30 years old and frustrated

taramariekercher

Hello everyone. I am 30 years old, and I am frustrated with my weight. :grumble: :grumble: :grumble:

I joined MFP a month ago, but this is the first chance I have had to actually sit and explore the site.

I have tried off and on over the past 13 years to lose the weight, and have not been able to lose more than 15 or 20 pounds before it comes back on (or I plateau and do not lose any more) and I am tired of it. I am overweight and want a better/healthier lifestyle.

I am trying to lose as much as I can (up to 130 pounds but no more than that).

The problem I am facing is that I am living with people who are not really giving me the support I need to achieve my goals. I am getting frustrated because I need the extra support (and accountability) and I am not getting it here in person.

I would love to meet some people here who are on a similar journey, who I could support, and who would be willing to help support me as I go along.

If you are supportive, positive and able to give constructive criticisms I would love to hear from you (feel free to add me as a friend).

So please help me succeed and I will do my best to help you.

Sunshine2plus2

Hello and welcome! Mind over matter, you got this! Good luck!

Kmedeiros83

You're in a tough spot, but it's not hopeless. I too have packed on the pounds over the years and at 31 it's really hit me just how much I've gained. I have a family, kids, etc and my time is stretched so thin that I don't have a lot of time to work out, nor do I have a bunch of time to prepare meals. This has always been my crutch when rationalizing why I'm fat, but no more excuses for me.

I just started seriously using MFP and would love to help you in anyway I can! Add me if you feel up to it and good luck!

arcticfox04

I'm 29. I dropped 120lb before it wasn't that bad when start to get into a good groove. The big trick is to not making losing into a big mental block. Sometimes you focus on losing weight instead of making better substitutions or eating less per meal. I find that alot people go crazy off the bat instead of looking at smaller easier goals.

Instead 130 pounds try going 10lbs at a time. Aim for that in a month then another 10 and such. That way theres more positive reinforcement instead of looking at it as a daunting task.

Travko

This is a difficult journey, to be sure, no matter how much (or little) weight a person needs to lose. Sometimes, those around us don't really understand or don't want to support us because it means acknowledging their own issues. You'll find many supportive people here on MFP, and you're free to add me (anyone) as a friend.

taxingwoman

I can understand your frustration. I too joined about a month ago. I did a lot of tracking in Weight Watchers in the past but the MFP site is so much easier. I'm finding that if I track every single thing that I eat at least I get a picture of what choices i make over and over again. Seeing the results from the previous day, selecting out the one or 2 items that are putting me over the top, and quietly eliminating them or reducing the portions is much easier. Also, I am following the Fast 5:2 Diet and Fast Exercise by Dr Michael Mosley, the BBC guy. I'm finding these are really easy, esp the exercise. My downfall is always the fattening yummies served up at morning teas & other events that make up my social life in retirement. I'm hopeless in front of hi carb, high fat baked goods! But I still track them and then have to go without later in the day. Good luck and I hope you find a way through-- you're really halfway there with this wonderful tracker!

TheFitnessTutor

slow and steady wins the race. Don't make the common mistake of trying to lose weight too fast, thus killing your metabolism and setting you up to reach a plateau you can't get over without doing something unhealthy.

jzs20

Sometimes the people around you and even the ones you love are the ones that can hold you back the most.
Your 30 years and frustrated... well you just took the 1st step and decided you wanted to change. Now go ahead and prove to yourself and those that hold you back that you can do it. You really can lose weight, keep at myfitnesspal and stay true to your calorie goal. Watch the weight fall off ! Good luck on your journey and feel free to add me.

levitateme

I am also 30 and have struggled with my weight all my life, my highest being 210 lbs (I'm 5'4") when I was 19.

For the past 10 years, I've yo-yoed up and down, gaining and losing the same 30-40 lbs over and over. I'm 14 lbs into a ~45 lb goal at the moment.

My advice for you:

-Don't set your calorie goal too low. Set your goal to lose .5 lbs a week. For me it means the difference between eating 1200 ( my allotment when I had it set to a goal of 1.5 lbs per week) and 1500 calories a day, and so it also means that I am less likely to go into the red and feel badly about it.
-Don't let negative people get you down. You might have friends or family who call you "obsessed" because you choose to weigh your food or abstain from eating something when you don't know the full nutritional value.
-Keep exercising, even if it's hard, even if you feel awkward at the gym. When I first started I was so out of shape that I felt like I was going to die after 15 mins on an elliptical. Now I'm doing HIIT 3 times a week and when I see that I have 10 minutes left to work out, I don't think "thank god, it's almost over." I think "let's make these 10 minutes count!"

girldownsouth

Hiya, I'm 31 and want to lose over 100lb. I've yoyoed a bit, but only really losing about 30lb ever. Feel free to add me.

StephyA86

I totally understand where you're coming from! I have struggled with finding a good support system too. You CAN do it though! I lost about 70lbs two years ago learning to depend on myself, but stalled and put about half back on. I'm back looking to build a good support system here, which I think was the missing building block for success. Feel free to add me!

jenschroll

You've come to the right place! I've always struggled with being the heavy girl and because I've found some great supporters and tools through MFP. I'm 37 (38 in a few weeks) and my weight loss so far with MFP has been my biggest success story to date. Feel free to add me if you like!