[Angela_aka_Alice]

WELCOME !!!

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 and hope. We are aware of the distinct problems that come with weighing over 300 lbs.

We want to invite everyone to join us in our journey.
We share laughter and tears.
We share what works for us and what doesn't.
We often use a "Topic of the Day" for discussion.


Motivational Monday
Tuesday Tips
Wednesday Wish List .. and What you are doing to obtain it.
Thankful Thursday
FUN Friday ... don't wait until you lose your weight.
Sit-up Saturdays - any physical activity
Share your Success Sunday

These are not required topics ...just ideas to share. We often find them very helpful. We also share heartaches and fears ... joys and celebrations.

We have several extra threads going on simutaneously such as Monthly Challenges, Weekly Weigh-ins, Recipes, Bios, and more. Please feel free to check them all out.

We have a bi-weekly 2x2 Challenge.
Our goal is to lose 2 lbs in 2 weeks.
We have a long term goal of losing 300+ lbs within our 300+ group in 2005.

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.


WELCOME!

[Angela_aka_Alice]

Hey ladies... A 4-car day for me! Guess they're all Saturn Vues, since Thin gives them a good review.

BarbPA--Good luck with the eggs! We have a bunch of hens here to help you roost!

Thin, 2Cute--My boss and his wife bought a Murano and they just love it. Haven't heard any complaints.

Dimples--Congrats on the loss! Keep up the great attitude!

Judy--Hope that good weather keeps up for you. Used to live in central PA, so I know how rare dry weather is. Good luck with the WI tomorrow!

Marcie--Good luck with your WI too.

SueMarie, gmalil--Maintaining is a victory. Good for both of you!

Michelle--Congrats on the loss!

Susie--I have a couple things I do to make it easier to eat less. I try to keep myself busy busy busy, with things that don't allow for eating while doing them (so I have no TV... when I used to have one, back the last time I was trying to lose weight, I planted my stationary bike in front of it, and I only watched TV sitting on it. Sometimes I'd really ride, other times I'd mostly coast, but it's hard to eat on a bike). I also eat a lot of frozen meals. I know that a lot of people think it's best to cook, but for me, having a defined end of the meal and no leftovers is very helpful.

CraftyMom, Dommie--Welcome!

Ruby--How many calories you burn just to maintain yourself depends on your weight. Fitday.com does a lot of the same things as the software Leanne was talking about; among other things, if you input your weight and then go to the "activities" section, it'll tell you how many calories you burn per day by just existing. I've been a calories counter ever since the NIH came out with a weight loss report in, oh, 98 or so, in which they compared every major weight loss study done until then and concluded that restricting calories is the most important thing you can do to lose weight... and then recommended that you determine the right number of calories to eat by figuring your basal metabolism and then deducting 500-1000, for a loss of 1 to 2 pounds per week. As I recall, they told you you could figure your daily calories burned by multiplying your weight by 11 if sedentary, 12 if moderately active, 13 if more active. The key to that is, since the calories you burn just existing decrease as your weight decreases, you have to keep lowering calories as you lose weight to avoid plateaus. That was what I did last time around, and lost about 60 pounds.

Hilta--Congrats on your loss!

[Ocean Girl]

Hi everyone!
I have been a little quiet of late, not that I am the most vocal of people anyway, but I am frustrated with the inability to get past the 235 mark. For the past two weeks I have been staying on plan and weighing between 234-236 and nothing seems to shake it.
This happened eight months ago when I tried to lose weight. I got stuck at this exact weight and gave up. 10 years ago I would have lost HEAPS by now.

Thanks for you supportive messages, I am so glad people are having success right now.

Some of the great things about feeling in the "normal weight range":
1. People not jumping back against the wall as you try to pass them in a hall or in a supermarket.
2. Getting sneakers that feel comfortable and that dont break at the sides quickly and less ankle pain.
3. Getting into size 18 again. Plus magical sizes below that.
4. Being able to move quickly and just grab on clothes and go!
5. Feeling comfortable in your body.
6. Getting away from some of those horrid plus size "fashions". No more having to compromise on what you want to wear.

Please feel free to add some more. Hopefully this will spur on weight loss.

[Terri in MO]

Just checking in before bed. It has been a very emotional day and right now, I'm pretty low.

