Hi all. I enjoyed reading the "how much weight have you lost" thread. Very impressive. I am always on the lookout for people who have lost over 100 pounds and learned how to keep it off. Anyone here in that category? If so, please share your story and explain how you've maintained the weight loss. How did you learn to live as a thin person after being obese? Has maintenance been harder than losing? Did you ever "relapse," and if so, how did you get back on track? When did you start to believe you were really thin for life? Did it ever become easy? Is there anyone out there who (like me) was obese nearly all his/her life but now masquerades as a thin person?

My story, in short: I lost 131 lbs in about a year and a half, by doing weight watchers (but eating higher points than recommended), working out, lifting weights, and eventually running (ran my first marathon in October!). I've maintained in a 10 pound range at a size six or eight for two years now. It has not gotten significantly easier, mentally, and I still have to think about it all the time. Every day is still a challenge.

I would love to hear from all the 100 pound losers out there. Please share your stories!

Diamonda
266/143/135

Diamonda — this is a great question and one I’ve been wondering about a lot lately, so I am anxious to see the replies you get. I am a newbie to your club, having lost 123 pounds and kept it off for eight months now. I lost the weight fairly quickly — in 11 months — through a program of working out with weights, cardio, and a higher protein, lower carb (not Atkins) nutrition plan — about a ratio of 50% lean protein, 25-30% good carbs (oatmeal, veggies, brown rice etc) and 20-25% good fats. It ranged between 1200 and 1600 calories per day.

The benefits that I’ve gained have been a body fat % that has dropped from a horrendous 57.7% to 12.4%, my clothes size has dropped from a 22 to a 4, I can run (congratulations on the marathon — I am in awe!), I have tons of energy, I have cool muscles and loads of definition. But the most significant change, to me, is not longer having my life defined (and limited) by being overweight. I no longer have to worry if I am the fattest person in a room when I enter it, if “fat” is the first thing that someone thinks when they meet me, if I can find clothes that fit etc. We’ve all been there. The freedom from constantly thinking about being fat is the most liberating experience I have ever had in my life. Losing this weight is like waking up and every morning being Christmas morning. (You can tell that I am still in the “pinch me, is this real?” stage of weight loss!)

I too have been overweight my entire life and can really relate to your comment about being an obese person masquerading as a thin person. It still doesn’t look like me if I catch an unexpected look at myself in a mirror! But I LOVE being a normal weight finally and I think what keeps me going day after day is the burning desire to never ever ever go back to where I was. I still get a glimpse occasionally of those feelings of sadness and despair that I had when I was fat and I would do anything to never go back to that place.

I am realizing that maintenance is basically no different than losing for me. I still do the same amount of exercise, I still plan my food the night before (on Fitday), I still weigh and measure portions, I still eat the same foods, and I still eat around the same amount. Right now I am shooting for around 1500 calories per day.

I have not regained any weight. I’ve been at 135 since May, but my body fat % has dropped from 16% to 12.4% since then, so I know that I have lost a little more fat and built more muscle. I weigh myself every morning and know that if I slip a little, it shows up the next day (carbs both make me hungry and cause me to retain water big time). Looking at the scale every day is a big motivator for me because I am so very conscious of the abysmal statistics for maintaining a weight loss that I am determined never to let the pounds creep back on, which I think they could if I didn’t monitor myself very closely. If I see the number nudging 140 (and it does fluctuate a little, with water retention and all), I’ll either do extra cardio (90 minutes) and/or cut calories until it is back around 135.

I too find that the weight maintenance is something I have to be aware of and work at every day. I guess I am becoming reconciled to the fact that I will never be able to eat what I to, when I want to, in the amounts that I want to. Whatever wiring there is in my brain that controls food intake just doesn’t work the way it is supposed to and would, if I let it, put me right back at 257 pounds. But whatever steps I have to take to maintain are SO worth it to me and what I do has become so much a part of my life that I don’t consider it a sacrifice anymore.

Some days it is easy and some days it seems like torture and I am just happy to be able to go to bed and tell myself I made it though another day successfully. Maybe that’s the key to long-term maintenance — one day at a time. I would love to hear from some of the big losers who have been keeping the weight off for a long time — Mrs. Jim, Quilter in VA come to mind — about whether if gets any easier as the years go by.

