I check and track down my progress every week to see how well I am doing.

My husband is also a great source of motivation. To keep my enthusiasm high, he would skip dinner with me sometimes!

I also put on some of my clothes which I couldn't even fit into earlier. This encourages me to keep working on myself and move forward every week.

How do you ensure you dont lose focus? To be very honest, I lost focus a lot many times. I always felt low on confidence and when I couldnt really see a difference in the number initially, it pained me. Plus, PCOS battle made it more difficult.

However, each time I failed, I learnt a lesson. Over the course of 1.5 years, I learnt to chase progress, and not just the number on the scale.

Whats the most difficult part of being overweight? Quite a lot. Simple tasks become difficult, you encounter so many challenges on a daily basis. Plus, being body shamed impacts your self-esteem and confidence levels. I was seldom mocked at, and referred to as the fattest woman in the room. Hormonal imbalances, mood swings and the pressure you face from society, it makes things so difficult.

See the article here:
Weight loss: I followed 16 hours of daily fasting and walked every day - Times of India

Whole wheat jaggery cake is perfect for weight loss diet.

Highlights

The chilly winter works up our appetite to crave for sweet treats that not only satiate our soul but also bring a sense of warmth. When it comes to cakes, we prefer a fudgy tea cake that is slightly heated up. Dense homemade cakes are the best thing to dig in this weather. But if it also fills you with guilt, it kills half of the fun and pleasure. So, here we have the perfect cake recipe for you that you can make for your winter weight loss diet and indulge in any time without hesitation.

This cake replaces refined all-purpose flour with healthier whole wheat flour (atta) and uses jaggery (gur) in place of refined sugar. Also, curd and milk take place of butter/egg yolk to make this healthy yet delicious cake.

(Also Read:10 Delicious, Sugar-Free Indian Desserts You Can Make At Home)

Jaggery is known to be a healthy sugar alternativePhoto Credit: iStock

Promoted

Ingredients:

(Dry ingredients)

1 cup whole wheat flour1 cup jaggery1 teaspoon baking powderA pinch of salt

(Wet ingredients)Half cup milkHalf cup curd1/4 cup oil1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method -

Step 1 - Switch on the oven and leave it for pre-heating at 180 degrees C for 10-15 minutes.

Step 2 - Grind jaggery till it turns into powder without any lumps.

Step 3 - Whisk milk, curd and oil together in a bowl. Add vanilla extract and mix well.

Step 4 - In a separate bowl, mix whole wheat flour, salt and baking powder. Sift it through a colander and add it to a bowl of milk and curd batter.

Step 5 - Add jaggery powder and mix everything together to make a smooth batter. If the batter is too thick, you can add some more milk.

Step 6 - Add dry fruits to the batter and pour it in a baking dish greased with butter, oil or ghee and lined with butter paper.

Step 7 - Bake the cake at 180 degrees C for 25-30 minutes. Check and bake for more time if not done yet.

To check if the cake is baked, insert a toothpick all the way down to the centre of the cake and pull it out. If it comes out clean, your cake is baked.

(Also Read:Baking Tips: 6 Genius Hacks To Make Perfect Cakes)

About Neha GroverLove for reading roused her writing instincts. Neha is guilty of having a deep-set fixation with anything caffeinated. When she is not pouring out her nest of thoughts onto the screen, you can see her reading while sipping on coffee.

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Winter Weight Loss: This Atta Gur Cake Is Ideal For Healthy, Guilt-Free Indulgence - NDTV Food

Walking and running are both suitable forms of exercise for weight loss and heart health. The benefits and risks depend on a persons goals and current level of health and fitness.

While both activities allow a person to burn calories, lose weight, and lower their risk of heart disease, there is much debate over which is better.

Read on to learn more about the benefits and risks.

Cardiovascular exercise is also known simply as cardio. It often uses major muscle groups in the body, gets the heart pumping faster, and increases breathing rate.

Walking and running are both types of cardio.

Cardio exercises offer numerous health benefits, including:

One study examined the benefits of exercise for mental health and found that 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity, such as brisk walking, was enough to reduce anxiety and depression, alongside its other health benefits.

Walking and running provide similar health benefits, but running has a calorie-burning edge over walking.

According to the American Council on Exercise, a person who is 160 pounds burns approximately 15.1 calories per minute while running. In contrast, a person of the same weight burns around 8.7 calories per minute walking.

