Another Sparkpeople Refugee looking for a new home

Hi everyone!

I'm Andrea from Greenwood DE. I had an old account on here but never used it because I discovered SparkPeople about the same time. I liked the community I found there as well as the free trackers. Now that they're shutting down, I'm giving this site another try. I'm hoping My Fitness Pal will allow me to pull myself back together again after a particularly difficult past few months.

My story: In April of 2017, I had a midlife crisis. It started with a gallon of store-brand Cookies-n-Cream ice cream and a David Gray song. It ended with a 71-lb.weight loss and a desire to look younger, sexier, and healthier (I went from 216 lbs. to 145 lbs.)

In the last six months I've gained back half the weight I'd lost. I can blame it on my increased workload due to Covid, my husband's recent hospitalizations and surgeries, and the loss of several horses as well as my graduate-school best friend. I am ashamed of myself for both the weight gain and the excuses!

I need to set a good example for my husband who has numerous health issues. It's hard to chastise him for his choices when I am not doing much better myself! Plus the excess weight is aggravating my arthritic knees and hips, preventing me from riding.

I don't want to wind up like my parents. They are 85 and 95 and suffer numerous maladies for which they undergo incessant doctors' visits, and need large quantities of expensive medications (which require MORE drugs to manage the side effects!) The key is to get myself fit and healthy NOW.

I owe it to my friend. He was always fit and healthy. I know he would have given anything to pursue the interests I currently enjoy. By NOT riding, NOT swimming, NOT working out, I'm not just squandering my own opportunities but also disrespecting his memory.

I have always been fiercely individualistic. One very humbling lesson I learned during my weight loss is the power of accountability buddies. I am hoping to find some here.