Scrappy! So glad you decided to join us. You sound like many of us....we could probably each write a book about how to lose weight. Unfortunately, putting the words into action takes a lot of practice for me! So many of our friends here at 3FC have been successful at getting the weight off and many are successful with keeping it off. I look forward to learning how to do this together.

Just wanted to add my "welcome" into the mix. This is a really great group of ladies. You're going to continue to love it!

I love my iPod for walking. I have uploaded a "Walking for Weight Loss" CD and it's great - very motivating! Cheers to your husband for such a thoughtful gift (and, happy belated anniversary!).

Congratulations on all of the positive steps that you are taking. Please don't beat yourself up not losing/regaining the "baby weight." Many, many of us have been in the same boat. After my daughter was born (she's five next month!), I decided to stop teaching and stay home with her until she started preschool. During that time, I had a great time being totally immersed in mommy-daughter things - playgroups, trips to the park, etc. While I wouldn't have missed those years for anything, I realize now (yes, almost 5 years later), that I was able to complete ignore my rapidly-increasing weight and size. I traded in my work clothes for comfy, at-home togs, most of which were elastic-waisted and very forgiving. Plus, I managed to shy away from buying things with a (number) size, and always managed to fit into an XL (which severely limited my clothing choices, I assure you!). I don't think I made a conscious choice to do this, but, for better or for worse, here I am now, several sizes bigger than even I realized! It was a dark day when I decided to go back to work and realized that I needed a completely new wardrobe (down to the shoes!!).

Whew...that was a bit of a rant, huh? Anyway, I just wanted to say hello and welcome. You will love it here and, as you have already figured out, it's a great distractor at times when you're thinking about snacking...

Have a great day!

~Laura

You can do it girl friend.......

Wow - you know what I love the most? I love looking at the tickers and seeing people who KNOW what I think and feel - and there they are - THEIR successes!!! It is amazing and I love it. And thank you for the warm welcome. THANKS!!!

By the way, I survived DAY ONE. I did okay. I am pleased with that. I wish I could say the same about Day Two (TODAY) and it's only 9:00 am here. BUT - I learned a few things already. 1) I should probably check in on this site before I eat. I was running late this morning and we are low on the 'good' stuff at home - which meant my breakfast was not great. That's all I'll say. But the stories and people here will keep me strong. So, that is lesson 1. Lesson 2 - instead of focusing all day (or longer) on how I blew it SO SOON I'm going to grab my water - think ahead - and not back. Wow - that is a BIG CHANGE for me!!!

TODAY WILL BE A GREAT DAY!

Hi Scrappy, I'm orginally from NE and right now my FIL from NE is staying with us for 2 weeks. He helped me plant the garden and boy am I sore!!! I also finished reading Bob Green's book and really enjoyed it. Welcome!

Hey Scrappychic - great smile in your profile pic!

For me, the key to success was PLANNING! I almost always have healthy food on hand for every meal, because on Sundays, I plan my meals in advance and I go to the grocery store and buy everything I need - breakfast/lunch/dinner/snacks (sometimes I have to hit the store in the middle of the week for more produce). On Sunday nights, I do as much prep as possible (bagging up vegetables for snacks, cutting up strawberries for yogurt, making salads for lunches).

Stop by the store tonight and make sure you are ready for breakfast for the rest of the week! Everyone always says "breakfast is so important" and I think it is too, MENTALLY. A lot of times, if I went offplan in the morning, I just gave up for the day and said "I'll try again tomorrow." Making sure I started the day right was important for me! (now, I'm a lot more forgiving of offplan slipups and immediately get right back on track, but it took me a looong time to be able to forgive myself and move on).

Good luck and welcome!!!

carolr3639 - what part of NE are you from? I live in Central NE and have been here 11 years now - I am originally from MN.

glory87 - I loved your story and your before and after pics! I read SuperFoods RX a few years ago when I lost my weight before. But I am inspired by your story - and am going to re-read the book and rethink my eating. I was going to cut calories, etc - like I have done before. But the switch to whole foods - I KNOW processed foods are bad and eat too many of them - even if they are '100 calorie' etc - I depend on them too much! And I loved how you plan - I need to check out some sites for recipes, etc.

THANKS!

My FIL is from Hastings but we're all originally from Hebron. I live in WI now. Glory, do you ever use the bagged lettuce?

Hey Scrappychic, thanks for the nice words! Cutting down on processed foods definitely helped me. In the past, I would do a lot of substitution (cookies for Snackwells, etc). The "fake" stuff never really satisfied me and it could set off my cravings the way a piece of fruit doesn't!

Hey Carol, I use a ton of bagged lettuce, especially spinach leaves. Love the stuff, but I'm way too lazy to clean a bunch of spinach!

Just wanted to pop in and say !!

Your really going to love it here!! We really have a great bunch!

I love the enthusiasm I hear in your posts!!

Ohhh.... I was just about to type exactly what Sandi said!

I'll say it anyway! Welcome to the 100lb. Club, it's a great place and I can already tell that you fit right in. Welcome!

Hello!

I just wanted to say THANK YOU to everyone for such a warm welcome! This is such a welcoming place and everyone has been great with their welcomes and their words. I appreciate it!

BTW carolr3639, I am not that far from Hastings and Hebron! Wow - SMALL WORLD!

Already I can tell the difference that this website has made for me. I am on day 3 and I would be lying if I said that the sugar withdrawl hadn't kicked in yet. Sigh.... (I am sure my husband would say that I was a 'tad' cranky last night!) But I felt like I had 2 strong days - ABSOLUTELY better than I been to myself in months - and so this morning I got on the scale. Just for a little, you know, incentive. Like I've mentioned, one of my favorite things is to look at people's tickers in their messages and see how much weight they have lost. I am always amazed by HOW MANY people have lost such SIGNIFICANT amounts of weight! Anyway, I KNEW not to do it. In fact, in Bob Greene's book he says not to do it for an entire MONTH and here I am at 2 days. Well, like I said, I KNEW not to do it. Even while I'm putting the scale on the floor I'm saying to myself, don't do it! Don't do it!!! But, like my entire journey when it comes to food - I am always doing things I should not. Of course after telling my husband on Tuesday that what I weighed on Monday would be THE heaviest I would ever be - NOPE - I gained an entire pound! UGH! BUT - I will not lose heart. I know it is water - I am SO SORE from the exercising I have been doing (my body isn't used to that, you know!). So - I am okay. Disappointed, of course - but it's alright. I will stay strong.

Thanks again, everyone!!!