Tori-Osha Lyas

July 31, 2009— -- Tori-Osha Lyas

Hometown: Hattiesburg, Miss.

Age: 15

Weight: 336 pounds

Goal: Lose at least 10 pounds

Tori-Osha's essay:

Hi, my name is Tori-Osha Lyas, and I've heard a lot about the new image camp, but I just didn't think that I would need it, until one day I looked in the mirror and I had noticed how much I've gained.

I was shocked and appalled at my weight. I thought about how I can change my body so I can feel better about myself and how I can change my life for the better. And my mother enlightened me on the idea of going to the New Image Camp and getting down for the challenge. I'm always up for a good challenge.

I've noticed lately that I have gained a lot of weight since my father passed away in January of 2002. I suppressed it, and went on about my business, but lately it has really bothered me. I would love to feel confident about myself and my weight and I feel the only way I could achieve this goal is by going to the New Image Camp.

I feel like this camp would help me with what I wouldn't call an addiction but gorging of foods that aren't so healthy for me. I feel it's a issue that I eat foods when I feel sad from how lonely I am without my father and how fragile my feelings are toward him and how I eat when I'm missing him.

From what I've learned, this camp will train me not only physically but mentally and keep me on the right track with my food intake and my emotional feelings about him.

This camp could give me a whole new attitude about myself and raise myself esteem to a level I never thought possible. I am ready and willing for the challenge and I will open myself up for anything that the camp will put in my way.

I am absolutely open to any and everything you all have to offer. I don't want this I need this. This will be the best thing for me to become my healthiest. I am a big people person. I make friends quickly and can try my best to achieve my goals and weight loss is one of the goals that I'm struggling with.

I'm not saying that it's going to be easy, but it will be a much easier task to accomplish if I had people around my size and my age struggling with the same thing. I am the biggest one out of all of my friends and I don't want to be known as big Tori, or big T.

I just want to be known as Tori, and I know for a fact if I put my mind and effort in this I will achieve my goal of losing weight, looking and feeling better.

I am overweight and I want to change that. I'm not trying to be difficult and over push myself to lose 15lbs in two days or anything like that I just want to be open minded and try my best to lose all I can.

So I am up for the challenge to become a healthier person in and out.