Yup...I've found that to be true myself.

Simplyme,

It sounds like maybe you aren't eating enough calories. I have read in magazines, online, books, heard on tv, you name it, that you should NEVER go below 1200 calories a day without the strict supervision of a physician. This puts your body in starvation mode and makes it more difficult for you to lose weight because your body is trying to conserve the weight rather than let it go. For those of us who are very overweight, even 1200 a day may be too low (since our bodies are larger and require more caloreis simply to function even if you are not very active). I was eating 1800-2000 calories a day and not exercising regularly and was still losing weight because it all comes down to calories in vs. calories out, but WITHOUT depriving your body of the essential amount of calories it needs to function. I know, it doesn't really follow common sense (if I eat less, I should weigh less, right?), but it is true and has been proven time and time again, not only by experts, but by real people on these boards who gained or maintained weight at 1200 calories then lost weight when they upped it to, say, 1500-1600 calories a day.

If you think you ARE getting enough caloris, then maybe all you need to do is shake it up a bit. Your body gets used to eating the same things every day and settles into a pattern of satisfaction that does not include weight loss. Try varying your diet a little more or having 3 high-calorie days and 4 low-calorie days a week (to average out to your desired number of calories per day). Often, this will wake your body up and keep it on its toes instead of being contently settled into a pattern, therefore jump starting the weight loss again.

I agree with MrsJim that you may want to eat more frequently, also. Eating every 3-4 hours throughout the day is much better for your metabolism, for it's not so stop-and-go, it's a consistent pattern of working and burning and processing.

I know it's hard to hear "eat more" or "eat more often" when you're dieting because it just doesn't seem to make sense to our minds, but it does to our bodies, and after all, that's what you're after is a better body

well said mrs jim

WoW I am very touched and very moved by what you ladies had to say.THANK YOU!!! I have struggled with my weight all my life and no one has ever had such an impact on me like you have. I guess I have always known how important it was to watch what you eat and exercise, but for me growing up my parents idea of watching what you eat was to watch it go in your mouth. Not exactly right, huh? Any way I just wanted to thank you for inspiring me to pay more attention to my body, and what I am doing to it. Stacey

Are you kidding? I do have a secret to losing weight-it's called getting off my lazy butt and exercising! I tell you, it's a miracle solution.

I think I'm one of the lucky ones, though. I was raised to believe exactly what you said. Whenever I see a new diet or pill, I think, "I'll believe it when I see it."

Awesome article!! Great advice I really appreciate this.

MrsJim:

I wanted to say in your before picture, you have beautiful brown hair! You look so young!

The glucophage is used to treat insulin-resistance, which my daughter has as a by-product of her polycystic ovarian syndrome. My daughter is also encouraged to eat a healthy diet to assist with the weight control...just FYI.....

Thanks

I have just joined and I love reading success stories. I feel so discouraged. I have been overweight most of my adult life. I have tried Weight Watchers twice, ediets once and am now on the Okinawa online diet. While I appreciate having these structures to help me get motivated the time I have lost the most weight was when I did aerobics 3 times a week.

Seeing the posts by so many people losing weight is encouraging and discouraging at the same time - will I ever lose this weight like every one else here? (Sorry to be such a stick in the mud)

MrsJim,

Your posting is a great summary of where we are today. If I look at my lifestyle, it's desk bound, long commutes, business travel and hotel breakfasts, (lunches bought from petrol stations - never nutritionally sound), and a constant list of 'Things to do'. But my family were engineers and gardeners - physically hard work, and dinners were big, fresh cooked and plenty of vegetables, because they were a cheap filler.

We know that abundance is killing us. Supermarkets offer everything we could possibly desire in extra large portions, quick, cheap, convenient and deadly.

So it's time to take a stand. No longer a slave to the job / lifestyle / junk food, I have to be stronger, more consistent and more knowledgeable than ever before. The hard work starts here!

[will I ever lose this weight like every one else here? (Sorry to be such a stick in the mud)[/QUOTE]

That's my newest kick and it seems to be working.

That's my newest kick and it seems to be working.[/QUOTE]

Yep.. I'm right in that canoe with you ladies - however - I can honestly say that I am going to DO it this time if I have to revert to super glue lip gloss (which, I don't think will happen).

Mrs Jim, Meg, etc. (sorry, I can't remember ALL the lovely names) I wanted to say that your posts are beautiful and a heartfelt encouragement to me. Meg's post really hit home - in fact, if I had ink in my printer I'd have put it on my fridge by now! (And I NEVER put things on my fridge!).

