Happy Easter! I'm starting a new phase in my life today and I'm looking for someone with a similar goal to share the good and the bad. I've been told I need to lose 20% of my body weight by my doctor and I guess it's time to take it seriously. I'm interested in the Weight Watcher's Point system, but can't commit the time, so I'm on my own. I live in New York, am married and have a 16 year old son. I work full time (more than that on occasion) and love Fall! I'd love to hear from anyone who relates to my situation!

hi!
Im 44, my dr also told me to lose 20% I started off at 288, on 3/14/05.. my major goal is an even 100 lbs and eventaully down to 150 lbs.. figure ill aim for the big chunk first! @ 4 yrs ago i lost 120 so i know what i have to do.. yeah cant believe i lost it and it found me.. but it was a realtionship that went real real bad.. and i thought hostess might heal my heart.. in the meantime.. the pounds i had lost found me ... so this time.. Im not losing it.. Im getting rid of it for good!

Id love to be able to do WW, but i have a very limited income.. so i am also on my own.. tho my dr has me on metformin which is supposed to give u a good start in losing weight .. to control your sugar levels in ur body if u are obese.. and it does stop those cravings..

Yes, money is an issue with me to. I guess the doctor's around here don't believe in giving you a "head start" to weight loss. I wish they did. Just something to take the edge off of the hunger I feel sometimes. It's so easy to give in to it and just eat. I quit smoking after 20+ years, but losing weight is so much harder for me to do, because I have to eat! If it was something I could stay away from.....success! Doc says even if I do lose the weight, there are other things I may need to do to improve my situation, medically. Gotta try this first tho! Take care!

Hi! I'm 44 and need to lose about 100 pounds. I started on 2/14, and have lost about 10 pounds. I find that I spend a lot of time thinking about my weight loss program and being concerned about how much weight I have to lose and how long it will be before there are any noticeable changes. My weight has crept up over the years, and I had not really realized how much weight I had gained, so coming to terms with it has been depressing me (although I have started doing something about it). I am hoping to find some friends where I can talk about the details of the weight loss, which are not very interesting to anyone who doesn't share the same issues. Also, I am not comfortable talking about this with anyone who doesn't share this issue. I guess I don't want to be pitied or the subject of disgust, or having someone thinking how glad they aren't like me.

dont be depresed over how far u have to go.. break it down in smaller goals... and take one day at a time, its amazing how the days turn into weeks and then months. Just try to make it thru one day.. Just think about what u can do to improve your eating and exercise for that day..

As far as thinking about losing weight all the time... I think thats a good thing.. I try to surf weight loss pages and read all i can.. its all most like i am programming my self to eat right.. and exercise..

as far as the exercise part .. go out and walk.. maybe u can only walk a small distance today.. but tomorrow make yourself go farther than you did the day before.. It may not seem like u did much.. but hey even a small walk is more than nothing.. and if u make yourself walk even a few more steps each day it will become easier and by the end of the week your distance will increase..


when i first started walking i was embarssed for the people passing by to see me out there sweating and panting.. so i got up @ 6 am before everyone got moving around it was quiet and peaceful...

also ive read that you should wear a pedometer all day in your usual activites and see just how many steps u log on a regular day .. the ultimate goal for weight loss is 10,000 steps u can get these walking in the store or anyplace..

a cool site is america on the move u can chart your steps and walk across the united states.. u even get a certificate when u get done!!

http://www.americaonthemove.org[/URL]

Rose,
I know that feeling... sometimes u are just plain hungry.. when i did this before and lost 120 lbs i had days like that.. and what i did was... i decided that if i felt that way i was gonna eat.. but i would only something that was going to do me some good..
like a fat free snack.. or maybe a bowl of cereal.. something to get that sweet craving to go away, one time i opened a can of beets and ate the entire can!

Oh one thing i did also.. was i picked one day a week, my day was friday... i would allow myself.. only on friday to have anything that i was craving.. like say an ice cream cone.. on friday and friday only..
come saturday it was back to business!

just some ideas...

I can relate. I'm in NY, 40 years old. I'm following a program of my own that's basically the Jenny Craig program (not very different from Weight Watchers). Three meals, three snacks, about 1700 to 1800 a day, with lots of exercise.

The weight loss is slow for me, but I don't feel deprived and I feel healthy.

I let myself have a meal off on Friday too, to satisfy my cravings.

I post at the 100 forum, or you can send me a private message, if you're interested.

I have just switched to the eating for life program, where you eat 6 small meals daily. I have found that my total calories have gone down doing this (although I've only been doing it for about a week). Each meal has to have a mix of protein and carbohydrates.

Before, I was trying to eat healthly foods only and to watch portion sizes but was wanting to eat and snack in the evenings. Now, eating every 2-3 hours seems to be keeping me from getting overly hungry, even though my actual calories have gone down. I have also started taking vitamins and have been eating these nutrition bars (about 200 calories each) for some of the meals which may be helping.

that sounds like a good idea more small meals.. i need to start taking a multi vitamin also .. i do take a baby aspirin each day.. and my BP has gone down quite abit

I saw a piece on GMA yesterday by a guy who wrote a book called something like the 3 hour diet (because you're eating every three hours), where for portion control the author suggested picturing a deck of cards for the protein, a bottle cap for the fat, three CDs stacked for the veggies, and a rubicks cube (you may have to be about my age to remember those, 40 ) for the starch. Then he says to have 3 snacks that are 100 calories in between. He says it doesn't matter what you eat as the snacks or starches or meats. I think for somebody struggling or starting out, that wouldn't be a bad formula.

That's a very helpful tip, dragonwoman64, thank you for the heads-up!

But gosh, three CDs stacked for veggies seems rather small, doesn't it? CDs are awfully thin!

rubicks cube ... wonder how many people gave up and just moved the stickers?? lmao

Everyone has so many different ideas! It's so hard to find out what works for me... I tried the Atkins thing last year for about 8 months and did lose about 20 pounds, but as soon as the holidays came around again (around October, I start early ) I started sneaking little bits of carbohydrates in, and pretty soon I wasn't watching anything at all. Now, the doc says it's the first thing I have to try, before other options. Overall, it's what I'd like to do - I just can't seem to remain committed to anything - it's even been 4 days since I registered on this site and I haven't had a chance to look since then! Busy, busy..... I do appreciate the struggle - food is staring at us everyday from somewhere. And I don't believe it should take a great deal of money to find a decent program that's easy to follow. Has anyone tried the Weight Watcher's Point Program and understand how it works? Are you allowed to discuss how the Points System works outside Weight Watchers? I 've tried to access how many points a day I should eat and follow it on my own, but have been completely unsuccessful....Oh, well..............Thanks for listening!
Rose

Hi Rose..

Ive never done WW, But just wanted to say, just take 1 day at a time.. i try to tell myself im just gonna make it thru today.. eating right.. and the days grow into weeks..
i try not to think about having to do this 4ever right now... and it seems to help...

heres a few sites i found where they used the WW plan
maybe u can get some ideas from them..
http://www.getting2goal.com
http://www.dontweightaround.com

i try to read as much as i can to stay motivated...

Thanks for the suggestions.......I'll let you know if I find anything.
Rose