In the few days I have been clicking around the site, I have seen so much good advice and support, it's wonderful!! I have also seen people's reasons for wanting to lose weight, get fit, and be healthy.

Recently, I have gotten into this website called pinterest (my guilty pleasure), a website for 'pinning' pictures and links that inspire you and motivate you on to different boards that you create. On my pinterest, I have 3 boards that I use for my weight loss goals. One is called 'health && fitness.' which has links to pages with exercise routines and the like, one called 'healthy food.' (self-explanatory, healthy recipes), and one called 'thinspiration.'

Now, because I know the term 'thinspiration' isn't something that most people like, since a lot of people (Kate Moss) use it as an excuse for un-healthy eating habits, for me it is just a neat term I used to label a board that has motivational pictures, phrases, and such on it, including pictures of flat stomachs and even clothes I want to be able to wear.

So my question is, what inspires you? What motivates you to keep going? Do you have pictures or phrases that you use to give you that extra boost of support?

I think it's a sign that I'm truly getting old when I just heard of Pinterest like a week ago, hah!

So many things inspire me, and it has changed as I've lost more weight. But as far as a "visual aid" (like Pinterest for you) the thing that motivates me are the photos I have of me when I was my heaviest. My mother-in-law took the entire family to Costa Rica for a week to celebrate her husband's birthday - it should've been an amazing time, but for me, it was an awful reminder of how fat I was (swimming suits, wet-suits for diving, zip lines, etc.) - for months before that vacation, I was a desperate hot-mess, trying to find clothing and a swimming suit and of course, I hated everything.

There are a few photos of me from that trip (I ran from the camera as much as I could) -- I was so overweight and you could see how miserable I was. Never a smile on my face, always looking uncomfortable, never did my hair or make-up and I was just so sad.

I look at those photos sometimes, not just because it was me at my largest (230+ lbs) but because it was me at my most miserable, too. The things I'd always been most passionate about were my family and traveling; yet there I was, so depressed that I couldn't enjoy either thing at all. It inspires me now as I move towards a healthier and happier me!

- memories of me being "normal weight" inspire me.
- the feeling of losing weight inspire me
- actually seeing going down on pants size inspire me
- having lower resting heart rate inspire me
- completing weeks of 5K training inspire me

LOTS OF THINGS

How much better I'm treated by others in general
Admiration from my close family
How much more motivated in general I feel daily

My big inspiration is aiming for an uncomplicated pregnancy when the time comes (still 1-2 years away). And I just hate feeling like my stomach is in the way when I reach for things or climb things or bend down.

I find inspiration in everything: photos on tumblr (I look into pinterest as well), seeing a random girl on the street rocking a pair of shorts, photos of myself and seeing how unhappy I am with the way I look, the idea of wearing a bikini when I go on holiday this summer.

Also, my best friend inspires me, because she makes weight loss seem so easy, she never complains about cravings, she just works to look her best. Then there's my aerobics instructor. She is twice my age, had two kids, and still looks better than me

My desire to look hot just for the sake of looking hot. I like my proportions, and I have been told that I have a "nice/decent" body so I don't need to go to the gym, but I see my "OK" body as good potential to be a FAB body. There's deeper reasons, but I also have superficial desires too. Its health and vanity that motivate me. I no longer feel ashamed of this motivation. There's no particular person that motivates me, just motivating thoughts that others share.
Oh and Adriana Lima's booty.
I recognize that people can say mean comments me no matter how I look, because some people are just critical in general. Whats different now is that I know what I look like when I am in shape, and I love it-not everyone else has to.

Inspiration?
Let's see-
Being an inspiration to someone else.
Having a reputation of being self disciplined.
Making my kids proud.
Walking into a room with pride.

Seeing my blood test results continuing to improve and knowing I'm becoming healthier.
Watching my pants sizes go down.
The thought of shopping for non-plus size clothing!
My nutritionist who tells it like it is but encourages me to reach my goals.
My supportive friends and family.

Oh...and the scale going down doesn't hurt either!!

Motivational pictures are pretty inspiring for me, but what is helping me lately ARE my supporters. I had a friend from back home tell me yesterday how I inspire her and I'm the reason she goes to the gym everyday. Which is really nice compliment considering I'm such a slacker, but lately I don't want to let my supporters down just as much as I don't want to let myself down so I've stepped up my game!

Pushing myself with my fitness goals, I love seeing progress!
Seeing the scale go down.
Fitting into clothes I haven't been able to in years.
My son! I want to be a healthy mommy for my toddler, he deserves it!

Ok... this may be a little sappy but it's the truth.

Just before Christmas my 99 year old Grandma died (less then 2 months short of her 100th bday!). She was always a very active and sharp witted woman, she used to walk miles every day and was doing the crossword puzzle from the local paper until about a month before she passed. Because of the drugs she was on she couldn't talk, we all knew the end was really near and we took turns staying with her. On my turn I sat up for a while and talked to her. I confided my plans to run a half marathon. The look on her face when I said this is enough to make me hit the treadmill. The amazed-wide-eyed-head shaking look on her face is etched into my memory forever. When I lag I remind myself "You told your dying Granny you were going to run a half marathon... you can't lie to Granny, you better get your arse out there and DO IT!". I also think of my severely disabled Dad who's body is wasting away before his time and think "Wouldn't he love to be able to do this".

(Ok so it's more then a little sappy... sorry!)

what inspires me? women who lift heavy. i want to be like them.

i want to be strong and healthy more than anything!

I am doing slimming world and I find my group so inspirational. I like how target members still come to group and tell us how they maintain and they also know how to help if we have any problems cos they may have had the same trouble. I like how everyone applauds when you've had a loss, even if it is just half a pound. There is so much encouragement and my group leader always knows how to make me feel better and keep me going if I am not happy with my weigh-in.
The other thing is my bf found an old picture of me from when we first met when I was thin and he has stuck it on the fridge. Plus it shows when he finds me more sexy everyday and when he feels more sexy himself cos he is losing too.

My inspirations:

Not wanting to end up like my mom or FIL who, bless their hearts, are very unhealthy due to chronic, lifelong obesity...

Along those lines, wanting to be able to do all the fun things with my future grandkids (my kids are still very little so that's a way off) that my mom and FIL can't do...

Wanting to be sexy for my husband -- he thinks I'm sexy already and loves me at any size but he's 'regular' sized and I sometimes feel self-conscious because I'm a lot bigger now than before kids...

Along those lines (tmi warning) although we enjoy an active er...love life ) being slimmer allows me to get into <<<clears throat>>> more positions and allows more stamina so that's an inspiration

My kids are slim and healthy and currently too young to really notice/care I'm obese but they inspire me to get fit so I can be an inspiration to them.

I live in a fairly small-ish community and it's where I've lived a while and constantly running into people from my past inspires me to look great when I see that person I haven't seen since high school or whatever.

Also, what inspires me is the thought of how amazing the human form truly is and how much better mine could be (in terms of strength and health). I had two textbook perfect pregnancies and awesome home births -- at nearly 300 lbs! so what inspires me is the idea that with 100 fewer lbs on me I could be absolutely *unstoppable* lol