Hello. My name is Theresa Krause and I am 40 years old. I am writing you to tell you how much this program has changed my life.  When I learned about Chris Powell and his Stax System I had already decided I needed to make a change but had no idea how to go about it.

Well, let me start at the beginning. I have been overweight my entire life. The lowest weight I can remember was 190 when I was 12. I have had asthma since I was five. I also had a disorder in my knees which they diagnosed as Osgood-Schlatter disease. While I was growing, it caused my knees to ache and limited my activity. When I was 17, I decided I wanted to lose weight because I wanted to be more active. I have a hyper personality and always wanted to be doing something but because of this, several injuries ensued. It was a constant cycle of trying to become active to lose weight and then getting injured to halt the process.

Ten years ago, I managed to lose 110 lbs. but due to a family tragedy and illnesses, I was not able to keep it off and it all came back and then some. Along with asthma and my former knee problem that they now call patella femoral syndrome and arthritis, I had to have surgery on my left shoulder. I was still trying to stay active. I was teaching water aerobics and doing cardio kickboxing while weighing 300 lbs.

In May of 2008, I injured my back. My doctor discovered a deformity at the base of my spine. This back injury kept me sidelined for the whole summer. I could barely walk 10 feet without my back hurting so badly that I had to sit. I was 37 at the time and saw myself heading for a wheelchair. My weight had gone up to 330 lbs, the highest it had ever been. I knew then that something had to change. When the doctors cleared me for activity, I began walking and it all started there.

In June of 2009, I joined a local gym to continue working towards my goal. That is where I met my trainer and friend Kyle White.  I had been killing myself in the gym, like most people, wondering why I was having a hard time losing weight. He introduced me to Chris Powell’s Stax System. He explained to me that nutrition was a very large part of the weight loss process. In February of 2010 I bought the Stax System online and tried to learn as much as I could about the program and how it worked. In fact, when I bought this program I did not even know what a carbohydrate was. I had already seen the TLC program about how Chris helped David Smith and having already tried everything else, I decided to give it a shot.

It has been 2 years on the program and I am pleased to tell you I have lost 140 lbs. I am still trying to reach my goal and have about 30 lbs. to go. I have no doubt with what I have learned about nutrition through this system that not only will I be able to get those last 30 lbs off but that I can keep it off for good. With what I have learned about nutrition from this program and exercise from Kyle, there isn’t anything I cannot conquer or achieve.

Before I bought this program, I never cooked. Everything came out of a box, a bag, or a freezer. Now I cook delicious and healthy meals every day. I knew when I started this weight loss journey that it was going to have to be earned. I decided there would be no surgery, no pills, no funny shakes, or costly frozen meals delivered to my door. This is one of the reasons I believe this program is a permanent fix. It puts the tools and knowledge into the people’s hands where it belongs. This program ensures long term success.

The confidence I have gained through this whole thing has been incredible. My activity level and energy have sky rocketed. I am able to do so much more than I have ever been able to in my life. I work out 6 days a week and I love it. I am so much stronger than I have ever been. Up until about 2 years ago my life was plagued by hospital and doctor visits for some kind of illness or injury. What a savings in co-pays getting healthy can be. I was not a healthy child or adult. My family has a history of high blood pressure but the last time I had my blood pressure taken it was 105/58 and my resting heart rate was a 47. Athletic is not a term I would have ever used to describe myself but, I am told those are the stats of an athlete. I am now able to do the things I have always wanted to do. I love the outdoors so it is quite an incredible feeling to be able to hike, to bike, to kayak and even run. I have had doctors tell me I would never be able to run, well, I guess I proved them wrong because it is becoming one of my favorite things to do. In June I participated in a cancer walk to benefit the American Cancer Society to honor a family member we lost to cancer and I walked 12 miles. It is quite amazing to me that a short while ago I could not even walk 10 feet and now I am able to walk 12 miles. Another thing I had always wanted to do was climb a rock wall. I recently did that as well, even though I have a fear of heights. There is no limit to what I can do now and I reach new heights every day because of this weight loss.

In closing, I would just simply like to say thank you to Chris, David and everyone at Reshape the Nation, not only for this incredible nutrition program, but also for the inspiration they give others every day. This plan has helped my life-long dream become a reality. This program has helped me to be able to live the life I was intended to live. This life I live now is one I can be proud of with good healthy food and the physical activity that I enjoy. I, like David, want to pay it forward. It is very important to me to leave a positive impact on everyone I can. I am a new member to the RTN website and I am enjoying connecting with other people who have decided to make a healthy change. It is a wonderful support system. I am excited to meet and inspire as many people as I can.