It started out okay but around mid-morning DH called to say that my doc's office needed me to call them as soon as possible. I had a mammogram on Tuesday. I called and this lady is telling me that they saw a benign nodule on my mammogram and that I need to come in for a breast exam. There was general confusion on my part because I had to ask if benign was good or bad as I can never keep that straight. Won't have a problem now. But just the very fact that they found something just freaked me out. I finally got it arranged to have the results faxed over to my GYN's office for them to review and decide what I need to do. I've not been real satisfied with my general prac when I've needed something special. She's misread x-rays twice. I love her but..... What really freaked me out even more was remembering that around the first of the year, I woke up from a dream and told DH that I had heard someone tell me I had breast cancer. What makes that even worse is that those kinds of dreams or sensations have happened to me before and they really happen. I know in my head that there should be nothing to worry about but with all the other BIL stuff going on, I have not been rational about this.

DH and I went to the rehab facility to see BIL tonight after work. It is right over by my office. He seems worse. Sometimes he seems lucid. Sometimes you don't know what's going on in his mind. He kept mimicking smoking and drinking. Was he telling us something or was his mind confused as to where he's at. He is barely understandable. And that frustrates him. He fights sitting in the chair. He cannot open one eye still. He's got a wound on his head from falling. He's got bronchitus, urinary track infection and possible a kidney infection. He's lost so much weight. He wants to go home. It could be months. It could be never. When we went to leave, I went over to the side where he could see and he took my hand. He squeezed my hand so tight and didn't want to let go. I told him I loved him and I know he knew who I was and what I said because he hung on even tighter. Ripped my heart out. I left bawling.

But we have to get up tomorrow and go on with our lives.

DH's son that lives in Louisiana called tonight. He's been estranged from DH for many years and recently has made steps to repair the relationship. He called to say that he's been laid off from his job and that he doesn't want to live in Louisiana (job moved him there). He's got three small kids, a wife that doesn't work, and her mother that is on disability living with them. He didn't ask for money but I expect that will be coming soon. I've tapped the savings pretty hard to pay end of year taxes and Christmas. Not sure how much we can do anyway especially since we didn't see back any of what we loaned when they moved to LA in the first place.

I'll get up in the morning and do some exercise and then off to work for a couple of hours. I want to go see the horsie girls tomorrow afternoon.

Oh yeah, the vet called right before DH this morning to say that we may need to do more x-rays on Ginger to see if she has a bone infection or to see what is causing the abcesses to come back. Ker-ching.

I am going to go to bed and hopefully get a good nights sleep. Tomorrow will be a better day.

[2cute2Bfat]

Terri... Friday was not a day you will want to repeat. {{{ HUGS }}}
I didn't think they could tell if a nodule was benign or not from a mamogram ....I thought they had to do a bioposy. A VERY COMMON lump in breasts is caused my too much caffeine. There are other causes for lumps too other than cancer. My mother's breasts were always lumpy... but she NEVER had cancer or any other disease from them. She even took LOTS of steroids due to her other illnesses. Take it one day at a time... one test at a time.
I am sorry for the bad news on your BIL too. That micmicking can be caused by medications. My mom would do that .. act like she was picking stuff or putting stuff in a basket or something. It was caused by the medications.

Ruby... We have an IMAX here and the seats are big enough for us 300+ gals.
Come and see me and we will go to the Imax together.
I too fear that something will happen to my daughter in Mich and I will be too fat to fly to her. It is not just fitting in the seats... it is being able to WALK the airport once I arrive.

Esmarude... It sounds like you have a good plan of action. You go girl !!!

SueMarie... Your car tracker idea sound COOL !!!!
I may have to steal that idea.

Susie... You have been given some good ideas to help you get back on track food wise. COMMITTMENT ... DEDICATION ... WHITE KNUCKLE... NO EXCUSES are words I post around the house to help remind me of what I need to do.
I know your time is limited... but maybe read Dr Phils book every night for 15 minutes. I think you might need a little BRAIN WASHING !!! You have to replace those "I can't do it" thoughts with Dr Phils ... "DO IT" !!!

Craftymom... glad to see you found us. If you go to the main board of 300+ thread and then put it in your "favorite" section of your computer .. you can just click back here.

