Weight Loss Motivation

I know I started this thread and then went MIA but I'm glad to see it's still active. I just joined Weight Watchers and was on the message boards over there but none of the boards that sounded like they would apply to me were very active at all.

Has anyone ever done Weight Watchers? I used it after college to lose the "Freshman 15" weight which I've managed to gain back....about four times since then.

I'm hoping that between paying for the program and having more structure to follow I can actually stick to this one. Hopefully I'm not deluding myself.

I'll be better about checking in here too, I promise!

Ugh. Seriously weight-obsessed right now.

I try to eat no more than 1,500 calories a day, though I'd supposedly have to eat closer to 1,000 to lose a pound per week based on my current weight. Sorry, but that's not happening.

I have gained 2-3 lbs in the past month despite exercising regularly, which is really discouraging. Being extremely constipated doesn't help with scale weight I'm sure, but this weight doesn't seem to be a normal fluctuation since it's been the same all month. Then the doctor's scale read 4 lbs heavier than my scale, which has me paranoid as shit.

I weighed 117 before starting/withdrawing from benzos. Now my appetite and metabolism are beyond jacked 10 months after quitting. I hover around 129-132 now :headbrick

WE does not work on pre menopausal women. I lost 8 pounds the first three weeks and gained most back over the next 4 mos.

Though it was just me but two of my marathon training group had the same results.

In frustration I went to a bariatric specialist. She put me on phentermine. She said I was an ideal candidate since I work out and eat right. And it is working. I found out that I don't lose when I go over 1200 calories even with workouts. And even worse news...all bloodwork came back normal. I dread going off because I hear the hunger comes back with a vengeance.

I am at about 3.5 weeks in: 8 pounds down. Four inches gone. Face and upper bod much thinner looking. And in marathon training we had to do a timed mile run and I beat my best time by 20 seconds.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From a bottle cap message on a Magic Hat #9 beer: Condoms Prevent Minivans
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I want to pick up a bus full of unruly kids and feed them gummi bears and crack, then turn them loose in Hobby Lobby to ransack the place. They will all be wearing T shirts that say "You Could Have Prevented This."

I've moved back in with my parents after working at an internship over the summer. I am hoping to get a jumpstart on getting a healthy routine down before I return to the responsibliities of college. I'm not so much looking to lose weight as I am to lose fat and gain muscle, but if I could get under 165, that would be awesome, too. I was 172 in the middle of the day a few days ago. I am not terribly overweight- maybe a bit soft and squishy, but I am looking to create healthy habits that I can keep for my whole life and also because I like how I look when I am more in-shape and eating well. I've lost several inches around my waist since I started making an effort to be healthy in March, and I also feel more alert.

I'm starting up my exercise schedule again today. Hopefully it won't be put off too much by the inevitable wisdom teeth removal that is coming up this year. I've heard that you are supposed to take it somewhat easy for a week or so while you recover.

OK, well my Intuitive Eating experiment was a big bust. I've ended up gaining more weight than I bargained for, and I'm not pleased. I still think the principles can help people learn to have a more normal relationship with food, and I think it's overall a good and healthy place to end up, but what I don't appreciate is that it ignores the fact that people with obesity generally got there because their intuition got broken somewhere along the way.

I got pissed off because I had to resort to purchasing some little button extenders because my pants were all too tight and I need to be able to wear them to work this Winter. I was like, "Something isn't working," and decided to re-evaluate what I was doing. I decided that I can integrate the positive and healthy things I learned from Intuitive Eating (basically, learning to relax more with food and not have a lot of anxiety about eating and body image, along with mindful eating), and integrate it with portion control and tracking. I also realized I'd gotten a bit slack in my exercise routine and could afford to kick it up a notch.

That's why 2 weeks ago I began to measure my portions and keep a food journal (just writing down anything I eat or drink that has calories in it), with the rule that if I was still genuinely hungry I could eat a little more, slowly, until I felt satiated. I applied some principles of Intuitive Eating as well. Eating slowly, taking a little break mid-meal to allow my brain to catch up to my stomach, not eating while distracted (like watching TV or browsing online, reading, etc.), and taking inventory of how "valuable" to my overall feeling of well-being the food I was choosing was going to be. I didn't count calories, but I did measure portions with measuring cups and my kitchen scale based on USDA portion size recommendations. I also just stuck to mostly whole, non-processed foods. With more processed foods I did reference the calorie count to help me make a decision about what portion I would give myself. I found that I was able to feel satisfied and not hungry doing this, and it resulted in me eating substantially less than I was previously, even when I was really gung-ho, mindfully eating without measuring.

