Sharon is an Inspiration to us all!

Sharon Lacey from Healthy Inspirations at the Pines has not only lost 67 kgs, she has found her dream job. Sharon shares her inspiring story.

"I can't remember a time when I wasn't overweight. In fact, I've spent a lifetime feeling so emotionally low that I could see no way forward. But I'm so thankful that the last few years have seen me truly inspired and blessed thanks to finally winning my weight loss battle and for the wonderful support I've received along the way.

I'd like to share some of my highs and lows with you as they have all been an important part of my weight loss success.

I can vividly remember having a family movie night when I was about 11 years old. We had just finished a barbeque dinner, devoured enough sweets to feed an army and as usual I'd had far more than my fair share. The little kids were at the front, bigger kids at the back and the adults stood behind. It was then I overheard one adult say to another that "Sharon will always be overweight". I couldn't wait for the lights to be turned off, not for the movie to start, but so that no one could see my tears.

When I was a teenager I started yo-yo dieting in the hope of finding a boyfriend. Mum encouraged me and we even went on diets together, but it didn't work and just caused me misery.

I was 16 when I met the love of my life, John, whom I had actually met a few years earlier when he worked with my mum. I know it sounds cliché but I knew then that I would marry him one day.

We started to date, then after a while we moved in together and a few years later decided to marry. I honestly couldn't believe that someone loved me and wanted to marry me. I mean how could anyone love me when I didn't even love myself.

So with an impending wedding, came my biggest diet effort of all to enable me to fit into a wedding dress. At that point a size 20 was too small and anyway, I wanted to fit into a size 16. As you can imagine there were many months of dieting and the last month before the wedding I decided to move back in with my parents as this way mum and I could do a full boot camp diet and exercise tape each morning. It worked and on my wedding day I walked down the aisle proud to be wearing a size 16 wedding dress.

However, as soon as the wedding was over I started to regain the weight plus more. My self-esteem and confidence plummeted again, but when we decided that we wanted children I felt better. That didn't last long and the highs and lows were awful. It took ages for me to conceive so I started yet another diet and exercise plan, and in 1989 when I had my first daughter, Jessica. Our second child, Kathryn was born in 1993.

But with each pregnancy I gained weight, then lost, then gained again and at the time we were also broke. So whilst living week to week with two small children and no support we decided to move to the Gold Coast to be closer to family which should have made things easier. However, for me that's when my nightmare began. When we moved to the new city I soon realized you can't run from yourself and my weight ballooned to 150kg.

It was winter and I had nothing to wear, mum told me that Lowes, a menswear store, had jumpers for $7.00 each all colours and sizes. As we didn't have much money at this time it sounded great. Mum picked me up and we went shopping but the biggest men's jumper was too tight around the hips. I wanted to throw myself on the shop floor and cry; I probably made some funny joke to hide my pain, so I went home with all good intentions to start another diet.

John was working late that night so I decided to have one last pig out and comfort myself after the shopping experience and start my diet tomorrow. Later that night I can remember lying in bed with a tight feeling in my chest, feeling sic. I thought I was going to have a heart attack and being 150kg I was more scared of not fitting into the coffin than dying, so I lay with my arms and legs close together just in case. I thought of my girls and I asked the universe that if could live I would never binge like that again. That's when mum and I started walking, I was eating better and we had lost a bit of weight so we decided to join Currumbin Calorie Club.

While the women were very welcoming I was so embarrassed when I hopped on the scales and it read AL. I asked what it meant, Pam the weigh lady looked up with a worried face as she told me that I was too heavy for the scales. Next two little old ladies struggled to get bigger scales out of the cupboard and I was then weighed in the kitchen so that no one could see.

I was at the calorie club on and off for 10 years and was always welcomed back with open arms. They had even bought new digital scales that could weight people up to 300kg.

It was only then after those 10 tumultuous years of weight loss and gain I had an experience that was to change my life.

I was with my granddad half an hour before he died and he was so happy to see me, for a moment he didn't look sick. We connected in some incredible way and after he passed on and we left the hospital I noticed a huge sign saying "lose weight, massage".