The number of calories a person burns while walking and running depends on several factors, including:

Running burns more calories per minute than walking. However, walkers can still burn the same number of calories by doing so for longer.

However, depending on a persons goals, walking and running can still offer the same benefits.

Both walking and running are suitable for losing weight, boosting mental health, and improving overall health.

One study published in the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology concluded that walking and running reduced the risk of hypertension, high cholesterol levels, coronary heart disease, and diabetes.

However, the study did not directly address whether walking or running could benefit heart health and cardio.

Another report by the American Heart Association states that brisk walking at least 150 minutes per week is associated with a lower risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.

Studies have found that storing a lot of fat in the midsection is associated with the risk of diseases, such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

Whether choosing walking or running, exercise can help a person reduce their belly fat.

One study found that regular aerobic exercises, such as walking, reduced belly fat and helped people manage obesity.

Walking and running help burn calories in the body, but they also help reduce belly fat, depending on the intensity of the exercise.

However, running may help reduce belly fat more effectively. One study in 27 middle-aged females with obesity found that those who participated in high-intensity exercise training lost significantly more belly fat than those who did low-intensity exercise or no exercise training for 16 weeks.

Scientists need to perform more research comparing the effects of walking and running on belly fat reduction.

For example, a 2018 review found that low-intensity exercise was more effective in reducing abdominal fat, while high-intensity training had a bigger effect in decreasing overall body fat.

People who want to lose belly fat should consider speaking with their doctor, who can help them determine the best exercise program and diet for their needs.

While running and walking offer various health benefits, including maintaining a healthy weight and improving heart health, they may also come with risks.

There is a higher risk of injury with running than walking. This is because running is of higher intensity and puts more stress on the body the joints in particular.

One study found that walkers have a lower risk of injury, while runners have a high risk.

Some of the most common injuries associated with running include:

For runners, it is crucial to take steps to reduce the risk of running-related injuries.

If a person has concerns about exercise-related injuries, they could consider walking instead, which offers similar health benefits to running, with a reduced risk of injury.

Those with arthritis, heart disease, or other chronic health conditions who are considering running should consult their doctor first.

Depending on a persons goals, walking and running are appropriate forms of exercise. Both can help people maintain a moderate weight and improve their heart health, mental health, and more.

No matter which form of exercise a person chooses, they will see positive results with regular participation.

For those starting a fitness journey, walking might be a more suitable choice since it involves low or moderate intensity. However, for people whose goal is to burn more calories, running may be more appropriate.

Read the original post:
Walking vs. running: Weight loss, heart health, and more - Medical News Today

Actress Sara Ali Khan was spotted having some fun at the gym

Winter is here in full swing and getting off from the bed to exercise may be getting difficult by the day. But you must know that exercising regularly is extremely important for your health, immunity and weight. However, the same cannot be accomplished unless you have fun while exercising. You need to do workouts that you enjoy and you probably also need a friend or two, to really enjoy exercising.

Actress Sara Ali Khan was recently seen having quite some fun in the gym. The actress was seen dancing along with Sanky Evrus, dancing (and exercising) at funky Bollywood track from the 90s!

Also read:Weight Loss: Revealed! Intricate Details Of A Nutritionist's Diet Plan

In the video below, the actress can be seen doing side-lying leg lift, until Evrus, who is also a hair artist, lures her to get up and join him to dance instead.

The video was instantly flooded with comments from Ranveer Singh, Manish Malhotra and Varun Dhawan, who is also Sara's co-actor in their upcoming movie Coolie No 1. While Dhawan commented, "I love the guy trying to workout in the background", Malhotra wrote, "Bollywood dancing in the gym", and Ranveer Singh wrote, "No words, just no words".

Also read:5 Simple Yet Effective Ways To Increase Your Daily Step Count, From A Fitness Trainer

Now this is exactly what we're talking about! A little fun here and there, can help you keep going, no matter what you do. It is important to enjoy what you're doing, else you will not be able to continue with it, or may give up in between.

So as part of Monday Motivation today, call up a friend and make plan for working out together in evening. Instead of sitting in a caf or at home to have coffee, go for a nice cycling or running session. If you don't want to step outdoors, here's a bootcamp workout which you can follow along by watching the video below.

