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Meg,

I was waiting for this chapter to appear in the discussion because I have a lot to share on Dont Go it Alone. Well, I did - it was hard but for those of you who are in my shoes - it is possible!

First of all, I have to say that my family is overweight - I mean, my parents, sister, my blood relatives. I was always the slimmest in the family. Nevertheless, I ended up overweight when third pregnancy happened when I still carried second pregnancy weight. After delivering my third child, I made this consious decision to loose weight and never look like "mother of 3".

My hubby liked me big. I guess it is because I am very easy going and have tons of friends, while all his friends are my friends first. I guess he felt this unsecurity that his wife might just vanish or what? Anyways, as soon as I start anything, he will always sabotage my efforts. First I sighned up for gym and he did everything possible to disappear from home so that I can not make it there as I had nobody to leave kids with. Took me half a year to figure out that he probably can benefit from gym membership himself - of course he did not want it but nevertheless he stopped sabotaging my efforts to make it to the gym and started to "worry" that my asthma will act up and I will be sick and end up in the hospital. After switching to highest dose medications to make him happy I gained more weight as it was hormonal medication. Took me 1 year to loose part of extra weight, and I finally stalled on 20 pounds more than I wanted.

So I signed up with Jenny Craig - mainly because I was so unhappy that I could not loose it all by myself. And here my hubby had his best hit - he would whine that he is hungry, he would buy cakes and offer them to me - you name it and he did it... For 6 month I did not listen to him and lost my extra 20 pounds - it took 3 month to loose 18 and 3 month to loose last 2! I was miserable inspite the fact that I looked great!

Surprize-surprize - after reaching my goal my hubby told EVERYBODY how happy he is that his wife looks great - go figure those males! He still often sabotages my maintenace efforts - like sending kids to the rec room when I am exercising with tapes OR using my bike and leaving it in unusable state the day before I announce that I am going to bike to work, etc. I guess because he is skinny and does not gain weight (he has the same weight as 16 years ago) he wants to ... punish ... me for something? I dont' know, it was hard to loose weight, it is hard to maintain it - and if you can not make it on your own, and your partner is not supportive - try to find friend/coworker/family member/gym trainer/ instructor - I do not know whom - but don't give up! It is worth it!!!

Advices if you partner sabotages you:
1. Ignore it once, ignore it twice - talk to him/her seriously if he/she persists
2. Don't listen to the: we do not have enough money, you are looking great - unless you are happy at how you look - don't listen to people trying to influence you!
3. Put yourself first - you are the one who is in charge!
4. Worked for me - show him that you can do it inspite him sabotaging you!
5. You can do it on your own - it is just harder!

Good luck,
Sandy.

Wow, Sandy, you are one special lady to have done it basically on your own...

I need something like my 3FC extended family because it's easily accessible... I come over to the computer when I need support and someone is always here to lend an ear......

My husband has always been supportive in his quiet sort of way... "Do you really need another _______ ? " and walks away ... Oh it irks me so, that I don't eat it .... But that is just what I need, a quiet nudge. Not someone who berates me or gives me funny looks.

Hi Sandy,

Congrats on how far you have come ! I admire you so much for getting yourself in your present great shape without good support at home. I especially can identify with the part of him not being at home on time to take care of the kids so you could go to the gym. I also find such thoughtlkessness immensly frustrating.
You are so right: YOU HAVE TO PUT YOURSELF FIRST.

Like Ilene I'm very glad of the support here at 3FC, especially because you do not have to explain WHY you want to loose weight, change lifestyle etc. Just the fact that you want to is sufficient, and I appreciate that.

rabbit

Art -- *Your friends think you're weird too? I'm so happy to hear that, because my friends think the same too!! But 3FC has been the best, better than WW and ooooh so much cheaper, PLUS I've lost weight, which I wasn't doing with WW... double bonus!!

I have a co-worker who peeks her head into my computer (all the darn time) and one day she asked me about my obsession with 3fc. (thats how i found out she is a peeping tomasita) I told her simply, its my support system. She gave me the most bewildered look and proceeded to tease me. "Look, i betcha she's on fat chicks"...guh its that way you SAY things sometimes.

