Fisk Grad Featured March 06' Essence Magazine
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Posted By: I Lost 110lbs on April 16, 2006 Fisk University Alum Featured in March 2006 Essence Magazine Story “How I Lost 110lbs Without Surgery” In 1999, Fisk University alum Caroline Jhingory arrived on campus ready to start her first year carrying her “tacky” green luggage and 270 pounds of body weight on a 5’2 frame. What Caroline remembers most about her freshman orientation week was not being prepared for the warm Nashville weather and stares and whispers from her new classmates. Despite a rough start, Caroline’s first year at Fisk included making Dean’s List, elected president of Jubilee Hall, becoming known on campus as “little Nikki Giovanni” for her performance poetry talents and an obsession with the Fisk University Library Special Collections; “…surrounded by those books and artifacts of African-American history always made me feel so empowered.” It was the summer before Caroline’s sophomore year she would become empowered to stop obesity in its tracks. Back home in Washington, DC, Caroline visited her Howard University-educated family doctor who gave her advice to never start a diet that she could not do for the rest of her life. From there Caroline and her doctor together created a nutritional plan that incorporated many of the foods Caroline already enjoyed. Some alterations to her diet were cutting out white carbs, not eating carbs for dinner or drinking juice and soda. Caroline also began walking through her neighborhood five days a week. When returning to Fisk, Caroline joined a gym and hired a personal trainer. She says it took her about 2 ½ years to lose the weight and get a handle on keeping it off. Although her plan sounds fairly simple, Caroline believes that next to studying for LSAT, losing 110 pounds was the most difficult task of her life. She attributes much of her success to members of her Fisk University graduating class of 2003. “They gave me rides to the gym in the rain, kept me company at the gym and prayed with me when the scale would not move.” In a society obsessed with diet shakes, weight-loss surgery and “lose 10lbs in a week” fads, Caroline reminds us that she did not use any of the above. “My battle with weight boiled down to mental discipline and strengthening faith in both God and myself.” Overcoming obstacles is not unfamiliar to Caroline. During hurricane Katrina in August 2005, she was a Tulane University graduate student residing a few blocks from the New Orleans Superdome. Much of Caroline’s personal belongings were destroyed by mold damage and looters. Despite life’s difficulties, Caroline has still maintained her weight loss. She works out six days a week, plays racquetball and rides her mountain bike around Capitol Hill in Washington, DC where she lives and works at the US Department of Labor as an international trade analyst. Caroline is an aspiring motivational speaker and seeking a publisher for her book, "How to Lose Weight and Still Eat Popeye's Chicken." For more information on Caroline please visit her blackplanet.com webpage: http://members.blackplanet.com/I_Lost_110l... Contact Caroline directly at: I_Lost_110@yahoo.com Q&A with Caroline http://www.BlackPlanet.com/Members/News/ar... Caroline's Personal Blog http://360.yahoo.com/I_Lost_110lbs Caroline's Weight Loss Listserv: I_Lost_110lbs-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Caroline in PG County Gazette http://www.gazette.net/stories/030206/bowi... Guyana, South America Chronicle, Sunday, April 2, 2006 Organic weight loss proves successful for Guyanese American WITH weight at 270lbs and a height of 5’2, Guyanese-American Caroline Jhingory remembers most that “Being overweight froze my adolescence. I did not have boyfriends, attend my prom or wear cute clothes like other girls.” Her weight also imposed on her physical health as wealth. Caroline remembers the heavy squeezing pains in her chest after climbing only two flights of stairs. As a college freshman, she decided to stop obesity in it’s’ tracks. Caroline pursued what she refers to as “organic weight loss;” she saw a nutritionist and joined a gym. She lost 70 pounds the first year, 30 the next and 10 the last year. In a world obsessed with weight loss surgery, pills and diet shakes, Caroline proved that a diet of determination, portion control and exercise works. Overcoming obstacles is not unfamiliar to Caroline. During hurricane Katrina in August 2005, she was a Tulane University graduate student residing in New Orleans. Much of Caroline’s personal belongings were destroyed by mold damage and looters. “I know that there are individuals that lost a lot more. I am fortunate to have my health, life and family.” She also attributes her grandfather, Joseph Jhingory, a former police sergeant at the Brickdam station in Georgetown, as her inspiration. “My grandfather is 86 years old and could still run a marathon,” Caroline states with pride. Now at 150 pounds, Caroline, 25, maintains her weight loss by not eating processed food, hitting the gym five days a week, playing racquetball and dancing to Calypso at Washington, DC’s many West Indian nightclubs. She works as an international trade analyst for the United States Department of Labor in DC and has added applying to law school to her plate as well. In the long term, Caroline aspires to be the US Secretary of Labor, but for right now, she is working on a career as a fitness motivational speaker and author. With all Caroline has already achieved, she is living proof that there is “no such thing as the impossible.” If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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I Lost 110lbs
From Washington, DC Fisk University class of 2003 Member Since April 2006 |
Comments
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Awesome. I pray for the continued health, positive outlook and good works.
Monday, April 17th 2006 at 12:09PM |
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