a LOT of weight to lose (and life to gain)
 

Hi everyone! I can't believe I only just now found this amazing site. :wave:

I am sad to say I am about four years into my weight loss journey and yet still at a weight higher than most contestants starting out on the Biggest Loser! I knew nothing of healthy eating or living when I first joined WW at my HW of 418, and on their momentum plan I started making much better choices, dropped to 330lbs...and then the magic stopped. I hit a plateau, I lost and regained the same five pounds for nearly a year, and then they changed their plan to PointsPlus. I remained faithful to the program but didn't see results and got super frustrated, then just cancelled my account and gave up.

Although I "fell off the wagon" and have regained 30 pounds, I know it could have been much, much worse if I hadn't learned so much during my time on WW. I still eat much better than ever before in my life and still exercise, I just haven't been tracking calories or limiting portions.

I'm really trying to gear myself up to get back in the saddle and become dedicated again. I know one of my biggest issues is my pessimism, the moment I stop seeing results I sort of fall into that downward spiral of hopelessness and shame. I know that if I were able to keep my spirits up the last few years I'd probably have been able to keep losing at a slow but steady pace and I'd have a good deal less left to lose right now. :) But can't dwell on that now!

My goal weight in my profile is 259. I know that may seem high but in all honesty that number seems like a dream to me, I haven't been that weight since I was 13 years old. I'd be so happy just to be able to get under 300, but for some reason 259 sounds like paradise!

Sorry for the rambling intro, I just really hope to find some sources of inspiration and motivation here! Thank you for reading! :hug:

Welcome bubblybee! I think you are going to love it here. :)

It's taken me years to get my act together but finally I was able to find a plan and stick to it. Posting here daily for about 9 months kept my head in the game and my eyes on the prize. I set a bunch of mini goals so it didn't seem too overwhelming to start (first I wanted to be 299, then 275, 250, etc.). The day I weighed in at 199 I seriously cried my eyes out at it was nothing short of a miracle, I thought I was destined to be morbidly obese for my whole life.

You have made wonderful progress in your journey and I hope we can all help cheer you on to your goals. Good luck!

Hi bubbly bee! I just joined too. I was impressed by the honesty of your post, and also that you're still eating healthfully and exercising. That's not "falling off the wagon"--that's something to build on!

This sounds like me! When I was at 352 I just set a goal of 299. Once I hit that then 250 was my next big goal. After that I went for the big one...199! I didn't care if I was only 1 lb under the 200 mark I just wanted to say I weighed one hundred and something! I totally agree with this post though, set mini goals, as you realize then you'll be amazed and inspired!

Thank you so much for your kind words! And you are so right about the mini-goals...I'm going to change my goal weight to something a bit closer in number so I can focus on a bit of progress at a time! Thank you! Absolutely amazing stats btw...I'm in awe! Would love any tips you might have!

You're so sweet, thank you! I was worried I was writing way too much so thanks for your support, haha! And you may be right about the eating and exercising...that's one of those things I need to work on, focusing on little victories instead of fixating on what I see as failures! Well, that and shrinking my portion sizes...if I can master that I may be set! :D

Woohoo! It's amazing how appealing that number 299 is when you've been stuck in threedom forever, isn't it?! Congrats on all your success, wow! And I definitely agree, you guys have really opened my eyes to the importance of the mini-goals! Thank you for your support!

Awwww thanks!! Now that I have lost 75% of my goal, it seems "easy" looking back (and please know, I don't say that lightly at all!). It was literally calories in, calories out. Diet and exercise with the emphasis on my diet as I couldn't really get my exercise in until the pounds started coming off.

I saw a nutritionist (and still do) once a week and weigh in with her, confronting the good/bad/ugly. We put so much pressure on ourselves (at least I did) with the scale number and sometimes forget to look at all the other NSVs (non-scale victories) that we are accomplishing along the way (I was so excited to be able to tie my shoes, to walk a mile, fly on an airplane without an extender, etc.).

The most important thing for me was remembering that it's one meal at a time and if we make a "bad" choice, we can instantly correct it the next meal. I no longer wait till Monday/next week/next month/next year to correct my mishaps, I start immediately right away and get my head back in the game.

I look forward to your updates and your success. Seriously, if anyone told me I'd be able to get this weight off and keep moving to my goals, I surely would have thought it was a mean joke. I'm living proof that we can all change our lives with the support of this forum and a few key people in our lives. :)

Oh, I so need to come back and look at this post frequently, as a reminder! It seems that every time I've allowed myself a 'treat', that treat soon turns into "well, the rest of the day is shot now, might as well have another!" and then soon enough that becomes "well, this has been a bad week, I'll start over next week."

If I could stick to your words and keep my eyes on the prize like you have and not let each bump in the road become a roadblock...that would be amazing!

I can't thank you enough for your encouragement...I was really happy when I found this forum and started reading, and your words have so helped to fuel my excitement! I really want to dedicate myself to this journey this time around. :hug: