BY CAMILLE BORODEY, Assistant Scene Editor

Student Sharee Samuels, famous for losing 121 pounds and being on the cover of People Magazine, offered tips and inspiration to fellow students last week.

During her speech on Feb. 25, the woman behind the Tumblr blog “Funeral for my Fat” discussed her weight loss journey in the SURC Ballroom.

“I wanted to make it meaningful,” Samuels, a Central graduate in school psychology and fitness instructor, said. “I lost a lot of weight, but people lose weight all the time.”

Samuels stressed that results do not happen overnight. She also discussed how it took several wake up calls for her to really commit to losing weight.

Samuels also discussed how long-term goals may be scary and suggests that people trying to lose weight should also set realistic long-term goals; a five-pound goal is a lot less intimidating than a 100-pound goal.

Although she thinks a one-day detox or the no-processed-sugar-challenge can be fun, Samuels urges people not to fall for scams like month long detoxes, diet pills or crash diets.

“How you reach your goals is how you maintain [weight loss],” Samuels said. “Your body does not run on 500 calories because you decide it should.”

When she was 17, Samuels came across the vegan book “Skinny Bitch.” She also began tracking her foods, so she could see on paper how much she was eating every day.

Samuels credits her vegan diet for much of her weight loss, but she understands that the vegan lifestyle does not work for everyone.

For her fitness, Samuels started doing Zumba with her mom and started working with a personal trainer.

“She taught me that you’re not going to change in your comfort zone,” Samuels said. “You’re not going to change with 30 minutes on the elliptical at a steady pace.”

Her trainer also scolded her for complaining when she had only lost one pound.

“Every pound is a victory,” Samuels’ trainer told her, “and if you ever complain about it again, I’m going to make you regret it.”

Samuels also recalled a time when she felt awkward and insecure when she first began taking fitness classes in the Central rec center.

“I got over this irrational fear that everyone was judging me and everyone was watching me,” Samuels said.

Samuels said one of her biggest issues in the beginning of her weight loss was that she wasn’t making it about herself. Once she started focusing on herself, her journey really began.

Samuels wore a lot of black when she started working out because she did not want to stand out which actually coined her website’s catchphrase “I wear black when I workout. It’s a funeral for my fat.”

“I went from the girl in the back to the girl in the front with all the color,” Samuels said.

One audience member asked what healthy options Samuels ate on campus.  Samuels said that Central has some great healthy options, and that she loves the wraps.

She also advises students to choose real cheese over nacho cheese, and choose whole wheat options, when available.