I am 219 on the real scale at the gym so I am pretty happy about that! A long way to go but you have to start somewhere!!

I am aiming for 208 for May 9th - that is my birthday - so along with my fitting into my target outfit and having an awesome night out, I am also going to get my measurements done, take new pictures and get a few sessions with a trainer as my reward. The way I figure it, with the money that I am saving by eating properly I can spend on rewarding myself!!!

The picture goes with me everywhere - and I look at it often. I can't wait to have something to compare to for even more motivation!!!

Good luck STACIE! You can do this! We are all here to help!

i'm in the boat as you i also lost 60 lbs about 11 years ago, then gained it back in the last 3.... so here we go again, you would think i would have learned from the first time but no, i let myself go again..... it's a yucky feeling, but eating better and exercising has made me feel much better about myself, as i assume it is doing for you too.... what method are u using to lose weight? calorie counting? a certain diet? i wish you the best of luck and that top you have picked out for your birthday is adorable :)

My Motivation is a Pic of Me at 193 pounds!!!
 

A little over a year ago - I got from 250 to 193 - I am 193 in this picture - Dec 2007 - I wanted to show what 193 can look like - I had a ton of muscle from weight lifting and no one believed me I weighed this - and I remember looking at this very proudly but also wanting to get lower (this was my fat picture OMG)

Now I'm motivated by my own picture!! And I can't wait.

The next photo is me right now at 221 - with no muscle but I am going to kick that first pictures butt all over!!:dizzy:

Thanks Savora! This site and people like you bring me much motivation. I tried WW briefly but I didn't like it - it wasn't for me. When I lost all that weight before I worked with a trainer and nutritionist. The plan is meant for body builders. I found that it worked really well for me. Right now I am at 1700 calories - 1000 protein and 700 carbs. My carbs are in the form of starchy carbs (brown rice, potaotes) and veggies. A bit of fruit and limit of bread - no pasta or anything 'white'. Protein I get from chicken, fish, cottage cheese, nuts and seeds. I also drink protein shakes and I love them because when you blend them with skim or soy milk and ice cubes it's like having a milk shake. I guess I'm not really trying to diet - just find a way that I can change my lifestyle. I also eliminated diet pop from my diet. I found that this always increased my cravings. Since it's been gone, my skin is better and I feel less bloated! Let's keep in touch and help each other get back to where we were and then even better than that!!!

Checking in with myself again...I just got done a conference where food and drinks were plentiful and I engaged in them a lot more than I should have. I feel rather gross today...after eating clean and working out for a few weeks, my body is quite angry at me. Thankfully, I have nothing like that coming up for awhile.

I have 13 days until my birthday...I tried on my pants and they are pretty tight still...but I'm going to try really hard to get into them! I have noticed some weight loss already in my tummy and face...so I am hoping with a bit more dedication I will see more and soon.

Well I'm still yielding!! But I feel much more determined now. I have to face the fact that I won't fit into my target outfit for my birthday :( So I have a new goal....my friend's wedding is on June 11th and I am going to wear a dress, so I have lots of work to do and that means staying away from :corn:

Determined....wanting it really bad!

thanks for being my inspiration today. when i woke up this morning i hopped on my facebook account to check out some pictures from my best friend's bridal shower.... OH LORDY. there was this ginormous chick in a blue shirt at the table... a total rear end picture. OH WAIT. that was me. eeewwwwww! i almost threw up. right next to me in the picture was another friend whom i THOUGHT was about the same size as me.... not quite. more like HALF the size (not that i need to compare myself... but it was hard not to). its hard to know what you look like until you see pictures, ya know? either i imagine myself waaay bigger or i convince myself that i'm much smaller. the reality hurts. BUT after i saw the picture i got my butt up and went for a half hour power walk. :) and now, after hearing that you had (sort of) the same experience with a picture, i feel a little better knowing i'm not alone on this type of shocker!!!!! hang in there... i'm right there with you!!!!:hug:

Staccie, I love your attitude. It's the attitude that I want! I like how you know you aren't going to make your goal but you aren't going to let it defeat you, you just readjusted your goal. With that attitude, I know you are going to get to your goal. As anniemalish said, you are inspirational!

