Hello everyone!

I'm from northwestern Ohio and I have been lurking on 3FC off and on for about a month after I stumbled upon it in some random Google search . I came to 3FC as a member because I weigh more than I ever have in my life thus far, and I want to do something about it! 3FC looked like the perfect place for me to start SOMEWHERE..I'm currently at around 275-280 pounds. I'm unsure, because the scale at my doctors office reads consistently about 5 pounds more than my scale at home and I'm never quite sure which is the most accurate. My goal is to someday be at 160-150 and never look back. There are several things in my way however.

I'm a college student living at home, I don't have a job, and I don't drive yet. ..okay so I'm pretty much a loser in that aspect I also live in the country...Ohio is pretty much corn, corn, corn, soy beans soy beans, soy beans, cows, and if you are lucky a small town or a city..It is a lot of money to drive anywhere with gas prices as they are, especially when the nearest gym, even the nearest grocery store, is several miles away and the prices for gym memberships or personal trainers is just crazy. To boot, since I don't drive yet, I pretty much have to rely on someone to take me places. There is no particular reason why I'm not driving yet really. It is a combination of not having someone confident enough to ride with a new driver, not having someone that will motivate me to drive or offer to let me, and that it just keeps getting pushed aside. I could take the test at any time, but I am not prepared.

I get pretty depressed about my weight sometimes but never really had the support or resources to successfully loose weight. I have always been overweight and live in a family that is overall big. Like the countless number of other people out there, I got ridiculed and laughed at for it in school and everything else. I once lost about 30 pounds because I had lost my appetite when I was ill. Even after I felt better I laid off on foods that had tasted bad when i was sick and lost weight. After this unexpected but exciting and delightful amount of weight loss, I could fit in size 18 pants for the first time in several years.

I got compliments and everything else, but since I hadn't exactly meant to loose the weight i had nothing planned or supported to keep it that way.. I eventually started eating normally (by normal I mean how I normally eat) and also started taking some meds that caused gain and I got the 30lbs back x2 and then some until I got to my current weight. I keep telling myself that 'sometime' I will work to be more healthy. I went through those silly little bouts of 'that is it, this is the last soda I will drink and that is the last bowl of ice cream', but I never could back it up and I could never just stop. The will power simply wasn't there...

So, not too long ago, for some reason or another, I was browsing google in a search (im a computer junkie...i admit it) and found 3FC. Like I said, since that time when I decided 'whats this about?' I have been lurking off and on until now, that I have decided that this was my opportunity to start somewhere. I decided that even creating an account and posting on here would be motivation to do something. The problem in short is that I really don't know what I'm getting myself into. I know next to nothing about what I really should eat or what fits my kind of body, and I certainly know next to nothing about fitness or exercize..however I know that just by starting somewhere i can learn what I need to do and go from there!!

So, if you read that all congrats and hello!

Well done for taking the first steps!

I'm sure that you'll find everything you need here to successfully reach your target weight.

Most people use one scale to determine their weight. Pick one, use it. Whether you go to your doctor every two weeks to weigh-in or you use your own scale once a week to weigh-in. Don't worry about the 5 lb difference. If you begin at 275 on one & 280 on the other and the scale at one says 265, and the other says 270, you've still lost 10 lbs. I suggest the one at home, only because you can get on it buck-naked in the morning (when we all usually weight the least).

You don't have to join a gym to be healthy. If you're in farm country, well, that sounds like the perfect place to go for a loooong walk! Or to buy a video to do a home exercise routine on! I'd suggest getting your license as then you can go to the grocery store when you want to find healthier foods, but you can always go along with your parents (in fact, you should!) so you can tell them about what you're trying to do, and maybe help them pick up a few more fruits/veggies/lean meats etc.

I get pretty depressed about my weight sometimes but never really had the support or resources to successfully lose weight. I have always been overweight and live in a family that is overall big. Like the countless number of other people out there, I got ridiculed and laughed at for it in school and everything else. I once lost about 30 pounds because I had lost my appetite when I was ill. Even after I felt better I laid off on foods that had tasted bad when i was sick and lost weight. After this unexpected but exciting and delightful amount of weight loss, I could fit in size 18 pants for the first time in several years.

I frequently got depressed about my weight my entire life... I just watched it go up and "wished" I could do something about it. Well, that sometime you speak of is now. Decide to be healthier now. It doesn't mean you need to be a fitness guru, but that you can do small things every day that will help you further along down this road. Like drinking enough water, eating enough fruits & vegetables, taking short walks. Little things! But oh how they add up. Start today (or the rest of the day if you're reading this at noon or so) with one thing you will do that will improve your health. One thing. Then do it. Drink your water all day today. Then tomorrow do it again. That's it. When you're confident that you've got a pretty good handle on one small thing, then add in another. And work on those 2 small things. You may be working on adding in small things for a few weeks, but you WILL feel better for having done them.

A year ago I saw myself in a similar boat. I didn't know anything about nutrition or fitness... but slowly I learned. And slowly I applied those lessons to my life.

One last habit suggestion. Take a notebook with you for a few days and simply write down everything you eat. No need to change it yet. Just to look over the pattern of what you're eating already. Maybe then if you post it here, we'll all be able to give you suggestions on what to improve lightly.

Know this, though: YOU CAN DO THIS!

There's nothing in your way that cannot be worked around and triumphed over. Life goes on, but we can't let that be the excuse we use for not losing weight. Because then life passes us by.

Best of success!!! We're all here for you!!!

~faerie~you just brought tears to my eyes.


phoenix ~ welcome your in the right place! i live in ohio too south east across the river from wheeling wv.