I'm Shannon. I'm 5'3" and 245lbs. I'm 29 and want to be well towards my goal by the time I turn 30 in Nov. My goal for working out are to do the c25k program and I tried 30DS last night for the first time. OMG!!! I couldn't do half of what she wanted and I used to have military training. I used to be able to do over 100 push ups in 3 minutes and I couldn't even do 1 real one last night. I couldn't do jumping jacks or the fake jump roping either and those didn't have a modification. I am soooo sore today . I did make it through the whole video but totally self modified the jumping stuff. I'm hoping I have better luck with the C25k program. We have done a lot of hiking since living in Utah so I am hoping that won't be as hard as the jumping. It kills me to think that my kids memories of me will be this weak rendition of myself instead of the strong fit one I used to be that they have never seen. I have 100lbs at least to lose and being short the 100lbs really shows. My hubby is 6' and his 195lbs barely looks like extra weight on him, but he will be able to lose it pretty much instantly. I want to beat him, lol!!! At least I want to be under the weight he wants to be at when he gets there. Besides my family and being healthier one motivation I have is to find out if I look like I used to before I gained weight once I lose it. He thinks I will look different then my old self just a skinnier version of my now self. I'm hoping I look like a wiser with kids version of my old self. Sigh.

Hello all!! My name is Amy and I'm about 5'2". I'm 38 and I started MFP on January 7th. A few days before I started on here I went to the doctor and the scale scared me straight!! It said 249 pounds!! When I started on here my home scale read 245 (naked). My current weight is 204. My first goal is to get to 199 after that I'm going to do 20 pound increments til I get to 159 then I plan on doing 10 pounds at a time. When I was a freshmen in HS I went from a size 9 to a size 14. In my 20s I stayed around 170-180 but after I turned 30 I gained about 50 pounds. Then the scale just kept creeping up. I'm so grateful I found MFP. It is a great tool and I've found some great friends that support me. For me this isn't a diet I'm trying to make small changes that I can stick with the rest of my life.

Hello all!! My name is Amy and I'm about 5'2". I'm 38 and I started MFP on January 7th. A few days before I started on here I went to the doctor and the scale scared me straight!! It said 249 pounds!! When I started on here my home scale read 245 (naked). My current weight is 204. My first goal is to get to 199 after that I'm going to do 20 pound increments til I get to 159 then I plan on doing 10 pounds at a time. When I was a freshmen in HS I went from a size 9 to a size 14. In my 20s I stayed around 170-180 but after I turned 30 I gained about 50 pounds. Then the scale just kept creeping up. I'm so grateful I found MFP. It is a great tool and I've found some great friends that support me. For me this isn't a diet I'm trying to make small changes that I can stick with the rest of my life.

My hubby got a scale to watch his weight and that's what scared me straight too. I do NOT want to hit 250lbs.

Hi all I am Heather- 5'2" and 213 lbs- I started at 221. I am having a very bad time dropping this weight - loosing inches but not pounds. I know that is better then nothing but I dont flippin care- I want under 200 lbs I am working hard, I did 30DS in 30 straight no breaks, I am almost done with Ripped in 30- again no breaks then I am moving on to Insanity!!! Waiting to get into the Dr to discuss the lack of poiunds falling off!

Yes, I had to go last week to see my Dr to have her check thryoid and all that since it runs hightly in my family I thought maybe I had it since I workout 6 days and eat pretty good. But everything came back normal so she put me on Phentermine to try and boost metabolism for a month and see how that goes.

That is actually exactly what I am plannign on- I have had my thryoid checked before adn everything is normal! I get so mad and discouraged, kind of glad to know you are in the same boat as me Even if it is a sucky boat! Let me know how it works!

Hi everyone, I'm Cindy. I'm just under 5'4" and I hit my all time high last summer at 203 pounds. I've never been very good with exercise. I have quite a few health issues and injuries that make many types of activity very difficult. I've lost and gained the same 50 pounds over and over for the past 20 years but this last time I wound up gaining back 70!! That's what woke me up!! I started by hiring a personal trainer which helped take off the first 20 pounds fairly quickly. Then I hit a plateau and was having a lot of trouble breaking through for about 3 months. That's when I started looking for information and found MFP.

