My name is amber alicia. i am 28 yrs old. i have 2 children (ages 11 and 4). we live in northern cali, (east bay to be exact). right now i am just coming back down from another 'flirting session' with the 300lb mark. my highest weight was 320, about 10 years ago. since then i have been pretty steady at 275. most recently i got up to 292. i am just over 5ft6 - so that makes me a pretty big girl. i've been overweight my entire life (i can remember being called fat as far back as kindergarten) i eat purely out of boredom and for comfort.

i recently decided to do something about my weight (for the last time!) this past january. my 4yr old daughter (who is as sharp as a tac) looked up at me when we were standing in the kitchen one day. she says to me 'mommy - your tummy is way too big'. *ugh* i was devastated.

so i am not on that 100lb journey! my goal is to hit 175 hopefully by next year. i haven't set a date. i do better with mini-goals. so my first mini-goal is to hit 250lbs by 7/1/10. that is my birthday weekend, and the bf is taking me to vegas!

i'm so excited to see that there are other people out there on the same wavelength as i am. hope to chat with you all soon!

My name is Joni. I live in Michigan with my husband and four kids. I'm back on 3FC after a few years away. I've got a whole person to lose, so I'm going one step at a time.

My name is Lori and am from Northern California. I am almost 35 and have been married to my awesome, super supportive hubby for almost 4 years. We are both teachers and we have no kids, but our cats are our babies.

I joined 3fc a long time ago, when I was gaining weight, in hopes I could put a stop to it. I was in a bad place and kept gaining until the end of 2004, when I started slowly taking the weight off. I am in a much happier place now, however I am better at mainaining than losing for some reason. I think it's due to not believing that I can do it. So I hover and hover around half way to goal and freak myself out when I get too close. I saw 211 on the scale a few months back (I was dehydrated, so it was a fluke, I think my true weight was about 214) and it freaked me out, so I stopped.

My goal is to break through the barrier that is my mind (LOL) and just get this done. I need to quit being scared of what will happen when I get below 200, what will happen when I get to goal, etc. Lately I've been trying to tell myself that right now is the only thing that matters. The only thing that matters is the choice I make right now in this moment. This works on many levels. It helps stop the worry about the future and how I will handle the weight loss, it works in helping me believe that I can do this, and it works in helping me make heathy choices now instead of putting it off until tomorrow.

Physically, I know how to lose weight. I am just mental, LOL!

Hi! My name is Krista. I just heard about this forum the other day and am excited about all the warmness I've found here so far. I came to the 100+ section because it is such a daunting number and need all the support I can get.

I never had weight problem growing up. In highschool I put on a touch of weight but was still in the 'normal' range for my height. First year of college I lost 30 lbs and weighed 128 which was too small for me and my body didn't hold it. I finally evened out at about 135 and was happy with that. A few years later I started gaining weight and put on over 100 lbs in less than a year. When it finally got to where I couldn't walk across campus and couldn't get to classes we went to several doctors and found out I had a mass the size of a softball in my chest attached to my heart. After open heart surgery I was diagnosed with Lymphoma. After chemo, radiation and a year on steriods I was finally well but still fat. I let that be an excuse for too long I didn't have to stay fat. I lost about 30 lbs and got right to 200 lbs but I hated my career and job so much that I gained almost 80 lbs.

10 years later and after making every excuse under the sun I'm sick and tired of being fat!! I have no desire to quit yet and that's a big deal to me... in the past after losing 30 lbs I got comfy and stopped trying then gaining and now I'm heading towards the 50 lb mark and ready to lose more more more!! I won't quit this time!!

Hi I Beth, mother of two, married 13 years. I have done this twice before and this last year hit my highest weight ever. My dh is working out with me this times. He wants to get back in shape and that helps. It's been almost 2 weeks and were going strong.

Looking forward to meeting new friends. This board helped me a lot when I did this before.

