Welcome back ;)

About the weighing stuff, whatever works for you. You don't need a scale, if measurements are best for you or anything that is good on your end. We have different needs and ways of doing things. My husband is obsessed with the scale on a daily basis, I on the other hand started weighing myself every week, then 2 weeks, and 1x/ month in the end. Just keep up the good work and progress, that's the important stuff :carrot:

Thanks, Bubu. I plan to post some pix pretty soon. I neglected to take a nice plain before pic before September, but I do have one taken two years ago that I think will do just fine and then maybe have a quick one taken of things as they stand now.

Hello Everyone!

I am so glad to have found this because this is definitely where I fit in! i am a college student who has gotten out of shape due to emotional eating. But I'm ready and motivated to not let that control my life and do something about it! i would like to lose about 10 lbs, maybe more. Weight doesn't matter so much to me as I feel healthy and comfortable about my body. I guess I just need help dealing with dealing with emotionally eating and some overall lifestyle changes. Any advice, let me know!

Good Luck to Everyone!! :)

Hello all, I'd like to share my story. I was directed to the featherweights section because I don't have too far to go.

I started my weight loss change in 2005, at 219 lbs and at a size 16. Sometime in late 2006 or early 2007 I clocked in at 135 lbs and at that weight i wore a size 0/2 (0 in the brands that carry larger sizes, 2 in all others). I also went from being unable to fast walk a mile to running several marathons.

Then I lost my steam and was back up to 160 lbs.

I re-started my journey again at 160 lbs on August 10th. I have been keeping a food journal, started jogging again. I am now at 147 lbs, size 4/6 (lost 1 lb this week!) and I have 12 lbs to go. It's so slow, I keep hitting obstacles (cake, for example).

But I refuse to stop. I will get back down to 135, maybe even 130 if possible. And this time, I will never let myself go again!

Wish me luck yall. :)

Hello everyone :)
 

Hi everyone!

I love to see all the posts! I've been looking for an online support group for a while and this one looks very promising :)

Anyway, I've been chubby all my life, always carrying an extra 25 lbs. It was very very hard growing up overweight, especially during my teen years. My mom, who's been through the same rollercoster herself, took me to a pediatrician when I was 10, to help me control my weight. Now, 14 years and many miles later, I feel almost in complete control of my weight.

It's been a very challenging mental journey. I've seen psychologist and nutritionist for years and I've learnt a lot about myself, my struggle and how I don't need to follow the same road my mom followed.

So, to wrap it up, I'm 5'5'' tall and 150lbs. Barely within the "healthy" range. I feel comfortable in my skin and I don't have self steem issues anymore. However, I've come this far, I know it's time to get to business and lose the last 10/15 lbs and finally grow up and leave all those inhibitions and issues behind. The way I look at it, I feel like being overweight is something my childhood self needed, but my current self doesn't anymore.

However, old habits die hard or something like that, and losing these last lbs is proving very difficult. I'd love your help :)

Thanks for reading!

Hey ladies I wanted to get in on the fun. I am currently trying to lose 10lbs would like to lose 15 but I want to be as realistic as I can so I dont set myself up for failure. Im just learning my way around these parts. Lurked at the beginning of the year when I was looking for reasons why my weight fluctuates and found this site then the last month or two Ive been posting. I luv it here:hug: Story goes

Ive been a very athletic since I was 3-4yrs old. I danced, was a cheerleader, ran track, played volleyball, and attempted to play basketball and soccer...lol! Anyway I have always been fit, never skinny but really muscular and fit. I kept my weight pretty steady from what I can remember in H.S till my 5th year of college between 135-145. I would fluctuate with stress and increased muscle mass once I started cheering for a competitive time in college. I didnt gain my freshman 20 until my last year of college which was 2004-2005. I got all the way up to 165 and I felt horrible. I was in love, I wasnt cheering anymore, I just let myself gooooooo. So when I came back home to KC for nursing school and we were doing assessment on each other and I saw my blood pressure my mouth hit the floor. I knew I had to get it together. So I started going to our gym after class and started running. I started off slow 2mile here 3miles there until I was up to 7-8miles a day. Then eventually a mini. I lost 20lbs from August to Oct and was back into my size 4. After the mini I slowed down on my running and took a boot camp class that eventually I ended up doing everyday and got down to my lowest 134lbs (size 2 comfortably). Never would I ever imagine my body getting that small but I did. From 2006-2008 I maintained my weight between 138-144. However the end of 2008 I started to to let myself go and 2009 my weight started to creep up with me being fully aware of it:mad:. My highest this year I think Ive seen on the scale was around 154-156 at the end of the day. So I started running again but at first wasnt consistent. I was able to get down to 149-150 and stay there. The last couple of months I have been so ready to get these last 10-15lbs off. I know I can do it I just need a little bit of motivation from time to time. I started ChaLean Extreme 3wks ago and Im starting to see some results (not a lot though). Im btwn 145-147(some reason the scale went up today but Im thinking TOM is coming next wk). My goal is to be back in the 130's and stay in the 130's:carrot::carrot:. My body frame is so different and although people tell me Im crazy for wanting to lose weight I know where I need to be to be happy and content w/ myself. Never have I ever wanted to be skinny like Paris Hilton because I know thats impossible for me. I just want to be happy:cheer:

Hello!

I am new to this site, although i have been watching it for a while now. I guess it is finally time to post something!

I don't have much of a story, got a bit chubby in high school (5'4", 155) but managed to drop the extra weight before i went to college. I maintained 105-115 throughout college, i wasn't the healthiest person, but always looked and felt good. After college i didn't have much time to work out and what not and ended up gaining some wight. After a recent trip to Italy i realized i nearly overdosed on food! I weighed in at 132--looks like it's time for a diet!! I would love to get back down to my college weight.

