"She Didn't Quit Tho"

As a child I was always taught to believe in myself and always put my best foot forward. This was my platform in which I stood upon for my everyday living. I walked with confidence knowing that I live a life with seemingly very little setback. You could feel my presence when I walked into the room even before I spoke. Life for me was great until life happened. As life was happening to me I began to gain weight and my self-confidence was fading. Even though my presence was still felt I tried to minimize who I was because I didn’t want anyone to look at me. In my eyes I was this morbid obese woman who dread getting up each and every day. I allowed life and my unfortunate experiences to take control of who I really was. I became the person that I feared the most. In the month of February 2016, I stepped on the scale and to my surprise, it read 408 pounds. After years of battling obesity and being ashamed of my hair due to alopecia, I finally made the decision to live again. It was at this point I needed to decide if I wanted to live or die. Although I was in my state of depression, I decided to live. I also needed to deal with the real issues which I allowed life circumstances and my deepest desire to be loved to determine my identity in this world. This meant I had work to do on myself (inward and outward). I began working out with a trainer and eating clean. The weight seemed to dissipate effortlessly. Although I lost a substantially amount of weight, I still had to face the truth about myself which was needing to rekindle the love for myself I once had.

E. Le Verne Sampson

Photo by: Marcus McClendon

"Every time I left the gym it seemed as if I was chiseling away every lie. "

Every time I left the gym it seemed as if I was chiseling away every lie, I told myself concerning me. In the October 2018 in support of a friend battling cancer I decided to shave my head. I was not only supporting her but my head bald was now an expression that I am now living in freedom. I have accepted everything about myself which include the good, bad, and the ugly. No longer would I see myself as my enemy but as individual who was my own best friend. This was no longer my journey becoming physically fit but mentally and emotionally strong as well. I am no in way near where I want to be as far as weight loss, but I am right where I need to be as far as loving myself. This part of my life has been a struggle, but I knew if I wanted to make a difference in my life (and hopefully others) I had to put in the work. My life’s misfortunate experiences shaped me into the person I really was created to become. My knight in shining armor has not arrived but I perfectly content with who I am physically, mentally, and emotionally now. I used to wake up each morning wishing to be loved. Now I wake up every morning grateful to God knowing I am loved so I am free love.

Le Verne shares words of wisdom from her experience with fitness as a lifestyle.

Living a healthy lifestyle does not mean simply “eating right” and exercising. To live out your full potential you should consider developing a healthy eating lifestyle, doing some sort of physical activities that challenges you but will not discourage your process, keeping your body hydrated with water, allowing your body to rest day (develop a sleeping pattern is ideal), and daily meditation. For those who struggle with defining or redefining themselves to living a healthy lifestyle, I encourage you to start somewhere and challenge yourself to one of the recommenders mentioned below for thirty days.

First of all, if you do not drink as much water as needed start there. Using a calendar determine your start date. The calendar will also be needed so you will be able to determine days that may present challenges to meet that goal for the day. Plan ahead on how you will be able to meet that goal for that day. Keep in mind you are committing to 30 days of being challenged.

During this challenge take note of how you are feeling and how you handle stress during this time. This will be key as you are moving forward to becoming mentally strong and physically fit.

It is also recommended to find an accountability partner who will hold you accountable for this challenge. The person does not necessarily have to join in on the challenge but is willing to do check-in and hold you accountable for your actions during this challenge.

Feel free to do more than one of the recommendations for 30 days. What happens if you do not meet your goal for one day? This part is totally up to you! Remember again this a challenge you made to yourself. You may start over the next day on day one or you may keep going. It took me twelves times to do 100 Days Challenge of 30 minutes of movement. On the last time I developed a plan and stuck to the plan.

After the 30 days you should feel a sense of empowerment to continue moving to make commitments yourself.

Well wishes and pray God’s best for you as you become mentally strong as well as physically fit.