Hello! My name is Christine, and Im 24 years old. Ive been significantly overweight for a few years, despite numerous (failed) attempts to lose weight. I was always a little chunky, but after a traumatic event in college, I really packed on the weight, going from 175 to 247 in a matter of 4-5 months. I joined weight watchers in jan 2010 and lost about 40 pounds. I was ecstatic!! Then I graduated college and moved back in with my parents....I gained back 10 pounds. Then I started grad school...and now here I am back only 15 pounds shy of my heaviest. It makes me really sad that Im this weight, and no matter how many times Ive tried to lose weight over the past 3 years, I keep failing. Ill lose 10 pounds, and then Ill have a few weeks of little to no weight loss and I give up and binge eat. I dont know how to break this cycle. My family just doesnt get it. They say to just stop eating. Go for a walk. Eat a salad. But they have NO idea how hard it is for me to not eat the mozzarella sticks or to say no to the cake. They dont get how uncomfortable I am working out in front of other people because I feel self-conscious. I mean 5 minutes of moderate effort on an elliptical and Im out of breath. Im at a loss for how to get healthy again. I feel like its an impossible feat to get to a healthy weight

All of my closest friends are thin, so I really feel like I have no one to talk to about these issues. Its more than just me loving food, because I do really LOVE food. But its also that Ive become dependent on food to fill this void in my life. And its become a habit...like an addiction...that I cant seem to change for more than a week or two. I also have no idea how to incorporate exercise into my life. My schedule is crazy and stressful and the last thing I was to do after 12 hours of studying is to workout. I really need help/ encouragement/ advice, and Im hoping that this site will provide that. I look forward to talking to people going through the same day to day struggle with weight and being healthy.

Welcome and good luck on your journey!!!

Hi Christine! Welcome to 3FC

And many of us understand the problem you are having quitting binge eating. Been there, done that. But you CAN break the cycle! And once you are on your way and break the habits and get the junky food, chemicals and stuff out of your system, it gets easier to stay on track.

And as far as being self-conscious about working out in front of other people... and please know I don't mean this to sound harsh... sometimes we just have to swallow our pride and go do what we need to do. I have physical limitations which mean that a huge portion of my working out needs to be in the pool. I started out at 306 pounds and don't think it was not HARD to rip off my giant shirt at the last possible minute and jump into that pool. It is still hard and I cringe a bit... but I do it because I WANT this weight off and I want to get into shape. We have to ask ourselves if we want this badly enough to do what it takes to achieve it.

You will find this forum very helpful... in fact, if you check around you will find threads where people are sharing their embarrassing fat stories... and even being able to laugh about them when sharing with people who understand and have "been there, done that, bought the t-shirt."

Best wishes on your weight loss journey. You can do this, just like all the rest of us are plugging along and doing it!

Thank you for those words Misti in seattle. I definitely need to swallow my pride when it comes to the gym situation. I think I've just gotten to the point that Ive psyched myself out, and I need to force myself to do the things that dont make me very comfortable.

So now I have another question. I have about 70-80 pounds to lose. I know there are many people who have lost way more than that, so I know this is feasible, but despite me knowing it can be done, I still find myself feeling like its hopeless. Does anyone have any advice on how to not get so overwhelmed by how much weight one has to lose?

Thanks =)

Hi Christine! Welcome to 3FC!

I completely understand about being uncomfortable working out in front of people. I'm the exact same way. So much so that I don't do it. Instead I work out at home using various fitness videos and some hand weights. As for getting the exercise in, I don't really have any magic tips for you. I think it's something that you just need to make sure you do it. Start small and build up. Even if you only work out for 10 minutes in the beginning, that's better than nothing. I work and go to school, so I understand not wanting to exercise at the end of the day. However, I've found that each day I exercise, the more motivated I am to exercise the next day. If at the end of the day, you really find you're too tired, maybe try starting your day with exercise.

You don't have to completely cut out food you love. Eat the mozzarella stick but only have one or limit yourself to one bite of cake. In the past when I've tried to lose weight, I would try to cut out everything bad for me. I always ended up going back to eating them and then gaining weight. This time around, I let myself have limited amounts of I'm craving. I count calories so I'm good as long as I don't go over my daily limit. I do find myself eating a lot healthier just because I can eat a larger volume of healthy food for fewer calories.

As far as dealing with the emotional aspect of needing to lose a large amount of weight, most people seem to set mini-goals for themselves. That way they are concentrating on a goal that seems much more achievable while still making progress toward their overall goal. Take a look at people's forum signatures and you'll see all types of mini-goals listed.

I wish you much luck on your journey to a healthier you!

Hi Christine,

Welcome to the forum! I sympathize with you, as I was in a similar situation in my early twenties.

First of all, I totally get the 'being out of control' around food thing. Sometimes I just 'need' food (even if I'm not hungry), and I need to know that there's no limit on the number of mozzarella sticks (or whatever) that I can have. People who haven't been there don't understand and give unhelpful advice ('just stop eating' or 'have a salad'....ugh). I recommend checking out the 'Chicks in Control' forum on 3 Fat Chicks. It's got some good tips on short-circuiting binges, and a lot of sympathetic (and empathetic) people. I've heard some good recommendations for the book BRAIN OVER BINGE, so you might want to check that out, too.

