For those who are at, or close to goal...

irishgal44

Tell me how you feel compared to before. Your body, your energy, etc. How has it changed your life? I need some motivation and I need it now. I started college last week (non-traditional student - whew!!)...terrified I will gain and I just need that extra push to keep going. I have never experienced anything lower than I'm at now for weight and I notice I'm comfortable (when I shouldn't be!!). So come one, come all...tell me what it's like. I really would love to hear it!!

I added "before" pictures in my profile tonight to help motivate myself...it is helping a bit. I never want to get back to that weight again - and I won't!!!!!!

I just need that extra motivation and I think hearing how you all feeling at goal (or close) will help give me the motivation I need.

mxmandani

Oh man, I still have fifteen to go, but I have lost 21!

Let me tell you, I used to hate the stairs. I would be so out of breath so fast. Now, it's no problem! I even enjoy the stairs sometimes because it gives me pride to see how much easier it is!

I'm a lot faster too now, and that's fun cause I like playing football (even though I'm not good at it xD)

Overall, I'm more positive now. Everything has gone up since I started losing weight!

kandrews24

I'm not near goal by any means. But thought you might like this site: http://www.mybodygallery.com/

You can type in height and weight and look at pictures of real women at those weights. You can see what you'll look like and maybe that will motivate you to keep losing.

nurse_carolyn

The reason that I am here is that in the last 2 years of being a "non-traditional student" I have gained between 10-12 pounds. This summer I have lost approx 12 pounds and I am feeling so amazing !! I have so much energy and my clothes are fitting and looking so great !!

I start back at school in a few weeks and I am also scared that sitting in class for 20 hours a week plus 45 hours of sitting doing homework and studying I will gain it back. What is different this time is that I WILL make time to exercise and I have found that I CAN read (or study) while on the treadmill so that is what I will do. It's all about "balance" and I will find it:)

good luck to you, you can do it :flowerforyou:

sc1572

AMAZING! I know it's hard work but it pays off...I loveeeee it! Healthier me > junk food, tight clothes, low self esteem

LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo

I actually felt surprised when I finally hit my dream GW of 125 that before I thought is too impossible not to mention that I haven't been wearing a size 26-27 jeans (I'm in other country so I have no idea of the US equivalent size for this) since I was 12 years old & last Saturday I had bought a jeans size 26 although normally I'm a size 27. Now I so looove my new body & I keep on buying body hugging clothes & skinny jeans. I love to show off my curves. To answer your question, it definitely feels different when you finally see the end result of all the hard work & you'd do everything to stay that way. Before I also lost weight on diet pills (later on I gain 3x my weight when I stopped) but not this much like now. It feels like you did a great achievement!

Saruman_w

I definitely feel waay better. More energy, better health, starting to feel better about myself. It was most definitely worth losing all that weight. I'll do whatever it takes not to be that big again.

i_love_vinegar

I start college in around 1 month, and have around 15-20 pounds left to go.

I feel better when I think about how close I am getting to my goal.

I used to wake up drenched in sweat and would run out of breath quickly (at my highest weight, 124 pounds).

Now I feel a lot healthier and don't sweat so much!

I am trying to do a full-makeover on myself before school (because I will be studying abroad in Japan this year...very nervous!!!)

What I love doing is looking at photos of ball jointed dolls and ulzzang (fashion trend where girls look doll-like) as inspiration of what I am trying to reach. You can see a few of the photos in my profile pics of the Ulzzang. Some girls are inspiration for hair, makeup, skin color, but all are beautiful to me

Good luck with school!!! I bet you will continue to do AWESOME, because you sound like a very upbeat and hardworking girl

nsimportant

Those few months just flew past me. Loved the exercises and they made me really fit and got myself toned abit.
Noticed that my portions become smaller and even when i eat sweets or some junk i actually never gorge on it and when i really want to eat alot i just make myself a big green beans chicken and low fat cottage cheese salad.
Planing food in advanced helped me with shopping and actually cut my expenses and I learned to listen to my body telling me when it was really hungry.
And ofc now all my clothes look good on me, i have tons of energy and started doing stuff i never actually had any lust for like hiking, long walks I can hardly be calm these days and noticed how easy it is to do some exercises for around 30-40 minutes a day and feel really good after them.

