last week i went in for my annual doctor visit and the scale put me at a whopping 305lbs. it's the heaviest i've ever been, and i walked out of the office that day determined to take the weight off. i don't want to be 300lbs in my wedding photos.

some changes i've made recently:

- less soda/sugary juice, more water/100% no sugar added juice.
- low cal/low fat substitutes
- regular visits with my wii fit (i've only missed one day)
- using alli to assist with the weight loss.
- NO MORE FAST FOOD!

as of this morning my scale told me 293, which i'm going to count as a 7lb loss, because when i left for the doctor that day my scale read right at 300.

it's a horrible awful weight, and my friends rarely believe me, though when i look at photos of me with them, it's very obvious. i'm tired of being 'the fat chick' and not being able to find clothes. (seriously 4x, or 26-28 just isn't in the stores that often). i'm ready to take this step, but i know i won't be able to do it alone.

my fiance, one of my biggest supporters, is busy with school 300 miles away. and long distance relationships just add up to a lot of stress and sadness, which i try to soothe by haunting the refrigerator. and my best friend, she's also a couple hundred miles away and can't come over with a bag of rice cakes when i want to binge on krispy kremes.

but i'm gonna do this. and i'm gonna do it right!

Anyone started the bead diet lately,need information please.

The changes you have made are substantial and wonderful! Especially the elimination of fast food and sugary drinks. Please believe me when I say that it'll be hard for a few weeks but once you physically and mentally detox from those things, you will not really miss it. And you'll find that exercise is a lot easier when you are eating good food and drinking water.

I think Alli is fine to keep you in check when you first start out. I mean, I know the side effects of Alli if you eat fatty foods in excess and that scared me into not eating certain things --- BUT --- after a month don't waste your money on it. By then you'd be able to do it on your own. Spend that money on non-food rewards or new exercise videos. Or a gym membership!

One of the things that I do with the money I save on fast food and binging items is buy a pair of pants (Goodwill) in the next size down from what I am wearing. So what I want you to do is go there this weekend and buy a pair of pants that are size 22-24. Take a picture of yourself in them that day and every 2 weeks after that. When you start to see yourself swimming in them, it'll be motivation to get to that next size down....and so on and so on! (I'm sure other members on this board are sick of me preaching about this but it just works so great for me when I am losing steam or feeling overwhelmed!)

Congratulations on your 7 pound loss so far! You had an incredible first week and there will be MANY more to come!

Every little thing counts. I have a 3 year old that takes up most of my time. So, not much time to work out. But, I try and fit little things in every now and then like.....
~ back leg lifts while I am brushing my teeth
~ calf raises while I am drying my hair
~ back arm dips off the side of the bathtub before I get into shower
~ squats every commercial break

shan - i've actually already done this! well, not jeans, but i did buy a dress that i absolutely loved and it was on clearance for 12 dollars. it was one size too small. i'm hoping to fit into it for my honeymoon in about 2 months. I haven't done the picture thing, but my thought was to try it on every 10 pounds to see how it goes. (hopefully i'll be trying it on again this weekend!)

as for the drinks and fast foods, i have completely cut soda out. i haven't had a soda in so long i can't remember. i think i had a drink out of my fiance's diet coke when he was here for spring break, but usually i get ice water or tea. the fast food is a bit more difficult. my schedule is skewed a bit. i usually work a 2-11 shift, so my breakfast is when people are normally eating lunch, lunch when they're eating dinner, dinner when they're going to bed, and bedtime in the middle of the night. when i get out of work at 11 (i work at a hardware store) all i want to do is hit the mcd's that's a block from my house, on the way, and grab something quick because i'm so tired and don't want to cook. instead, i've been coming home and making instant oatmeal. it's almost as quick, and a whole lot healthier.

thanks for the kudos, btw. i appreciate it!

ashley - those are great ideas! i'll use those (the calf raises especially) while i'm at work and have nothing else going on.

Welcome and good luck!!!!!

Thats awesome~! good luck on your Journey!

I know when my SO is away, it drives me MORE to lose weight. Not sure why, but it lets me focus just about 100% on myself and MY food.

thanks to both of you for the welcome and well wishes!

lucid - when he's away i want to lose more so i look better for him when he comes home, but it never really works out that way. last time i put my mind to it, i lost 35lbs, was down to about 260. he proposed shortly after i hit that weight, and then he went away to school and i didn't see him for 7 weeks. it was the first time we'd been apart for that long of a stretch and it stressed me so much i turned to ben and jerry for comfort. the first few times were like that until i gained it all back. i'm very much looking forward to being able to get the weight off again, and keeping it off this time.

once we move to south carolina in august, where he currently lives, there is a free gym on the property for us to use. so i'm hoping the combination of seeing him more + proximity to a *free* gym will = more weight loss for me.

lately when i've noticed myself turning to the fridge to deal with some emotion, i just get a bottle of water and blog. most of it's drivel, but i get it off my chest without drowning it in calories.