[Meg]

The Maintainers Forum took a huge hit with the recent Big Crash since this forum had only been up for a few days at the time of the (thank heavens!) November 17 backup. All the Introductions were lost, except for JoJoJo, MrsJim and myself. The Exercise Thread is gone, as are many of our discussions.

I know it's a pain, but if you took the time to introduce yourself before, would you mind doing it again? And if you didn't and would like to join in, please post! This forum isn't just for people who have arrived at their goals -- it's for anyone closing in on goal or even just thinking about life after goal (like my buddy Dip, a/k/a Sarge , who calls herself a Maintainer In Training). I've gotten PMs from readers and lurkers who say that our stories and successes (and trials and tribulations ) are inspirational and show them that they too can lose the weight and keep it off for life.

What I found to be really interesting in reading through the old Introductions was that we each lost the weight in a different way; one that worked for us as individuals. A lot of us customized our own programs. It wasn't like Plan A or Plan B was overwhelmingly successful -- it was the sticking to it (whatever it was) that made the difference.

A while back I also got a lovely PM from someone who's too shy to post much and she asked why I stuck around 3FC since I wasn't a "fat chick" anymore. I've been thinking about it and realized that I'll always be a fat chick on the inside and of course I'll always be here. I'm still the same person inside as when I was heavy and I still struggle with the same issues and demons. 3FC is home to me and I need the support now as much as when I was losing. I hope that our Maintainers Forum can be a comfortable place for us all to get together and talk about keeping the weight off for life.