When I had reached my highest weight of 180 pounds at a petite 5'3" it was time to do something. I was busting out of my size 14's. I looked bad, I was always miserable and hated to even look in the mirror. It was so hard to get motivated by feeling this way. I started out by simply watching the foods I ate, but that wasn't enough. I had lost a few pounds by doing this, but hit a plateau. I decided that at this point, I needed exercise. But the thought of that seemed too overwhelming, and something I wasn't committed to do.

A friend of mine gave me her set of tae bo tapes to try. She told me they were really fun and I could have them if that's what it would take to motivate me. I tried it and after the first week, it became so easy and so fun that it was starting to get addictive. Within that first week, I felt great. It was fun . As the pounds keep coming off, I was more and more encouraged to keep going. As much as my body hurt, it felt good and I knew I was not only losing weight, I was feeling better about myself, which to me is way more important than a number. I kept looking for new videos to introduce to my library. Billy is so fun and really motivates you and pushes you to keep going, even when you feel like you want to give up. I've seen other aerobics videos where you felt like you wanted to fall asleep half way through. I think that is why I never started an exercise regime. I'm so glad I tried tae bo. To me, it's more of a hobby, something I enjoy doing, Something I turn to, to unwind after a long day. I lost over 50 pounds in no time. The compliments were overwhelming and that helped keep me going as well. I wanted to be a role model and an inspiration to others trying to better themselves. Motivating others, deep down, helped me stay on track. I even got two of my friends hooked on tae bo and recently got my mom to give it a try!

I'm still working to shed the rest of the weight Id' like to lose and I have no doubts that as I continue to do tae bo, I will be at my goal in no time. It really is addictive!

Lisa Malackany