I also understand the grad school thing and just not having the time or motivation to work out. What about just adding little bits of extra activity here and there? Recently (based on a recommendation I read on 3FC), I bought a little pedometer called a Fitbit Zip. I can carry it around in my pocket, and it tracks my steps and calories burned for the day. I'm finding it great motivation to increase my activity!

Good luck!

mackinac19

My favorite exercise is to walk my dog around my neighborhood & town! Thankfully, I live out in the "sticks" so my road is fine to walk on...mostly have to worry about having X amount of dogs follow us back to my house & figure out how to get them back home! lol I'd love to join a gym but it seems that between my husband and myself, there's never enough money for that kind of luxury. So, I compensate. Walking outside, whether it's on a local trail or just in my neighborhood, coming home & doing old school PE warm up stuff (stretches, push ups, planks, starting to try some yoga poses...I can almost hold a crow-ish pose for 3 whole seconds...), and just trying to find ways to work different body parts (if my dog stops to do his business, I wait patiently by doing calf raises...or lunges...I'm certain he thinks I'm absolutely insane & you should see my whole spastic "mid-lunge-OMG-car-coming-so-pretend-I'm-bending-down-to-pick-up-something" type move.

Maybe something like this can help you find your way back on track instead of sticking to the mindset that gym=workout. I've also found that myfitnesspal.com is an awesome tool, if you're like me, & need to be held accountable for everything that you eat. I've made it almost a game to beat it & it's really helped keep me motivated. Best of luck to you!

Welcome to you! I can tell you I have been where you are. In 2006, I realized I had diabetes. I chose to lose weight instead of going on insulin. I did take two Metformins a day and lost 86 lbs in 9 months. I did it by watching my diet very closely and eating nothing white (flour, pasta, rice, potatoes) and primarily eating protein with some veggies and one fruit a day. I didn't count calories because I get too obsessed over food doing that. Due to a back injury I also do water exercise. My next-door-neighbor is 290 lbs and she loves to do the pool exercise also. She has major back problems and had bilateral knee replacements last year and she works out 45 minutes three times a week with me.

Whatever you decide to do, I am here to support you and I have faith that you will meet your goals if you put your mind to it. Blessings, firegirl

Hi Christine, welcome to 3FC!!!

I am new also and I can relate to a lot of what you are saying especially when it comes to feeling addicted to food and being uncomfortable working out in front of others.

When drug addicts take drugs their dopamine (feel good chemicals) levels go through the roof - studies have shown the same brain activity occurs when people consume food they love - a favourite quote of mine is "Addiction is like a roaring lion. Addicts who use tobacco, alcohol or drugs have to slam the door to the lion’s cage and walk away to recover. Food addicts have to open the cage and pet the lion three times a day for the rest of their lives.

Combating your unhealthy relationship with food is definitely going to be the hardest part of your journey, and I hope we can all be here to support you with that - I also agree with other members suggestions about using a calorie tracker like myfitnesspal or signing up to weight watchers online to get you started. In regards to exercise you could try workout dvds at home but one thing I think is great for people like us who prefer to exercise alone is Xbox Kinect - there are so many great exercise games (Yourshape, Dance Central) on Kinect and you usually have so much fun doing them you don't notice you're getting an intense workout, also Kinect is something you can use at home in your lounge or bedroom so it might be easier to fit a work out into your busy schedule.


Good luck on your weight loss journey

Thank you all for all the advice and supporitve words. I definitely think that starting slowly with little bits of activity at home/ walking through my neighborhood will be a great place to start. I definitely have been in the mindset that gym=workout, which needs to change. I have worked out at home before...but I did two days of the insanity workout, and then I literally couldnt move for a week lol...so I think Ill start with some of the more normal-person-friendly videos. I also have a wii fit, although I dont use it very often...does anyone know if that offers as fun/ intense a workout as the Xbox kinect? The few times Ive used it, I didnt really feel like I was exerting myself at all.

As for the pedometer, I have one, but I think I should switch brands because literally the tiniest movement causes it to add a "step" when I havent even done anything. Thanks for the suggestion mackinac19

Immaculate - Mini-goals is a great ideal. I dont know why I didnt think about that before!

melsweetie84 - I literally laughed out loud when I read about your spastic mid-lunge move. I can definitely see myself doing the exact same thing haha.

Congratulations on your weight loss firegirl!! Its truly amazing and inspiring.

I also love the quote naetnec. Ive never heard it before but its so true. Its also nice to meet another newbie =)

Oh yeah, that's one of the smoothest moves I've got. If I couldn't find ways to laugh at myself, I'd feel soooo miserable all the time! Let's just be grateful that my road isn't one that's frequently traveled. Pulled muscles from becoming startled mid-lunge suck!

I don't have a Wii Fit, but I use the Just Dance games as workouts from time to time. To make it more of a workout, I march in place to the beat and then just add in the choreographed arm movements. It ends up feeling almost (but not quite) like the Walk Away the Pounds DVDs I also use. It's a lot of fun, so I usually do this when I'm not in the mood to workout.