hi everyone! i'm new to this forum, but i always stop by and visit 3fc's web site for recipes and reviews. i was pretty overwhelmed with all the different forums/discussion boards, but this was the first one i came to because i know how inspiring it always is for me to read other people's stories of success. maybe someone else will find my success story helpful.

i'm 24 years old, and i have either been overweight or felt that i was overweight for about 10 years. over those 10 years, my weight kept escalating until i was over 170 pounds. i am only 5' 1", so this amount of weight was quite a lot on my small frame. it was horrible trying to find clothes that fit because i could no longer shop in the petite section for short length clothes because i had jumped up to a size 18.

my officemate told me about weight watchers, and from the first meeting we went to, i knew that i could do this. (i joined around mid-october 1999.)

as of now, i have lost over 40 pounds and am only about 4 pounds from goal. (my present weight is 125 pounds.) it has taken a long time because this past summer i took a little "break" from journeling my food and was not so dilligent, therefore i only maintained my weight. i never stopped going to meetings or believing that i could get to goal, so my hiatus from losing weight never really bothered me. i knew that even if i was overindulging, i could never go back to the eating habits i had before i started weight watchers. i had already made so many permanent changes in my life, and i figured when i was ready to focus on losing weight again, i would be able to do it. and i have.

i still have my ups and downs, but that's ok. the journey has been slow, but i've enjoyed it a lot more than other people i know who have tried losing weight on very strict diet regimens (especially low-carb plans) only to get to the point where they can no longer take it and resort to old habits again.

i think that losing the physical weight is only half of the battle. the rest is in your mind. i find that even though i am thinner now than i was when i was 14, i am still dealing with my perception of my body. i know i look and feel a whole lot better now than i have for a long time, but there's still the part of me that thinks i don't look as skinny as i should. maybe toning exercises would help with that. sometimes i look in the mirror and i love what i see. but there are times (i find this true especially when i look at pictures of myself) when i feel it looks like i still need to lose 20 pounds. i know i need to work on this, but this mental aspect of losing weight seems to be the toughest part.

maybe the fat person never really goes away. but if it did, i guess i wouldn't feel compelled to work so hard to stay healthy.

okay, i've gone on long enough. i just want to wish everyone out there good luck on their weight loss/maintenance journeys. enjoy yourselves...enjoy your food. (that's been so important to me with weight watchers because i feel i truly can enjoy myself and still lose weight.) you can do it!!

-beth

Be Good (Beth). What a sincere post. I, too - am a WWatcher. Today is my Weigh In and I'm afraid I'm up a pound or so.....I haven't been very diligent with my quantities this wk., and I find that eating in restaurants is a real no-no for me.

Our body image IS definitely a mind thing. I have weighed over 200 lbs. for the past 12 yrs., and am hovering about 3-5 lbs. over 200 lbs., a person would want to try extra hard to get below that 200 lb. mark, but I hover, and hover...possibly I'm afraid (in my head) to get under it - seems crazy tho, I've been a member of WW since Sept. 18 (with 6 wks. off before Xmas)...I've lost the grand total of 11 lbs. Now am I serious loser or what???? I don't enjoy spending the $$$, but seem to be playing at it.

Kermit

214/203/160 :confused:

the little mind games we play with ourselves when trying to lose weight can really be a challenge to overcome. changes (even good changes like losing weight) are tough. but hang in there and don't beat yourself up even if you find you've gained this week.

-beth

Kermit: I just got a new treadmill and I just love it. It's computer generated, has six different programs you can set for different challenges or you can go on line and down load more. (it will take forever for me to master those, if ever). Or you can set your own pace. So I'm sure you will really like yours. Good Luck
Sandy

Beth, thanks for sharing your inspiring story. I am very happy for you and feel newly fortified. I am doing WW also and I know that it works as long as you work the program, but you are right in that we are fighting a psychological battle also. WW emphasizes balance in one's life. I think it is a great program.

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Delia

Don't trade a new life for a donut!