[anawhatsme]

what was the final straw to make you say enough is enough?
did you struggle to stay on plan at first?
did you start off with regular exercise right away?
how long did it take you to get in the weight loss/healthy lifestyle groove?

some of you may not remember the beginning, but i hope some of you do.
i want and need to lose weight/get healthy, but i find getting it going is such a challenge.

i see your progress pics and your tickers showing your amazing losses.
you inspire me.
i wonder what was it like for you when you started?

i'm having a hard time with my eating and hope to get some insight.

thanks.

[lilmomma2011]

My B/P & cholesterol being elevated and my low energy level was the straw for me. I have been at it for 12 weeks now, I started exercising 4 weeks into it. I am still getting in the groove of the exercise thing and trying hard to make it a habit. I have discovered that I am an emotional eater so I ha been working on doing other things instead of eating. It's not easy but it IS doable. When I get discouraged I just look back at how far I have come. It also helps that I break down my weight loss into smaller goals. Like my first goal was 5%, now I'm working on 10%.

[lottie63]

My dad (who I didn't know) died at age 47 from diabetes complications, but first lost both legs and went blind before his kidneys failed. I wish that had been enough, but it was always in the back of my mind and I couldn't shake it.

I have high sugar.

Anyhow...I am a real all or nothing person, I just jumped into it, I went vegan and around the same time, gluten free for health reasons, I went on a 1500 cal diet and started exercising. Honestly that took longer to stick than the diet. I haven't binged since October 14th and have been on plan since october 19th ( both 2010).

Anyhow, you can do it.

I just wrote a blog post about reflecting on the last 6 months of my journey. If you do read it, I hope it gives you hope.

http://beyondwillpower.blogspot.com/...-you-want.html

[DLSquared]

I just started last month (Mar 29th) so I clearly recall my breaking point. I was becoming out of breath just walking up the stairs, and had mild chest pains now and then. Also, thanks to all the networking with old classmates on facebook, I've gotten the news of 2 former classmates who have died of a heart attack this year. I didn't want to be the 3rd one - I'm not ready to die, so am making changes instead.

[JOLINA]

I started my diet last June, 2010. I was working outside in 95 degree heat and got really tired too fast.
I had to lay down and watch TV for 3 days before I felt OK.

That was a real wake-up call.

It was then I started my diet. I got energized within a week, and have stayed on my diet until now. And I lost 25 pounds last year.

I count my calories, and that works for me.
Then I hit a plateau and could not lose last month, so I joined the 100 Day Challenge.

Now I am back on track again.
I hope to lose 50 pounds this year.

[goal4agirl]

I started my weight loss last June 2010. I got all dressed up to go shopping with my daughter inlaw. I had on my favorite outfit and was having a great hair day and feeling pretty good about myself. When we were walking into a store I caught my reflexion in the store window. I didn't realize it was me at first- I just looked so bad. I was so depressed it ruined the day. But it was a final wake up call. There had been others...I broke a friends chair poolside in front of a bunch of people, I was so embarrassed. A mean elderly relative told me I was huge and had gained a lot of weight when visiting her one day. I thought to myself thank you for clearing that up for me, I was wondering why I can't seem to zip up my pants these days! There were a lot of reasons- I was sick and tired of over eating and feeling sluggish all the time. I just felt like my life was all about eating all the time. So I decided no more. The first month was hard. I was really hungry. The second month was easier and I was seeing results. It's a long hard road but slipping up those jeans right out of the dryer and them being loose feels fabulous!!

[Ky30]

I started my journey in september of 2010 for me I had just had enough of feeling like a big fat blob and not having enough energy to do things with my kids. I did not struggle at all recently it has begun to be a somewhat struggle of wanting to eat eat eat and not wanna excerise im pushing threw thou. I did not excerise the first 3 months and lost 40 pounds then I started excerising I still struggle with it sometimes. I jumped right into my journey it wasnt hard at all Im finding it harder the longer it goes in but I know I will NEVER go back to a 285 pound blob.

[geoblewis]

I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and was given three months to get it under control with diet and exercise or I'd have to go on medications. I started researching diabetes and immediately went low-carb to lose the initial weight, but only lost a few pounds. I felt pretty horrible, extreme lethargy, bloated, achy all over. I hated to exercise and even though I was pretty good at knowing what to eat, that sort of food wasn't really available to me. I was living overseas in the Middle East at the time. I had some extra cash saved up and decided to spend it on myself, to go to Green Mountain Spa in Vermont for three weeks to concentrate on losing weight. That's when I developed a love for exercise and I've been doing it regularly ever since. I also started feeling really good as a result of the diet I was placed on, so after I left, I did my best to eat clean.