Are you aware of the National Weight Control Registry? It is a database run by some researchers who study what makes for long-term weight loss success. http://www.lifespan.org/services/bmed/wt_loss/nwcr/ You are eligible to join if you have lost at least 30 pounds and kept it off for a year or more. I believe their findings are what Anne Fletcher used for her “Thin For Life” book. Anyway, I am planning on enrolling in May (my year anniversary). Some of the papers they have published (listed on their web sire) are very interesting and pertain to your questions.

I’m looking forward to a lot more responses from those with more experience “under their belts.” Great question!

Meg
257 / 135
57.7% / 12.4% body fat

Hi Meg! Thanks for the great response. Your success is truly remarkable. I have never been able to get to such a low percentage of body fat! What a wonderful change you have effected. Were you a binge eater? Did you find the urge to binge went away almost completely when you cleaned up your diet? That was my experience.

I SO know what you mean when you say every day is like Christmas morning. It was that way for me, too. Every time I put on those jeans (you know the ones!) I was filled with pure joy. Every time I saw myself in a window or a mirror and saw a thin person, not just an average person but a THIN person, an athletic person, I was stunned and overjoyed. In the past year, that feeling has dissipated somewhat. The newness has worn off; the exciting new relationship that followed close on the heels of weight loss began to exhibit problems; the novelty of being able to run AT ALL gave way to the pain of long hard workouts, etc. etc. Which is NOT to say that I have any intention of going back (I would die first), but the hard work of a lifetime is sort of staring me in the face right now. It isn't always easy. But oh yes, it is worth it.

Thanks for the link to the national weight registry. I had heard about it and checked it out several months ago, so I'm glad to be reminded of it again.

Seems that the common bond we big losers have is low fat and low simple carb diets, weight training, hard cardio (running, etc.), and constant monitoring -- never letting the scale or the bodyfat monitor get too far away.

Is it possible that a lifelong fatty like me can stay thin for the rest of her life? Guess we'll find out!

--D

Okay, I just skimmed Meg's response...but my experience is that I must ALWAYS be diligent never to fall back into those nasty habits that got me up to 265 pounds. It's a day-by-day thing, but it does get easier with time. The real key is to make PERMANENT LIFESTYLE CHANGES.

I definitely was a binge eater myself - along with being a sneak-eater. Even now, whenever Jim goes out of the house and leaves me alone, I have to fight the impulse to open the fridge and see what the 'snack fairy' has left.

Right now, I don't count calories - as long as I'm eating 'clean' (lean proteins, lots of veggies, complex carbs) and keeping my portions under control, along with working out (weight training along with cardio), keeping an eye on the Pants-O-Meter rather than relying on the scale (which has only caused me pain and agony in the past), I know I'm okay.

What I highly recommend is staying away from the fads and 'miracle pills' - those do NOT work. I'm assuming that folks want to lose weight permanently - pills don't cut it. Also, looking back, I've lost my weight in stages - you can check it out on my website (Yeah, I know I need to update it!!!). In addition - there's a great book I've recommended time and time again - "The Fat of the Land" by Michael Fumento - where he advocates losing weight SLOWLY - instead of trying to lose the entire boatload of excess fat all in one shot - which can seem an insurmountable task - aim to lose, say, 10% of your excess weight - then after it's gone - MAINTAIN that weight loss for a few months before attempting to lose another 10%, and so on and so forth.

Pam Brown - who has lost 100 pounds and maintained that loss for 2 years so far - posted some terrific nutrition guidelines at www.leanandstrong.com:
As far as training - Pam Brown has some great guidelines I'd like to share:
To the above I add: if you possibly can, do your workout first thing in the AM - right after you wake up. That way you are prioritizing your health - making it first on your agenda - and also getting it done! How many people do you know who join a gym and never go because they're 'too tired after work'? Make yourself, make your health FIRST.

Take care and remember - YOU CAN DO THIS!!! It isn't easy but the rewards are so great. Take it from me...

Wow, terrific and thought-provoking answers, Karen and Diamonda. I really hope that we “big losers” can continue to keep this dialogue going because, as we well know, reaching that “goal” weight is not the end of a journey, but the beginning of a long process of maintenance. I realize that I have no experience maintaining a weight — all my life I have either been “on a diet” and losing, or saying “to **** with it” and gaining. So I am eager for all the insights that you all can offer.