Joyce.. Maintain is GREAT !!! Just ask anyone here who has gained a pound recently.

Leanne...That is so great that you STAYED ON PROGRAM even after having bad news. That is EXACTLY what we all need to learn to do for permanent weight loss.

dommie... WELCOME !!!! You have made a good beginning already. You may find you can lose more by eating more. It just needs to be "good food" not junk food.

Michelle... We just don't see you around here enough lately. I miss you.
I am so happy you share how the Eagles have never won... and the Patriots has won 3 out of 4 Bowls. I am definitely someone who roots for the underdogs... so now I have a team to root for. It is more fun to watch when you are cheering on your team. Thanks

Hilta... Glad your hubby is doing okay. Congrats on that pound lost.

Anglea... I too know a couple of people who LOVE their Muranos. I liked it because the interior was much bigger than Equinox. I really liked how the pedals are adjustable. I need more room than others for my belly... so this way I can keep my seat back yet have the pedal close. It also seemed to drive smooth too.

Oceangirl ... I hope you post more often. It might help you break that plateau you are in. You might want to change up your food plan for 2 weeks to jump start your losing again. If you are doing WW type.. try LC for 2 weeks... or visa versa. Have you tried something like the Wendie Plan. ?? I think it is basicly alternating high and low calorie/point days.

BarbPA and Barbg... we miss you both. I hope both of your lives are finding peace. I am still praying for you both.

J-ann/Judy... I know you posted.. but I forgot to take notes on yours.
Maybe you didn't give me anything to work with. LOL

Thin... where are you ???
It is 1am and you usually post late at night like me.

Okay ... My day was a good today... even had FUN too.
DH and I went and saw "Wedding Date". Cute movie.
It is not an oscar winning movie... but a FUN movie to watch.

This weekend is the LAST CHANCE to claim your Snowflakes for the January Challenge. The official winner will be announced Sunday night. :sman:

Also ... don't forget Saturday is the LAST DAY to earn your weekly bonus points. Reading a chapter from a Dr Phil or similar... and posting daily Tues- Sat.

[SueMarie301]

Hello Ladies…

Ruby – hi there… I could try plugging your info into my program. It tells me I need to eat approx 3300-3400 calories to maintain my weight at 5’8” and 360lbs. From there it then gives me a section where I can enter how much my goal weight will be within a certain amount of time. At 360lbs, I wanna try to get to 330lbs by june 30th, and it tells me I need to eat around 2500 calories plus exercise to reach my goal. That’s a bit of an easy task since that only requires 5lbs a month. If I try for too much it tells me that it’s a difficult task and so on. Let me know if you would like me to plug your info in, would need height and current weight is. I’ll see if I remember how to plug it in There are some web sites that I use to get calorie information. If I go to like say subway or mcdonalds I go to their site, and I try to avoid eating at places who do not provide nutritional information (like quizno’s hehehe). But I use calorie king’s website. They seem to have a really good database and it’s free. Also check out fitday.com, it’s a great place to help keep track of calories. If you got any questions let me know, I’ll see if I can help answer anything. About my student, *sigh* I’m actually an instructional assistant. I follow students around and help them out in class. I work with the RSP department, which stands for… umm… Resource Specialist Program. Most of my kids are emotional or mentally disturbed and many have learning problems. So I’m sorta like an in class tutor. I got some good news tonight tho, when I got home from league. The mother called me and told me she is doing okie. Not sure about anything else tho. I’m feeling better about things now.

As mentioned before I got some news on my student when I got home from league. She’s doing okie. That’s as much as I know. So I’m feeling a bit better on the situation. Hopefully I’ll find out more on Tuesday.

I got to the bowling alley and my whole team had the bowling paper for me. I made the papers heheh! YAY! Although I did bowl 3 games tonight, I’m thinking about doing a 1 mile WATP tape. I have all this energy that I need to burn off hehehe…

Well I’m off for the night, unless I do a WATP tape, I’ll come back and update my miles.

Take care everyone!