Also read:#MondayMotivation: Here Are A Few Home Workouts That You Can Try Today

Sweat trainer Kayla Itsines guides you through each exercise, the form and duration of it. One lap of this workout can be completed in just six minutes. This is a fun and fast-paced full body workout that you can do at home without any equipment. It can surely add fun to your exercise routine today. Let's do this!

Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.

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Sara Ali Khan Dancing At The Gym On A 90s B'wood Track Is All The Motivation You Need To Exercise Today - NDTV

This study was originally published on PracticalCardiology.com.

A recent comparison by investigators at Childrens Hospital Colorado is offering insight into the effects of bariatric surgery versus standard medical therapy on future cardiovascular disease risk in obese teens with type 2 diabetes.

An analysis of the Teen-LABS and the TODAY studies, results suggest undergoing bariatric surgery was associated with nearly 3-fold reductions in long-term risk of heart attack, congestive heart failure, stroke, and coronary death among teenagers with type 2 diabetes compared to those only managed medically.

"Bariatric surgery is currently the only treatment available for youth with severe obesity and type 2 diabetes that results in considerable and durable weight loss and improvement in blood sugar levels in the majority of patients. With this study, our intent was to further demonstrate the benefits of bariatric surgery in adolescents by proving that it also leads to significantly lower long-term risks of cardiovascular disease, saidlead investigator Petter Bjornstad, MD, an endocrinologist at Children's Hospital Colorado, in a statement.

With the prevalence and societal burden of obesity and type 2 diabetes continuing to grow, Bjornstad and a team of colleagues sought to compare the 30-year risk for cardiovascular disease events among patients with type 2 diabetes and severe obesity. To do so, investigators designed their study to compare data collected from patients in the Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) the Treatment Options of Type 2 Diabetes in Adolescents and Youth (TODAY) studies.

From Teen-LABS, investigators identified a cohort of 30 participants who were of similar age and racial distribution as the 63 patients identified from the TODAY study for inclusion in the study. Of note, all patients from the Teen-LABS study underwent bariatric surgery and those from the TODAY study received metformin alone or in combination with rosiglitazone or intensive lifestyle intervention, with insulin therapy given for glycemic progression.

Patients from Teen-LABS had a mean age of 16.9 (SD, 1.3) years, 70% were female, 60% were white, and the mean BMI was 54.4 (SD, 9.5) kg/m2. Patients from TODAY had a mean age of 15.3 (SD, 1.3) years, 56% were female, 71% were white, and the mean BMI was 40.5 (SD, 4.9) kg/m2.

The primary outcome of the analysis was the difference in 30-year cardiovascular disease event score developed by the Framingham Heart Study. Investigators assessed this risk at baseline and again after 1 year and 5 years of follow-up.

At baseline, the likelihood of cardiovascular disease events was higher among those in Teen-LABS study than those in the TODAY study (17.66 [SD, 1.33] vs 12.11 [SD, .79]; P=.002). After 1 year, analysis indicated those in Teen-LABS had a significantly lower event risk than those in TODAY (6.79 [SD, 1.33] vs 13.64 [SD, 0.96]; P <.0001). Further analysis indicated this difference was sustained through the 5-year follow-up (adjusted P <.0001).

"The high cardiovascular disease risk observed in TODAY participants, despite their lower baseline BMI, underscores the inadequacy of standard medical therapy in mitigating the risk of cardiovascular events, and calls for more aggressive therapy in this at-risk population," saidThomas H. Inge, MD, PhD, Teen-LABS principal investigator, anddirector of pediatric surgery and the bariatric centerat Children's Hospital Colorado, in the aforementioned statement. "While longer-term studies are needed to determine whether the risk score predictions hold true, the long-term cardiovascular health prospects associated with bariatric surgery in adolescents appear to be very positive."

This study, Effect of surgical versus medical therapy on estimated cardiovascular event risk among adolescents with type 2 diabetes and severe obesity, was published in Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases.

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Weight Loss Surgery Bests Medical Therapy for Reducing CVD in Obese Teens - Endocrinology Network

Metabolic surgery can free two-thirds of patients with type 2 diabetes from the use of insulin, new research suggests.

An analysis of post-surgery outcomes of nearly 2,000 patients with obesity and diabetes requiring insulin, co-ordinated by the Irish Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (Irspen) and the British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society found that surgery is more effective and cheaper than insulin.

Some 67 per cent of patients were no longer using insulin one year after metabolic surgery and 37 per cent achieved remission of their diabetes altogether, the analysis found.