I amped up my fitness program by adding more exercise in, and I purchased a pedometer (not a cheap, pendulum style one, but one that's fairly accurate where you can't "cheat" by jiggling it around - it mostly only counts actual steps) with the goal of getting to 10,000 steps daily if possible, and I use Fitbit to track my steps and other fitness activities. I have found that having the pedometer helps me. I find myself often getting off the bus farther away from work or home, a distance far enough that I get more walking in and up my step count, but close enough as to not make me late to work.

I have lost 2 lbs in the last 2 weeks since changing my habits to include tracking what I eat and measuring portions, along with a more aggressive exercise program. I don't really have a specific goal weight in mind, but I am going to keep doing this. It works better for me. I do one day hope to be an Intuitive Eater, without the aid of scales and cups, but I realize that somewhere along the way my intuition got broken and I have to "re-set" in order to get it back. I know some people can learn how to "eyeball" the right portion for them when they choose something to eat, but I realize I'm still a long way off from that. I still think Intuitive Eating has a lot of value to it, especially for people who suffer from eating disorders, and I will apply the things that work for me and not apply the things that don't (like not measuring portions). I think for special occasions I'll just try to eyeball portions since it would look weird that I'm bringing measuring cups with me to a party. I read that you can use your palm, fist, and thumb to kind of eyeball certain things. One big positive of IE I've taken away is that I can attend a gathering and not be really anxious about the snack table, knowing that I have permission to eat the things I want. I have found that now I focus more on the gathering and the people around than pigging out and then worrying about how I'm going to "make up for it later."

That being said, I've learned IE is not really something for weight control or loss, but more to help people who have a bad relationship with food and body image (and thinking of weight and food as being something tied to your moral character or worth as a person). I came away feeling empowered because of the book's great ability to help with those issues. But I do still want and need to lose some weight for medical reasons. Being as heavy as I am is no fun from a mobility standpoint. I can still get around fairly easily because I'm still young, but I do get a fair amount of pain in my joints, and I have some wonky bloodsugar issues which I can tell kind of resembles pre-diabetes. I want to have a decent quality of life and be able to get around without too much pain. I know when I get older I'll have aches and pains anyway, but I want to enjoy the rest of my youth without too much pain.

Intuitive eating seems good on the surface. But unless you have good genes, I don't think it really works for getting anyone thin or keeping them thin. I believe it can keep you at a "natural" weight. But your body's natural weight might be higher than what you want it to be due to genetics. Genes are king with a lot of things and in this culture we are taught that we rule everything about our lives when we don't. You can force brown hair blonde only until the color grows out. So much about our appearance is inherited.

That being said, my mother led me to believe that I have fat genes inherited from my father. That is not true. Her dumb ass just fed me too much. When I began eating properly, my weight is about 130 which is a nice size IMHO. I know people who eat less than me who are fat. I like starches as well and we all know how that blows you up. But, I want to be even thinner so I diet (yes, I have issues).

I am rambling. And when I write "you", I am speaking in the general "you"...not speaking to a specific person.

``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
"I have found little that is 'good' about human beings on the whole. In my experience most of them are trash, no matter whether they publicly subscribe to this or that ethical doctrine or to none at all."
~Sigmund Freud

Yeah, the lowest weight I've been able to get down to as an adult with a disciplined exercise routine and fairly clean eating habits with portion control is around 150. While still technically "chubby," I liked how I looked at that weight. There aren't that many actually obese people in my famblee, but the women on both sides are mostly "apple shaped" and on the low end of overweight or high end of average. I think the ones who do maintain at a lower end of the spectrum are pretty mindful about how they eat and they have to work out regularly. I don't mind doing the healthy lifestyle thing to maintain a healthier weight for myself. I just don't want to get all weird and obsessive over it to the point where it hinders my enjoyment of life as it has in the past.

We have some scaffolding around from when we were building the chimney, and I set up the frame of the first level. The bars are about eye level to me, so pretty much the perfect height to practice chin ups using minimal assistance.
I could hang for a count of five when I set it up, and then my arms would give out, but I went and hanged from it every day for a while until it crossed my mind to try chinning myself a bit higher and it worked! So now I've been doing these little quarter chin ups for a while, trying to dip a bit further now and then, extending ever so slowly to a half chin up.
Doing chin ups is one thing I really miss about being skinny when I was younger and pretty much not eating. I can't not eat anymore without feeling like absolute shit, and I thought I would never be able to do a chin up again since I am about 40lbs heavier than I was when I could do them last.
But now I almost can! So happy to rip up my arm muscles! More muscle burns more calories!

