GALESBURG — It’s been a 10-year journey for Jamie Ziegler of Galesburg, one that began in 2009 when she she weighed between 450 and 500 pounds. She had to use a wheelchair to get around and supplemental oxygen to breathe. Since that time, she has lost over 300 pounds and has become an award-winning public speaker, author and the founder of “Our Daily Journey,” a free weight loss support group.

As the end of January approaches, many are trying to meet their new year’s resolution to “lose weight.”

“That’s not going to work,” says Ziegler.

It’s about making SMART goals, she says: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely.

“A SMART goal would be to say, “I weigh 160 today, and I want to weight 150 six months from now and I’m going to do that by increasing my exercise, beginning with…”

She knows everyone has to start somewhere. For those that are morbidly obese, it can be difficult to start. Zeigler has a solution for those needing that start.

“Walk around the block,” she said, pulling out a small wooden block painted gold and placing it in the middle of the floor.

“Get up off your chair and walk around the block. Next week, two blocks. Then three blocks.”

She notes that obesity is a large problem in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 93 million American adults were obese in 2015-2016, a rate of 39.8 percent.

“So many people, but so few find the right thing,” she said.

“When I first started setting goals for myself, they were goals for when I was thin. But what about goals for on the way down? Anything more than what you did the day before, and believing that you can.”

She recalls her own struggles before she lost the weight. She worked in education for many years, including in special education. One of the aides who was in the room would automatically pick up anything Ziegler dropped, because she couldn’t do it herself.

“I’d go into a room and someone would immediately go find a chair without arms. It’s just the way I lived.”

She also pointed out how many, when they decide to lose weight, turn to fad diets and weight loss programs. She notes that they work, until you don’t. They don’t have a long-term success rate of reaching a goal and maintaining it for five years. She notes that in reading multiple studies, the highest success rate of any program is 2 percent.

“Continuous participation in a support group” is the only thing that works long-term, says Zeigler.

She stresses that any program needs to be affordable, easy to understand, ongoing and accessible.

“Our Daily Journey” has been online from the beginning, started by Ziegler and a friend, Mickey Oswald. Both lived in Chillicothe at the time and were going to a different weigh loss group in Peoria. The two of them were unhappy with the travel as well as some other issues with the group and started their own group, at the library in Chillicothe.

“We started with discussions every day because I didn’t think once a month meeting were going to cut it. I just knew it wouldn’t be enough,” she said.

“In the beginning, we were pretty big girls and we didn’t know too much about this. We knew how to lose weight, we’d done it before. But we didn’t know how to keep it off.”

They started by borrowing from other sources and having discussions. From that beginning with just two people, it has grown to include 494 active participants. Several area medical groups now refer weight loss patients to the group, though there is no official affiliation.

“Over time, we discovered there was an actual pattern to what we were doing. So, we decided to have focused discussions seven days a week.”

Support Group Sundays, Monday Munchies, Tuesday Tips, Wonderful Wednesdays, Thirsty Thursdays, Friday Favorites and Saturday Sit-Ups all focus on a different aspect of weight loss.

But more than anything else, it’s the continual participation and support that Zeigler feels has been the biggest reason the group has succeeded. Over time, the group has grown to include members throughout the United States and into Canada.

A year and a half ago, the Galesburg native and Knox College alumna returned to her hometown. Now she holds a support meeting in the community room at Whiting Hall, 19 E. Tompkins St., the third Wednesday of each month from 6:03-7:27 p.m. All meetings are free, as is the website, www.ourdailyjourneywls.com.

Talbot Fisher is weekend reporter for The Register-Mail. Contact him at talbotefisher16@healthstationblog.comgmail.com; follow him on twitter at @healthstationblog.comTalbotFisher16.