I loved reading everyone's stories so I thought I'd share my own.

Its been hard for me to admit my issues with food because my relationship with food didn’t start out this way. I was born blessed with good genes, high metabolism, and a healthy relationship with food. I ate when I needed to and only enough to satiate my hunger. Then I would be up and off, running around to my next great adventure burning off all of my food and then some. Then adolescence came and concepts of “self-image” and “perceived beauty” were introduced to my susceptible mind. I will forever remember my aunt making snide remarks like, “Look at how little she eats, I’m sure she’s starting to get vain about her looks.” What? I was most definitely not vain, and I was going to prove that to her by eating just a little more then before. And a little more. And before I knew it, thoughts of food consumed my mind. Yea, I sure showed her. >__<;

Even then, I never admitted that I was overweight. No, I wasn’t going to be one of those conceited types that only cared about their looks. Fast forward to my college years when I was away from the poisonous voices of my childhood, and I was actually able to get myself together. I lost weight, dressed better and felt great about myself. My last semester killed me though. Between the stresses of graduating and finding a job in this rough economy, I lost myself and sorted back to my old ways, to the comforts of my old (fri)enemy. I regained all the weight I lost and then some. I’ve since then graduated and am now working, but it’s been harder then ever to get back on track with the bandwagon (which I’m sure I will go into more excrutiating details later). I tried doing the stuff I did before to snap myself out of it, but now I am forced to face my unhealthy obsession with food head on.

So that's what brings me here. Hopefully with some strong determination and little encouragements, I'll be able to make my way back down the scale, one fraction of a lb at a time.

New here! here is my story!
 

I am 30. a mother of a 2 year old and need to lose about 20 lbs!

I am most comfortable around 120. i started traveling adn working nonstop bought a house, etc - real life stuff and found myself around 130 in about a year. And then i became pregnant at the end of that rollercoaster year. gained about 40 lbs which put me at 170. i lost most of it right away and the last 15 in about a year without really trying. I weaned my dd at 18 mo ths (which was this may) and gained back 10 lbs since then. what the he**! I thought you were supposed to lose weight when you weaned. well here i am at 140 no clothes fit and i refuse to buy any more in bigger sizes. i would love to lose 20 lbs but would be happy with anything at this point!!!

I am a senior in college, graduating in May 2010.
I was skinny all through high school weighing in the 120's.
Then I went to college and the weight would not stop packing on. The highest point I have ever been was 148. I lost weight one summer going to Peru, and got down to 140. However, I have been fluctuating between 140 and 145 ever since.
I lost control my freshman year with the typical dorm meal plan buffet with the endless dessert aisle.
I now shun sweets, but my weakness is for bananas. I want to weigh what I did in high school, as unrealistic as it sounds. However, I want to do it right by eating fruits, veggies, lean protein, and delicious whole grains. I don't want to lose weight quickly like I have in the past by Atkins or starving in Peru (other countries have such smaller portions). I want to learn to differentiate between good choices vs occasional once in a while treats (like pizza) without beating myself up! My goal is to love the healthy food I eat, and to never envy anyone's food choices, but to look at my own food choices and appreciate that I am eating healthy. :dancer:

first post!!
 

Well my story goes like this.

I just turned 19, am living at home and attending local college for an AS in Accounting.

I have been struggling with my weight all my life or so I believed. Looking back, I'd kill to weigh what I did back when I was "fat" I now weigh 177. I'm only 5'1 or 5"1 or however you write that! I'm in a very comfortable relationship with my boyfriend of almost 2 years, and I've gained about 10 lbs in that time, and moved up a pants size to a 14, which is just awful thinking that the next size is not carried in the stores I shop at unless ordered online specially! (American Eagle mainly!!) Well that point wasn't enough to me I guess. My want to lose serious weight didn't come until about a week ago when I saw a picture of myself at my birthday dinner. It was horrible. I didn't know I looked like that?! I have been turning a blind eye to how the shirts I used to wear look horrible, are skin tight, etc. It's finally time to do something about it.

I wear a size 14 a little uncomfortably. I want to fit into a 6, and hopefully 35 lbs will get me down to that goal.

I am currently just watching my calorie intake, and trying to maintain about 1500 calories a day. I love exercising at the gym when I can get the gumption to get there. Once I get there, I work out for at least an hour and a half, sometimes I can't leave. I just love watching the calories burned counter get higher and higher. I don't have a membership anymore, and it's expensive so I told myself if I could stick with a real diet for 3 weeks, I would work on funding a membership somehow. That way I know I will use it.

I stumbled upon this website looking up diet and exercise tips, and am looking for some younger girls to connect with and also advice from older ones can never hurt! :)

What a great idea for a thread. My story is like a lot of yours, except I am older than most.

I grew up as a skinny kid, very active. When I was 13-14 I had to "act like a lady" and stop being active. I went through high school at 5'6" and weighing in the 140s. College was pretty much the same.

Age came, along with a couple of babies, and I yo-yoed between the 140s and the 170s.

A year ago, I decided it had to end and I started working on portion control and upping my activity.
The Bodybugg has been a godsend. I originally started gaining weight when I stopped being active. Now I am amazingly active for a 60 year old.

In that year I have gotten to 124 pounds, which feels great. I've been there for several months. If my Bodybugg died tomorrow, I would replace it in a heartbeat. It keeps me up and active -- love it.

Wow, what amazing stories-part because they mirror my own (see my introduction post from yesterday). I am committed today. The start of day three without binging. I have hit my weight training session and cardio. I know that I can make it through the stressful day....and if I am feeling a little weaker, I'll post until the urge goes away.

OOoooo my story.

I will put it in a nutshell or else your brains will fry lol.

