megwini - It's okay to lose 4lbs the first two weeks. If you're just starting to change your lifestyle, it's fine. A lot of that weight will be water weight. I think I lost...6-8lbs my first week or two. Then it became 1-3lbs per week, usually averaging 10-12lbs lost for the month. I obviously didn't stay consistent with that, though, because at one point I was more off than on for a few months.

Angel's_Dust - Yeah. I am prepping myself now for the slower weight loss. I know when I get around 170-180, I'll probably lose 1lb a week. Who knows. I'll be focusing on inches by then, though. I going to start to focus on more exercise and losing more inches within the next week. I need to take my measurements and stay getting back into going to the gym 4x a week. I don't want to be a blob of skin because I didn't start strength training too early.

I would like to join you all as well. Maybe this will help me refrain from eating up the extra exercise deficit and stick to my plan.

I want to be 199 pounds by June 21st (Hubby's bday) for a total of 26 pounds.
I want to continue to exercise and strength train 4 times a week.

I am joining the challenge also. I had such a bad beginning to this year.I know it will only get better.My goal
is to fit in my size 20 jeans by July01!

Welcome to the challenge!! Good luck!

I think I've lost 1.9 lbs so far. I'm at 185.8. I say I think because the scale likes to trick me sometimes. I can't believe I've lost so much in such a little amount of time. It doesn't seem real.

WormwoodDoll: You should definitely take your measurements. I'm so glad I did. It was a big encouragement to see the numbers go down faster than the scale. I tried out the 30DS the other day and I think I need to try gaining muscle. Your 'blob of skin' words made me panic. LOL. I gain muscle fast, so I was afraid to gain too much. It's ridiculous, but I didn't want to see the numbers go up on the scale again. But I think I need to stick to the 30DS and do strength more often. I was using the strength to give my body an extra boost, but now I'll try to do the 30DS 3x a week. My body's pretty small for my weight because I've lost tons of inches, but I'm still afraid I'll have saggy skin.

I'm around 205 ATM. Too afraid to weigh myself though. Even though I've been OP, I ate soup from Subway last night. A CUP HAD 2,000+ MG OF SODIUM! I didn't realize that until I JUST NOW tracked my calories. Today is my higher calorie day (around 2300). I do this once every two weeks just to give my body a little shock. I worked it in perfectly because we were going out for DF mom's birthday. We went to Red Lobster - I had the wood-grilled salmon, jumbo shrimp, mashed potatoes, and a cup of soup, plus a biscuit (about 900 cals). I didn't eat breakfast. But I did eat two cupcakes. I'll still be in range with dinner though. Not the healthiest day I've had, but it was good, and worth it.

Angel's_Dust - Yeah. I lost 3 inches off my waist in about a month & 1/2 and I was wowed. I wonder what would happen if I did strength training. My legs and thighs are pretty toned from generally walking every day, plus doing the elliptical. I need to focus on my belly, arms, and back. They're my problem areas.

Hey everyone!

I used 3fatchicks a while ago for support in my weight loss but my diet has taken a hit lately from a number of different stresses. But I am ready to get back on track and I am looking to join this support group! I also want to slim up for summer Now that it's finally getting warmer, I really feel like I need to get off my *** and start getting back into shape.

Good luck to everyone!

Hi yall! I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend!

So, I absolutely blew it yesterday. We spent the day at Carowinds which is a local amusement park. I did great only taking in about 600 calories (tdp says I can have 1692 based on my weight and sedentary lifestyle)up until about 5pm when I decided to share an ice cream cone with the baby. Then on the way home, I stopped for chinese take out because everything else was closed besides fast food. I did not make the best choices there either. I had orange chicken, fried rice, an egg roll and 2 crab rangoons. I shared half the portion of chicken and rice with the baby and refrigerated the rest. I tried to make myself feel better by telling myself that since I still nurse and don't account for that and that I walked for 7 hours straight that I could get away with it, but I am thinking I may take a water aerobics class after playgroup, and then go back in the evening with my hubby to do my regular cardio and strength training just to be on the safe side. Do you think that is necessary?
I hate putting the baby in the child watch so much if I don't have to.

Count me in! I would like to lose 20-30 pounds by the end of June!!

So about that soup...I only gained .9lbs from all that sodium intake. Thank goodness. I was really worried about it.

Here's to a decent week and weekend!

Also welcome to all the new challenge members!

So did everyone have a good Easter? I know I did. I ate some stuff I probably shouldn't have but it's ok because I ate in moderation and I'm happy with my progress. I'll be getting more serious tomorrow morning... Like getting back to weighing and measuring my food portions and tracking my food on the daily plate. I have not got on the scale so I don't know if I'm up or down but I'll weigh tomorrow, just to see.

Guess my little hiccup didn't hurt my progress as the scale said I was down 2.5 pounds today. Yippeeeeeeeeeeee!!! Off to update my ticker!

I am going on vacation that will involve a beach (gulp) and wearing a swimsuit the first week of June. I only have 7 weeks left to get a semi beach-worthy body. I would like to lose 20 lbs by then.

I had a good Easter, but I got a huge bag of mini eggs and practically inhaled them. Those were gone in two days. The melty, crunchy goodness was too addicting. But I kept within my calories and didn't stop exercising. I had to take an extra day off yesterday because my calves have been so sore and tight. I'm making up for it today, but I'm going slower. Right now I'm trying to figure out how to squeeze an extra day of the 30DS into my packed schedule.

WormwoodDoll: Yes! Try strength training! You'll burn more fat. My body responds to strength training way more than to cardio. You should try doing both. When I lost all those inches, it was because I was doing lots of strength training and maybe 4x a week of 15-30 minutes cardio. When I was 190, my measurements were SMALLER than when I was 177. Probably by 3 inches for each body part. (I don't want to come off like I'm demanding you do it. This is just a suggestion. )

Angels_Dust - I usually do 10 mins cardio, 30-40 mins strength training, and another 10 mins of cardio (or a 1 mile walk).