300+ And Ready to Try Again...#768
 

WELCOME !!!

We are a group of individuals who weigh or have weighed 300+, or near there. This group was formed to provide a place for others like us to find support and hope. We are aware of the distinct problems that come with weighing over 300 lbs.

We want to invite everyone to join us in our journey.
We share laughter and tears.
We share what works for us and what doesn't.
We often use a "Topic of the Day" for discussion.

Motivational Monday
Tuesday Tips
Wednesday Wish List .. and What you are doing to obtain it.
Thankful Thursday
FUN Friday ... don't wait until you lose your weight.
Sit-up Saturdays - any physical activity
Share your Success Sunday

These are not required topics ...just ideas to share. We often find them very helpful. We also share heartaches and fears ... joys and celebrations.

We have several extra threads going on simutaneously such as Monthly Challenges, Weekly Weigh-ins, Recipes, Bios, and more. Please feel free to check them all out.

We have found this thread to be more than just a support group...
we have found it to become a home. We invite you to join us.

WELCOME!

I know you'll all agree that we are really thankful for the free services here at 3FC. The sisters offer all of this support and information with no charges to us. There are a couple of ways though that we can help out.

If you are thinking about buying anything at Amazon, why not help out 3FC at the same time? You can do this by clicking on the button for Amazon on any page in the forum, or by clicking on the button on the main 3FC page at www.3fatchicks.com . A portion of your purchase price will be given to 3FC by Amazon. It doesn't increase your price at all, but it does help out 3FC. You can use any of the Amazon.com links that you see on the site in order to help contribute to the site.

Also, BTW, in case you didn't know it, you can view the message boards "ad free" for a minimal charge. I think it's like $15 for 6 months. A very small investment to be rid of the annoying ads and make your pages load quicker.

There have been some concerns expressed by the powers that be about copyright infringement. So please, if you are directly quoting someone else or printing an article in whole or in part, please give credit where credit is due!!!!

Jen -- I am so happy that you are so close to getting under 300!!! Way to GO!!! I will be there too before you know it. I haven't been under 300 since before I got pregnant with my son and he is almost 6. I see that as a major milestone to be under 300. Keep it up girl...you can do it!!

G'Afternoon everyone! Hope every one has better weather than we have today. Rain, rain go away! :sunny:

Jen- Congrats on being so close to that 300 mark! It seems so close but yet so far away still for me! I can't wait for that day! :goodscale :goodluck:

I have had a pretty sweet experience today that I will share! Today I threw out my bra extenders haha!! As silly as it is, I was pretty excited, did a little dance :dancer: around the bed and looked around to make sure that my husband wasn't awake! :sssh:

Girl that is not silly at all!! That is a a great victory!

going to lose 200 -- That's great that you were able to throw your bra extenders away....I am sure you were excited.

Jill -- I hope the couch is still there waiting for you. It sounds like a great deal. Good luck!!

Hello All,

I am so glad I found this place. Meeting all the wonderful people here in the same boat as me it makes all the difference to me. Any time that I think of giving myself a little treat I think, no, I really don't need it, and I automatically think of coming here to let you all know about my latest non scale victory :)

Brenda (200) - I got your name right didn't I? I had a big smile on my face when I pictured you dancing around your bed when you threw away your bra extenders, and hoping your hubby was sleeping :lol: You have been doing so well to lose as much weight as you have, I am sure you have had quite a few non scale victories.

Amy - :cheer: congratulations on your 1 lb loss. Don't be too disappointed that it wasn't more. I find those lbs that come off slowly are the ones that show more. Keep up the great work.

Jen - yes you are very close to being under 300 lbs, it's going to be quite a milestone for you. That's my first small goal, to get under 300 lbs, then it's only another 100 lbs til I am excited about getting under 200 :lol: Ok it's not so much only another 100 lbs, but it's in the right direction no matter how long it takes.

Andrea - I see you are aiming to have being under 300 lbs as one of your mini goals too. It won't be long until we are all under that and striving for our next mini goals. Did you find your weight caused any problems with your pregnancy and giving birth? I was 224 when I had my daughter, and the doctors treated me like I was the worst mum in the world by being pregnant and overweight. It wasn't very nice. The worst bit was when people used to comment to my mum in law or even me, about how much weight I had gained. They couldn't tell I was pregnant. Yet now when I am not pregnant many people ask me 'when the baby is due'. I used to make up a date just to save them any embarrasment. and then I thought, what the heck, tell the truth. I make light of it, but it does annoy me.

Jill - did you get that couch you were trying to get? I really hope you did, I am sure it will be the crowning glory in your new living room.

It's time for my hot chocolate and biscuits now. I hope everybody is doing well, oh and remember Blondie, no not the singer, one of the women who post here occasionally? She started WW two weeks ago and she is doing brilliantly with it. So in case you are reading this Jessica - :cheer: well done you!!

