Hey Everyone,


6 Months ago I was confident, I loved shopping, I was active, I loved getting ready in the morning. Now, this is my look... Jeans, a black extra long hoodie, and my hair up.. NO MAKEUP. I have become lazy and no longer like getting ready. I feel like whatever I put on makes me look HUGE. I have tons of excuses why I have gained weight and I trick myself into justifying negative foods.

Today... I am making a commitment for myself, for my loving boyfriend, and for my mother (Although she is a bit naggy) she just wants me to be happy.

I know, I know... DO IT FOR YOU AND NO ONE ELSE. My Boyfriend loves me whether I am 500Lbs or 100Lbs, but wouldn't it be great to be able to wear sexy little numbers and not feel like a Whale trapped in a net? I want to be able to show him that I care about myself and our future.

My Mom you say? My mom was 300+ and had her stomache stapled. Desperate to be thin for all the wrong reasons she ended up with a thinner body that was destroyed by extra skin and nasty scars.. emotionally and physically. My mom knows I am unhappy, she is concerned about my health and most of all... she doesn't want me to reach a point where surgery is my only hope.

So here it is everyone... I am 300Lbs. There I said it!!! I WILL LOSE 100LBS. It may take a year it may take two... No matter how long it takes I am ready and I have had enough!

I am looking for a buddy/s to help me... weekly weight ins? excersize tips and tricks? Food Journals?

Let me know,
Karlie

Good luck Karlie! You will find all of those things you are looking for in all of these forums. Just stop in every now and then and check out the threads. Everyone on here is extremely supportive.

Writing down your food is an excellent idea! A lot of us do that. It keeps you in check ("hmmm... what did I have for lunch again?") and also helps you to plan your day out.

Some people weigh every day, some people once a week. Its your decision. Personally, even though I weigh myself every morning at home, I don't "count" anything until I go to my Weight Watchers meeting on Monday night and weigh in there.

and

Sounds like you have an awesome boyfriend. You also sound like you are being positive and will be patient with this process. I'm happy for you. So many people want to have goal by a specific time but I just can't buy in to that. I dread deadlines.
What is your plan? WW? Calorie counting?
I just started by modifying my diet super slowly. I added more fruits and vegetables, and worked from there. I was terribly self conscious about going to the gym so I just walked a little around the neighborhood from time to time and then a little more often. Then I actually used my bike that hadn't been touched in three years. What I found out about exercise was that I wasn't the spectacle I thought I'd be - no one cared what I was doing.
BTW where are you in Canada?
Best of luck,
Tam

Hey Tam,

Thanks for the support and the idea's.. I live in British Columbia. U?

Karlie

Hi Karlie!!! Welcome to 3FC.

You have a phenomenal attitude. I LOVE it!!! Yes you CAN lose the weight and you're taking the right approach. Take as long as you need, it doesn't matter if it's a year or 2 - just get it done.

Having said that, do you have a plan in mind? One that you can indeed stick with for the long haul?

As far as buddies and accountability, I urge you to check out a couple of the forums around here: The 100 lb club forum and The 300+ and Ready to Try Again forum. Both found within the Support Groups Forum. There are on going threads there with weekly weigh-ins, Today's One Reason for Staying on Plan and a host of other great topics to help keep you motivated and accountable. You will find lots and lots of great buddies there as well as fantastic information to help you along your journey. Good luck to you!!!! I look forward to hearing more from you.

And yeah, once again - just know that this IS 100% positively, absolutely DOABLE.

Welcome Karlie!!! We're so happy to have you here with us!! It does sound like you've got a good support system at home. And you definately sound like you are not in this for just the short term.

Step one is deciding how you are going to lose weight. I like calorie counting. Alot of us use Fitday.com. I love it!! You will learn soooo much here just by reading. But we hope you'll join in too. I know you will get all the encouragement and education you will need to be successful right here. Good luck and let us know how you plan to lose weight.

Hi Karlie!
I'm in SK. There is a Crazy Canucks section that is always fun to go to and I just mentioned today that if you need a weather update for anywhere in the country that's where you'll want to go look! LOL
Typical Canadians eh?
Anyways it's under the support groups section and I'd link it for you but I'm not as computer savvy as most! haha
Anyways have a great day!
Tam

Hey Everyone,

WOW THANKS for all the encouragment.. I do have a plan. I have dieted over the years, ate whatever I wanted and worked out like a dog, used diet pills, etc...

My Game Plan: (Don't be shy.. tell me what you think)
1. I can't deprive myself, I've tried. So I am just going to make smarter decisions. about what I eat. Ex: Instead of that monster piece of cheesecake, I'll have some fresh fruit and yogurt.

2. No Pop, Juice, or booze! I will only drink Crystal Light and Low Fat Milk (Once in awhile)! I know what your thinking...I'm depriving myself. I have never been that into drinking, I do socially. I LOVE POP... but after I started drinking Crystal Light. I don't even like pop anymore.

3. Daily excercise routines- I have two dogs so morning walks will become a must and lots of Cardio, Cardio, Cardio

4. The main thing is... I don't want dieting to take over my life. I want to be able to attend BBQ's and Beach Parties without having a panic attack because there will be Booze and pop and hotdogs and cheese and *Drool*

This is why I am not limiting myself to a time frame. I want to lose the weight at a healthy pace, without having to measure my foods and pop pills. I'm ready to get healthy. The right way!

