Women 200lb+, Let's Jump-Start This January!!!

Hello everyone! It sure is exciting around here these days! So happy to hear all of your stories, accomplishments, and the realness of trying to do this, too.

I've been doing pretty good but am dealing with some stress issues- my husband is out of town for work and I'm finding it hard to keep our family's train on the tracks, so to speak. I've been kind of missing my mom, too. She died two years ago and would always be the person to help me keep the train on the tracks. When things come up that you could only talk to your mom about, or things that only a mom would care about, I suddenly feel this big empty space.

Today I kind of forgot to exercise and log (until the end of the day), because I was so busy. But in good news we adopted a new kitten from the shelter over the week, and she is amazing and sweet and just what I need!

Tomorrow my goal is to manage my stress better (NOT by eating, like I did today). The plan is to get do a short yoga practice, and get some movement in. Oh, and go to bed earlier tonight! Speaking of which, I ought to be doing that now.

Good morning 😃!! Wishing everyone a #TerrificTuesday‼️

Had a rough emotional time the past few days. Just feeling blah and out of it. Today is much better. We’ve restarted our faculty exercise group. We spend 30 minutes each day walking. It’s great stress relief from dealing with teenagers all day 😩❗️ We plan to add yoga and light weight training as we progress.

Height: 5’4”
SW: 307
GW: 160
CW: 1/2 215.2
1/6 215
1/14 213.2

I’m not thrilled but ok that I’m still losing. Really slacked on exercises during the holiday but I’m going to be back in action from now on!

Sw: 250
1/10- 243.2 (Suspcious of this number, though...)
1/17-
1/24-
1/31-
Goals:
*Lose 5 pounds this month (Cheeeck)
*Count my calories every single day (Check so far... except the first, but I didn't start the first... I started the second! Ha!)
*Stay out of my own head about wanting to be instantly skinny
*Improve my rowing time/length
*Improve all of my lifts by +10 pounds
*Stay sexy ~*~

Accountability check in then I will read back.

Yesterday was a Nashville trip which meant a fast food stop. I ate my usual omelette then a small fast food meal with shake. Normally I would be ok with that for the day. But yesterday I was not! Got home and took a small nap. When I woke up a little hungry but only about 70cal left so didn't eat. A few hours later really hungry and craving creamy chunky soup. All I had was canned loaded baked potato which was soup of choice before starting my journey. I ate the whole can with a tad of shredded cheese. It put me over by about 300cal. Enjoyed it, logged it, and moved on. Learned I need to have a good soup option available for times like that. Today I have lentil soup going in the instant pot. I can portion and freeze that for when my cravings hit. Since I usually eat a little under max calorie and plan on doing so the rest of the week maybe the scales will be kind on Friday.

Good morning!
Just checking in! So many posts! I love all the suggestions and the links and the kudos and everything! Such a great resource when I am feeling anxious about my journey!

Exercise has been my "work in progress" this month and I have struggled to get up in the mornings to go to the gym. I am not a morning person and I don't sleep well. I set goals this month to go on two mornings even with knowing this about myself, because I know I struggle going after work too! I am trying to work it out and since I started I haven't made a morning session yet However....I did make myself go that evening every time. Yesterday I was searching for motivation and almost didn't go but I am proud of myself for going!

I am just going to reply to the last few posts...

@theleadmare I feel ya...glad you went and worked out! Great job!
@bluffgirl67 Way to log and move on and prepare for the next time!
@torihudson6 when I think about kickboxing, my body hurts great job with getting up so early! Keep it up!
@pamiede great loss!
@shorepine you have a lot on your plate...take care of you!
@areohead21 onederland! Yay! I look forward to being there one day!
@sharpdust glad you can get back to routine. I think we all were happy to!
@speyerj I really liked the video about will power, makes total sense, thank you!

That’s all I can do for now…wishing everyone a wonderful, healthy, and successful rest of the week!

So many great posts - thought-provoking, inspiring, and real. Thank you all for sharing and being so open.

@bluffgirl67 I love that you have a new soup plan, but after a hard day (physically and emotionally) the baked potato soup with only 300 calories over was just fine! But Isn't it interesting to log our prior life go-tos? I used go to Panera for breakfast and get a egg wrap, a cookie, and a cold brew. Those three alone would put me over my close to my daily goal, not to mention the sugar and fat macros!

Shout outs to @speyerj for hitting 75 lbs lost (enjoy the gorgeous boots!) and @Aerohead21 and @mmdeveau for making it into Onederland (@mmdeveau you are just amazing me with your progress this month!) and @AmethystEFC and @candyn617 for your great losses! And @torihudson6 for getting up at 4:30 am to make it to kickboxing. I'm in a bit of a stall but seeing you all crush your goals this month keeps pulling me back and reminding me the game is still on!

@pamiede sorry you have had a rough few days. Love that you are restarting your work exercise group; you are doing so well! And @sharpdust I think getting back to routines is so key.

