Hey! I'm Belinda and have 150 pounds to lose! I currently work part-time, but am currently looking for full-time employment. Weight has been an issue for me since puberty. I went to WW about 5 years ago and lost about 30 pounds with them, but through time, fell off the wagon and gained it all back (and THEN SOME!). On New Year's I stepped on the scale and I was floored: 309.6 pounds! I have NEVER been this big in my LIFE. I am committed now more that EVER to get this weight off of me and KEEP IT OFF! I've come to the realization that I have to make a LIFESTYLE change--it's not just about losing weight, but being HEALTHY! I don't care how LONG it takes! I'm doing this for ME!

Hi everyne im lisa im 28 and have a 13 mnth old daughter and custody of my niece(4 months)ive always had a problem wth food and overeating but im now close to 270pnds or 125 kg I have type two diabetes and had many problems whn pregnant I had to have an emergency c section one mnth early due to unstable bsl I hate wht I c whn I look in the mirror and my weight and obsession wth food is ruining my life I want to b around to wtch my daughter and niece grow up

Hello. My name is Billie and I am 49 years old with 4 children and 2 grandchildren. My weight has been going up on a steady incline for years and I have about 120 pounds to lose. I've lost some in the past, but then I gain it all back. As I will be 50 this year, I want to take control of my life. I don't have any health issues, but I know that will change if I don't step up and face this problem. My husband is a runner is very thin, and he just doesn't understand how hard this is. I'm sure he is dissappointed in me for letting this control me for so long - but THAT IS GOING TO CHANGE!

I'm ready..... I'm determined.... and I want to get started. LET'S DO IT!

Hello everyone!! My name is Rebecca. I am 35 and live in central Texas. I have been overweight as long as I can remember, with brief periods of almost reaching my weight goals, only to gain it all back (plus 5 or 20). I am a working mom (paralegal) and have fraternal twin boys (will be five in March). I went to the doctor last week and discovered that I currently weigh only 2 lbs less than I did when I delivered the twins. I thought, Wow, that is so unacceptable....and so, here I am.

I am no stranger to weight loss, I have followed several different weight loss plans over the years and was very successful with WW (lost 90 lbs from Oct 2004 to Aug 2006 - which is when I discovered I was pregnant) I was very close to my weight goal when I got pregnant and had to quit WW. A few weeks later I found out I was carrying twins. I then gained 108 lbs during my pregnancy. I have lost and gained the same 50 lbs twice since they were born. In the past, I have always been able to just make up my mind to lose the weight and do it, but have really struggled since the twins were born. Working all day and coming home with hungry toddlers, it was so much easier to just pop chicken nuggets or a pizza in the oven, rather than cook healthy food. Obviously, eating like a preschooler is not going to work for me, so this has to change.

I have been lucky so far and have no weight related health problems other than bad knees, but that does limit my exercise options. In my mid 20s I was taking kick boxing and lifting weights 3x a week and never felt better (despite still being in the 215 range), but as a Mom, my time is no longer my own and by the time the boys are in bed, I just want to sit down. I also work at a desk all day - trips to the copier, just aren't enough to get the heart rate up (LOL). So beginning exercise is a must for me, just like changing my eating habits.

As for a goal, I am not sure at this point. I have never been under 200lbs as an adult. I have gotten close, but never quite made it. So I really don't have a clear picture of where I want to be....I am going to say 199, just because I have never been there. That puts me needing to lose 126 lbs and I will see where that gets me. I am a "big girl" (5 ft 9 with a very large frame) and "carry my weight well" (I have never understood why people feel the need to say that to me, but I hear it a lot.) so I will always be heavy by "normal" standards. I am more concerned with how I look and feel than with the number on the scale though.

One thing having twins has taught me is that I can no longer control everything in my life and I don't have the energy to do it all by myself all the time. So I am reaching out for help and support. There is a long road ahead that I have been up and down many times, but never reached the end of. I am ready to get to the other side and stay there this time. I am tired of being tired and don't want to be "the fat Mom" and embarrass my children (who are both at a very healthy weight). It feels good to know that each of you are with me. I look forward to giving and getting the support of others who understand our unique situation.

~Rebecca

x

Can you give a little more detail about being a picky eater? What do you eat? I would also like to understand what you mean about being OCD about food? In what way?

I have a daughter who has never eaten a vegetable or piece of fruit in her life. She is 11. If I try to get her to try a taste she will gag and throw up. She only eats eggo waffles, chicken nuggets, French Fries, and Kraft Mac & Cheese.

