"My Weight Needed a Checkup"

Amy's Weight-Loss Goals

Here's my problem: As a medical resident, I am not only on duty 60 hours a week but also often pull overnight shifts in the Iowa City ER where I work. During my internship and residency I lived on lemon bars, chocolaty French silk pie, and fried cheese curds -- batter-coated cheddar served by the bowlful -- from the hospital cafeteria. I was too wiped out after 11-hour workdays to lift a finger, much less ride my mountain bike or find a pickup game of Ultimate Frisbee, my two favorite hobbies. I gained 20 pounds in two years -- and I'm a doctor! Although I tried jogging twice a week to lose the weight, the scale stayed stuck at around 160 pounds. I was griping to my sister Karla, editorial assistant at FITNESS, that I was running out of time to trim down for both my graduation and my June wedding. And before I knew it, I became the next makeover for this column!

FITNESS set me up with a trainer and a dietitian, and suddenly I realized I did have pockets of time that I'd been spending watching hours of sports on TV and sleeping in rather than going to the gym. By following their advice and by swapping a few take-out and restaurant meals weekly for homemade ones, I've dropped 15 pounds and two dress sizes. Instead of dreading looking bloated on my two big days, I can't wait to see myself in all those photos looking the slimmest I've ever been.