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Walk Stars!

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Laura's story

While I had always been relatively fit before (around 140 pounds, 5'5", 29 years old), I really let myself go with my first pregnancy (2009). I was tired, listless, and overwhelmingly hungry...the works! I didn't feel like working out nor doing anything constructive. Before I knew it, I had gained 70 pounds and was tipping the scales at 215! Oops!
It was definitely fun to have a new baby in the home, but not quite so much fun carrying around all that extra weight and I was STILL wearing maternity pants after three months. In October 2009, I decided I had to do something. On a whim, I rented a WAH video from Netflix - a Mile Each Morning.

I'd never heard of Leslie Sansone before, but walking at home sounded like a neato ticket. What better way to get exercise while my infant was sleeping? I love to walk anyway! It's easy, quick, and efficient!

I popped in the DVD for the first time and during the initial warmup, I thought, "Uh oh...this looks like something my grandma would do." But I stuck with it. After the first mile, I was huffing and puffing and cursing, "I am too old for this!" It was amazing! Moves so easy and fun, it doesn't feel like working out at all, and yet you're covered in just as much sweat as you would in any of those "other" videos that make you do acrobatics! Immediately, I was hooked.

I immediately returned my Netflix copy, bought my own, and bought a few more just for the fun of it.

I made a routine out of it. When it was my daughter's naptime, that was time for me to walkout. I'd get in a few miles as she slept, and sometimes she was just happy to sit in her rocker or carrier and just watch.

As soon as one DVD got "old," I'd buy another, and another. Daughter in tow every time!

After about a year of consistently walking at home, my daughter started to talk - that's when things started to get interesting. My little one had given up naps by this point and I had to be a little more creative in when I got in my walks with Leslie. Usually I'd plop my daughter in the corner of the living room with a bunch of toys and get going. That's another great thing about WAH...not only are the walkouts fun, easy, doable and efficient, but you can also babysit at the same time! Who says you gotta look at the TV the whole time? Just use your ears! Let me tell ya, I know from experience that you can leave the room, prepare a bottle, grab some toys, practically do everything except change a diaper while STILL staying in-step! What other workout allows you to do THAT, huh? (Incidentally I once cleaned her entire room while doing a 3-mile video. I can't think of ANY other video series or workout in the world that allows you to be able to do chores at the same time! Just stay in step, that's all it takes!)

When my daughter was about a year old, only saying things like, "Mama" and "Dada," I put in a DVD as usual and as soon as she saw Leslie's face on the screen, my daughter said, "Walk, walk, walk!!!" Oh my! I'd been walking-out in front of my daughter so much, Leslie had actually taught her how to say, "walk!"

On particularly sunny or pleasant days, I'd take my daughter for a walk around town in her stroller. Sometimes you just need that change of pace. More often than not, we're at home doing WAH videos and my daughter still tags along to the store to check out any new releases (or older ones I just haven't bought yet!)

My daughter is three years old now, and I've lost ALL of the pregnancy weight. What's even better is that she's really aware of what is going on now and WAH is just another fun thing we do together. She tells me all the time, "Mama, let's do a 'step movie!'" (that's what she calls them!) She follows along the best she can, mostly marching in place or doing side-steps. She loves doing it as much as I do!

If not WAH, she requests, "Let's go walk around town," or "let's go walk at the mall!" Walking has been a major recreation to her - something we do together and have done together nearly since she was born. She even knows how to use stretchie bands and hand weights!

It took me the first two years to lose the weight, but that's okay. Slow and steady is the best! You don't feel deprived or like you're killing yourself exercising! The weight just comes off naturally, its so easy to stay consistent with it!

And as my daughter grows up, she's there to walkout with me almost every step of the way. I always have a partner to walk with! Surely she doesn't have any weight to lose, but I am so happy to know she's growing up knowing exactly how important (and fun!) fitness really is. I'm truly humbled that I have been the role model for her.

The attached picture is a before/after. Before was Halloween '09, just as I'd begun walking with Leslie. The after is October '11 (she 2, me 31), 70 pounds lighter. I've maintained the loss for a year now, still consistently walking and eating right. I regularly see the scale go up from time to time, but a good series of walks always gets me back on track!

Any time someone asks me what my "secret" is, I always tell them WAH! The secret's out!

Lots of love! And thank you so much! Walk, walk, walk!

