Weight Loss Support Give and get support here!

Reply
 
Thread Tools
Old 04-22-2011, 12:58 AM   #1  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
CleverName's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: The Great White North
Posts: 389

S/C/G: 201/see ticker/125-ish

Height: 5' 1/2"

Default Tell me how you began your journey!

I'm in need of a serious kickstart to start my weight loss journey. I am here on 3FC- that is a baby step in itself.

I'd love to hear from others how you began, what was it that made you decide to change? What did you start with? What kind of diet/exercise, etc?
CleverName is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 01:34 AM   #2  
Staying the Same
 
krampus's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Troy, NY
Posts: 6,448

S/C/G: 160+/116-120/maintainer

Height: 5'5

Default

I just felt fat. I had been mildly dissatisfied with my weight and size for a couple years by that point, but I really started feeling itchy in my own skin. Specifically after a weekend of overeating super-salty meat at BBQ parties, I decided to start trying to shrink. It also helped that a woman working at a local shop commented that I had gained weight. I'll never forget that.

I didn't do much at first - just tried eating smaller lunches and modest dinners. A few pounds came off and this was encouraging, so I thought I'd add in exercise. I started Couch to 5K and of course could barely jog for 2 minutes at the start, but I kept at it and made jogging part of my routine. Eventually I realized I could eat more for the same amount of calories if I ate less carbs and more vegetables, so I cut back on eating out/getting premade food and started cooking fresh produce at home. As I got better at jogging I realized smoking cigarettes was holding me back, so I ditched that habit too. It went on like this and is still an ongoing process thanks to a rather long period of laziness between Christmas and the start of this month.

People talk about "it's not a diet, it's a lifestyle change" a lot. In the beginning I really wanted to roll my eyes at those kinds of statements, but it's proved true in my case. My food choices and activity levels are much different than in the past, and I've gotten used to eating vegetables and making sure I do sweaty cardio most days of the week. It's just become part of what I do, built into my routine. And yes, I still want to eat an entire pan of brownies every second of every day.
krampus is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 06:02 AM   #3  
Senior Member
 
Nienna's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: here and there
Posts: 295

S/C/G: 155/122.6/105

Height: 5'2"

Default

I'd been unhappy with my weight for a few years, but hadn't really made any concerted efforts to do anything about it. Last August, though, I moved to another country and both my attitude and my daily routine changed quite a bit. I don't have a car here, so I walk about 3 miles (round trip) to and from work every day. I also was doing my own grocery shopping, so I just stopped buying junk food.

Without much effort on my part, I dropped somewhere between five and ten pounds. I was so encouraged by the fact that my clothes were looser that I bought a scale and decided to actually work towards losing weight. I started jogging a few times a week in September, and it was hellacious at first (I couldn't even jog 200 meters without stopping), but I really grew to love how strong and empowered I felt afterwards. During the winter, I stopped jogging but went ice skating fairly often.

Now that I'm further along in the weight loss process and it's springtime, I've started running again, this time training for a half-marathon. And I've reincorporated junk food into my diet, but now I make sure to only eat it at work or to buy single-serving sizes at the grocery store. If I keep junk food in the house, I will eat it, despite the best of intentions. I think the hardest change that I had to make was not eating bread at home (or only buying single rolls at a time). I eat it every day at work (I get free lunches at work), but if I bought a loaf of bread I would definitely eat in one or two days. Mostly I just try to eat things in moderation. I sort of calorie-estimate and sometimes specifically count, but I'm a bit more relaxed about it than an actual calorie-counter would be.

The first part of weight loss was the most exciting, so enjoy it! You make progress (weight and fitness-related) so quickly, and you get an insane confidence boost. I think one of the challenging things is to keep the process fun and exciting. Like Krampus said, it's definitely helpful to build exercise and healthy eating into your routine, but I've also found it helpful to challenge myself to new fitness goals (i.e. running races, biking, swimming, etc) just to keep interested.
Nienna is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 06:17 AM   #4  
Junior Member
 
jennsic's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Michigan
Posts: 29

S/C/G: 195/175/140

Height: 5 2

Default Thank you

Thank you all for sharing. I need some support and motivation. I have pretty much been over weight my whole life, seem's like something is broken but i don't know what is it, therefore i don't know how to fix it. I started the couch to 5k program, did one week then weather got bad so i couldn't go out and do it and now i've lost my motivation. I've been trying to eat better, seems like I start loosing and can see a difference and feel better and then i feel that i can "reward" myself so i'll have 1 bad food item that i had been craving and of course that just leads to more and more bad choices and then i'm right back to the begining. Another problem I'm having is i really enjoy 1-2 glasses of wine in the evening and i know that is hindering me as well because alcohol turns to sugar which turns to fat. I really want to be healthy and active, got to find the right key to make me stick with it.
jennsic is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 06:53 AM   #5  
Running for my life
 
milmin2043's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Texas
Posts: 836

S/C/G: 240/140

Height: 5'6"

Default

In June 2010, I went to a graduation party for my son's girlfriend. Her Mom is slim and stays in great shape. All of her friends-same. Here I was, 235 lbs., wearing whatever would fit over my big behind, wanting so badly to fit in. I don't know if it was my imagination, maybe yes, maybe no, but most likely 50/50 that these women were whispering about me. They were all dressed to the hilt, hair, nails, perfect makeup, outfits, shoes, and accessories. I was a big, fat lump.