For the past 8 years I have been battling bulimia and in the past 3 months I have started to tone it down and begin the recovery process. I went from 115lbs to 175 back to 140 and now I am back at 160. I want to get to 125 healthy and toned in the proper way, exercise and healthy eating. I have many long lasting effects of what I have done to my body and now have to start to fix them (bad teeth, gums, thin hair, terrible skin etc)

LtsGirl - Good for you on wanting to get healthy.

:welcome2: Join us in the April Chat thread.

danni

Well, ... I just joined this site yesterday, and this thread is fantastic. I'm reading all of your stories, and comparing myself to your hights and weights, and I feel like one of the gang already. I'm 5'5, currently weighing in at 151, and this is my story.

I was always a healthy kid, a little on the heavier side, but never to a point where my doctor had to talk to me about my weight. But still, I've always been self consious for as long as I can remember, even as a little kid. In Jr. high I went on my first diet (salad only for lunch and no breakfast). Smart, right?

Lets just say through high school there were some troubling periods, which didn't ware to well for self esteem or eating habits. And after high school, well, thoes next few years were a dark and stormy time in my life. I was about 20 when I reached my lowest ever mature weight, I clocked in at 122. I thought I looked great! Everyone said I was too skinny, but I told them they just had never seen me the way I was meant to be. .. Suuuureeee

Well, a few years later and far out of the darkness, here I am. Happy, grounded, crazy in love, engaged until next Jan and 151lbs. I just celebrated my 26th birthday last week, which was ok. I had a small melt down the day before it, but nothing major. It did, along with a few other things, deeply motivate me to stick with a diet. I hope. LOL

My little sister announced in Jan. that she's getting married (long story, but we'll leave it at that). My friend announced in November she's getting married in October. I'm in both thier weddings and mine is in January. Talk about motivation! I was horribly depressed when I got measured for my dress, which put in a size 12. My dress for my sisters wedding is a size 14!!! A 14!!! god almighty, I cried for days.

Since I've been with my fiance I've gained about 12 pounds. And I want to see it go away. And compared to what other people need to lose, people dont' take me seriously. My fiance tells me I'm nuts and jokes that he's going to have me committed because my body image is terrible and I talk about it all the time. But he just dosn't understand! Being lumpy in places I haven't been since I was 14 is NOT COOL. I want to be a beautiful THIN bridesmaid, maid of honor and most of all BRIDE. I was in my friends wedding in the fall, she made a few comments about how she thought I would have lost the weight by her wedding. Like, thanks alot...

Any who. Thats my drama story. Thats the problem. To me, weight is drama. Its nice to see people who can laugh at it :) Or at least cry with me! lol, jk. It probably dosn't help that my mother is obeese. And has been for years. Shes now diabetic, has serious asthma, heart problems, needs a knee replacement (at 52), and has been treated for broken ankles and other joint problems many times over the past few years. It's scary.

So here I am. Day 4 of my South Beach Attempt. Nice to meet you all :)

Sup laaaaadies.

Also just joined yesterday.

Here's where I'm at:
I've always been a chubby kid. Always. I hated doing active stuff growing up and in general ate like crap. Eating taco bell was awesome. Video games for hours was awesome. Running.. not so awesome

So anyways, I think about junior/senior year of high school (which I TOTALLY hated) I tipped the scales around 190. And at 5"5, it made me feel horrible the way I looked. But seeing that number really motivated me to do something about it. I sort of changed the way I ate (not really ie: i cooked sometimes but it was all frozen stuff from Trader Joe's) and I started exercising. I lost about 40 pounds in a few months and sat at 160-155 up until now.

I've been vegetarian for a few years now and went vegan a year ago. Some people (ME) had this idea that if you went vegan you'd lose all this weight and whatever. Well I gained like 10 pounds. All the soy-this and soy-that and late-night snacks really did me in.

So about a month ago I started changing the way I ate, and about 3 weeks ago, I canceled my cable and got a gym membership.

I'm just really motivated right now to get out there and be active and healthy. The number isn't so important to me anymore, but I know that I can look better and feel better if I do the work.

It's really awesome reading everyone's stories and motivates me like no other.

Hey, chicks! The fact that there were very few people in the "Getting out of the 130's" thread on the 20-somethings board has brought me here.

I have been through the mill when it comes to weight loss. I was a chubby kid and then developed anorexia in middle school. I proceeded to swing back and forth between anorexia and bulimia for about 7 years. I'm tentatively in recovery. My weight has been everywhere from way too thin (in the low 90's) and too big. I went into recovery from bulimia last year, I was a little over 160 pounds. Now I'm losing weight the healthy way.

I have lost 20 pounds so far and I'm aiming for about 20 more, as well as to get toned. This site has been so helpful and supportive to me the whole time I've been on this journey.

My main things are watching calories and working out every day in some form or fashion. Right now I'm doing Couch to 5k.

Hello everyone! I am about to turn 30 and I am the fittest and the heaviest I have ever been. I am 135 right now, and a triathlete. the pounds are not all muscle, sadly. I have a very stressful job that had me spending 9 months sucking down sugary soda and stuffing myself with chocolate just to try to cope with the pounding heart and dizziness I felt from the constant pressure. Would you guess I am a school teacher? Well, the very day school got out I signed up for 9 triathlons and dove in (literally) to a very rigorous training program. With 3 months of unstructured time (possibly for the last time as I am planning to have a child soon) I have been running 5 miles a day, swimming an hour, and biking an hour. I also rock climb, paddle board, mountain bike, hike, and do a medicine ball video. It has been 6 weeks since I switched to summer mode, and my weight has not changed at all. I am getting toned, which is nice. I was kind of expecting the weight to vanish overnight like it did about 4 years ago when I began marathoning. I guess hitting 30 changes things a bit.

