100+ lbs to lose, feeling overwhelmed

One major thing that worked for me is to not step on the scale. I used to be a minimum-5-times-a-day-weigher-inner.... and then I'd move the darn thing around the floor...room to room, trying to find the "skinniest" spot on the floor.... always felt so defeated, so I can sympathize how it feels to have lost "only" 5 pounds in a month.

So... my suggestion-- as hard as it might be -- is to ditch the scale. Let your clothes speak to you. 12 months ago I weighed 230 lbs and wore a very t-i-g-h-t size 18 ( my all time high was 270 lbs/ size 26). I've weighed once since then -- end of Nov and only because I had a pre op physical. Told the doc at that time I didn't want to know what I weighed, but curiousity got the best of me and I asked in recovering what my pre op weight was... imagine my surprise when I found out that my non-weighing had resulted in 52 lbs lost!!! That was the motivation I needed to continue.

So... here we are, June 11, 2014 and I don't have a clue what I weigh right now... but I can tell you that I wore a size 6 pair of jeans to work today and have 3 newly purchased size 4 jeans in my closet (got a good deal on them so bought 3 pair)... wore one of the size 4s to work on Monday :-). Today, during a break from work, I was out walking around the building and a coworker of mine was also out there, talking on the phone as she strolled. She's a tiny little thing. Another coworker drove past the two of us-- later this afternoon, she told me that she was very tempted to take a picture of the two of us as we walked to show me that the "tiny little thing" was now me! wow...

Anyway... try not weighing in for a bit. Not saying you have to go as long as I have, but the fit of your clothes says alot more than a number on the scale. Also... counting calories/thinking about every item I am eating/ logging it all has become a part of my daily routine, like brushing my teeth, combing my hair, taking a shower. Like you, I've been fat all my life so I know that NOT counting calories DOES NOT WORK...

I have body parts that I never knew existed. I have hip bones, I have pelvic bones, I have cheek bones, I have a collar bone... I am telling you, I have never felt these bones before... My only regret is that I had to wait until I was almost 59 to experience this. I can only wonder what I would have looked like in my 20s if I had been where I am today. I've had 4 children and years of carrying around extra weight has resulted in some loose skin but give me this body over fat any day! You CAN DO IT... just don't give up...change your frame of mind from a "diet" mode to a "life changing" mode... :-)

If you look at the big picture it can be overwhelming. I have lost close to 70 lbs. in just over a year but probably still have another 100 to lose. I agree with the poster who said not to weigh very often - I only weigh every few weeks. I also have had to look at it in small steps because the big picture can be so daunting. Some days I have to just think of it one meal at a time, although most days I plan out the night before. It's easier for me than for some people because I live alone and work at home - but it is still a job. I agree also with the poster who said start with small changes. It can be done but don't expect it to happen overnight and don't beat yourself up if you have a bad meal/day/week - just start over the next meal/day/week. Also it helps not to view it as a temporary thing until you lose the weight but make permanent changes to your behavior and view it as just being the way you eat now.

Hi there,

I've lost 40 kilos in 2 years,100+lbs sounds like a big number but remember you didn't gain that much weight in one day,I don't count carlories,I workout then I do my food shopping,everything I pick up in the supermarket I ask myself does it worth me to eat after my hard workout,and it helps alot! I eat fruits(sweet) and nuts as snack,when I'm really craving,I try to eat as much as vegies and white meat as I can,because they are good for you and doesn't contain much sugar as fruits. And yes I am one of those food nerd read infor and compare through different brand. Enjoy what you are doing,so in the end you get your results and you are happy inside and out. Have you ever heard of Paleo diet,they are so good !

Always thinking about this. It's so overwhelming. But the way I see it, is that it's a complete life style. Of course we won't be calorie counting all our lives. But I see it as someone who's very overweight that food will always be an important subject. I have a bad relationship with food so I will always have to watch what I eat in order to maintain my healthy lifestyle.

Hi, I'm the same boat as you (140lbs/10st to lose over all!).
Just take each day at a time and celebrate the small victories. Whilst, 1lb (or even 20lbs) may seem like a drop in the ocean, every little helps! I find it helps to think long term on the scale - eg. if you lose 2lbs in a week it may not seem like much, but if you do that for the next 3 months it'll be 24lbs and you'll be 1/4 of the way to 100! etc. I have mini goals within my mammoth 140 goal - I work in stone so it's 10st to lose overall, but my mini goals are 2.5st (1/4) 5st (1/2) and 7.5st (3/4) - that way you feel closer to achieving. Also, don't get discouraged if you have a bad day/week, just put it behind you and concentrate on today/this week.

