I wanted to start a thread of a group of people who'd like to check in and support each other in their weight loss efforts, the ups and downs. Just a place to have to chat. I know from experience how tough it can be sometimes.

Good morning Marge,

I post in lots of places on this site. I have been posting alot on Chicks on Motorcycles. I think that its a great idea to have a place like this for support. I have been really committed to my program for 2 weeks now, but this week I can't seem to get myself going. I did good with the weekend, but Sunday and Monday I was awful! It seems that I will do very good for 2-3 weeks and then I quit, so I am trying to stay connected to others so that I keep with it. I am trying to set some goals and challenges. Anyhow, I think that this was a great idea. I hope that you are doing well with your plan!

hey there!!! I am now subscribed to this thread . I am looking very forward to gettting involved here, and having the support of people who are in my same situation. I am 37, have been married going on 7 years, to a man I met online in 98 when I lived in OHIO. After 2 months, he flew me here to meet him, and here is where I have stayed ( Upstate NY close to Saratoga) I have always had to battle with weight issues. In HS I was somewhat athletic, and actually ran every day. Then I stopped running and gained a LOT of weight. when I was 22, my house caught fire and I had to jump off the roof and in the process, broke my back on impact, and had to lose over 85 pounds, try doing that when you are basically an invalid. Then a couple of years later, I starting gaining again.. Before I met my hubby, I weighed 220 pounds, I am 5'10 inches tall. After we moved in together, he started gaining too, and after we got married, I really starting to gain. I am now at 298. I live in a development that has a .6 mi loop, and when I first came here, I walked 5 times around every day. Then stopped. Then, last Summer, I was back up to 4 times around every day, then I stopped. Well, I will not be stopping ever again. I started yesterday, can only do one, but next week, will do two, the week after 3, and so on. it is no longer a choice, it is something I HAVE TO stick to, because my health is at risk. I have been havin miscarriages, and they are all due to my excess weight. I need to lose at least half before they will even allow me to pursue any sort of fertility help . But, I also want to live til I am old...and at this rate, I won't. So, on top of walking, I am also riding my recumbant bike...I am doing 4 miles a day right now, but plan to start doing the programs next week. I am trying to only eat when I am hungry, and trying to watch my caloric intake. So far this is not too hard. Other than that, this is a life change that I need to do for the rest of my life!! Sorry if I rambled!! Have a great day! Diana

Hi, Andrea. Nice to see you here. I can totally relate to the fits and starts. I know that that's how I got started with the eating plan and my exercise plan. I had to get into a routine I felt comfortable following, and it took me some time. It helps me to be connected with other people working on the same goals too.

Something that's helped me is to pick small goals, not just amounts of weight, but habits, that I want to change or improve. This week I'm only going to weigh myself *one* time I get so worked up when I start jumping on the scale several times a week, it's counterproductive for me.

This Friday I'm going over to the Y to check out the gym. We emailed them and it fits our budget. I'm a little nervous because I've never been in a gym before. Kind of excited too.

Forget weight loss...let's talk about how tough it is to get your work done in the office when you have 2 fire drills in one day, less than an hour apart! AAGH! Good thing I don't actually have any work to do anyway But dammit, it's cold outside--couldn't they have waited for Spring to arrive?! But seriously, this is a great idea. No "qualifications"...just a bunch of people who need to lose weight and want to babble about nothing in particular (in addition to weight loss ideas, of course).

Marge - I love the gym, and I bet you will too... first you have to get over that feeling of "uh, I don't belong here, I'm not fit". Not all gym's are like that, but I remember going to the gym and thinking that I needed to get in shape just to GO there! But once I was over that, I always had a great time

I did totally good yesterday, like we are talking 100% perfectly on plan, more like 150% on plan. Nothign on my scale today... now normally when I'm POP I see a little difference on my scale.. I'm into instant gratification. heh. Sorry for the short post, but I am running late for an appointment.. I will bbl!

-Aimee

Hi, Diana! Wow, how awful! You obviously have lots of strength, inner and outer, to do that. Sorry you had to go through it in the first place.



I think this happens to a lot of couples. It did with my sister, and with a friend of mine. (I'm 5' 9", btw.)



I know for me exercise wise starting slowly and sticking with it, then increasing my amount slowly really helped. I think if I'd started doing a whole bunch I would have gotten discouraged and quit. Even the way I did it I'd get little setbacks because I'd get too zealous and hurt something or have muscle cramps and have to lay off. I like walking. Looking forward to spring!





the health side of the issue is a HUGE part of it for me. I want to be active and healthy. I think it's finally sunk in that I need to make this a life change too, that it's not a "diet" that I can follow until I lose X pounds then have a food for all again. Which I see as an incredibly positive thing. Loved hearing from you.