I miss my old body. I weighed 105-110 ever since I was 14, so I feel like I am wearing a stranger's skin. I am embarassed to wear certain things, and I am honestly confused about what I look like now. I want to lose 20 lbs and be 115. I also want to erase stress from my life, finish an ironman, and amaze myself. I feel like I am on my way, but it is hard not to get impatient.

Two weeks ago I got first place in a small local traithlon. It was such an amazing feeling. This is the life I have always dreamed of....now I want my dream body back.

:welcome: kwinkle!

I saw your post today on the general forum, but now reading about your really rigorous exercise routine (plus your history as a marathoner) makes me think you really need to focus on proper nutrition and be careful about cutting calories too drastically. Come post here and be sure to check out the exercise forum, too!

Hey ya'll! I'm Leslie and I'm new here. I joined a few days ago after reading the 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet book. Last year I got down to 126, then I started nursing school and gained what I like to call "The Senior 6". So here I am at 132, and it is time to get back in control and shed these extra pounds. I want to be at 118 when I graduate in December, and I figured this would be a good place for support and advice. :D

Just leaving out the trigger foods, such as sugar and wheat, started not to be enough. Walking and Callanetics, gardening and other activities help, but am now working towards a continuing attentiveness to balance, so that the scales don't creep up and the joints don't creak. I was very surprised to find a couple of months ago that I had re-gained some weight. I did some research, started counting calories, and started exercising more.

I enjoy making my own food, not eating pre-packaged "stuff", as part of a healthy lifestyle. I make my own soap, cut my own hair, cut the grass with a reel mower, etc.

Am looking forward to this community, and to having the same consciousness about making wise, healthy choices to let go of the pounds that have kept me out of my favorite clothes and cost me feeling good about myself.

Thanks very much for being here. Wishing you all success!

It's so interesting to read everyone's stories! Here's mine:

I was always somewhat overweight growing up, probably due to my family's extremely poor nutrition choices. To give you an idea...a typical brown bag lunch that my mom would pack for me included a snickers bar, a little debbie, a bag of chips or one of those cheese and cracker handisnacks, and a capri sun. All in the same lunch, that's it, seriously. I'm surprised my hair didn't fall out! It shouldn't be shocking that by the time I graduated from high school I weighed 185-190 even though I exercised 5 days a week. When I went to college, instead of gaining the freshman 15, I actually lost weight!

In college I probably weighed around 165, but then I gained weight after graduating because I was traveling every week for work, basically had a sedentary life style, and ate out 3 times a day while on the road...and the amounts of alcohol we drank, oh my. So I was up to 175 before I did the couch to 5k program and lost 40 lbs in 2 months!! I maintained my weight at around 135 for a year. I had a ton of muscle and was actually pretty fit even though I could have lost a bit more fat.

The weight started creeping back up again when I moved in with my boyfriend...into an apartment directly next to a pizza place. Seriously, the smell of mozzarella sticks would waft into my kitchen window. Absolute torture. I also started graduate school so the change in schedule threw me off. I think my boyfriend's eating habits changed too. He went from having a flat stomach to having a BMI in the obese range, so we both need a change!

I ended up at about 160 last winter and started to eat healthier this spring/summer and am down to 145ish. I started running again, although the summer heat is killing me, and I'm also trying to eat a lot more veggies and cut down on my dairy. I actually have a very healthy diet...lots of fruit, veggies, legumes, etc, but portion control and mindless snacking is always an issue.

To join the chorus of stories here. . .
I've always been technically a healthy weight (I'm 5' 7" and have stayed between 138-140) since junior year of high school. Then I went to college, and began to oscillate between periods of exercise and healthy eating and periods of inactivity and very little self-control over what I put in my mouth. Then this past May I went to Italy for a school trip for 17 days. While I had an amazing time, I was offered very little outside of carbs and meat (we had salads maybe two of the days and oranges with breakfast--no other fruits or veggies). When I got home, I realized my weight had shot up to 144. I realized that if I continues this patter of healthiness/unhealthiness, I would soon be a very unhealthy, single adult upon graduation. I also realized that my attitude towards exercise was all wrong. The rest of the people in my large family (I'm the third of twelve kids, hence my username) either ran or ran and lifted weights or played sports--none of which I was interested in.

So. . . I've cut out just about all sweets and junk (for now. . .I plan to incorporate occasional treats [once or twice a month] once I feel I've regained control in this area) and as much processed food as possible. We have a closed pantry system here (to save money), so I just have to make the healthiest choice I can within what's being offered for that meal/snack. My mom cooks relatively healthy (lean meats, lots of fruits and vegetables, etc.), but she keeps things like potato chips and cookies and ice cream in the house. And I walk for 45 minutes (3.4 miles) six times a week, including a few sprints at the end, and occasionally do some intense pilates routines.
So, that's where I'm at. Sorry it's so long!

Not sure where I belong...
 

Hi, I'm ainsleymom a 31 yo SAHM to a one year old! :o

I guess I'm a featherweight, but I'm also a 30 something, and technically I'm still nursing my daughter, but we're only nursing 3 times a day. But I think I resonate most with the people here so here I am!

I'm also not sure what my starting weight is. I've always been watching my weight, and the highest it's ever been was the day I delivered my daughter. I guess that's cheating though. The highest non-pregnant (not counting when I was post partum) was in college when I was eating out and drinking a lot. It was around 150 and it looked terrible on my small frame. Senior year of college I realized how gross I looked and got down to a svelte 125. After I got married (6 years ago!) I put on some "love" pounds and have been bouncing around the upper 130's ever since. The day I got my BFP I was 135, and now that DD is a year old I'm back there again. Yes, I gained 57 pounds with my pregnancy, but I've lost it all! Of course I'm flabby and have the raisin tummy, but still!

