BAYTOWN, Texas – A Baytown lunch lady is 100 pounds lighter after she ate her own cafeteria food every day for a year.
Tammy McRae works at Carver Elementary School, part of Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District.
McRae started out as a dishwasher and was quickly promoted to cafeteria manager because of her upbeat attitude. “I took the job and I initially lost 15 pounds out of nervousness,” McRae said.
“But I felt so much better after I lost that weight.”
So in September 2015, at 260 pounds, McRae decided to ditch her junk diet once and for all.
“I would go to Wendy’s and get supersize everything or McDonald's and get supersize everything,” McRae said.
She said she would also eat donuts for breakfast on most days.
She started eating breakfast and lunch from her cafeteria menu every single day. One example of breakfast includes fresh fruit and cereal. Lunch options might include broccoli and cheese baked potato, boneless chicken wings or sun butter and jelly. “And at night I would just go home and have a little bit of fruit or a little yogurt,” McRae said.
By the time Christmas 2015 rolled around, McRae noticed she was starting to shed the weight. “People started to saying my clothes looked baggy and that I looked thinner,” McRae said.
She started feeling better about herself and became more active, mowing the lawn regularly and taking her dogs out for frequent walks.
Fast-forward to the end of September 2016, and
McRae weighs 160 pounds. “I'm a better manager, I make better decisions and it’s not because I’m thinner, it’s because I’m healthier,” McRae said.
McRae said she plans to stick to her diet and doesn’t ever want to go back to her old ways.
“I did it for me, and everything else is just icing on the cake,” McRae said.