I am a maintainer, although my weight has slowly crept up over the past two years. I know I need to lose about 10 lbs, but I am having a hard time finding the determination to do it.

I'm kind of in a weird place...not heavy enough to be miserable, but not slender enough to be "satisfied," either. Can anyone relate to this?

It's nice to check in here and see some familiar faces. Big hugs to all of you.

Thought I’d drop in to update my ticker & let those of you who care know, ... I’m still alive & kicking it! Been maintaining 7 years + 2 months now despite not being around in over a year, priorities peeps! :) I weighed 138.9 @ the clinic several weeks ago (down lower than I'd like to be) but I will happily EAT my way up higher now that my body has sorted out an issue. DQ blizzard, here I come! :) My scale and I are still distant friends, I go by my jeans-o-meter and shorts-o-meter instead and the waists are pretty loose on me nowadays, I need to wear a belt or else I have butt cleavage! yikes :(

Here’s a readers digest version of my latest- been having girly cycles from Hellllllooooo & became anemic due to major blood loss. I slept a lot (ironic - sleeping truly does = weightloss). My dr. wanted me to have a hysterectomy, but I didn’t want to go that route without first trying Lysteda. Whew, I’m soooooo happy I did NOT get gutted, and opted for these pills, they work miraculously for me! I had to be on iron pills for many months to get my iron levels back up to where they needed to be & surprisingly the iron pills weren’t backer uppers for me- yah, I still got my poop on daily. No more pumping iron pills for ME these days, I’m back pumping real IRON again and continue to maintain my muscle mass, boooyah!!!! :) Feeling like myself again and well rested, playing sports league twice a week and running both of my businesses keeps me beyond busy.

Oh yeah, our 25th anniversary was AMAZING! Switzerland was spectacular, we made many wonderful memories. When we work hard, we get to play hard by taking fabulous vacations all over the world. LIFE is beyond GOOD, it’s GREAT on my end! :)

Wondering how I maintain my loss after all of these years?

Like Nike,- I just do it!
Do what- you ask?

1. Eat healthy 80% of the time & 20% of the time I eat whatever the heck I want- guilt free
2. Workout daily- yes, EVERYDAY... (no ifs, ands or buts)

The 20% keeps me happy, sane, content & even-keeled! :) This balance suits my busy lifestyle & this simplicity is key to maintaining my loss year after year.

~ Wendalyn

Wendalyn, rockin' it! :cp: Glad you were able to muscle on through your issues! Congrats on the 25th anniversary and celebrating more than 7 years of kicking @$$!

Hey there, Wendalyn! Glad you came through your health issues and that your anniversary trip was fantastic! Always good to hear from you! :)

Thanks ICU & Shannon- you two lovely ladies are the real deal/ genuine! :) I hope you both continue to kick weightloss's @ss as well. Please know that I’m equally supportive. I’m rooting for both of you today, tomorrow & always, despite me not being here often. I will shout this part so you can both hear me….. YOU GO GIRLS!!! :)
Thanks again for supporting me keeping my lbs off. ~ Wendalyn

Here’s an update for any Wendalyn fans in da house! :)

Another year has come and gone & this chicklet has over 8 years maintenance experience that I can ADD to my resume! ;)
My first 2 years of maintenance sucked @ss, as I struggled with binge eating. I veered off to chocolateville and sweetsville time and time again. Once I stopped being so fricken strict with my eating habits & incorporated an 80/20 lifestyle, it’s been smooth sailing and my binges have ceased.
Wendalyn for the win? Hmmm…. unsure if binges will be problematic again or not, so I won’t get overly confident claiming that one. However, as the years tick on, I like to THINK my abs are keeping that sucker (binge ba$tard) smothered deep inside my core!!! For the past 6 years, I’VE had the upper hand! :p

Over the years I’ve learned to adapt to multiple athletic injuries & hammer out new and different routines. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Weightlifting & strength training continue to keep me physically fit and strong. I still refuse to get hung up with a number on a F-ing scale, I prefer to use my jeans-o-meter and the mirror. It's pretty cool seeing the body I designed myself! :strong:
I stepped on the scale today to put that data here, 144 with “code red” (shark week) in progress. The number means JACK SCHMIDT to me! I'm healthy, happy and comfy in my skin.

For those that have inquired what I eat during maintenance, here’s yesterdays eats.

Breakfast:
2 egg omelet with chicken, onions, mini peppers, mushrooms, topped with a mini wholly guacamole spicy, small bowl of fresh pineapple
Lunch:
Toasted sandwich- 2 pieces wholewheat toast with peanut butter, with flax and a sliced banana
1/2 a big bar of lindt dark chili chocolate
Dinner:
Chicken & shrimp shish-kabobs with onions, mushrooms, tri colored mini peppers, marinated in a low sodium teriyaki sauce. 2 kabobs + sweet potato with peanut butter

My reunion is this summer, THIRTY FRICKEN YEARS, crazy how time flies. I often hear, I look exactly the same since high school (minus the big 80’s hair). lol I’m definitely more @sskicker-esque at 48 vs the athletic jock “me" from high school. I was voted "most athletic" back in the day as superlative. I guess some things never change. I’m still playing competitive volleyball a few nights a week which is a fun fitness outlet.
The reunion should be a great wknd to reminisce with many classmates I haven’t seen in years. I recently bought this lil number for the occasion. http://www.irockbags.com/womens-clot...-bandage-dress The dress accentuates my guns & gams! Hubby will be the ONLY accessory that I will need reunion night. It’s 30 years of togetherness for us as well & we’re still smitten after all of these years!!! :)

80/20 + pumping iron + watering myself often, maintenance continues to happen for me. It suits my busy active lifestyle, so this is how I shall continue to roll.

