We are a group of individuals who weigh or have weighed 300+, or near there. This group was formed to provide a place for others like us to find support, inspiration, and hope. We are aware of the distinct problems that come with weighing over 300 lbs.

We want to invite everyone (roosters as well as chicks!) to join us in our journey. We share laughter and tears, heartaches and fears ... joys and celebrations. We also share what works for us and what doesn't.

We have found this thread to be more than just a support group... we have found it to become a home. We invite you to join us!

W00T! Never been the first in a thread before...

Happy May everyone!

I had a nice weekend with my parents. I decided no alcohol and no sugar and that helped immensely. I also ended up cutting one of my bagels in thirds (slicing out the middle section) which worked great. Maybe next time I will bring different bread. The scale is still up, but I can feel the water from extra salt, travel and also it being my time of month.

I got some bad news today and am trying to not let that get me down. I had previously told myself if I got this answer I would let myself have a cupcake (why did I do that?) and now I need to decide if I will or not. I need to allow myself the option because if I don’t do what I say I will stop trusting myself and that leads to bad things (if that makes any sense). But right now I don’t feel like I actually want to go that route, so I will likely skip it. We will see how the day goes.

I got the New Rules of Lifting for Women in the mail yesterday and will try and start that program shortly. I have been lifting for awhile but not in a structured way. I would like to see larger gains so hopefully a program will help.

Jane -- (from the closed thread), sorry you had a bad day. If it continued on to today, you'll have company as I'm in a mood and a half. I've hit my first plateau and I'm not dealing well with it.

Nancy -- glad that the weekend with the parents went well and the small bagel approach worked. I finally found the small bagels -- Bagel Thins -- that they sell at the grocery. Sounds like just cutting in thirds works. Actually, the middle section could be made into home made bagel chips for those that can have them.

Got approval from my insurance for the sleep apnea test so Thursday night will be a rousing night of having electrodes taped to too many surfaces of my body, being in a room that I know has video and sound, and being told to sleep normally. Are these people friggin' nuts or what!

Off to the gym shortly and then yard work. Today we will tackle the former garden area. That "we" is me and whomever I think I'm talking to when I'm out there saying some most unladylike things when I come across an especially bad weed spot that requires lots of WORK!

Have a great day!

Not the cheat You did really well at your parents. It's hard to break the cycle of comforting ourselves with "reward food", but the fact that you're thinking you may not want it is an awesome progress marker.

Betsey I had the apnea test about 8 or 9 years ago. Good luck getting all that medical tape off after! These stalls do suck!


I have a cold on top of it, and it's a crazy week for me. Yesterday night I said "what the heck, it's the end of the month, and I have not lost a single pound. I'm going to cheat for supper". So I made a gluten free pasta salad to go with my salmon fillet, and I had a bowl of ice cream after, resigning myself to the fact that I would probably be over 380 when I woke up. Well, true to my crazy body, I'm down 1.3 today. Still not loss, I'm wavering in the same 2 pound range I've been wavering in all month, but I'll take it.

I'm going to run home and grab my "ripped in 30" dvd and do it over my lunch hour while I have to watch my nephews, or at least that's the plan if they let me! It's only 20 minutes, so I should be able to do it.

Jane - hah. I have been doing the same thing you have this month. Just stalled, a couple of losses but not many. I 'refocused' last week, but haven't seen much progress. I'm expecting TOM soon though, so hoping. I'm so glad though that you did okay the day after. That doesn't sound like TOO much of a 'cheat.' Good luck getting your DVD in!

theaimes - hey, chica. Yes, losing the weight IS possible, but it will take time. You and I are the same height, and have nearly the same starting weights. It is a long process, full of ups and downs, (and stalls...), but thoroughly worthwhile. As for IP, that is not what I'm doing. I don't think I could handle it, and also I'm a vegetarian. I'm just calorie counting. HOWEVER, if you enjoy IP, I believe that there are IP alternative products available on the web, which are MUCH less expensive. Check out the IP forum here, they have more info about alternatives!

Cuter - great song! Very inspiring.

