Last time I looked, I was 135 pounds overweight. Uggh. While surfing the net in an effort to find yet another diet, I came across 3fatchicks website. I have to lose weight. My health and quality of life have both been compromised due to the excess load I am carrying. Most recently, I have gotten plantar fascitis which makes it painful to walk or stand(a direct result of this fat.) Uggh. I am depressed and frustrated with the way I look and feel. I hope I don't seem too much like a downer..I am not for the most part. I'm just having a hard time with this weight. I look forward to interacting with the 3fatchicks community and to my journey.

Welcome! I am glad you posted. There are so many wise and helpful people here. I know it feels scary and intimidating to start dieting, but 3fatchicks forum is very supportive. I love just looking at pictures of people's progress and reading posts. It is very motivating. Good luck! You seem very determined. I hope you have success.

Welcome to 3FC!! This is a great place to be. I post a bit, but lurk A LOT, I am on these boards a few times a day. It is a very important part of the journey for me!

Welcome, nomoxcuses (great handle, BTW). You've found one of the best sources of diet advice and support around, internet or otherwise.

You've surmounted the first hurdle--deciding to start. One "mind game" that has sometimes helped me is to change my self-talk from "I have to lose weight" to "I want to lose weight". Somehow it made me not resent myself as much, if that makes any sense.

One of the things that helped me most was to create an eating plan that is sustainable for the long term. Two mind-sets that are damaging (in my opinion) are "I have to deprive myself all the time" and "Everything I eat has to be low-fat". For me, at least, that was a recipe for failure and disappointment. One of the things I discovered is that my body can't handle a low-fat diet. I think many women are in the same boat.

It's taken me just short of two years to go from a BMI of 43.3 to 24.8, and I'm nearly at my goal. During that time, I've learned a lot about what it will take to maintain my new weight (there could be a whole new set of challenges there). Once you start your journey, there will be triumphs and setbacks along the way, but you can do it.

Read some of the success stories of people such as rockinrobin, guamvixen, Glory87, saef, shmead, ncuneo, and Lori Bell (not intending to slight anyone else). There's a lot of encouragement and inspiration to be found.

Best wishes!

my personal mantra is never give up. If you try a program that doesn't seem to work for you-shake it up. If you see a book that interests you, read it. Take the knowledge that works for you and run with it-let the rest roll off like water off a ducks back! i tried running last year to lose weight and i got the plantar fascitis (sp?) too. So what did i do? Quit exercising! Not the best plan. But here i am. i hope you will stick around & read everything and stick with it. we are always here for you!
-fm

Hi, welcome to the group and I wish you many On Plan days in the future!

If you have any questions or need to vent this is the place to do it.

WELCOME!

I know you find the folks here helpful, wise and friendly.

I always say to folks...that planning is key. Plan, plan and plan some more.

Hi! I'm so glad you've found this site. It's a wealth of information, encouragement, advice and support.

So, have you decided on a plan? How are you going to go about losing the weight?

Losing the weight IS of course a doable thing. For every one and any one. Yourself included. Take comfort from that. For many years I kinda hid behind the excuse that it wasn't possible *for me*. Though I really did believe that, I think, I think it's more like I used it as an excuse to not put forth the effort that was needed to get the job done.

But upon becoming miserable enough and frightened for my life enough, I finally said to myself, "why not me?". If others can do it, than so can I. And I did! And you can too. I am certain of it.

I look forward to hearing of your progress.

Welcome to 3FC. You have a found the best place on the net for gaining support and knowledge. There are so many people who have walked the walk and have the weight loss success to prove it. Learn from them. I know I am!

Welcome, welcome! On my first day I read the quote "A year from now you'll be glad you started today" and it really resonated with me. So there it is for you. It's been a year for me now and I really, really am glad I started! Every one has a start day!

I had plantar fasciitis too and it's just awful. It makes you want to do absolutely nothing. I don't know if this was what worked or not, but I found improvement after working my calves muscle, especially on the elliptical. It's low impact and not so hard on the feet. I loved the pool back then too. The pool provided such sweet relief for my feet.

I did calf muscle stretches and it fixed my plantar after awhile too.

I did the stretches and made it worse! I think I over did the stair stretches, hanging the heel off the edge of the step. It was STRENGTHENING it that actually worked for me.

I didn't do stretches for FOR plantar. Honestly I would do this thing at work to my my calves feel better from the fibro pain....I would take my left foot, and put the arm of my foot over top the top of my right foot and stretch my heel to the floor. that helped SO much.

it was just kind of a side effect. ha.

Welcome! You have come to the right place to get the support you need. I used to deal with plantar fascitis too. My doctor had me stretch my foot and leg before getting up in the mornings or anytime that I had been sitting for a long time. It can get better!

I was overwhelmed by the amount of weight that I had to lose. I still have a long way to go but losing over 100 pounds has really improved my quality of life. I encourage you to not even think about the big picture. Pick small goals of 5 or 10 pounds. Don't worry about the 135 pounds. You only have to be concerned with the next few pounds. That seems so much easier and those 5 and 10 pound goals really add up.

You can do this!

Hi and welcome!

I'm fairly new here myself, but have found it a priceless resource already. One of the biggest lessons I learned is that the process itself can be exciting; it doesn't have to feel like punishment or deprivation, something I always thought went with the territory.

Instead, I'm thinking of the changes going on in my eating and lifestyle as an additive process--I'm adding exercise, I'm building strength, I'm gaining stamina, I'm broadening my palate with new foods, I'm feeding myself and my hubby delicious home-cooked meals. I've had to subtract stuff too, but even that doesn't feel like much of a hardship thanks to some of the lessons I've learned here (lesson one: they'll still make Cheez-its a year from now, so I shouldn't feel the need to rush and eat some today ).

Looking forward to reading more of your posts and to hearing about your successes.