Hi, Jill, hi, Aimee, great to see you two here!

*2* firedrills?? I used to work on the 5th floor of a building and we'd always be having drills where we'd have to walk down, walk back up again, it seemed like every few weeks. We got to be very prepared for emergencies at that place! Never had that anywhere else, and I've worked at lots of places. Hmmmm.

Yeah, I'm psyched about the gym. I'm ordering some sweats today. I don't have any and the gym won't let anybody wear street clothes. You're right, I went threw my phase of I have to be in shape *before* I go, then I realized I need to just go. Congrats on staying on plan, I love those days. Usually happens most when I just relax and follow my routine. Sometimes my good weeks don't show up until the following week on the scale -- that's good if I had a bad week and I don't want to see any backward progress, but when I'm really good, dammit, I want to see the numbers go down now.

Hey, y'all - I think this group's a great idea!

I love going to the YMCA and think it's the best thing Howie and I ever did (I'm married to Howie6267 here at 3FC for anyone who doesn't know). All we do is swim right now, but eventually I hope my knee is better and I can use the weight machines, treadmill and recumbant bike.

I've been heavy all my life, never an athletic person. In gradeschool I did anything I could to get out of participation in PE and when I got into high school I forged a lot of notes excusing myself from PE. I read, wrote, and did artwork - those were my things. I'm still not "athletic" but I am commited to being more fit. This is something I am doing for me, not for a PE instructor or anyone else. It's taken me 37 years to come to the realization that, yes, I am worth it.

We all know that all the pep talks in the world will fall on deaf ears if we don't want to listen. But let's DO this. Each of us is worth the effort!

I have been heavy my whole life, too (since at least age 6). The difference for me is that I WAS active! I played softball every spring from ages 6-13, then played again from 16-18, and took tap dane lessons year-round from ages 5-10. I was even MVP on my junior league softball team twice (when I was 12 and 13 years old) When it came to high school gym, I actually went to gym more than I needed to...I started going to other people's gym classes during my study halls. I'm quite competitive, so I even went to an all-boys' gym class a few times. I loved the feeling of knowing that everyone looked as me as a fat girl, so clearly, I couldn't do anything when it came to sports...then WHAM! bat a ball out to left field or catch a ball in the endzone or sink a 3-point shot...and yet I have always been fat. Not just heavy with lots of muscle, but actually fat with flab and flaps and rolls

I had my thyroid tested twice when I was in high school. I was so active (in addition to extra gym classes, I did drama, madrigals, choir, national honor society, had a part-time job, yadda yadda yadda), so I don't know why it was so difficult for me to lose weight. Then I went to college where the kegs rolled in and "going out" either meant drinking at a party or hanging out at the diner (greasy diner food = not-so-healthy ). I have been told I should have my thyroid tested again and to make sure they do the full thyroid test (apparently, you can have a normal result on the typical thyroid test and still have problems with it that will show up on a more thorough test), but I have a hard time believing that my thyroid could be to blame after all this time and it hasn't been caught yet. So, back to the old diet and exercise routine...

hey all...we all sound like we have alot in common, which is great...Just finished my bike..WHEW, lol...I would join the Y here, but I live in Snotville, and to be honest, the Y is very expensive...I was told it is 95 bucks a month per person...I think that sounds very steep, maybe I will look into it myself. I am thinking of looking into CURVES too...I used to belong to Bally's back in OH and I LOVED IT...we have one here, but not in an area my husband wants me to go to. I had a Plat membership there and it was 19 dollars a month, hmm, maybe that's why I think our Y is so expensive, but, again, will have to look into the cost myself to make sure. Well, am off. Got errands to run b4 hubby gets home, Oh, in case any of you want to look at my work, I am a Prim crafter, and just started a Web site, I have a lot more to add to it, but have a lot of EAster stuff there now: www.primitivepunkinpatch.com...have a great day!

Hello all, great idea DragonWoman,we all look like we're on the same page.
I have always been on the large-ish size too, one of the fattest kids in class etc. I always tried very hard to be active, but I had quite bad asthma, and no one ever taught me to work with it not against it.

I lost a lot of weight about nine years ago, but gained it following a miscarriage (it was very traumatic and I won't go into it but let's just say hubby was less than thrilled about pregnancy and talked out loud about how good it would be if I lost the baby). The relationship broke down and I moved out. A few years later, with my new man, I miscarried again, following fertility treatment. Well, that was it, I just ate and ate and lost total interest in myself and everything.