I am especially intrigued by both your comments about binge eating. I was indeed a binge and secret eater and that is the demon that I will probably always fight. (I think I easily consumed at least 3000 calories after 9:00 PM on most nights). Just like you, Karen, I will still think about what I can eat if I am left alone — things I would never eat in front of others. Maybe it’s from sneak eating as a kid, I don’t know. I wish the urge to binge had gone away, but I still get it from time to time. But I have tried to identify the triggers and for me it’s being too tired, too hungry, or eating sugar and other simple carbs. So I try to avoid those triggers or think of strategies to deal with them. For example, if I am really hungry and I eat my planned meal and feel like I am still starving, I make a cup of hot chai tea and add a splash of skim milk and SF vanilla syrup. By the time I’ve drunk it, my sweet tooth is satisfied and my blood sugar level is back to normal and I am no longer hungry

Thanks for pointing out the common diet and exercise bonds that we share. The two missing keys for me for all the years that I tried to lose weight and couldn’t were exercise and nutrition. I tried WW forever and never could succeed because I used the point system to eat mostly processed carbs — bagels, pasta, sugar, snacks. I know that one can have the self-discipline to spend points correctly, but I never knew that all calories are not created equal and so stayed within my points and stayed fat. And the gym was an alien planet to me and only through the most fortuitous circumstances did I end up in a gym with a genius of a personal trainer who guided me through the weight loss journey.

Is it possible for a life-long fatty to stay thin for the rest of her life? Oh yes! The only person who can take this away from us is ourselves and I, for one, am not going to let that happen (and you said you would die first). We have the tools and the knowledge and the skills that we need. Sure, we will always need to be mindful, but as you said, it is SO WORTH IT!

Here’s a question that I have for you long-term losers: do you ever get to the point where you can eat one cookie and not want to eat five more? Right now I don’t eat the first one because I will then want more, but is it always that way?

I hope you both keep posting and that we hear from some more big losers. I’m also interested in hearing about your plastic surgery experiences, Diamonda, if I remember correctly from another thread. I’m getting some excess skin removed later in January and am curious about other’s experiences and results

Meg.

Happy new year, big losers!

The pointers that Mrs. Jim posted were excellent. I am particularly wedded to the idea of protein at every meal and snack. I feel like something is "wrong" if I eat all carbs for a meal or snack. In the old, obese days, my breakfast would consist of a big fat muffin (chocolate, usually) and a cheese roll from a bakery near my office. Oh, and sometimes a carton of chocolate milk to go with. The rest of the day followed along the same lines. Can you imagine how horrible I felt by 10 am? I get chills just thinking about the damage I was doing to my body. I was probably well on my way to becoming diabetic in my late 20s. Now, it is very important to me to get that protein early in the meal. It keeps me from eating too much, too quickly.

As for binging, I agree that the key is to keep yourself fueled properly all day long. If I get tired and hungry, and my blood sugar drops, I am in a dangerous place, particularly in late afternoon after a day of work and working out. I try to eat every few hours, even it's just a ff yogurt, or a protein bar, or peanut butter and banana toast. Often, I'll eat something just before leaving the office, so that I don't get too hungry before dinner, especially if I'm going out to a restaurant. It seems counterintuitive, since we were taught to eat LESS to lose weight, but it works for me. I also like Meg's trick of the sweetened drink. I like to have a coffee drink (skim latte or skim au lait) in the afternoon. The protein is there, as well as the caffeine, and I don't feel a bit bad about adding a pack of sugar.

I agree that WW can be a disaster for some, because it encourages you believe that you can eat "anything you want" as long as you count points. Those TV ads feature pizza, burgers, fries, pancakes, brownies, etc. etc. etc. So, a person eats a 9 point bakery bagel for breakfast, and gets hungry two hours later once the blood sugar plummets, then she realizes she has already eaten half her points for the day, so she gives up and has a burger and fries for lunch. But if that person started out with a different 9 point breakfast (like my favorite, 2 pc high fiber bread, nut butter, a banana, and a skim cafe au lait), she would stay full til lunch. Nonetheless, I still eat much MORE than most people who are on WW. I could not go down to those superlow point levels (my official range right now is 18 to 23). I lost my weight eating generally in the 30 to 40 point range, with plenty of days far above that.

Now, for the important question: can you ever eat one cookie without wanting five more? I'm not sure. I usually want more after the first. It's easier for me to control my environment than control my appetite, so I don't allow things like that in the house, except in single servings. The challenges come at work, in other people's houses, at parties, at restaurants, etc.

Meg, best of luck with the surgery! Let me know if you have specific questions.

