What do you do when the pain is too much to bear? You join Curves! My name is Patti, and this is my story. Four months after my world fell apart I walked into my local Curves and spoke with Patty. She asked me why I had decided to come to Curves. I took a deep breath and explained to her that Bryan, my husband of nine years, had just passed away. Not just passed away, but had been on life support and I had to make the heartbreaking decision to turn off the machines and let him go. A month after Bryan’s passing I suffered a miscarriage and lost our second child. It is amazing how much pain your heart can feel and still go on beating. I now found myself a widow and a single parent of a 5 year old boy with special needs. I desperately wanted to get healthy and live a good long time for my little boy. He was hurting and I had to take care of him by taking care of me. Watching Bryan fight was quite humbling and loving him had made me strong. I had to be strong. I was the caregiver, the mommy, the wife, the one that everything fell upon. Weakness was not an option and my family deserved nothing less. Now after his death I started to realize that I deserved nothing less. Bryan’s love had made me strong and strong was what I needed to be again. One thing was certain; I could never be the same person I had been as Bryan’s wife. I had to change. Patty was so kind and understanding. She told me that I had come to the right place and that I would find inspiration and support here. Boy was she right! At first I found it hard to look at the other members. I was sure that they could see my pain in my face and I was not strong enough yet to let anyone see that. By the end of the first month at Curves I was smiling again. How did that happen? I was feeling stronger in every sense of the word. I was looking forward to my workouts and found them quite addicting. I can do this! I decided to take advantage of the Six Week Solution class with Dr. Len. 13 pounds seemed to melt off me. Some of the things Dr. Len said really struck home with me and I started to implement them in other parts of my life. I started reaching out when my days were black, I joined a support group and I even returned to college to pursue a new career to go with my new life. More importantly, I started to give myself recognition. I had walked through the fire and had come out the other side and I was still here. I had survived, had pulled myself up off the ground and was growing a little bit stronger every day. That was something that needed to be applauded and I knew that Bryan was cheering for me. My Curves experience is about so much more then weight loss. Yes, I lost 41 pounds in six months, but I found me! And you know what? She is a pretty terrific person. I am stronger physically and emotionally and for once in my life I am doing something that is just for me. I went from burning 300 calories a workout to over 600 now. I have had my blood pressure medication cut in half and hopefully will not need it in the near future. I have so much more energy to keep up with my son. I have given up being a hermit. I have made new friendships and met some truly lovely people. I still have much to do to

This is my story. By Mary Perrone I joined curves in September 08, the week that my only child started kindergarten. I was feeling excited and overjoyed for my four year old because she was starting a new chapter in her life. I was feeling scared because I was starting my own new chapter. The day that my daughter started kindergarten was the day my whole life changed. I’ve been a stay at home mom for five years. I was raised to put family first and have carried those values over into my adult life. I am happily married for eleven years to a wonderful man who encouraged me to finally do something for myself. I was very interested in joining a gym. I’ve been blessed with good genes, however I noticed turning 40 years old my body was changing. I was bloated most days and always tired no matter how much sleep I got. My doctor assured me that I was fine and that a little exercise could help. I noticed over that summer it was harder to climb the slide at the park with my daughter and harder to go for those long walks with my husband. I figured I was getting older and this is the way it was after 40 years old. Wow, was I wrong! Joining curves has changed me both physically and mentally from the first day I walked in. Curves was something I really wanted for myself. Mentally, I knew I needed something of my own to be a part of and physically my body was calling for it. I was very comfortable at curves from the start and that surprised me. I am very shy and thought it was going to take some time to get comfortable at curves. Was I wrong! I work out at curves most mornings and love my new routine. I started to see physical changes after one month. In early October, my husband and I were at the park with our daughter and I was climbing the slide and running after my daughter thinking to myself, wow I feel great! My husband noticed the change in my energy level right away. I am so proud and comfortable with myself. My days of always feeling bloated are over and that is something I have conquered with exercise. The wonderful staff has made my journey at curves such a positive experience. I am so proud to say that I am a Curves member! CurvesSmart continues to motivate and inspire me. It was so exciting to see my first “all green” workout. I can’t wait to see my results after every workout. This is a phenomenal system!

Cecile Biais is a young woman who lives in Berkshire, a county in southern England. Cecilia approached her thirties, an age considered by many women as the "ideal age", but she bought her clothes in shops reserved for large sizes. She wanted to lose weight at any price, but did not know how to get started. "The more I swelled, the more I was depressed ... I totally lost my confidence, both at work with my friends. " In just one year, Cecile literally melted. With a size 50-52, she now has a recognizable figure with a waist of 38. She lost over 30 kilos and 167 cm distributed throughout the body! She says she spent a challenging year, but "without Curves, I could not have done!" In addition to her phenomenal weight loss and greatly improved fitness, Cecile also sees life in a much more positive way. Today she has more confidence in herself and feels more "balanced". Her health has also greatly improved, her attitude is positive and style of living has improved, elements that have brought her closer to her family. According to Cecile, this Curves adventure has changed her life. "It's the best decision I ever made."