The thyroid disease that Abigail B. suffers from is called Hashimoto's Disease, and last year it was starting to bring down her physical and mental wellbeing. 'It was getting really bad and as a result I had absolutely no energy-I was so sick I couldn't get out of bed,' says Abigail, a 21-year-old student in Logan, UT. 'It also gave me really bad anxiety, so I didn't feel like doing anything.'

Her sedentary ways caused her to gain 20 pounds-a development she didn't like at all. 'I sat down with my parents and told them that I needed to try something new to feel better,' she says. 'We found a new doctor who started me on a different treatment plan.' Part of that plan: Abigail should start to do yoga and work out more. 'I didn't want to exercise or be active because I felt so weak and unhappy,' she says. 'But I knew my doctor was right. I needed to start working towards feeling better.'

To help motivate herself and give her goals to work towards, Abigail got a Fitbit Charge this past January. 'I started by just walking-at the beginning I couldn't even walk half a mile,' she says. 'But I did every little thing I could do-I took the stairs everywhere I went, parked far away from where I was going, and walked all the way around my classroom building whenever I got up to go to the bathroom.'

Abigail's Fitbit Charge helped her see that all the little steps she was taking were adding up to real mileage. But Abigail didn't just use it to track steps. She also used it to see her sleep patterns, look at her calories burned, and input her food into the Fitbit app, discovering that some of her favorite dishes were actually full of sodium.

Four months after getting a Fitbit Charge, Abigail had lost almost 30 pounds, and was eating well and sleeping better. 'Now I walk the mile to school every day and can run four miles easily,' she says. 'Even better, in June I found out my disease went into remission and that my thyroid function is back to normal.'

Figure out little ways to remind yourself of your goal

'I don't like checking my phone to see what time it is so I relied solely on my Fitbit Charge,' she says. 'It was such a good reminder because every time I looked at my wrist, I would see how many steps I'd taken that day so far.'

Replace your car with sneakers

'I used to drive to school, which is about a mile from where I live, but now I walk,' says Abigail. 'It's such a nice way to start the day.'

When life gets crazy, have a simple go-to dinner recipe

'One of my favorite things to eat for dinner is a huge veggie stir-fry,' says Abigail. 'I'll toss lima beans, peas, green beans, and corn in a pan with some seasoning and sauté it up. It's the kind of dish I can just throw together.'

What's helping you reach your health and fitness goals? Offer your tips and advice in the comments below, and share your success story with us!

Alice Oglethorpe is a freelance writer and editor based in Chicago, IL. She covers health, happiness, fitness, and anything else that piques her interest. Her work has appeared in O, The Oprah Magazine, Self, Shape, Fitness, Redbook, Health, Better Homes & Gardens, Psychology Today, Good Housekeeping, and more.

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