Diamonda
266/142.6/135

Diamonda: I was significantly overweight from the ages of 8 until I was 23 weighing over 200lbs from 14-23. So during all those happy formative years, I always thought myself as obese and had it often iriterated from my peers etc (my mom was amazing, she tried SOOOO hard to get into my mind that I was not obese, she says now she did that so I wouldn't think of myself as a 'fat person' but just as me). It's been hard, but believe it or not I have had a lot of time to reframe and start thinking of myself as a strong, healthy individual.

I was told to treat my weight loss like an amazing accomplishment that I managed to acheive through my own motivation and through my own hard work. Due to this when I do have a bit of a relapse (my weight generally hovers between 145-155), I can look at that accomplishment and know taht I can get back to where I want to be and then I do work on it right away, I don't wait it's a lot easier to lose 10lbs than 20 etc.

When I first got to goal I was so shy about telling people about my weighht loss (I moved and everyone has known me as being thin, not overweight). I was dating a guy and thought I was a phony for not telling him I used to be overweight (most guys live in the now and don't care about past weight troubles). I still get very angry though when people are discriminated against due to weight and fat jokes make me feel uncomfortable.


I think for us who have had significant weight losses (mine ranges from 101-110 or so) most of us will have to work at it for life. I am jealous of people who can eat 1 quarter of a chocolate bar and put the rest away. I can't do that, so I have to adjust my environment and not have trigger foods lying around. I know I am bad at buffets so I try to avoid them where possible (except for ones that are vegetarian and you pay by the gram kind of deal).

I am also a big WW eater... I was losing weight with regular exercise at 30-31 points a day. I have a big breakfast in the morning etc. I was talking to a dietician and she said I should never eat carbs alone and to have a protien or a fat with it. I basically eat 5-6 times a day, which helps too. I just don't see how people can eat 18points a day, I would starve, even with eating a ton of veggies or what not.

To play the Devil's advocate (hey I do eventually want to go to Law School) on the eating anything you want on weight watchers philosophy as long as it's within points. I have basically cut out refined carbs from my diet etc and eat lean protiens, whole grains, fruits, veggies, soy stuff, healthier fats (ie. peanut butter, olive oils), but for some reason I just like the fact that if I really wanted a 5 point Skor bar I could have one, although when I am eating healthy I don't, I still somehow like to think if I want one, I could have one and fit it in to my daily allotment of points.

I never really banked points either. Usually either every week or every other week I'd have a good 'ole bar grill type meal with dessert, thinking about that kept me on track. That's one thing that worked well for me and I am thinking about going back to that.

Another point, know what worked for you when losing weight. If you worked well on a tight regime of eating at specific times, continue, if you liked having a cheat meal a week, continue (due to the binge eating habit I used to have <which sneaks up once in a while> I cannot have cheat days). Exercising daily, continue, Changing our lifestyle is what got is there. I can't live without breakfast now, even if I am running REALLY late I eat breakfast. Eat the calories/points to maintain, but yeah, basically keep to the changes you have implemented while losing weight as long as they are healthy and are maintainable.

I am going to be truthful, it has been a lot more work to maintain than to lose. Going to the scale and seeing the lbs go down helped the motivation momentum kind of deal. You said you ran a marathon, that's amazing. Training for something like that is good motivation to keep within the lifestyle. I weight train (I have taken some time off <bad me I know:P> and seeing the increase in weights I use <and the muscle> is motivation too.

My last motivation is just knowing how far I have come. Not only have I lost weight, but I have also become a confident/strong young woman who can accomplish whatever I want to (I used to use my weight as an excuse for many things). <man that sounded cheesy>

Meg: Good Luck with the surgery, I keep debating, but finacially right now it's not an option and I want kids, so I don't know <plus I have never had surgury asides from dental and I am a wuss>.

MrsJim+Meg: I can be a sneak eater too... It can be bad, but hey what I have to remind myself if that when I sneak eat I am only cheating myself.

Take care!

Ali (let's see if this after/before thing works first pic 2002 second 1996)

Sweater girl, thanks for your great post. Congratulations on your accomplishment. How long have you been maintaining? Your assessment of maintenance is right on target: do what you did to lose, and continue doing it forever. Ah, if only there were a more exciting answer, but that's really the only answer.

Diamonda
266/141.6/135 (having a good week!)

What a valuable thread for those who are looking for the truth of permanent weight loss.

