hey, my name is ruthann and i`m new to 3 fat chicks, i hope to make some new friends and get some help to loss about 80lbs if that is posible, i get so tired of dieting, its like thats all i ever think about, when i get up in the morning it`s the first thing that comes to my mind. can ya`ll HELP ME?

Hi southernlady.. welcome!
This is a great place! We are more then just dieting around here! Dieting/lifestyle changing is just a part of the things we talk about. But we all have that in common.

grab your coffee and join in!

Dana

welcome welcome welcome, southern lady! so glad to have to! we have a few southerners here and yours truly used to live in Tuscaloosa (always liked that place, actually thinking about moving back)

I saw two things in your post - 1 "about 80 pounds if that's possible"

Sure it's possible! Not by tomorrow, not by next week, but it can be done! Believe in yourself, visit this site for support (I try to post something once a day, even if it's a "here here" for someone's success, because I feel involved when I do that, not sitting on the sidelines watching everybody). We're here to help, and lend an ear whenever you will let us - so let us!

2 - you think about dieting all day

Me too, so this time, I did something I've never done before - I always thought it was a doofy idea. For one month, I wrote down every single piece of food and sip of beverage that went into my mouth. Along with that, I started a journal, which I keep up even when I'm not recording food. It allowed me a focused time to think about my health and my weight without guilt, and I had something to show for it at the end of the day. I found that allowing myself that time made it ok to take a few minutes before cooking dinner for the family or ordering in a restaurant, and as a result I make better choices. Long story short, find a way that works for you to refocus your all-day negative self-talk about dieting into positive all-day self-talk about living the life you want, and ingesting the foods you need to make that happen.

Wow, this got long!! Sorry bout that. Now, go to the Dreams thread and make yourself a list - I can't tell you how empowing that felt for me.

And welcome to the group!!

Deb

Hi Southern Lady! Welcome to the board. Feel free to post anytime. I'm somewhat new too - just been here a few weeks.

You sound overwhelmed. 80 pounds is alot of weight when you think of it all at once. What kind of diet are you following? Have your lost weight already? How long have you been working on it?

I'm looking to lose about 105 pounds. I've lost 49 over a year and a half, so I only have 56 to go, and I expect it will take another year and a half, but if it comes sooner, I'll be delighted. What's helped me to keep on going is to not think of the total, but to think of it as one pound at a time. My goal is to lose 1 pound per week. It overwhelms me to think 56 or 105, but I can concentrate on one pound and be comfortable and hopeful about it.

It also helps to set mini-goals. We've got a great summer mini-goals thread here. I love mini-goals because they allow me to celebrate the small successes along the way since the BIG success is so far in the future. By setting reasonable mini-goals, goals that are possible to acheive in the near future, you are setting yourself up for success and encouragement.

Don't forget to celebrate ALL of your successes too! Success isn't just measured in pounds lost. You're a success whenever you lose inches, whenever a piece of clothing fits better, whenever a piece of clothing gets too big, when you have to BUY a new piece of clothing. You're also a success when you follow your plan for the whole day, when you are tempted to give up and you don't, when you start eating something you shouldn't and then you put it down instead of eating the whole thing, when you eat something you know you shouldn't BUT you stop at one before a binge starts, basically whenever you make a choice that helps you to your goal, you are a success!

At the end of the day, try listing all the times you wanted to give up, but didn't, all the good things you ate that will help you lose the weight, and all the good habits you are trying to form.

Lastly, if your diet is too painful to follow, you may need to tweak it a little here and there. A diet that is painful won't work for long because it's so hard to keep up. I don't consider myself on a diet really. I'm changing my lifestyle, changing the way I eat and the way I think about food. I posted my plan in the weight loss plan thread if you want to read it.

Take care.

