Hey all- I'm starting on my own today. Contemplated going to a clinic but decided to give it a shot on my own. Anyone have advice on my decision not to start at a clinic?

Glad to be here, it looks like some amazing support!

Looking forward to this journey!

Kelly in Texas

Amber - This is my VHO on this: I was one of the ones advocating for consolidations - and it certainly appears we are getting lots of traffic & discussions on this thread which is GREAT!
When this all started though, I really thought quarterly threads would be perfect for the first year (ie, Jan - Mar 2015 / Apr - Jun 2015 / Jul - Sep 2015 / Oct - Dec 2015), and then reevaluate & merge up into one whole year (sometime in 2016, just as 2014 did recently).
Again, this is just my VHO, but iPeeps in the first 12 weeks of the program are in a very different place than those 12+ weeks out - and I am afraid expanding any more than 6 months out will cause issues for folks in the various stages to start getting lost in the postings, if that makes sense? Again, MVHO, new iPeeps need a different level of support than those a couple months in.
And as always, we should be directing folks to the main chat thread to get as many views as possible
But things seem to be going ok as is, my suggestion would be Jan - Jun 2015 and Jul - Dec 2015.

Sounds great - it was just a random thought I had
The threads will evolve naturally based on people's needs also, I see the new June one is being warmly received.

Hi Kelly!
I know there are quite a few of Texas iPeeps out and about, so you are in good company!
Re: clinic - I am 100% alt-products but not really because I wanted to be. I went to a clinic, once, and got a trial box of products. Turns out I have a soy intolerance...anyway, it seems if you get a good coach, your chances of success really do increase exponentially.
- You have someone knowledgeable watching what you eat (most have you keep a diary)
- When you hit snags - and you will - you have someone IRL to help you through
- Weekly WI's keep you accountable
- Food choices are simple

Hopefully others with coaches chime in - those are just my observances.

On the other (alt) side:
- 3FC / this forum is a great source! There are awesome people here too always willing to help / point you in the right direction
- MyFitnessPal is a great way to keep a food diary (but you have to take it with a grain of salt - sometimes the information for foods isn't 100% accurate) - there are other apps / trackers out there too
- Aria's seem to be the scale of choice (I am still using my beat up old $10 Wal Mart special lol) and lots of people weigh daily to get a better feel for how their bodies react to different foods / situations (stress, rest) - and Lisa & co. here usually have a quarterly weight loss spreadsheet going to help folks remain accountable
- Food choices - imho, for alt-product users, this is the toughest hurdle. For me personally, it required a lot of research and patience - but again, I had the additional issue of avoiding all soy products. Here is a great thread with tons of information (this is part 6 & it is definitely worth the time to go back through later threads though):
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/idea...rt-6-a-23.html

WELLLL HELLLLLOOOOO EVERYONE! I have had a crazy busy couple of weeks, but managed to stay pretty compliant. I didn't lose any this week, but didn't gain any and well, its TOM! I'm so very proud of everyone. I read back threw a lot of the posts and you are all doing amazing!!!

I did get to do something fun and decided I needed to do something for myself for losing 35 pounds and getting under 200 pounds...so I went shopping and was able to buy size 14w! The bad thing is this town doesn't have much and everything is EXPENSIVE! Luckily, I found some jeans on the clearance rack, cried when I tried on the 14w, and even though they were too long, I bought them and then when I got home, I wacked them off with some scissors and turned them into the cutest pair of capris! Now I can't wait for a JEAN Day at work!
Thank you all for being such great motivation!!! Even though I don't post a lot, your all still amazing motivation to me! Keep up the GREAT Work!!!!

Kelly,
If you are starting IP on your own, I would recommend you check out the "what are you eating today" thread. It may give you ideas for which foods to choose. (It has helped me!)
Marcia

WI #5 -down 1 lb. but even more exciting my size 18 pants are just too big, time to move down to the 16s so I don't loose my pants at work !!!

Thank you for the pointers, appreciate it SO VERY MUCH!

Glad to be here!

Help out a newbie, what is ONEDERLAND??

That is one of the most awesome NSV's to have Congrats!

asmuir - congratulations on the new sizes!

Kelly - getting under 200 & entering the 1XX's again

Fantastic results! Way to go! I plan to get rid of my clothes once they get too big because I'm determined not to be able to wear them again.

Anyone here recently started their diet? I am starting on Monday! Any advice you would like to share??

I would love to join this group. New on this site and I am making my way around it to find ideas and of course help and support in this journey. I started IP May 26th so I am very new to the food and plan. Any encouragement would be greatly appreciated.

Gmama all are welcome here

Me too!! Finally! I always held on to things, and don't you know it, I eventually grew back in to them. Not doing it again!!