Getting in shape isn't for the faint-hearted

Figured I'd give this a round two, things have been a little hectic around here but what's new. I'm learning the hard way that getting older means losing weight is harder and gaining it back is a total pain in the you know what. A year ago I lost 25+ pounds right before my wedding. Part of this was nerves, trying to work out, and mainly because I was very sick. The week before I got married I found out I had the genes for Celiac Disease and have a mild gluten allergy. While being sick was horrible, losing all of the weight helped me look great on my wedding day and got me down to a weight I wanted to and generally should be.

Now I was not a stick and never have been but I felt healthy. I am very short but haven't been blessed with a petite figure and grew up eating horribly. It was never a problem until I became an adult. Here I sit a year later and with all of my weight back and it is NOT welcome here. I don't know if stress along with my husband's crappy work schedule that have helped me eat my way back to a place where I feel like crap about my health and about myself. I've been having health issues and after several tests run, an MRI, and thinking I was pregnant my doctor has concluded that I just "need to lose some weight". Great, thanks for pointing it out but at the same time isn't there a better way to tell a woman that? It's not like I hearing it from a jackass doctor who weighs 100 lbs soaking wet and despises me for the fact I actually have the gall to be employed by a pharmaceutical company. Needless to say, I don't disagree with her about losing weight but feel like a second opinion will be helpful in deciding if that's truly why I am having other issues.

Back to the original reason for this... getting in shape. I have spent two weeks walking my dog everyday and eating much better. Monday I decided to sign up for a women's gym in town and I have been everyday this week and very excited. The treadmill and I are best friends (not so much with the elliptical) and I tried out a Zumba class which was hilarious but fun as well. Thankfully the gym is all women so being around the young and "fit" demographic weighs in even with the 60-somethings who are in their sweat pants and white sneakers. I like to think of myself as something in between which I am okay with. I was an athlete growing up but shew at 24 trying to get back in shape is tough. I am walking a half mile in more time than I ran it 5 years ago. I feel like parts of my body are bigger than what they should be and my weight is doing absolutely NOTHING. I am making an honest effort to eat better but food is my passion; If I could spend the rest of my life doing any one thing it would be cooking. I get the idea for something or see something and have to make it. Yes this is usual of sweets, I made a chocolate Cocoa Cola cake on Sunday that was to die for. I'm trying to find a way to balance my love for food with my fitness schedule. I'm hoping that somehow I can make this work. I know I am not alone, it's just pretty crappy to feel like your on the brink of 25 and feel like it can't get any worse.

Let me know if your interested in the cake, it's completely from scratch. Here's a pic of me in my wedding dress AKA MY GOAL: TO LOOK THIS GOOD AGAIN!