Sue…

[dimples78]

Hello everyone,

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I'm just posting sorta quickly, but I wanted to respond to some of your posts:

dommie: Hi, and welcome...I'm new too and this place has been AWESOME!! You will love it here!

hippygoddess: I just wanted to tell you I admire you for not endulging in those chips, good for you!!

sue marie: I wanted to say sorry about what happened with your student. Self mutilation/suicide is SO hard to deal with, as it's so hard to understand. I hope she will get the help she needs. I admire you for being able to be in that position. It takes a lot of heart and strength.

hilta: Wow, good job on your pound loss, keep that up! I have included your husband in my prayers today..

ocean girl: I know how plateaus are, and strangely, mine always happen at the same weight too. Unfortunately, if I had kept going , I wouldn't be where I am at now. But I refuse to give up!!! All plateaus need are time...And all you need is patience..Hang in there, you WILL overcome it! You are strong!

terri: I just wanted to give you a {{{{{{{HUG}}}}}}}. I'm sorry you are going through this, and I have included you in my prayers also.

I wanted to share this site that I found. If you are in to counting calories, it is VERY useful! http://www.calorie-count.com/

You guys are great, keep on going and stay strong!

[Jibbelle]

GOOOOOOOOD Saturday morning to all! I am just having a quick breakfast (egg, toast, kiwi) while I check the boards. Then off to shower and head to weigh in! I am also going to the mall, petsmart, and kohls. Lots of walking today! Can I get a car for that if I walk fast and wear my walking shoes?

I will post when I get back with the results. I am not feeling very "down" but we will see!

[Terri in MO]

Good morning!

I am returning to rational-land today even if it kills me.

I'm also getting this post in and earning my bonus airplane.

Judy! I see your great loss over on the WI thread. Bet you feel great!

Okay, we had chinese food last night for dinner because we were both too drained to cook anything or deal with the crowds to eat out on Friday night. I'll forfeit a car. I did get out and walk at lunch, journalled my food and drank water so I still earned three.

The ticker idea for the cars is great!

I'm off to get my exercise in this morning, get DH up and go beat the dog for knocking on the back door repeatedly. Just because he wants back in. Now he's barking just in case I didn't hear him knocking.

later!

[Iwillbe]

Good morning, Just a quick drop in to say hello. I am still OP. Major discovery! sacle watching not good! Iwillbe

[j-ann]

Originally Posted by determined to succeed

Good morning!

I'm off to get my exercise in this morning, get DH up and go beat the dog for knocking on the back door repeatedly. Just because he wants back in. Now he's barking just in case I didn't hear him knocking.

Aw Terri: Don't pick on the dog. At least he wants to come in. If I don't remember to round up the soccer ball at night I spend precious time on work mornings trying to convince Paige that breakfast is better than joyfully racing around in the snow with a soccer ball in her mouth. She's so busy having fun she forgets her name.

Thanks for the compliment. I did better than expected last week.

[Grannie39074]

Good morning guys I am heading out the door to work. Welcome to the newbies. I am back down to 195 this morning. more later

[gmalil]

I woke up with a headache! I know it is from caffeine withdrawal It will feel good when it stops hurting.
WW always said I could count diet sodas as 1/2 my water. but Curves says no, because it is a mild diuretic, and if I drink soda, I need to drink even more than the 8 glasses of water to compensate for the soda consumed! SOOO am weaning myself from the soda can.

TERRI sending {{{{HUGS}}}}. I've been there and done that! not fun at all !! last year I had to go back for an ultrasound of the breast to see more clearly what the abnormality was, turned out to be a cyst or some such thing. I am scheduled for my Mammogram in 2 weeks. Not fun, but something we have to do and it is better to find out early if there is a problem! I'm sorry too, about your BIL, I know that is a tough thing to go through.

SUE Thats great that you got a good report about your student. It sounds like you have an important role in her life for her mom to call you!
ALSO CONGRATS on making the papers withyour bowling !

OCEAN GIRL, that is a great list of things to look forward to! thanks for posting and reminding me of some of those.

[Jibbelle]

I just got back from weigh in.... *drum roll please*

I was down 3.4 lbs to 309!!!! WOOHOOO for me!!! Only 10 more pounds to break the 300lb mark. That is a total of 18 lbs since the day after Christmas. I am sooo proud of myself.

[gmalil]

WEIGH TO GO!!! jibbelle!!

I didn't have a drum, so will do a happy dance for you!!!