I took pictures when i first started this and I couldn't believe it. I'd just been eating myself sick for weeks in a row and my stomach was out to there and my butt too and I just wanted to throw up and die.
I can't say I'm much better today, but that's just because I fell off the wagon a couple of weeks ago and got dragged along for a little while before I climbed back on. But I'm on my way down again. Good luck to us all. :)

plus you're gorgeous anyway so don't be discouraged

Annie - sorry I am just seeing your post now. It worked for a bit...although I need constant reminders! Normally on facebook I post only head shots...lol. Well after last weekend at a conference, I posted the more than head shots. I thought it's silly that people don't know I am fat when I only post a head pic. I am hopefully going to try really hard to remember how I felt when I took that picture and let it guide me into making good decisions. It's on my phone, at my computer at work and in my room. I don't care who sees it!

Let me know how it goes!

Munchievictim....love your name btw! Thanks for your comments...I so love this site! I let it all 'hang out' for my pictures too, no sense sucking it in - I can't do that all day long. Well SPANX helps a bit. But really, I hate wearing them...they feel fine and everything but I would just like to wear a pair of dress pants like normal. But they do cover the lumps and bumps!! When I fell off the wagon a week ago after a conference and then again after this weekend I felt really defeated. But I know what triggers this. And I think that is half the battle. I work in a very social environment and for some odd reason have a social calendar that I have not had in years. Although this is better than staying home and curl up in bed with a bag of chips and an 80's movie, it also links to other problems...drinking wine, beer, snacking on food, maybe getting hungover and wanting a trip to McDonalds or Pancake house. For two weekends this has happened, so I work hard all week and completely throw it away on the weekend and sometimes those weekends go on for weeks! So I know that I can't even have one until I can learn to control myself better. I know the teasing and looks I will get when I say, oh I will have water for my three social events this week - the worst kind - another conference, stagette and my birthday....I CAN DO IT :cheer: I will just bring my fatso picture up on my blackberry and if that doesn't do it, well then nothing will!

About my next goal for my friends wedding which is a little over a month away, I know I won't look super skinny, but at least more toned. I took a very part time job at the Bay here so I could be motivated by clothes and pretty figures. And then buy them...lol.


Munchie...munch on some good old carrots :) I know, easier said than done.
You ladies rock!!!!

Ummm...well I still have not got on the wagon...my body feels just horrible. Tomorrow is my birthday and although it's really just another day, it's going to be my day to MAKE this change and DO IT. I am so tired of feeling like this. Tonight was a good friend's stagette, I felt so bloated and tired when I was getting ready and so unattractive around all my fit friends. My confidence has taken a HUGE BEATING. I'm so tired of feeling like this :sad:

I have to just realize that I can't allow myself to eat or drink things that trigger my trips off the wagon. ANY, AT ALL. When I learn to control and balance this, then I can incorporate it back into my life if I feel I need to.

It takes 21 days to change a habit - maybe that is bullpoop but it's my 21 days - so starting today (May 9th) until May 30th - I stay away from all my trigger things. These include: ANY SODA's - diet or regular, anything with chocolate on it, anything that is crispy with salt on it, NO alcohol of any kind, CUPCAKES and POPCORN. 21 days...21 days...And after the 21 days I won't treat myself with food, but perhaps a nice weekend trip :) My guess and experience tells me after 21 days I won't event want those things!

I can do it...I can do it...

I hope you had a happy birthday! :) You are a lovely woman. I like your idea of keeping a before pic on your phone. I have a pic on my phone that I was going to delete b/c I look fat, but now I will keep it. Thanks for the idea.