I made goal!! And celebrated by gaining 80 lbs.

I know where you're coming from AtlantaBob, it's easy to celebrate and think 'well I did it, that's that!'. I've only lost 28 lbs so far, far less than a lot of people on this thread, but hopefully I'll take my celebration in moderation, when it comes to it hehe

Good luck losing the weight; you've done it once, you can do it again no problem

What you eat while losing and what you eat in maintenance is extremely important to avoiding regain. See my post above.

I'm working on that. My goal was 200, I got to 208... I celebrated getting 8lbs to goal, my husband recovering, and getting laid off by gaining 20lbs in 2 years.

Sitting at 228 and trying to find where my motivation ran off too. I don't really eat much different, except I have trouble at dinner and I'm busy and am having trouble finding time to exercise.

You really cannot stop tracking.

I haven't gained any but my bp went back up don't understand that

I haven't gained any but my bp went back up don't understand that

Are you eating a lot of fruit and sugar? In obese individuals, high fructose creates high uric acid levels and those high uric acid levels contribute to hypertension as well as other problems. There's a book by Richard J. Johnson, M.D. (head of the renal division at the medical center at the University of Colorado) called "The Fat Switch" and he tells of the connection. Since sucrose (table sugar) is 50% fructose (and the eating of sucrose represents our greatest exposure to fructose in the standard diet because virtually all processed food contains sucrose now) the problem is becoming a very serious one.

Yup, done that too! Got a six-pack and then celebrated and let myself go and got heavier than I've ever been.

Now I'm almost back to my six-pack.

Hopefully I don't celebrate this time.

Congratulations!!!!!!! I will be extremely happy when I start to see a waist, lol. I have got to get motivated to exercise, but I really, really am having difficulty in that part of weight loss.

For years, that was my downfall. I never really had much of a problem restricting food. I have arthritis so it was difficult to exercise--especially carrying around extra baggage. My advice is to find some activity you love to do. I go to the pool twice a week for my cardio and I lift weights (mostly just body weight) which I really like. I have always loved the water and now that I live five minutes from our public pool, I have no excuse, so rain or shine, I am there. That and learning to nourish my body properly has helped me to shed most of the body fat that I need to shed. I am currently on maintenance until the fall and then I will be looking to reduce my body fat further.

i had lost 20 lbs and quit MFP because at the time i couldnt see any difference in my physical appearance. By the time i came back I had gained the full 20 back plus an additional 10.... So here I am again determined to wait it out this time and not to give up.

It really is easy to lose your determination when you don't see your results like you wish to. But just remembering that each day is a new day can really help.
I recently read a quote that said something like... "Giving up just because you have one bad day is like slashing the other 3 tires just because you got a flat." Best of luck to all of you on your journey to good health!

That is a great quote! I will have to use that. I too lost close to 60 (but I wasn't keeping good records then) but then quit smoking and had a baby and 5 years later I am starting back from the beginning. MFP and making mindful choices will hopefully be the foundation to long term success. Good for you for coming back!

Yep, been there, done that.

I reached my goal weight in April, but I did not do any major celebration. Something that resonated with me as I was working on losing weight and lurking on the boards was someone said something to the effect that getting to your goal weight is not the end of the journey, it is the beginning of the marathon. That really resonated with me and I wish I knew who said it so I could give them credit. That made me really think about why I was doing this…and what to do when I reached my weight goal.

I think that is the main reason I did not have any celebration this time when I reached my goal. Instead, I decided to look for new goals and opportunities. Since reaching my goal in April, I have hiked to the top of a 10,000 ft mountain and I have signed up for my very first 5 k. I turned 60 this year and I am probably in the best shape that I have been in in 30 years. Feel free to add me if you wish. Good luck.

I was following weight watchers for a little over a year. In that year I lost 60 pounds. Well..... after all of that time, I found myself getting extremely bored with the program and gained 15 pounds. So here I am I feel as if counting calories will be more beneficial than counting points. Here's to us all!