Half-Assed: A Weight-Loss Memoir [Paperback]

Jennette Fulda (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 29, 2008 | ISBN-10: 1580052339 | ISBN-13: 978-1580052337

After undergoing gall bladder surgery at age twenty-three, Jennette Fulda decided it was time to lose some weight. Actually, more like half her weight. At the time, Jennette weighed 372 pounds.

Jennette was not born fat. But, by fifth grade, her response to a school questionnaire asking “what would you change about your appearance” was “I would be thinner.” Sound familiar?

Half-Assed is the captivating and incredibly honest story of Jennette’s journey to get in shape, lose weight, and change her life. From the beginning—dusting off her never-used treadmill and steering clear of the donut shop—to the end with her goal weight in sight, Jennette wows readers with her determined persistence to shed pounds and the ability to maintain her ever-present sense of self.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In this touching, funny, and sincere story, Jennette Fulda, who was once 372 pounds, recounts her lifelong struggle with her weight- first accepting it, then losing half of it." -- Shape Magazine, August 2008

Blogger Fulda explains how she lost 186 pounds. In January 2005, she weighed twice that. A year earlier, after having her gallbladder removed at the age of 23, she'd realized her weight was threatening her life and vowed to get into shape. "Only I didn't," she writes. "I stayed fat for at least another year. Wake up call received. Snooze button pushed." Fulda did eventually take control, changing her eating habits and taking up exercise: first walking, then jogging, then a combination of jogging, pilates and weight training. She started a blog, "Half of Me," to chronicle her progress. As of February 2007, she had lost half her body weight; in the final chapter, she writes that she's within 15 pounds of her goal weight (160 pounds) but warns, "I may have lost the weight, but it could still find me again." Fulda provides a fair amount of weight-loss information only the diet-and-fitness-obsessed could really love, but the book is redeemed by the engaging account of her personal history interwoven throughout. In a conversational and honest voice, she describes tackling the age-old paradox of trying to accept herself while also trying to change. This dialectical process caused her to run afoul of online "fat acceptance" communities, which work to decrease the marginalization of the overweight and the obese. "If I really accepted myself as I was, it meant I'd recognized who I was to the best of my ability, flaws and all," writes Fulda. "It didn't mean I was necessarily satisfied with all the materials that made the house of me." A winsome, charming memoir of personal discovery. -- Kirkus Reviews, Feb. 15, 2008

Following Indianapolis-based blogger Jennette Fulda's journey to lose almost two-thirds of herself is so inspiring you'll fill your cart with nothing but turkey cutlets and cruciferous vegetables for weeks. At age 24, she weighed 372 pounds. "The truth is," she writes, "I was a big, fat cliche." Despite some emotionally heavy moments, Fulda's biting humor and no-holds-barred honestly keep you turning the pages. -- Women's Health, July 2008

Product Details

• Paperback: 250 pages
• Publisher: Seal Press (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580052339
• ISBN-13: 978-1580052337
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (92 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,390 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jennette Fulda is a writer, web designer, chronic headache sufferer, weight loss inspiration, blogger, and overall busy person. She lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Learn more at JennetteFulda.com

She has been featured on NBC's Today Show, CBS's The Early Show, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Salon.com, Women's Health, Shape, Runner's World, Glamour and other media outlets. She blogs at JenFul.com and does freelance web design at MakeMyBlogPretty.com