In high school and early college I was more like 115, but I don't think I'll ever see that again without some serious measures. So 125 is my current goal. I haven't seen the 120's in over 5 years so it will be interesting to see how hard it is to reach that. This morning I am 134.

Right now I'm not counting calories, but am eating healthy smaller portions and trying to exercise. This will be a journey. I'm curious to see how total weaning will affect my weightloss. For some people they lose 5 pounds and some gain as their metabolism readjusts.

Hi all!!

I'm new to the weight loss forums and I am here because last year was rough from every perspective you can think of for me (work, relationship, financial), and I've been using food to comfort me, shooting up to a 140 pounds. I've always been a little bit on the heavy side and I've never felt good in a swimsuit, but this is pushing it too far.

So I am here to try and get myself to stop using food to wash away my feelings and start having the body I've always wanted to have (but never quite did). I've lost a little weight so far by reducing my binge eating, but there is a lot of progress to go.

Goal: 126 by my 30th birthday (2 months away), and ultimately 120 pounds! Id like to get to 120 by christmas, but it may take longer than that.

I use to post on 3 fc ALOT.BUT because of a couple of things I stopped. I noticed this section which might be a little more my niche. I as I think she calls herslf same 7pounds. Am battleing the same few pounds AGAIN! I need support and as many of you no one thinks I need to lose weight. I exercise ALOT!!! Several hours aday it is my passion I adore it.I do weight training prorams as well as HIIT training and get a ton of cardio a little trail running with the dog thrown in. So getting it moving is not my problem. I eat well ect ect. I am 58 SOOOOO you can not eat many calories which is where the problem comes in.
My problem with 3fc other some of the other places where just people who don't have as much time on there hands to have the freedom to work out ect ect or have alot to lose just thing you are petty if you are crying about your size 5 jrs not fitting and sometimes I just saw some MEAN GIRL stuff!
I have been reading here for a few days everyone seems real nice!

Ready to start.
 

Hi everybody, I'm new to this whole forum and ready to get back to normal after about 3 years of moping.

I was always skinny when I was a kid, and graduated high school at about 110 lbs. I was never unhappy with my weight. I weighed about 120 lbs. and looked great until around age 21, when my relationship with my boyfriend (who I'm still with now) got more serious. We moved in together, we got too comfortable, we stopped getting exercise, and we gained a lot of weight together. This pathetic time of hiding in my apartment and accomplishing nothing ate up my early twenties in the blink of an eye.

I've come down slowly over the last year or so from my highest point at 163 lbs. to 154, and although my whole life has changed since then - different workplace, different (better) city, new friends, new goals - I'm still stuck here, where my face doesn't look like me at all and none of my clothes fit this flabby body. I live in a beach city where lots of great events take place - triathlons, for one - and I can't really participate because I'm just too ashamed of what I've done to my body. I have so many stretch marks. I want to join in the fun things my friends are doing but I don't want any of them to see me in a bathing suit or workout clothes.

Lately, I've been dreaming a lot about what I want to look like and what I want my life to be like. I want a few simple things: to save money so I can have a house someday, to make my own everything (preserves, bread, herb garden, etc.), to be outside and active all the time, and to get down to my goal weight of 120 lbs. with more muscle tone than I've ever had before.

I ride my bike to and from work as much as possible, and it hasn't been doing much for me weight-wise (it's only a 3-mile trip one way) so I've been talking with the boyfriend about running in the mornings. We're going tomorrow for the first time. I know it's gonna be pretty sad, but I'm in it to win it this time, and I have more friends now who can help me keep up with running than I've ever had before.

I'm joining here because I need as much support as I can get to keep myself motivated and keep my goals in sight. Once I hit 150, I'm getting my hair cut and dyed and a nice mani-pedi (which I never get!) so...here's to setting my first mini-goal! :D

Hi, guys.

I'm new here, stumbled over this place doing a search for weight loss support groups on google.

I am a 22 year old student, working on a degree in clinical nutrition. I'm interested in eating right and being a healthy person, but I have terrible eating habits from my childhood, and struggle with a figure that has hung onto pounds I gained in middle school.

At my highest weight, I was probably near 170-180 pounds in middle school. I never even noticed gaining it, and I never even realized I was heavier than most of my friends until I was weighed in a PE class in eighth grade. I realized that MY number was way higher than everyone else's, and then I started noticing other things. I noticed that my ankles didn't look like the other girls', that my stomach was softer, my hips far wider, and my chin sloped more gently to my neck.

I was always a healthy kid, with a healthy weight, but at puberty, when my parents broke up, I gained weight like crazy. I am an emotional eater just like my parents, who are both obese.

In high school I was somewhat obsessed with my weight. I would write out how many calories I would be allowed to eat per day in order to lose 1, 2, 5 pounds a week to reach a weight like 135 or 145 in a month or two. I would write down everything I ate and berate myself for eating like a slob. And I was totally sedentary. I would go to school, come home, and play the computer all evening.

Despite the struggle, I slowly lost some weight throughout high school, and left at a weight around 155 pounds. Still too much for my very small 5'5" frame. I have small bone structure, tiny wrists, a small neck, and narrow ribs. Though some people would be very healthy and strong at that weight, I was all bones and pillowy flesh. (Or at least that is how I felt at the time)

During school, I was the girl that LOST weight freshman year. I was simply busier, with less time to eat boredom snacks, and there was more activity in my day-to-day life. I was working and moving around more.

My weight dropped to around 145 pounds, and I was so happy with that. I still felt "overweight", but I felt good about it. I wasn't so obsessed with losing weight anymore.

About two and a half years ago, I was able to begin fixing my crooked teeth. I was fit with a horrible orthodontic appliance that made it very difficult to eat.

