Chele615---- oh my goodness girl, you just said it exactly. I went off plan, and now I am struggling, I am on plan for a day or 2 then off then on for a day or 2... this cycle is doing nothing for me and I literally am back right at where I started even BEFORE THE CHALLENGE!!!! Ahh, girls, I need some help! I know what I am doing wrong, I just keep doing it, so I know it has to be a mental "I don't give a crap" attitude which is a lie, because I really do. Hmmm... need to do some self analyzing I think, and find a way to get accountable!

So how did we all do this weekend? I swear alcohol is going to prevent me from getting to goal!

Lost the pound that I had gained and an extra half of a pound. Still have 8 pounds and about 5 weeks to do it in =0! I cann't believe how fast the time is flying and how much I have to do to get ready to go to school!

I'm in! I'll be a sophomore at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. I start at the end of August. I'm a size 18 and I want to put a stop to gaining weight. I become so stressed with school that I've developed a comfort to have something in my mouth. I need to learn to stop shoving sweets down my throat and to replace them with veggies.

Great luck to everyone!

Abigail207 - congrats on the loss! That's a relief to get rid of that lb you had put on, and then some! I've got 10 lbs to do in 5 weeks so we're really under the gun now. Hopefully a really good week will get us back on track

baj2010706 - welcome! I think this is a really good time to start trying to break habits (I hear you on the sweets...desserts are my biggest weakness. No meal is complete without one!). Better to start now and have a system in place when classes start than waiting til school's in and you've got studying to deal with AND you're trying to start losing. Do you have a particular plan or system you're following?

hello, i'm starting school in october and i want to lose at least 20 pounds. so far i've lost 3 pounds.

Yay, way to go missunshine! I also really like the quote in your signature, hahah.. love cookies!

I had some clothes-related NSV this week! I've had this super cute jacket in my closet for ages that I never wore because it wouldn't button. I tried it on yesterday, and it closed! I was so excited! ... too bad it's the middle of summer, but it'll be one less thing to buy for fall clothing :P

I also stepped out of my comfort zone and bought some skinny jeans. Frankly, I think they're a bit ironic because I'm anything but skinny , but I tried them on and they don't look half bad! They were five bucks at Walmart, so I won't feel too bad if I end up abandoning them for fear of wearing them in public. :P

Hope you ladies have had a good start to your week!

I had a pretty good weekend.....I'm in class this whole week (8-4:30, but at least it's only Monday through Friday and I'm done), so things are a bit busy right now with that. But I am planning on getting right back into the gym routine come Friday. The food is actually going well because I'm sitting in class all day long and it gives good structure

redliss and suasponte -- Glad to hear of other law students working on weight loss!

Everyone else -- hello! Just got back to the weight loss/healthy living thing a few weeks ago when I tipped the scales at the highest weight I've ever been at: 186.6 lb. Considering I was generally between 155 and 160 at the start of college, this is a lot in just 5 years.

I'm starting law school this fall, and my goal is to get down to 175 by the start of classes (August 29). Today, I weighed in at 181.4.

Good luck, everyone! Keep up the good work

I have a plan but it's all my own. I'm trying to only allow myself to the majority of my carbs in the morning, and then I'll allow myself a red potato for dinner with chicken or fish. I've also started exercising in the evenings for an hour. I'm still on the fence with how many days a week to exercise.

As for the sweets I'm trying to replace with fruits, but sometimes that doesn't help so I'm learning to eat a very small portion of dessert when my cravings are too intense.

baj2010706, that sounds like a good plan. Similar to mine so let's hope it works! I noticed I was using up a LOT of calories on carbs and every time I ate carbs I just wanted MORE. They do help me stay fuller longer so I want to still work them into most meals but finding a balance is a struggle. Maybe I'll try what you're doing and eat them in the morning.

For desserts you might try non-fat pudding cups. They're 100 calories each and really satisfy my craving. I'm sure there's loads of rubbish in them, and I try to eat mostly whole foods...but I make an exception for them, haha.

firefoxy - welcome! Love your avatar, sooooo cute. I started school 3 years ago at a pretty small size... I think I consistently wore an 8, maybe a 6 at times and a small on top. Now I'm mostly in 12s for pants. We never had a scale but I would guess I was around 140 so I've probably gained about 30 lbs since high school. Scary! Terrifying actually now that I type that out. Anyway, I feel your pain. It's hard looking back on pictures from then sometimes. Good luck

Chele615 - I hear you on structure. It's a huge help! Although I was eating less when I wasn't working, cause I'd wake up at 11, have breakfast/lunch, dinner later on, and then stay up til 2 and do it again. Do you ever find it hard to stay within your calories while eating 3 full meals? Or do you do 6 smaller ones?

pinksparkles - Congrats on your NSV!! Clothes are often more telling than the scale. And work those skinny jeans! What a horrible name for pants aha.

missunshine - welcome! No better time to start than now, right? Good luck!

Well girls, I got a job! I have been looking for a part time service job to just finish out this school year and possibly longer if grad school permits. And even more awesome, is I didn't have to go back to retail (my nightmare) AND the position is at a gym! I am working in the child care center at a local 24 hour fitness, so I get to work with kiddo's like I love and be in an environment where people are working towards healthy lives. (I hope they rub off on me;P)

Eek, I've been bad at not keeping up with this thread. From the looks of it though, everyone is doing GREAT.

When I originally posted in this thread, my goal was 220. I'm at 225, right now.

AshleighAO congrats! Do you get a membership? No excuses not to go now haha (except that you will have worked 8 hours with children and will be exhausted...crap).

melni, you're so close! That's awesome. Maybe you'll go past your goal!


Ladies, since we're in the home stretch now... what do you think of weekly weigh-ins? Annoying? Good for accountability? Could help push us through these last few weeks. Let me know what you think.

Yeah free memebership and the club manager, while we were talking and I mentioned a reason for applying was to work in a healthy environment for my own sake, said that it would be great for me to pick the brains of all that I work with, so super excited. I am making it my goal to go everyday I work since I'm only working part time, it should be do-able.