Diana
Regimbal
"I didn’t stop until the weight came off, and by then I had learned that health and fitness is a journey, not a destination."
Age: 26
Height: 5'10"
Heaviest Weight: 210
Current Weight: 150
My Journey:
Dear Tosca,
I was married at 20 years old, and did not take care of my body at all. No matter what size I have been, my wonderful husband has always told me I’m beautiful. At 22, I got pregnant and ate whatever I wanted. I told myself it was a treat to share a meal at Arby's once a week with my husband, having sugary drinks and cookies for dessert. Not only were we wasting our money on expensive food, I was wasting the calories I was feeding to the growing baby inside my body.
When I went into the hospital to give birth to my son, the scale topped 225 pounds. Weeks later I was down to only 210 pounds. I was miserable. I had abused my body for so long, I now had hardly any energy or strength to take care of my baby. I could barely get off the couch. During a nighttime feeding I saw an infomercial for an exercise program, which I bought the next day. During one of the workouts the instructor said, “Eat clean foods.” I thought, what is that? And so began my search.
I came across Oxygen magazine and your amazing Eat-Clean Diet® books. I have just savored every word. I have taught my family and myself to Eat Clean! I didn’t stop until the weight came off, and by then I had learned that health and fitness is a journey, not a destination. And I am still on my journey.
In 2009 I started running races. I caught the bug to train my body and stay in race shape. I ran a half-marathon one week before I found out I was pregnant again. I followed the Eat-Clean Diet Principles through my second pregnancy and felt amazing. My delivery was natural and very fast! And the pregnancy weight melted off. I was back to my regular weight and in skinny jeans six weeks later thanks to Eating Clean!
I faced many health issues during my second pregnancy, though. I was injured during childbirth, which has led to a struggle to keep up my routine. While I was discouraged by the fact that I could not be in race shape this year, I have continued to Eat Clean and exercise when I can. I know it has helped me all the more with my health.
Thank you, Tosca, for the influence and inspiration you have been in my life, and thank you for helping me to keep going and do the same for my family!
Diana Regimbal
Akron, OH