As of 2016 I'm a 38 year old woman who lives in Northern Virginia but is originally from North Carolina.

At only 5'2" every extra pound shows up on me, and I've been letting things creep up for too long. I was in the low 130s in late winter, but put on 12 pounds in the last 4 months and need to stop the trend and throw it in reverse. I have 18 months until I turn 40 and want to get there happy and healthy.

I've been a vegetarian for 17 years and though I don't scrutinize my diet too much I definitely feel better when I consistently limit the junk and drink a lot of water. Exercise is a challenge for me - I take the bus to work and can run errands on foot both at work and at home, but other than walking the dog get no formal exercise. My goal for Sept. 2016 is joining the YMCA near my house and resuming a 2-3x week gym habit that I had 10 years ago.