Thank you so much, Kelly and Sue!!! and Amber -- you and Alexandra crack me up about the shrinking Apple device!!!!

I am between a size 10 and 12 right now -- I'd like to be between an 8 and 10... 150 may or may not get me there, and I'll just have to see if that's it for me, when I get there. You are so right about staying with P1 to goal - it is too hard to walk back to P1 after opening the gates to other foods. My California sojourn taught me that lesson.

As much as people are commenting to me about being 'skinny' - I do not think that 150 would take me to a stark, Auschwitz look, either.

Hmmm.... As I think about this, I wonder how many pounds I could lose by getting rid of loose skin...? I don't have a huge amount of it but I bet I have 3-5 lbs worth. And then, to offset the pounds of loose skin, I really need to build some muscle mass in the glutes and the arms especially. That would bring my total weight back up. There is no end to all this!!!:dizzy:

Speaking of clothes ... I have yo-yo'd so much in my life that it scares me a bit to donate old too big clothing ... for fear of backtracking and then having nothing to wear.

But is keeping old clothes just another way we sabotage ourselves -- sort of like being "prepared" to gain the weight back.

I wonder if one gets rid of the old "fat clothes" if there is more of a financial motivation not to regain.

I think if this was my first diet, I would have more confidence on maintaining. But I have yo-yo'd a number of times.

What are everyone's thoughts on this front?

Oneuh2 you look amazing and healthy. You should have a huge smile on your face when you see the side by side photos. I bet you needed to buy new bras too! I went down a few sizes in that area as well. Now I need a "lift"!

In the 2015 Rebooters I just posted a link to a blog from MFP that talks about How do I stop cheating - and it's got several recommendations for successful maintenance -- check it out!

The whole concept of re-booting or re-starting is something most of us on 3FC have dealt with before -- I would guess very few of us are on our first diet program..... I think that's especially true for those of us with more than 25 lbs to lose. Losing some and regaining what was lost, plus at least a few more, is how most of us find ourselves in a size 20 with 80 or more lbs to lose now.

Point 7 in the list of tips in this blog posting really gets at the topic you have introduced, Alexandra. I am pasting it in here, but the whole posting is well written and worth reading:

7. Stop restarting. Just keep going. We have this mindset that, if we ***** up, we will just restart tomorrow. Stop that right now! Do not EVER restart. Just keep going. Not tomorrow, not in an hour...with the next bite of food. Because, honestly, it makes us feel like a failure, and that isn't fair. "I have to restart again, because I suck and keep screwing up." You have not failed until you give up. Do not give up on this week, this day, this hour. Just make sure the next thing in your mouth is good fuel and keep going. You didn't fail, you just didn't make the best choice, but you WILL be strong enough to make the next choice you make your best. Don't force yourself into failure for an entire ***** day! That's emotional and mental cruelty.


And I believe one of the earlier tips shared is the recommendation that you DO get rid of what I call the 'fat girl clothes'.... :)

Thanks for the kind remarks, OhZoe!!! And you are right - I did need new bras - mainly smaller band size. I think I need more than a lift... a reduction to get rid of the empty, loose skin, as well as a nicely shaped implant is probably in order at this point.... :eek:

This is great advice! Thank you!!

Avalon~At first I did not get rid of my big clothes, but then as the pounds came off I felt holding on to them was my crutch. I had so many clothes 22/24, 18/20 and I never want to see that number again....I think it was so easy to regain before because there was never a noticable difference in my wardrobe. I just grabbed a bigger pair of pants and larger top and before I knew it I was 281 pounds. I decided early on it was a good thing to only have clothes that fit and were smaller to chose from. Now my closet holds 1 pair of 22/24's for a reality check. Everything else from that 20's era is gone... My hope is that since I am such a clothes freak if things start getting sung, I will get my self back on track quickly or have to meet clients naked! :carrot:

Oh and another thing I have done is to stop buying elastic waist pants...those are the biggest liars! LOL

Aria scale still has a 1 in front of the number this am :goodscale: OK have no fear I am sure one day the thrill of that will wear off and I will stop metioning it LOL...

I'm right with you! Maybe we can get a group discount and recover together at a nice spa? A girl dream, can't she?

OK updated my look...wow what a change......

Zowie!!! What a fantastic before and after change! It's amazing how much different we all look after losing a chunk of weight.

And thanks for the "what to do with the old fat-clothes" advice. What you wrote makes a lot of sense!

Dang Sue you look uh-mazing!! :)


Busy day today, closing ceremonies for tball and my kiddo made All Stars! He's so excited and we will be tied up through the month of June.

Yes indeed - WOW what a change - you look wonderful!!!:carrot:

Thanks for sharing the in progress view!!!

Avalon ~ I will PM you for your email address...that would be great..

Thanks all...showed Hubby the photo and he was shocked....He was like you were never that big...Oh Hello! Suzie can't photo shop that LOL.:D

Nothing day today...Yeah! Need to confirm an appointment for a new listing tomorrow and then I will do some laundry. My SIL sent me 2 boxes of size 14 clothes...most are pants with the tags still on them. Over 20 pairs and a few tops and shorts... EVERYTHING FITS! so I am going to leave the pants with tags on them in the drawer since I am a capri girl for the summer and I have a few 14 &16 that fit already if needed. I threw some of the lighter weight ones and lighter color ones in the wash. I will do some laundry today. Also need to clean up from DS's birthday dinner last night. He got a few gas gift cards LOL...Pressure is on for Tuesday to pass the test. Hubby had him out yesterday doing errands and practicing parallel parking and he said he did fine..

I can't get over how svelte and fabulous you are all looking! :mag: I love it! Let's all do progress pics!! Such motivation. :cheer:

Avalon - I totally hear you on donating larger sizes. I nearly had a panic attack the first time I went through my closet and donated some favorite items that took me years to acquire. It is SO hard. This is the first diet I felt I had the tools to let them go. Therapy helped. My IP coach definitely helped. It is hard. But I think you need to commit to your new lifestyle and body. It is really a gift to yourself. There is no turning back. This is my new normal. Progressively it became easier to get rid of in between sizes but I find myself holding on to 10-14s when I am in an 8. Maybe that is due to my fear of phasing off and being able to maintain? IDK

Sue - My DS turned 17 on the 15th. Can you believe you have a 17 yo? Where has the time gone. *sniff* So proud of our boys and good luck to yours getting his license. Mine is not quite so ready in the driving dept. ;)

Well, I hope I finally broke through the lose/gain cycle I've been stuck in for the last 6wks. Yesterday I hit 157 on my aria, my lowest weight to date. :carrot: 7lbs to go and I am feeling good about staying OP. No more excuses. I have slacked on excersize this week but being busy is no justification. That was my reason for not dieting for years and years. I need to make time to get to the gym and make it a priority.

Visit with my dad was great. He's doing well and is in good spirits. We had a garage sale yesterday and he brought a bunch of my mom's things. Her favorite bag gave us both pause when someone bought it but they are just things. We have the memories which are far better.

DD has a basketball game at noon. My goal is to plan meals for the week, make it to the grocery store and gym. Maybe grab an hour of me time somewhere. ;) Hope everyone has a great Sunday!!

YEAH for the scale break thru...Glad you had a nice visit with Dad... Yes my DS is more than ready for the driving test....he can't wait for his freedom LOL...

Avalon ~ thanks so much for fixing my photo...much better!!!