No one here is a stick in the mud - it's what you call HONESTY! And I feel it is being honest to say that, although correct diet and exercise is the golden key to being slim - it is also just a plain ole matter of fact that it just doesn't work for everyone due to commitment issues, lack of time, willpower, medical reasons and down and out impatience, to name but a few. I am one of these few. I do not believe that there is or ever was any 'magic pill' or 'magic diet' that will whisk the weight away and I'll wake up tomorrow a size 2. However, I DO believe that there are products out there which CAN make the process easier for people who, frankly, just do not have your dedication - for right, wrong or indifferent.

I applaud you MrsJim, from the bottom of my heart for all of the dedication you have put into your health and lifestyle. I only wish I had it in me to do what you have done but, I don't. If I did, I wouldn't be sitting here at 34 and weighing in at over 200lbs. Everyone KNOWS that this is the way to go, but the knowing just isn't enough sometimes.

I'm currently on the Medifast diet after trying just about ever diet known to man (and woman) and a few ad-libbed diets I created on my own - calorie/fat counting, etc. I've had gym memberships where I worked out 5 days a week for months and ran myself into the ground trying to get the weight off. I've done WW countless times - grooming myself into a near obssessive compulsive disorder behavior of logging everything that went into my mouth and the points thereof - only to lose a pound - or maybe two - a week. I've done Atkins until I swore I could feel the fat oozing from my pores. I've done Fat Loss for Idiots over the internet until I ate so much chicken I thought I'd grow feathers....

The problem, for me, lies in the fact that I suffer from obssessive eating disorder. I need structure. I can't have 'everything in moderation' because the moderation is always an issue. I also don't want to spend the next 3 or 4 years of my life trying to lose 150lbs when this is supposed to be one of the most exciting times in my life. I'm single. I want to go to concerts and festivals, I want to go to the dance clubs and wear what I want to wear without looking like a middle-aged woman trying to dress like a 20 year old - regardless if it fits or not. I freely admit it. I'm impatient.

So, for me, it's Curves twice a week and Medifast shakes. And, if that does it for me, then it's all good.

I'm only saying this because I used to read posts like MrsJim's and feel downtrodden and sad that I didn't have it in me to just do it the reasonable way like they did. I felt that if I had to resort to Phentermine or some diet or other, that I was a failure and I couldn't be proud of myself for losing weight because I didn't do it - the diet did it or the pill did it. Well, I was wrong. Now I can read those posts and see the beauty in them. I can see how everyone is different and, even though it may be the right way, it just isn't for everyone and THAT IS OK!

So way to go to everyone - despite what you choose to do - and congratulations for taking control.

The best of success and congrats to you all!

~Alisha

Thanks Mrs. Jim and Meg, As you can see, there are still plenty of people out there looking for the magic bullett. Those of us who have been around the block more times than we can count can see the truth in your message.

Pesistence, not Perfection. It should be our Golden Rule.

"What are you doing?" I've heard that a lot this summer. People don't actually want to know what I'm doing, because as soon as I start to tell them, they say, "That's too much work." NO, IT ISN'T. It's exactly the amount of work it takes for me to continue on my healthy journey. I will keep a food (and emotions) journal and weigh and measure everything that goes in my mouth from now on-and its worth the effort. I can't just stop eating when I'm full, because I can't tell that I'm full until I'm stuffed. I am not able to "guestimate" portions, so a food scale and measuring cups have become indispensable weapons in my weight loss arsenal. I will keep using them after I reach a healthy weight, or I won't maintain that weight for long.

I have dieted many times. This is the first time I have been honest with myself and fully comprehended the fact that I must make a life-long commitment to a new way of eating. I promised myself that this time I would not do anything to lose weight that I was not willing to do for the rest of my life. So, no fad diets, no cutting out of whole food-groups, no dening myself food that I really want, no silly combinations of food, and no eating food that I just plain don't like. I don't know if I will reach my goal, but even if I don't, I am still way better off today than I was back in April when I got serious about this business of improving my health.

There is no easy way. There is no easy way. Say it again, and again, until you believe it. What you weigh is a combination of what goes in your mouth and out of your body as physical effort. It isn't easy, but it is knowledge that will last you a lifetime. It also doesn't matter how long it takes, as long as you keep going in the right direction.

Some people want the weight to come off as fast as possible. Personally, I think that what the scale says five, ten, or forty years from now is a lot more important than what it says a month from now. And don't forget, your health is gauged by a lot more than just a number on the scale. Skinny people can be unhealthy, too.

I wish you all continued success.

Donna

Isn't everyone looking for that magic pill? Some, like me, have tried every pill, fad diet and liquid diet out there. The only secret is eating right and EXERCISE (which i hate with a passion) but since I started doing these things the pounds are melting off. I still hate to get up in the morning and walk on the treadmill but seeing the way my clothes are fitting so loose now keeps me going. That is my magic pill!!!!!