Hugs,

Ammi :crazy:

Hi everyone~~:)

I've been pretty busy so I haven't been able to come here to post. I've been able to come and read a couple of times, but I always end up having to leave before I can say hi. I have had a pretty tough few days--starting with the fact that I gained 1.2 lbs. :( I'm pretty sure that it's because I've been working out with weights and just started it a couple of weeks ago, but it's still depressing. I want to get under 300 so bad--only 9 more lbs. to go. So I'm kind of bummed out about that. I figured that if I have a "carbohydrate weekend"--that's where I let myself "cheat" on my diet and eat whatever carbs I want (I had Chinese food and I read someone elses post about the hot dog not being as good as you were imagining--ditto to that)--anyway, I figured that if I do that and then re-start my low carb eating that it will jump start my weight loss again. I know that I should be happy--going from 357-309, but I want to lose more. :cry: and I want to lose it NOW! (Insert temper tantrum here. ;) ) I just noticed that I have to update my ticker--you know--that will make me feel good so YAY.

Now--I don't remember who ate the hot dog and didn't enjoy it--sorry--I'm a big Red Sox fan too. I just love those guys. Did you see the Queer Eye for the Straight Guy episode that had the Red Sox on it? Great show and OMG--Johnny Damon's arms are stupendous. I just love that man. Sorry that they didn't win the game you went to see--but they're still great to watch. :)

Ammi--I'm with you. Coming here helps me to face the day and not get all suicidal and crazy because I gained that stupid pound. :( Not that I'm suicidal but you know what I mean. I know that I'm still liked and appreciated even though the scale went the wrong way this week.

Going to lose 200--it's not silly at all! Congratulations and keep up the good work. :cb: After all, it's those "silly" little things that keep you going. For example--when I drive I can now keep the steering wheel lowered instead of in the up position. Or when I take a shower I find that it's easier to wash underneath my stomach now. :o I think that's one of the things that's most embarrassing about being this size--it's hard to clean yourself right, you know?

Jill--did you get the couch? Let us know because we're all excited for you. :goodluck:

Andrea and Jen--:) :) I'm in that I want to be under 300 lbs. club too. Keep it up--I'm sure that we'll all get there soon.

Amy--A 1 lb. loss is just that--A LOSS! :dance: :cp: It's hard to lose 1 lb. so you just dang well better enjoy it and revel in your success. :)

A big hello to everyone else--I can't see the other thread so I can't comment on everything. Has anyone heard anything from Catherine? I hope she's having a good time.

Well, I've got to go read the rest of the board now and then take a shower. I worked out today for 1.5 hours and then came home and puttered about the house so I'm sure that I'm pretty stinky. ;) I was doing so good with my workouts and guess what happened? I ended up talking to the gym manager and he said that if yoou work out 4 days a week that should be okay to lose weight so I apparently took that as permission not to go to the gym every day. :?: Why did I do that? I told myself that I wouldn't and I did. I'm just going to have to re-program myself again and say that I have to go every day even if it's only to walk on the treadmill. Maybe that's part of the reason I gained this week? I didn't work out as much as usual. Oh well--this is another day and I'm okay with where I am right now. I just hope that my scale moves back down this week.

Talk to you all later. Have a great day or night. :)

dolphingirl -- The Red Sox and the hot dog I didn't enjoy was me!! Yes, yes, I saw the QE ep, and loved it. Big Papi is my favorite man these days. I am sorry the Red Sox didn't make it further but honestly think I would have eaten the fridge had this year been as nailbiting as last year was. I think a White Sox/Astros WS would be just fine!

Ammi -- I cracked up when I read your line about wiping our butts. I wouldn't have said this anywhere else, but I DID have that problem before I started losing, and let's just say that with the 30+ pounds I have lost, that task has become a lot easier. Let's hope for all of you too!


Like dolphingirl, I can barely get through reading all of these before I have to run -- right now my in-progress lentil soup is calling me... so I'll be back later...

Ammi -- Honestly I never had any complications due to my weight when I was pregnant. Actually during my pregnancy I lost weight. They found out after an ultrasound that I had an extremely large cyst so I had to have surgery when I was 3 months pregnant. Get this...the cyst contained 5 1/2 liters of fluid and it was in my fallopian tube so the baby would have room to grow. Imagine that and I got pregnant without even trying. Anyways I was in the hospital for 5 days and I lost about 20 pounds....of course after that I ended up gaining it back with my pregnancy and then more.

I have actually been dying to have another baby and we tried for close to a year. I was taking Clomid and unfortunately I never got pregnant. I am 30 and I still want a baby and I am thinking this weight loss will be good for when I do get pregnant. I am suppose to have a test done where they run dye through your tubes to see if there is any blockage.

And Yes we will all be under 300 in no time.

Dolfingirl -- You are almost there....I know that will be exciting to get under 300....YOU CAN DO IT!!!

