Five years ago, Cynthia Ward weighed 338 pounds. Her ankles, knees and hips were always hurting. She failed her DOT physical and had 30 days to control her sugar levels. She had to make a change, fast.

“I’ve lost a whole person since then,” Ward says. 160 pounds, to be exact. Ward’s story is an inspirational tale that other drivers can learn from.

“If you would have told me that I would have to lose 160 pounds, I would have quit,” she says. “I set out to lose 25 pounds, and I lost 25 pounds. And that’s the way I’ve done it, 25 pounds at a time. Because 25 pounds in attainable.”

Every couple of weeks, Ward allowed herself a cookie or a sliver of chocolate cake as a reward to make the journey more enjoyable.

Start small

Ward took several small steps toward success. She began by buying smaller dinner plates at Walmart. She started parking in the back of parking lots so she would have to walk farther. She also researched diets on the Internet and met with a dietitian, who helped her plan her portions.

“If I ate one thing less, if I took one step farther, that day was a win,” Ward says. “And the rest of it would fall in line.”

Keep it healthy

Now Ward rarely eats at truck stops. Instead, she keeps healthy eats in her truck at all times. She begins her day with a cup of coffee and a serving of Dannon Light & Fit yogurt, with only 9 grams of carbs. Even a small serving of yogurt, with flavors such as banana cream pie, strawberry cheesecake and toasted coconut, is enough to satisfy Ward’s sweets cravings.

At noon, she indulges in raw nuts and indulges in lunch, her biggest meal of the day. Lunch is a serving of meat (the size of a deck of cards) and two cups of low-carb vegetables. Ward tops her day off with a light meal, such as chicken salad with dried fruit and walnuts.

Ward designed her regimen on her own.

The dietician she worked with initially wasn’t helping, Ward says. So Ward did her own research and came up with her own plan of consuming 1,200 calories and no more than 50 grams of carbs daily to keep her diabetes under control.

“By following the diet I’ve followed, I’ve been able to get off medication that was costing me $600 a month,” Ward says. “I ran my diet by my doctor to get the OK, but I’m the one who decided what I was going to do.”

To lose weight, Ward focused on diet, not on exercise. But she walks her dog every few hours, does squats during her pre-trip and often walks with an exaggerated march to burn more calories.

Where she goes from here

Today, Ward weighs 180 pounds. Her goal is to lose 30 more pounds eventually, but she’ll continue to take it slowly.

For others who want to lose weight, Ward has this advice: “Start small. Start with something obtainable. Take one step more than you normally would. Take a complete walk around the store before you start shopping. Leave one thing off your plate that you would normally eat. If you have to give up everything all at once, you’re not going to succeed.”

Ward focused on losing 25 pounds at a time. Do you have a great weight loss tip others can learn from, too? Connect with us here and tell us about it!