Where in the world are you from? Tell us about yourself...

Bettyboag

Hi everyone!
I thought it would be good to get to know one another a bit better.. I'll start!
I'm from Adelaide Australia. I have three children, 16, 9 and 6 and work full time. My DH used to work week ends but is going to work full time soon. I am sure life is about to get much busier.
My weakness is beer and if I could give it up I know I would be slimmer. However with the craziness of home beer is very appealing

Bettyboag

I don't know what happened but my post was cut short!
Continue...
Beer helps my sanity! I would like to lose 5 kgs to fit my clothes better and feel good in my own skin.
Weather here has been unpredictable. We experienced feisty heat and had bush fires and now it is cold and rainy but not snow cold though. The weather makes exercise less appealing. My vivofit though motivates me to achieve my daily steps and to try to win community challenges.
I have been on holidays and are due back to work on Monday. I have anticipated the my already tight work pants would feel painted on now after Xmas so I have bought some skirts for work to feel more comfortable. I know that this wasn't the answer and that I need to get my self kick started to start to beat this. I am looking forward to feeling better with you all.
I would love to hear more about you...

izu87

Hello! I'm from a small country in South-Eastern Europe called Bulgaria. I'm a 27-year-old single IT specialist (a female one - yes, we do exist!). My work as you can guess is highly sedentary, but with my Christmas present - a vivofit, I've been aiming to move more while at work. It's helping somewhat. My job is highly stressful as I'm the manager of 50% of the company, and right now most of our projects are nearing their deadlines. I'm not handling stress well if I have to be honest, and as an emotional eater my go-to is sweets. Chocolate. All the chocolate. And cookies. And sweets. Seriously I'm a sugar junkie.

What I've decided to try out is counting calories strictly and working out 5-6 times per week, along with hitting my step goal for the day. Hopefully this will help me lose the weight I've gained the past 5-6 months (nearly 10kgs) since I got my promotion, so that I continue on my journey towards my dream goal, that I've never actually hit in my adult life.

I'm looking forward to being more confident in myself, because my body image has always been a huge hindrance to me. And my weight has always been the perfect excuse to not do things, to not go out and so on. It has also been a big deal about triggering bad episodes of social anxiety. So... yeah... I want to get rid of it, so that I can move on towards a happier life.

walking_woman

Hello everyone. I am from Ontario Canada. Like izu87 I am also an IT specialist. Mine is in security and like her I am also one of the very few in the industry. It is a highly stressful position and it definitely is sedentary.

I am a stress eater, so guess what it shows. I am also a huge fan of walking. A few years back I used to walk 5k a night and saw 10k - 20k walks on the weekends. Even though I was particular about swapping out shoes on a regular basis I ended up with plantar fasciitis.

My footware is limited and unfortunately it can be expensive. I just bought new boots and shoes . My pocket book is suffering but my feet will love it. It will help with my back, hips, knees and aching feet. So I am not complaining about the price.

Leaving foot prints is a thread I started to get me motivated and moving. Now I have no excuses other than freezing my tush off. Anyone is welcome to join in on challenging yourself to walk a few more steps every day.

h3ll3tt

Hi everyone! I'm from the southeast United States. I am 24 years old, married, and have three kids ages 4, 2, and

I hit my goal weight right before I got pregnant with number one. After a horrible labor, a scarring c-section, and post partum depression, I gained almost one hundred pounds. I got pregnant with number two after three months of trying, and didn't put much effort in to watching my weight. I ate what I wanted, when I wanted. After she was born (another c-section) I again had post partum depression. I gained about 40 pounds after she was born. In the winter of 2012 I went on hormonal birth control. I had just started going back to school and trying to get myself where I wanted to be. I went gluten free. I did that because I was having stomach issues, and I thought it would help. It did. I was gluten free for 3 months before I got pregnant with number three while on birth control. At first I was really torn up about it. I was very heavy (270), unhealthy, and was just starting to lose weight again. I was a little more careful about my eating this go around, and by the end I delivered at the same weight I started at. After delivery (c-section) I lost another 20 pounds. I did not have post partum depression this time. But after she was born, the winter got really bad. And she had 3 hospital stays for asthma, and life threatening allergies.

