Spark Spotlight: Noelle (LUCKY1964)

By , SparkPeople Blogger
At SparkPeople, we love helping people accomplish big goals—but we believe it's equally important to celebrate the small successes along the way. Each week in the Spark Spotlight, we'll check in with a featured member about his or her proudest moments, biggest challenges and advice for others on living, thinking and feeling healthier. We hope these quick snapshots will help motivate you to keep moving steadily toward your own goals, week by week.
 
This Week's Spotlight: Noelle (LUCKY1964)
Age: 33
Location: Ball Ground, Georgia
 
Small Success of the Week
 
Noelle has the food prep thing down—including all of her snacks. "Food prep should always include your healthy snacks. You can have too much of a good thing easily and we all are guilty of over-sizing our plates or snack bags when hungry," she said in the Community Goal Feed. "I have started portioning my snacks into snack cups the second I come home from the store. This makes the grab-and-go so much easier and also saves me from having to portion each time I eat." 

What's your overall goal?
 
My overall goal is to reach a healthy weight for my height which is around 150 pounds. My journey started at 325 more than four years ago.
 
How is SparkPeople helping you get there?
 
SparkPeople has been really useful for me because it has shown me that I'm not alone and that so many others are going through the same emotions, setbacks and struggles. I visit the app all the time to be encouraged by other users' stories that help me keep pushing when I want to throw in the towel.
 
What's your biggest challenge right now?
 
Portion control is one of my biggest challenges and that is why I started doing the snack cups. Even a good-for-you food like fruit can be a secret attack on your weight-loss journey because of the sugar content. Fruit is a friend and foe to the nutrition plan.
 
What advice do you have for someone who just joined SparkPeople today?
 
If someone just joined SparkPeople today, I would tell them to take the time to figure the site out and use all of it that you can. The trackers really help and the friends you make here are amazing. You will have times when you want to quit, but you just have to remind yourself that as long as you are not standing still and you are moving toward your goal you will get there.
 
Want to be the next small success we spotlight? Share your successes on the goal feed or in the comments below, and you might be the next person we contact!