Awesome Paz!

Meet Paz..my bubbly former student. She was my contestant for English Declamation around ten years ago. Our tandem was memorable because she was my first "big winner" in the local PRISAA. Having been champion then delivering a piece I wroteespecially for her.. She truly made me proud (as her victory made me discover my penchant for creative writing).  She fought many "battles" since then, (marriage and parenting included) but none was as hard as her battle with weight. All her life she was "big." Literally.

Then 3wks ago, she surprised me. We bumped into each other at a mall. And i couldn't believe I was staring at my favorite student... Paz wasn't the "big" lass I knew before..

She lost all her extra weight to metamorphose into this awesomeness of a state that is now. She "shrunk" into her current weight thru strict diet, rigid work-outs, and commendable discipline.

Mid-last week, i was shocked to learn her first-born died of dengue. The grieving Paz who was then getting ready for the 36th Milo Marathon decided to run -- still..even as her son was still being laid in a wake. She confides she had to run if only to momentarily release her grief...

It was to be her first running race ever...
And she placed 10th...in the half-marathon. Yes. She ran and finished 10th amongst the 12thousand or so runners who joined the Iloilo City leg of the Milo Marathon (21k category).

But the latest feather on her cap wasn't that Milo race yet. Because she's on this month's issue of Women' Health Magazine (p.49). Her journey to wellness and fitness is truly awe-spiring. I am soo thrilled!

So please grab a copy of the November issue of Women's Health mag...and be inspired.

Cheers to you Paz! You definitely make me proud. :-)

(l-r: she used to be 190lbs...now she's 127lbs...that's page49 of the November issue of Women's Health)