Arewethereyet is finally THERE!!!! WOOT!

HI! I'm Arewethereyet, but you can call me AWTY!:flowerforyou:

(ETA: Hello-I am editing this success story to add some very important information! If you peruse my diary do NOT take that as what to DO to lose weight! I lost 99% of my weight eating 1500 calories a day, and exercising.

Over the past few months I have ill and not eating enough calories. I log to remind myself to do so.

:flowerforyou: Please do not use VLCD to lose weight.:flowerforyou: )

I believe in EATING to lose weight.

For my TL;DR friends, I have been here a long time, learned a lot, and lost 50 pounds! Hitting my "nevah gonna do that" goal.

Some of you know me as a moderator. I hope that doesn't make you rain on my parade :laugh:

Today I would like to share my story of hope and perseverance. Both of which you will need to lose or gain weight. Whether it be 10 lbs or 100,

Short history: (anyone that knows me just snickered "short" lol)

I joined MFP in January 2008 while hunting for the quick fix de jour , then disappeared again until June of 2008.

My in-laws were coming to town for 4th of July and I wanted to wear a bathing suit. Living in South Florida all my life, bathing suits were something I grew up wearing under my clothes to school so we could go to the beach after the bell rang.

Well I had not worn one in 2 years, and figured I would wear shorts and a T-shirt, but gave in and went shopping for a suit. When the Size 16 wouldn't fit, :noway: I knew I had to do something. I am only 5"2" tall, and weighed in at over 170 at that point (little did I know).

I mean, of course I had mirrors and my clothes didn't fit, but how much could I possibly weigh? I can tell you right now I cried like a baby when those red numbers flashed over 170 in the mall. The gentlemen at GNC offered me a 'cleanse' but even then I knew that was BS and asked for a Kleenex instead!

So I found MFP again, and decided I would try it out. Having counted calories before it wasn't a new idea. The surprise was how much food I was eating!! For the first week I wrote down everything I ate during the day and well into the night. Then I would log everything.

:noway: Holy kcals Batman, I was eating 3-4000 calories. Fat and sodium out of this world. I sat and cried knowing that morbid obesity, heart disease, diabetes, as well as many other physical ailments plagued my family. I had to make a change immediately, but how??

I found the forums of MFP that day. I had never entered a forum in my life, it is funny to think I was afraid of posting on line at all. Use my real name? NO WAY :laugh: . Over the next few months I logged faithfully. That was all I did was log my food, meet people in the forums, read and read and read the information in the few threads that came up (Yup, back then you could post a thread and it would still be there in the morning with no one posting! )

Thank goodness I fell in with some awesome people. Banks was one of the regulars that started out losing weight, and ended up researching so much diet and fitness information he ended up going to school for it. :drinker:

The surprising part for me was the Calories in Calories Out school of thought. Sure it has morphed into many names, IIFYM and such, but the entire thought process of eating less than your body burns really resonated with me.

I lost 1-2 pounds a month. When things slowed down after losing the first 10, someone suggested exercise. "Will Work For Food" became my mantra.

Please listen to this...........those of you who think you cant do this without running 5 miles or doing P90X every day front to back...I walked to the STOP SIGN that first day. I was so out of breath and only 45 yrs old! What the WHAT???? :grumble:

Little by little I went further and further. One day I stopped by a 100 push up challenge thread to cheer the girls on. I received a note back "You can do ONE! Try it" So I did. I started on the wall, moved to the end of the bed, down to a stair and then my first full out push up! Did it take a month? Yup. Did I do it? You betcha!

There were times I encouraged others by starting a thread. "What have you done to make you feel proud" was a big hit for years. Biggest Loser was all the rage so we had challenge threads to do 10 squats or 10 bicep curls during the commercial. We had a blast watching the show 'together' and all of us completed the challenges.

It was a simpler time back then, with the forums not quite as congested as today, and many more of us not knowing what to do than how to do it. There was ALWAYS someone to help you and I have made lifelong friends.

When I thought there was no way I could lose 50 lbs, my friend Tamtastic hit 100! Well then :laugh: :laugh: (Tam lost 137, had a baby, went thru a divorce, single mom with 2 small boys and still kept every ounce off!)

Through a lot of working out and eating right I lost 35 lbs. Happy with that I had no intention of losing the last 15. THEN *dun dun dun** my life fell apart. :indifferent:

Small stroke, heart surgery, divorce, losing the best job of my life, losing friends being fired or forced to move, my life was left as something I didn't recognize. I survived them all, but I gained back weight. I really don't know how much but what I CAN tell you is MFP saved my life.

I faithfully logged on everyday to MFP for the moral support and sometimes log my food. When I was put on medication to stop the migraine/seizures I had no appetite. None. My friends would PM me in the morning "Don't forget to eat. Grab some yogurt"

Over the past year I lost the regained weight, and something wonderful happened. I kept right on losing.

I hit my original "NO WAY" weight on Wednesday. 118 lbs and 50 pounds lost. Fifty, me? Yessssss (fist pump):drinker:

Friends let me tell you something. If you read about the weight lifting on here from some of the greatest members I have known, LISTEN!! Had I been on a good heavy lift program this past year my body would be something I As it is, I am happy for my health, but do not like what I see :ohwell:

If you want a shot of what "skinny fat" truly is, I will figure out how to PM you one. I will not beat myself up for not doing what I know to be right and lifting over the past year, I was in a depression and my health not good, but today I can do it.

Today I know I must persevere. Today I have hope.

There are too many people to mention here who have been like an extended family for me. Most of the people from 2008 are friends on FB with me, and I don't see too much here or they have left. My newer friends lift weights and encourage me to do the same. I have always been motivated by end results, and cannot wait to post a before and after once I get some muscle:blushing:

If I leave you with one thing today let it be NEVER GIVE UP! If you eat healthier, and exercise more, and you lose some weight along the way? BONUS!!! :drinker:

God Bless,

Jeannine :flowerforyou: