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  • Hi everyone:

    I am Rob age 58, started at 305 lbs now 297 lbs.

    10 years ago I was 205 and a smoker, then I quit smoking and gained about 10 lbs per year.

    I've tried to diet and sometime have short term gains but then I lose my strength, lose my hope and gain it all back then more.

    I'm going to try to count my calories and make it work this time.

    Good luck to all!

    Rob
  • rachelg145
    rachelg145 Posts: 185 Member
    Hi. I'm Melissa. I'm 24, and have two kids. I'm trying to lose 100 pounds overall, with my first major (2014!) goal being 60. So far I've lost 10, gained back 3. I'm looking for motivating friends to keep me in check! Haha!

    Connect with MrsAustin1480. She also has two kids and she's lost almost 90 pounds so far. She's super motivational and awesome...she's looks amazing! Good friend to have ;) (and obviously you can add me too!!)
  • stefanieraya
    stefanieraya Posts: 110 Member
    Hi y'all! Stefanie, here in Austin, TX. Thanks for adding me! I'm a military (retired army) wife and mom to two young boys. My goal is to lose 40 pounds by my birthday in August. I was in marketing for 20 years and now have a fantastic opportunity to focus on my health and work from home. I'm so thankful for this opportunity. I've lost 20 pounds since August 2013. Fell flat for a while and now starting to lose again. My weight loss program addresses toxicity release, oxidative stress reduction, burns fat and builds lean body mass. For the longest time I didn't take time to learn about nutrition and how different foods affect the body's metabolism. Once I began eating to increase my metabolism the weight just came off. So excited about August because I'm rewarding myself with a trip to San Diego! Gotta be beach ready by then :)
  • stefanieraya
    stefanieraya Posts: 110 Member
    Welcome.

    I'll start things off by introducing myself. My name is Aaron, I recently separated from the Army after being a combat medic for 4 years in Alaska, including a yearlong deployment to Afghanistan. Before I joined the service I used this website to lose 40 lbs over the course of a little over 3 months. When I got back from Afghanistan I was having problems adjusting to the "real" world again and I gained a lot of weight through binge drinking and other bad habits that I was using to cope. I later found out that I had PTSD and after seeing some specialists got on the course to managing it successfully. However, with the separation from the military and everything else going on in my life I haven't yet been able to get back to a healthy weight. But I know that this website works and that the biggest thing that keeps you coming back from day to day is having an active support base. My hope is that we can start to form a tight knit community and all help each other reach our goals successfully.

    Now, on a lighter side. I'm 25 (in march), I married my high school sweetheart back in 2010 and we have been happily married for nearly four years. We currently live in north central Indiana and both commute to Indianapolis for our jobs. I am now a state and nationally certified EMT and I work at Amazon as an Onsite Medical Rep.

    Hi Aaron. My hubby was infantry airborne and retired after 20+ years of service. Thank you for your service!
  • avansh
    avansh Posts: 4 Member
    Hi my name is Alice ,
    I am in my early 50's . Even though I carry a lot of extra weight 70 lbs I have been very fortunate not to have to take any kind of . Cholesterol and blood pressure medicine. I want to keep it that way!!!!! I have taken my health for granted and as I get older I want to continue to do things I enjoy SUP, snowshoeing and skiing. . So I have decided to drop the extra weight have lost 13 and like the inspiration of others stories to keep me motivated.
  • verptwerp
    verptwerp Posts: 3,628 Member
    Hey there everyone ....... I'm Mary Ann, 62 years old, living in NY, married, one daughter, one cat ..... have had quite a few jobs over the years, but my current job is my favorite, working part-time at a little animal hospital ..... I LOVE IT !

    But things were not always so lovely ...... a decade ago I was depressed, overweight & a total couch-potato. Managed to come to my senses finally ....... made changes to my eating ....... lost weight ...... started walking ...... lost more weight. Nowadays I try to make the best choices at each meal. And I try to get in some form of exercise each day, whether it's a walk around the block or time at the gym for cardio, weights, yoga, or Zumba.

    Wishing the best to all of us :drinker:
  • Hi, my name is Misty, and I want my teenage body back! Okay, okay, as I'm about to turn 40 in April I know I won't actually have a teenagers body, but I do miss being thin, and I'm starting to develop a hanging jowl (which has GOT to go!)

    I originally started MFP in September, but 2 days after I started, I got hit by a truck which actually drove over my ankle (and broke it). After having surgery and being in a boot for months, I'm still in physical therapy, but I'm starting to be able to walk a decent distance now. Just yesterday I took the bus to Macy's Saturday Sale, and bought myself a pair of interview shoes/boots. (They look just like professional shoes under my black slacks). So I'm officially getting around again!

    Sadly my hips were 44 inches back in September, and after being fairly immobile for all these months, they are now 47 inches =(

    But I am determined, and I know this will work, as I've done it before after having 2 kids. I used a similar system of keeping track of my daily calories and some exercise and lost a fair amount of the weight I gained back then, and kept it off for years. I guess I started slacking, but no more!

    And this time, I'm eventually going to work myself up to a lot of exercise and strength training. I want to actually get strong and be able to do push ups and pull ups and all that jazz because I love the way toned arms and a toned body look. I'm going to get all the way back to my ideal weight this time, and actually be super fit!

    Hoping to make some friends along the way!
  • Kentuckygirl61
    Kentuckygirl61 Posts: 31 Member
    Hi, my name is Misty, and I want my teenage body back! Okay, okay, as I'm about to turn 40 in April I know I won't actually have a teenagers body, but I do miss being thin, and I'm starting to develop a hanging jowl (which has GOT to go!)

    I originally started MFP in September, but 2 days after I started, I got hit by a truck which actually drove over my ankle (and broke it). After having surgery and being in a boot for months, I'm still in physical therapy, but I'm starting to be able to walk a decent distance now. Just yesterday I took the bus to Macy's Saturday Sale, and bought myself a pair of interview shoes/boots. (They look just like professional shoes under my black slacks). So I'm officially getting around again!

    Sadly my hips were 44 inches back in September, and after being fairly immobile for all these months, they are now 47 inches =(

    But I am determined, and I know this will work, as I've done it before after having 2 kids. I used a similar system of keeping track of my daily calories and some exercise and lost a fair amount of the weight I gained back then, and kept it off for years. I guess I started slacking, but no more!

    And this time, I'm eventually going to work myself up to a lot of exercise and strength training. I want to actually get strong and be able to do push ups and pull ups and all that jazz because I love the way toned arms and a toned body look. I'm going to get all the way back to my ideal weight this time, and actually be super fit!

    Hoping to make some friends along the way!

    Hey Misty,
    I can relate to some extent of the injury and it not helping in maintaining your past weight. I used to drive a truck (tractor-trailer, that is) and fell; injured my neck and shoulder actually causing me to be disabled, eventually. I weighted 150 lbs. driving over the road and after 18 mos of painful therapy I started here weighing 183. With the help of my FitBit (mostly) and the ppl here and my Dr. I lost 9 lbs...slowly. I am not looking for a fast fix, slow gives me time to gain muscle back even if it will not be the same strength in my arms as it was in my younger day (been off the road for 7 yrs now). Nice to meet you and hope the truck that ran over your ankle was not a semi. You are lucky, though, you can still walk.
  • Hi my name is Claire I'm 34, mummy to 6, Joshua who is 17, Luci who is 15, Amy who is 12, Bethany who is 10, Jessica who was born sleeping in 05 and then Keeley who is 5. (my hands full, right? lol)
    I have been with my fiancé 20 years (yes you read that right ha ha) and recently decided the time was right to get married!. I weigh 267lbs at present. I joined weight watchers but then got introduced to MFP and haven't looked back. I have lost 42lb on weight watchers but finances were tight so thought i'd try the free route. Hence why i'm here.
    I need to lose 100lb plus and i know its not going to be easy but determined i do not want to be a fat bride, Especially as were getting married in Greece. I have until may 2016 to get somewhat where i want to be. I am counting calories and have joined the gym i go 4 to 5 times a week and really surprised at fun it can be.
  • stefanieraya
    stefanieraya Posts: 110 Member
    What a beautiful family! Congrats on the engagement :) You absolutely can do this. Eat to live, don't live to eat. Think of food as fuel for your engine. Add me and I will support you on your journey!
  • What a beautiful family! Congrats on the engagement :) You absolutely can do this. Eat to live, don't live to eat. Think of food as fuel for your engine. Add me and I will support you on your journey!

    Ha ha the engagement has been a looooooooong one! :)
    I don't know how to add people :O
  • stefanieraya
    stefanieraya Posts: 110 Member
    To add people, just click on their name under their picture and open their profile then click Add Friend.
  • HeatherL0219
    HeatherL0219 Posts: 6 Member
    Hi everyone :) Thanks for adding me to the group, I'm a little late getting around to introducing myself, but better late than never! My name is Heather and I'm originally from Delaware although about 3 weeks ago, I came to Illinois to stay with my sister and her family for a bit. I'm not sure if the move is going to be permanent or if I'm going to go back to Delaware. We shall see. I'm going to be 30 in a week from today...AHHH!! I've decided that it's time to focus on my health and lose this weight and get in shape. I started out somewhere in the 220's at my highest and remained there over the past couple years. Since I've been here in Illinois, I've been able to focus more on trying to lose this weight and I've actually joined the gym that my sister goes to, so it's helped. I'm currently around 209, which is definitely a start. I also quit smoking a little over 4 years ago! :) I'm pretty much starting over in life...at 30...but that's okay because I'm determined to be happier and healthier. I recently got out of a 6 year relationship and all I have left from anything, is my lab, Chance, which I'm thankful for because he's my baby, he's pulled me through a lot.

    Okay, now that I've rambled on and on...lol. I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone and it'd be nice to have some support on here and friends to support! :)

    Have a great day! :)
  • Hey all,

    I'm 20 years old and was invited by agarlits to join the group. I have experienced a lot of negativity on the general forums. There are a LOT of bullies on this website with nothing better to do that get others worked up when they're simply looking for support, because they think they know everything and apparently enjoy other people's suffering.

    Sorry for the rant. But I for one am a very positive person and would love to be a part of a group full of positive people.

    :)
  • brnshark
    brnshark Posts: 5 Member
    Hi All,

    I in my mid 30's, single mom, full time job and trying to shed about 10lb. I have been back and forth on MFP for over a year and just cant seem to stick to it. I could definitely use some ex motivation and pointers, if you check out my diary or exercise plan. I work a desk job so I been trying to walk 7 flights of stairs several times a day to move around. My child keeps me very busy so its hard to get in the exercise i feel i might need to really loss the weight. Thanks for letting me join your group and looking forward to it.

    K
  • jjking54
    jjking54 Posts: 113 Member
    Thanks for the invite!

    I'm Jason, 41, dad to three kids. I work for a bank doing technical writing.

    Avid cyclist, hoping to lose 50+ this year before Thanksgiving. I have lots of cycling goals for the year, and right now I'm putting in base miles on the indoor bike and strength training. Diary is open to friends and I'm on here daily. Add me if you'd like!
  • Tracie524
    Tracie524 Posts: 65 Member
    Thank you for the invite. I'm Tracie and I am 37 years old. I live in Tucson, AZ. I have about 130 pounds to lose to get to my goal. I just started back up here January 6th. I started logging my food this week and plan to continue doing that. My main focus is eating healthier to prevent diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. I recently purchased an exercise bike so I could burn calories in the evening. I feel like I need this change and I am ready to commit to it. I log in every day and try to be supportive everyone.
  • laurasaintlouis
    laurasaintlouis Posts: 131 Member
    Hello. I am 46 and have 2 active teenagers. A 12 year old girl and 16 old boy. I work-out most days. My goal is to lose 20 lbs. and I have lost 7 so I have 13 to go.

    Good luck everyone and Happy Valentine's Day:)
  • Hi!

    I'm Katherine. Married to a Marine.One daughter. Four parrots.5' 11" tall. Loving life but tired of packing this extra weight around. I'd love to have friends who are on a similar journey. I want to look as young as I feel. :smooched:
  • RachelBec
    RachelBec Posts: 52 Member
    Hello All!

    My name is Rachel & I am 25 years old. If you relate to any of the following bullet points send me a friend request & say hello!

    - Pescetarian
    - Foodie
    - 6x week work out
    - Cardio & strength
    - Hula Hooper
    - 5'8"
    - 36 lbs eliminated
    - Approximately 59 lbs to go
    - NSV such as body sculpting, running outdoors, or push-up goals

    :flowerforyou:
  • kethra
    kethra Posts: 85 Member
    Ni howdy all!

    I'm Kazia. I'm a 31 yr old wife, mom, geek, and gamer. I'm 5'0" in shoes on a tall hair day. ^_^

    I've been heavy my entire life and am determined now to get healthy once and for all and stay that way for life.

    Some things about me:

    -Doing Nutrisystem (since September 2013)
    -Goal weight is 130 - I started NS at 231.4
    -I homeschool my 8 yr old daughter. No it's not weird, and no, I'm not worried about her socialization.
    -I workout 6 days a week now. I started Leslie Sansone Walk at Home videos Feb 10th, so as of this post it's my 6th day. I also do other cardio at our YMCA. I hope to add strength work on the machines soon, though I do some arm work with free weights (5lb) at home.
    -I'm a geek to the core, be it about gaming (mostly MMOs) or sci-fi/fantasy. Some of my faves are Doctor Who, Firefly/Serenity (or basically anything involving Joss Whedon), Sleepy Hollow, The Dresden Files (books), and Sherlock. Age of the geek, baby!

    Feel free to send me a friend request. I enjoy logging daily and also blogging here and on my personal website (on my profile).
  • Hi my name is Linda, I just turned 40 and I have been a single mom since 02/19/96. I was so focused on being a mom that I was not focused on taking care of me and my weight is way out of control. However, now that my daughter is turning 18 on Wednesday, I started on Jan. 1 to change my focus a little and focus on me just a tad bit more. I feel that I am doing well so far, I lost 14 lbs since my start date. I work out everyday. At the moment, because I feel that my workouts are getting better each time that I go out to the trail and my confidence as well as lung capacity and endurance are doing much better than I expected, I am hoping to do a 5k once a again at the end of the year.
  • Thanks for the invite. I'm a 34 year-old grad student back on MFP for a second time, trying to lose 20 pounds I regained from a 50 pound weight loss about three years ago. I've got a super restrictive (doctor's orders) diet due to a couple medical conditions, so I eat super clean with few options, at least for now. Really trying to wrap my head around the "food as fuel" idea so I don't get sad about it!

    I've also got scoliosis so the right side of my body is super weak from not doing my PT exercises for a long time. I'm slowly building strength with yoga and walking. I may never be able to do high intensity, but I'm hoping to incorporate some resistance training when I feel stronger.

    I'm also doing my master's research on people's experiences of significant weight loss, which is pretty interesting considering I'm back in the game myself. Very meta.

    Glad to be back here, and hoping to connect with the MFP community more. Please feel free to add me!
  • FlyThisKite
    FlyThisKite Posts: 183 Member
    Ello Folks,

    Ingrid here. I'm a 32 y/o single mom and recent Nursing school grad. I've been on and off diets since I was like 4. There's this picture of me in a ballet uniform when I was 5 and I look like a little rubber ball with a head. It's bad. Real bad. I have had periods of thin and thick all my life. The thinnest was in my early twenties when I went on an Adkins binge and found my bellybutton. Life, an office job, a car accident, a divorce and being abandoned pregnant pretty much round out some of my motivation for stuffing my face to 330 lbs. Oh and there was nursing school. I'm not blaming these factors, but I am saying that I had a terrible coping mechanism for the consequences of the decisions of my life...and that was food.

    Food was my go to guy when I was happy, alone, angry, confused, stressed. Food was my drug of choice and now it's another nail in the coffin. I use humor and an unfiltered personality to diffuse the issues I have with loosing weight and dealing with my food addiction as well as managing new and better coping mechanisms.

    In all reality my motivations for moving down on the scale are:


    Raising my kid and teaching him that it's not ok to be unhealthy. It's not ok to let yourself go.

    It's not ok to have to hire a crane to get mommy out of the house. (I have not got to that point but if I kept on going down the path I have been it would not be too long till this happened. )

    He needs me up and running.

    Also...
    I am a nurse. I am an example. I am part of the front line here on health and a healthy lifestyle.

    I need to emulate and embody the philosophies of my profession.

    Homeostasis.

    That's why I'm here...oh and to make ya'll laugh. Because we really have done enough crying now haven't we?
  • Frayde
    Frayde Posts: 321 Member
    Hello Everyone! I'm Carolyn. I'm a 49 year old disabled RN, mother of 3 wonderful adults, and wife of a digustingly fit husband. He is, happily, very supportive of my fitness journey. My max weight was probably about 12 or 14 years ago and was about 300 pounds. I now weigh about 210, give or take from day to day. But I've hit one of those plateaus and seem to be stuck... My goal is to get to between 135 and 150. Short term, I'd just like to be in Onederland!

    My weight loss plan includes eating about 1500 calories/day, walking ~2miles/day, and strength training 3 days/week. Unfortunately, the weather has gotten in the way of walking the last couple weeks (and I strongly dislike walking videos), and my son was visiting from China, so I haven't lifted in 3 weeks. But everything is looking good to pick up both starting this week. Maybe I can get past this plateau!

    I am taking classes toward a Public Health degree with a specialty in Community Health Education, and to be that kind of educator, I think I really should be fit so I can set a good example. Also, I would like to be able to say to people, "You can lose weight. It can be done. I did it!"

    Please feel free to Friend me if you'd like!
  • NIKIATWORK
    NIKIATWORK Posts: 16 Member
    Hi, I'm Niki...... I'm a 32 yr old stay at home mom of a 3 yr old right now and doing it all on my own. I love my husband, but weight has almost never been an issue for him and he is not interested in giving up and luxury food items. He's very supportive but an enabler. My sister got me started in this website almost a year ago (March 10th) but has been on again/off again while trying other methods to see what will work for her.

    I've lost 92 lbs altogether, 7 on my own and 85 with MFP, but after being on here by myself for the whole last year I decided to get some support. I'm struggling and discouraged lately. I haven't lost any weight since the second week in December and have stepped up my work outs to double up the time/calorie, etc. I know I just have to keep going and not get too down about it, but with 30lbs to go before my pre-baby/wedding weight, I'm trying to just keep chugging along.

    I'm determined to get as close to 100lbs by March 10th for my one year anniversary with MFP as I can.... Wish me luck! I hope you all can overcome and continue on your journey as well. :smile:
  • carla113
    carla113 Posts: 27 Member
    Hi everyone - I'm Carla. I have been happily married to my college sweetheart for nearly 10 years, and we have 2 beautiful kids - ages 4 and 6. My husband and I were both athletes in high school (and he played college football), so sports come naturally to our family. I took up running about 2 years ago to get myself back out there and more active, and that helped to manage my weight. However, I slacked off last fall after a half marathon, and managed to lose a lot of the muscle I had built and gain back the weight I had lost. Now, my goal is to get down to my "fighting weight". I'm down 10 lbs. with 21 to go. I plan on lifting this time around instead of using pure cardio to get there.
  • Hi im danni! Im 21 from washington state. I have a goal of losing a total of 125 pounds. I am engaged to a great guy who ive been best friends with since 7th grade. I also just stared living a vegan lifestyle (so far i feel amaxing).
    I am currently working for my local ymca (and love it!) And trying to go back to school to finish my teaching degree:)
  • lisawinning4losing
    lisawinning4losing Posts: 726 Member
    Hello, my name is Lisa. (As you can see!) I currently live in (the area of) Los Angeles, California. Here in LA being chubby is the kiss of death, so I have to get this weight off. And it can also literally be the kiss of death, because of health problems and all that, and I'm not getting any younger, so I want to get in shape! I'm 36, and I want to lose 40-50 pounds. At least 40, but no more than 50. I've been on MFP for two weeks and have lost two pounds so far, though I know weight fluctuates up and down a little so I'm trying not to get too excited yet but just stick with the program! I know that everybody has a different philosophy but I'm trying to clean up my diet and do the clean eating thing, and I'm also trying to reduce my carbs and up my protein. It's all about lean meat and vegetables, I think. But I also want to let myself have a little treat every now and then. Right now I'm just trying to slowly phase out the junk food and phase in healthier food.

    I live alone with two adorable cats and I love my cats but I'm pretty bored a lot of the time, so if you see me commenting on the forums a lot that's why! I would like to get out more and make more friends and maybe even fall in love and all that good stuff, but I won't feel like myself again until I get this extra weight off. I've gained the extra weight over the last couple of years, during a time of stress and after a bad break-up, but I'm ready to move on now! Don't let the *kitten* get you down, I say! Lol! The community here has been great so far, so feel free to send me a friend request if you like. (That goes for everyone, especially those who have similar goals.) I *will* like and comment on your status updates. :smile:
  • Here goes a quick introduction...

    I'm Rebecca. I am a single mother to one amazing little four year old girl. She is my motivation and my joy. We live in one of the western suburbs of Minneapolis, MN. I'm a born and raised Minnesotan and, while I enjoy travelling to a warmer climate in the winter, I'll likely stay in Minnesota for life. I'm also a human resources business partner for a large, national bank. I love my job, but with it comes a bit of busyness, stress, and long days sitting in my office.

    I guess the main reason why I am here is because it is time. I am a little frustrated with myself that I have had to lose the same five to ten pounds many times over in the last few years. I could make all the right excuses; horrible marriage, divorce, stress of a new single mom lifestyle, college classes, layoff, etc. All stressful and rough times to go through, but I guess this past summer when I was laid off my prior job, I quit the excuses and used the time to get to the gym myself and get a personal trainer. While I haven't seen the results I've hoped for, I am still going and striving to succeed. That's the exercise side. On the food side, well, guess what? I enjoy food. I enjoy a really great meal, a stellar restaurant, or a good happy hour with my close friends. This would be a lot easier if I could just stop liking food. I'm doing way better on MFP, but still find that I need to completely throw out the calories once in a while or I feel too confined (thank God that's still allowing me to lose weight). I'm continuing to learn the food and exercise balance. I'm also trying to make this as much of a life change as possible. I do not want to get to this weight again in the future.

    R