Betsy - hahah. yes. Really, I was fairly active at my highest weight, but I needed to take a break between mowing the front and back yards. That is no longer the case, and I'm not exhausted by it. The improvement in my physical abilities, strength and stamina is really remarkable.

dgramie - keep going. You know how the scales fool us sometimes!

Nancy - I am very sorry about the bad news. I agree that you should keep the option open. I don't think that that is the worst pact you can make with yourself, and if you decide to have it you will be fine. And if you decide not to than it's not because you're denying yourself, but because you made a decision not to do it. I hope you get better news, soon. I will also be excited to hear how your new rules of lifting for women goes!

I washed my deck last night. Tonight I'm going to go to Home Depot and get some water seal and whatnot. I want to get the deck done this week. We will see.

Thanks Mnem. I fell in love with it. Good luck with the deck!

Uh.. fudgesicles... Guess I should do a mini update.

My fat arse is not so fat anymore (but has re-gained some of it's rounded curviness which it had lost for a bit). I am ranging between a M-1X top (the boobs push it up but in boobie shirts I have done M a couple times and it fit. Just buying the Larges for yoga pants, dresses, shirts and jackets mostly because I don't like being ultra slutty and all that). and a 12-18/l-xl for pants/skirts/dresses.

So a while back I made a wise crack about "knowing my luck I will end up 250 lbs and a size 12"... I've got a dress I bought last week that is just that. A size 12... I'm waiting till I am down another 10 lbs and then wearing it in front of the woman who said "I'd pay to see that". How much do you think I can get out of her??? *sorry am bratty this week*

Yesterday was rough, but instead of giving in to cupcakes I had a "lazy as I want to be day" (which basically meant not getting off the couch) and I ate a pint of Arctic Zero (150 calorie for the pint sugar free frozen stuff). I feel much better today, and no having to fight the sugar hunger monster.

Trying to figure out what to do with my day. After yesterday I need to be productive, but not sure exactly how yet.

We're having gorgeous weather here, so the yard is going to be conquered. To say that it has gotten away from me would be an understatement!

Nancy, I'll have to see if they sell Arctic Zero around here. I have tried the Blue Bunny sugar free, but get to visit the bathroom constantly afterwards.....the artificial sweeteners they use could be used as a colonoscopy prep (that may have been TMI).

Definitely in a plateau weight wise. Aaarrrgggghhhhh! Jane, I think your two pounds and my two pounds are really the same two pounds and they just switch from my body to your body and back.

Off to the gym.

Betsey That's probably the case. We'll get past it though. I've actually seen downward movement two days in a row now, granted, I"m still more than two pounds up from my ticker low though.

Didn't get the darn dvd in. Kids were being kids. But I have a lunch hour to myself today, so it'll happen!

Cuter - that's pretty incredible. I think I'll need to be in the 170s before I can even consider a size 12. I really don't expect to get there, but MAYBE, so I suppose I am crossing my fingers. Glad you have re-gained some roundedness? Heh, my behind has basically disappeared in comparison to the rest of me.

Nancy - sorry you had a bad day. I really like Arctic Zero. Not because it is good (it isn't that great?) but for just that reason. I can have small servings of it and just not worry, or a WHOLE BUNCH and still not worry. the only flavor I really like is the chocolate peanut butter. Are there any better ones?

betsy - hope you have fun in the yard! Hmm. Arctic Zero is probably not as good as ice cream or even sugar free ice cream. I don't actually think it is sugar free? they sweeten it with some sugar derived from a sweet fruit or vegetable. but it is COLD and frozen and ice-cream like and you tend to get used to it.

Jane - downward is GOOD. Hah, I am back to my ticker weight so I am feeling optimistic. Of course, I was here last week then bounced wildly upward, and got to see it come down. I wanna see more movement. I really want to enter a new decade.

I am going to finish my deck tonight. I'm housesitting for my parents this weekend too (watching their dog) which is always hard for me b/c they have so much junk in their house. I'm going to load up on veggies and work really hard to resist the junk and to walk their dog LOTS.

