07/07/2008 9
AM ET
BERLIN,
Md.- A
Berlin
chapter of
the
international
weight loss
group Taking
Off Pounds
Sensibly is
helping men
and women
lose weight
without the
use of a
prescribed
diet.
The
group, known
as TOPS,
relies on
members
motivating
one another
to lose
weight.
Members meet
every Monday
at 5:30 p.m.
at the
Atlantic
General
Hospital in
Berlin to
see who is
sticking to
their weight
loss goals.
Chairwoman
Edna Berkey
weighed more
than 400
pounds when
she joined
TOPS. She
said she had
to use a
wheelchair
because of
her weight,
and she
could not
fit through
the door at
the first
meeting.
"I saw
myself
either doing
this program
or dying,"
Berkey
said.
Today,
she weighs
less than
250 pounds.
Her doctor
said she can
safely lose
about 100
pounds more,
which Berkey
plans on
doing over
the next few
years.
Berkey
admits
losing
weight has
been a
roller
coaster
ride. Most
members said
they agree.
Belinda
Richardson
said she
lost 50
pounds but
then put the
weight back
on when she
went through
several
emotional
events.
"My son
moved to
Seattle.
Then my
mother got
breast
cancer, and
then a month
later my dad
had a heart
attack,"
said
Richardson.
"As things
kept piling
up, I
thought well
it won't
hurt to have
this one
potato
chip."
Since
then
Richardson
said she has
gotten back
on track.
But the high
cost of food
does not
make it easy
for this
support
group of 30
people to
always eat
healthy.
"The
bargains
aren't
always the
lower-calorie
things,"
said Rose
Campion, a
member since
1964. "Your
vegetables
are higher.
Your fruits
are higher."
The
members call
and e-mail
one another
daily for
encouragement.
Berkey said
she is proud
of the
progress all
members are
making.
"If you
ask anyone,
they'll say
we're a
family,"
Berkey said.
"And we
are."
Berkey
said anyone
is invited
to join the
group.
People can
sit-in on a
meeting for
free or join
the group
for $24.
Originally
reported via
http://www.wboc.com/global/story.asp?s=8639176
