Hi Everyone! My name is Nancy! I'm from a small town in Michigan. I have lost weight many times before but seem to find it hard to keep off. This time I need to lose and keep it off for good due to health reasons. I'm at my heaviest I've ever been. I've lost 7 pounds so far but I have a long way to go. I weigh 274.4 as of today. I'd like to lose 20 pounds in this challenge. My favorite color is purple and black. My favorite food is CHOCOLATE! Yes, folks, I'm a chocoholic! My favorite books and TV shows are mystery and/or crime. I haven't been able to do much exercise due to my medical problems. I do work full-time and get some exercise that way. It's partly due to my meds that I've gained so much weight and the doctor told me it will be hard to lose. So, I need as much support as I can get. I don't have a great support system at home. FEEL FREE TO ADD ME AS A FRIEND! I'm looking forward to the challenge and getting to know all of you better!

Hi, my name is Sandy. I live in Albuquerque so our weather is totally opposite from where you live! I have yo-yo'd dieted for the past 20 years. I want to lose this weight once and for all. I don't want to use my weight as an excuse for living life. I weigh 209 as of this morning. I want to lose down to 195 at the end of this 10 week challenge. I haven't been under 200 in five years. I really packed on the weight when I went through menopause. The hormone treatment I was on took away my hot flashes but it packed on the pounds too. I also went through a major depression when my It's taken me time and counseling to handle my grief differenly. I'll always miss my son, but I still have my daughter and two grandchildren to think about. I have my grandson from my son and I don't want to mess him up by associating saddness with his dad's memory. His dad loved life and enjoyed life and I want him to associate that with his dad's memory.

I'm also a chocoholic...I love love chocolate. I need to find healthier and low calorie chocolate treats to satisfy my cravings. As for my interests, I like to read crime suspense books and my favorite channel is ID. I work in the judicial field and you would think I would be tired of crime stories, but I'm not.

My favorite season is fall. I don't like to be too cold and I hate to be hot...that's an oximoron because I live in the desert. :grumble: I like to walk...I used to run but now my knees can't take it and I have no stamina. I joined a running group and my coach had me doing a slow trot. My daughter called it the fatman trot...I asked her where she got that and she said that's what they called the heavy football players at school. Gee thanks :embarassed:

Well, I see a lot of bright and curious faces. Curious, aren't you? Ah but all will be revealed shortly, for now, allow me to take you back before I stumbled upon this topic.

It doesn't seem that long ago when I first joined MFP. I remember looking up ways to track your food because I had finally managed to get an ipod touch and I was tired of being overweight. Google oogled for me this site and I was immediately hooked. Motivation? People were there to steer me away from that stray sugar cookie. Food? Exercise? It has loads of both for easy application. But you want to know what got me? Challenges.

I'm fiercely competitive. That is basically what it narrows down to. I had previously been in another challenge and unfortunately family/school stress made it nearly impossible for me to continue. I was literally devastated. I felt as though I had let down my team who had motivated me. I know you're thinking now../wait..why are you here then?/ I'll tell you why. I'm addicted to Challenges and I want to finish one. I would love to win but most importantly, I want to finish this.

I have had a real rough time with food. I have both loved and hated it. There have been times when I could not look at myself because I would either enter into a state of self-abuse or I would become physically ill. I currently battle this but I am proud to say that I am making a recovery. What also makes it tough for me is that I have PCOS and it seems almost impossible to lose it. Still, the war over the fork (shall we say) has lasted longer than it should have. The battle of the bulge stops here. (hehehe I'm so punny)

Oooh Yay, this is the interesting part folks. Here's were things get more exciting!
"Where are you from?"
Practically all over is what I want to say. Born in Texas. Early childhood in Virigina. Late childhood in California. Rest of my life has been lived in Oregon and I have grown to enjoy its bipolar weather.

What is your favorite color, Cerlean/ Dodger blue. These blues are just beautiful~
season, : My favorite season..s are Spring and Fall. I love the way the air feels and its perfect jogging weather.
food, : Chinese food. Its addicting.
television series,: My Little Pony, Hetalia, Durarara, Dr.Who, Supersize vs Superskinny, Whats Eating You
books, and hobby? ooh well now I love the Hunger games Series and The Eragon series. I love dragon books, mysteries and some thriller books. Ted Dekker is an amazing author!

Where would you visit if you could visit any place in the world!!?? -- and why? I actually haven't thought too much into this. I suppose I'd love to visit Italy just because its very beautiful and I'm learning Italian. Or Spain. I love the Spanish Culture ( and I'm fairly good at Spanish : ) ]

What are your favorite workout routines?
Omg this is the hardest question. I switch this up so much uhhhh..

