My name is Moneek Davenport (@moneekd), and I’m 37 years old. I’m from Pelion, South Carolina, and I’m a home health care worker, restaurant/hospitality worker, and studying to become a certified personal trainer. By committing to walking for at least 30 minutes a day, weight lifting, and enjoying healthified versions of my favorite foods, I was able to lose 110 pounds.
My weight-loss struggles began in early childhood. I was an active child, yet I was overweight. But I had really bad eating habits such as a lot of fried foods, processed foods, and sugary drinks. I also struggled with emotional eating. In my mid-20s, my weight peaked at 310 pounds.
I would sweat and lose my breath trying to clean my house, brush my teeth, or work with home health care clients. I was also in a severely depressed state because of my weight, as well as a toxic relationship I was involved in. I also drank alcohol daily and binged on greasy, fatty food.
My turning point came one day after my home health care client made a comment about how much I must eat. I’llnever forget that. It was just the two of us, but I was completely embarrassed. I decided at that moment to make changes. I was just truly uncomfortable in my own skin and unhappy.
At the very beginning of my weight-loss, I cut back on the portions I was eating.
If I ate pizza, I’d have three slices instead of the entire pie. For me it was a step in the right direction to start to cut down on how much I was consuming. And I made sure to walk daily.
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I wasn’t disciplined to cut things out completely. I knew that deprivation would not work for me. Once I saw results with portion control, I had to change my method of preparing my food. So, I cut out fried food. I started to bake a lot of my food, like French fries. And I went towards lean proteins. I was eating more healthy meals and snacks, and seeing the progress increased my motivation. Today, I focus on consuming lean meat, good carbs, minimal processed foods, and lots of fruits, veggies, and water. I rarely drink alcohol, which is a huge deal because I consumed it daily for so long.
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Here’s what I eat in a day.
- Breakfast: Steel cut oats with blueberries, honey, and walnuts.
- Lunch: Salmon, rice, and broccoli. Or, steak, onions, and mushrooms. I worked at a steakhouse during my weight-loss journey so it was super easy to get grilled lean meat and veggies to eat daily. The job helped tremendously with my weight loss.
- Snacks: Sweet potato dusted with cinnamon, hummus with veggies, or veggies and/or fruit.
- Dinner: Mostly steak or salmon with baked potato topped with plain Greek yogurt (to sub for sour cream), lots of green onions, and cheese. I love cheese, so I still incorporate it.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CP3jns5AETU/
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At my heaviest, I walked or biked around my yard for at least 30 minutes a day.
Doing any other exercise was just too much on my joints. I tried Curves gym, but I went once and was too embarrassed, so I paid for the membership until I lost weight, though I eventually cancelled it. I focused on walking daily and began to increase the duration to 45 minutes per day. Some days I did a morning walk and evening walk. The weight came off with just walking.
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I became pregnant but still wanted to focus on my health and the health of my child. I walked almost everyday of my pregnancy. People would joke that I was going to have my baby on the nature trail I walked at everyday.
I had my child in 2011 and shortly after that I joined a gym and began weightlifting again. I was an athlete growing up, so I was always in and out of a weight room for conditioning. My body composition really began to change once I combined resistance training with my love of walking nature trails. I also joined a CrossFit gym and did boot camps at 5:30 a.m., where I got into Olympic weightlifting. I really started to appreciate my body (and life) again.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CQwizlIgbOX/
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In 2019, I got salmonella from Thanksgiving dinner which turned into sepsis, a life-threatening condition. It almost killed me, and I was in the ICU for 28 days. Sepsis changed my body, mind, and spirit and kept me focused on my health, though it brought struggles that continue to this day. I currently lift weights daily, although I still have joint pain and other complications from sepsis.
These three changes made the biggest difference in my weight-loss results.
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I lost a total of 110 pounds within a year, and am currently around 200 pounds.
I am a curvy woman, and I love my body. I focus on strength and happiness. I am committed to improving that for the rest of my life.
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