@shorepine hang in there with a busy week; my husband is also traveling and it definitely adds a lot of stress.

@flimflam87, I hear you about living in the moment rather than focusing on the next scale goal. I think we need to forgive ourselves and realize we are right where we need to be to take the next step. Taking care of our bodies and health is the most loving thing we can do for ourselves.

@brownsugar174 thank you for the inspirational quotes and photos, as well as acknowledging internal pain. I know for me, my weight reflects how I am feeling - when I am sad or insecure or feel powerless, I eat; and then eat even more when I gain. It is a vicious circle. I love how your journey is focused on strength and power.

@terytha you can rock this party. You are far more interesting than a bunch of high society types and they are probably feeling very uncool next to you. I love @vegasgirl0825's idea about working those characters into

@orangequilt I was so happy to see your face on your profile pic! I completely understand those who want more privacy but I feel like I know you better already! On that note, @mmccloy12 and @bluffgirl67, your updated profile pics are stunning.

Weigh-in is tomorrow. I've had some good days and some not as good days this past week but just feel bloaty and tired in general; probably too much sodium and haven't been sleeping very well lately. But I hope everyone has a wonderful Tuesday!

Hi everyone!

This thread has such good energy. I hope it's okay if I join y'all.

My profile pic is hellllla old (4-5 years), from when I was in the 160s or 170s. Kids came along, and here I am back at 207.

SW: 216
CW: 207

Goals for this month:
* Do the running plan I have going, training for a 10k in the spring 4x week
* log every single day
* 1 treat per day, max. ( I failed at this one today, which is why it's going here)
* strength train 2x week

Welcome to all the new peeps. It is great reading about all the goals being hit this week and the struggles that have been pushed through. For those still facing challenges hang in there. Change is hard and not going to happen overnight. Be consistent in following your plan, honest about your logs, and most of all kind to yourself if you have a slip. The weight will come off if you keep working at it.

@torihudson6 Having your friend doing the class also will help keep you going even when you feel like slacking. It may a bit tough at first with the new semester and early time but I know you can kick it up!!

@orangequilt Love seeing your face.

@momx4hill Holding is way better than gaining. Besides it's not something you do every day. If you can and don't mind swapping get a few diet dews to have on hand. Sure they aren't water but when you want a "coke" (southerner here where everything is a coke and then you ask what kind lol) have that instead. That would save some calories and may even result in a bump down on the scale.

@speyerj Thank you for the very interesting and insightful video. I can definitely relate to those kids in regards to "not knowing why". I'm trying to be more self aware so I can answer the why of my choices. Double thanks to you and @mmdeveau for the squishy fat links and info. I'm not there yet but reading and bookmarking it for later so I can come back to it in the future.

@Terytha I bet some of them read trashy romance. I love @vegasgirl0825 idea of making up a trashy romance in your head. You probably have more to talk about than you realize and don't sound like an airhead at all. Take your healthy nibbles around while listening in to conversations. Stop when you find a group talking about something you like even if you no input. Better yet put in your two cents because if they truly are activists then hearing from all types is something they usually appreciate.

@BrownSugar174 I love all the inspirational quotes and stories you've been sharing lately. They are making me take a hard look at myself and think about changes I want to make. It easy to be down about ourselves and situations we are going through. I'm sorry you had to watch your friend lose the fight. Meeting someone like you did puts a whole new perspective on that. It doesn't make our problems any less real or painful but can give us a different way to look at them.

@hidemeupnorth Hope you are feeling better.

@flimflam87 Everything you are doing at this moment to be healthier is loving your current self. You are giving your body proper calories, moving muscles and joints to keep them strong, and choosing good nutrition to give you glowing skin/shiny hair. All of those benefit your current self and are leading to your future self. Keep on loving like that.

@LilPetesMama Every loss is a great loss!

@Aerohead21 Onederland!!! I'm so happy for you. Great job on sticking it to the cookie monster. Keep trying and maybe you can find a recipe that is tasty and works well calorie wise. I think listening to your body by adding a small amount of calories and choosing better nutritional things is a good idea. If it doesn't work then try something else to find balance. Congrats on the 8yr badge also.

@sharpdust Excellent work planning out meals and gym time. My routine getting off messes me up too so feel ya there. Hit that gym and show it who is boss.

@shorepine Dealing with so much can derail our best laid plans. Reaching for comfort foods is easier and quicker than finding time and something else to relieve stress. I'm sorry you are missing your momma. I can only imagine how hard that is esp since she was your go to person. Is there something like a certain movie, music, etc that y'all shared? If so maybe you could use that when you are feeling so empty and needing her. Hugs

@pamiede The exercise group sounds like fun and I'm sure it's needed for stress from all those kids. Hopefully you are feeling less blah. That loss looks great to me. You have lost a bunch already and are probably experiencing the slow down that I've read about. Everything you've been doing is working so just keep at it.

@theleadmare Way to be on autopilot. Thinking too much about getting up and exercising makes it easy to talk ourselves out of doing it.

