Hi all. I'm new here. I'm 5'9" and 195 pounds. My goal weight is 155. I need a lot of help and support because my fiance thinks I'm beautiful just the way I am (and all that crap...) so he's a not a big fan of me "dieting." About 4 years ago, I was the same size I am now, then I lost 40 pounds and felt so great about myself. When my fiance and I met, it was all downhill from there, but I want to go back to my size 10s and being a much happier person. I'm depressed all the time and I'm stuck here in Maine (where it's snowing as we speak--I thought it was the middle of April??) in crappy cold weather which depresses me that much more. I'd like meal ideas and FUN exercise ideas (I'm not much of a gym person unless I'm already feeling good about myself--too intimidating otherwise). Please e-mail me ([email protected]) or IM me on AOL (MissJodie612). I hope I can help someone out, too.

I just wanted to say welcome and I can totally understand the way your feeling right now. I'm in Denver and we just had a blizzard come through and shower us with snow. The sun is out now and I can not begin to tell you how much better I already feel now that the snow is melting away.
As for meal ideas I'm probably not a good one to give advice. I'm a pretty simple gal when it comes to home meals and I eat out a lot. Are you planning on doing a certain "program" or just watching calories or fat, etc?
As far as exercise I really like the gym, but it did take me a while to feel really comfortable. At home I do have a walking away the pounds video and a Kathy Smith lifting weight to lose weight video that I do when I can't get my butt out of the house to go to the gym. I really like them, maybe you can check those out.
I hope others have some really good ideas for you!

Welcome pinkdaisy! I have been working out while dieting for about three years, so I've gotten pretty bored of the treadmill! I think the Billy Banks tae bo home vidoes are really fun, and they have hip hop and bellydancing videos that are the best. Not to sounds like an old woman...but I love Richard Simmons too!! You could also do a lot of excercise outside when the weather gets nicer...hikes, bike riding, and swimming are two of my faves. Also, I love the classes at my gym...maybe you could look into joining a gym that offers a lot of group excercise? And believe me, you should never EVER feel like you are not in good enough shape to go to the gym...everyone there has body issues too! You're not the only one!! Good luck!

Hey - IM me anytime: kjo240502

Welcome! Where did you live before moving to Maine? I recently (okay, like 8 months ago so I guess it's not so recent anymore) moved from Los Angeles to Providence, Rhode Island, so I know what you're saying about being "stuck" in cold weather. I'm hoping once I finish grad school I can move back to California and get some more sunshine! Actually, it was really springy and gorgeous here last weekend (OTOH, spring means pollen, which means allergies!), so I'm glad that winter finally seems to be ending. This was my first "real" winter ever!

For meal ideas you might want to check out the food forum (if you go back up to the main forums section you should be able to find it), there are recipes there. As for fun exercise ideas . . . Well, I've never been to Maine, but I heard that it's absolutely beautiful in the summer. Maybe you could start going for long walks, or hiking, or something like that. I recently got into jogging, which I used to hate, but now that it's doing such great things for my body I love it! If you are into sports, you could try something like that . . . last week my bf and I played basketball, which was a great workout -- for me at least! He's 6'1" and I'm 5'4", and he was on his high school basketball team, so he totally beat me.

I saw on your profile that you like swimming -- swimming supposedly burns more fat than just about any other activity, so if you could get back into that I'm sure it would help out! If you want to workout at home while the weather is bad, you could get some exercise DVDs, a lot of people do that. I'm not much for exercising in front of the TV, I feel a little silly doing it, but it seems to work great for a lot of people. My favorite at-home workout is giving our apartment a deep-cleaning, while dancing around to some upbeat music. Maybe you could try taking a yoga class or something?

Anyway, now I'm just rambling (can you tell I'm procrastinating doing my work?). Welcome!

Welcome to the boards! I grew up in Maine and moved to Texas now a few months back and the one thing I don't miss is the cold weather!! It's so much easier to be motivated when it's already near 80 and I know I'll need the swimsuit soon. What I liked better about Maine was that there were so many more opportunities for exercise, like running the boulevard in portland or rollerblading. The sidewalks here are almost nonexistent so that is difficult. Also they have a great track at UMO if you are into doing that, or able to use it. Like someone else suggested swimming is great, last spring I swam laps a couple times a week before a trip to the bahamas and it was really helpful. as far as meal ideas start with simple. buy a big pack of boneless skinless chicken and experiment with different marinades or "bread" with tortilla chips (baked), cornflakes etc. I live with my boyfriend who disagrees with my weight loss as well so I know the importance of stressing a healthier lifestyle over just losing weight. There are plenty of guy friendly meals out there that can be modified to lower in fat and calories pretty easily. good luck and feel free to PM me anytime.