I pulled my life back together and moved from Australia to England, and have settled with yet another man, Colin!!! We met on the internet and have been together four years now. No more making babies for me, I am learning to live childfree.

My weight has always been a side issue, always been to much going on in my life to give it a lot of thought!!!! Now both my mum and dad, neither of them enormous (unlike my sweet self LOL) have type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and osteoporosis. I have got to do this and it has to be now.

Dragonwoman, the gym will make such a difference to you, I go three times a week at work. I have just joined a local one as well (I get rights to the pool too - which is brilliant as I do that three times a week as well) My local gym looks brilliant went and signed up today, lots of very normal people in there, all sizes and shapes.

I'm looking forward to getting to know you all better

Kylie

I don't know that I have all that much in common with the weight aspect... I always thought I was overweight, but never really was. I didn't try my first diet until I was 21, and then it was something insane, like 1200 calories a day, with 3-4 hours of exercise a day. I dabbled in a few eating disorders, but finally kicked that when I was 24. The reason I thought I was overweight was because we lived with another family (I grew up with them), and both girls were like a size 1. I remember crying because I couldn't get into a size 28 jean... which is impossible if you have hips like I do. But I always shopped for t-shirts in kids stores.. silly silly me. I starting "packing" on the weight in my first year of university, I blame it on long hours studying, and the introduction of my first long term boyfriend. I did the partying thing like you Jill, but I managed to LOSE weight from that the year before I started Uni. My bf introduced me to the world of driving everywhere, and fast food (I hadn't been to Burger King, or Wendy's before him), he also doesn't share my passion for working out (I was even in University to get a degree in Health and Fitness). But I still accept reponsibility for not trying to get healthy or active dispite him. So whats next for me? Well, I'm trying to cut sugar and wheat out of my diet, and while I'm not really trying to get active, I do walk when I get the chance. That being said, I live on a huge mountain, and do anything I can to avoid walking up it. And hmmm... so I had Wendy's for lunch (1 jr bacon cheese burger, small fries and a coke), sounds like sugar and wheat to me! Alright, I'm babbling now.

Diana - 95 dollars is expensive, unless they are doing the exercise for you Curves is a great idea.. a lot of people are successful with it. I find it pricey at 40 dollars a month with a 1 year commitment.

Jill - where do you carry your weight? And I have heard that about the thyroid tests, that they aren't very accurate unless you have an extreme case. Funny story.. so I was at work and we were doing a promo where we gave out Chocolate (trying to keep our customer base I guess?? ), and this woman told me that she doesn't like chocolate (she was rude too!), so I turned away and said to a co-worker, "maybe not, but she definitely likes bread!". Yes, that was mean of me.. but you don't get a big stomach from not eating badly!

So I'm wondering, are we all semi tall? Because I'm 5'8", Gardenwife is 5'9", as is Marge, and Diana is 5'10". Interesting...

-Aimee

Diana, ask the YMCA for a scholarship application. I know they offer financial assistance. They don't give anyone a freebie because they feel people take more ownership if they have to pay part of the membership dues. They're a great organization, with lots of folks from fit to flabby. It's a great place to get support. When I miss, the folks in my arthritis water class always ask Howie about me and see if I'm okay, and when I come back they say they missed me. It's nice to be missed!

Hi again ladies,

I agree about having to feel in shape to work out at our little gym in town. All the snotties are there...lol. We do have a Curves and another place like curves but with treadmills, ellipticals, etc. I am seriously considering joining in of those. My problem is financially. The snotty gym here is only $75 for a year membership (b/c I'm a school employee), and Curves I have heard is very pricey, and the other place is about $30 a month. So, even though I dont care to go to the "snotty gym" I may have to because I'm a tightwad. In the meantime I have been jogging at home (literally) our house is long, wide, and open so I jog inside for 25 mins to my favorite music. I work up a sweat and my heart rate does increase...so I guess it's good. Also, my husband and I try to go walking when he gets off work (for 30 mins).

I, too, have been heavy all my life. Two years ago I went from 315 to 190 and once I got married, it's been creeping back up. That's what scares me. I gain lose really quick, but I can also gain really quick. I've heard that yo-yoing is the worst. When I want to skip a workout or eat something "bad" I try to think of how much better I will feel this summer...and it's coming QUICK. Plus I also look at my skinnier shorts from 2 years ago and remember how loose they were then and I can't get them past my belly now. Ugghh. I hope by next summer to be in those shorts!

I think that by all of us communicating with each other, posting as much as we can will help for accountability and besides it's great to make new friends!