I knew this was a sign and this is what I was going to do. Change my life. Initially after granddad died I was totally devastated, started having panic attacks and broke out in an ugly rash over the bottom of my legs - it was all stress related and the doctor told me it was all due to pushing my feelings down. So I knew I had to stop grieving and with that realisation I started to look for inspiration and inspiration started to look for me.

I enrolled back in massage school to finish a course I'd previously started, began to watch what I ate and even splashed out on a nice jumper to wear to school.

Then one day I got a brochure in the mail for Healthy Inspirations and I liked the look of it. I thought about it for a couple of days before ringing to make an appointment and I knew when I was talking to the consultant that I was going to lose 70kg.

On my first consultation I weighed in at 141.6 and determination passed over me like a wave so I joined up. I had never worn exercise clothes and I found a pair of black pants which were miles too long (have you ever noticed that the bigger the size of clothing the longer it is!), being 5'4.5" the size 26 was a little too long!

When I started at the centre I was self conscious so would park as close to the front door as possible so that no one would see me in my sweat pants. I was still a member of the Calorie Counters and would go with my sister on a Monday morning; all the other ladies were all amazed at how quickly I was losing weight because of Healthy Inspirations.

At Calorie Counters, each week the person with the biggest loss for that week would win a ribbon and for a few months I was winning all the time. Everyone wanted to know my secret and they all seemed a little disappointed to learn that it was as simple as exercising and learning to eat better.

I think they thought had discovered a magic pill.

As time passed and I lost more weight, I wanted to find a job to pay for massage school. There was a job at our local bakery so I applied, but didn't expect to be successful as I was still very large and I thought is might have been bad for business. A few days passed when the lady from the bakery rang and invited me to come for a trial and I thought I would go in for the experience. Guess what, I got the job.

So there I was working, studying and losing weight by going to Healthy Inspirations; my life had never been so full. School was getting tough with exams and assignments and just as I needed a top up of inspiration a new trainer started at Healthy Inspirations, Alex. She reminded me of Gillian from the Biggest Loser (which I had actually tried for in 2005, but didn't make it in).

Alex asked me about my weight and at the time I had hit a plateau around 109kg, but I really wanted to be below 100! Alex told me I would achieve that if I put in 100% effort over the next month. So with her help I set about the challenge. She pushed me and I pushed back.

"Don't give up Sharon, I have been watching you," and "your brain is used to giving up, but your body is so much stronger now, you can do it." At the end of the week I had lost 2.2kg. It took another 6 weeks to reach 100kg, but I did it.

Life was good; I was losing weight and had gained my certificate IV in massage. I was asked to be a guest speaker at Healthy Inspirations when they were doing a book launch for USA weight specialist Casey Conrad's book "Winning the Struggle to Be Thin". I found sharing my story very healing. I also won a competition Members Choice Award for the most enthusiastic member and again when it felt like I needed a top up of inspiration I got one.

Now I had the tools to achieve my goals, I decided my dream job would be to help others lose weight too. That's when fate and the universe really intervened.

Danni one of the owners of Healthy Inspirations at the Pines overheard a conversation I was having about wanting to help others and she came out of the office and stood in front of the exercise bike I was on. You could see her mind ticking over. It took her minute to speak and when she did she smiled, "Would you like to come in for an interview on Monday, I can't promise you anything, but I might have a position for you".

I was so excited I don't think I finished my work out, and when I drove home my hands were shaking and my heart was racing. Trying to stay calm was hard and thank god my family was at home. I told my husband and daughter the story and my daughter was so excited, saying "mum that's great, that's exactly what you wanted to do". I am so lucky that my family, and especially my best friend Lynn have supported me with everything I've done.

 I had the interview and got the job, I have now been there for 6 months. Every day I get goose bumps from the top of my head to the tips of my toes each time I see another member achieving their goals. It truly is my dream job.

My family are also benefiting with my eldest daughter has lost 10kg just by eating healthily like me. My mum and sister have also joined Healthy Inspirations and they have both around 9kg and John loves the new me. I have more energy and enthusiasm than I've ever had in my life and love doing active things with my family.

Now I have set my next dream and goal which is to have some of my excess skin removed as I have lost 67kg and 161 cm. I can't afford to do it at the moment, but I know when I get to my goal there will be a way.