I start off with Look Better Naked workout in the morning. I start my week off with the Aerobic and the next day do strength.
I generally try to do so many pushups etc through-out my day just to keep my metabolism up.
I used to walk 5 miles every day and I'd love to push it to 7.
At night I do pilates to stretch and as a reward for working out. Stretching is great and it feels awesome, far much better than a sugar cookie.

What does my routine this turn about?
I plan on doing the Look Better Naked workouts
30 Day shred with my mother as a work-out buddy
Ripped - (college's version of p90x)
and Pilates.
I'll walk the 7 miles on weekends.

Start and Goals:
My starting weight is 172
My goal weight is 115
I'm 5'1.5 literally I'm not even kidding.

Anyway, feel free to add me and yeah.

Hi I'm Kim, 32 single mother of one adorable 6 year old living in Colorado. I've lost 90lbs that I have been able to maintain but I never did quite reach my goal. I'd like to lose a total of 32 pounds in 2013 but probably just 10 of that will happen during this challenge. Maybe a couple more if I am lucky. I enjoy working out and take all kinds of classes at my gym near my work that I go to during lunch breaks. I enjoy running even if I'm slow and I've done my fair share of 5Ks and a few half marathons. In 2013 I'd like to beat my personal best running goals and add in a few strength goals. I still haven't been able to do even one pull up and I'd like to be able to do 20 "real" push-ups those kinds of things. Right now I know my problem is sugar and fat. Once I'm able to take these out of my diet for a while again I'm sure I will start to see the scale move in the direction of my goal.

hi everyone my name is Lisa i am 28 years old. I have been with one guy my whole life who tells me i am beautiful but i just dont feel it myself. we have been together for 12 years 12.18.01 i started my journey at 212lbs i am currently 172 i would love to reach 140 as my ultimate goal but we will see. i am doing 30ds and enjoy running i am looking to do a 5k every month. i am excited about this challenge for the new year and i wish everyone of you good luck you can do anything you put your mind to.

Hi! My name is Liz and I am 54 years old. I was born and raised in Connecticut and I still live here. My weight loss journey started at age 13 at Weight Watchers. I am very good at losing weight, but I am lousy at keeping it off. I made a decision last year to get healthy, lose weight and keep it off. I lost 40lbs and then herniated a disk in my back - which was not related to exercise or getting fit. I spent a couple of months flat on my back while trying conservative methods which did not help at all when my rheumatologist told me to go see a neurosurgeon. That was the best advice ever. Disk surgery, at least in my case, was outpatient surgery. My mom said I practically danced out of the hospital as the pain of the incision was nothing when compared to the pain I had been in for those previous months. Unfortunately, that period of pain and inactivity brought back all of my previous bad habits. I finally got my act back in gear the second week of September when I joined a Lose to Win group at the local YMCA. It is a 7 week program and I will be starting my third session on January 7th. I am only 4lbs away from losing the 40lbs that I lost and then gained back due to my disk/bad habits, etc.

On to the more interesting stuff -

Color - Blue
Season - Spring and Fall
TV - Mostly dramas
Books - Mystery, Thrillers, Romance
Hobbies - Reading, Knitting, Crocheting
Places to visit - I fulfilled a lifelong dream when I got to see the pyramids in Egypt a few years ago. Going on a cruise at the end of April to revisit some of my favorite Italian and Greek places (Sorrento, Mykonos, Santorini) with the addition of a first time visit to Venice. I can't wait!
Favorite workout routines - Water aerobics, spinning, weight machines

I am looking forward to this challenge!!

Hey everyone,

I am Aditi, 25 yrs old from India. I have been obese as far as I remember but in september 2012 after visiting my home town and meeting a lot of people who looked good I finally decided that I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and do something about it.

I love cooking and work as a food researcher from home, I have a wedding to attend in April 2013 of my cousin where I atleast want to look decent size and be in my 80s (kg). My brother is getting married in dec 2013 so I want to reach my goal wt by then and have a toned body too.

I recently turned my passion for food from a misfortune to a fortune by learning how to tweak healthy foods according to my taste to satisfy myself.

So far I have lost wt since october without any exercising, but will join a gym in jan after new yrs.

Color: black and red
Season : monsoon
TV : all sitcoms and cooking shows
Books: from robin cook, arthur hailey. robert ludlum, danielle steel, to any thin random but strictly fiction.

I am really excited to join this group and turn my life around in 2013.

My name is Ashley and I am 27 years old.....I currently weigh 225...my goal weight by March 20 is 200. I started changing my lifestyle and eating healthy about 2 years ago. I got down to about 200. This summer I did not workout as much and stayed at home and did nothing but eat!

I live in Texas and am a Special Education Teacher. I have always had a problem with my weight. When I was 9 years old my parents went through a very nasty divorce, my mom gave me food or took me out to eat to make me feel better. I have been comfort eater ever since. When I am stressed I eat, when I am happy I eat, when I am sad I eat. I eat all the time for any reason. I am addicted to food, 9 months ago I was additiced to exercising. I would go to the gym at least 4 times a week and walk 3 1/2 miles five days a week. I want to get back to exercising again. I enjoy running, walking, riding bike and working out on the Wii and Jillian Micheals workout videos.

I have two favorite colors: purple and red, I am not married and do not have any children, unless you count my six little students. This is my first year teaching, so I have been stressed out a little!!! I need to find a hoppy to do when I am stressed instead of eating.

Hi, my name is Samantha and my goal is to lose 15-20 pounds in the 10 weeks

Age: 31
From: Twin Cities
Color: blue
Food: anything mexican
TV: Person of interest
Visit: Spain, Jamaica, or anywhere warm lol
Workout: curves, good cardio and resistance

Hi. Im Tom. Im 39 years old and 13 lbs into loosing 50 lbs!
My workuts include biking or walking i do weights for my back, chest, arms, and abs. Also i call cleaning a workout to!
My hobbies are cooking and reading. I love my xbox and fishing to.
TV series, like NCIS & CSI
Im in Metro Detroit MI
i am also a dog person, my dog is a Beagle named Chloe. She a bit of a fattie!!
You can add me atinstagram tjwright513
And tumblr tw513.tumblr.com

Good morning everyone! So glad to have found this group and looking forward to this challenge!

I'm Desiree and I'm 38 years old. I'm looking to devote 2013 to ME and getting healthier! I'm married to a wonderful hubby and have an 18 year old daughter. We also have 4 fur-babies: a dog named Buzz and 3 cats, Loki, Doyle and Oz

I am from Baton Rouge, LA
Colors: Purple and gold, baby!
Season: Spring
Food: Mexican or Chinese
Tv- Game of Thrones, Dexter, The Walking Dead, How I Met Your Mother, 30 for 30
Books: Black Dagger Brotherhood series, True Blood, any true crime books, Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman
Visit: I'd love to visit England and Scotland one of these days!

I'm Sandra and lost 4 and a half stones last year. I reckon I need to lose a further 35 lbs despite a couple of friends' well meaning (or envious??) advice that I don't need to lose any more!!

Hi everyone! My name's Jenn, I'm 24 and I weigh 247. I'd like to lose 15-20 lbs in 10 weeks.

I've had a rough 6 mos., moving to a new city, living off of pasta for a while, etc. I'm finally in a good place and ready to get back in the game!

i live in Maine where it is ridiculously cold right now haha Favorite color: red, favorite food: sushi, season: fall, tv series: Grey's Anatomy, Book: Wicked, Hobby: dont really have one. Guess i need one haha I've always wanted to visit Oregon. I'm currently a nursing student and when I graduate, I want to go to the Oregon Health and Science University for my Masters in Nurse Midwifery. As far as a favorite workout, I'm trying to figure that out!

Can't wait to get started!

Game on!

Hi I'm Shanna. 31 years old and 230 pounds. I had gotten down to 209 pounds, then gained it all back. This time I want to keep it off for good. I have a boyfriend of almost 2 years and we have 4 dogs.

Fav color- Purple
Fav food- Sushi
Fav season- Fall and Winter
Fav tv show- Golden Girls
Fav book- A whole lot of them. I love love love love to read
Fav hobby- Reading, crocheting, video games
Travel- I would go all over the world at least once. If I could only pick one place..... Ireland
Fav workout-any kind of dance

I'm so excited to start the challenge!!

I have no friends so far so please feel free to add me. I am also looking for my twin, I posted in the twin section of anyone else is still looking.

Hello everybody! My name is Jennifer. I just turned 31 on Dec 17th. Just yesterday I reached my new years goal of being under 200 lbs which has made me ecstatic! I have lost a total of 13 lbs so far. I still have 58.6 to go as of today. I want to be 140 lbs. I am 5'3". I live in Louisville, KY. Favorite color is purple. I'd like to lose 15 lbs in the 10 week challenge that you all are doing. I think it can be done with discipline. Right? I mean I've lost 13 lbs so far since Nov 1st. It can be done! *<{:0)

SW: 211.6
CW: 198.6
GW: 140.0

Jennifer

Name: Leah Estey

How much would you like to lose by the end of the New Year New You 2013 challenge??
19 pounds

Where are you from? What is your favorite color, season, food, television series, books, and hobby?
Augusta, Maine
Purple
Spring
strawberry short cake
Xena or Star Trek TNG
Can't read books with 3 kids in the house
rollerskating

Where would you visit if you could visit any place in the world!!?? -- and why?
Hawaii, sandy beaches and warm water

What are your favorite workout routines?
Zumba and walking