Jeanne
250/201/145

WELCOME Southern Lady, I see we are from the same state. What part of Bama are you in? I am about 35 miles south of Montgomery. Sugar, grab a cup of coffee, take your shoes off and get comfy. There's a great bunch of people here who will help you along the way and are here for you no matter what the difficulty so you post often.
Darlin' .... You will see OP quite often here it means "on plan" not on diet. Why? Because you have to change your lifestyle and eating patterns. Can you do it?????? Most CERTAINLY!!!!!! I myself have lost 53 since I began this journey, 40 of that here!
First find a plan that looks the most workable for you. I am a Low carb myself but do switch of to calories when I have too. Just look through the boards and decide what seems livable for you ..LONG TERM. It won't happen over night , in a week end, or a month, perhaps not a year but it will happen. I know. There are people here who have lost a lot more than 80 lbs!!!!!!!!!! Personally I have...170lbs more to go. Now , that's overwhelming!!!! This is the first time I sat and figured that out but it is not my focus. My first large goal was to get below 300. I did , only by a couple of pounds but a couple of wonderful pounds below 300. Next is 289 what I weighed when I got married and then 250 and so on. When you take it in small goals it happens, really happens and each time you are filled with joy. Then the clothes begins to fall off and then....LOL Well, Darlin' you get it I am sure. We are right here to cheer you on and kick you once soundly in the rump when you need it. SOOOOooooooo. Get started and jump in.
Pam

I just wanted to say welcome as well. I know it can be done. I have lost 47 pounds in a year and a half also. I lost some maintained it, tried to lose some more, maintained it, etc..
Everyone is different. Some people could lose that 80 pounds in 9 months, some may take longer because they dont want to feel like they are starving. The important thing is keeping it off. Anyone can starve and lose but their hunger will eventually force them to eat and usually all the weight comes back on. If you can eat say 1800 calories a day you will lose slower than with 1200 but it is something you can keep up once the weight is gone. You may find you dont lose fast at 1800 and may need to do 1700 or 1600 etc... The point is eat healthy and by this time next year you wont recognize yourself!!
sorry for the novel!!


lorelei

and a welcome. everyone's right. and journalling really works. it's a pain in the neck sometimes, because we have to make the time to do it, and to focus on ourselves.

the more i read and listen and learn, the more convinced i am that people with a lot of weight to lose are unconscious about their physical being. it's only when we become aware of our bodies that we realize how lousy we feel.

and we do this at different points. some of us do it relatively early, like at 20 pounds overweight. others don't wake up until we have a couple of hundred pounds to lose.

so, journalling can help this problem.

good luck. post often. ask questions.

I must add my welcome too. I have been working on a way to help others with their focus. I will make it more clear and post that. what i have found is if you desire some thing then when it gets tough and hard we tend to lose our foucs but if we have a passion for it then it becomes a part of our life. so the trick is to make this a passion and have goals set with time frames (do not make them to hard) then it will be some thing that can and will be done!!!

hand in there and relax this is a slow long haul but it is a rewarding one!~! this is a fight for your life!!!

Wow - I'm really tagging far behind the welcome wagon, aren't I?! I'm a Southerner also, albeit a transplanted one. Grew up in Northern CA, but Mississippi is my home now.

Everyone's really given you some great advice! I really agree with the "take it slow" part. Back when I was 20, I lost 40 lbs. in 3 months. Life intervened, and I gained it all back and then some, but now am finally on the way back down. (BTW, I started with 102.5 lbs. to lose and now have 84.5 to lose.) Between now and then, I have started and stopped. I would get so discouraged after weeks of not losing or only losing a half-pound - I wanted it to be like before, when the weight melted off practically overnight. Then, I had a revelation - I'm not 20 anymore! As we get older, our metabolisms change. I needed to realize that my body is 35 now, and it's going to take longer and I need to be patient!

Good luck. Post often!

Jennelle
242.5/224.4/140
18 lbs. gone

Next Mini-Goal: 215 by July 12

Howdy Southern Lady ~ I'm a southern lady too, from Tennessee! Warmest welcomes to you! I'm very new to the forum as well, but I've already been OVERWHELMED AND INSPIRED by the wonderful people here and their stories! We all have so much in common, and I truly feel we're all in this together!

Just see this weight loss challenge as something you get up everyday to do ~
one day and one pound at a time! We truly can do it ~ our lives begin to improve the minute we start making positive changes!!! Blessings, irishwings

Welcome Welcome Welcome.

I agree with what everyone else has said! Slow and Steady is the way to go!