Introductions!

Icebureau
Icebureau Posts: 7 Member
Hey all, just to kick things off, let's introduce ourselves. Feel free to write whatever you want, but since our goals and stats are available on our profile pages, I'm going to talk about other things. :) After all, none of us is *defined* by the weight we are trying to lose!

I am a law student based in Massachusetts. I grew up in Minnesota but came out east for college, and I spent the year between college and law school living in Shanghai and Beijing. While I was in China I enjoyed eating all the things (yum, street food...!!!), but when I came back, I decided to try being vegetarian, just to see how I'd like it and whether I could stick with it. I found that I really enjoyed a pescatarian diet (no meat or poultry, but fish allowed) because I love seafood and particularly SUSHI. However, after enjoying a new year's feast of a delicious, bright red lobster, I am going full frontal vegetarian and saying goodbye to my friends of the sea... at least for now. For hobbies, I enjoy lifting weights, playing Magic the Gathering, reading both fiction and nonfiction (mainly novels and social sciences), and trying new restaurants. I've also recently picked up violin again--after a 10 year hiatus I am not very good, but it's fun!

I'm looking forward to "meeting" all of you!

Replies

  • 805surf
    805surf Posts: 5 Member
    I am an ex-fat kid. Was 6'3" 330 at 19, went to 180 (too skinny) by 22, back to 235 by age 36 (recently). I have dropped a little over 20 lbs since October - down to 213 right now. My ticker says I've lost 16 or so but I didnt' start tracking until 230. Goal weight is 205, then I plan to focus on strength training and up my calories to sligthly more than a maintenance level to build muscle. I plan on making weight training and regular cardio a part of my life for the rest of my life. I get plenty of cardio already as a daily surfer, but "just surfing" doesn't get my body out of its comfort zone.

    I just want to kick *kitten* when the apocalypse comes, not be stuck screaming and panicking and unable to so much as climb a tree for safety. I want to be healthy for my family, too. At this point in my life it's not that important to me to "look good without my shirt" so that really isnt my motivation.

    Right now I am stuck on week 3 of a nasty plateau at 213. I plan on breaking it by swinging around my daily calories up and down then changing up and adding to my cardio routine... only 8 pounds left to go. I got all the willpower and motivation of a charging rhino right now, I'm confident I'll succeed.

    Good to meet you all, lets kick some *kitten*.
  • hawkeyehoulihan
    hawkeyehoulihan Posts: 2 Member
    hey everyone! my name is Tiffany.

    I am a 31 year old social worker/organizer living in DC, but originally from Florida. I've been on the slightly chubby side my whole life- runs in my family too. However I've managed to stay at a healthy weight since recovering from cancer treatment in 2010. I even ran my first 10K in October. But, in the last few months, my job has gotten incredibly stressful and the result is a sort of eating/drinking/not exercising with abandon. I've decided to hop onto the January health bandwagon when everyone's still enthusiastic! I don't have a lot of hardcore number goals, I just would love to take the family cruise we've got planned in July and not have to "screen" the pictures to make sure I look OK in them...

    I have an awesome partner (who introduced me to Reddit!) and a handful of a beagle dog, both are supportive! As for my work, it doesn't look like it will be any less stressful any time soon (when people stop exploiting their nannies/housekeepers I can take a vacation!).

    Good luck to everyone! Thanks for starting this up!
  • Hello everyone!

    My name is Rob and I am a 33 year old teacher born and raised in Baltimore. I've always been the 'big guy'. About 3 months ago I read an that talked about how children's health and body type generally comes from the father. I don't want my kids to be like I was growing up. I decided to change my life. I started at 283. I am down to 262 (as of new years) just from counting calories. Been lurking on LoseIt for a while, and decided to join some groups are really get it done this year.
  • Dandelionesss
    Dandelionesss Posts: 9 Member
    Hello everyone, I'm so glad we've found each other!

    I will be 25 in a few days and have been trying to lose weight since I was 20. Wow, I hadn't realized it has been so long. I was a skinny kid and teen and then one day that changed and I've been gaining steadily since. I am really excited about finding a community to do this with and am going to be as involved as I can be because no one in my life is able to keep me accountable, and I am really struggling to do so myself.