Hi, my goal is also to lose around 100lb and to start with I could not even think about losing anything like that, it seemed too daunting, too impossible. So I concentrated on tiny goals, a few pounds here and there e.g. going from 256 to 249 was a goal, as I was in a different set of numbers. I'm from UK so we use 'stones' too, so I set myself goals relating to that also......so losing another half-stone (7 lbs) or moving into to next set of stones.

I agree about not being a slave to the scales to a degree......I had to be strict and hide mine away most of the week. They come put now on a Thursday night before bedtime ready for my weekly weigh in on a Friday, then go away again. I personally find seeing the numbers go down helps, but you will get times that it stalls so you musn't let it get you down when it does.

One thing I wish I'd done but didn't was take my body measurements at the start. I have been measuring now for the last 2 months and in month 1 alone I saw a change of 8 inches from around my body, despite the scales only showing a 6lb loss that month. I'd really recommend doing that as seeing a change in inches is a real motivator.

And the best piece of advice I can give you is to be kind to yourself along this journey, losing weight is tough sometimes and requires a lot of changes to your lifestyle. So if you 'fall off the wagon' one day then don't beat yourself up about it....just get back on it the next day and learn from things as you go along. I used to be terrified that if I had a day off for attending an occasion etc then I would just fall back into my old ways and put all the weight back on. Of course that was nonsense! So build your food plan around you, eat well most of the time but if you love chocolate have a little, it's not the end of the world.

Good luck with your weight loss, if you want any support I am happy to be your MFP friend, just send me a request

If people measured running a marathon in steps, the number would be insurmountable and terrifying. That said, every time a runner puts one foot in front of the other, they're that much closer to completing the race.

Every little step is a victory, every healthy change is progress. And you know what slow progress is? PROGRESS.

Make one little change every week. Vow to drink a gallon of water a day, do it for a week, then add another change. Little changes add up to BIG lifestyle alterations, and the weight will follow. Congratulations on choosing to take control!

As someone who has lost over 100lbs, I'm going to be dead honest with you.

I feel a lot more antsy, for various reasons, finishing the remaining portion than I ever did during the first 100.

You've lost 80 lbs since January 2014????

I just wish that somebody would invent a time machine where you could wizz forward say 18 months and say to yourself if you keep doing what your doing this is what you would look like, just to give you the reassurance it can be done!!

My old Boss used to always use this analogy when our sales targets came down each quarter, 'How do you eat an elephant? one little piece at a time' I sure he had no idea that I would transfer this to my weightloss though!!

Each time I weigh in I give my self a new goal, this time it's just to get under 15 stone, just that 1 pound under, which is in 2 pounds time. After that it will be kilo's, to get under 95, each time it changes but as each little milepost is knocked down I'm one step closer to my goal, or one more bite closer to eating an whole elephant! lol

What else were you going to do with the passing time? That's the way I look at it. I'd rather count my calories forever than go back to the 149kg (329lbs) that I used to weigh. That said, when I started out in November 2011 I didn't anticipate that I'd still be working towards my goal weight in June 2014. But you know what? I don't care. I've lost 140lbs so far, and I have 24 lbs left to lose.

I also broke up the journey into goals. In my case 5kg lots. I found lots of things to motivate me along the way though - from fitting smaller clothes to increased fitness. Being able to start running, and even before that things like not getting out of breath going up stairs, being able to walk further. Joints not hurting. It all helps, and those little bits of weight lost all add up. It doesn't seem like it's been so long tbh. Now it's all just habit

When the overall goal seems so far off i found it best to break it down into achievable goals maybe a few months worth at a time. Like I said, achievable...it also needs to be sustainable. Aim to lose 5 pounds a month, or set "Mini Goal Weights" Like i started at 380 and 350,325,300,275,250 have always been mini goals for me and didnt give myself a timeframe, and im about to hit my latest mini goal of 250, with my overall being 225. Sometimes with the finish line out of sight it is easy to lose motivation but setting individual milestones makes it much easier to accomplish.