Susi Sanchez kept her resolution to work out every day and eat only healthy foods.
It paid off. The 21-year old lost 175 pounds in three years, but now she has a new problem: Her skin is so stretched out, no amount of exercise will keep it from sagging.
"The skin alone would probably be like 25 to 30 pounds off me," Sanchez explained as she took a break from a morning hike at Mission Trails.
Sanchez goes to the gym daily in an effort to firm up her post-weight loss body, but there's only so much toning she can do after being obese for most of her life.
She now believes the solution is surgery, which her health insurance won't cover. "It's considered cosmetic surgery," Sanchez said. The price for just removing the excess skin on her belly hovers around $17,000.
Sanchez has started a GoFundMe page to try to raise the money. In 3 days, she raised almost $2,500. She also got a lot of positive feedback from people who call her "an inspiration".
"It inspires me to keep going. It really makes me feel good," she said.
Sanchez hopes her no-nonsense approach to weight loss will help other people keep their New Year's resolutions. The key to success, she said, is setting a series of small goals that eventually lead up to a big one. Sanchez said small goals added up to her 175 pound loss.
If you'd like to help her reach her goal of getting the excess skin removed, click here.