I got the couch--YAY! Now we will have something to sit on! It also came with a free recliner chair, though the handle for the recliner is broken off (but I'm sure between me, my BF, and my father, we can make it work ;) ). There's a picture of both here. Gosh, I LOVE Craigslist! In the picture, the sectional looks solid blue (to me, anyway), but it's actually blues and grays and tan and mauve thin vertical stripes, which is probably even better because a pattern won't show dirt or wear as much as a solid might, plus if we change our living room decor (from the present blue), it should match just about anything :D And I am loving the fact that it has a recliner on one end and a pull-out bed on the other. Jeez, how much can I write about a couch? :p I'm just so relieved to have found one that we can pick up this weekend while we have the moving truck. Otherwise, it was back to the stinky situation I was already in, which is, yes, I need a new couch, but once I find one, how do I get it to my place :?: (since Jeff and I both drive Honda Civics, I don't think it would quite fit :dizzy: ).

Anyway, so I'm very happy about that. I got some more packing done last night--attacked some kitchen cabinets and packed away all but 5 clean outfits of clothing (for this week) and ran 2 loads of laundry. Not much more to go now! But then, of course, I have to scrub the apartment top to bottom so I can get every possible penny back from my security deposit (minus the $25 they are going to charge me to get rid of my current couch). It's so close to moving day!!!! Can you tell I'm excited? :p

So, back on topic now--I think I will be down a bit at this Thursday night's weigh-in. I had a better-than-normal weekend (since my weekends have been quite the dieting disasters lately), and when I peeked at the scale this morning, I was right on track, so hopefully I will be down a bit by Thursday. Good, I really need to break past 279--it was nice to get below 280, but I've been stuck hovering around this 279-282 range since early August!

going to lose 200--congrats on the bra extender toss-out! Before you know it, you'll be tossing out whole bras and buying smaller sizes :cool:

dolfin--I'm sure your body will catch up with you. You may have a few small gains here and there, but then suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, you'll have a major loss of like 5+ pounds or something. I see it happen a lot, and it makes all the hard work (and frustration!) worth it :^:

Ammi--oh, girl, I needed that chuckle here at 5:40am :lol: I have noticed that it's been easier to wipe my butt lately. However, even at my highest weight, I have always been blessed with quite a bit of flexibility, so I can just push my tummy overhang over and shave my legs myself. Oh, the things we discuss when in the company of those in a similar situation, eh? :lol:

Andrea--it's good to hear that you didn't have any pregnancy complications while being overweight. I'm 23, and one of the main reasons I want to lose weight right now is so that I can be healthier during pregnancies (I want 4 kids, or at least I think I do--we'll see how the first one goes ;) ). Of course, I'm not married yet, or even engaged, so it'll still be a few years, which is why I want to lose the weight NOW! OH, and you're lucky that cyst didn't do more damage. A week after I turned 16, I had to have emergency surgery to removed a 10-inch fluid-filled cyst from my ovary. It was actually tangled in my falopian tube and cut the circulation off to the ovary, so they had to remove the tube and ovary, and while they were in there, they found another cyst starting on my other ovary :o I have been on birth control pills as a cysts-prevention medication ever since, and was instructed very strictly to NEVER go off them unless I wanted to get pregnant because I am a "cyst farm" (doc's words, not mine :dizzy: ). So, now I am half a woman on the inside and double the woman in weight, so I'm here to even it out a bit :p

Well, that's certainly more than enough for one post--Hello to everyone else lurking and readin out there, and have a great day to all!

Good morning everyone! I'm so sleepy. My kids get up WAY too early. I guess maybe I stay up too late at night. The bad news is that I allow myself one cup of coffee every morning, and I'm out of coffee filters! The only tea in the house is decaf, so I'm in a fix this morning. Well, maybe its just that I need a fix!

Anyhow, sorry for rambling.

Jill- Yay for the couch and recliner. It looks really good. I'm going to have to check out Craigs List now.

Andrea- Good luck with the tests you'll have run. Hopefully they will find no complications. How old is your son?

wyllenn- Hope the soup turned out well!

Ammi- I know what you mean about loving the list. It helps me stay on track, too!

dolphingirl- Don't give up with the weights. It's so good for you. I've been working with weights the last couple of weeks, too. It's becoming addictive for me!

Brenda- Yay! No bra extenders! Don't victories like that feel great?

OK, well, I guess I'll go see if I can figure out something for my coffee situation. Have a great day everyone!

Amy

Hi girls! Just getting my morning reading done before actually doing some work!

I found out last week everyone in my company is getting a HUGE bonus this month because our company did well last fiscal year. It should be about $1500 or so. I'm considering purchasing a tread mill with some of it, then saving the rest for a trip to England this spring.

Anyone have a tread mill they particularly like? I need something sturdy, since I am a big girl!