Peace out my 3fc friends. :)

~ Wendalyn

Hey, Wendalyn! I'm so glad to hear from you, I think of you often. :)

That dress is HOTHOTHOT! You are going to rock that reunion and then some!:flame::flow1:

I'm glad you are doing well. Reading about your success, and your peaceful outlook that leads to it, always inspires me.

Thanks Shannon for the continued support chicka! :)
Here’s my yearly check-in for you and any other curious George’s in da house.
I’m in my 9th YEAR of maintenance. Weeeeeeee

The past year has been a Debbie Downer for me literally. Ugh, I've lost 23 lbs according to the doctors scale. :( Yikes, my jeans-o-meters are all registering beyond droopy drawers. Remember the song “Pants On The Ground”? Yeah, that pretty much sums it up!!! Total sucksville. Unable to swallow/eat certainly is a weight loss given. Thank goodness for morphine, what a wonderful drug.

My reunion was fun, but I did not look as fabulous in my dress as I had hoped. Sadly, my pipes started to dissipate and I looked thin instead of my @sskicking athletic self. The majority of females in attendance said I looked fabulous, amazing, wonderful. WTF? It’s crazy how most women think thin is ideal!!!!

Life may have thrown me another curve ball, but I’m working on get my pipes and the pounds back on my frame. By consuming proteins, pumping iron + muscle memory, I’m pretty confident I got this! :)
I’m hopeful by years end, I’ll have my @sskick bod back. Stay tuned…

~Wendalyn

Wendalyn--why can't you eat? I'm sorry, did I miss something? :( I hope you recover soon.

I hope you recover from whatever is wrong Wendalyn and that you're rocking those jeans again soon!

Dagmar :wave:

Wendalyn - I'm sorry to hear that you are having troubles. I hope you are back to full strength soon. :hug:

Thanks for the well wishes, I appreciate the genuine concern from you 3 lovely ladies.
Jaye, you didn’t miss anything, I never mentioned what I actually endured because I’m not looking for sympathy replies. I update to let peeps know how my maintenance is going. Thanks again chickies, I hope you all have an eggcellent Easter! :) Wendalyn

Wendalynn, finally I noticed that this entry has turned boldfaced and has been updated. (I find the forums harder to navigate since there's no longer a separate, contained Sticky section, which makes the whole thing look longer.) It's so good to hear from you!

I miss your breezy style, but sounds like there was not a lot to be breezy about during the past year, though you are sounding determined and upbeat in your posts here.

And I hear you on regaining lost muscle and being glad to be back in the gym. You can do it. I'm well on my way. It is taking longer than I thought, but it's one area in our lives where work repays with measurable & visible progress.

Take care, and please check in more often than once a year -- though if that's all we'll get of you, springtime is a good time for these kinds of reunions. And of course, happy Easter!

Hiya to all the Chickadees and Roosters that still roam here. :wave:

Update, 10 + years later & I'm still holding my own in MAINTENANCE-LAND!
I weighed in just for the he[[ of it to post today, 137.5
I still don’t give a rat’s @ss about numbers, seeing how my body performs for me daily truly trumps a damn scale reading!!! true dat. Just seeing the body I designed myself with weightlifting and competitive sports makes me smile when I catch a glimpse. :)

It was a looooooooong year of recovery for me having double surgeries. However, I’m bouncing back like a superball getting my strength, endurance, weight & muscle back onto my frame. No matter the challenge, every hurdle in life is negotiable given the right determination. Having a kick @ss spirit certainly helps overcome all obstacles life has thrown me. I’m a survivor and scars tell good stories.

I’m still rolling with my 80/20 maintenance. 80% of the time I eat foods that my body needs to nourish it and give me energy to power through my days & 20% of the time I eat for pure pleasure and consume anything I damn well please! Simplicity.

Thanks Saef for enjoying my easy breezy.

Time sure is ticking by, but I still feel like a teenager, despite being 49.99. The F word that rhymes with nifty sounds kinda harsh, so I claim 49.99 instead! :D
Hubby & I still take time off to travel the world and make memories instead of collecting $hit we don't need. :)
And ALWAYS taking the time to stop and smell the roses along the way.
Next year is our 30th Wedding Anniversary, leaning towards a month in New Zealand/Australia to celebrate that milestone.
Yuppers, LIFE is great on my end. Just keeping those that wonder bout me in the update loop.
Over and out.

Wendalyn

Hey Wendalynn! Great to hear from you! I'm so glad that you are doing well. :)