Metabolic surgery is a term used to describe weight loss treatments and procedures, such as a gastric bypass, to treat metabolic diseases such as diabetes in obese people.

The research included a broad cohort of patients across Ireland and the UK and analysed their outcomes between 2009 and 2017.

Prof Helen Heneghan from the National Metabolic Surgery Centre at St Vincents hospital, said on average patients also lost around a quarter of their bodyweight and the improvements persisted for at least four years.

Prof Heneghan said prior to this analysis, questions remained if surgery would be as effective for patients with type 2 diabetes requiring insulin, as these patients also have a higher chance of diabetes complications.

This research now confirms metabolic surgery is also the most effective medical treatment for the majority of patients with more severe type 2 diabetes who use insulin, she said.

Type 2 diabetes develops when the body becomes resistant to insulin or when the pancreas is unable to produce enough insulin. Obesity and age both increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

There are more than 200,000 people living with diabetes in Ireland, according to Diabetes Ireland, most of whom have type 2 diabetes.

In a second part of the study, Irspen member Prof Carel le Roux said surgery was also found to be more cost effective than medication.

The researchers costed the surgery against if the same patients had been treated with medicines alone. Although an operation costs 8,000, researchers found that this figure was less than the ongoing cost of medications, she said.

With costs of treatment side-effects and any complications of diabetes were also considered, the average patient treated with surgery was expected to save the health system 4,000 over five years, while also living with better health outcomes.

Read more:
Weight-loss surgery most effective treatment for type 2 diabetes patients - The Irish Times

Intermittent fasting is a method of dieting which prioritizes when you eat as opposed to what youre eating. Fasting windows can vary in length, but the most commonly followed variation is 16 hours fasted and 8 hours of eating. While IF doesnt follow the typical food restricting definition of a diet, limiting your eating time will naturally reduce your food intake, putting you in a calorie deficit for weight loss.

100+ Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your Holiday List

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Research is still being conducted as to the long term benefits of intermittent fasting, but some studies have already shown that fasting has the capability to delay aging and prevent the onset of some diseases.

Allie McCormick turned to intermittent fasting on a whim, and couldnt be happier with her results and the lifestyle shift that followed.

As told by Allie McCormick to Merrell Readman.

via Allie McCormick

I stumbled upon intermittent fasting through a forum on Reddit and thought it was weird, but I saw people getting good results. I'd heard "breakfast is the most important meal of the day," and thought that people were nuts for starving themselves. But, as I grew tired of gaining and losing the same weight over and over, I finally decided to give it a try.

via Allie McCormick

I lost 10 pounds my first month without counting calories, exercising regularly, or "dieting. I just ate all my food between 12pm and 8pm every day. Since I started my intermittent fasting journey, I've lost nearly 50 pounds and have been able to keep it off. Now I help others with fasting too.

via Allie McCormick

The first change I noticed is that I was really hungry in the beginning, but by the end of the first week I was forgetting to eat! Fasting helps with overall hunger and cravings. I also noticed that if I drank lots of water, the weight came off much more quickly. As I got into fasting, I wound up growing more motivated to eat cleaner and exercise the healthier I got as well. Now, I focus on eating more plant-based foods and get 10,000 steps a day.

Intermittent fasting gives you that initial push you need to change your life because it instills a sense of self-control and "Yes, I can do this."

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I Tried Intermittent Fasting For Weight LossHere Are The Before And After Photos - SheFinds

Ross Mathews has earned a reputation for being brutally honest (and funny!) in his role as a television host, and so it comes as no surprise that he's getting real about losing weight during the pandemic. The frequent E! Network correspondent is celebrating a milestone on a new health journey that he's kicked off in 2020: Ross has lost 50 pounds after first deciding to take charge of his health.

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On Instagram, the 41-year-old personality explained he's now about 50 pounds slimmer from his heaviest weight ever, while 5 months into a brand new routine one that was actually inspired by a personal tragedy. "Breaking the pattern. 50lbs down today from my height in early June when I decided to reclaim my health after my mom died," Ross told fans in November.

Ross has been sharing snippets on Instagram of his year in quarantine, mostly inside cozy homes while socially distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, while occasionally filming new projects (like 25 Words or Less!). But friends and fans first noticed his trim figure in playful snapshots: "You look happy and gorgeous," Carnie Wilson, of the musical group Wilson Phillips, shared on Ross' Insta shot of a vibrant new outfit.