Will check in later y'all!

Hello All,

Wow I am so tired today, I don't know why, I think it's down to the weather. It's only 1.25 in the afternoon, but it's so gloomy it feels like 6 pm at least. I have just woken up from a sleep and if I carry on feeling like this I might just go back to sleep lol.

I got my cleaning done this morning, so that's good, I should be up baking cakes, but that can wait til I am in a better frame of mind. I might be too tempted to 'lick the bowl' afterwards lol.

Jill - that is so great that you got the couch. I haven't checked it out yet, but I will when I am finished here. I am so glad you are doing so well with your packing, and I hope when the move happens nothing gets left behind lol.

I am glad I gave you (and Wyllen) a laugh when I spoke about us wiping our butts. I am glad too that the both of you don't have that trouble so much anymore. I think the main reason I had trouble with mine, and with shaving my legs still, is because I suffer with my back too. So all that stretching to reach does me no good. I mean at the end of cleaning my house I can hardly move until I lie down for at least an hour. It sucks and I hope it will get better as the weight comes off.

I am looking forward to hearing how you go at WI, I hope it won't bite you on the bum that you got on the scales to get an idea of how you are doing. Those scales are so unreliable, so don't fret if they show less of a loss when you do officially weigh:

I am sorry to hear about your experience with having such a nasty cyst, and that you are a 'cyst farm'. When you are ready to have children I hope you will fall pregnant without too much trouble and that you dont end up needing an op like Andrea did when she was pregnant.

Andrea - I was happy to hear that your size didn't bring complications when you were pregnant. I just keep seeing my doctors notes on my file saying that the fact I was so morbidly obese could be a complication on my pregnancy. If morbidly obese was 194 lbs I hate to think what he would consider me now :o

You must have been so scared having to have surgery while you were pregnant. That was one mean cyst you had wasn't it!! I am glad they could remove it and that it didn't upset your pregnancy at all. Phew!!

Amy - how did you survive without your morning coffee? Is it only the one cup you have a day? I only ask because I wondered if you knew that caffeine is a weight loss inhibitor. My mum loves her coffee and when she joined a slimming club many years ago they told her she could only have 3 cups of coffee a day. She decided she would have six small cups instead, totally neglecting the fact that she was having 6 teaspoons of coffee still and not 3 lol.

I am sorry your kids get you up so early. I was lucky when my daughter was little, she was like me, a night owl lol. So we were up most of the night, and slept most of the day!! It's weird because the only time I have had to put up with kids getting up early was when my step daughter moved in. She was 12 at the time and tried getting up at 7 am just to watch TV. I soon put a stop to that though and said she could watch TV quietly in her room til 9 am, and then she could get up. I am a right cow if I am woken up in the morning :lol:

Jen - that bonus sounds fantastic and what two brilliant ways to spend it. I personally don't like a treadmill, I would prefer a cross trainer (elyptical) machine. So I can't help you with your question about them. How cool too that you will put what's left towards a trip to the UK. Do you have friends or family over here, where abouts would you like to see, have you been over here before??

Luan - where are you my friend, long time no see. Are you lurking :dizzy:

Sharon (neurotica) - I am guessing you are keeping busy with all that you have on your plate right now. I hope you are keeping strong with your diet nonetheless :)

Sharon (voodoo) - just about to go have some lunch and then I will put MSN on and see if you are about. Hope all is well.

PJ - hello, have I forgotten you are going on hols or moving or something?? I hope you check in soon.

Alison - how are you doing. I hope you are still coming here to at least read posts. We want to help motivate you to keeping on track and proving to yourself that you haven't given up. We all said you aren't a failure, and I hope you believe us because it's the truth.

Catherine - I am sure she will be having too great a time to check on here, but just in case, lol, I hope you are having a wonderful time with your fella and that his parents love you as much as he does and visa versa.

Kate - I sent you a PM the other day in reply to one you sent me, I hope it reached you safely.

Everybody else that's reading this, I hope you are having a good day,a good week and that you are keeping strong.

Hugs,

Ammi

Amy asked about the soup -- it was delicious! In the summer I ate a lot of salads, but I really LOVE making soup. It ended up being slightly higher in calories than I thought it would (who knew a whole pound of lentils is over 1500 calories! Thank goodness for nutridiary, or I'd still be living in ignorance.), but it's just also just SO good for you and so many good flavors, and the "more calories" is a whole lot less than other meals in the past...

Hmmm... maybe I should learn to make cold soup next summer... never really thought about it before.

I'm glad Jill got her couch ! And Brenda threw out her bra extenders! Great victories!

Jeanette -- I have a nordictrack treadmill... they do have some for heavier people, but they are $$$. Mine is only to 275 lbs and it cost in the neighborhood of 2K! (I had to lose some weight before I felt I could even use it, and even then, it squeaked a lot at first -- I think I was a smidge over the weight limit -- not anymore though!)