I just hated eating. And I lost some weight. After I was done with the appliance, I got braces. Again, it was difficult to eat. I was very conscious of what I ate, since everything would get stuck. I didn't eat very much socially, because I was afraid of getting food in my braces.

I moved out of my parents house and started working part time and going to school full time. I started exercising at school, in a boot camp class, and I took a dance class. I was getting exited about nutrition and I was bringing healthy meals to school when I could (or I was too poor to buy much to overeat). I wanted to look good, and since eating was a pain, it was easy to monitor what I ate.

I fell in love with my boyfriend during that time, and I was a svelte 133 pounds. I was still no sort of hardbody, but I was the thinnest I think I've ever been since I was ten or eleven years old. I was healthy, and had lots of energy. But my hectic schedule caught up with me.

After working 25 hours a week, taking 12 units, performing in two plays, and living on my own for the first time, I broke. I hated my job, I was depressed, and I was starting to cry spontaneously during the day.

I quit my job and moved back home. I think after that I started slowly gaining the weight back. Eating my mom's food, then moving in with my boyfriend and eating all the pizza and drinking all the beer that he likes, I just forgot that I was only thin because I was eating right an exercising. It felt like I had just been constantly losing weight for so long, I must just lose weight naturally.

Not the case.

As of today I weigh 147 pounds, and I can't fit into most of my clothes very comfortably.

I recently began counting calories using livestrong.com, and I got a gym membership at 24 Hour Fitness.

I have a problem I carry over from high school, of creating unreasonable goals for myself and beating myself up over every indulgence. Frankly I can't maintain eating only 1300 calories a day in order to lose two pounds per week, and furthermore I know that I SHOULDN'T.

I know how to eat a variety of foods to get the nutrients I need on a very low-cal diet, but I simply SHOULD NOT go there.

I need to keep sane here, and just eat better and exercise regularly.

I made a goal to reach 135 by Halloween, which I can achieve by losing two pounds a week. This morning, (after indulging in potato chips and margaritas last night, consuming nearly 3000 calories for the day) I realized that that is simply an unreasonable, and possibly unhealthy goal.

I WILL lose weight.

I just can't base my happiness on a number on a scale, or even on how I fit into my jeans. I have to make losing weight something fun and positive, and not something fueled by bad self image and shame.

Sooo, maybe I need to change my goal. Calorie counting should NOT dictate my happiness or satisfaction with my life. It is a learning tool, a health awareness tool, not a torture device.

Oh, man. I'm glad to "write" that out loud. I just wish I could hear it from someone else!

Hi everyone.

I am 31, a vegetarian and getting married next summer - so desperately need to lose some weight for my wedding!!!

I gained about 15 lbs last fall due to a number of things, one being starting graduate school and another being going off of a medicine which was extremely difficult to stop. I gained a lot of weight while withdrawing.

I was about 112 - 118 throughout college and feel I was too thin at this weight. For many years post college I stayed about 125 and I was pretty happy there - although I didn't excercise regularly, so perhaps lacked muscle. I was very happy a year ago at 135, very toned (walking several miles a day and iyengar yoga twice a week) and a comfortable size 4, but I think if I actually try to diet I could be thinner.

At one point, post college, I went up to 160, and a few other times I went up to 150. I have always gotten back down by excercising and cutting back a bit - however this time around, I am cutting back a LOT and I started running 5 miles 3 times a week and have not lost a single lb.

Not sure why it is so hard this time around, other than my metabolism is a lot faster then in the past as I already walk and excerise a lot.

Anyway, plan to keep with the cutting back and excercise the best I can (hard to fit in as I work full time and go to grad school).

Hi, I'm Tara, 33, and mom of 2 kids. I was always insanely thin as a child- quite underweight actually. I was a very picky eater- still am. I don't think I hit 100 pounds til I was pg with my daughter at age 19. After I had her, my weight crept up to 152 over a few years due to poor eating and increasingly sedentary lifestyle. I lost about 15 pounds before getting pg with my son, and then after he was born, I dropped down to about 114 and was very happy at that weight.

I went through a rough divorce, and found love again. Well, my bf and I both managed to gain weight after we got together. We're now engaged and trying to lose a few pounds before the wedding- and hopefully keep it off! I am now around 128 and would like to get to 120 or a little less.

Hi everyone....it's been a while since anyone has posted a story so I'm not sure anyone will read this but it's always therapeutic to write it anyway :)

I was a competitive figure skater and gymnast from the time I was about 5 til about 15. I was never skinny, definitely not one of the thinner girls where I skated but I had a lot of muscle tone so I looked ok. I had developed some pretty bad eating habits but I never really had to think about it because I was a) growing and b) getting so much exercise. But for example I remember as a child (like, 10 years old) figuring out how to open the freezer where our lunch treats (brownies, flakies and the like) were stored with a safety pin so I could sneak in and get them. I'd binge on two or three of these at a time. And another time, I think in grade seven, I was selling chocolate almonds for a school fundraiser....I remember opening up each box and taking two or three almonds out - I just couldn't stand having them n my room, I couldn't help it. My parents found out, and rightfully scolded me (and bought the entire case) - I felt humiliated but I really just couldn't help it.

When I was 14 my parents got divorced, my grandmother (who was the glue in our family) died, I started highschool and within a year I stopped skating. I found myself very isolated early in HS (I was never the "cool" type and most of my friends went to a different school) and I had a terrible relationship with both of my parents. My mom, granted she was having a difficult time, was what I'd call emotionally abusive, really digging into the flesh of my psyche and making sure I knew I was and never would be good enough, and that this is what everybody thought. I would come home from school hungry and eat - 2 cookies turned into 4, a coke, a few handfuls of potato chips, a brownie and then I could relax. I did this every day. I remember my aunt telling me, mid bite into a cookie, that I was getting fat. I wore baggy clothes and had never really thought about it. Then I remember being referred to as the "chubby girl", my friends telling me my arms looked like 'sausage links' and that was it. I had to lose weight. At my heaviest I weighed 148lbs (though probly higher since I avoided the scale) at 5'2.