I'm wondering if you are the same way

Sure! Some things that people are shocked that I won't touch -

- Bacon. Or anything from a pig for that matter.
- Ricotta cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, mayo, and MOST white foods (there are some exceptions to this rule). All of them cause me to gag. Yes, this means milk of any variety. Unless in a bowl of cereal, but even then it's extremely minimal.
- Cakes, cupcakes, brownies, and most cookies. Any kind of chocolate with things in it (caramel, nuts, almonds...)
- Any kind of pizza other than cheese.
- Most fruits and veggies. I do like apples most of the time (I'll explain that in the next section), red seedless grapes, and corn.
- I'm allergic to any kind of seafood (although that's not really being picky...)
- Most green food
- Spaghetti sauce
- Peanut Butter
- Any kind of jelly
- Most juice. Occasionally I'll drink apple juice but it's rare.
- Before I quit drinking soda I would ONLY drink pepsi. Not diet or any of the variations, just normal pepsi.

When I say OCD, I mean :

- I can't bring myself to eat Wendy's hamburgers for no reason other than they're square.
- The only time I'll eat the previously mentioned apples is if they're peeled and cut up.
- I will eat vanilla ice cream (the exception to the white food rule) but only if it has rainbow (not chocolate) sprinkles and/or M&Ms on it.
- I will only eat lettuce if it's cut up into squares.

I also can't have my food touch most of the time. Especially if it's got some kind of sauce/liquid on it (mashed potatoes with gravy for example) because I don't like 'soggy' foods.

And for everyone who says "oh, your parents didn't feed you enough of a variety of foods..."

Bull. Crap. My dad eats every thing except ketchup. My mom is the same way. They both tried to feed me EVERYTHING. They tried the 'you're not getting up from this table until you eat that!' approach. Fine with me, I slept at the table. They tried grounding me. They tried "this is the only dinner I'm making so if you don't like it, you don't eat." I even remember my mom making pancakes when I was younger and me taking a bite and saying to her "mom, these taste funny." She shrugged and said "I put more sugar in it, don't tell your father." I took another bite, looked down, and realized the "sugar" was actually slices of bananas that she mixed in the batter to try to get me to eat them.

It eventually got to the point where they both decided that if I was going to be so picky, I was going to have to cook my own meals.

I too am a picky eater. No quite so picky, but I am deathly afraid to try fish. I have tried some vegetables but I will only eat them in small portions, and I have to cut them super tiny and eat with something else. Milk also makes me gag, not all milk products but just white milk, since I was a kid. I have always found it weird, so has anyone I have ever told about it. You are actually the first person I have ever heard of that has this problem. I can't even eat a bowl of cereal. I really want to get out of this but don't know how. I know I need to overcome my fears, but how?

Hey I'm Donna... for the first 23 years of my life, I was slim, in shape and very fit. I didn't have good eating habits though. When I began having kids at 24, my metabolism caught up with me, to say the least! Sadly I didn't change my eating habits, and needless to say, my weight soon caught up to me as well. In the 23 years to follow, I went from weighing 135 to weighing (at my heaviest) 290.... from a size 9 to a size 24. My health problems were getting to me (i.e. sore joints, back... swollen ankles, high b.p) and I finally decided to stop "trying" to do something about it and actually just DO it. This site has been such a blessing for me. Even though before finding it, my eating habits had drastically changed (for the better) and my health was getting better, I was unable to really keep track of anything, so I never knew what I was eating or how much. I feel very in control of my eating routine and exercise habits now and hope to continue dropping the weight. I have cut out meat, dairy, eggs, processed sugars and all fast food from my diet over the past month and a half and feel great!
Best of luck to everyone in your healthy endevours!

Just wanted to introduce myself here. I am almost 43 and heavier then I've ever been thus far in life. I saw some photographs of myself and decided that I could no longer remain this heavy...eeek! I've lost and gained my entire life. It's time I lose the weight for good. I want to be healthy, for myself but also for my family.

I have two beautiful children: 14 and 10. My husband is pretty tolerant of my weight but cannot relate to the way it feels to enjoy food as much as I seem to. It's very difficult for me to not "clean my plate"...I know this characteristic alone hasn't helped my journey thus far. I am an emotional eater. I am also very impulsive. Sometimes I wonder where my self control has gone...with food it just never even seemed to exist. Sigh...

Thanks, John, for creating this group! I look forward to learning more about each of you. I really think we will able to help and support one another!!!

Cheers,
Lisa