    I live with my wonderfully supportive boyfriend and my two Sphynx cats. I can't tell you seriously enough how much I love my cats. It only recently occured to me that other people think that about their pets, but I'm still convinced I have something special.

    I've never successfully lost more than 5lbs, so I am going to start off very strict calorie counting to try to drop some weight I will notice to hopefully get me kick started. I was training with a personal trainer 2-3 times a week for a few months but because of my horrible diet I didn't get to see any results from my hard work (other than getting a lot stronger). I do have quite a few sessions left but I'm putting that on pause until I get my eating under control.

    I look forward to learning more about you all and achieving our goals together!
  • Hey all,
    I'm a 20-something software developer living in cold, cold Wisconsin. I've been half-assed trying to lose weight for a long time, as I've always been a bit chubby. However, I've never gotten too far--last year was my best attempt when I lost around 8lbs. However, I've gained back 4 of those after I got lazy the last few months of the year.

    I've never actually acknowledged my attempts at weight loss to anyone other than myself. So, I'm hoping announcing it in this slightly more public way will spur me on to actually try this year.

    In terms of hobbies and junk, I do lots of hiking and other outdoor activities (though less so in the winter). I've also been trying to make running a part of my life (I ran a half marathon last year), but damn is it boring to run.

    Happy New Year and good luck to everyone in their goals!
  • Hey guys,
    My name is Quyen (pronounced like Quinn). I'm 24 and a student in marketing. I have always been on the thin side growing up but two years ago I was having health issues and as a last resort, my doctor put me on bc. I I gained at least 40 lbs. I've been struggling with my weight ever since then. I've tried dieting, exercising, calorie counting and just down right giving up. I'm exhausted with how much I try and have nothing to show for it. I work at a gym, I have all this equipment available to me. The lastest thing for weight training from Europe is available to me for free. I have a personal trainer, I'm getting stronger but my body isn't doing anything but staying flabby. I just want to give up sometimes and it kills me. I used to be a model, I've done magazines and calenders, but ever since I gained all this weight, i'm embarrassed of myself. I used to go out to clubs and raves, dance all night but now I constantly need to take breaks and forget about wearing skimpy clothing (not like I did anyway but I had the options to)! I'm just ashamed of myself now. Wow...this got depressing pretty fast.

    ...I like penguins. Slightly obsessed with penguins. Not sure why, I just always loved them. I love my video games. Anything with zombies besides dead island I love. I play league of legends. I like traveling. I love playing in the snow even though I never have the proper clothing. I've ran outside before in my pjs just to make a snow angel and ran inside. No regrets. Damn great snow angel I do say so myself.
  • Well hello everyone... I am jackelface on Reddit, brad_lay on MFP, and http://www.fitbit.com/user/28PJJ9 on Fitbit.

    I'm 34, LOVE food, and am on my 42,201th attempt at losing weight. In my days of when I was more accepting of myself, I proclaimed that my stomach was a trophy for all the awesome things I've ate (I don't remember where I heard that).

    I had great success with losing weight in 2007 and lost seventy pounds with a combination of Weight Watchers and hitting the gym HARD. Then I got a little cocky about my weight loss, went back to old habits and gained it all back... and then some.

    Last summer my family and I relocated, along with my job, from Minnesota to Georgia. I have a very dark sense of humor and do not identify socially or politically with the common Georgia resident so finding friends has been difficult. I've gained thirty pounds since moving here and was already one hundred pounds overweight before I moved.