This site has been so great! I'm motivated in ways I've never been before. I'm excited about eating well and getting healthy. The support has truly been amazing! I'm turning 40 in July and I truly feel so empowered and positive! I'm so grateful for all the friends I'm making here and am inspired by all of your stories and progress as well. :flowerforyou:

This is something I have experienced as well . I was discussing how tired I always was and how hard it was for me to lose weighmy with my ob dr. She tested my thyroid and the levels came back that it was clearly under active. I followed up with my regular dr and my levels came back normal. To make a long story short after a few visits to the dr.and my blood being tested. My dr figured out my thyroid would fluctuate up and down it wld b normal then not normal. I finally went to a specialist and my levels are steady and all is well now. Losing weight is still a slow go with me, but at least now I have some reasoning to why by body doesn't respond like others. All I can suggest is to listen to your body, u know it better than your anyone. Things are not always normal and sometimes I think dr's dismiss what we are saying, because they are going my what's normal.
Thx
Cindy

I recently went through the same issues as a lot of you are posting- questioning the functionality of my thyroid... It runs mildy throughout my mom's side of the family, so I was pretty worried... But I'm not willing to take prescriptions for the rest of my life..
I haven't had my thyroid tested, but I did some research on my own about 'boosting' and under-productive thyroid through standard minerals and natural supplements.

I found that taking Chromium, Selenium, a multi-vitamin with iron & zinc, and detoxified iodine have made a -HUGE- difference in my weight loss. I had been plateauing for weeks.. once I started taking daily supplements of each I lost 4 pounds in 2 days!.. Ever since, weight has been dropping off normally. *edited to add that 'normally' refers to 1-2 pounds a week with continued healthy eating and exercise.

For more clarification on each:

-You must have iodine to make thyroid hormone. Most women don’t get enough iodine in their diets, so supplementation is often necessary.

-You need sufficient iron levels to make thyroid hormone and to get it into cells. Iron unlocks the door so T3 and T4 can do their work. Women with a heavy menstrual flow often run short on iron, and many drugs rob you of this crucial elemental metal, indirectly causing low thyroid. Among the most frequently used robbers: ibuprofen, aspirin, heartburn medications, etc.

-Zinc, selenium and chromium help you convert inactive T4 to active T3. They double as antioxidants and protect the thyroid gland from destructive free radicals, highly reactive molecules ready to pounce on and disrupt any nearby molecule, including proteins and DNA.

On top of these I also take some herbal supplements. :-)
Hope this information is at least food for thought! :P

Hi! Sorry I'm so late saying hello but I'm finally here!

My name is Kat, I'm 32 (even though I tell people I'm 27) and 5'0". In high school & college, I stayed in the 130's. I added a little weight during my senior year (night job as a typist and being with the same guy for 2 years takes a toll!) but I bought a treadmill and was able to lose the weight. I held study for a few years, did a lot of walking & watching what I ate and I looked really good at the beginning of 2004. Then, I met my future husband. We were self employed insurance agents (the good kind, not the kind that will lie to make a commission) and we worked all the time. Fast food was a way of life and if we did eat at home, my husband (a southern boy who doesn't know how to cook without bacon grease) made things like chicken fried steak, fried okra, etc. So, I met him weighing 130lbs & when we got married 2 years later I was 165. I lost some weight by doing diet pills and then my mother was hospitalized, got better and the day she was supposed to be released she took a turn for the worst and wound up in ICU for a week. When she finally woke up, I told her that since she hadn't had a cigarette in almost 3 weeks (that's how long her total hospital stay was), that she didn't need to pick it back up when she got out. As an added incentive, I promised to quit smoking with her. I smoked my last cigarette at 11:05pm on the Saturday night before she was released. That was January 2009 and since then, I've gained another 35lbs. So, here I am. I've lost almost 7lbs and I'm so excited about finally getting below 180 (by the end of the week I hope!!) If you would like someone who will support & motivate, please add me After all, I just told you my whole life story! Oh - no human children but I have 3 fur babies