Where do I start....

I'm Stephanie, 29 in January, and a SAHM to three beautiful children. I have been married for almost 11 years to Brian; and we reside in Wilmington, NC.

A little history...

Never been an overweight person; always petite and small. So the process of motivation, dedication, and sticking with this..I have been struggling with for the past 5 years. I have a problem with getting excited about working out...and by the second week, I quit.

-Was 102lbs when I got pregnant with my daughter in 1997; was 128lbs when she was born; at my 6 week post checkup, I was down to 108, not bad at all.

-Was 121lbs when I got pregnant with my son in 1999; was 134lbs when he was born; at my 6 week post checkup I was down to 118lbs..again not bad at all.

-Was 128lbs when I got pregnant with our son in 2004; was 152lbs when he was born; at my 6 week post check I was down to 146lbs...WHAT, I only lost SIX POUNDS from having him. He was 7.4 when born, so I didn't even completely lose the weight from just having him. Needless to say I was shocked and not happy at all.

June of last year, I started working again after 7 years of being strictly a SAHM. I was on my feet anywhere from 5-8 hrs, 3-4 nights a week. When I first started there, my feet ached, my back ached, I was constantly sore and definitely out of shape; I weighed in at 165lbs..I had gained almost 20lbs more since the birth of our third child.

Within 3 months of working, my body got use to it, and the pounds start dropping. I could not believe it, just by speed walking at night, at work, I was losing the weight; I wasn't changing anything else in my life, so this was great, I was in heaven!

By February of this year (2008) I weighed in at 138lbs...I had lost almost 30lbs in 8 months! And only had 13lbs to go, before I met my long term goal weight. But during that month, we lost my MIL to terminal lung cancer, and in April, my husband had to work out of town for 2 months. So I had to quit working to be at home with the kids.

It took 8 months to get those pounds off, and it took the same amount of time to get that weight back on. I dont have bad eating habits, but my lack of activity is my problem, I am not in denial about that at all; simply lack of motivation/dedication.

I am a small framed person, 5'3, and petite; and there simply is nowhere for this weight to go, except in my stomach and up. I hate it; I want to love myself again. I want my husband to look at me like he did 11 years ago, with that lust. Yes, I know he loves me dearly and unconditional; but I also know that if *I miss my old body, HE misses my old body. I want to be proud of my body!

My kids go back to school on Monday, and I want the activity going in my lifestyle again, and lose this weight by summertime. I know its realistic and I know it can be done, because I did it in 8 months last year. My husband got me a treadmill, I think I have used it a handful of times in six months.

I just don't know how to push myself to KEEP AT IT. I hear if you can surpass the 2 week mark, it gets easier; I can never make it to the 2 week mark, and thats my problem! My heart and mind want this SO BADLY, but my body is going in a different direction. Part of me just wants to concentrate on toning my stomach and other problem areas, and another part of me wants to concentrate on the actual number on the scale; I feel like I am being pulled in two separate directions.

So I cross my fingers, and am going to start small, and hope that some sort of routine will take place, and I can be the person that I want to love again.

Hi, I started my life change in Oct.2008. I am a waitress and work in a very small but very busy bistro type of enviroment. Watching what I ate did not cause me to lose what I wanted - ounces to 1 lb- far from the results I was looking for. I needed to go to the gym. Not my cup of tea - staying on the treadmill or elipitical was almost impossible. Here's what helped...get an Ipod, mp3 player, walkman - and play your favorite music. Keep your mind on your favorite songs not how long your on the treadmill. Before you know it, 30 minutes have passed and your drinking water during the 5 min cool down. Keep your mind on anything else other than your workout in the beginning. My mind was screaming for me to stop, start again tomorrow, but make that commitment to you-THAT TODAY IS TOMORROW! It does get easier and I actually miss not going to the gym...

Hope this helps...believe in you!

JM, it helps me not to think of it as a thing I stop or start...this is me, changing my life, forever. I have to take it one step, one habit at a time, whether that's forming a new helpful habit (like daily exercise), or ditching a bad one (like drinking soda or eating fried foods). It's okay to start small. You're learning a new habit that you want to keep forever, not just for 2 weeks, so if you have to cut it down to 5 mins or even 2 mins of walking on the treadmill to start, that's what you do. You just take it one step at a time. Do your 5 mins a day until it's just like a morning cup of coffee...you don't think about it, should I do it?...you just do it. When you can do that, then you set another little goal, maybe you do your 5 min walk and you jog or run for 1 minute. You do that, ever day, until it's just a part of your routine, then you choose another milestone, maybe walk 3, jog 1, walk 3, jog 1. Step by step like that, you can do anything, and keep on doing it, and pretty soon you'll be up to 30 mins, and by then, exercise will just be a part of your life.

What Cheryl said is right on...try shifting away from the "Diet mentality", where you "go on", "go off", etc.

Look around, find a spot, and settle in. Can't wait to get to know you better!