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This isn't the first time that Ross has directly opened up about his weight, as he appeared on Celebrity Fit Club in 2007 after entertaining audiences as the "intern" on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in the early 2000s.

"I will always be a work in progress," he continued on Instagram. "I may mess up again. I dunno. All I know is that I'm very grateful. And very happy. On we go"

In a revealing interview with NBC's Today, Ross explained how he managed to optimize his diet and introduce more exercise into his routine and how his drive for change stemmed from his mother's passing earlier this year. Below, how Ross has tackled weight loss and exercise amid a year of many challenges, in his own words.

On Instagram, Ross has shared more of his devastation following the death of his 69-year-old mother, Gaye, to breast cancer in May. "I can't imagine a world without her. Will colors be less vibrant? Flavors dulled?" he quipped in an emotional public tribute. "She was my audience of one, my head cheerleader, my VIP. And now she's gone, taken before any of us were ready."

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But Ross also said that it was his goal to tackle life with gusto, just as his mother had. "I hope no, I know that her spirit lives within me and I will spend the rest of my life trying to be as good as she was, as kind as she was, and authentic as she was. I am who I am because of how she loved me. We should all be so lucky."

Speaking with NBC's Today, Ross admitted that his mother's death prompted him to reevaluate his own health after the pain it caused. "My mom and I were so close, just beyond close, and all my life, I've lost weight and gained weight, done unhealthy things to my body," he said. "And I decided, you know, this is the one thing I can control and what I can gain in this time when we're losing so much Because I think if you lose a parent, and you don't pay attention, you're missing out on a gift. And so I paid attention to what it means to have your health."

I feel like everyone during this COVID thing has been focused on what we've been losing, Ross told Today. You know, I've lost time from my family. I've lost time from my job. I've lost this and everyone feels like they've lost a year. And I just thought: How can I gain something during this time?

Ross adds that he couldn't justify weight gain during the pandemic in his own life after losing his mother in May. I refuse to do that. I want to come out of this in a better position than when I entered it. The reason? Because I can," he said. "I have a choice. I have the power to choose that. Not to be totally a cheese-fest, but I think any other choice that I made would be disrespectful to what my mother's death taught me.

Believe it or not, Ross has had to face the loss of a parent to cancer before this year, back in 2004, when his father died due to the disease. It's reportedly why Ross quit smoking cigarettes after college, and the loss first challenged him to think more about his own health and the reason why he signed up for Celebrity Fit Club in the first place.

"I was 230 pounds at the end of college. I got it down 16 pounds by making decisions like eating a bag of baked Lays as opposed to a bag of Cheetos. But I didn't attack the real issue," Ross told People magazine back in 2007, revealing why he began openly discussing his health. "My father had passed away. It made me take inventory of my life, to say, it's now or never."

Believe it or not, Ross doesn't credit any particular diet to his weight loss this year he's made holistic health choices across the board after taking time to learn about proper nutrition. It's a shift in his diet that he plans to maintain forever, rather than a short-term diet. "I didn't do a real diet," he told Today. "I just started learning about food, talking to people, dabbling in this and that and then I started making my 'Rosscipes'. I've done it just eating as healthy and health-fully as I can, while not feeling like I'm giving up anything.

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Because he doesn't follow any one particular diet, Ross is practicing moderation (a key component of intuitive eating!) and adapting some of his favorite recipes to be a bit lighter. "As I am learning how to eat healthy, I don't want to give up what I love," he said in a recipe video, shared on Instagram in September, as what he likes to call a 'Rosscipe.' "I met with a nutritionist when I decided it was time to get healthy It's the middle of a pandemic, and I'm grieving, as I've lost my mom. I said, 'I'm not going to cut out alcohol, honey. Not going to happen.'"

He's gone on to share recipes for things like lighter chicken tacos, better-for-you lasagna, and bountiful taco salads on his profile, sharing some of the tips and tricks he's incorporating into his life (all without cutting out entire food groups!).

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In 2007, after his appearance on Celebrity Fit Club, Ross made his opinions about fitness and gym routines quite clear: "Exercise sucks. It will never not [suck]," he told People magazine at the time. "The reason it feels good when you're done, is that you're done."

