By Leighann Butler – Hello, everyone! My name is Leighann Butler. I am a wife, mother and first-grade teacher in Florence School District 1. I was born and raised in Sumter and I lived in Greenwood for 12 years before moving to Florence. Our family moved to Florence in the summer of 2013 when my husband, who is a high school football coach at West Florence and teaches social studies at Williams Middle School, changed jobs. We are learning new things about Florence every day and we are loving the new experiences.

I want to tell you a little about why I decided to do the Biggest Loser…so here it goes. I have struggled with my weight all my life. It has been a true roller coaster ride. I eat well, exercise, and lose weight. Then, I stop, and put the weight back on. I gain all the weight I lost and more. On Dec. 10 our family’s lives changed forever. Our youngest daughter was diagnosed with a rare disorder that will cause her mental ability to decline in the next several years. I realized that I need to be healthy myself to give her the care that she needs and will need in the years to come. Also, I want to lose the weight to get back into all the cute clothes I bought last time I lost weight. They are begging to be worn!

I believe Florence’s Biggest Loser will help me lose weight and keep it off because of the group support. I have done Weight Watchers in the past and been successful but the moment I stopped going to the group meetings, I started gaining the weight back. I am really hoping I meet other people through Florence’s Biggest Loser who struggle with these same issues. My goal is that we will become friends and continue to be supportive of each other beyond these 10 weeks. I am also very competitive, so that will probably help too.

I know that we will get to learn a lot from the nutrition and fitness experts that we will meet through this program and that will really help me too. I want to learn and share ideas, especially about nutrition. I just don’t make healthy choices and I know that I need to learn how. Once the weight comes off, I want to keep it off.

I am extremely excited about sharing my journey with you. I truly believe everything is easier when you can share your highs, lows, and in-betweens with others.

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