So, I am new to 3FC. In April of last year, I decided I was fed up, and wanted to lose weight. I started at 267. It was my highest weight ever. I got down to 244, and then in September I found out I was pregnant. During the first 7 months of my pregnancy my weight went up and down about 10 pounds. Two weeks after my son was born I was down to 248. It is now five weeks since I had my son and I am up to 258.

I am so frustrated and depressed. I know I just had a baby, and it will take time. I am just so desperate to not gain anymore weight. I hate how I look and feel. I don't want to go out in public. I have avoided my friends from work and school, and I am even finding myself avoiding my family now. I really hate my body, especially since I had my son. I just really don't feel good about myself, and the worse I feel, the more I snack and binge.

I am ready to take control again. In a week I will be able to start exercising again (I am in love with my elliptical) and want to start going for walks with my son. I am going to take it slow at first with exercising. I am still extremely sore from my delivery. As far as food is concerned, I have tried every diet under the sun. I am tired of dieting. I am going to just try and eat healthy, control my portions, and count my calories. I am hoping I will be successful with that plan. I have never done anything on my own, but I am hoping I will be able to use what I have learned to lose weight. I am also hoping that this website will help me stay on track, and give me something to focus on when I am craving ice cream like an alcoholic craves vodka.

I am hoping to lose weight slow and steady. My concern is more to be healthy than anything else. I want to teach my son to be healthy, and keep my husband from becoming overweight (he has to lose about 20 lbs). I want to be happy, and have a happy life and a healthy family.

Anyway, this is me. Like I said, I am excited to start. I can't stand myself anymore, and the only person that can change it is me.

I am so glad you posted. I am happy for the recent birth of your son.

3fc is an awesome sight containing folks with lots of support, wisdom, and friendship.

The first thing to do is pick a food plan - have you decided about that.?

Don't shy away from your friends and family. Treat yourself as kindly as you would a good friend.

Also...we can never stop 'trying again' - ya just never know when it's your time to make that life long change!

Welcome to 3fc!

I am going to just try and make healthy choices and watch my calorie intake. I did the math, and if I eat 1950 calories a day, I should lose about 2 lbs a week. I want to be smart and take it slow. I want to combine that with portion control, and hope that I see results. I don't want to completely restrict myself, because I know that eventually I will "fall off the wagon". I tend to give up when that happens. I hope with counting calories, portion control, making healthy choices, and 3FC that I will be down 10 lbs by this time next month. If it doesn't work, I will just have to come up with a plan B I guess.

AudreyL-Good for you!

I am starting back on 3FC today after being away for about 9 months. I had done very little during that time, but the last month or so, I have been rocking! The weight will come off. Don't you worry, you will do it! You're going about it the same way I am with increased activity and healthier eating. If the calorie counting becomes too much for you right now, just try decreasing portion size and making healthier choices. I have lost 13 pounds in the last month by doing just that and it's the first time I ever feel like I could really be successful.

You're doing things exactly the way that a real weight-loss winner does it; slowly and moderately. That is the way you will keep the weight off and make lasting changes in your life.

Congrats on the new baby! Remember, you are not alone in this. We are all right here with you going through it together. Rock on girl! You will do it.

Welcome Back! i just came back too, from a long hiatus and quite a bit of a gain. It's hard, but you can do it!

For me, and we're all different, watching myself, trying to do portion control never worked. I needed some guidelines. Something to tell me NO. Something to tell me it's time to stop eating, because my intuitive eating button is totally screwy and broken. I needed to journal my foods and account for every morsel that went into my mouth. Heck, why did I say *need-ED*? I still NEED it, years later. So like you, calorie counting is what I turned to. It's built in accountability and FORCED portion control.

For me, it was not restricting myself that led me to be 287lbs!! For me, and again we're all different, it was letting these foods in that always led to *diet* failure. I'd let them in, thinking I could get away with it and couldn't live without it - and than I'd want more and more of it. Some people can do moderation well, but me, I'm like an alcoholic - there is no thing as moderation with certain foods. You don't tell an alcoholic it's okay to just have one shot. No way. So I needed to restrict certain foods, to ban them. It was the (former) foods that I loved, craved and overate the most. After a couple of weeks, I found by totally banning them, they no longer called out to me. I no longer even wanted them. I needed to set up some rules, some boundaries. It was time. A change had to occur. The definition of insanity - doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. I finally realized I was just better off totally without them - don't make it an option TO eat them. And funny enough, it wound up not being restrictive at all. It was freeing!!! I didn't have to think about them anymore. And that freed me up to shedding 165 lbs, being free of the burden of all the extra weight and LOVING my life.

It really is about changing your view of food and making new life time healthy habits.

Congratulations on the birth of your son. I look forward to hearing of your progress.

Audrey, welcome to the 100lb club! I predict that you're going to be surprised with how well counting calories works for you.

I started where you are now, 5'8, 255 lbs, and believe me, it is possible! I never denied myself anything, I did practise portion control! Sometimes I gained a pound, or two, but lost them again when I got better on track. Sometimes I didn't lose weight for weeks, because my eating was more relaxed. That's fine! See the weight loss as an ongoing process, even when you are eating something off plan. I truly believe it's the only way we can be sure not to put the lbs back on afterwards. The all-or-nothing attitude lead to jojo-dieting in the past (for me).

Good luck!

So right!!!! That "all-or-nothing attitude" kept me fat for years because I felt like I would have one screw-up and have to throw it all out. It was only when I started trying to live HEALTHIER, not PERFECTLY, that I saw the change happen. Good luck to all!