    My motivation lately? I haven't lost anyone I know personally to complications from obesity but I do know friends of friends that have and that freaks the hell out of me, especially as I get older. Death itself doesn't scare me as much as leaving my wife and kids behind without a husband and father. Also, I tried donating blood recently at Red Cross and I was denied because I weighed too much for the portable cots they used. Seriously. So... enough of this crap. I need to do this and keep it off this time. This is ridiculous!
  • mividasaludable
    mividasaludable Posts: 8 Member
    Hello! My name is Laura. I'm 27 and working on my PhD in chemistry, researching metabolic changes caused by diabetes. I'm so glad you guys introduced me to this site :) I'm here to improve my energy level, mood, and overall health. I definitely tend to crash and burn when I come home from the lab and I would love to have the energy to go to the gym or cook a healthy meal instead of watching Netflix on the couch.

    Never really had a problem with weight but I would love to do some toning up! In the last year or so I've discovered the joys of weight lifting and I have found it to be so much more enjoyable than cardio. When I work out I try to do half an hour to an hour of cardio followed by at least 3 weight training exercises (squats, bench press, and deadlift are my favorites). However I'm still new to it so if anyone has any advice on more effective lifts or techniques I would love to hear it. I also take a piyo class which I really enjoy. Now, if I could just make it to the gym more than once a week.

    Anyway, just wanted to say you guys are all so inspiring and I look forward to getting to know you :)
  • Hey all, I'm a 23 year old ginger originally from Washington state currently living in QLD Australia. A few things I've been dreaming of since I was in high school included visiting Australia (and two online friends who lived there), living in a foreign country for a year, and getting to a healthy BMI.

    As a freshman in high school (year 9) I weighed in at about 170 lbs, but was pretty healthy and active. Early on in my sophomore year (year 10) I tore an ACL playing volleyball and wasn't properly diagnosed for about 3 months (my doctor told me "I've seen grown men cry with torn ACL's, you're not in enough pain to have that kind of injury." so I walked on crutches and hobbled around on it for far too long) Eventually they gave me the freakin' MRI and I had to have reconstructive surgery on both my meniscus and ACL. During the down time following I gained about 20 lbs or so, which sucked and took a huge toll on my confidence.

    Come Junior year, I started respecting myself enough to attempt to lose weight. Really I just got crazy active over the summer, I was about 208 lbs then and lost 8 lbs or so. Then my horse reared up and fell on my OTHER leg, tearing my OTHER ACL, resulting in another surgery and another gain of 10-12lbs or so.

    I graduated in 2009 at around 220 lbs.

    Then I went to community college, had a job, my own car, my own money so I felt crazy independent but was addicted to World of Warcraft and fast food. Gained an additional 40 lbs in that time. Ugh. When I think about how I ate and lived back then it makes me sick. I would literally spend the entire day in my bed with the laptop on my stomach questing.

    *Disclaimer, this is the type of super ****ty shameful eating I was doing during that time* This is from a reddit thread I posted to:
    Take a trip down memory lane. What was the biggest, most calorific, out of control portion sized meal you can remember eating (back when) that now just makes you cringe?
    This isn't exactly one meal, but I thought I'd get this off my chest... During my first quarter of college I would stop by McDonalds and get a 10 piece chicken nugget meal with large fries, a large coke and a L Mcflurry and eat it on the way home. Then when I got home I'd eat dinner with my parents. Then I'd go to my boyfriends house and eat dinner with him and his family. Shortly after we'd drive the 1 block to the store and get a king size candy bar and soda (or 2) each as well as a bag of chips and/or pint of ice cream for later that night. I lived like that for at least three months... holy **** that is shameful.

    Despite it all, I worked hard and graduated with high honors and a 3.89 GPA.

    I have a general AA with my major focus being on Diagnostic ultrasound prerequisites (A&P. Physics, Pre-cal etc.) I've applied to the program twice now, first time I was declined outright, the second time I made the alternate list. There are only two accredited US schools in western WA and they each accept about 15 people (so 30 total). I think there were 400+ applicants this last year alone, so I guess I should be happy I was an alternate, but overall still no luck.

    Jumped on the fitness bandwagon with my mom in early 2012 and lost 60 lbs. Got cocky. Thought I was too awesome to gain all my weight back.

    Anyway I became a medical scribe to test the waters of the medical field and what I was getting in to. Worked in the ER and saw massive people with massive issues due to obesity, HTN and diabetes, and yet still the stress of the job and constant temptations there... guess what? Gained back every. single. pound. Didn't know until recently because I was literally too afraid to weigh myself but I could tell by my pants size, lemme tell yah.

