From a sweetooth to a top model I took a decision to become slim enough so nobody could say that I was overweight. The next day I tightened my belt and fully stopped eating all kinds of pastries and sweets. I started swimming vigorously (about 1 mile a day), working out at the gym, dancing and doing martial arts. My parents were surprised with my new way of living because earlier they had tried vainly to influence me to stop eating sweets. I always refused to do this because I wasn’t convinced that it was the right thing for me. I must take important decisions myself, and somebody else (even my parents) should not make such a choice for me. I have never failed to violate my diet because it was a definite decision. I have a clear understanding that when you take decisions yourself it means you are fully responsible of them, and this is the main reason to follow them. Overall, I lost 42 pounds and I still follow my diet. It’s better to say that it has now become a way of life – healthy eating and sports. I even promoted that among my friends: my successful example helped them abandon junk food and fizzy drinks. In addition, I developed cooking skills and now I prepare healthy treats such as chocolate cakes from almond flour or coconut pancakes for my family who have started to follow a gluten-free diet after my experience. I understood how great it is to be independent from food when you don’t think about it like a friend or companion. Now I eat to live, and not live to eat. Frankly speaking, physician’s prescription was not my only stimulant. I am tall enough to become a model, but I was too fat to enter this field as all the model agents told me. I was very curious to try something new that seemed so attractive and peculiar, but frustrated that my weight put a spoke in my wheel. I didn’t give up to the difficulties and struggled to become fit enough to achieve my goal. Finally, I showed myself that if I desire something nothing could stop me. Nobody believed that I could make such a progress. On 13th October 2016 I represented on the runway Slava Zaitsev’s collection (one of the most famous Russian designers) during Mercedes-Benz Moscow Fashion Week. I was happy not only because my dream has become a reality, but also because I learnt how to manage my life. This experience gave me extra-confidence and a craving to overcome difficulties: there is nothing that can’t be achieved if you make an effort.