@mmccloy12 Great job on making it to the gym so much. You aren't letting awful early mornings and long work days get in your way of making those goals. I've been slacking due to all the numbness down my left arm/leg but I know there are some things I could do. Not my usual stuff so needed some motivation to find some new things. Thanks for inspiring to look for those. Love the new profile pic.

@kali31337 Planning ahead for the Starbucks was a great choice. You even did well ordering the espresso rather than your usual. As long as you log the latte and take it into account no reason you can't have one. If it takes you over then acknowledge and plan for the next time. If you friend orders a heavy calorie drink but doesn't like try dumping some of it then finishing the rest. Pleasure plus lower calories equals win win.

@aliciap0116 Yes, logging an old food is eye opening. Worst part is the old me would have added a bunch more shredded cheese plus some bacon on top. Scary! The lentil soup was yummy and I have 4 servings in the freezer for later.

As I sit down after a hard and busy day at work I find myself wondering how all the lovely ladies are doing on this thread. So many posts to read through to get caught up. It amazes me how much I look forward to coming here. I have never been much of a joiner especially to online groups. I am thankful for this thread @RavenStCloud , thank you for creating a new thread each month. Thank you to everyone in here for sharing your days, struggles, successes and insights. I am not sure I would have stuck with MFP this long without you!! When I started in April of last year I had to lose half my body weight (144 lbs 😔) to be considered healthy. (BMI scale). I beat myself up for so long for letting myself get to this point. It seemed like an impossible feat. Tomorrow is weigh in but I am half way there. Each day, each meal, each exercise, I am that much closer. So now that I have rambled on. I hope you all have a wonderful evening or morning, depending on where you are! 💞

@Tarzan37 I am with you on the water drinking. I have always been a water drinker but I was challenging myself to drink 90oz or more a day. This didn't do well for a good night's sleep. So I try to keep it around 72 oz. I have started making a game out of my frequent trips to the bathroom.. Everytime I have to make a trip in. I do 10 squats. It doesn't sound like much but over the course of the day. It adds up! Gotta sneak a little exercise in here and there!! Lol

I read an article recently about obesity in which a researcher had recruited people to try living in a controlled situation and basically living off their fat til they were at a goal weight, under medical supervision. One woman dropped about 350 pounds, and came back six months later having happily put on 150 again. "What happened?" asked the researcher. "Well," she said. "When I was thin, men noticed me and asked me out. When I'm fat, that doesn't happen." He talked with her for a while and determined that she had started putting on her weight seriously at the age of eleven. "What happened at eleven?" he asked. "Well," she said. "That was the age that my grandfather interfered with me."

Obesity isn't all about calories in and out or straight metabolic issues. I know for myself it's undoubtedly partly metabolic. I started having hypothyroid symptoms at 13, but the tests kept coming back as being within normal range until I was in my late twenties. But at thirteen I also realized how very different my autistic self was and got very anxious around others because I didn't know how to fake it any more now that we weren't children. And food never gave me sideeye or told me I was weird. So I ate for comfort, and to stuff down emotions that weren't socially acceptable.

Now, I'm in my forties. I'm comfortable with who I am, including the autism, including the socially non-approved relationship configuration, including the minority religion. And so now I can let the weight go. But I'm keeping an eye out for things to come up that I have to work through as I slim down.

@flimflam87 I love that your husband is on this journey with you! I have been wondering about zoodles but have yet to try them as I think I would be the only one in my house to eat them! Even though my husband is supportive in my journey he isn't one to be too adventurous when it comes to food. Luckily he has a great metabolism and stays active. He has an incredible sweet tooth and you would never know to look at him. I may have to get some and have it for my lunches. Lol.. although your response has me thinking maybe I should just pass on them. 🤔

Week 2 Update:
Height: 5' 9''
SW: 286.5 (June 3, 2019)
12/31/19: 215.8
1/8/20: 216.6
1/14/20: 211
GW: 180

Goals for January:
Strength train 3 x week: 6/6
5K training 3 x week: 6/6
Get 10000 steps a day: 12/14
Eat no more than 100 grams of net carbs (Carbs - fiber): 13/14
Eat more than 100 grams of protein a day: 13/14
Drink 150 oz of water a day: 10/14
Log accurately every day: 14/14
Lose 6 pounds: 4.8

I got my whoosh yes, I did hit my 75 lb milestone! I tried on the boots that I had my eye on but I have a really high instep, so they didn't fit my foot quite right. So instead, I treated myself to these instead. And they were on sale!

@speyerj Great loss and beautiful shoes!

Now you have to go somewhere fabulous to wear them

Wednesday update!
SW 296.
This week: 288.6.

So far I have lost a little over seven pounds. I am totally thrilled.

Am far less thrilled with the muscle spasm in one shoulder (It's in one of those deep muscles up under the shoulderblade) that has me unable to put my bra on, and has made me decide not to try to do weight work today. So no gym for me. When one of my partners gets up I'll lie down on the bed and see if we can get it worked out. but I get up before they do.