I've lost nearly 50 lbs. It's taken me a long time, but I'm still moving in the right direction.

[MEH1969]

I started on March 29th, 2011 also. My final straw was also health related. I was in the hospital for knee surgery, and I weighed 270 on their scale fully dressed. I was shocked. The doctors also discovered I have a leaky heart valve.

I'm struggling here and there with eating; I've been counting calories. I also cannot exercise much because of my knee, but every day gets better. I'm hoping to ramp up the exercise soon. Easter was bad for me eating wise. I'm still trying to get my mindset back.

I know this will be a long journey, but I figured it took me 20 years to get this heavy. If it takes me 2 years to get the weight off, that's still better than if I do nothing.

[caryesings]

I'm not entirely sure why this time "took" when I had started so many times before with what would have seemed like the same level of resolve. I think a major difference this time was I designed a plan I could stick to and then concentrated on working the plan, not checking the scale. I did not weigh until 72 days in. If I had seen how little I was losing in comparison to the monster amount of effort it took to get into the groove, I would have given up.

Oh, to the exercise question. I started out exercising 2.5 hours per week and gradually increased to 6.

[JamiSue3916]

I also just recently started this journey. I'm not exactly sure what struck me, which is kind of odd because I expected some kind of grand epiphany or Aha! moment but really it was just a slow realization that I'm ALWAYS tired.

I was too tired to play with my kids, to tired to be outdoors doing activities that I used to love and if I'm being completely honest here...I was feeling to tired to have sex with my husband. (That was a hard one to admit!)

So, I am counting calories, watching less T.V., drinking water, and exercising daily now. I have weight goals but mostly I'm focusing on those critical behavior changes - rather than their outcomes. (Which Angie talked about in a very cool thread: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/100-...ight-loss.html)

I have really found that focusing on those behavior changes helps keep me feeling successful, regardless of what the scale says. I also journal about the NSVs I have so I can see the changes in my health along the way.

[prillabong]

I started last August when my size 14 jeans became tight! Id never even been a 14 before let alone a 16. It also helped that I couldnt afford to buy bigger clothes!

I started on a no carb diet which allows u to have one treat day a week (within reason) I found it easy to begin with to stay on plan and was exercising for about an hour a day. I was losing about 4lbs a week at this point and I think any less and I mite have given up!

I now manage to eat really low carb and low cal all week and allow myself treats at the weekend, and gradually im still losing weight.

Have lost 3 stone since August and am now in size 10 trousers maybe a 12 in jeans, and size 8 - 10 on top!

Losing weight will be one of the best things u ever do so dont give up!!

[Dog Rescue Mama]

I have tried dieting off and on since I gave birth to my first son 12 years ago but never had the sticking power. I always gave into cravings and busy schedules.

My final straw was 2 1/2 weeks ago. I have a horse that is terribly lonely now that we have moved to our new home and she is not in boarding anymore. I was offered a gorgeous black warm blood mare that wasn't yet broke. I used to "break" (I hate that term) horses all the time but I turned down this amazing horse because my body is to heavy and out of shape to risk breaking a new horse right now.

My body is getting in the way of my life. It was a real slap in the face! I am determined to get through this. I want a flat in shape tummy and I want to hop up on even a 17 hand warm blood without having to pull myself up!

When I feel like cheating and getting off diet I close my eyes and envision what I will look like if I just skip that and the other cheats. I think of what I could be doing if I didn't have the weight on. I can't wait to get my counter, I haven't been here long enough.

[GirlyGirlSebas]

There wasn't one final straw. I built a haystack that finally became overwhelming! No energy;clothes too tight and next size can only be found in expensive Plus-size stores; don't feel sexy; elevated cholesterol and blood sugars; want to hike and run a marathon one day.

This time, I went kinda extreme. I started Medifast. Best thing I ever did for myself. I've been on-plan for almost 7 weeks now. It's been almost 5 years since I've been on-plan for more than two weeks and lost more than 10 pounds. I don't know how long I'll stay on this particular plan, but I know that I'll be on some kind of plan until I reach goal!

[juliana77]

It was always one of those "someday I should" things. My problem was I couldn't imagine finding anything I would want to stick with (or could afford to stick with) for the year+ it was going to take to lose all the weight. So I did nothing.

Fortunately kind of a perfect storm of events happened about 2 months ago that led me to finding "calorie counting" as a plan (DUH) and an awesome phone app that makes it easy and convenient for me - and here I am 22 lbs later and going strong.