I tried dieting, weight watchers, calorie counting, the Atkins diet - every diet known to man. I just could never stick to anything. I remember searching for some kind of weight loss support online and coming upon what is known as "Pro Ana". I had dabbled with the idea of severe calorie restriction before, but could never stick to it. This was the first time I had seen a weight loss support group and wow did it promise results. These girls were all thin and were all motivating each other to get thinner. Tricks on how not to eat, how to hide it from your parents, how to get boys to like you, how to be perfect, essentially. I felt comfortable, like these girls understood what I wanted. I began fasting, eating 500 calories a day, surviving on coffee and cigarettes, walking to and from school 40 mins each day, purging when I overate, and I lost weight - fast. It was noticed. Everyone told me how good I looked, I became more popular, I got better grades, boys started to notice me, I switched out of the baggy clothes and started wearing makeup, and I got the attention of my mother. This was something she couldn't control. The satisfaction I got when she was doing laundry and picked up one of my shirts - "Since when do you wear an XS" angrily.... I got everything I'd hoped for. I weighed about 128lbs but it was a big difference from the 148 on my small frame and in such a short time.

And getting "everything I'd hoped for" was a blessing in disguise. This deeply engrained in my head that being thin and beautiful results in friends, boys, attention, success - all things good. I didn't have those things before, I lost weight and suddenly EVERYTHING changed. I have learned to place all my self worth on perfection, with the idea that the closer I got to it the happier I'd be.

It has taken many years but I know now that this isn't true. I still have moments where I want to be perfect but I know it's a shield from reality. When my mother tries to dig under my skin I want to flash her my perfect white smile with my hair done perfectly, makeup done to a tee with my 26 inch waist and gorgeous clothes and handbag to match. I want to show her that I am THE BEST so that she can't poke any holes in me. But that's not me. It is even hard for me to write that. It has been really really hard to remove that perfectionism shield after all it has done for me. The reality is I HAVE been really successful and a lot of great things have happened in my life, but I attribute it all to this perfectionistic facade that I put on. I'm trying really hard to break out of it.

I have been through some therapy though I've never really been in one place long enough to stick with anything long term but I have done a lot of self help. I'm getting there and I am in a much better place than I have been in a really long time. I tend to obsessively count calories (I went to a nutritionist once and when I showed her my food logs she *jokingly* said she wasn't sure if she should help me or send me to a psychiatrist - I agreed with her) and get crazy with the scale but I no longer try to starve myself or purge. I exercise 3 - 4 times a week and try to maintain around 1500 cals/day but I still really want to lose weight. It is more important to me than almost anything. I felt comfortable at around 125 but would really like to draw the red line at 120. I'm short so this is reasonable.

Anyway that's my story....all the chaos happened a long time ago and I'm now a much more mentally stable person, and I want to lose weight the right way.

Thanks for reading :)

Hm, I think I belong here.

This is actually the heaviest I've ever been, and I'm not sure how to deal with it either mentally or physically. I honestly just thought I was getting older and gaining weight was inevitable (I'm only 24 actually lol) but when I started getting fatigued and clinically depressed also I knew something strange was going on. In the last few months I've gained about 20 pounds without any diet or exercise changes, and after a series of really fun doctors appointments I was diagnosed hypothyroid, which I suspect has actually been going on for years with only minor symptoms. So, I guess I'm here to get back to where I feel most comfortable and where my body is healthiest, around the 130 mark. I'm also trying to get more exercise (last year I moved to a far less pedestrian-friendly city) which certainly can't hurt any of my health metrics! I'm here to make some friends and share experiences hopefully. Thanks for having me! :D

--Callie

Hi ! I'm almost 18 years old, 5"3.
I naturally got up to 110 lbs during my growth, and had this weight from 13 years old to 16 years old (I was 75 lbs at 12 years old, severely underweight). Then last winter, I hanged out with a fat friend and my weight goes up to 120. I felt disgusting, as I had absolutely no muscles, it was only fat. I hated my thighs and my stomach, and I felt so large. Since I was 110 I wanted to be 105. I had a big health issue, I got to the hospital 4 days in a row and lost 5 lbs (the food was disgusting). It pushed me to begin my weight loss program, I felt so much better 5 pounds lighter (its a lot on a 5"3 teen). I lost the weight slowly, 115 to 112, to 110, 108, 106... 105 ! I was happy and stopped my weight loss.

I ate normally during all summer, gaining no weight. But then I began got to a new school and gained a little bit (108,109 lbs). I remember how I wasnt satisfied with myself at 110 lbs, so I lost back to 105 and plan to go to 100 lbs. Its a round number and I like this. Now I'm 104 lbs, no muscle again I need to exercise, I look normally thin. I like myself right now:)

Measurements: 31 bust (34B), 25 waist, 34 hips (narrow hips I know), 19 thighs. Size 3 in pants. :)

Like many folks here, I have struggled with my weight much of my 49 years of being alive. As a child I was heavy and when I hit adolescence I thinned out a bit, but still thought I was heavy. (When I look back at myself, that view was crazy.) Anyway, I went on a diet when I was 16 or so and lost to about 107 pounds and lost my period. I stopped the diet and gained the weight plus some back and I am sure messed up my metabolism.

In young adulthood, I went up and down with my weight (from about 135 to 150). After my daughter was born I weighed about 180. At that time, it was a new high for me. I remember when my now ex-husband's parents visited, they felt they could comment negatively on my weight. My ex had the sense to tell them to shut up. My weight did go down, but not too much.