- Laura and Valerie Buchanan

More inspirational walk stars

Diane's story

Six years ago, two days after Christmas, we had lost our 23 year old son to an unexpected sudden illness. To this day we really do not know what happened exactly since the autopsy was rather vague. Naturally my wife took that pretty hard. The pursuing four to five years afterward, she had let herself go and gained a little over 100 pounds. She discovered "Walk @ Home" videos about a year and a half ago. She especially liked the Christian tone they portray. Diet and religiously following Leslie Sansone video's, she lost 106 pounds. We are proud of her self-discipline she has shown. The video's really helped encourage her to stay with it. Last week we have lost our family dog (Yellow Lab), which again was a lost that was heartfelt.

Written by Diane's husband, Ronald

Crisha's story

I wanted to send a heartfelt thank you for providing me the tools to save my life. The first ;photo was taken in November 2010 and the secod one was taken in November 2011. It is now March 2012 and I have lost 75 pounds!
I would have to say that about 90% of my exercise was using your Walk at Home videos. I found them on an on-demand channel and loved them so much that I bought a video. I love the workout I get, your encouragement and how low impact the exercises are.
I still have more to lose, but now I have the tools and motivation to lose it for good. Thank you so much!

Kathy's story

FROM WALKER...TO RUNNER?

When my scale got up to 298 I stopped looking at it. I was morbidly obese. I was tired, depressed and sad. As a mother this was not acceptable to me. I needed to be there for my daughter, and one day I woke up and realized that. I immediately loved Leslie's walking DVDs. She is so optimistic and nice, it was that jolt I needed in the morning minus the caffeine.

I started out not being able to walk even 1/2 mile. I eventually worked up to 1 mile. Then 2, then 3, then eventually 5 miles. I lost some weight and became pregnant with my second daughter. I had a healthy pregnancy that time, walking with Leslie throughout it all. Then after she was born I began to want more than walking. In some of Leslie's DVDs there is the "boosted walk" (aka running) that used to freak me out. But now I was drawn to it. I had the desire to run. So I ran. Since then I have completed 5 5ks, 1 8k and a 10k. Next year I plan on running a 15k and perhaps even a half marathon some day.

I am one pound away from losing 100 lbs. I continue to walk with Leslie and just simply can't say enough about this walking program. Except that it isn't just a "walking program". It is a new way of life.

Nancy's story

Hi, Leslie & WAH Team,
My story is more about spiritual fitness than physical, although both are certainly connected. I was VERY burned out in November 2011 - to the point of constantly having negative thoughts about myself. Nothing helped. I came across Walk Away the Pounds and gave it a whirl, doing a one, then a 2 mile workout. The negativity broke off... I mean it completely broke off me that very first night! I clued in as to why the next day when I got to the 3-mile - Leslie lifted her arms into the air and said, “C’mon, ya gotta put a little heaven into it – it makes me feel so good!” There was electricity in the air when I realized she is a believer, as am I. My walk had become stale due to many factors, and I was slowly going down into a very deep, dark pit. That changed completely and utterly right from that very first night. I was so infused with joy that at times I thought I would burst if I didn’t share it with someone. Leslie often tells us that mind, body, and spirit are connected – I am living proof of that. I have experienced a complete restoration as far as my spiritual walk goes – my relationship with the Lord is totally revitalized and my prayer life... oh my WORD! It has taken right off. I still have some peripheral issues that I’m working through in the area of my nerves, but this, too, has seen a dramatic improvement. A co-worker recently said to me "The Sonshine Fairy is back!” My friends are blown away by the difference in me from last year to now. I’m confident, happy, and walking tall! (and a size smaller – added bonus!)

Debbie's story

I just want to start out by saying I am so glad that my husband's aunt introduced me to Leslie. I have arthritis and on Dec. 1, 2011 I had a hip replacement. I went through the normal healing time and by the middle of Jan. 2012 we left for AZ to winter there for a couple months. I thought easier to walk outside there then in WI where we live. Well, my husband's aunt told me there is a group of ladies that meet in the morning and do a walking dvd. So I thought I would give it a try. Everyone was encouraging and made sure I didn't over do with just having my hip replacement. I started to really look forward to each morning that we got to walk with Leslie. I noticed that when I just walked in the park that I would be stiff, but walking with Leslie with how she incorporates so many different moves, it kept me from getting stiff. I really feel good. The weight started coming off too, so a much added benefit to my arthritic joints. I am still a work in progress and have a few more pounds to go. My blood pressure is down to a normal range too. Thank you Leslie, you have made exercise fun again for me.

Stories of Walk Stars!