Ammi -- Can you bake and not eat what you make? I haven't dared yet bake since I started losing. I have this banana bread recipe I'm dying to make, but I think I would eat the whole thing in a day like I used to!! Then again, maybe I do have the strength. I could cut it into slices once it cools and package them up for daily snacks... then again, it probably has a lot of fat... something else to think about.

Ammi: my boyfriend is from the UK (Preston, Lancashire to be precise). We'll be visiting lots of friends and also doing some business here. Most importantly, we will be watching Preston North End play football!!

I hadn't considered an elliptical machine....will have to try one first.

Wyllen: Thanks for the suggestion on a treadmill. I was afraid I'd have to put out alot of money for something good.

Weight loss: When did people start to comment?
 

Okay, here's a question for those of you who have gotten to this point: When did people start to comment on your weight loss?

I started at about 300 and have lost just over 30 pounds. While I certainly notice the difference in a number of ways, I don't know if I'm at the point other people would notice. I am certainly not at the point where people who don't know me well (e.g., colleagues) would comment on it, and I have volunteered that info to very few people.

I'm not asking because I can't wait for the comments -- almost the opposite. Right now I don't want to have to start answering all the "What's your secret?" questions and have them watch everything I eat ("Is that what a "dieter" eats?"). [Though I suppose before they might have wondered "Is that how much a fat person eats?"] I'm not doing this for anyone but me and like my current state of anonymity.

So, I guess a follow up question is, what kinds of questions do people most often ask you?

I lost some weight a number of years ago -- going from 250 to 217ish. I remember that people HAD started to notice. That may also have been because I started dressing nicer because I had a new wardrobe and was WANTING others to notice. I'm not at that point (yet) this time around -- do you think that's as much a part of it as anything else? That is, not the weight loss itself, but how you project yourself?

Great thread!! Well I have only lost 15 pounds but my Mom and husband said that my face looked a little smaller along with my stomach. In the past I have lost 30 - 40 pounds and it seems like just when people start noticing and tell me how great I look I get off track and gain it back. I don't know if it was because people thought I looked good and I figured well I lost the weight...now I don't have to diet anymore and then I ended up gaining it all back and then some. This time it is different for me...I am not doing it for anyone else except myself...well part of the reason I am doing this is so I can be around for my 6 year old son. When people start noticing my weight loss I will think to myself....yes I have done great losing the weight but I still have more to lose.

Yes I do think when you lose weight you tend to want to dress nicer and do different things with your hair and makeup...I feel so much better about myself just losing 15 pounds.

Andrea

Man this thread moves fast!

Ammi~ You’re ex-husband sounds like a ripe loser. I’m so glad you found someone better. They say that second hand smoke is actually more dangerous than the actual smoking because there is a filter on the end. I can’t be around it. Whenever I smell it my chest tightens up. I don’t have asmatha, it’s purely psychosomatic because I know the dangers and I don’t want to breathe that stuff in. I’m pretty lucky, though, both of my workplaces are smoke free, though there are smokers who work with me. They have to go somewhere else to smoke. I just have to deal with them smelling when they get back.

It’s great that you found some way to exercise even if it is cleaning house. I don’t care what anyone says. Cleaning house is work! All that dusting and vacuuming.

Amy~ Congratulations on the one pound lost! Sorry about the coffee situation. I love coffee myself, though I don’t have it often anymore but I know how you feel. It’s like a Cathy moment. Ack! (Cathy is a newspaper cartoon I like).

Jill~ Congrats on the couch. Getting new furniture is fun. I hope you like your new apartment.

Goingtolose200~ Yay for you being able to get rid of the bra extenders. Losing pounds is great but I think sometimes the non-scale victories are even better. Keep up the good work.

Jen~ Congrats on the bonus. I don’t own a treadmill but my apartment has some great ones in their fitness center. I’ll take a look and see what kind they are. (Maybe while I’m there I’ll actually start using it again.) My parents lived in England for about 3 years and they loved it. They said the people are nice and that’s it’s beautiful, so I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.

Wyllen~ I think you can make low-fat banana bread. I haven’t baked in forever but Allrecipes.com is a great place to go for recipes. They are contributed by people from all over, so I’m sure you’ll find some great ones.

So many congratulations going out to everyone. Hopefully I got everyone. I’m sorry if I missed you. I’m so happy to see successes. It’s very motivating to see people overcoming difficulties and moving forward. Here’s to a great weight loss week! :goodvibes

S&C

Good Afternoon everyone! It's a sunny day on PEI finally. I can actually get a walk in today! Turkey day was great and I had a great meal last night. Although now I know I have to be super good today as far as calories go. My hubby is taking me to see the new Wallace & Grommit movie tonight and I have to try to bring some healthy snacks with me. Any one have any suggestions that doesn't consist of plain popcorn? *L* I've consummed about all of it that I can handle :D

Jill ~ Congrats on the new furniture! I recovered my old stuff a few weeks ago. The couch was a very icky green flower pattern that I couldn't stand. I recovered it with a small vertical stripe as well that matches the house colors a lot better. Too bad they didn't turn out more professional looking but they will do until I go back to work and can afford new ones.