I am Gina Blakeslee. I used to weigh 368 pounds. I have lost most of my excess weight. I cannot tell you how much I weigh because I do not weigh myself. I have found that I become a scale jumper when I weigh myself. I always think I should have lost more and then I play head games with myself for days on end. I will know my new weight in March when I go for my physical.

I did it by getting myself educated and treating myself very, very well. I learned to eat right. Protein at every meal, avoiding refined carbs, increasing my fiber intake, eating fruits and copious amounts of vegetables to the best of my ability. I eat a good amount of food each day, never less than 1500 calories. Sometimes I eat a very filling 2000 calories. I usually shoot for 1700/day.

I have redefined myself. I use to think of myself as a fat, out of shape person who hated exercise. I have found that I don't hate exercise at all, that I actually enjoy it. I also found out that under the 368 pounds I was far more fit than I ever imagined. My beliefs about myself, who I was, what I liked, turned out to be untrue.

I replaced bad habits with good habits. It takes awhile to do , but it is completely doable. I love to eat and I eat food that I love. No one can eat anything they want anytime they want and be taking proper care of themselves. No one. I choose recipes that my family and I will enjoy. I eat until I am satisfied. In the beginning being satisfied and determining how much I should eat of anything was a bit difficult. My stomach was all stretched out. It isn't anymore. I become full eating proper portions now. Again, it took awhile to do but I have done it.

I eat every few hours. I get hungry every few hours. A two hundred calorie snack will get my through just fine. I have learned that when I am hungry I must eat. I will pig out eventually if I ignore my body when it it telling me to eat. It is inappropirste to ignore your buddy when it is telling you it needs to eat. I have learned to pay attention to my hunger. It is my buddy. It is the voice of my body telling me what I need. Used to be I was never hungry. I ate when the clock said or when I was upset or when I was celebrating. I ate for dozens of reasons, but never because I was hungry. Now I eat only because I am hungry.

I have learned that to survive in a culture where consumption is KING and portions are growing bigger everyday that as individuals we must think for ourselves. We cannot trust our culture to each us how to eat right. We are the country that serves kids Sodas with Happy Meals (nothing but calories and caffiene), think that is appropriate and then question why we are all getting so fat. We were given juice boxes and consumption of sugar laden, nutritionally void juice went up 600%!

That is my blurb for the morning! I have so much to say on the subject it is hard for me to narrow it down.

I just read all of the posts in this thread and just had to say"Congrats to all of you!! You are such an inspiration!!"
To lose so much weight and keeping it off is awesome to me. I started changing my bad habits about 2 months ago and have only lost 9 lbs but I am very encouraged. Reading all of your posts has given me even more determination. Thanks!!(By the way, I weigh 227 at the moment.)

MikiG

Wow, this is a great thread!

I don't technically fit into this category because I lost 95 pounds, not 100+ like you women, but I wanted to share an experience that I've had in case it can help someone.

I joined ww in Nov 98 at 237. In July 99 I made lifetime at 169 (I'm 5'9 -lost 68 pounds). I ran my first marathon and announced pregnancy #2. After I had my son, I went back to ww and made it back to goal weight within the 3 month grace period they give you as a post-partum lifetime member. I knew I wanted to lose more weight, but I knew I was going to have another child; so I just maintained at 169 until getting pregnant 4 or 5 months later with my 3rd son. I gained 50 pounds with my first and 40 with my second, and with my third I was determined to gain in the recommended 25-35 pound range; so I counted points and kept up with my exercise intensity (5-6 days per week: aerobics or running).

Now, I didn't starve myself by any stretch - I averaged 55 points per day with a range of 50-57 (figured out the range myself by adding until I stopped losing, and then adding a few more points to gain at the right rate). I had my son 3 weeks early and only gained 20 pounds. By 2 weeks post partum I was back to goal weight and new it was time to lose the rest of my weight. The next 27 pounds came off nice and steady, with a losing range of 40-47 and a maintenance range of 50-57. I was a happy camper when I got to 142 with a body fat of 15%. That was 10 months ago. I was going along just great maintaining the weight within a 5 pound range when I found out that I was unexpectedly expecting #4. I gained a lot more than I did with #3 - up 15 pounds by 20 weeks. And then disaster struck ... I went to a regular u/s and found out that my precious baby girl (I have 3 sons from 4 years to 16 months in age) had died due to a cord accident. I was devastated. In the next 7 weeks, I gained a whopping 10 pounds. At that point, I was at 170, still a "legal" lifetime since I was within 2 pounds of my goal weight, but far below my personal goal weight.

