Happy New Year

SaraShyding

It's that time of the year again when we look back at the past year and tend to be critical and harsh on ourselves by focusing on what we didn't get accomplished. I am guilty of having done that in the past myself but this year I've had a new attitude about it. I'm taking time to look back at my success I've had this last year. Since March 4th I have lost 80 pounds and I haven't given up. That's a big deal for me because I always give up either due to some self loathing binge or an injury or whatever dump reason I come up with. I haven't given up yet and have no interest or intention of doing so. I have done so much soul searching over the last year along with the help of my therapist and have managed to keep my food addiction issues at bay. I have slipped up here and there and by gollie I decided to enjoy food and probably over indulge at times but I'm still plugging away at the goal. This next year I want to push myself more. I want to get more focused on the fitness side of things. I want to do 5k races this summer. I want to buy a bike and ride it to work. I want to see 100 pounds lost and lose another 100 pounds this year. I have always been so big that I've been terrified of the embarrassment and concern of being utterly uncomfortable that I have never in my 30 years of life been on a plane. Well this year I have a ticket in hand to visit my sister in Seattle...by PLANE!!! I'm still large but I'm not 400+ pounds anymore and by this summer I might not even be 300+ pounds anymore. I'm super excited and super nervous but I know it will be amazing. I hope you all are had great success last year and looking forward to another year of being awesome! Friend me if you want some new friends.

ldowdesw

Well done on losing 100lbs!! That's truly amazing. You certainly have the right attitude going forward. I started December 28th at 280lbs and I'm sticking to my calories and incorporating exercise but the scales are not being friendly.. My attitude is that it works for everyone else and I am no different, and if I'm sticking truthfully to my calories then the scales will have to move eventually. Determined not to be defeated this time. Good luck for your onward journey. X

SaraShyding

Ohhh yes! Do not get discouraged...keep doing what you're doing and you will see change. Patience is a key with this lifestyle. I think when you drastically change your eating habits in the beginning your body freaks out and is resistant at first. It happened to me too. And eventually your body gives in and gets used to it and the weight starts melting off. This is how it worked for me. Same goes with plateaus. I have busted thru at least 3 stubborn plateaus by just sticking to the plan. Also when I work out or change my workout regimen I tend to go thru a gaining phase. I can only assume this is a muscle increase but eventually the scale starts going back in the right direction. Just stick with it and you will see results!

ldowdesw

Thank you!! I tried mfp last year and lost 18lbs then piled it all back on. Once Christmas was out of the way this year I knew I had to just get on with it. I'm 5'11' female who has been uk size 20 for approx 10 years. I'm 42 years old and my body is starting to feel it's age. I'm always amazed at how differently people treat you when you are overweight, initially I don't really mind how I look, I just want the scales to drop drop drop! I could probably lose 20lbs and not look much different, that's fine with me as long as my poor little knees can have some respite. X

keana55

Congratulations!!! Thank you for the inspiration today. I have lost 86 pounds but still have another 23 to go to hit goal. I have just barely been maintaining for several months (actually losing and gaining the same two or three pounds, yuck). I used to hate flying due to shame about my weight. I noticed on my last trip, however, people actually asked to sit next to me. That is a NSV I had forgotten until I read your story. Time to get back on the plan as you say. Thanks!

SaraShyding

I have been wavering between 355 and 365 pretty much since Thanksgiving so I'm no stranger to the holiday plateau. I'm just thankful I didn't gain to much. I weighed in at 355 this morning so I'm back to where I started and hope to see it continue its way down. I will be back to a normal routine next week which significantly helps me. I'm looking forward to that and seeing a continued loss. My 1 year date is March 4th and I intend to be down 100 pounds by then if not sooner!

BettyDares

Truly awesome progress!!!

ldowdesw

A year of logging, now that is fantastic. I'm aiming for a 100 day streak which is approximately the end of March, that's my first goal and I'll be so so proud of myself if I do it! To be fair I never do anything for myself so it's about time that I did and with all of the support, success stories and this fab app, the hard work is almost done for me!! No more excuses.. Just do it!

SaraShyding

Logging and planning are my best tools. Every week I prep all my meals for the week and it simplifies my life so much. I don't feel as compelled to run thru a drive thru for a quick meal. If I had one piece of advice it would be to plan one week at a time to succeed by prepping meals and sticking as close as possible to a normal routine. When my routine is out of wack I am a mess at sticking to a plan. When I don't plan ahead I will be eating out all week because I have zero time to cook during any given week. So I use my day off to cook everything for the week for quick grab and go meals all portioned out and ready to go.

ldowdesw

Totally agree. I set out a plan for me and hubby to calorie count (up to 3 weeks in advance), and a separate one for the children as they don't always eat with us. It's the best.. Saves arguments over meals, saves time and money too. I log my evening meals in advance and as breakfast is mostly the same, this allows me to have a good variety of lunch time meals and the odd calorie counted 'treat'. Thank you for taking time to respond, I love reading other people's experiences and success stories, it keeps me so motivated. X