When I got home that evening, I promised myself that I was going to change. I was never going to be that uncomfortable in a room ever again. I knew I had to make some drastic changes. And I did. I started exercising by riding my recumbent bike, only about 15 minutes a day. Eventually I purchased a Treadclimber Bowflex machine and that really got things going. I started running at the end of August and could only run about a minute at a time when I started. Now I can run for 2 hours straight. My diet is a shadow of what it once was. I didn't even know what I was eating, or how much. I didn't keep track, didn't care, and thought I would never be able to give up sugar. But I did. I no longer eat sugar, at least, very, very little. I try to eat whole foods mostly. I eat nuts, seeds, fruits, veggies, fish, chicken, whole grains, greek yogurt, and kashi. Those are the main staples of my diet. I've lost 95 lbs. in a little over 10 months.

Honestly, it took those skinny girls and their leering looks to kick me into high geer and just do it. I hated them at the time. Now I feel as though I owe them a debt of gratitude.
milmin2043 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 06:57 AM   #6  
Bells For Her
 
belmagick's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: UK
Posts: 210

S/C/G: 156/112/105

Height: 5'1 and a half!

Default

Okay my story's quite similar. I have always been unhappy with my figure for what feels like my whole life. I had an abusive step mother who instilled the belief that I was fat and inadequate from a very early age. She and my dad divorced when I was 12 but As a teenager I was a borderline anorexic and eventually went through counselling to get over everything.

I started to gain weight when I was about 16 and it's basically been a slow increase ever since. I've dieted in the past but never really stuck at it. In my last attempt before this I cut out carbs and lost some weight but hit a plateau, gave up and gained more weight than ever.

I finally hit breaking point where I felt I couldn't go leave the house in anything that didn't hide my thighs, I was getting very depressed about my figure and had a lot of stress at home. I'm a student now so I don't think the lifestyle helped.

In feb I finally took up running which is something I have always wanted to do and built myself up until I learnt to enjoy it. I thought because I was running I would lose weight easily but I didn't. I dropped from 157 to 145 and then couldn't shift anymore, I kept trying to convince myself that I was okay, there are people that would want to weigh what I weighed but in reality I wasn't happy with myself.

Out frustration and to convince myself that I should be satisfied I look up my BMI and realised I was in the overweight catagory. I cried and did the usual "I don't believe it!" routine. Then I snapped and decided I'd had enough of it. I want to feel confident enough to wear shorts and cute dresses this summer!

I started a food diary to monitor what I was eating, generally I ate well but I had wayy too many treats. I've cut those out and I'm making much better choices. I've also increased the amount I run and now I do 50 minutes six days a week. I have exams coming up and I'm still stressed but I am definitely able to cope so much better and I don't need the takeouts and doughnut pick-me-ups.

I was really nervous joining a weight loss forum because I thought there would be people who would laugh about me struggling to lose 30 Ibs when they're trying to lose 200! But I finally did it and if anything, I find people who have lost a lot of weight to be very kind and crucially very motivating, I always think well... that person's lost over 100 Ibs, I have got no excuse!

I am determined to be happier in my 20s than I was in my teens

Last edited by belmagick; 04-22-2011 at 07:00 AM.
belmagick is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 11:46 AM   #7  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
CleverName's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: The Great White North
Posts: 389

S/C/G: 201/see ticker/125-ish

Height: 5' 1/2"

Default

Thanks everyone for sharing.
In the past few days, there has been one small but major change in me- there's a small voice whispering 'you can do this. You can do this!' I'm starting to believe in myself.
CleverName is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 11:50 AM   #8  
Senior Member
 
yhahmd's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 863

S/C/G: 174→168.0→135

Height: 4'9''

Default

About a year and a half before I started mine, I stopped drinking soda and coffee and energy drinks and switched to water.

Then, when I started my journey, I started with Billy Blanks Tae bo tapes. Eventually I moved into some yoga and pilates, and then Jillian Michaels 30 day shred. I also have taken up walking and I bike indoors nearly every day. I also try to lift weights, but I haven't put as much effort into that as I should have, admittedly. Need to work on it.

Now I do whatever I feel like doing, and count calories and drink a ton of water.

Why I started is simple: I got tired of being overweight and unhappy.

