I just started too and I am really motivated to lose this time. Can't wait. It's wonderful to have such a wonderful support system in place too.

Hi there. I'm new here too and I haven't read all the way to the end of this thread yet, so I don't know if this has already been answered, but I hit a weight loss plateau early this year (3 MONTHS! talk about frustrating!) and, during that time, I did a lot of reading and found the same advice everywhere. We have to keep changing our exercise routine or else the body gets used to it. For me, I switched from the treadmill to the bike and elliptical, and also increased the amount (time) of cardio I was doing. That worked for me. Maybe it will for you, too.

I know how it gets so comfortable to get in our routines (I am one of the most routinized people in the world!) but it does pay to keep things shaken up a bit so that our body is constantly being challenged.

Good luck!

Hi all, I've been out of town and have finally been able to read these posts. I am sooo out of control. I need to figure out what the best course of action is for me. In the past, Weight Watchers has always worked the best but I have such a lack of dicipline these days since I've quit smoking (11 weeks today ) Any advice on how to stay motivated? What types of weight loss programs are you guys using? Any suggestions? Kerry

kerry, you need to be applauded on stopping smoking. your lungs will thank you. people often compare overeating to other compulsions like drinking excessively and smoking. it is similar but harder i think since you can't abstain from eating. i am really focused on the long haul this time and not a quick fix. for me personally calories in/ calories out is the key(which really sucks). i can do the low carb thing forever but i don't lose weight. i also MUST exercise. i think the key is finding what works for you. experiment with calorie levels and see how much you can eat and still lose weight. sheriaVa i think you are right i do need to increase my exercise time-i just don't want to-i barely fit it in now and make my entire family mad when i say i can't talk now-have to exercise.but it is all about me right?

sw 285/ cw 246.5/ gw ?

Headdoc, thanks so much for the applause! It's tough but I'm determined to stay focused. That's so funny that you mention the exercise. I am the same way. I've often said that if I became very thin, and then ate nothing but lettuce for the rest of my life, but stopped exercising, I'd gain every pound back! And I've actually found exercises I like. It's just staying motivated. Anyway, on Sunday we leave for vacation and I refuse to allow myself to blow up. I will treat myself but not over do. Then when I come back, I just have to get a game plan. I just am not very diciplined these days. Keep up the great work. It is so nice to have people here to talk to who understand what this is all about. And even if I do lose all of my weight, I know that the battle will never be over. But I know that we can all win this battle!!!

Hey group! I just wanted to check in and see how you all are doing. I had a bingey sort of day yesterday. I dont know why but I was bored and a little tired and spent most of the day reading and eating. I tried and kept eating low fat stuff but had way more food than I normally do. I didnt exercise and had a few drinks with some of my friends last night (diet coke and captains...mmmmm). I thought for sure I would gain but lost a pound. I was excited!! Just wanted to share my good fortune. I hope you all are doing well too!

PS. Today is my husbands b-day and ideas on a low fat, low cal dessert I could serve him?

Hi, This is my first post and for some reason I feel very nervous, I can't decide why I am but ....I am.
I am a 32 year old mom who is self employed yet still never finds the time to excercise.
Let me rephrase I find lots of time to excercise I just use the time thinking about excercising and what I should be doing.
I weigh 270 and am 5'8 . My goal weight is 150 .
My weight problem started at 20 when I met the munchies. alcohol and pot induced, while I stopped drinking and smoking my eating habits remained.
every year I would gain about 10 pounds. Here it is twelve years later I wake up and I start to care that I am wearing a size 22/24 . I have a supportive husband who would love me thick and thin. The thing is I am scared. I dont know why I just am afraid I will fail.
My job entails auditioning and even though I am not seen on camera I see the eyes of the casting directors suprised I sound the way I do yet look how I do. (I do voice overs) I really think that first impression just knocks them back.
Its time and I love this forum. I need support and I want to give support.
Somehow I have managed to surround myself with very thin people who never excercise and can eat whatever....they just dont understand the emotional side of trying to lose weight. Heck I can't understand my emotions either.
anyone who wants a weight loss buddy email me I am ready to roll or at least ready to lose the roll