Hey guys! My name's Laurie, Indiana, 28, single. We didn't eat junk food much when I was growing up, and my mom cooked healthy. She and I both had the tendency to gain weight easily so we were always on some kind of diet. Dad kept junk food in the house for him so I got to sneaking that at times. When I started working in fast food during high school, I gained quite a bit becasue I was always eating there. Still not huge, I was a size 16 senior year (don't know my weight). My parents left the year after I graduated to travel/work in different states and I was on my own. Lived with my brother for a bit, then moved to an apt. with a roommate and we've been living together for about 8 (maybe 9) years now. When my parents left, I just had a heyday buying and eating whatever I wanted and gained weight rapidly. I think my highest weight was 345, and that was just a few months ago. I've started and stopped I don't know how many times. Been on a diet all my life it seems like, just never made it last. This time I've been on it for 3 weeks and it's easier than it's ever been. So I'm hoping this is it, I can do it for the long haul. Got a weigh-in on Tuesday so I'm excited. Well actually, it's supposed to snow so our family fat club meeting will probably be cancelled and I'll have to wait another week! Anway, I LOVE 3fc and all of the support. It's amazing to see that even the tiniest, stupidest problems that being overweight causes, happens to just about everyone. I thought these weird things were only happening to me (like belly button stink that was covered on another thread)!! I'm following WW and trying my best to write down everything I eat, even if it's bad. Thanks for all the support guys. It never fails, I'l be reading through a random thread and there'll be just one little sentence that'll make me go, "Wow!" or, "Oh yeah, I do that too. So that's how you fix that." I love it!!!

Greetings from Austin, Texas

I am a newcomer who is so grateful for all your support.

My body ranged from thin to heavy at different stages during my life, but I never had a real hard time losing until I hit about 45. Then I put on about 50 extra pounds. When I turned 49 I quit smoking and over 2 years gained another 75. NO MORE! Time to change! I am now losing, thanks to y'all being here and encouraging me.

I have two grown children, a girl and boy, and have been divorced 24 years. I work the front office at a vet clinic, train dogs, and have gone back to school to get a masters degree in English literature. Now I am losing the weight that has kept me down. I figure my life is mine to live, and I better do it!

I am so inspired by this site - it's pretty amazing the great vibe I've already received - and am so grateful for.

BEST TO Y'ALL

Wow! Learniing so much about people. This was a great idea, Sandi.

I am a full-time law student and mother of five.

I have always been slightly overweight, though I always thought I was much heavier. I always had a difficult relationship with food, sometimes eating next to nothing, other times eating way too much. When I gave birth to a stillborn baby, though, it seriously impacted my relationship with food, and I gained a great deal very quickly.

In 2008, I lost 85 pounds, with a great deal of help from 3FC. Then my schedule became way more hectic than it should be, and I gained it all back plus a little So now, I really trying to figure out a plan that will work for me while being able to keep up with everything else.

I haven't found it yet, but I will. I lost about 15 pounds since re-starting, but most of that was over winter break.

I'm grateful to have 3FC to help me.

Ok my turn I guess. Well I am a mom of 4 married, work 2 jobs and planning on going back to school in the fall. I have been a member of 3fc...forever i guess lol.

I was never overweight as a child. I was tall and thin. As a teenager I was tall and thin around 120-130lbs. I got pregnant @ 17 and gained 60lbs with that pregnancy. I ate out of depression (which I always struggled with but was worse while pregnant) and boredom (not the type to sit still for 5 seconds I was 17 and homebound).

Over the next 4 years I got married, had 2 more children and gained 100 more lbs. I decided to do something about my weight not long after my 3rd child was born. About 30lbs came off easily after he was born and I worked hard for the next 50lbs. I was down to about 205lbs. Then I went back to school. Gained a little back. Then baby # 4 came along unexpectedly. Timing was bad and I was super depressed. So 50lbs came back. I had very bad postpartum depression and slowly crept up another 10 lbs after she was born. Over the next 2 years I would reach a high of almost 300lbs.

Last year I decided to do something about it. I was down to 278lbs when I raly started to make an effort. I lost 50lbs last year. But as the 50lbs lost turned to 55lbs lost I also lost my mojo and and took a break over Christmas. I was back up like 10lbs.

So here I am again trying to get back that glimer of an old me. Trying to be healthy and deal with depression that comes and goes. Less often now but it still effects the way I eat.

So here's to loosing it all in 2010 lol.