I suppose this is an NSV though - I went and bought a bunch of summer-appropriate clothes a few weeks ago, three maybe? and two of the pieces I bought felt kinda tight. But they were on clearance and therefore pretty inexpensive, plus I liked them. Well, I'm wearing one today and it wears very nicely. I don't know if my size has changed a bit or what, but I'm going with that. They were close enough that I didn't need much movement in size to make them acceptable, but it is ... well, nice to feel that given recent my plateau(ish thing).

Betsey – I have the same problem with anything with sugar alcohols and have to avoid them. Luckily the Arctic Zero stuff doesn’t have them. Unfortunately most sugar free ice creams do.

Jane – Glad to hear the scale is finally moving in the right direction.

Mnem – The chocolate mint is pretty good and I also like the maple one. I haven't tried all of them yet. I will report back with more taste testes. Hope all goes well at your parents’. It is hard to be around junk like that. The clothing is definitely an NSV. I really need to clean out my closets see what is in there. I am sure there are some smaller things from when I was in this range before.


The Zumba class I like to take on Saturday mornings is crazy popular and I normally have to get up at 5am to sign up to make sure I get in (I set my alarm, sign up, and go back to bed) but I totally forgot it was Friday and forgot to get up. Now I have to figure out what to do tomorrow instead. Do I go to another Zumba class later in the day a bit further away or do I go for another walk? I guess that will partly depend on the weather.

I should probably start cleaning the house as I may have a guest on Sunday and my place is a mess...

Happy Friday. Just back from my sleep apnea test. Does anyone else get a good laugh out of the irony so frequently found in our medical system (Jane, I realize that you have Canadian, so feel free to comment on the US one). They put enough wires on you for this test to light a small city. And two elastic belts -- one around your chest and one around your waist. Then they stick things in your nose and connect all of it to a monitor, tell you that they'll be listening and videotaping you, put you in a strange bed, come in during the night to awaken you and test out the breathing apparatus and guess what the first morning question is: How did you sleep? I just smiled, but I wanted to give a classic smart aleck response.

Cuter -- Someone making a remark like that is why I was able to stop smoking 16 years ago -- I would have done just about anything to be able to show him that I could do it. Congrats on getting into a size 12!!!!!

Nancy -- Hope that things are going a little better, but good hold back on the cupcake.

Jane -- Yahoo! Maybe your stall is finally over. Good news on that front.

Mnemosyne -- Can't remember what you posted, but good morning. Just chalk it up to a senior moment for me......or lack of sleep!

Down again! Woohoo!

Even bigger Woohoo, the bridesmaid dress isn't the disaster i thought it would be. I was sure the seamstress last night was going to cluck and tell me that I "really should have gone a size up" or "watched my weight" after buying the dress, but once I got it on, zipped, and she pinned the straps she's making for me on it, it looked pretty good. (It looks so good with the straps on it that the bride has now pissed off the other bridesmaid by telling her she wants her to add straps to her dress as well - originally we were given the option, but this girl is almost the same chest size as I am). The color is nice too.

Yoga kicked my *** yesterday. In fact I left in really bad headspace after, feeling like the fat chick everyone would pity. The dress success fixed that though!

Not sticking around long, off to do shower/stagette prep for tomorrow! Have a great weekend guys!

Jane - Yay! I hope this is the beginning of the end of your stall. Also great news about your bridesmaid dress. Dress fittings sound so stressful to me, so I'm glad it was a huge success for you!

Betsy - I might not have been able to resist a smart comment either. Do you know the results of the sleep apnea test yet? I hope you're feeling okay!


I just got out of the hospital yesterday. It turns out that I have gallstones and an infected/swollen gallbladder, so I am having it removed in about a week. I'm a little freaked out! I've never had surgery before.

Possibly the most annoying part of the whole thing was when my surgeon looked at my medical history and said "It looks like you've had a pretty dramatic weight loss recently. That's most likely what caused the gallstones." I can't believe I finally start doing well and eating right and losing weight... and I end up needing surgery because of it!