I lost 10 lbs!

I have NO idea how this happened!

I keep a fairly regular schedule, eat fairly healthy (lately too much junk tho, but have not really gone overboard nor been really trying to diet - was backslidin') - it really makes no sense.

In fact - these strange gains and losses are quite maddening. I *have* been trying to exercise more, and be more active - perhaps that did it. It does give me incentive to re commit myself to healthy eating and more exercise. And because the weather has cooled off I can cook more.

Tonight I'm having beer and pizza though I felt I deserved a little reward.

FWIW - might help others - I cut WAY down on Diet Pop and subbed in more fruit juice and water. Maybe it is true what they say about Diet Pops screwing with your insulin or whatever those issues are.

Oh and oddly enough too - I thought I had *gained weight* because my chest got bigger. The boobs themselves I'd guess. I thought at first I had *lost* in that area because the bra I wear most (if I wear one at all) was too loose. But - it's just stretched out / old. Tried on another and it was *too tight* and the cups are too small too! This too is older so it's not a matter of some size change by stores - at one point the thing fit me.

I'm NOT happy about THIS! AT ALL! I do not want big boobs!!! See what happens just when you make peace with them? And are even glad so you can do more physical things? NOW they get bigger? WHY??? I could've used this when I was younger and *camethisclose* to getting implants. GAH. DO NOT WANT! Oh and because of this - I'm guessing I'm into 34 or 36 C range now - probably I *should* wear a bra all the time so they don't start to sag. eyes2
Oh and it looks like I'll have to shop for some new ones too. Which is about the last thing I want to do.

I seriously lapsed in my weight loss journey after being injured in a car accident at the end of July, but I'm slowly getting myself back on track and will officially restart Oct. 1. That gives me 12 months + 10 days to lose at least 100lbs. before the big 3-0. I don't want to enter my 30s so overweight because it's going to get harder and harder to lose it.

------------------------------------------------------------
"Why children take so long to grow? They eat and drink like pig and give nothing back. Must find way to accelerate process..."
- Dr. Yi Suchong, Bioshock

"Society does not need more children; but it does need more loved children. Quite literally, we cannot afford unloved children - but we pay heavily for them every day. There should not be the slightest communal concern when a woman elects to destroy the life of her thousandth-of-an-ounce embryo. But all society should rise up in alarm when it hears that a baby that is not wanted is about to be born."
- Garrett Hardin

"I feel like there's a message involved here somehow, but then I couldn't stop laughing at all the plotholes, like the part when North Korea has food."
- Youtube commentor referring to a North Korean cartoon.

"Reality is a bitch when it slowly crawls out of your vagina and shits in your lap."
- Reddit comment

"Bitch wants a baby, so we're gonna fuck now. #bareback"
- Cambion

Oh whatever. Abortion doctors are crimestoppers."
- Miss Hannigan

As of today I'm 10 lbs down, from 205 lbs to 195, all from sensible eating/portion control and exercising. I have found this past week to be a little challenging and I didn't lose any, but at least I didn't gain back. Working on breaking through the plateau by being extra mindful of what and how much I eat. I do track my food which helps me make better decisions, when I can see it all physically written down. I'm sick right now with some kind of upper respiratory bug so I'm not doing any hardcore workouts until I get well, but I have learned that you can't out-exercise a bad diet in any case, and will be sticking to my resolve as far as my eating goes, and I can handle a little bit of exercise while sick - I just try not to over-do it so my body can fight the virus.

Bumping this for those of us who made a New Years' resolution to shape up. Such as myself. Who has the rest of the day off work and is supposed to be cleaning (exercise). And what am I doing? Does this look like cleaning?

This may be the fastest back sliding in the history of mankind. Ha.

I am determined to get back to work on myself, I think I gained a few pounds.

And last night - I was talking on the phone, walked into my living room to put the phone on it's charger, my friend kept rambling on so I decided to sit down on a foot stool.

And broke it.

OOF.

I've gained about five pounds since October. I stopped doing my running routine (my sleep schedule got all messed up for a while) and now have to start C25K all over again. I'm noticing that I'm getting doughy around my gut and I feel guilty...I was supposed to have run a 5K by now. My goal is to start back today on week one. Ugh, I just need some motivation and a kick in the pants.

