Hi Waistaways - can't believe it's already April.

I'm Kay, 26, living in Boston. Been on the team since August and really loved the support system and motivation here!

That said - I actually decided that I am going to back away from calorie counting. This Wednesday will mark 500 days straight of logging and reaching my fitbit step goal and that's a LOT. I was just thinking that actually, since meeting my step goal meant 1-2 hours of walking at a minimum every day, I have basically not given my body a true rest day in a year and half. !!! MFP has definitely helped me lose weight, especially in the last 3 years (hovering around 45-50 lbs lost), but recently has not been working as well. I've been stuck in a restrict-binge cycle for maybe 6 weeks and I think I need to reassess my relationship with food. I have been too focused on numbers - scale, calories, steps, streaks, yada yada yada. I am actually going to take my fitbit off for a while too!

I won't be weighing myself for at least a good month I hope, and then more like every 2-3 weeks after, so I won't be fitting the bill for the F2F system, but hoping @jugar can put me on support team and I can still check in and read about all your journeys? (While embarking on my own!) I feel like I know someone of you by now and there is such progress being made here!

Hi WaistAways, I'm Courtney and I'm 40 years old and live in the National Capital Region of Canada with my husband and two cats (both of whom are also overweight according to the vet). I have just closed down my toolbox and traded up for a desk job working from home until the pandemic is behind us. I like the idea of working from home based on the cost of commuting, but I know there will definitely be struggles for weight loss since I'll be moving less and will have easier access to snacks! I had a high-stress desk job 5 years ago and ballooned to my highest weight ever. This new position is more relaxed but boredom can be an enemy to willpower just like stress can.

As for my weight loss story, I was very athletic in my youth but once I hit university and sports weren't an everyday thing, I failed to lower my calorie consumption to match. I've been gaining and losing the same 40lbs for almost 20 years, so this time, with all of the motivation around me like I've found in this group, I will finally stick to it, and learn to be satisfied with the calorie limit I should actually be consuming instead of my goldfish tendencies to eat until I want to explode. I had great habits and motivation when I first joined MFP back in August but have gotten comfortable in the size I've reached so I've relaxed my discipline with my calorie goal to the point that I overdo it on the weekends and then spend Monday and Tuesday trying to turn the bus around for my Wednesday weigh-in. Like others, I'm going to have to find a bit of a better relationship with food to have this last for the long term. I'm 9 lbs from my first major goal. I have added an exercise routine I don't hate and The Habit Tracker I started using in February really kept me on track! I've picked out the reward I want once I've earned it. I'm giving myself $5 a week for each week I complete my three goals so another couple of weeks and I should have accumulated enough to get it!

My goals for March are:
1. Log honestly every day, even if when I hit "Complete my Diary" I don't get the caption "Was under her calorie goal" at the end.
2. No drinking wine 5 days per week
3. Remember to drink water (at least 40oz)!
4. Do free weight exercise at least 3 times per week

With this new job I have regained an hour and a half of my day that I would have normally lost to driving back and forth to work. Home reno projects take a bit of that time because there's always SOMETHING on the to-do list, but that's an hour and a half DAILY that's now MINE where I should be able to dedicate a good portion of that to wellness, either in exercise or meal planning/prep.

I do want to commit to posting more often as I'm one of the guilty ones that tends to post mostly on weigh in day and I really appreciate all the sharing of stories and advice from members of this group so I need to step up and contribute!

Monday weigh in

Smaidiigaa

Have forgotten exact PW last week, sorry to say. More than this week by a good bit anyway...
CW 66.00

hi, a quick intro, I'm Sylvia,52, in Massachusetts. I've been with F2F for just over a year and it was the accountability I needed. Did well and then plateaued since August and just recently creeping up again as I've really lost my focus & drive. Getting back onboard as I want to fight my way down about 12 pounds....and then...KEEP them off and feel really great this summer. In and out (due to covid) to a local office job (the alternate weeks when I'm home-my eating is not so good) and live in caregiver to elderly parents. Gardening gigs on the side. My own garden crying for attention. Whoever on F2F who recommended dill pickles as a snack - thank you! I cut them up into little 'nickels' and makes for a great nibble.

Hi team! Things are back to "normal" here for the most part, although my usual walking buddy (my husband) is recovering from surgery, so it's just me and my dog for my walks.
I am doing really well with my hydration goal, which isn't a strength of mine. I'm one of these people who "doesn't like water"... I do enjoy the feeling of being hydrated though (minus all the peeing!)
I am thinking ahead to the upcoming long weekend and hoping to plan another long distance walk for myself. I do find the extra calories earned very motivating!

It was Taco Tuesday here too! This week was fish tacos. So good!! So tough to stick to the amount I'm allowed within my calorie goal but I did it!
One thing I've come to find during the pandemic is that any of our local fast food places don't stock side salads or anything that isn't salty or fried anymore since they claim they couldn't guarantee supply when businesses kept shutting down. It's become a big problem for us on any day we venture into town to run errands after work and get stuck away from home past meal time. I find there's no healthy options for me out of the house. I either cave in and blow through my calorie goal with a burger or else I insist I eat once I'm home but he's welcome to pick up anything he wants.... and hubby pouts cause if I'm not willing to eat takeout then he won't eat takeout so he just sits there, hangry. And pouty. Who knew that a McDonald's side salad could be a marriage saver? Canada has limited fast food compared to the US to begin with and our corner of Quebec is even a barren desert compared to Ottawa just across the river. Who knew a Wendy's Taco salad could be such a hot commodity!?!? Does anyone have a go-to for when you find yourself out of the house and you hadn't prepped or planned for it?