[mandikaye]

Trying this again since my original post got eaten.

I've got nearly 100 pounds to lose, but my current goal is to lose 30 pounds by September (that will put me at 199).

This past January, I made the decision to finally get healthy. I went to the doctor and got the proper medication to help my body process insulin and finally, when I made the effort, the pounds began to come off.

I lost 20 pounds. For the first time in my life, I lost TWENTY POUNDS! I was so ecstatic.

But then something in my head went cablooey and I gave up. I gained half of it back over the last month and a half.

I struggle with the willpower, discipline, and motivation necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I have a wonderful supporter and cheerleader in my life, but only the one. I need more than that. I need a community.

And that is why I have decided to post here. I'm hoping to find it.

Here's to the next 30 pounds.

Mandi

[carter]

Hello and welcome. You can do this! You lost 20 and you can do it again and again, as many times as you need to do to reach your goal.

One caution I would give you is against time-based goals like "30 pounds by September." What if you only lose 20 pounds by September - which would already be an impressive total for a little over two months - will you feel like you failed?

You can't really control the rate at which your body will give up weight. Sometimes it will happen in fits and starts - you might drop 4 pounds in a week, and then hold steady or bounce around for 3 weeks.

So instead, focus on what you can control - set action-based goals that depend only upon what you do, not upon the whims of the scale. Set goals like "Stay on plan every day" and "exercise N times per week" - if you stick to these goals, the numbers will follow.

And most importantly, if you slip up - which you probably will, as nearly all of us do - get right back up and keep going. Don't "start over tomorrow" or "start over Monday". Don't try to "make it up" by starving yourself the next day. Just get right back on plan with your very next bite of food.

Two things you will need even more than will power and discipline are: consistency and patience. Work on cultivating both of these, and you will get where you want to be.

Good luck and good strength!