    Started hating my job (so much stress, 11 dollars an hour, watching children die wasn't worth it.). Moved back in with fiances parents (because they were struggling financially) after living on my own with fiance for over a year = strain on relationship big time. Depressed about my weight. Depressed about school.

    So I started thinking, why the hell not go to Australia. Applied for working holiday visa, got it, bought my ticket like 3 days later, jumped on a plane in September 2013 (after never having traveled alone anywhere, last trip was to the grand canyon with my parents when I was 11) and flew down here.

    Met up with a WoW friend I had been talking with for ages and we started losing weight together. He was 180 kg at the start and is in the 150's now. Super proud of him, he keeps me motivated.

    Currently I'm working as a live in nanny, which definitely has it's ups and downs.

    Anyway there is my life story in a nut shell. I'm kind of an obnoxious geek, who sticks her foot in her mouth way too often but I'm really sensitive and care about people a lot. I love animals. Horses and dogs especially. I have a 1 year old Great Dane back home with my (ex, but not really ex) fiance who I miss dearly. Annnnddd that's me and my journey thus far.

    Let's kick some serious *kitten* this year loseit!

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  • TurtleHana
    TurtleHana Posts: 5 Member
    Hi all,

    I don't have much to say about myself other than I'm trying not to think about it as a diet and more so a lifestyle change. That is because I'm doing this to lower my glucose in a healthy way before it gets out of control and I need medicated.

    In 2009 I was 170lbs, my heaviest. I managed to lose 10lbs on my own then another 10lbs last year however I gained 10lbs back after being lazy.

    BMI says I should be between 117-135lbs but BMI doesn't know my body frame, etc. When I graduated high school in 2005 I was 120lbs and I looked sick from being so thin. I'd be happy with being at the higher end of the weight range so my goal is 135lbs.

    Good luck everyone. I'm looking forward to your support or just feeling like I'm in this with a group. My husband is doing this with me though so I do have some support here.
  • krisflower19
    krisflower19 Posts: 17 Member
    Hi

    I'm Kris, 20yo from NZ (originally from Zimbabwe). I'm studying nursing at Massey University. I was always overweight until bullying and parental pressure 'encouraged' me to lose weight. I lose too much and became anorexic at 16 (lost 50kgs in a couple of months), spent time in hospital and a care facility.
    After I was released everyone consistently told me 'you can eat whatever you want' and something clicked and I started eating over 6000 calories a day.
    I suffer with BED (binge eating and not purging) but I exercise hard so If I get my diet under control I should be very successful in losing the last 15kgs. I love exercise and sports and i'm currently doing Insanity workouts with great results so far.

    I'm lucky enough to have a best friend who is losing weight with me who has more sense than I do :)
  • mumblesbot
    mumblesbot Posts: 5 Member
    Suuuppp I'm Kelly. A 27 (I feel so old) living in Cali with my bf and two cats. I used to really not give a **** about health because I've always generally liked how I looked. This was a mistake! I ****ed up my back a couple years ago and since then I've been making slow, careful recovery. I'm terrible at eating healthy sometimes, but I really love exercise (because it saved my *kitten* from walking with a cane or a brace my whole life) and I'm forcing myself to be a little more thoughtful about good food. I started MFP on the light about a year ago and lost some weight while my body was recovering from the back injury. Now that I'm feeling stronger and I know my spine like the back of my hand, I'm ready to go all in.

    To me? This whole thing is going to be a lifestyle change (for the better). I've seen the shape my parents are in and I want health to be an important part of my life forever. I want to be able to do advanced yoga **** and eventually I want to be able to ****ing run like a champ.