lisab64

I hit my (never dreamed possible - back to high school weight almost 30 years later) goal in mid April -- lost 50 pounds (197-147) in 9 months (right now actually 6 pounds lower but know I will find them once winter starts). One of the best things about being at my goal is that it takes me like 2 minutes to get dressed in the morning. No more changing clothes a thousand times cuz my fat rolls (or whatever) are showing or that things don't fit right. I find that I actually want to be more social (still a home-body at heart but) and don't mind going out in public like I did before. I also actually love the way I look naked -- which is really funny cuz I do have excess skin (not to mention saggy boobs) but I don't really "see" that when I look in the mirror I only notice my hourglass shape and the fact that my thighs don't touch. Nothing else in my life has changed but I feel so much better about everything. It's amazing what being happy with yourself can do!!!

aoifebr

Hey Irish

I know how you feel re the motivation, mine has been up and down but I've recently stopped focusing on the scales and the numbers & focused on how I feel & what I feel like doing, I'll give you some examples...

In January I struggled walking 10 minutes to the train - now I can sprint, deadlift 50kg, get up at 6am most mornings to train (I used to be late for work most days as I would sleep in).

After a night out I always got a quarter pounder meal with m&m mcflurry - the thought of mcdonalds now makes me feel ill - even eating something greasy/very "bad" I feel ill, I get sluggish & tired - my body says NO!!

Yesterday I packed 4 bin liners full of clothes which dont fit me anymore, it was amazing to try on an old suit jacket which used to be tight now I can wrapped around me & pull up trousers without opening them. It was an amazing feeling & terrible at the same time (how did I let myself get to that point!:mad: )

I guess what I've realised is I want to make health choices and to treat my body like a temple, yes I "forget" sometimes but 95% of the time I'm on track. Why dont you do the same - what exercise can you do now etc You've lost a huge amount of weight - looking at your old pictures your a different person. Have you any of the clothes left?

I hope this help - keep going your doing AMAZINGLY well

katapple

Congrats on your loss so far, you are doing so well! You've worked hard, so I know you won't let yourself eat bad and exercise less

I feel more confident, especially in my clothing and appearance. I love that it's hard for me to take rest days, I always want to do some form of exercise daily. Exercise makes happy and I want to do it all the time! I love that I can run 10 miles with ease and not feel like I am dragging the rest of the day or sore the next. I love that I can go to a restaurant and eat half of my food and feel full and satisfied. I now love shopping and could spend hours doing it (ok, so maybe that's not a good thing :laugh:)

I love that I can make all these choices without difficulty, or remorse. Keep it up girl, you will do just fine!! :flowerforyou:

irishgal44

Wow, thank you everyone! What great advise...love the website! I will respond better after class is done later, but I am truely feeling better and know you all have helped so much.

stellcorb

I joined MFP in August '10 and have since lost over 60lbs. My original goal was 50, but I was able to lose more than I thought I would. I've been maintaining for about 4 months now and have shifted my concentration to working out harder and longer from monitoring calories. I have gained a few back, but I'm still 10 lbs under what I've been most (if not all) of my adult life and feel great! I love being able to work out hard enought to get a real endorphine rush without crashing after. Maintaining has always been more difficult for me than loosing, because it's not an active goal, that's why I'm training for a PR Half marathon in October to keep it up. The biggest challenge will be that I'm trying to get pregnant within the next month or so, I was up to over 200lbs last time... wish me luck!

RILEYRED

IRISH YOU ARE SUCH A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN, BEFORE YOUR WEIGHT LOSS AND AFTER, AND I THINK YOU ARE PROBABLY THE SAME SWEET PERSON INSIDE, DON'T CHANGE,OK??? LOVE, RED

thetrishwarp

I'm close to goal, and I feel great. I still have my moments where I'll stand in front of the mirror and absolutely pick myself apart. But then I remember how much smaller I am, how much more energetic I am, how much more bubbly and outgoing I am - which may seem weird, but I think it stems from a boost in self-confidence. Yes, I still want to build muscle and tone - but I have a sense of pride in terms of where I am and what I built that from.

KenzieKidwell

I have more energy now! I feel more comfortable in my skin! Plus even though I am married it feels good to turn heads again.