[DreadPiratePanda]

Hi, guys My name's really Manda, but you can call me Panda. I'm 26 years old, 5'5 and as of this past weekend, 243.4 lbs. Also, as of this past weekend, I'm on the South Beach Diet. [I'm slightly intimidated by this diet, but I suppose that's a post for the SBD forum].

Anyways! I'm a Psychology major at a community college right now, soon to transfer to a university to finish my degree. Then it's on to graduate school, yay!

Brief weight history:

Child: chub-a-lub!
Teen: dropped a lot of weight, maintained around 140-150 through high school.
College and beyond: consistently gained weight due to not exercising [I was super athletic in high school], lots of napping, lots of snacking, and lots of partying.

So...here I am! I'm currently in a yoga class, a cardio combo class, and a cardio kickboxing class at my college and they are kicking my butt...but while I'm always at least kind of tired now, I still feel much much better than I have been. This past summer, I dropped a pant size in Physical Conditioning and I've lost about 12-13lbs in the last year. Hope to be active in this community.

[konfyoozed]

hello

welcome to the forum! hopefully you'll find the advice and motivation here that you need to reach your goals. kudos to you for all the classes!

also, my name's mandy, and when i was younger my mom called me manda panda

[toastedsmoke]

Hello! Welcome. Congrats on the loss so far! AND on committing to working out in those classes even though they're challenging. How's SBD going so far? I once did the hardcore phase 1 very low carb part in solidarity with my mom to help her through it and man, it was tough! How are you holding up? Keep on keeping on and good luck with your journey. 3FC is awesome and there's always support and advice and whatever on here whenever you need it.

[April Snow]

welcome Panda!!

I'm doing a very hardcore low carb plan (Dukan Diet) and after the first week or so, it's been so much easier than I could have imagined. I am never hungry and I don't get cravings. So hang in there, it will get easier soon!

[cathi888]

Welcome Panda. So glad to hear you are already committing yourself to a good variety of healthy plans. I wish you the best of luck on your journey.

[DreadPiratePanda]

Mandy: I used to go by Mandy in high school. Once I started going by Manda, my friends all sort of adopted Panda seperately...I think they're saving up to buy me a panda pajama suit lol.

toastedsmoke: It had been incredibly hard to do phase 1 these last few days, until I realized the cafeteria offers a lot more SBD friendly choices than I initially thought. I went grocery shopping last night and weighed myself this morning...I've lost 4lbs since Sunday. I know it's probably all water-weight, but it's super encouraging!

April Snow: My best friend has told me the same thing...she's the one who convinced me to go on SBD in the first place! It's encouraging to hear it from multiple people though. I've noticed that I'm not really craving soda anymore, so much as I want the caffeine because I've felt so sluggish. The urge for bready stuff is almost unbearable.

cathi888: Thanks!!!

[linJber]

Welcome, Manda. I actually like "Dread Pirate Panda." DD watched "The Princess Bride" at least once a day for several years when she was small and still quotes it at length (she's 28)!

Great job in making a commitment to better health. This 100 pound forum is great - you're going to find lots of support. Glad to be here with you.

Lin

[DreadPiratePanda]

Lin: Hahaha, me too! I actually have the shirt that has the "Hello, my name is:" name tag on it. Inside the tag is written, "Inigo Montoya [You killed my father. Prepare to die.]" Thanks for the welcome.