    I'm here to kick *kitten*!
  • Sshamrock17s
    Sshamrock17s Posts: 6 Member
    Hi everyone I'm Stephanie- a 27 year old dental hygienist currently snowed in at upstate ny. So many of your stories sound so much like mine. I was skinny all through highschool and started gaining toward the end of my senior year. I have hit the gym on and off through the years. Never keeping off what I lose. This is the year I have decided I'm going to do it for good. My biggest struggle being eating. Really working on eating healthy and concentrating on that.
  • Hi everyone, I feel like I should post too since reddit brought me here and I'm friends with a good majority of the people who have already posted.

    So, I'm Caroline. 17 years old, and a home schooled junior. In 2012 I successfully lost 15 pounds then I got in an extremely unhealthy relationship which ended very poorly, not too long after I was diagnosed with depression and social anxiety. Needless to say I gained all my weight back and then some. (I believe I was at 155 at my lowest when I was about 5'6", a few months ago, at my highest I was 199.5 at 5'8" and now I'm 176.5). On November 9th my boyfriend of 5 months and I separated and I kicked my *kitten* into gear. Now I'm at a point where I'm losing weight at a moderately rapid pace and I can honestly say that I'm addicted to exercise. My depression is getting MUCH better due to my healthier eating/exercising habits, and the anti-depressant I started on.

    My parents are divorced and my mom and I have serious relationship discourse. This alone inspires me to work very hard at school and propel myself towards college. I hope to work for a company where I can travel and drastically improve my (3 years of) Spanish and (1 year of) Mandarin skills. I would love to be multilingual one day! In the meantime I plan to hit the gym up on an extremely regular basis and have a body I can be confident and proud of.

    You guys are all awesome, and I love working with you on the way to our fitness goals. :)
  • mwpenner
    mwpenner Posts: 1 Member
    I guess it's time I introduce myself as well. I have been a member (only lurk) of reddit for... well a year tomorrow. I subscribed to r/loseit that day. My weight has been all over the place. I used to play provincial Rugby and was also a lineman in Football. When I played I was about 350lbs, but mostly muscle.
    I got injured and decided that contact sports were no longer a thing I could do. Problem was I kept the calorie intake of a heavy weight lifter, but I stopped lifting weights. I never got over than 350lbs, but lost a substantial amount of muscle. Fast forward to an ex -wife and a new life. In 2006 I decided I should get back in shape. I did the Atkins diet and hit the weights again, I dropped down to about 265lbs put on a good amount of muscle and felt really good about my self. I met my current wife and things got busy, the gym became less and less until it no longer happened. I gained back about 40lbs and felt pretty ****ty about my self. in 2011 I started Atkins again, and dropped down to about 250lbs. I couldn't keep up with the Atkins and guess what, 305 lbs again.
    I turned 30 in 2013 and decided that this yo-yo dieting bs was not going to happen anymore. I decided to make a full lifestyle change. I don't get down on my self if I eat bad food, I just work it off. I allow myself cheat days, cheat weeks, cheat holidays... Whatever it takes. I always have an end game to it though and have not set a goal. For the first time I don't feel restricted by what I am eating, I am enjoying it. I bought a fitbit along with another guy at work and it has made a world of difference, those 5 blinking lights have made me move more, take the stairs, park as far away as possible... you get the idea.
    So here I am now, 262 pounds, happy, healthy and in dire need of clothes that fit me.
    The moral of my story is, fad diets and quick losses are great temporarily, but if you restrict yourself from foods you love, you will at some point binge. You may have the will power to stop after one time I didn't, and will never diet again.

    Glad to see everyone kicking *kitten* on here!
  • fortunered
    fortunered Posts: 3 Member
    Hey r/loseit. I joined this group when it was posted on reddit but havent had a chance to really check it out until now. Id really like to reach my weight loss goals in 2014, as last year was kind of yo-yoing in terms of my weight and I could never really keep at it long enough to make a difference. My weight hovers around 150-55. Ideally i'd like to get to 140. I was almost there at 148, but I got off track. This week I started the 30 day shred, and logistically I cannot do it every day because of scheduling, but I am trying for minimum every other day. I've been calorie counting and clean eating for some time now.. so, I hope I stay motivated this time.
  • polkaduck
    polkaduck Posts: 1 Member
    Hey, I'm polkaduck on mfp and reddit.

    I'm 21, f, 5'7 and from the uk.

    I have always been pretty active, I walk most places I go, I do yoga, run at least once a week and swim roughly twice a week (I'm a synchro coach so have 4sessions a week but in water for about half an hour a session).

    I have always LOVED food. I love cooking and baking, read cook books as you would a normal book regularly. When I lived with my parents my weight was fine, I always felt like I was massive, but looking back at pictures etc I really wasn't. Then I moved out and went to uni. First year I actually lost some weight, then second year I lived with a Flatmate who had a pretty serious eating disorder and basically ended up compensating for her- making bigger meals for the two of us to eat, etc. I also became really stressed and depressed, from this and other things that were going on at the time. Through the depression I developed social anxiety and basically I was eating ALL the time and piled on a tonne of weight.

    2 years on and my depression and anxiety are (90%) gone, I'm off meds, still friends with but not living with ex-Flatmate (it was too toxic and I couldn't cope), so things are much better- yay!

    My highest weight was 84kg this summer. Ideally I would like to graduate from university at roughly the weight I started, so that I can go on to the next chapter of my life as a healthy individual. I'm currently sitting at c. 78kg, and want to get down to c. 63kg by the end of July.

    The biggest change for me has simply been to cut the comfort eating. I've also cut down on drinking, and now that I am counting calories I am starting to really notice the weight coming off gradually. I'm not worrying too much about upping my activity levels as I keep reading that weightless is mostly diet, and with being in my final semester/the amount I already do I simply don't have the time to add more excercise in!

    So that's my little story, feel free to add me on mfp and we can cheer each other along!
  • ChangingWorlds
    ChangingWorlds Posts: 2 Member
    Hi guys, I'm F20/5'8"/Irish, and 240lbs as of this morning (which I'm delighted about, to be honest!)
    I'm stuck getting "experience" this year, hoping to be in college again in September (wish me luck haha) so I never know where I'm going to be from one day to the next. I do spend a lot of time at home in front of the laptop as well, and being too near the kitchen has not been great for me.
    I *think* my diary is open to friends, but to warn you guys, it'll look a little inconsistent from day to day, because I'm staggering calories. For example,
    Mon & Thurs: 1200
    Tue & Fri: 1400
    Wed & Sat: 1600
    Sun: 1800
    It works out to an average of a little under 1500 daily.
    I should be doing more exercise, but as I only recently got back on track using MFP, I'm going to do a week or two of consistent tracking before I incorporate a formal exercise programme - I'm thinking the 30 Day Shred, as I've completed the C25k in the past.
    Best of luck to everyone hoping to lose weight, this is the first group I've joined so I'm not *entirely* sure how it works, but know that if anyone needs support or motivation, I'm here.
  • cumber1137
    cumber1137 Posts: 13 Member
    Hey Reddit! Here's my deal, I'm only 4'11" and just hit my heaviest. Because I'm so small, every ounce counts. I'm looking to lose a bit, pack on muscle, and gain a ton of energy.

    I just took my first hoola hoop class last week and it was so fun. My next class is Tuesday and I'll have my own hoop to take home. I expect to be doing it on my own because it's actually really fun.
  • Indiri13
    Indiri13 Posts: 104 Member
    Hello all,

    I'm indiri on Reddit and on Fitbit I'm at http://www.fitbit.com/user/2CCTLB (Fitbit to actually arrive on Monday).

    I'm a software engineer in Nevada, almost 35 year old mom/stepmom to 5. I started my weight loss this time around in Dec. '11 and I'm within 10 pounds of "goal" but the last 10 and the maintaining seem to be my stumbling block. I reached my goal last year but had trouble staying there. I started logging again just before Thanksgiving and I ordered a Fitbit a few days ago. Hopefully this will help me to get maintenance down a little better when I get there again.

    I have a shorter 4 mile hike I do regularly but I have a couple of more challenging hikes near Tahoe (Mt Rose again and Mt Tallac for the first time) planned for the end of this summer so that is my next goal.