Jen ~ I have tried the elliptical... scared the crap out of me! Hope you have better luck than I! ;)

Wyllenn ~ I bake for my husband all the time. I have found that if I cut him 4 portions and me one, I still have enough to share with my parents or neighbors. I love baking and could do it every day! I have tried a lot of low-fat recipes and most have turned out pretty good. Most times you can substitute the butter or margarine with applesauce and no one can tell :D I even had some recipes call for mashed prunes instead of butter. They come in baby food bottles and usually are the right portion size for your recipe. Just don't tell any fussy members of your family... my husband now asks what is in things before he eats them... little white lies will only make his heart thank me in the long run. i only told him about the "prune" thing once! Now I make the best chocolate "prune" brownies and he, although thinks that they are fattening, loves them. If anyone would like the recipe, let me know!

Well, I am off for now to do laundry and go for my walk before the weather changes. One can never trust the fall season. But I love to walk this time of year when the leaves are falling and "crunch" beneath your feet. My beagle loves to run and roll in them and each time brings a smile to my face. Who can ask for more motivation than that....

Talk to you all later and I encourage everyone to take 15 minutes today and enjoy the fall. Even just go and walk around in the yard or down the street to the park. It will increase your energy and best of all, it might make you smile...... :D

Hello everyone, been a busy & stressful weekend, :( will try & mention the stuff in this thread, it would take too long to go on about the other one. Congrats on the new settee & chair jilly, well done to those who've lost or even maintained. I'm still not up to exercising, IBS is pretty bad at the moment, :o not eating much, lentil soup & low fat yogs, so should lose some weight, even if I'm not moving around much! :rofl: can't face other food, I know it will make the pains worse, had a couple of probiotic drinks this morning to see if balance of bacteria is off in my gut (ick, sorry :o ) which can upset me, or if its stress.
I hope that catherine is doing well & enjoying her holiday/romantic interlude! and that the long journey was worth it! :love:
jen, how did u meet your boyfriend? it must be hard him being so far away, northern men like their women bigger than those in the midlands (where I am) and the south, my ex-husband came from yorkshire and when I moved there guys could'nt stop chatting me up, eyeing me up or flirting with me! I weighed 74lbs less then, though! :rofl:
Got to go and bath my boys soon so will go now, Ammi, will try & catch u tonight or tomorrow 8.30-9 or 12.30-1.30 or 4.00pm.

regards,
sharon :grouphug:

Hey ladies....

I've been MIA for about hmmm maybe two weeks. I had to take my laptop in to fix my cpu fan and the jack for my charging station. My computer wouldn't charge it's battery without being taped up into a certain position. I managed to almost drop it and in the process I banged the charging cable while it was plugged into my laptop and snapped one of the sodder pins that held my charging jack onto my motherboard... YIKES! So I had it in for about a week and half. I was going crazy because I needed a laptop for school to take notes. I type faster than I can write and so I can get more details while listening to lectures. I've been using James' Mac laptop... was a little awkward, but I stayed off the internet and used it just for school. My desktop is over at my fathers place because his computer took a flop and so he will have mine until another computer show comes up so he can get another motherboard.

Man... what a mess huh? I've been feeling really stressed out with school. My calculus is really killing me. I'm so close to dropping the class... but I wanna stick it out, but I'm concerned my grade will suffer. Honestly tho, I think it's past the point of where i can drop and get a refund... otherwise I'd have to pay back the VA who paid my tuition... eek. I'm thinking about going in to see my advisor and see if I can avoid taking Calculus 3 next term. I just need one more upper division math to satisfy my academic plan... Unless I fail calculus 2, then I would need two upper division math classes... ICK :( I have a calculus quiz on Wednesday then I have the midterm on Monday... I have a midterm on Thursday for my cultures class, and a paper for my Children's lit class. I dunno where to start first. I need to study for my Calculus, but I need to study for my cultures class to... I'm working up an ulcer here. I'vehad migrains and stomach aches for the last week. Just a little stressed out, and to be honest... I haven't weighed myself nor have i really paid much attention to my diet. tho I tried to be good. My whole life right now consists of work, school, come home, eat dinner, and go hide in the bedroom for homework. Then go to bed aroudn 1 or 2 am. that's pretty much what it's like. I just need to get caught up. I am starting to think that this is going to be a regular routine for me. UGH!

Sorry to post such stressing news... I just wanted to come in and post that I'm still alive... barely hanging on, but still alive. I will try my hardest to post more regularly and reply to you ladies. You guys keep my honest... and keep me sane!

