Calling all 100+ success stories

AlleyM146

I know I have a 100+ to go, I really want to know what you guys have done that has made the difference. I really feel like this time I can make it happen but , I have felt that way before....and I have just made more mistakes and gained more weight. Now I want the craziness to stop. ANY words of advice would be appreciated.

AlleyM146

I know I have a 100+ to go, I really want to know what you guys have done that has made the difference. I really feel like this time I can make it happen but , I have felt that way before....and I have just made more mistakes and gained more weight. Now I want the craziness to stop. ANY words of advice would be appreciated.

artschoolgirl

I've lost 110 lbs so far. It started falling off of me when I started college. I think just weeding out the junk food slowly made a huge difference plus my 15 minute walks to and from school made a really huge difference (My activity level before hand was close to none). It's amazing how just taking away things slowly makes such a difference. I would recommend starting slow & it will be easy from there! Like, if you eat lots of fried food, I would recommend that the first month your goal be to not eat fried food, then move to sweets or soda if you drink it, small steps like that! You'll be surprised what a huge difference it makes!! Wow, it's amazing how easy it was actually. It's not dieting at all, it really is just changing the way your lifestyle is. My only regret is that I wish I would have exercised in those first years (it's been almost 4 years since i've began losing). If I would have done more walking or other exercise the weight would have been gone a long time ago! Now I'm in my final 20 lbs now! I would recommend that you take it off slowly! Really, taking it nice and slow will give you a much higher chance of keeping it off!

Best of luck!:flowerforyou:

AlleyM146

Thanks for the help and great advice. Sorry for the late reply...I am really trying to push myself to be patient. Funny, I am known as a pretty patient person with others...I just can't seem to be patient with myself! :laugh: :laugh:

dothompson

You've really hit on something here. I lost 115 pounds about 3 years ago and have gained about 40 back, so here I am.

I find that I am really, really hard on myself. It causes a ton of self imposed stress which leads me to eat. Not only that, but I often eat in secret as a weird form of rebellion.

Be as kind, generous, patient and loving with yourself as you are with others. We often feel that it is selfish to put yourself first, but you will need to do that to some extent to be successful in weight loss. However as you lose weight and develop more confidence you will be a better spouse, parent and friend.

TamTastic

Hey there!

I am not sure what happened but something definitely clicked in my head. I have lost a lot of weight in the past but I didn't do it the healthy way. I would either starve myself or take diet pills, etc...and all that does is keep you in un unrealistic mindframe. I didn't want to be patient and do it healthy and educate myself about portions and foods in the process. I wanted quick results. And of course all that did was lead to me gaining it back and then some!

I finally said "Enough is enough!!"...I was avoiding losing weight for a long time because I kept thinking "It will take SO long" . And yes, it WILL take longer to lose a lot of weight if done the healthy way BUT it won't take as long as you think! AND, I finally realized that I can either stay the weight I am and watch the days, weeks and months pass anyway....OR I can lose weight WITH them!

This also has to be a lifestyle change for it to be permanent. You can't be in the frame of mind of "I will eat healthy until I get to my goal and then I can have a Big Mac again!"....you have to do this FOREVER. But, you can get to the point that it's not so stressful and more of a habit. I just started making one small change after another and now I am at the point where it is all habit to me and I feel great. Also, I don't feel deprived at all! I enjoy Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas treats and Super Bowl Sunday junk...I just don't go overboard and I get back on track the next day. It isn't ONE meal that caused you to gain weight and it won't be ONE meal that makes you fall of the wagon. It is allowing that one meal to turn into another day and another day until you are back to your old habits.

What it all comes down to is thinking differently about things. Realizing that food isn't that important. Yes, it is a necessity of life to fuel our bodies...but with that in mind, it shouldn't be too hard to want to feed your body well. Give it foods that will sustain and nourish you.

Anyway, I am down 99 lbs since September and hope to lose another 36. I feel more confident than ever that I can keep this up. I do pray every single day for the continued will to keep going.

Good luck to you!
-Tami

mommared53

Hey there!

I am not sure what happened but something definitely clicked in my head. I have lost a lot of weight in the past but I didn't do it the healthy way. I would either starve myself or take diet pills, etc...and all that does is keep you in un unrealistic mindframe. I didn't want to be patient and do it healthy and educate myself about portions and foods in the process. I wanted quick results. And of course all that did was lead to me gaining it back and then some!

I finally said "Enough is enough!!"...I was avoiding losing weight for a long time because I kept thinking "It will take SO long" . And yes, it WILL take longer to lose a lot of weight if done the healthy way BUT it won't take as long as you think! AND, I finally realized that I can either stay the weight I am and watch the days, weeks and months pass anyway....OR I can lose weight WITH them!

This also has to be a lifestyle change for it to be permanent. You can't be in the frame of mind of "I will eat healthy until I get to my goal and then I can have a Big Mac again!"....you have to do this FOREVER. But, you can get to the point that it's not so stressful and more of a habit. I just started making one small change after another and now I am at the point where it is all habit to me and I feel great. Also, I don't feel deprived at all! I enjoy Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas treats and Super Bowl Sunday junk...I just don't go overboard and I get back on track the next day. It isn't ONE meal that caused you to gain weight and it won't be ONE meal that makes you fall of the wagon. It is allowing that one meal to turn into another day and another day until you are back to your old habits.

What it all comes down to is thinking differently about things. Realizing that food isn't that important. Yes, it is a necessity of life to fuel our bodies...but with that in mind, it shouldn't be too hard to want to feed your body well. Give it foods that will sustain and nourish you.

Anyway, I am down 99 lbs since September and hope to lose another 36. I feel more confident than ever that I can keep this up. I do pray every single day for the continued will to keep going.

Good luck to you!
-Tami

Wow! Very well said Tam. :flowerforyou:

Betty

timragan

Hi Alley, I've lost just over 100 lbs and still have about 75 to go. From a sanity perspective I tell myself that I can eat pizza, french fries, etc., fill in the blank, just not today. I also know that I will eat/drink things that are not good for me and when it happens I shrug it off and move on. I don't beat myself up anymore and use the one bad food decision to lead to days, weeks, months, or in my case, years of eating whatever I wanted.

I listened to a guy speak recently who had weighed 563 lbs and was down to 210. His talk was interesting. One comment that stuck with me was this: For long term success you have to change what you love. His point was that being in love with cheeseburgers and pizza is inconsistent with weight loss or weight maintenance if you have issues like all of us in this forum do.

Change what you love. I am really starting to love celery.

Good luck to all of us.
Tim

AlleyM146

Wow, you have all given great words of wisdom. I loved the comment about learning to change what you love...I can learn to love celery. :laugh: :laugh: I am learning to love Pommegranete juice. I was diagnosed about a year ago with High Blood pressure. A recent study (but I don't know from where) said that 2 oz of pommegranete juice daily can drastically reduce blood pressure. My first thought was why can't it be "hot chocolate"? Now I am going to convince myself that PJ is even better. That other stuff is just too sweet anyway...Also, thinking of this as a huge weight loss is daunting. Breaking it into chunks just makes it somehow more manageable. You guys are smart!! Thanks for the support.:flowerforyou:

artschoolgirl

You can do it! Take it slow, don't deprive yourself, learn smart solutions to everyday temptations & find alternatives. Trust me, I never thought i'd be weighing in at 155! I haven't weighed that since I was in elementary school

Do it! MFP is the best way to get started! You have all of us to contact!!!! Yah!

timragan

Great comments artschoolgirl. I especially like the "don't deprive yourself" comment.