My middle child was in OT and ST for delays due to autism. I was stressed to the max, and I ate every bit if my stress. As the year went on, my weight went up. In July I began getting migraines that nothing helped. So I cut out all caffeine. I cut out all soda. I cut out chocolate.

Then in September my father was hospitalized. Me, my sister, and my mother took turns staying the night with him. He was diagnosed with lymphoma. By the time he was released, I was the heaviest I had ever been (315). My father in law had just entered hospice after battling cancer for 5 years and everything just felt like it was falling apart.

In October I decided something had to give. I started making better food choices, opting to stay away from processed foods as much as possible. By November I was counting calories again. By December I had my gym membership going, and was going to the gym 7 days a week.

I'm ready. I know what I have to do. I know what it's going to take. And this time, I'm doing it for me. Only I can put in the effort to make the change. Will I have to get excess skin removed when I get to the magic number, probably. But that's okay.

I have clinical depression, OCD, anxiety, and I'm a chronic over eater. We are all in this together no matter where our journey started. I'm looking at 150, and I refuse to look back.

frazz007

Hello everyone! I am from southern California which is a cool rainy place today.
Looking forward to our challenge.

I work and have a retired spouse. Love books, cooking and yes, a little wine or home brew every now and then.

I think life's challenges are stressful and taking care of others really makes it hard sometimes to take care of ourselves. It is so important to take that time.

I am trying to stay out of fast food places at the moment. Fast Food Nation --book and movie does make the case for eating at home. For me, it is too easy to rack up 2 times my daily calories.
cheers,

silverbeam22

Hi!

I'm from Espoo, Finland (basically the suburbs of Helsinki), currently studying social sciences at a university in another city in Southern Finland. I'm half English, but I've only lived there when I had a gap year before starting university. I spent it in Manchester, which is where my dad's from. Having two nationalities is a huge part of my identity, and I love it. I'm also a massive football fan (Manchester City!) and a vegetarian, although I sometimes have some meat when I visit my parents - I don't want to make them cook something different for me.

Ever since I was young I've loved carbs, which has resulted in me having a "spare tyre" around my middle which I'd love to rid of. A few years back I started a similar thing and did really well; but in the end work, exam stress, travelling and a busy social life (not to mention my love for beer) caused me to go right back to where I started from. This time I want to take myself further and make it a lifestyle that I can sustain

The toughest thing for is snacking, and to stop myself from eating more and more once I get started - even if I'm full to the point of feeling sick. It's emotional eating, but since I've started here I've been doing pretty well! making myself track everything really keeps me aware of what I'm putting in my body and what foods make me want to crave more.

AmandaStrickland1

Hi everyone! I am from Houston Texas, currently living in Grand Junction, Colorado. Married for 17 years with a 16 yr old, and a 14 yr. old. I've always been in pretty good shape and never gained weight. Until, I hurt my neck in 2008 on a roller coaster and then I gained 25-30 pounds in a short amount of time. Depression, and not being able to be active played a major roll. I can definitely feel it when I do too much... Or sometimes even a little.

Anyway, it doesn't help that I am a junk food junkie. I'm at snacker for sure! So, I don't eat big meals... So I guess that's good, but I know I tend to eat the wrong things. If I get my diet under control I seem to do so good. Old habits die hard!

I just recently- for about a year now- started playing volleyball again... It's my fitness passion. I love hiking and being outdoors as well. I'm ready for the weather to be nice so I can get out there! Till then, I'm sticking to my home gym. This is my year though, I know it!

alsuna

Hello Everyone!

My name is Anna, currently living in Helsinki, but I'm originally from Hungary. I love food, some days I think it's the only thing that can make me happy. (Fighting emotional eating most probably until the end of my life). Myfitnesspal helped me to get my weight in the healthy range(lost about 50 lbs in a year), and I didn't gain it back in the past year. There is always room for improvement though... I joined this group, so I can lose the last 15 more easily. The motivation and advice of the community always kept me going. You are the best:)

My office has it's own gym, so I will be spending some mornings there, and I already do resistance training 5 times a week. If I have some free time I usually join a pole dance or bikram yoga class. It's the nutrition part I'm having troubles with. I either overeat or eat too little, I can't seem to find a healthy a balance. I just enjoy eating a little too much. So planning my meals and keeping the calories and macros right will be my main task in the upcoming 13 weeks.

Good luck to everyone.

dramaqueen45

Wow there are people here from everywhere! I'm Rachel and I'm from a small town in northeastern Indiana. I started at the end of last July when my weight reached an all time high of 180. I have lost a total of 26.2 so far on MFP and I ride a recumbent trike and lift for exercise. Well, that is to say, I ride my trike when the weather is nice here. Today we are getting ready for an ice storm. I just added lifting three times per week in December and I try to walk the other three days per week after work. When the weather is nice I get out on my trike and ride for 30-45 minutes. On the weekends I've done longer rides and last fall I was up to doing 20 mile tours. My goal this year is to make a 30 mile tour. Riding is a lot of fun and doesn't feel like exercising and plus my husband has a recumbent bike and we go together a lot. We have a lot of the rails to trails in our area and those are nice because we can ride without the traffic and without a lot of steep hills.

As far as food goes, I just try to eat 1200 calories (I have hypothyroidism, so higher than that I start maintaining), but I do eat back half or more of my exercise calories. I don't eliminate anything from my diet but try to make good choices and eat things that are more filling. I have two college age daughters so I have an empty nest. It's nice to have time for myself again and not have to worry so much about all of the running around you do when you have teenagers.

My goal for Easter is to be at 141. I started in January at 156 (December was a rough month as far as weight loss- I lost like .8 in 3 weeks). I believe 20 would be too ambitious so I am going for 15. My ultimate goal is to be at 120-125, but I may revise that when I get closer to it.

kayjosh2422

Hi all, I'm also from Texas, just north of Houston. I started this challenge after the last Christmas challenge was so successful. I loved having so much support and seeing so many other battling weight just like me. I have been married going on 25 years to a wonderful man who has never once mentioned anything about my weight. We have two children, 24 and 21 years old. Not sure when that happened. Anyway in late may I went to the doctor sick with pneumonia in my lower lung and bronchitis in the upper lobe. As if that was not bad enough that is not what the doctor was concerned about. My blood pressure was stroke level. After lots of tests and starting blood pressure medicine I was told I was pre-diabetic, my heart was enlarged and I had high blood pressure. My options were get healthy or I might not be around in a few years. That was what made things click for me. I chose life! I'm 48 years young and I want to be around a long time. This time around I am getting healthy the right way, eating healthy and exercise. In the past I have dropped tons of weight the wrong way, I have done the pills, done every diet you can imagine and I have lived on a leaf of lettuce, 2 animal cookies and tab soda, I also have made myself toss my cookies. This time I am working hard at slow and steady weight loss. I also am not concerned about vanity. While I enjoy looking better, I know this body will not bounce back and I may always have a tummy or some loose skin. The pic below is at my daughters college graduation where I actually had lost some weight and thought I looked pretty good. Wow when I saw that pic, I wanted to cry. Anyway, the bottom pic is from yesterday. I started this process in June of 2014 and have lost 52 pounds, still have a ways to go, but feel better than ever. So glad to have so many people that understand the journey!!

Zx14chick

Love seeing the posts from all over the world - and then I see another Hoosier! I have lived in Indianapolis my entire life.

I am 35 and happily married with no children - except for my Yorkshire Terrier, Capone.

I enjoy riding my motorcycle and mountain-biking. I walk to work, as I live about 3/4 of a mile from my office, so that is where some of my exercise comes in. I decided to start running for exercise this past summer and ran my first half-marathon on November 1 - it was 28 degrees (SO COLD!). I earned a free entry into the race for next year, so now I'm committed to run at least one more, whether I like it or not.

When I was 23, I used weight loss pills and got down to 118, smaller than I ever was and did some modeling. I also met my husband that same year and have fluctuated back and forth over the past 12 years. I am within 10 pounds of my goal weight now and it is driving me mad! I have always had to work hard to maintain/lose weight.

MikaMojito

What a wonderfully diverse group. Sending a friendly wave to Adelaide - I went on a student exchange there many years ago and still have lots of happy memories.

I'm from Bavaria in Germany, about an hour's drive from Munich. I'm 28, I'm a teacher and I've got a delightful boyfriend whom I've been seeing for just over three months.

I've always been overweight. Not massively as a child but always enough to feel bad about myself. My mum used to be chubby, too and she often went on diets and tried to make me diet, too. When I was 16 I lost 20kg within one summer by basically not eating, that kinda wrecked my system. I kept it off for a while but gained back slowly. In 2008 I lost a fair bit of weight again, this time healthily. I then broke up with my boyfriend right before the busiest phase of university, gained again. Started dating somebody much, much older which in retrospective wasn't the best idea ever. I lost weight again and gained again and lost again. My partner was very fit himself and often complimented other women who were slim. I felt pretty bad. Last year I finally managed to break up with him. Right before that I had, again, managed to lose some weight - on here actually. But then I gained it back and more because I started working and the ex-partner was being unpleasant and I had to move and had no kitchen and then while working full-time I had to take additional exams.

I am an emotional overeater AND I also love eating in general and I've never enjoyed sports. I've done aerobics, basketball, taekwon do, swimming, running... so it's not like I haven't tried stuff but I really have to force myself to exercise.

However, as of recently I have no legitimate reason of stuff my face for emotional reasons. I have a new partner who, too, is overweight but not massively so. He thinks I'm pretty but is willing to support me if I want to lose weight. But not for him. I've finally finished my degree (got my grade yesterday, so happy). I have a permanent contract at a school where I'm well liked and respected.

Also... my 10 year highschool re-union is coming up. I better lose...

Chelsey2016

Hello! I am from California, however, I have now lived in Washington for over seven years. I also, attend Washington State University and I recently married. After getting married I gained a lot of weight due to many factors and consequently my confidence has been hindered significantly. Now, I am here to get healthy and help motivate others to do the same.

Juliechilli

Hi All, just finding this group now, better late than never . My name is Julie and I live in Boston, Massachusetts. I am 41, and I am trying once again to lose back the weight I have gained in the last year. I have two boys, 7 and 8 and recently moved in with my boyfriend of 4.5 years (divorced) prior to that. I am an emotional eater and if my head isn't in the game, nothing will happen. I'm hoping to lose 20 pounds as I weigh the most since delivering my first son. I have been going to the gym and doing spin classes, taking Pure Barre classes and eating as cleanly as possible. Scale isn't budging yet and I'm trying to be as patient as I can. I am excited to be part of this group!

lindadprice

Okay I'm Linda from massachusetts. I am originally from chelmsford MA. I lived in Boston during college and a few years after. I just moved to townsend MA in the last week. I've been married for a year now. I am currently looking for a job. I got laid off the grocery store I worked in closed in April. I was a supervisor there.

I've always been unhappy with my weight since high school. I just recently in the last year ballooned up to my heaviest 195 lbs.

When I moved out of Boston I was depressed because I lost my job my boyfriend broke up with me and I felt like I made a lot of mistakes. So before I started dating my husband I lost a lot of weight unintentionally. I got to 130 lbs. I recovered from the depression and gained weight back to 140.

When I started dating my husband I was at a good weight. Then I started gaining the weight with going on dates. He also eats a lot because his job is physical. We kind of egg each other on with food and snacking. We got an apartment together after a year or so of dating and I got back in shape.

Then our land lord wanted to sell her condo so we were forced to move in with Jon's parents for a year and a half and I gained weight due to the stress of living with them and they had a lot of junk food around.

My husband knows I've been trying to lose weight so he tries to be careful in front of me. It's hard because I've always been a food lover and a snacker. I got back into exercise and lost 10 lbs over the past year. I haven't been losing weight very fast. I think not having a job doesn't help with that. Since moving I lost more weight. I spent a few full days moving boxes by myself and putting everything away.

I've been sick the last week so I haven't been exercising. I hope this group will be a good motivator to get back in shape.

FixItDuck

Hi, I'm from Ashburton, New Zealand. Married with two children who are primary school age. I've gotten into really bad habits and gained 10kg in the past year and a half when I really intended to lose some.

I've decided that 2015 is the year I'm going to do some of the things I've talked about for the past few years, and complete others. This means I have quite a lot to work on....my fitness is a big one, I have started C25K more times than I can remember, so I really want to finish it this time and who knows, maybe I'll train for an event (not totally committed to that yet). My weight is something I am not happy with, so I am working to change that, and also to have well defined muscles - fitter and stronger is possibly more important to me than the numbers on the scales. Also working towards completing a qualification to go alongside my work experience.

I will be 40 in September, so knocking some of my goals off before then would be fantastic.

Palamedes

Currently, I'm living on the coast of Georgia (USA). My path to this place has been kind of winding. I mostly grew up in Maryland. When I attended college, I was 6'2" and 155 pounds. Between college and working as an assistant manager (worked 70 hours and got paid for 40), I managed to hit 195 pounds.

I then went into the US Army. My weight dropped to about 172 and I came home with a severe limp. Okay, the truth of the matter was I could barely walk. However, life goes on. I went to grad school and went back up to 195. Over the next decade of living in Washington, DC, I creeped up to 245.

I took a job with the US Army as a civilian and move down to Enterprise AL. I got serious with the South Beach Diet and drove my weight back down to 196. One good thing about living in the middle of nowhere is you learn to cook. Since my wife and I prepare most of our food, we eat fairly well. However, my weight went back up to 246.

I accepted a new job with the Federal government and straight across to Georgia. After a couple of years here, I decided to get serious about my fitness. Many years ago, Bloom County did a series of comic strips about Opus trying to lose weight. He did fad diets. He did liposuction. The entire time, Milo Bloom kept saying: "Eat less. Move more."

I started near the end of May of 2014. So far, I've lost 46 pounds. I log my food into MFP every day. I'm going to try and log in for 1000 days in a row. I wear a Fitbit Flex. I either walk or ride my bike 10 times per week for an hour at a time. Most of the time, I do not eat back my exercise calories. I'm determined to get my weight back to where I was when I left the US Army. I'm going to turn back the clock 25 years.

I was also in the earlier Xmas weight loss group. I thought that worked well for me as a motivator. Here I am again and thanks for sharing this journey with me.

I_can_do_this2

Hi All,

I just love how our group is from all over the world. I'm a travel junkie and it gives me ideas and inspiration on where I'd like to go next.

I am Canadian, born and raised - currently living in Nova Scotia, Canada. I am 58 years old and a somewhat-recently retired accountant. I am married with 2 great kids and 3 fabulous granddaughters.

I haven't always been overweight but I have certainly struggled with my weight for most of my life. I most recently got serious about losing weight this past summer. I am not interested in a quick fix - I am determined to follow a regime I can live with on a go-forward basis. I spent 32 years in a sedentary job and I want to become an active person. Some time ago I read an article that resonated with me: There are those who are interested in getting fit and those who are committed to getting fit. Those who are interested in getting fit will do it when it is convenient. Those who are committed to getting fit will do it no matter what. I am determined to be in this latter category.

I joined the Christmas Challenge group last August and I really enjoyed the support of the group. I'm looking forward to working with this group also.

acmanna

MikaMojito wrote: »

I'm from Bavaria in Germany, about an hour's drive from Munich. .

I'm from the US (Louisiana) but also live in beautiful Bavaria. I live in Munich, it is very nice here..now if I could just get the hang of German!

curryblume

Chelsey2016 wrote: »

Hello! I am from California, however, I have now lived in Washington for over seven years. I also, attend Washington State University and I recently married. After getting married I gained a lot of weight due to many factors and consequently my confidence has been hindered significantly. Now, I am here to get healthy and help motivate others to do the same.

curryblume

Hello
I really love to see that we are all coming from different places all over the world!
I am almost 52 now and I am married and my two children have just left the nest.
My daughter is living in France for one year after school and my son is studying in Great Britain.
I am German and I live in a small town near Frankfurt. I love the English language (I lived in Canada for some months) and I am working full time as a teacher.
I just have to loose some weight in order to feel well again! It's not that much, but I feel it might be unsurmountable.
Stress and pressure are one reason, bad genes another.
I love cooking and I also eat for comfort, I'm afraid.
I just registered in a fitness club, but I would like to have somebody to go with me.
It is all work and work. But I want to do more things that are fun!
Well, I am looking forward to reading from you and I hope we can help and encourage each other!
Great to be here,
Ulrike

Arbelina

Hi, great to see such a nice group I can add myself to the emotional eaters (worst thing for me is to be totally dissatified with my day but too tired to do something nice), to the people living in small Eastern European countries, though I am originally from Germany (technically even from Bavaria ). You guys have really managed to motivate me, especially the weighing-in list and the excersize challenge.

skenalea

Hello everyone!
I am from the United States, Idaho to be exact. I am joining a little late, but I started using MFP on Jan 1 and have lost 4.5lbs. So I am now excited to be part of a group. My biggest struggle is my time constraint. I have a family with 3 kids, work full time, and attend university full time as well. Processed, high cal, fast foods have been a go to for me and my life style so I am slowly learning how important planning is in a weight loss/healthy lifestyle change! Its great to be part of a group with people from all over. Good luck to everyone!

GirlGarfield

Hi!
I'm from London, England but live in Surrey. Still work in London as an Area Crime Reduction Manager. It's a very diverse and varied role, I work closely with the police which I love. My fiance's a police officer and we're getting married in August! So excited.
I just love food and am a greedy mare, but do emotionally eat a little, and when I'm bored! Love cheese and bread, and cider.
We're loving this app, I've lost 8lbs since January 1st and my fiance has lost 7lbs. It's really good doing it together!

Good luck everyone in your journeys xxx

mtrg28

Hi!
I'm Michael, I'm 22 and from Wexford in Ireland. It's the bottom right corner in an area nicknamed the 'sunny south-east', although at the moment the winter cold is here to stay! I'm currently still on break from university, I'm in my final year of a Marketing degree.

I only started with myfitnesspal and dieting/exercising properly for the first time in 3 years on Jan 1st(I used to play multiple sports, mainly rugby). Since then I think I'm down 4 or 5 pounds and my ideal weight is around 180-185, then I want to start weight training to put on some muscle while maintaining that level of body fat.

I mainly eat out of boredom, so getting up and about and exercising was helpful on many levels to improving my health already. I can already see the mental benefits of regular exercise!

I am currently training for a half marathon on March 7th, which has me running 6 times a week, clocking up at least 50km a week. I'm doing the marathon on behalf of Irish Autism Action, a charity very close to my heart which provides extra incentive to push myself every day.

12qw34

I live in Massachusetts about an hour from Boston. I have 8 year old boy/girl twins. I am 49 and I have 30 lbs to lose to get back to my prepregnancy weight. I turn 50 in September, and I want to be at my goal weight by then. I am very motivated! I am happy I am on MFP, and found this group to help me on my journey!

LeelooX2014

I'm from Maine US. I lost about 40 lbs in 2012/2013 with Lose It (similar to MFP). Once I stopped logging, I also stopped exercising regularly. Weight started creeping back on slowly and I found myself 20 lbs heavier and clothes were getting tight. I had to stop this in its tracks! I have gotten rid of my clothes from before so I have a great motivator! I like MFP - there seems to be a LOT more people from all over and much more social! Good luck everyone. Glad I found this group!

JenNicole11

Love seeing posts from all over the world! I'm Jen from Lexington, Kentucky (USA) (GO CATS!) I'm 29 and married with a six year old son. I'm a corporate paralegal, which can be very demanding and stressful at times, and is very sedentary. My husband travels for work and is gone 2-3 weeks every month (also stressful at times). I'm currently in the process of paying off my student loans so that I can be a stay-at-home mom and volunteer more at my son's school (and possibly have another baby sometime in the future) .

Embarrassingly, I've never hit my goal weight. I was extremely active and athletic in high school, but had horrible eating habits. Those habits didn't really show until I started college and my activity level dropped. I have done many crash diets, taken many diet pills and basically starved myself more times than I can count... and obviously none of them worked for very long .

I was at my lowest weight (8 pounds within my goal weight) in 2010 after my mother passed away due to no appetite caused by depression. Since then, my weight has yo-yoed up and down anywhere from 15-25 pounds because of my binge eating habits (depending on the circumstance, I'm either an emotional binger or an emotional starver... it's a horrible line to walk.)

I made a decision to adapt healthier eating habits and to train for a 1/2 marathon in the summer of 2012, but an injury sent me back into an emotional eating downfall. So here I am - over a year later and almost 30 years old - starting over.

This time I'm looking at it as a lifestyle change instead of having the "all or nothing" mindset like I have had in the past. I'm not rushing it. I'm trying not to stress over the scale. I'm trying to stay positive. Slow and steady wins the race, right?

Good luck, everyone! I'm glad to have found this group!

1crvygrl

Hi, I'm Lori, 51 and just celebrated my 35th anniversary 1/12. I have 4 adult children and10 grandchildren and am another Hoosier. Was always skinny as a child, weighed 110 lbs before my first pregnancy and after having 4 children in 4 years(a set of twins) was able to get back down to 117 but it didn't last long and started to slowly put weight on. I was up 11 pounds before I really realized I was gaining. My weight stayed in the 120-150 range in my 20's and 30's, went up to the 180's in my 40's. I dieted and exercised on and off along the way, joined WW about 17 years ago and lost 30, but when I plateaued I quit and over the next 10 years slowly put it back on and then more. I've only been over 200 on and off for the last couple of years. This past year's has been really tough to get below 200 and stay there. I'm currently 204, I was 194 a year ago.

I'm not a good dieter. I don't like salads or fresh vegetables. I rarely eat breakfast and eat fast food way too often for lunch and will eat out for supper whenever I can. I can cook, I just don't really like to and most things I fix would not be considered diet friendly. Some evenings my husband will suggest ice cream and I'll rarely turn it down.

Exercise... I start but can't stick with it.

Water... I can go weeks and never drink water unless I make a point of it. I have good days and bad.

I've not been very motivated the last couple of months, but I feel I'm getting better and am hoping to get started and see some results soon.

brightsideofpink

I love seeing how international this group is and concur- would be lovely to be inspired to travel some place new!
- Waving hello to fellow New Englanders!
I'm from northern Vermont, not too far from the Canadian border. I have lived in various places in New England, having grown up and gone to college in Connecticut.
I'm 35 for a few more weeks. I grew up slim, though I had terrible eating habits and come from a family where most of the women are largely overweight or obese. It really wasn't until I was in grad school that I started to gain weight, and not until after my first child that I was starting to need large/xl clothes. I've been carrying this weight for 10 years now, and its past time it goes away.

I started changes in May, 2014 and have lost 52 lbs to date. I'm aiming for another 30-40, with no hard goal. I enjoy cardio, but have added more strength training recently. Each month the proportion of time spent on each increases for the latter.

I have a fitbit if anyone is interested in connecting there.