Hi Karlie,

You'll be so glad that you joined 3FC...everyone is terrific and the support is outstanding!

I see that you said that you are going to drink crystal light and FF milk, but don't discount water. Once I started drinking water I found that the crystal light is almost overpowering, I'll use it still but it's 1/2 a pack in 2 litres of water, just enough to make it taste. I have found that since starting my plan (Slim-Fast) which is mainly calorie counting, I'm drinking more plain water than I have in years. Usually I've had 2 litres just by the time I leave work every day and on weekends with the hot weather I'm sometimes consuming as much as 4! My craving for diet soda has decreased to the point that I've had a 1 litre bottle of Diet Dr.Pepper (my favorite) in the fridge for 2 weeks and haven't even opened it yet! I'm also drinking decaf herbal teas, sometimes with a 1/2 pack of sugan twin and sometimes just plain so my liquid consumption gets a boost there as well. I'm finding that the water journal on the slimfast.com website makes me evaluate if I'm giving myself enough fluid and that's great. My short term goal is to get to 200 (I started at 225 two weeks ago today) and I hit 217.5 this morning. I find I'm very satisfied with my plan and am probably eating a greater quantity of food than I was before, but it's lower calorie and much better nutritional value. I don't have a time frame for any of my weight loss, like you I want to do it right and make it so I can maintain after the weight is gone. I have a romantic weekend planned in the Rockies next weekend so I'd love to be down to 215 as that is a full 10 lbs loss and to people that aren't overweight that might not be much but my clothes are already fitting different and I'm feeling great and excited to continue on this journey.
I hope that you don't worry too much about social situations, there is almost always diet soda and water to drink (throw a lemon in and people think your "having a drink") but don't beat yourself up if you stray from your plan for an evening, just get back on the next day and make it a 40 minute walk with the dogs! LOL We had a BBQ last week and I just had a 4oz chicken cutlet (they always look so much bigger than a breast) and then I made foil packs for everyone with a few slices of carrots, littel bit of corn, broccoli and cauliflower, 1/2 tsp margarine, Italian seasoning and 2 ice cubes and threw them on the BBQ. They loved it and wanted the "recipe" Hahaha! I also had a salad with some calorie wise dressing. It seemed like a huge meal and was all like 500 calories or something like that. My target is 1500 a day and so far that's working. Do you have a calorie goal or are you doing low-carb?
Looking forward to hearing back from you.
Cheers, Tamara

im down lets get her done!!!!! lol woooo weight loss party. we all should be as positive as you. i think im going to try that!

Hey Karlie! And tleef, too!

I think your plan sounds reasonable, karlie. Better choices, smaller portions, leaving out the empty calories like alcohol. Exercise--that is really a good thing, too! And walking is great. I walk every day.

The hardest thing for me to begin with was restraint, because I had been used to eating exactly what I wanted, as much as I could, whenever. But now that I've been practicing for awhile, I've found that I don't NEED to eat high-calorie foods in huge amounts to feel like I'm having a good time at those BBQs, beach parties, etc.

(That said, there are some foods that I've found from experience that I just can't have around. They are too tempting, and I'll overeat them. So they don't come into my house.)

Everyone has to find their own way to lose--one plan doesn't fit everyone! You're off to a good start!

Jay

I really want you to not look at food restriction as "depriving" yourself. Because you're not. Don't look at it as what you are giving up, the high calorie/high volume food. Look at it as what you are gaining. A better, healthier, fitter, more active you. With a life full of less worries and hopefully more joy. Everytime you pass up on that high calorie stuff you are one step closer to your goals. You are one step closer to a more fit and leaner and healthier - YOU. So in actuality you are far from depriving yourself. You're treating yourself with the respect that you and your body deserves. And trust me once you get into this, you will see that everything that you think you are giving up is nothing, absolutely nothing compared to what you will be GAINING. The rewards far, far, far outweigh the sacrficies. Good luck to you.

Hey Tamara,

Good Luck with your romantic week *Wink WinK* I don't think I'm into counting calories. I'm more into the lower carbs. I like the idea of lemon in the water. It might be a nice break from Crystal Light. The only Crystal Light I can really drink is the Strawberry-Orange-Banana and the Pink Lemonade cause I find the others to have to much of the aspertame taste. I think I'll take your advice and try watering down the crystal light to ween myself off of it.
My main goal is to change my eating patterns. I am trying to have balanced meals rather than random snacks whenever it suits me. Lots more Fruits and Veggies.

Are you currently working out? Do you hit the Gym or just in home stuff?

I'd go even further than Robin - after the first month or so, those things that you are "depriving" yourself of don't feel like sacrifices at all! And anything that would be a true sacrifice for you - for me this is things like birthday cake on my birthday, or some other special family things that have significance to me - you can fit in because this isn't a diet, its a lifestyle. Its not so much a "sacrifice" as a trade-off of unhealthy habits for healthy ones...and I absolutely agree with Robin that any of the tradeoffs you make will be ABSOLUTELY worth it in terms of the rewards you receive...

I find the "tradeoff" mentality easier on me mentally than saying I'm "depriving" or "sacrificing"...I'm just trading bad decisions for good ones, and defining for myself what a good decision is.

Mandalinn I like the word tradeoff MUCH better then sacrifice!!! I think I may have to borrow it - a lot.

But that is why I wrote that you "think" you are sacrficing, because I really don't see it as a true sacrfice.