An 86-year-old St. Louis woman continues to walk away from a weighty problem.
Jessica Slaughter's diligence -- and 3,000 steps a day from her living room to her kitchen -- have helped her lose 120 pounds, KSDK reported.
Slaughter said she has struggled with obesity since she was a child.
"Even as a kid in Mississippi, I was always the fattest kid in the class. I got teased a lot," Slaughter told the television station. "I didn't know how to stop eating. Fried chicken. Bacon and eggs. Desserts, like cakes and pies."
But when Slaughter reached her 70s, she took the advice of a vegan and stopped eating meat. She then began daily walks in her apartment, and she began shedding weight and feeling healthier.
"I went to my doctor for a checkup. He told me my health was better than his," Slaughter told KSDK. "I was a borderline diabetic. I'm free of all that, and I know it came from my way that I eat and exercise.
"I walk 3,000 steps every morning before I stop walking."
Slaughter’s granddaughter bought her a Fitbit to track her steps. Slaughter’s advice to other senior citizens looking to get in shape? Persistence.
"I just want seniors to know just because we've gotten a certain age, we don't have to stop living," Slaughter told KSDK. "I want to tell them that there's a better way of life if they choose."
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