35 pounds Kept it off for: 6 years My story: After I turned 20, I put on a few pounds every year. The main reason: I ate too much \u2014 my weaknesses were chocolate and pizza. I always felt guilty afterward, but I couldn&amp;#039;t stop myself. I tried Slim Fast, eating fat-free foods, getting Lean Cuisine meals, doing aerobics. But nothing worked. Not a morning went by where I didn&amp;#039;t wake up and think, How can I get this weight off? It consumed me.  Worst moment: The first time I went to a pool party with my extended family. I didn&amp;#039;t want my thin sisters-in-law to see how big I&amp;#039;d gotten, so I changed into my swimsuit and jumped in the pool before anyone could see me. It was humiliating to be so ashamed of my own body.    Turning point: A friend told me about the Weigh Down Workshop, a faith-based diet program, so I went to a class near my old home in Marion, OH. I heard testimonials from participants, a few of whom had stayed skinny for more than 20 years. I was inspired.  How I lost it: When I was tempted to overeat, I&amp;#039;d pray, God, if you don&amp;#039;t want me to eat this, give me a way out. Then I&amp;#039;d find a hair in my food, or the phone would ring. Before Weigh Down, I would eat a salad and fat-free food and later make cookies &amp;quot;for my husband&amp;quot; and polish off half the dough. But now I&amp;#039;m free to eat whatever I want, as long as it&amp;#039;s in moderation. The weight came off fast \u2014 I lost about 17 pounds in a month. Biggest payoff:  Improving my relationship with God. Also, after I started the diet, I found a bunch of Cadbury eggs in a drawer. Before, I would have eaten them in one sitting. But I had stashed them away six months prior \u2014 and hadn&amp;#039;t thought about them since. It was monumental.  Stay-Slim Secrets \u2022 Cut your meals in two at restaurants and put half in a to-go bag right away. If you&amp;#039;re really still hungry after you&amp;#039;ve eaten the first half, then you can start on the second. \u2022 Indulge every once in awhile. If you want a cheeseburger, get it. Just eat it s-l-o-w-l-y, and take the time to really enjoy it. \u2022 Avoid sugary drinks like soda and fancy coffee.   Heather Sanchez, 36  Heaviest weight: 195 Current weight: 110   Lost: 85 pounds Kept it off for: 12 years My story: I grew up with four siblings, and if you didn&amp;#039;t inhale your food, there was no chance you&amp;#039;d get seconds. In college, I was a speed eater, too: I overloaded my plate with food in the cafeteria, finished it off in minutes, then went back for more. By the time I got married, things were worse. I&amp;#039;d stuff myself with sweets, then jump on the StairMaster. But as soon as I stepped off, I&amp;#039;d feel hungry again, and the cycle would start all over.  Worst moment: One time, at a restaurant near my old home in Denver, I ate so much \u2014 steak, potatoes, a big dessert \u2014 I couldn&amp;#039;t keep my pants buttoned up. Luckily, I was wearing a long shirt, so I could cover myself up.    Turning point: I tried every diet \u2014 but always gained the weight back. Then, in December 1995, I saw an ad in our church bulletin from the Weigh Down Workshop that said, &amp;quot;Are you tired of yo-yo dieting?&amp;quot; I thought, Yeah, I&amp;#039;m tired of it. So I signed up. How I lost it: I learned that there are two types of hunger. One is real hunger in the pit of your stomach; the other is an empty feeling you think is hunger \u2014 and it&amp;#039;s something food can&amp;#039;t fill. Now I treat my body like a car and only give it fuel when it&amp;#039;s empty. And here&amp;#039;s what I was surprised to learn: I feel full even when I eat small portions.  Biggest payoff: My two children. When I was heavy, I didn&amp;#039;t want to have kids. I thought, I&amp;#039;m huge, and I&amp;#039;ll just get bigger. But when I lost the weight, I felt ready. Four weeks after my first child was born, I was back in my size 4 clothes.  Stay-Slim Secrets \u2022 Serve food on saucers or salad plates, so you&amp;#039;re forced to dish out smaller portions. \u2022 Remember that meals are a time to enjoy company. Put your fork down, lift up your head, and have a conversation. Get your face out of your food, so you won&amp;#039;t focus on it. \u2022 Don&amp;#039;t give up your favorite treats. I hadn&amp;#039;t had chocolate or fried food in years, but Weigh Down teaches that you can have anything in small amounts. My personal trick: I freeze my chocolate, so I have to eat it slowly.  Janice Mielarczyk, 40  Heaviest weight: 205 Current weight: 130 Lost: 75 pounds Kept it off for: 3 years My story: I hovered around a healthy weight until I became a stay-at-home mom. On a near-daily basis, my 2-year-old son and I would eat breakfast at a diner near Pequannock, NJ, my hometown. Then we&amp;#039;d hit the mall and grab lunch at the food court. I&amp;#039;d never been very active, so pairing fast food with no exercise caught up with me quickly.  Worst moment: For a wedding, I had to shop for a dress at a plus-size store because I couldn&amp;#039;t squeeze into any of my fancy clothes. Not a single thing in my closet fit me.     Turning point: Soon after the wedding, I hit 200 pounds. I had convinced myself that I was in control of my eating. I thought, When I feel like it, I&amp;#039;ll stop. But I had to face facts when I saw that number on the scale.  How I lost it: I joined Weight Watchers. The counselor told me I had to lose 60 pounds, so I practically starved myself for a week because I thought dieting meant cutting out everything. But instead, I gained a pound! I remember crying because that monstrous number was now up to 61. That&amp;#039;s when I decided to break it down into small victories \u2014 a pound one week, two pounds the next \u2014 to make dieting more doable. As for eating, I limited anything gloppy or cheesy. I also weaned myself off fast food. I ate it twice a day in the beginning, then once a day, and now, I only eat a Happy Meal once every other month. When I started walking, I lost several pounds quickly. Now I do spinning, kayaking, hiking, anything that&amp;#039;s fun and active.  Biggest payoff: Finding a support network. After I started going to Weight Watchers, people kept noticing my new figure and asking, &amp;quot;How are you doing it?&amp;quot; When I copped up, friends started coming to meetings with me. At one point, eight of my pals had joined.  Stay-Slim Secrets  \u2022 Be choosy. If something is not the best I&amp;#039;ve ever tasted, I put it down and walk away. My pickiness has helped me keep the weight off.   \u2022 Opt for a glass of wine or dessert at dinner \u2014 but not both. \u2022 Keep protein bars in your purse. I always have a stash so that I have no excuse to say, &amp;quot;I&amp;#039;ll just pull over for some fast food.&amp;quot; \u2022 Fill the fridge with fresh fruit. I know out-of-season strawberries, papayas, and mangos can be pricey, but it&amp;#039;s better than doing a lot of damage for $5 on a value menu. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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