Last edited by yhahmd; 04-22-2011 at 11:53 AM.
yhahmd is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 12:32 PM   #9  
Happy Member
 
JoJoJo2's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Casper, Wyoming, USA
Posts: 789

Default

Remember back when we changed from the year 1999 to the year 2000? It was a real change. I had never thought that I would live to see that day.

In 1999 I was overweight, and knew that I needed to change something as I had been overweight most of my adult life. It was a great time to make, not a New Year's Resolution, but a New Century Resolution!!

So I made some changes. I started walking, short distances at first, but soon worked up to three miles per day, seven days per week. I used several of the Richard Simmons exercise videos, and I used his foodmover as I made changes in my eating habits, too, eating a healthy mix of lean meats, veggies, some fruits, whole grains, and watching the size of the portions of food placed on my plate.

The weight dropped off nicely. Now I am 84 years old, I've lost about 65 lbs. and have kept it off. I continue to exercise and I have joined Curves for Women, plus I swim in the neighborhood pool in the summertime. I continue to eat that healthy mix of foods, and I avoid the 'trigger' foods that can cause me to overeat.

I am a happy senior citizen, enjoying life to the fullest.


Last edited by JoJoJo2; 04-22-2011 at 12:34 PM.
JoJoJo2 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 12:42 PM   #10  
SiLly MuCh?
 
Dilli Doo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Alabama (Yee-ha)
Posts: 74

S/C/G: 200/193/130

Height: 5'5''

Default

Hey that's a "clever name" ha ha ... ok, bad joke over.
I started because the biggest pants I've ever had to buy in my life (which I bought less than a year ago) popped a button because they were now too tight. I absolutely 100% refused to buy new and even bigger pants. Instead, I want to buy new, SMALLER pants!!
Anyway, I'm two weeks in and so far I'm just really watching what I eat. Making a conscious effort to control binging. Nobody is allowed to buy junk food anymore. I won't go get fast food for lunch. Things like that. Basically, reducing my calories and eating MUCH healthier. I plan to start exercising very soon. I just wanted to get "in the swing of things" so to speak first so that I didn't overwhelm myself and burn out like I normally do. Two weeks and 7 lbs down ... so far so good.
Dilli Doo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 02:26 PM   #11  
Incredible Shrinking Lisa
 
LisaP916's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Worcester, MA
Posts: 293

S/C/G: 279.2/ticker/175

Height: 5'5"

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by JoJoJo2 View Post
The weight dropped off nicely. Now I am 84 years old, I've lost about 65 lbs. and have kept it off. I continue to exercise and I have joined Curves for Women, plus I swim in the neighborhood pool in the summertime. I continue to eat that healthy mix of foods, and I avoid the 'trigger' foods that can cause me to overeat.

I am a happy senior citizen, enjoying life to the fullest.

Okay, seriously?! You are my new personal hero!!!

My grandmother is 87... I want to show her this post and say "See?!?! You're not old!!!"

You keep on rocking.
LisaP916 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 03:15 PM   #12  
New start 24/10/10
 
supergir111's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: london
Posts: 468

Height: 5'8

Default

I have been overweight since childhood, unhappy with it since puberty.

I tried several 'diets' cabbage soup and fasting only to quit and gain back more.

I had maintained my weight most of my adult life at the top of the overweight category but in 2008 I moved in with my bf and over the course of 2 years gained 50lbs. Everyday I mindlessly ate and ignored the fact I was growing out of my clothes, avoiding mirrors everywhere like I had no reflection.

The beginning of my journey started at yet another summer spent miserable (every summer so far I had vowed would be the last summer spent this way) envious of thinner women wearing comfortable summer clothing and avoiding going out. I thought to myself this is such a waste of my life, avoiding gorgeous summer days and nights with friends, trips to the beach and feeling bad about myself because of my appearance.

I finally decided there had to be a sensible, real way to lose weight and keep it off so I started learning about calories and reading success stories.

I found this website a while before my real journey started, I guess I wasn't really ready. I have spent countless hours looking for the magic pill or the secret answer in someone's success story that they are trying to hide from the world.

The moment I realised that it would take hard work and that I couldn't lose all my weight in a month, well I feel like I'm really doing it now
supergir111 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 05:11 PM   #13  
One with the Wind and Sky
 
Elladorine's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 1,965

S/C/G: 360/246/150

Height: 5' 8"

Default

I could write entire books on why I've started, especially since I've started so many times. I was a skinny kid until puberty hit and I got smacked down with all sorts of illnesses that landed me in the hospital throughout junior high. I never did completely recover from the weight I gained, resulting in being heavy all of my adult life, at an average of 250. Until now, I've only been able to get under that number twice in my life; once through diet pills, another time by starving. I'm doing my best to do it right this time.