His feelings about the gym haven't really changed since then, but one thing is for certain Ross is staying active as possible these days to change his health. And it's an activity that's free(!) and doesn't require you to head to the gym. "I just moved to New York City, so I'm walking tons, which helps," he told Today. "There's nothing scarier than the gym. I'd rather watch those awful Halloween movies over and over again. Yeah, the gym is not for me."

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"Snacking at night is my downfall," Ross told Today. I'll be pretty good during the day, and then it's like, a bag of Doritos at night, because I'm sorry, but when you're watching 90 Day Fianc, you gotta eat something!"

He changed his snacking habits by adjusting meal times and reaching for items that were less of a drag on his diet. "It was about cutting out snacking or, if I did, I would snack on like, a pickle or something. I was looking for the crunch," he explained. "It was about replacing some things and really just knowing that if nothing changed, nothing changed. That if I didn't make some changes, I would be stuck in the same unhealthy place that I was."

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For Ross, working on his health was much more than achieving a slim waistline which is why he began therapy in 2020. I promise you I will mess up along the way, but the thing that is different this time is that I talked to a therapist throughout this process, he told Today. I really wanted to understand why I could lose it but not maintain it, because losing is not the problem, gaining it is not the problem maintaining is the problem."

Ross believes that the therapist has helped him make a more sustainable commitment to his health now than ever before. "I think you have to get down to the root of that and all weight-related issues are not really about the food, I don't think. I think it's about why you're overeating? What are you pushing down by shoving food in?

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Ross Mathews' Weight Loss and Fitness Journey In His Own Words - GoodHousekeeping.com

RICHMOND When he was 17, Staff Sgt. Roger Jackson struggled with his weight a hefty 250 pounds on a 5-foot-7-inch frame.

Over the years, I had been made fun of, bullied, talked about, put down, denied certain extracurricular activities, criticized, etcetera because of my size, Jackson recalled.

Eventually growing tired of his low self-esteem and lack of confidence, he decided to try out for the high school basketball team. As a bigger guy, he was understandably nervous but committed himself to the training and even started running alongside the cross-country team. He quickly developed a love for running, and his speed and endurance improved as a result of this new focus on fitness and healthier eating.

Today, the Army Sustainer assigned to the Virginia National Guards 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, weighs in at 170 pounds and stands 5-foot-8-inches tall. Just recently, he posted a personal best mile run time of 5:13. The staff sergeant is happy to share his story as a way to hopefully influence others to take ownership of their mental and physical health and professional wellbeing.

I was a student at Christopher Newport University, paying my way through college when my recruiter informed me of the benefits and opportunities in the military, he said. I went back and forth with myself about the idea before finally deciding, why not?

At age 20, Jackson enlisted as an 88M Motor Transport Operator and used tuition assistance benefits to pay for his undergraduate degree. Over the next few years, he quickly progressed through the ranks to become a noncommissioned officer. His next goal is to attend the Army Master Fitness Trainer Course so he can learn the skills needed to help others achieve success in their fitness endeavors as well.

I believe my main purpose in life is to help others in whatever capacity, Jackson said. At this point, I want to help my teammates realize their potential; that they can do anything they want to. However, they must make that decision for themselves.

Jacksons fitness routine these days includes regular cardio and strength training and hes learned a lot about how to properly fuel and feed his body to accommodate and support his activity level.

While I do continue to push myself, my goal is balance, Jackson said. I do my best to achieve balance in the realms of fitness, diet, sleep and mindfulness to keep myself conditioned.

For others working on their own weight-loss journey, Jackson said success comes down to dedication and goal-setting.

To start your journey, make a decision, set the goal and get after it with full force, he encouraged. Even when you reach your goal, do not settle there. Keep striving forward to maintain and continue being the best version of yourself.

Listening to supportive voices also is an important part of the journey, according to the staff sergeant, along with accepting support from friends and family.

Theyre the ones in your corner who want to see you succeed and grow, he said. Dont pay attention to the ones who say you cant do it. If its something you want, do it and prove that you were right.

(Editors note: Those wanting to follow SSG Jacksons example but uncertain of where to start should consider contacting the Fort Lee Army Wellness Center. It offers health assessment reviews, body composition testing, nutrition planning, help with exercise routines and more. For more information or to make an appointment, call 804-734-9384.)

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Sustainer reflects on weight loss journey; offers words of encouragement to others - Public Affairs Office of Headquarters, US Army Combined Arms...