"BRAND OF THE WEEK" - Curvy Chick Fitness @charitylynette @CurvyChickFit

The Charity Lynette Story

by Charity Lynette of Curvy Chick Fitness

I was born in Tacoma WA, grew up in Central California, then made my way back to Tacoma to finish high school. Growing up I have never felt comfortable in my own skin, NEVER. Whether it was a weight issue or what I had on for clothing either way me and mirrors were not friends. I played basketball and participated in the field events on the track team. Even though I was active I was still relatively big all through high school. The college years brought on poor eating habits I was on that good ole college no fund diet. During this time I did lose quite a bit of weight but mainly because I played college basketball not because I was eating properly. I was on the court almost two and a half hours a day 6 days a week. Not to mention your metabolism is in your corner at the tender age of 20. While going to school, by the way I did two years at Skagit Valley College in Mt. Vernon WA and three years in Portland OR at Cascade College, I had a friend that was a plus model and told me that I should give it try. I told her was interested but wasn't sure where to start. We had a few conversations about it but nothing ever came of it. I kept the thoughts in the back of my head though.

During my last year in school I had some financial aid issues and personal things that cause me to leave school. I went back to California and lived with my Aunt. During this time my mother was back and forth in the hospital. Also to back track just a bit she was in and out of the hospital my last two years of college as well. She had issues with her weight that caused other problems with her health. Not to mention she was a cigarette smoker since 17 years old, a recovering coke addict as well as a drinker so eating well and exercising definitely not on her priority. She even went through a 80 lb weight loss herself. But you can imagine the damage of those three can do to your body. During my stay in California she had a heart attack and was in ICU for quite a period of time. My intuition literally said ” Charity pack your things and go home”. A week later I was back in the Northwest. Three months later she passed away. Now for those that have not lost a parent there is no pain that feels like it. I can imagine losing a child is similar but there is nothing like losing a parent when your young. I was extremely close to my mother we didn't always get a long but we’re mother and daughter that’s a given at some point in the relationship.

While clearing out her things I found hospital letters, diagnosis, and book that her lawyer put together for a lawsuit she had going through with the military. Aside from her addictions to cigarettes and alcohol her weight contributed to her death. At that very moment I weighed 290 lbs.

Three months later I lost my first corporate job and boyfriend I thought I was going to marry. My world was pretty much upside down. I didn't know what to do. The information I found on my mother was on my mind every day. She had things wrong that she never even told me. Reading about it after she passed made me feel horrible I wish that I knew before but then what could I have done. I got a temp job in Portland and there I met a very good friend. She and I wanted to start working and lose weight together. She introduced me to organic foods, cleanses, and the documentary Food Inc. Naturally the documentary made me think of my mother. That was is it that was all I needed. I decided I was gong to change my life style. I wanted to live!

I read a book on the Master Cleanse otherwise known as the lemonade diet. Now this is talked about in a negative way because people use this to lose weight. I wanted to cleanse my body of toxins. Please don’t run out and do this without the proper information and do not do it incorrectly. If you read the book it will give a different perspective on the foods you eat as well as the documentary Food Inc. I decided I wanted to try it. The first time I did it I got sick as I don’t know what. But I liked that I couldn't go back to bad foods. Things with too much sugar gave me headaches, food with oils and dairy products went right through me literally. So staying on track was easy. The Cleanse didn't make me lose weight it was my food intake when I was done that aided in my weight loss. A few months later a friend got me a job at Bally’s and that was all she wrote! I was in the environment where people were working out every day how could I not hit the gym? It was free! The trainers literally trained right across from the front desk where I was for 7 hours a day. I started working out and the results of my body were absolutely crazy. One of my friends said she didn't even know I was over weight until I started losing weight.

That summer a friend was putting together a fashion/talent show and asked me to participate. I was then put in touch with a plus size designer. I did the show and looking back I was horrible. I was nervous, shy, and in utter disbelief that I was on this stage modeling. I had lost about 30 lbs and was feeling good but it didn't show in the fashion show. Even though I didn't do too well in the show the rush that I got was amazing. I decided I wanted more. The same designer I modeled for used me for his website and I fell in love with doing photo shoots. I started doing my research on plus size modeling and booked shoots via model mayhem. I was able to get a great start and a good chunk of my portfolio came from MM.

I did the Portland modeling scene for a couple years but wasn't really getting as far as I wanted or where I thought I should be getting. Little did I know New York is a whole new ball game. When I got here I will admit that I may not have been prepared for such a strong move as much as I should. But now that I am here and have experienced this place it doesn't matter you will never be completely prepared for a city like New York. I was working three jobs and coaching basketball at Portland Community College. That was something that was also helping me with my weight loss. After about 10 months I lost 80 lbs and was 207 lbs the smallest I had ever been. I was most excited about the fact that I did it with no pills or any crazy weight loss programs. It felt so good to tell people when they asked how I did it. My reply would simply be eating right and working out.

After a while my every daily routine had me feeling like there had to be something that is better than this and with modeling not working out the way I wanted and I decided to move to New York. I had a college friend there that was more than excited to have me come and stay. Soon as I touched down I immediately began networking and attending events and trying to book shoots. This city has a crazy amount of opportunity! As I write this article I find it absolutely amazing that it is almost a year to the date that I touched down in New York. When I got here never did I imagine that this would be my position a year later.

A few months ago I met Ernest Jackson of MNS Media Group who I am currently represented by. After hearing my story he said you should be training people Charity Lynette! I knew that I wanted to be in the fitness industry but wasn't sure how I was gong to make it come together with modeling and make a profit, let’s face it you have to make money at some point. Curvy Chick Fitness was born and been in high speed ever since. The concentration of CCF is being healthy not skinny. In the process of taking care of your body you will not only lose unwanted weight but you will feel amazing.

I want to inspire women to feel good about themselves at any size. I know what insecurity feels like and I didn't like it for me it but I want you to know you can do something about it. We’re not all supposed to be a size 2 to 6 but we still need to take care of our bodies no matter what size you are. Placing the concentration on being healthy and not trying to be skinny releases some of the pressure. I hope that my story helps you all in any kind of way. I want you to know that you can over come any obstacle to achieve whats in your heart. If I can do it you can do it and I truly believe that.

I want to always give you information and tips on how to transition to a healthier lifestyle, to spotlight other women and their journey, and support system that you will be able to depend on. Please reach out to me with any questions, concerns, or just plain thoughts you want me to address in this section. If you have a question about something then most likely someone else does too. I look forward to hearing from you and discussing this journey together.

Twitter: @charitylynette @curvychickfit 

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