I started having a problem with my weight in my late teens. My mom, sister and I were always on diets. Obesity didnt creep in until 1992, after the birth of my 2nd son. Thats the year I left my husband with 2 babies which began a long struggle with depression. I hated myself and my body. My self-esteem was VERY low. I didnt drink or smoke my drug was food. It was all I had to comfort myself.

Longing to have a social life and begin dating again I knew I would have to slim down if I wanted to attract a man into my life. It took me 2 years of hard work and diligence just to get rid of 45 lbs. of fat. Frustrated by long plateaus and feeling deprived, I asked myself, How the heck can someone, with a lot of fat to burn, stay motivated when it takes so darn long? The idea popped into my head to have a time-lapsed exercise video where the instructor is overweight and shrinks before your very eyes in only half an hour. Unfortunately I wasnt fat enough any more! Talk about ironic! I was also into the 4th year of what ended up being an 8-year battle with depression and I wasnt emotionally capable of pursuing such a large endeavor. Not to mention that being a single, self-employed mom, with 2 very young boys, left me with little energy.

After several self-esteem groups and as many anti-depressants I slowly became emotionally stable. I also gradually put all that fat back on, plus more, topping the scales at 220 lbs. on a 5' frame! I put my creative forces to work and started researching for what I knew was one of my life purposes.

I knew absolutely nothing about making an exercise video. Out of my comfort zone? BIG time! Risky? You bet! Here I was, working 40 hours a week, still a single mom, trying just to make ends meet and making an exercise video that would put me in debt for thousands. Plus I had to overcome my fear of having thousands of people see me, at my heaviest, bounce around on their TV screen. I had this deep knowing that I could do it and never once thought I couldn't! I purposely did not tell people who I knew would say "Ya, right - you're going to make an exercise video!" while laughing hysterically. All the people I did tell said, "What a great idea!"

I wore many hats - researcher, choreographer, script writer, camera woman (when my friend couldn't do it), producer and editor. I am a total techno peasant so having to buy a new computer and editing program just to do this had my stomach in knots. This was WAY out of my comfort zone!!!! I hired a young man to teach me to do the rough editing then he cleaned it up and made it look pretty.

I was 2 tapings away from finishing the 1st video and 2 tapings into making the 2nd when life got in the way. Problems at work and with my teenage son along with many challenges in the production became overwhelming. All I could see was the BIG picture ahead and the mountain in front of me that I still had to climb. Designing the video jacket, website, figuring out how to market the video and get publicity all while trying to lose weight (hard enough to do when you're not stressed and food is your only vice). I needed a break. Just for a month or 2...

Eighteen months later... 35 of the 50 lbs. I'd taken off were back on, exercise - what's that? Can you say SELF SABOTAGE? I beat myself up daily. I still knew I would finish the video but just couldn't bring myself to start working on it again. A few days before my 40th birthday I got a phone call from a guy I knew telling me about something that he thought would help me. My birthday present to myself was an Isagenix Cleansing and Nutritional System. I knew this was the answer.

January 30, 2005 I rented our local theatre and premiered Going Going Gone! for my friends and family. This is the 1st ever time-lapsed exercise video made specifically to inspire and motivate obese/overweight, out of shape and aerobically challenged people who want to burn fat.

I weighed 214 lbs. when I started taping Going Going Gone! During the course of the 30 minute aerobic step workout I shrink by 60 lbs. and 74 inches. Most exercise videos on the market are only suitable for people who are already in shape. Going Going Gone! is different because the tempo is slower at 110 beats per minute compared to other videos at 120-132 beats per minute. The steps are basic and easy to modify for different fitness levels. The viewer won't feel like a failure because the workout is actually DO-ABLE!

This video took a lot longer than I intended but all of those challenges are behind me now. At least until I start the 2nd interval video this fall for which I purposely put 15 lbs. on for! I am so proud of myself and my video and now I want to help thousands of people win their war with fat! I invite anyone reading this to visit my website at http://www.goinggoinggone1and2.com

There is a clip of the video on the site along with a free list of my tips and tricks for burning fat. There is also my story of how I burned off the fat and a resource list of books that helped me on my journey.

They say there's a reason for everything. It took me a while to figure out why I had to spend so many years in my self-made prison of fat. I came up with 3 reasons.

1) My boys had a nice soft mommy to cuddle
2) I had to learn to love myself just how I was - fat and all
3) To find my life purpose and help thousands of people

I truly hope my story will inspire everyone who reads it - even if youre not overweight. We all have a purpose in this life and sometimes its our biggest challenges that will lead us to it. And you know what? If I can do it you can do it!