Hiya
My name is Sammy and a friend of mine told me about this site. She was telling me about how nice you all are and about your support. I've decided to diet because I'm not okay in my own skin, and I never was. I've never been the type to binge eat throughout my teen years(causing me to be able to sustain the same weight) but in more recent years I've grown depressed and have lost my self confidence causing me to start to binge. There was a point in time(going on 3 years ago) where I did starve myself to achieve being thin. After about a year I couldn't do that to my body anymore and I've realized exactly what that did to my self confidence: it absolutely destroyed it. I have struggled with myself since then and I'm nearly at 200 pounds. I don't want to stay this way anymore, I want to get my body and mind back on track.

Unfortunately I feel that without support I will fail. I'm at this point where I'm constantly telling myself I don't have time to workout. I tell myself to hold it off because I have more important things to do. But in reality I have so much time to do this. I even have a mini elliptical sitting in the corner of my room. At times I look over and think to use it for a half hour or so but then convince myself again that I don't have the time. I don't know how to push myself.

I have 5 sisters, and it seems that only my older sister and I have struggled with heavy weights. Although, my older sister has thyroid problems and I do not. It's kind of hard living at home with your dad and 4 other siblings(the oldest doesn't live home) when all they do is pig out and not have any trouble keeping their tiny waists. I feel that theres never anything healthy to snack on(except oranges because my dad buys a ton all the time but I hate oranges!) and theres almost never any room to stock my own foods despite the large kitchen and cabinets. To be honest, I wouldn't even know what to stock up on. I'm also a very picky eater and tend to base most of my liked and disliked foods on texture instead of taste.

As you can see I need a bit of guidance, I'm clearly clueless on how to achieve my weight loss.

-Sammy

Welcome to the site! You should check out some of the 'goal' forums; they always inspire me!

As for working out; why not start small? Get on the elliptical for 5 minutes. What's five minutes? Nothing! Then, once you're on it...or maybe the next day...push yourself to 10 minutes. Might seem like nothing, but doing even 10 minutes is better than sitting on the couch eating chips, right?

I hear you on the family members! When I lived at home it was hard for me. My dad still weighs the same as he did in high school (which is 5 pounds less than I currently weigh)! My mom is also really tiny.

Does your family know you want to lose weight? Maybe you can rearrange things in the kitchen so you can have one cabinet for your healthy snacks. Or some fridge space.
-fruits and veggies are great foods to keep on hand. Just make sure the veggies aren't too starchy (like potatoes)
-nuts are a good quick snack

I like your idea of starting with short period exercises, I can see that as a good start. As for my family, sometimes I really don't think they take me going on a diet seriously. I guess I'm going to have to sit my Dad down and tell him I'm actually serious about this. Even just a shelf in a cabinet for a few healthier snacks will do me some good! I've definitely got some shopping to do tomorrow.

Others on here told me that I need to make a routine and learn to manage my time. Sure it's tough when it comes down to it but find out your work days every week and then around that put in exercise. Also another told me that it is a good idea to start a meal plan for yourself. Know what you are making for the week before you go shopping so that you are not completely stumped on what to buy and make sure that you also do some research on proper foods to eat. You can also just ask me

HEY GUYS THIS IS MY FRIEND SAMMY! Please help her out like you have with me

Hai Lizzy<3
its funny that you said make a meal plan cause thats exactly what I was doing this morning. It is a lot quicker to shop when you know what you're going to eat during the week(I hate shopping of any kind). I really should make work out plans considering I get my job schedule really early each week.

Hi Sammy!

It's great to see that you have made the first and the most important step - joining this forum for support and information. The first step is usually the hardest one to make, but after that you just need to keep the pace

I have tried many different programs throughout my life, because I sometimes tend to let my body go out of shape and then I need some motivation to get me going. This time I discovered this almost magical recipe that never ever leaves me hungry and (step by step) destroys my cravings... funny thing, it used to be the opposite with diets. I started with two rules: no wheat and no sugar. With at least 2 big formal family dinners per week, it was hard to keep to my regime all the time, but I managed for about 80% of each week to keep to my program and the rest of the time I basically binged. Nontheless, the fat kept melting off at an average speed of 1.5 - 2 pounds a weekand as time went by, I craved less and less sugar and wheat. Also, while doing it, I realized that I am most probably gluten sensitive, so eventually I cut 99% of gluten out of my diet. I still eat it sometimes but I feel strange afterwards. Cutting out sugar is important for me, because it makes me crave for cookies, cakes, bread and the likes that I'm not supposed to be eating anyway. If I really want to bake, I try to use as little wheat flour as possible and substitute sugar with more natural sweeties such as honey or maple sirup. This little detail really makes a difference on how I am able to keep to my diet!

Not eating wheat means not eating many of the processed foods that are bad for my health and induce weight gain. Also, it automatically reduces the amount of calories I eat with every meal. If I need more energy because I have done a lot of exercise, I prepare a dish with lentils or beans instead of pasta.

I also try to stay to minimal "added fat" when preparing my meals. This means that I use very little oil and butter for cooking. My body still needs fat to function, especially during the nordic winter, but it's much better to get the fat from a handful of nuts (walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds...) a day or from an avocado, because they have many more vitamins than oils and butter. More vitamins with every meal = more satisfaction after eating

As for exercise, starting by 5min a day and adding 1min every day is an excellent way to start motivating yourself. Once you get going, it's easier to keep going

I hope I helped and welcome!

Welcome to 3fc!

I'd have to agree with other posters that you should start small we're all young so we have plenty if time to get fit and healthy!

I started exercising back in high school and because I made exercise a part of my routine it was very easy to transition into weight loss mode back in May. Somewhere between starting to exercise and losing weight I began to eat healthier foods too

But really, start small! Even if you just walk a half hour three times a week-- that's still exercise and it's better than nothing!

Good luck! I'm always here if you (or anyone) needs tips, tricks, or support. Just send me a PM or an IM if I'm online!