I love 3fc and i'm so happy I found it. I'm glad im not the only one getting these looks.

A support system is so very important especially since weight control often requires a large lifestyle shift. You really don't know what you don't know. Sometimes you need someone else to point it out or be able to observe it in a different setting yourself. Sort of like when you were a kid and you visited a friends house for the day or for a sleepover. Wow.. not everyone lives like you do or eats what your family does.

Like Ilene's husband, my husband is very supportive and now very subtle in his methods. Knowing that my answer would be "no" he asked me nearly every day when I was being lazy these past few years "Did you exercise today?" Not in a judgemental tone. Just asked. He seriously was trying to wake me up without an arguement and knew that I had to do it on my own.

Well.. he is not always supportive.. for example he thinks nothing of taking me out to eat when he is hungry and I am not. You can have coffee.. he'll say.. Or when we go to the store and he makes comments about how yummy this chocolate cake looks.. "I guess, it would go to waste if we bought it since you wouldn't eat any." His heart is in the right place even if his mouth isn't fully cooperative.

My blood family. Hmm.. I thought they were.. I didn't see how their behaviors and attitudes affected me until I lost weight a few years ago. When I was growing up I was fat. My family accepted it. I accepted it. Noone put me on a "diet" or encouraged me to ever do so. My mother on the other hand was always as long as I can remember DIETING, coming off of a diet, or talking about dieting. When my mother saw me after my weight loss a few years ago her behavior and comments shocked me so much I am still reeling from it. I had lost about 50 pounds.. I looked great, I felt great. I hadn't told anyone and my blood relations lived so far away noone had seen me.

From the moment my mother saw me my heart sank. She said I looked great but then started adding comments like "Enjoy it while you can.. you know you'll gain it back and if you are anything like me you'll be even heavier." "Are you allowed to eat that?" "Is that part of your diet?" "How many glasses of wine ARE you going to have anyway? Isn't that your second?" "Try these cream pastries from the bakery I bought for us. Aren't they great?.. oh, you don't want one? How about we split one in half?" "You know I don't care to ever try to lose weight again. My skin will sag and it will be so ugly." OMG I could go on and on with the nightmare!

It was not my mother's fault that I gained most of the weight back. I am just showing how strange her behavior was. How unsupportive she was when she could have made a huge difference in me.

I need support now, but I know I will need a whole lot more when I get to a more reasonable weight. I don't know how to live or see myself there. I don't have many role models in real life to help me see myself there.

"The most effective way to head off trouble is to have a support system in place before the "warning signs" hit." Before surrounding myself in denial, before falling into the lazy trap, before getting close to "goal" weight.

Support system in place?
husband? check
3FC? check
3FC? check
3FC? check
Did I mention 3FC?

3FC is my BIGGEST support system ... I keep coming back even when I'm doing badly and eventually I get back on the wagon and it's all good , but you have to keep coming back or be persistant in staying here and posting and getting help ....

I am getting close to my goal weight and have been peeking into the maintainers forum to see what I can learn. Thanks for all this great advice.. My husband has been supportive of my weight loss and tells me that I look great. He doesn't seem to understand my need to reach goal, but I guess he accepts it. He has never had a weight problem and says he could never change what he eats. Throughout this journey, I have fixed him whatever he wants to eat and made myself my healthy meals. It really doesn't bother me anymore like it did at first. I have an older sister who has lost a large amount of weight and tries to maintain it and she is very supportive of me, but has very little time to talk. My younger sister, who has always been the slimmest, is totally non-supportive. She's not the smallest anymore and I'm sure it bothers her. She tells me that I've gone over-board and am "actually too skinny", which is a real laugh. She sits and eats cake in front of me and says "this is really yummy, I can't believe you're passing it up". She has also told me "you've tried every diet in the world and never stuck to it". My biggest support has been 3FC and I will continue to come here for my support while maintaining. Thanks so much everyone and I look forward to getting to know everyone better.