[circa83]

Hello. I'm a 29-yr-old female from Virginia. A year ago I found out about this site and would browse it from time to time seeing people's inspiring and photos and stories. Recently I thought it couldn't hurt to join and hopefully find the motivation I need really kick off my weight loss.

I've been overweight my whole life and the first time I lost a notable amount was my first year at college. I wore loose clothes and didn't even notice the weight loss until people started pointing out how much smaller I looked. I wasn't eating healthier, just doing a lot of walking around campus and through the city. I slowly gained the weight back over the years with only some short term attempts to lose. Then in 2011 I spent a month out of town for work and my weight had reached an all time high. I refused to gain anymore and began exercising regularly while still eating the same, more or less. I only lost ten pounds in those few months.

In 2012 my New Year's resolution was to reach my goal weight by my 30th birthday which is December of this year. This time I cut carbs and continued to exercise. I didn't consider myself on a diet because I ate the same foods minus the bread and potatoes, except on the occasional cheat days. It started off great where I lost over 40 pounds between January and July, which was more than I had planned for. Since I was ahead of schedule I got lazy during the 2nd half of the year. Weight slowly crept up on me, about 10 or so pounds.

Then in March of this year an electrical fire at our house caused me to live in a hotel for 3 months. With no way to store or prepare my own food and being surrounded by fast food, I gained about 25 pounds. Now I'm back at the house and I hate how much weight I've put on and how little I did to prevent it. I'd only made a slight effort to eat better and exercise since. It wasn't until this week when I got fed up with my appearance and started making a real attempt to lose weight again. Even though I won't reach my ideal weight by my birthday, I still hope to drop the weight and keep it off this time.

[Kaitie9399]

Sorry about the fire and living in a hotel! Glad that you are here and ready to get back on the weight-loss band wagon.

You can do it!

[fairandfree]

You've had to deal with some tough stuff and I'm sorry! You can definitely lose those unwanted excess pounds, though, so welcome to the forums!

[TriciaV]

Welcome and good luck! I was also overweight for most of my life.

[melissakd]

You Can Do This.

[Mozzy]

Welcome and good luck on your journey!!

[Jacqui_D]

Hi Circa, welcome! Hey, better late than never! You may or may not make your goal by your birthday, but the fact that you are taking steps to become a healthier person is fantastic! You know what it takes, you've done it before, and you can do it again, and you will find lots of support and motivation here along the way. Good luck!

[circa83]

Thanks for all the support everyone.

[mccull83]

What is it about the 30th birthday mark? I've seen many people post about wanting to loose the weight before they hit 30, and that's when I decided to make changes too (I turned 30 this year).
There's still time before December...you can do it!!

[SoMuchFattitude]

WELCOME! I'm the big 30 in 2 months, too. You can do it!

[SouthernBell02]

Welcome!! I to am a newbie that "stalked" for a while. I am now a official member since last week! These folks are very generous with their kind words and support! I have found that if I am sitting around thinking about eating something bad then I just pop on here and then I forget about that snack. Or it motivates me to eat a banana or something equally healthy! I just turned 30 and have decided to try and make my goal by 31!! We can do this!