Virginia Beach, Va. - After losing nearly half of her body weight, Virginia Beach wife and working mom Robin Fulfordis being featured in the national 2015 "Fit Mom Calendar".
"It's extremely surreal to know that I am in a national calendar, and it's a swimsuit calendar," said Fulford, who has shed 130 pounds over the last few years. "I'm very proud of myself. I've come very far."
The 34-year-old mother beat hundreds in a social media contest to represent July in the calendar, which is the project of Maria Kang. Kang is the "No Excuses Mom" who stirred up comments and controversy last year.
"When I saw that I was really inspired," said Fulford. "You have to make your health a priority."
Fulford told NewsChannel 3 she battled weight issues most of her life. She tipped the scales at 260 pounds.
"I was like well, I'm choosing to shorten my lifespan if I don't do something about this," said Fulford.
She began her weight loss journey, but gained roughly 65 pounds during her pregnancy three years ago.
"I was 235 right after I gave birth to my son," she said.
Fulford took action to lose 100 pounds over the course of two years. She has kept the weight off for nearly a year.
"I counted calories, but I would always build in like a small chocolate bar or some sort of treat at the end of the day that I knew I wasn't going to feel deprived," she said.
Fulford also slowly built a home gym out of used workout equipment.
"That's all you need to do to workout and get the calories burned," said Fulford, who has worked herself up to six workouts a week and usually keeps her calories between 1500 and 2000 a day.
"Weight loss is just as much a mental challenge as it is a physical one. You have to change your mindset and focus on that," said Fulford. "If you have kids, you want to live longer for them. They want you around."
