09/08/2020
My name is Christina, and I’ve been struggling with my weight for most of my life. These pictures were taken when I was at my heaviest (348 lbs) and at that time, I decided I needed to do something about it. To be honest, it was always something I said, but never acted on. Until one day, my P*P urged me to consider having a Gastric Band placed. I thought about it, did some research, and since I’ve never had any invasive procedures done before, I got kinda worried. I didn’t want to do that, I wanted to lose it on my own. Then one day, my mom asked me for a bite of food, and I got really mad at her for having the audacity to ask me for a bite, which shocked me. “Who am I?” My mom even looked surprise, with a hint of disgust (she swears that’s not what she was feeling) but it pushed me, and that’s what I needed. I was already a member at our local gym, and I remember seeing a Zumba class from a balcony that was above the court where classes were held, and I was extremely intimidated, everyone knew what they were doing, how was I going to get in there without knowing what to do. As I was leaving the gym, I saw a flyer for “Blacklight Zumba” and I wondered if it was what it sounded like, a Zumba class in the dark, with black lights, I asked my best friend, to come try it out with me so I wouldn’t be alone, and she did. We tried out the class, and it was exactly how I imagined it. I felt like dying, I couldn’t breathe, I was so embarrassed, but after a pep talk from my friend, I continued the class. After the class was over, I got approached by the instructor, and she encouraged me to keep coming. Which I did. And y’all, I fell in love with it. That was Spring of 2016. In 2018, and -80 pounds later, I became a certified instructor. Unfortunately, due to COVID, I gained quite a bit of weight back, and I have not done much dancing or teaching, but I am determined to get back into my routine. 😊