Take care!
Sue...

Wyllenn, I posted a banana bread recipe on the recipe thread. You might want to check it out. It is low in fat, no sugar. I hope it is good, cause I haven't tried this one yet. :lol: What could be bad if you love banana bread? If you try it let us know if it is good. Iwillbe

Voodoo: I met him on the internet! He was living in the US at the time, though! He took me to England last year for my 40th birthday--how lovely!! His friends were all great to me--even throwing me a huge party! And they barely knew me!

Hi everyone. I am new around here. My SIL Amy (AmyLizMc) posts here and told me what a great site this is for weight loss support. My name is Amanda and boy do I have a lot of weight to lose. I need to lose about 1/2 of myself. I am 26 yrs old and I live in Ga.

I have 2 children, Mikey is almost 7 and Ella is almost 2. It is time for me to make a change and I am hoping that I can get the support that I need from here. I want to be healthy, happy and comfortable in my own body. I dream of being here to see my children and grandchildren grow up. I want to be a positive role model for my children when it comes to health and I know that I am not that right now.

So, that is me. If there is anything that you want to know about me just ask. I am pretty much an open book.

Welcome Manda!
I am new here as well just hearing about it over the past weekend. Everyone here is absolutely wonderful and I am sure that we will all get to know each other and help each other.... we all have a similar goal!

:grouphug:

Hello All,

It's only been a few hours since I was last posting here and I come back and loads of you have posting :lol: I have some catching up to do now.

Wyllen - You pose two good questions. First of all I am not really at a point when people notice my weight loss, and when I ask my hubby he says, oh yeah you can see it in your face. Gosh I hate that, I don't want to lose it off my face or my boobs lol. When I have lost weight in the past and people have noticed I am happy at the time, but as soon as the diet fails and I see the same people again when the weight is back on, I can't help but feel guilty. They may not be saying it, but I know they are thinking it, that I have given up dieting. My ex MIL used to be really awful, first of all if I was visiting her and she had more visitors she always told them I was on a diet. Then when I failed she would say, oh she gave up on the diet, and I am a topic of conversation. I prefer to keep it quiet, Internet friends and my hubby and kids know I am dieting, but nobody else does. Oh and I can totally relate to being watched once people know you are dieting. My ex used to say 'I thought you were dieting' if he saw me eating anything other than a stick of celery. I couldn't get it through his head that on WW you can eat what you like.

As for the other question, when people did notice I was losing weight they didn't normally ask many questions, I guess the main one has to be what diet are you doing. I don't mind being asked though, it means people are noticing and although that also lets them know I have been dieting, it also tells me it's working.

No I am haven't been tempted to eat what I bake, although it's hard not to lick the spoon with cake mix on it lol. I am going to try a low fat recipe over the weekend, not sure what yet, need to check out my WW recipe books, but if I can cook something tasty and low fat it will be better for the family too. I mean the last cakes I cooked had 8 ozs of butter in them!! Not particularly healthy!!

Jen - wow I never realised your boyfriend lives over here in the UK. He lives about 40 miles from where my hubby comes from. I met him on the Internet too, and he moved in with me 3 weeks after our first real meeting. How long have you been with your guy, and is one of you going to eventually make the move so you can be together all the time? Like Sharon (voodoo) said, it must be so hard being so far apart, so I bet you are really looking forward to your next visit. It was so sweet of him to bring you over here for your 40th and for all his friends and family to throw you a big party. Sounds like these men from up North are definitely the best :)

Andrea - you have lost 15 lbs and that is fantastic, never say it as ONLY 15 lbs. That's a lot of packets of butter!! You are right that dieting for yourself is the best reason to do it. It's nice if people notice but you have to keep going until you are happy with yourself. We are all going to get to goal and then we will definitely have to put 'after' photos on the site for all to see :D

S&C - wow I never realised second hand smoking was worse than smoking yourself. If only we could get smokers to believe that. I know all my family say it's a load of rubbish and the only time they don't smoke is if there is a baby under 6 months in the house. Other that that they smoke like chimneys. I don't blame you for getting all worked up if people smoke in front of you, think I might start that if it helps stop people making me suffer their stinking habit.

Oh yes house work definitely is exercising. I lose so much sweat when I make the beds or hoover and dust, it's like a full work out :lol: I feel better though because I know I am achieving a clean house too.

Yes my ex was definitely a loser, and I am so much better without him. Although I was terribly unhappy I never would have left him because I took my vows seriously, plus I didn't want my daughter to come from a broken home. He did me the biggest favour leaving me even though it stung at the time. I am now with the man of my dreams and couldn't be happier. Well not in my love life anyway :lol: My exes new wife has had an affair so my daughter tells me, so it's definitely a case of what goes around comes around. I have no sympathy for him. Mind you he forgave her and took her back which I never would have done had he asked me to come back!!