I am feeling the holidays, just a bit, too. But now with the new year comes a new remodel project on the house, so I am pretty sure I can work it back off again in no time.

There is a group of coworkers here on some kind of prepackaged weight loss plan. Two of them started together and have been gradually selling it to the other middle aged office ladies.
I haven't asked about it because I am on a special diet-for-life that excludes so many things I could never do processed food.
But what I have overheard just kind of horrifies me because of what I know about dieting, and what I need to avoid for myself.

It sounds like there is a lot of soy in this plan, which I am supposed to avoid for my thyroid.
Everyone who is sticking with it has lost enormous amounts of weight, 40, 60lbs and more.
Very dramatically over only a few months.
That's the part that horrifies me, my coworker was telling someone else how disappointed she was to only lose 4 lbs the first week. That's just not really a safe rate to lose fat while conserving muscle!
I mean, I'm glad they are working on themselves, but this is not a method they can maintain for long term health.
I have heard that start up costs $350-400, and then the monthly plan is $250-350 or so. I guess that's reasonable to a point... But I can eat very healthfully for the same or less...

My coworker is flaunting her "new body", she came to ask me something and then after saying thank you, she literally struck a pose and then pranced off back to her cube.
Here is where I am obliviously, cluelessly, socially retarded! I thought, "OMG, why is she flirting with me???"
But when I told my husband about it later he said she was just fishing for compliments. I would never be so rude as to comment on others' bodies, but the women here do it all the time! One in particular keeps asking if I've lost weight, which I haven't, I'm doing a great job at maintaining, even if I'd prefer to lose that last ten, I'm not gaining.
But damn people, quit checking me out! I hate it!
(Okay I get it, lots of people appear to thrive on this sort of social interaction. But why keep doing it to me? I have never and will never receive it well, and I feel I make it very clear that it is unwelcome.)


For motivation: I want to do a real full chin up this summer, not the fake little ones I can do on good days. A smidge less pudge and a lot more arm muscles will get me there!

After an extremely chaotic past few months, I completely backslid and gained back all the weight I'd lost, and then some. I am fully aware that the reason is mostly because I ate fast food constantly - and a ton of it - instead of cooking healthy meals at home. So, at least I know what I did wrong. The lack of exercise certainly didn't help matters either, so those two things are going to be my new focus for now.

So now, once I'm back home tomorrow, I get to start all over again. I need a good plan for dealing with the chaos, but I just don't have one. Hopefully the chaos is mostly over for a few months, and hopefully my new BC doesn't bring my depression back on. I have horrible luck with hormonal BC sending me into a tail spin, and all I do is eat, sleep, and cry. Yaz was the worst. I'm now on Seasonique to see if it will help my iron levels since supplements aren't doing anything for my anemia.

I believe in everyone in this thread! We can all do it - even me!

And Presto, I'm with you - I really don't understand the 'fishing for compliments' thing, and it's obvious that it makes me extremely uncomfortable too, so why do all these people insist on doing it? And my pet peeve is when people ask me if I've lost weight, when I haven't. Or especially when I've gained weight. How hard is it not to comment?! It just makes me feel like I'm on a slide under a microscope. Sorry you are dealing with it too.

"Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live." - Oscar Wilde

Hey all, down 18 lbs since August. I could have lost more if I had more discipline around the holidays, but I didn't. I still managed to maintain and not gain though, so I least I got out without backsliding. Struggled with a plateau in January because, well, it was hard to get back in the groove. Got past the plateau and feel better. Been writing every bite and caloric sip - it helps to stay mindful and it's so easy to forget how much you ate when you're not tracking. I'm using the dietetic exchanges as my present diet and I quite like it - it's easy and realistic to adhere to. I am a bit more strict with myself now in regards to junk food. I pretty much don't eat it since the holidays wound down. I've definitely learned the very true fact that you get fit in the gym, but you lose weight in the kitchen.

Welp, the good news is that I've not gained any weight since my wedding, and I intend to lose a few more pounds. I'm not totally unhappy with my size, even though I'm not small. I don't mind having curves, and my hubby loves them. I'm fitting in my size 9 skinnies, and that makes me feel relatively happy.

This year, my motto is "46 and fabulous" meaning, health, beauty and great personal style. I want to stay looking and feeling fabulous in every way, especially where it comes to my health.

For my age, I'm not feeling too bad. I always think with weight and health there is always room for improvement, which is why I'm working on giving up smoking, eating healthy, home cooked meals, not snacking, etc.

