[Modjeska]

This place is huge. I hope it's ok if I post an brief intro here.

I will be 31 in 10 minutes. I've been fat for 1/3 of my life, and I'm exhausted. I love being active, but I can't seem to get motivated to do anything regularly, and I eat terribly. Too much bread, too much dairy, waaaaay too much sugar.

Realistically, I need to lose about 60 pounds, but 40 would get me to a healthy weight for my 5'5 frame. It doesn't seem like much compared to some of the goals I've seen, but to me, it might as well be 400 pounds.

I thought I would probably fit in a little better down here because I tend to be very liberal, pretty crunchy, and I have a low tolerance for close-mindedness. I've been married for seven years, and we have a son who will be in grade 5 this year. My husband works in IT, and I'm finishing my degree and working in restoration ecology. I think that's pretty much me in a nutshell.

Tomorrow morning, I plan to wake up with some willpower and motivation.

[chela]

welcome to 3fc well if you don't have the motivation tomorrow guess what will give you that motivation that you need. we are here to help you reach your goal don't give up. well i been in that situation and i come and visit this website and tell everyone how i feel and they give me the support that i need for me not fail so good luck with everything see you at the finish line.

[Modjeska]

Thanks.

I haven't eaten yet today because I'm afraid to screw up. Isn't that hilarious? That I'd much rather not eat than try to eat right? Ok, not funny. A little weird, maybe.

We're going to look at dogs today. Our old dog is too...well, old...to accompany me on long hikes and walks anymore, and I need a fitness partner. Maybe an active dog is the motivation I need to get out of bed and exercise. Or maybe I'm just taking advantage of my birthday and my husband's desire to not hear me whine about how unhealthy I feel to get a second dog.

On to breakfast...It's grocery day, so the pickings are slim. But I do have a bowl of ripe tomatoes. Maybe tomatoes with some salt and a slice of toast? Planning is my friend, right? So when I get out of this chair, I will eat tomatoes and toast. One slice of toast, no butter.

I'm looking forward to get to know everyone!

[ajandpj99]

Welcome Eco!

We are here to support you no matter what.

I would make a tiny suggestion - that you dont go from eating "bad" to eating tomatoes and toast. At least not overnight. Your body is going to get very mad at you.

Plus if you plan to exercise (something I put off - save short walks around the farm every day - until I lost the first 20 lbs) you are going to need more protien in your diet as well as good high fiber carbs and yes even some fat. (This is based on experience not just something I read).

But most importantly you need to figure out what you body needs for you to feel good. (Because your body is different than mine and hers and her over there, etc.) And for some that includes a weekly (or more often or less) treat to remind ourselve that there is no point in being healthy and living longer if we cant have a treat periodically.

Dont ever feel guilty for going "off plan" since the best way to have long term results is to strive for "overall" healthyness with a bunch of "reality" tossed in.

Remind yourself that you are not fat, you are just at an unhealthy weight for your personality (meaning you dont feel comfortable) and when you reach the weight that makes you feel good it doesnt matter what the scale says or the tv or anybody else.

I love hiking -and only just recently got into it since I have lost the majority of my weight and am now where I was 7 years ago (my comfort zone) when it started creaping up again. I do want to lose about 15-20 lbs more just because it is the hardest 20 lbs for me to lose (success means being smaller than I was at graduation 18 years ago). Fortunately I have a friend here that goes hiking all the time and so we started backpacking and going on 2 uphill hikes a week. Plus we take the dogs.

Be sure to get pics of your new doggy and share with us.

Anyway - obvioulsy I am the babbler of this group and will always give way more information that anyone asks for. LOL

[mauvaisroux]

Welcome EcoGeek!

Yup! Planning is your friend! And eating breakfast and a balanced diet is very important.

If you have any questions or need some pointers just post - everyone here is very friendly and helpful.

[Flying Betty]

Welcome! I'm more of a lurker than a poster, but I will say that I lost about 30 pounds in high school by getting a young energetic dog to take on walks. It was particularly effective since it turned out that the dog would go psychotic unless she got a 30-40 minute (and up) BRISK walk at least five times a week, and since I was the one who really wanted the dog I got to do all the walking. I definitely recommend the young energetic dog fitness plan for anyone who thinks it's a good fit

[Modjeska]

Well, I've lost about seven pounds so far. I'm not doing so well as far as eating, but I'm definitely exercising more.

And we did get the dog, but it ended up being a puppy, so no real long walks yet. She's getting there, though. In a couple of months, I'll be lucky to keep up with her!

[owira]

laughs- a good sense of humor is always needed in the war of the weight .. and seems you have plenty of it to share .. welcome to the chaos and i know your journey will be a successful one ... also as far as the dog .. i have found that if ya get one that will be really big ...on the days you dont' want to walk em ..they will walk you!

i added this thread to my favorites to keep up with ya a bit better .. so should be postin regularly if ya up for a lil fun and humor ... i can't get through this w/o keeping a sense of humor to things .. i would go insane