hey everyone!! I'm new here and this, besides the intro post, is my first post. Just a month ago I weighed myself after three years of avoiding the scale. I haven't weighed myself since I was 18 and that was not by choice. Now, at 21, I finally got on a scale and cried instantly when I saw 211 lbs. I have never been over 200 lbs in my life. A month ago I told myself I was going to lose the weight once and for all but I kept on cheating at work (granted I do work in a grocery store and I see all kinds of bad food all the time lol). But now, starting last week, I am serious. I cut out all junk food, soda, cheese and white rice (which is so hard for me since I'm filippino and my family eats loads of white rice all day with every meal). I started working out 5 days a week, Monday through Friday, for 45 minutes mixing cardio with strength training and pilates. Since last month I have gone from 211 to 203. I know that a pound lost is a pound loss, but I realllllyyy wish I would have at least gone down to 200. I know I could have lost more if I didn't cheat last month (plus I did not work out for the first two weeks and i only started 4 weeks ago) but for some reason I keep getting discouraged when I see that I'm still in the 200's. I want to be at least a size 5 in jeans and right now I'm a 12/14. I think I'm just becoming to obsessive and seeing the scale fluctuate puts me down.

My boyfriend says he can "feel" the difference but I think he just says that to make me happy, but when I look in the mirror I see nothing. My stomach looks the same, my face looks the same; everything, the same. Maybe I'm just being too hard on myself but I'm just tired of being the fat one in the family. Every year during the holidays I have to hear from my family (when I say family it doesnt include my parents or siblings, they couldn't be any more supportive than they already are) about how much I weigh and how unhealthy it is and I'm just tired of it. I hate how instead of encouraging me to lose weight, they just cut me down and emotionally it starts to take a toll on me. My main question is, am I on the right track?? I mean I have lost 8 pounds but I wish it would go a little bit faster but like i keep telling myself it's probably due to not taking it too seriously in the first two weeks with no excercise.

So far this is what I've been doing:
- I eat every few hours, small meals
- I try to keep my calorie intake at 1600-1700 a day
- I excercise 5 days a week for 45 minutes, with the weekends off
- I try to drink about 5-6 full glasses of water everyday
- I eat some kind of fruit and leafy greens with my meals
- No more pan frying, deep frying, etc. Just baking and broiling mainly
- I only eat chicken and fish with no skin and all the fat trimmed off
- My snacks are usually fruit
- I try not to eat too late, and if i do eat late it's fruit

I think that's pretty much it, but I'm just feeling really down lately. I took "before" pictures last week and cried. I'm only going to take pictures monthly so I can compare the two. But I really do hope I'm on the right track because the scale seems to get me down.

Any tips/tricks/advice would be greatly appreciated and I mean that. I'm really glad beyond words I found this forum because is seems like a really great, positive, friendly place. It helps to know that I'm not alone in this journey.

I think you are on the right track. 2lbs a week is a good weight loss. You probably haven't noticed a difference yet because its just too soon. I really didn't start noticing a big change until i lost about 40lbs. try not to weigh yourself too much. once a week is good. your diet looks good. you might want to add a little more water. just keep up the good work, and dont let other people get you down. you are doing great

You didn't gain all this weight in a couple of weeks; you're not going to lose it all in a couple of weeks. 9 pounds is a great loss ... celebrate what you've accomplished here.

.

Eight pounds is an impressive loss for one month. That's good news! You're on the right track.

Aww thanks you guys. =) I really do need the support right now. I guess I am just being too hard on myself. And you are right PhotoChick, I definitely did not gain all this weight in two weeks and I surely will not lost it in two weeks. It's just hard being around my skinny family all the time and being singled out. My cousin, who is a year older than me, is maybe around 115-120 and swears she's fat and sometimes I just want to say, "trust me you don't know what fat is" but I refrain myself from saying it. Just constantly being around that makes me sad. My boyfriend is so supportive of me and his mom is trying to lose weight as well so it helps to have someone you can relate to. My brother is also eating a lot healthier and working out as well, so that's a bonus to have someone in the same house eating healthy and keeping each other on track.

I suppose I just have to get into the right mind frame in order to keep the scale going down, stop being so negative and overly critical about everything. It's actually a lot easier/painless than I thought it would be originally. The first couple of weeks were rough but since getting into the swing of things it doesn't seem like such a chore anymore. Since eating healthier and working out regularly I do have more energy and feel happier altogether.

You shouldn't lose more than 2lbs a week, more than that is unhealthily fast (with the exception of the morbidly obese, which you are not).

I used to work at a grocery store, with all its goodies. Here's what I did: I didn't bring my money. Make sure you have enough gas in your car (or buy a gift card for a local gas station, so you can ONLY buy gas!) and leave your credit cards, debit cards, and cash at home. Bring a healthy lunch. Make sure you have enough healthy snacks packed too, because it's very important when you're losing weight to not become too hungry. I lost a lot of weight using this method. Unfortunately, my situation has changed and I have new challenges to weight loss. But I get that part, at least. You can't buy goodies if you don't bring your money!

And just think, if you continue to lose 2lbs a week, in just 20 weeks you'll have lost 40lbs! Slow weight loss is more likely to keep it off. Have patience, and in the end it'll pay off

Welcome and good luck! It takes time to actually see the loss.Remember you are losing all over your body. Tape your measurements, that will show your loss that you can't yet see.

I like to think in terms of where I will be a year from now. That year will pass whether I am working on improving my weight/health or not.

Your plan looks great and your results are terrific! You don't want to lose weight any faster. Just think where you will be a year from now if you keep on your plan -- and more importantly, get right back on it if you do go off.

That is what I try to focus on as well. Many years I have thought "well, I hope I can get this wait off", but another year goes by with me having not made plans to succeed. I decided 3 weeks ago that the time had come and now I have the plan in place. This time next year, if I stick with the plan, I will be at my goal weight and that keeps me going.

Hang in there Shaunabear! You are doing great!

I think you are doing a great job personally. We are always our worst critics and we can warp that mirror at times and mess with our heads. Just keep trucking along and in a few more weeks you and everyone else will see what is happening!

Thanks so much everyone I really appreciate everything. You're right Joybells, I really do try and keep the long term goal in mind rather than on a day to day basis. I'm think I'm just being way too hard on myself. I keep thinking Las Vegas in July and bikinis. LOL. Which is another reason why I need to whip myself into shape. I'm going with my friends, who are all skinny, and want to be able to join them in the fun. LOL. It's another way of motivating myself. I keep telling myself Vegas..bikinis...shorts. LOL. But I really appreciate the kind words and motivation as well.

It sounds like you are on the right track for sure. I think that we all get a little discouraged at times. The hardest part for me is knowing it's going to take awhile. But I keep telling myself that I didn't gain this weight overnight and I'm certainly not going to lose it overnight. 2 lbs. a week is healthy and you will start seeing and feeling those results soon! Keep up the good work, sweetie!