Back in 2005 I was extremely unhappy. My life, my relationship, my job, my weight, my finances, my friends were all taking a horrible toll on me. And as usual I guess I turned to food for comfort while doing my best to hide from the world. I had jumped from 250 (the weight I've spent most of my adult life at) all the way up to 360 in the span of two years, what seemed like the blink of an eye. I took a long, hard look in the mirror one day and couldn't believe where I'd ended up. I took a deep breath and decided that no matter what, my weight needed to start going the opposite direction. Both of my parents died far too young and I don't want to follow the same path of becoming diabetic, being diagnosed with cancer, and having limited mobility.

I've had many stalls since then, but I've managed to lose 120 pounds so far without gaining any of it back, and I'm currently on a mission to push harder and get down to at least 199 and eventually reach my ultimate goal of 150.

I've had some tough battles along with way, especially while still living with my ex. I have the full support of my new husband these days along with lots of free time, so I really have no excuses. I take walks early in the morning, do exercise videos, and most importantly, I don't bring junk into the house. I no longer buy cookies, chips, etc., and I don't drink soda (I do buy soda for my husband but it totally turns me off to even think about drinking anymore). I pick up fresh produce and try to eat as many whole foods as possible. I do eat more fast food than I'd like but I make sure I'm calorie-aware so I can make informed choices; for example I often have the grilled chicken salad whenever we visit Jack in the Box. When eating at a sit-down restaurant I look up menus before-hand when possible and sometimes look up calories right on my phone while sitting there! We occasionally splurge on pizza but I'll typically only take a slice or two while having a homemade side like spinach salad.

The most important thing that has pulled me out of a recent but extremely long plateau has been the new exercise I've been doing. In addition to the every day walking and the exercise videos, I've been doing weighted toning exercises for my arms and have been trying to be more active overall. And while the weather's still nice I'm trying to get some good old sunshine for a change (I swear I was a vampire in a former life, lol).

It takes time to establish new, healthy habits, and even more for a positive attitude (at least in my case), but it all helps. For the record, I hate calorie-counting. It makes me anxious and obsessive (which is how I ended up starving myself a few years back). I just try to take it easy by making the best choices I can each day and by learning from poorer choices rather than berating myself over them. I'm pretty happy with my progress thus far and am especially happy with my health issues that have cleared up.

Oh, and when I finally get a waist that curves in instead of out, well . . .

Last edited by Elladorine; 04-22-2011 at 06:43 PM.
Elladorine is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 06:54 PM   #14  
I AM healthy!
 
Jasmine31's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Mt
Posts: 2,095

S/C/G: 270/196.2/135

Height: 5'4

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by JoJoJo2 View Post
Remember back when we changed from the year 1999 to the year 2000? It was a real change. I had never thought that I would live to see that day.

In 1999 I was overweight, and knew that I needed to change something as I had been overweight most of my adult life. It was a great time to make, not a New Year's Resolution, but a New Century Resolution!!

So I made some changes. I started walking, short distances at first, but soon worked up to three miles per day, seven days per week. I used several of the Richard Simmons exercise videos, and I used his foodmover as I made changes in my eating habits, too, eating a healthy mix of lean meats, veggies, some fruits, whole grains, and watching the size of the portions of food placed on my plate.

The weight dropped off nicely. Now I am 84 years old, I've lost about 65 lbs. and have kept it off. I continue to exercise and I have joined Curves for Women, plus I swim in the neighborhood pool in the summertime. I continue to eat that healthy mix of foods, and I avoid the 'trigger' foods that can cause me to overeat.

I am a happy senior citizen, enjoying life to the fullest.

WOW!! That is so awesome! You are an inspiration to women everywhere!
Jasmine31 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2011, 07:19 PM   #15  
Here for the party
 
fivestone's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 633

S/C/G: 187/108

Height: 5'5.5

Default

I felt really uncomfortable in my own skin, and hardly had any clothes left that fit. I felt fat and out of shape.

I started off by slowly walking/running at least 3-4x a week, and originally I started with low carb, but then after a week or so I switched to eating more veggies and lean meats, cutting out the processed food, and doing the majority of my own cooking. I tweaked it over the months but in the past year I've managed to lose over 70 pounds.
fivestone is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Related Topics
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Supporting Each Other on Our Weight Loss Journey derrydaughter Weight Watchers 139 01-28-2008 08:52 PM
Supporting Each Other on Our Weight Loss Journey derrydaughter Weight Watchers 164 05-30-2007 05:32 AM
Let's support each other IV in our weight loss journey, filled up another page! derrydaughter Weight Watchers 252 12-09-2004 12:57 PM
SyndromeX! PCOS! Insulin Resistance! Just diagnosed, How do I fix it? Clayzgirl PCOS/Insulin Resistance Support 15 09-18-2004 02:55 PM


Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off



All times are GMT -4. The time now is 08:06 AM.


We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.