wow Treenorth! At least you are here and doing something about it. There is no time like the present to take hold of the situation and get motivated! I just LOVE hitting the scale and seeing a loss. Yesterday I was good all day and even ate a healthy dinner. My friend Tim called and wanted to go for a drink at TGI Fridays and I said ok. I had my diet coke and rum and a salad (Ill admit to at least 4 nachos) and was amazed when I got on the scale and saw that I had lost 3 pounds!! I am on a roll ladies!! I just think that anyone can do this. It is about making the right choices, keeping healthy food only in your home, and getting in some exercise every day. I am sooooo sure you can do this treenorth. Please feel free to email me. I would love to be your diet buddy. - Also check out www.fitday.com . You can keep track of calories and activites there and they have a great journal for you to write in.

thank you Bellasmom for your support(thank you also to kerrypchef for the encouragement) I am truly blessed to have found this killer site.
Here is the weird thing and I would truly welcome everyones opinions on this thing.....
I have tried dieting and excercising over the last couple years, I do really well for the first month. I notice the changes in my body and health and then one day I wake up and I eat a bagel with to much cream cheese, than something as equaly carby for lunch and then snack...skip the walk. Two days later I am back to the bad habits. Like the last month never happened. How do I know this time won't be different? What happens to the brain that knows whats healthy and whats not...enjoys the feeling of health and than sabbatoges it?
I am babbling but I feel excited today like I am on the right path, yet I am so afraid. Of what I am still grasping at....losing weight not losing weight...change maybe!
Fear.....what an awful feeling. When my son (North) (yes like the direction) was born in 1999 I began fearing everything. After some therapy for a couple years it ceased a bit.
Does anyone have any advice for sticking with it for overcoming the hump that happens?

Just had to post one more time before I left for vacation. You had asked about sabotage. I read Dr. Phil's book and he talks about sabotage. It's pretty good. I bet you can even pick up a copy at the library. Have a good week guys. Kerry

Well, I guess my first bit of advice is to expect that we will ALWAYS have temptation...so we need to develop a plan and a thought process to learn how to cope with it when it happens. I think planning is key. Having a plan to cope with temptation is no GUARANTEE that you will follow the plan when you are tempted, but it's sure going to give you a higher chance of succeeding than not having a plan at all!!

Second, I have been at this (healthy eating/regular exercise/losing weight) for just over a year now and I try to never "fall off the wagon" for more than one meal. For example, if I allow myself to have something I'm really craving at lunch, then I make sure that my afternoon snack and dinner are healthy. By the same token, if I go out to dinner with friends and decide to have dessert (or succumb to the temptation of something else that's not very healthy), I get right back on my healthy eating and exercise track the first thing the next morning. I hear SO MUCH from other people that, when they fall off the wagon for lunch and just consider the day shot (so they may as well stay off the wagon until the next day (or week)), it causes a nasty slide.

Third, eat regularly throughout the day so that you're never too hungry. If you're never too hungry, your chances of succumbing to temptation are much less! I eat breakfast, a morning snack, lunch, an afternoon snack, a light dinner and, occasionally, an evening snack. I'm almost never hungry if I stay on that schedule and, as a result, I rarely veer off my plan.

Now of course there is going off plan consciously and there's going off plan unconsciously. I find it absolutely crucial to allow myself occasional PLANNED falls off the wagon (again, for only one meal) because I found out from years of dieting that deprivation is a sure guarantee of failure!!

Hope this helps!
Sheri

hey everyone. hope you all are doing well. i am back from florida. i am pretty proud of myself. i am up about 1.5 lbs but feel good about not going 'hog-wild'. i ate as good as i good most of the time and splurged a few times(it was
almost as if i was a "normal" person).
Treenorth-i can relate.i am the best dieter when i am 'on' but i will out of the blue revert to old habits. it makes me mad because i know i feel better, sleep better, look better etc. when i eat healthy. why would a smart person do something that makes them feel bad, it makes no logical sense. i have been able to decrease the out of control times and get back on track more quickly. i really want to be able todeal with food in a normal skinny person way. it seems to control me-whether i am eating it or trying not to eat it. i will keep battling.



sw 285/cw 245/gw anything less