Hi everyone!

After a long 2.5 years, I finally hit my goal weight. After a couple of weeks of bouncing around, I've been holding steady between 118-119 pounds. I'm trying to get this whole maintenance thing figured out, and am particularly scared about increasing my calories.

I'm looking forward to being here and learning!

Jen

Welcome to maintenance Jen! Wow! You have really changed your life. If you don't mind my asking, how did you lose your weight?

I'm eager to see what you have to contribute to our forums. Jump right in!

Welcome! What an awesome accomplishment! As some people have mentioned, maintenance is like dieting on a very short leash. Looking forward to hearing your story.

YAAAAAY! Having followed your struggles to get from 125-119 I'm so happy you made your goal.

Welcome to maintenance. Congratulations on a great accomplishment !

Thanks for the welcome! In February of 2010 I went to the doctor's for something completely unrelated to my weight, but I remember weighing in at 344 pounds. You would think that would be a total wake-up call, but it wasn't. I had kind of a learned helplessness - I didn't believe that it was possible for me to lose weight.

But I started making small changes. The first thing I did was go from drinking 2-3 Mountain Dews per day to 2-3 a week (I drank my last soda in May 2010, and I do miss my Mountain Dew terribly!!) I did a little bit of exercise.

By my birthday in June I was over 30 pounds down just from those small changes and was feeling a little psyched. From there, I dove in. I focused on portion control - I didn't count calories.

Since that time, it's just been diet and exercise. I lift weights, I became a runner.

In April of this year I had surgery to remove my excess skin on my abdomen around the sides and the butt/back.

This was August 2008:



And this was Saturday:



My life is totally different now!

I vacillate since hitting goal between total confidence and total terror

Oh my goodness, you look fabulous! What a great success story!

Rocking Awesome!

Wow!
You look incredible!

I agree with Shannon - what a transformation! Totally awesome!

Dagmar

Jen, words cannot describe the difference in your before and after photos. You look like two completely different people! Congrats on making so many significant changes in your life. You look fab! I too followed your skin removal surgery story--amazing. Thank you for sharing it with us. You are an inspiration.

I haven't posted in a while but I had to pop in and say wow! Well done!

Jen, you have completed an amazing and long-standing project. (Well, is it ever completed? We know it's not. Not really.) It's like an artwork. It's like Glory's quote, about seeing an angel in the marble and chiseling until you set it free.

I relate to your comment about a "learned helplessness." That's how I think of myself before my weight loss efforts, too. I didn't think I could do it, I thought it was assigned, like fate, or a form of predestination; I did not believe in free will. I was resigned to it. So, of course, I didn't even try. And that, of course, did not help.

And is that Lake Ontario in the background, in your "before" picture? I grew up in a small town northwest of Syracuse, near the Oswego County line, so I may have some understanding of the backdrop against which you worked on reinventing yourself.

Congratulations, and it's good to see you posting here.

Completely amazing! Jaw-dropping, actually.

F.

Welcome to maintenance Jen! You look completely amazing and must feel fantastic. What an inspiration! I look forward to getting to know you better.