I have struggled with depression since I was about 12 years old which also effects my weight. A few years after my daughter was born, my husband and I broke up and I became severely depressed. This serious battle with depression has stayed with me for the past 14 years or so. In the process of trying to recover, I have taken boat loads of medication, as my depression is also "treatment resistant." One of them caused me to gain about 70 pounds over three months, and then I couldn't lose the weight, as the other medications kept it on. I weighed 225 at my heaviest. And at that time, I was so depressed I could do very little in the way of exercise.

Along the way, I got divorced and met a new guy who was an athlete and cyclist. I knew I would do more bike riding because of him, but I didn't realize that I would LOVE it. So, over the past four years, I became an athlete for the first time in my life. I rode 6000 miles the first year I rode and between getting a new doctor and riding I lost to 118 and felt physically good.

Since then, I have ridden about 4500 miles per year and do an AIDS charity ride which is 125 miles in one day. This summer I did some bicycle touring where I rode about 550 miles on a loaded touring bike (it probably weighed about 60 pounds with panniers and lots of gear.) So, I am pretty serious about being an athlete.

However, two winters ago I gained ten pounds, which was not great, but not a disaster either. I didn't do anything about it and it stayed with me. Then last summer, I moved to a new apartment and was stressed out to the max. At that time, I ate to relieve the stress. And I gained fourteen more pounds.

This brought me to 142, when I finally weighed myself. My clothes no longer fit. I feel heavy on the bike. I know my weight is not far from "normal" but I feel sluggish and uncomfortable.

At the same time. I have hit peri-menopause. This makes me feel like I have PMS all the time -- cravings and all. So I have been struggling with that as well.

I have come to a time when I KNOW I have to get into action and DO something productive about my weight and food choices. I need to work on not binging and dealing with my emotional eating. If I am going to continue to be an athlete, I need to figure out how to eat as one.

So that is some of my story. The beat goes on.

Hi everyone,

I just joined the website today. I'm a senior in college and looking to loose about 18lbs. I'm at the highest weight I've ever been. I wouldn't necessarily call myself "overweight" but I also know that I could be much healthier. I sometimes binge eat or emotionally eat in response to stress and depression. I've used it as a coping mechanism in college for several years now and it's lead to my slow, but stead creep up on the scale. I also had a very busy fall semester and let my exercise routine go almost completely. These days, I feel kind of uncomfortable in my own skin. I feel "fluffy" and soft. I want to feel sleek and trim. I'm looking to feel strong, healthy, and confident again.

Hello everyone....my story is the story of many other women in their forties. I was a skinny kid and teen..even thin through my twenties. After my first baby all that started to change. My weight has fluctuated over the years. I've been as small as a size four and as big as a size 14. I have a small frame and need to be at a certain weight to look and feel good. I'm not a big girl now by any means but I'm not at the standard that I keep for myself. So happy to have found a forum for others that don't have a ton of weight to lose but need and want to lose them nonetheless. I often feel that I'm judged by others when I talk about my weight issues.
I'm 43 and a busy mom of two kids. Here's the clincher: I am a fitness instructor, I teach Zumba and before that taught another dance fitness program. So yes, even someone that works out constantly can have issues getting the last ten lbs off. '

My goal is to lose ten lbs by March. In the past the only diet that really worked for me was Atkins so I may start doing a modified version of that (I need carbs in order to have enough e nergy for my worksouts).

I look forward to meeting others on here. Thank you for listening.

Here again!
 

Hey FW gang.

I have, like the rest of you, a lifetime of weight-loss angst. As the general story goes, it started in puberty, and it contains a lot more anguish than actual weight-loss.

I have never been "fat" but certainly never been "skinny". I was a competitive athlete in high school, but I remember crying to my mother in high school about how I thought I was fat in comparison to my classmates. I found peace in college with my body, but gained a lot of weight working 2 jobs after college and trying to get into medical school.

My first encounter with weight loss was when I was 25 years old and I wanted to lose 17 pounds after finally taking my entrance exams. In a year, with many ups and downs, lots of working out, and counting calories as much as I could, I lost 12 and was 125lbs for 2 years after that. In the last 2 years of med school I gained 5 extra pounds, and without any weight loss started intern year. Now, 1.5 years into my sleep-deprived indentured servitude, I find myself at 140 pounds, stretching the seams of the jeans I own, wearing scrubs instead of clothes to hide my body, and feeling horrible.

I've lost the same 4-5 pounds twice in the past year in an attempt to start myself on a weight-loss journey, and am here again to find the strength to do it again!

I am on vacation now, with some time to do a lot of working out and activity. Although I am not having an easy time eating well with all the holiday food about (and going out to eat!), but my target is to lose that first 5 pounds again before the next rotation starts in mid jan!

Hi fellow featherweights. I have 30 lbs to lose and hope to be losing 6 lbs per month (1.5 per week) using healthy eating and consistent exercise. Hopeful that with the on line support of this great group of people I can stay focused and motivated. Good luck to all of us!

Hi featherweights!

I'm brand spanking new here even though I've been cruising the forums for a while. It took me a bit to stumble across the Featherweights forum, which is exactly where I am right now. I've always hovered around 125, though I've always played sports and have been physically active. I moved out of the US a few months ago, and have for several reasons shot up to 134! Some of the challenges I now face are not being able to walk to work (or to the grocery store, etc) due to the layout of the city, few exercise opportunities, and a highly fatty local cuisine combined with a culture that finds not taking second or thirds highly offensive.

I've finally managed to knock off 2 lbs in the past week so I'm at 132, but I really need to get back at least 125 where I used to be. 120 would be great, but I've always had an athletic build and... shall we say robust?.. boobs so I don't know if that is feasible or healthy. Anyone have a similar experiences with this body type?

Look forward to being involved in this community :)