GTL 200 - that's great that you are going to the movies, you will have to tell us if the film is as good as it seems on the ads. As for low fat snacks I like to take hard boiled sweets to suck on, and a packet of rice cake snacks like Snacka Jacks. They have some great flavours these days and you really feel like you are having a treat.

Sharon (voodoo) - you are on the right track drinking those pro biotic drinks, but although they do work, they aren't nearly strong enough to help IBS. When my daughter was diagnosed with it at the hospital I asked the consultant about what could help her and he said to get the strongest probiotic capsules you can get from the Internet. Health food shops don't sell them in such high doses that you would need. So I searched the Net, and found some. I don't know if they worked though because my daughter can't be bothered taking them. But I have started taking them to counteract the thrush I am getting from taking antibiotics daily. So if you want to go the pro biotic route, then do try the ones from the Internet. I can give you a web address if you like? I hope your tummy will calm down soon. When I am finished here I will email you with that link, and tell you about what's in the book I told you about.

Sue - lovely to see you back though I was sorry to hear that your PC had to go to the PC doctor. I am glad it's all sorted out now and I hope it didn't cost too much. Sorry to that you're feeling a bit overwhelmed with your subjects right now. I hope you can sort something out so that you get some more enjoyment out of what you are doing. Good for you for still thinking of what you are eating although you aren't dieting properly. I am sure that will make the difference between maintaining your weight and gaining it. I am sure when things are less stressful you will have time enough to really give attention to the diet.

Amanda - hello and welcome. You have certainly come to the right place for motivation and support along your weight loss journey. Where is GA by the way. I am in the UK so at a guess I would say that is Georgia, but I am probably wrong :lol: We all have a long journey ahead of us here, and it seems a few of us have a first mini goal of losing enough weight to be under 300 lbs. Setting mini goals is the best way to face losing as much as we need to..what is your first mini goal?

Ok well off to answer some emails now. Have a nice night all, and I hope everybody has a great day tomorrow.

Hugs,

Ammi :crazy:

Okie... I just got my "Unofficial Results" back from my CSET exam... my 3rd and FINAL exam. I PASSED!!! Man! At least I got some good news out of these past two weeks of misery... I can now apply for my credential program... whooo!!!!

Personal replies will come later tonight promise! Off to Class...

Love you all!

Hi Amanda! :D

Wow! You ladies have been busy today. Me too--well, at least trying to be busy.

Jeanette: I don't have a treadmill at home, but I really like the one at the gym. It's a LifeCycle, and when you enter your weight in it says the range is 75 - 400 pounds. Congrats on the bonus!

Ammi: I read in your post where you were tired, I hope you're feeling better. Weather really has an effect on me, too. Oh, and thanks for the info on caffeine. That was my only cup of coffee each day (or only caffeine, for that matter), but I think since I did without today, I'll just give it up. It's really just a holdover from when I used to smoke. I quit last November and cut way down on my coffee drinking at the same time. Coffee and cigarettes went so well together!

wyllenn: I love soup. Especially anything you can make in a crockpot. I'm kind of a lazy cook! --And unfortunately I haven't gotten to the point where anyone would notice my weight loss, I don't really notice too much, except I have more energy lately.

Jen: I tried an elliptical machine for the first time today. It was really a good workout. More than I get on either the bicycle or the treadmill. I really liked it (once I got over my worry about falling off :) )

goingtolose: I am really enjoying the fall weather, now that it has FINALLY got here!

voodoo: I hope you feel better soon. My MIL has IBS--definitely no fun.

SueMarie: CONGRATULATIONS!!! :D

Wanted to check in quick to let you know that I made it safely to Canada, and am having a great time. The chaparone even gave us some time alone. His mom is even taller than I am by several inches. They had their Thanksgiving on Monday, and I made a low fat key lime pie, and he ate 4 pieces. I write again if I get a chance.

Ammi -- You are right....I shouldn't have said "only 15 pound" because that is a big accomplishment for me.....I just need about 10 more "15 pound losses" :lol:

WELCOME MANDA!!!!!! You came to the right group....we all are here to support you. I know what you mean about being a rold model for your kids. I have a son that will be 6 in December and I don't want him to pick up on my old eating habits. Great job for you!! What are you doing to lose weight? Are you on any kind of plan or just watching what you eat and exercising?

Sue Marie -- Congrats!!!!!!! :balloons:

I don't know about any of you all but I haven't bought any Halloween candy whatsoever...usually I would have already bought a few bags. I saw a bunch of candy today when I was at Target..... Well I did 20 minutes on my elliptical trainer and did an upper body workout. Shortly we will go on our 1 1/2 mile walk. I saw on another thread that "Winning by Losing: by Jillian Michaels is suppose to be a great book with lots of good information. She is the personal trainer off of The Biggest Loser....Have any of you all heard anything about her book?

Bye for now,
Andrea :)