[Zeferi]

Yet another new person ready to lose weight here.

I'm 17 years old, 5'7" or 5'8", and around 220 lbs, and have very low self esteem because of it. After watching that Turbo Jam infommercial about 5 times and reading around the forums here, I've been inspired to try to lose weight.

The people here seem very nice and I think some support would help me a lot in trying to get down to my proper weight.

What I'm going to do is cut out all junk food from my diet - no more chips, pop, ice cream, candy, or anything like that. Only food that is actually FOOD. Then, I'm going to exercise every day, for at least an hour. The only exercise I've been getting has been walking to and from school - the rest of the time I'm sitting on my *** not doing anything. I'm going to get the Turbo Jam DVDs because the workouts in them seem really fun and effective, and maybe I'll get my father into going to the gym together again - I lost about 15 pounds and 2 pants sizes doing that, but I've probably gained it all back since we stopped going.

So, here goes nothing. <3

[fiddler]

Zeferi,

You seem wise beyond your years. I'm glad that you have decided to lose weight by cutting out junk and exercising. It took me decades of dieting to figure out that that was the only way I was going to be successful in losing weight and keeping it off.

I know that when you are 17 your appearance seems very, very important to you. But don't let it define who you are as a person. You have so many other qualities that are ultimately more important than how you look. Think about the people in life that you respect the most. Do they have perfect bodies? I doubt it. As long as you have integrity and respect yourself, most people will respect you for it, and the ones who don't are jerks who don't matter anyway.

Welcome to 3FC! We're glad to have you here