But this is where my story gets encouraging. When I hit that 170, it was like a light bulb went off for me and I finally had the determination and energy to start counting points and journalling again, and being more consistent with my exercise. In my first week back I lost 4.2 pounds, and I'm halfway through week 2 at this point.

I wanted to share this with you because it gave me a lot of hope and encouragement ... I will *never* gain back all that weight. I was at the bottom of the barrel lin terms of life stress. Losing a child is something that I hope and pray that most women never have to live through. Its beyond words to describe the pain. And yes I slipped into some bad eating habits, and yes I gained some weight, but not to the point where I completely let go.

You all sound so committed and energized, and I'm proud of you all. I am slowly but surely making my way back to my personal goal weight.

Technically I've kept my weight off since July 99 (3.5 years), but I've had 3 pregnancies in between; so I'm really not as much of a pro at maintenance as it sounds.

Amy 237/165.8 (current) / 169 (WW goal) / 145 (personal goal)

Awesome thread! I am with you Amy, although I lost 100 lbs, 6 were artificial, no matter what I do they just sneak back. But that is OK, I am still my hero. I find that it gets easier all the time but I was not obese my entire life and have "skinny habits" to fall back on. I am however an emotional eater and if I have no solutions to a problem the fridge is there to comfort me. My biggest comfort is to journal my emotions and to work out. I find that this is the key for me, to moderate stress through positive problem solving and exercise. I do pilates as they calm and center me and kickbox, run and lift weights and I feel powerful after a max push work out. I also find that mixing up what you do keeps it fresh and enjoyable.

Stay centered and enjoy life!

way to go flatlander. where are you from in sask? i lived in saskaton and regina. ttfn glen

You guys are incredible. I have been searching this site for inspiration, and found it on this thread. I am beginning the weight loss journey, have about 60 to lose and have been struggling to find if there is a program that will help. I never seem to have much success with WW, but maybe for some of the reasons you folks noted, namely just eating less of the bad stuff! It seems to work pretty well for others it seems. Please continue to post your motivational messages and the factors that have contributed to the great successes you've all had. Way to go!!

This has been a very good thread. I thought I'd revive it a bit with some observations about maintaining my 100+ lb weightloss. I'm not setting myself up as some sort of "expert," but I do know a trick or two that might be helpful to others. I've known so many people who did well for awhile, lost weight, felt completely confident that they'd "never go back," then a few months later they were porking out again. It's depressing to see that happen. I want desperately to make sure it doesn't happen to me.

All or nothing approach: avoid it. Be completely committed to achieving your goal, but avoid the pursuit of perfection. One deviation, and you've set yourself up for psychic pain and a big fall. I just read a book called Food and Loathing by Betsy Stewart -- a woman who struggled with binge eating all her life. She would go to Overeaters Anonymous, which advocates complete "abstinance," and she would be completely on program for months and lose 50 lbs. Then she would go off the program, which was so devastating to her worldview in which complete abstinance was required for success, and she would spiral into a mess of binge eating for months, regaining the 50 and more. And so on and so on, until she found herself on a ledge about to jump (literally). I could relate to the story very well. All or nothing usually leads to nothing. This message is counter to the popular "hardcore" approaches (rembember Bee-Cee-Bees, you oldtimers?) I was a regular poster on that site because of the high level of motivation and commitment amongst the members. But I never remained OP all the time when I was losing. Nevertheless, I lost about 2 pounds a week, regularly, every week, and the results speak for themselves: I've kept off 123 pounds for two full years, imperfections and all.

It's ok to still love food: if you find a lot of joy in eating, then you've GOT to still find joy even while getting healthy and losing weight. Otherwise you'll be filled with despair over the thought of a lifetime of drab, unpleasant food choices. It was necessary that I find things that I loved to eat and be able to look forward to special meals and foods. Going out for sushi is now the biggest treat in the world, and it has replaced going out for pizza or pasta or burgers.

Don't get hungry. Eat frequently throughout the day. Keep things on hand at home and the office. Hunger pangs are NOT your friend. If you are physically hungry, you need to eat something or risk overating at the next meal and allowing your body to adapt to less and less food and depressing your metabolism. I like the following things as snacks throughout the day: ff yogurt, nuts, edamame, fruit, Health Valley products (they make wonderful tarts and pastries without any hydrogenated oils), skim care au laits, etc.

Any other thoughts? Are there any oldtimers out there from the early days of 3FC who have maintained for a long time?

Diamonda
266/143