I'm Rhonda, 45 years young, married for 16 years and Mom to two girls, 14 and 10 and to 3 dogs, a parakeet, a bunny, and two gerbils. I'm a born-again Christian who believes strongly in prayer and life change. If you'd like for me to pray for you, just send me a PM! I love to read and love watching TV. I used to love to run, but it's been a while. My goal is to rediscover this love again one day.

I'm a sugar-a-holic and constantly fight this addiction. I've been overweight for most of my life. Hopefully, this is the year when I finally find my way into Onederland.

Tracey Alabama Age 41.. Married 22 years with 3 sons.. Been here on and off . Lost my last log in ID so I made a new one. Lost tons of weight only to put it right back on. Here I go again

Hi Everyone!! I have been a LURKER on this site for YEARS and YEARS....it's time for me to STEP UP.......
I'm Selena...I was married to my high school sweetheart for 20 years and am now divorced for 2 years....No kids, no pets..
I was an athlete in college, I played softball at the University of Georgia on a scholarship....So..... how did I get from THERE... to HERE!?!?? Meaning... I weighed 140 pounds in college and over 240 pounds now....
Well I was in a very abusive (miserable) marriage for 20 years and just didnt' have the guts to leave... so I ate and ate and ate and the next thing I knew I was 40 years old and needed to lose 100 pounds....
After my divorce 2 years ago, I promised myself to lose the weight...just NEVER got around to STARTING......
Well..... here I am now...out of LURK-dom...being accountable for a change!!!!
I know with support from this wonderful site, I can lose THIS WEIGHT!!!
Thanks to everyone who has welcomed me so far.. you ALL ROCK!!!
PS....I have recently met an amazing man....He is very loving and supportive of me....He is very FIT and ACTIVE.....I hope to one day be able to KEEP UP with him... :P
Good luck everyone... I get by with a little help from my FRIENDS!!!!!

Name - Michelle
Location - NY
Age - 38
Height 5'2"
Starting weight - 330 pounds
Current weight - I actually go between 175-180 pounds
Goal weight - My ultimate goal is 125 pounds

Changes to my lifestyle since July 21, 2008

-No beef or pork or fried foods
-No sweets or junkie snacks
-No white flour foods
-No white rice, no white pasta, no white potatoes

I have incorporated -
-Lean poultry and seafood
-Whole grains
-Fruits
-Lots of veggies

I eat 6-7 times a day.
Daily caloric intake range is 1300-1600
I don't allow myself a "cheat" meal or "cheat" day though on very rare occasions I will have ONE serving of chips or fries.

I count calories using sparkpeople.com
My workouts (except at the moment I am dealing with a lump on my back that causes pain and discomfort) include Wii Fit Plus and The Biggest Loser workout DVDs and Jillian Michaels' workout DVDs which the last 2 incorporate weights and cardio which I really love. When I am able to workout without the pain, I like a 5 day a week schedule with 1.5 hour sessions each day.

I live with my boyfriend of 6 years and my 2 year old chug (part chihuahua, part pug) doggy.

I spend all the bulk of my time on the internet doing various things (including Facebook and Farmville ).

That's about it for me. Anything else can be found in the links in my signature


Hugs
Michelle

Hey all! I'm Kaelyn... Kae or KK for short. I'm a 26 yr old single chick from Minnesota. I've been visiting 3FC and the 100LB Club off and on for almost 3 years now.

I was a skinny little kid (though I have always thought I was fat) and didn't start putting on weight until my parents divorced when I was 9... then I gained a LOT more after my dad died when I was 12. I didn't make my first attempt to lose until I was 17 and living in an emotionally and physically abusive home situation. I wanted to get some control back and prove to myself I could do it. I managed to lose about 30 lbs (190 to 160)... but the new attention from guys freaked me out and I gained back my weight and THEN SOME in college. Life happened and I went through several years dealing with depression and emotional eating...

So here I am... I really wanted to make a go of the weight loss this time. I want to figure out who I am and what I want.. and hey, maybe even date someone again someday. LOL.

Hi! I'm Kim and a newbie here. I have been heavy all my life. I have lost it twice but I gained it all back plus some. Now I'm the heaviest I have ever been.

I've been married for almost 15 years and I have one 7½ year old son. We also have a Bernese Mountain Dog named Peyton.

I really feel like I can do it this time. Everyone seems so supportive here.