It's not just physical for me, but an emotional turnaround. I want to feel fabulous as well as look it.

Cheers to everyone for keeping up with your goals, and here's to everyone reaching them! :beer

I've been putting a half hour a day on an exercise bike since before Thanksgiving. I don't know if l've lost any weight, but my clothes are looser. Unfortunately, the seat broke off yesterday, so I have to get a new one.

Did a solid hour in the gym at work after a full shift on that three hours' sleep workflow (worked the 5AM opening shift). 30 minutes on the elliptical, 30 minutes on the treadmill. Realized during the cooldown on the treadmill that it was one of those inclining ones. Oh, well. I'll do some incline tomorrow. At least I'm tired enough to go to bed early tonight and I'm not working alone at 5AM tomorrow.

Since my medical issues screwed me out of the vacation I was planning on taking to ring in my entrance into the Dirty 30s later this year, I want to get down to my goal weight and then see if my model friend can set me up with one of her photographers to do a photoshoot with me. That's my endgame to reach by the end of this year.

------------------------------------------------------------
"Why children take so long to grow? They eat and drink like pig and give nothing back. Must find way to accelerate process..."
- Dr. Yi Suchong, Bioshock

"Society does not need more children; but it does need more loved children. Quite literally, we cannot afford unloved children - but we pay heavily for them every day. There should not be the slightest communal concern when a woman elects to destroy the life of her thousandth-of-an-ounce embryo. But all society should rise up in alarm when it hears that a baby that is not wanted is about to be born."
- Garrett Hardin

"I feel like there's a message involved here somehow, but then I couldn't stop laughing at all the plotholes, like the part when North Korea has food."
- Youtube commentor referring to a North Korean cartoon.

"Reality is a bitch when it slowly crawls out of your vagina and shits in your lap."
- Reddit comment

"Bitch wants a baby, so we're gonna fuck now. #bareback"
- Cambion

Oh whatever. Abortion doctors are crimestoppers."
- Miss Hannigan

21 lbs down from my start weight as of today! I decided to quit drinking except for on actual holidays so I don't become an alcoholic like my parents, and it seems to be helping with the weight loss. I guess my body doesn't miss the extra calories from the booze and from the drunk-munchies I tend to get. Getting more fit and strong, and loving it. So glad I snapped out of the mentality I was in, because I was diabeetus-bound and had a rough time with aches and pains. It's like a flip switched in my brain and my habits changed, not overnight, but finally I decided I had enough of being so fat.

This morning, I tried on a pair of these rotten jeans I kept in my closet that hadn't fit me properly, and WOW! They actually fit! I don't weigh myself because of past eating disorder issues, so I use clothes to tell me where I am as far as my body size is concerned.

Whatever I've been doing, I'm just going to keep up. I have noticed that I eat the same meals every day, but the portion sizes have gotten smaller. I just can't eat as much as I used to.

I've also been battling with a small bout of the blues, so my appetite is not what it used to be. This is a great pick-me-up. I feel like celebrating, but not with food.

I think today I'm going to have a pampering day, maybe go through my closet and try on some clothes to see how they fit...it may be time to do some shopping!

Down 26 lbs as of today! I'm at my pre-wedding weight. Feels good to drag out stuff that hasn't fit properly since 2012, put it on, and have it fit. 39 more lbs to go til goal (which I changed to 140 - and honestly I might try to get down to 130 which would still be within a healthy BMI range for my height).

Captcha = YumDp (LOL!)

Thanks to working so hard on a house renovation for the last few months, I am now rocking the size 8s I had picked up for just such an occasion last year. I have a different brand of size 8s that I can pack myself into, but they aren't right yet. With vanity sizing I'm probably wearing a size 14 on old size charts anyways, lol! So whatever, at least I'm shrinking!
I think I'm just converting more of me into muscle because I'm only at the low end of my usual range, but it IS right before the commies ought to land, and here I am in my skinny pants instead of feeling like the Michelin man.

Can almost do those chin ups I've been working towards. Must. Keep. Practicing!

I hope everybody keeps up their determination. Even maintaining rather than gaining can be a good thing. That is all my husband can manage, he hit 44 and his joints have started falling apart.

I'm now down 38 lbs, from 205 to 167 since last August. It's been slow going, but I'm fine with that. I'd like to lose around 30 more lbs.

I'm trying fasting, not especially for weight loss but because I'm curious about how it focuses the mind. It turns out it is also great for weightloss (no surprise, right?).