SUCCESS STORY / Melissa Bachman, 45: From 199 pounds to 123 pounds
Former weight: 199 pounds
Current weight: 123 pounds
Pounds lost: 76 pounds
Height: 5 feet 2 inches
Age: 45 years
How long she's kept it off: She started in January 2017. She reached her current weight in March 2018.
Personal life: "I live in Roswell and work as a health and welfare consultant," Bachman said. "I took up cycling in earnest and raced bikes last year for the first time."
Turning point: "I woke up one day and after not being on the scale for many, many months, it read 199 pounds and I was mortified. I knew that I had gained weight. I knew I was buying new clothes, but seeing that number was just shocking to me," Bachman said. "To kick it off, I did a 10-day smoothie cleanse. … I did that for 10 days and I lost about 13 pounds." She started working out on a stationary bike at home using online cycling programs. "I had been riding a bike since 2011, and so I used that as a way to kind of cut a few pounds off before getting with Mizelle Sarno, my personal trainer at SFX Fitness in Roswell, in mid-March of 2017," she said. "In early April of 2018, I hired a cycling coach."
Diet plan: She signed up for MyFitnessPal.com premium service. "I would fuel my body back with the calories I spent," Bachman said. Breakfast is usually eggs, lunch is a wrap sandwich and dinner is grilled chicken.
Exercise routine: "I work out with Mizelle twice a week, an hour of strength training each session," she said. "I'm cycling five to seven hours a week. Some of those are structured workouts my cycling coach gives me, and sometimes it's a long ride with my cycling team. I would say normally five to six days per week, I'm working out. When I was in weight-loss mode, I would try to do something six days a week."
Biggest challenge: "During this process, I did it in such a way that it wasn't overwhelming for me," Bachman said. "I enjoyed it so much I enjoyed the difference each period of time that I was adding new things into my regimen. I still enjoy it today."
How life has changed: "My confidence, my relationships, my friendships … I'm a consultant talking to the C-suites on employee development, employee benefits, like their medical, dental, vision. … When you are going into a company … if you are not confident in what you are presenting, you are not going to be as effective," Bachman said. "… I've done a 180 in my career due to my confidence and what I can bring to the table. I was so miserable with myself before all this. I am just a happier person all the way around. I have a lot of excess skin now, but I will take what I have over what I used to have. Last year, I hired a cycling coach and decided to give racing a shot — I'm forty-something years old and won some races, and I had a great team for support."
Share Your Success: Each week, Success Stories focuses on an individual’s unique weight loss journey. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution does not endorse any specific weight loss program but includes names and links for the benefit of readers who want further information. Have you lost weight successfully with a healthy lifestyle change? If you would like to share your story with our readers, please include your email address, phone number, and before and after photos (by mail or JPEG), and contact our reporter, Michelle C. Brooks at: Success Stories, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 223 Perimeter Center Parkway, Atlanta, GA, 30346-1301; or email Michelle at: ajcsuccessstories@gmail.com.
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