[Jtjoray]

Hey all. Im new to this site and just need some motivation. I started my diet January 6th sorta as a way to keep my friend happy. She wanted to start dieting and in the long run she quit and I just kept going. Ive tried many times in the past and have failed. This time I know I will reach my goal. I dont know what happend inside my head but I just know I cant quite untill I am happy and healthy. I would like to know when everyone started there diets and how much they have lost? What have you been doing? Diet and Exercise, or both, etc!?!? For me I cut my calories by portion control and eating lower fat foods. I also do at least 20 mins of cardio 3 days a week and another 2 days of weight lifting. I'd love to hear from you all. Thanks and good luck all!

[lumifan4ever]

well, i've lost 20 pounds over the course of about 4 1/2 months. I am just watching my calories. trying to eat about 1200 to 1600 a day. drinking lots of water. i go to the gym 3 times a week. i weight train 2 days and jump on the elliptical for about 20 minutes, and on fridays i take this cardio/toning class which last about an hour. i have also started on non-gym days, to go out in my yard 2 days a week and just get moving for 30 minutes. i jog around my front yard, i do jumpin jack, pre-tend jump rope and then walk around my yard and then do the set all over again. just trying to get my heart rate up and being able to keep going when i am in my cardio class. i call it practicing for my cardio class. (i've just started the cardio class. only been to two classes so far, but i LOVE it)!!!

my new motivation is the 2 peice bathing suit i just put on layaway. it is too small i'm sure, but my motivation is to be in it by the time i have to get it off....May 18th. so i have 2 months to get down to that size.

here's to hoping i can do it.

[dalai_lala]

(This got way longer than I intended... sorry, it's my new obsession!)

Let's see... I've lost 20 pounds since mid-December. The first ten pounds just peeled off without any effort from me after I left my job (endless snacks, birthday cakes, eating out, monthly picnics, and so on). I got stuck at 275 in January, then started here in February and have lost another 11 pounds in the past 8 weeks.

The "Lala Plan": I am working on my "issues" to get control of compulsive eating. Beyond that I have started with portion control and drinking approximately a gallon of water every day. I have limited any high-fat, high-sugar snacks to a single instance each week (I used to have dessert every night) and have replaced that with FF/SF treats or fruit. I try not to make any foods "off limits" just "limited". I keep a food diary, a daily weight graph, and an exercise log. I stretch and do light calisthenics every morning and alternate cardio (elliptical machine) and weights in the evenings during the week. I usually try to do something on Saturday, even if it's just walking around the block. So far that's it, other than an extra walk every once and a while. I have a lot of room to add or remove as necessary so that when I hit a plateau I can step it up a bit and get through it.

Other tricks I've learned here.... I now think of exercise as a job, or like brushing my teeth. I don't debate it or call in sick too much, I just... do it. Also, I don't get overwhelmed with thinking about "omg, 100 pounds!" I just think about one pound, the next pound, or maybe the next "big deal," like the 260 that I'm hoping to see soon. I do have a general goal of 1 pound a week, and hopefully 50 pounds by the end of the year, but I can't dwell on that too hard, or I feel lost! I also keep an online journal/blog sort of thing to remind myself of all the reasons I have to not give up, and coming here really helps keep me positive and feeling good.

Whew! Anyway, good work so far, and good luck for more! I hope you enjoy this place as much as I do...

-Lala

[hotnewspirits]

I started at 168 like 8 months ago and then got myself to 138! and then went back up to 153 and am trying to work my way down again. I gained weight because of stress and depression due to university and work and that a relationship I was in dissolved and it hit me very hard.

I've never been into diets in the sense that certain foods are off limits. I count calories and record everything I eat. I am conscious of my health though so I eat nutrient rich food and a splurge for me is eating something bad for me within my calorie range, not going way over it! I eat between 1200-1500 calories a day and if I go over I create a deficit for myself. I wish I could exercise at the gym but my hours in school and in work often tops 60 hours a week, not counting homework/study time, so I exercise in my apartment. I skip in my living room, do crunches on a mat in my bedroom, do lunges while I'm waiting for my water to boil etc etc. you've gotta fit the exercise in somewhere right?!

I hope to get down to 135 by June or so