Greetings everyone!

It has been a very long time since I have updated my post. I apologize for that and I guess you fans are wondering what have I been up to and yes, why has it been so long since I have competed? Let me start from the beginning.

It all happened about 2 years ago (2004) when I started dieting again for my shows. I was doing the same training, diet, etc. that has always worked for my body and has lead me to many 1st places. I spent numerous hours in the gym training hard and even doing two 1 hour cardio sessions a day! I knew something was wrong when I noticed that my body wasn't changing and that I wasn't even losing any weight! Frustrated as hell, I decided to confide in my good friend and Musclemania Pro Tommy Alston, who has helped me in contest preparation before. Tommy decided to start tweaking my diet around since he felt that I had no problem with the training. But still, nothing worked! So, I had to come to the conclusion that 2004 I wasn't competing. I was sad but thought that I will go to a specialist (endocrinologist) and see what was wrong and just return to the stage in 2005. Well, that started my difficult road to finding out what was wrong with my body. I went to the first doctor and she did tests on my thyroid, testosterone/estrogen levels, and checked me for polycystic ovary syndrome since she said that I had some of the symptoms of it. By the way, I forgot to mention the days that would go by where I was so fatigued, sluggish, and gaining some weight out of nowhere. Something you don't get after 8 hours of sleep and eating right. After getting the tests back and finding nothing wrong with me, the doctor came to the conclusion that it was just my genetics and that I am meant to be this way. Well, I wasn't buying that! So, I went for a second opinion to find again there is nothing wrong with me. I had numerous doctors tell me that maybe I had depression, chronic fatigue, etc. This lead me to 2005 and trying to diet to compete again! But again, nothing worked. I felt so discouraged and thought that I would never return to the stage again! Then a miracle happened and I finally found this great endocrinologist who did numerous amounts of tests on me. She tested my thyroid, pituitary gland, adrenal glands, blood sugar and did a whole hormonal panel. It was then that we finally found out this year (2006) what was wrong. I was diagnosed with polycystic ovary and due to that my insulin levels were very high. So, I am insulin-resistant and that was why I wasn't losing weight! Just to make it clear, I am not diabetic (Thank God!), because my blood sugar is normal and my pancreas works fine. How I developed this later in life I do not know since I am a person who eats healthy and exercises. My doctor told me that it was a genetic predisposition. So, now I am on medication to keep my insulin levels normal. After 2 years of struggling and being disheartened, I finally got to the bottom of things. Let me tell you what a joy it is! In the meantime my personal life took a major change. I meant the most caring, loving, and wonderful man that stepped into my life at such a tough time. Chris has helped me through my ups and downs and is always by my side. He is a gift from God and I definitely believe that he was put into my life for a reason. He also, competes so can relate to the dieting and training, and is definitely an up and coming bodybuilder with a lot of potential!

So, you are probably asking yourself what is next for Janelle? Well, I started dieting Jan 16th, since my weight has gone up a bit. I have all ready lost 17lbs and will lose more. I will be returning to the stage at the 2006 Superbody! Dieting and training is going awesome and I look forward to being back into the swing of things. I will not stop until I lead myself to victory again! There is a fire in me that is strong and I am anxious and excited to return to bodybuilding. Along with this, I am still very busy with my personal training business at Gold's Gym in Smithtown, NY. I am currently working on my own website with diet plans and workouts along with a gallery of my photos. So, things are looking better and I am looking forward to being in Miami in June. Thanks for the e-mails and keep them coming! Always remember to never give up on your dreams. Keep the drive alive!

Janelle Gallo

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