JoAnna4731 Member

What an accomplishment at such a young age! It takes a lot of maturity to be able to self reflect and put in motion the plan to succeed at anything, let alone something like this kind of weight loss. Congratulations - your future is bright!

I just discovered this thread, and I love it! Hope it's ok for me to join in - I'm 44, and I gained a substantial amount of weight over a 12-year period as I transitioned into a new career, and subsequently through child-birth and a couple of very high-stress jobs. I chose to take a step back from my career by accepting a…

At least it wasn't a cheat month. Good for you for admitting that you went a bit off track - the first step in making changes is to face your reality. Look at it this way - what's the big deal if you gained a pound or two? The worst case scenario is that it just delays getting to your goal by a week. Just start again, and…

Starting weight at Christmas was 170. I am down to 160 as of this weekend. My current mini-goal is to get under 160 (may be a week or two for that).

I was just doing a search to see if there are other Jessica Smith fans here, and stumbled across your story. I’m so impressed and hope you are still doing well!

Two months ago, at my heaviest non-pregnancy weight, I couldn't reach behind my back to fasten my sports bras (which had previously fit me just fine). I had to fasten it in front and then twist around to get it on (ladies, you know how fun that is!!). And the chest band totally cut into me to the point where it was…

I weigh every day, mostly out of curiosity and totally without judgement. However, what I log is probably unorthodox. I only log the weight when it reflects a loss - my graph looks like a completely linear weight loss pattern - I have the same exact weight every day for two weeks at a time, and then a few days of dipping…

My Phase 1 goal is to lose 15 lbs (from 170 to 155), and I am 9 pounds into that goal. I have been dealing with some serious ankle pain due to early arthritis - the pain started easing up after only losing 5 lbs. Now 9 lbs down, the swelling has also started to go down and I don't feel stiff all the time. Yay!

Today was not much better than earlier in the week, but it's almost over. Thanks for the cheers and support - you're all doing great too!!

All I will say is take a very very close look at the terms and conditions accompanying these tests and understand that you are consenting to allow the company to use your dna for pharmaceutical research. Make sure you are ok with that

I could have written this post myself. Congratulations, and keep it up!

Thanks for your reply. I went into this with the intention of being gentle with myself, and the 1200 calories felt harsh. I feel much more in control with the 1450. Sometimes perception is reality

Thank you. I am very grateful that at least I can still walk, even run if I have to! But at the rate I was going, I am pretty sure I was going to need a cane. Even the six pounds I have lost has made a HUGE difference - the pain is becoming less severe and my joints are creaking less. A relative of mine has the same…

I don't like to look at it as failing. This is my third weight loss journey in 27 years of adulthood, after packing on 45 pounds over two decades. The pounds crept up each time because, well . . . life happens. But it was all great things, so I can't look at it as a failure. I went back to professional school in my…

I use my Fitbit Alta solely to make sure I am moving more during the day and getting my 10,000 steps in, as having a desk job is inherently sedentary. But I do not rely on any of the other data because I find it highly unreliable. At one point last week, it was registering some of my more contentious work phone calls as…

When you put it that way, my initial question looks ridiculously silly, haha. Thanks everyone for your input and kind encouraging words. Interesting stuff, MegaMoose - and I can totally see that happening to me with respect to the energy decrease. I just switched my goal to .5 per week, which puts me at 1450 calories net…

I have this argument with DH all the time - "I don't eat any bad stuff - I don't need to count calories." I grew up with a mom who is a registered dietitian, and I learned a lot of strategies for maintaining my weight by incorporating certain foods that would make me feel more full, but that did not necessarily cut…

You look beautiful at any weight, but you are so radiant in your last set of pictures - you should be incredibly proud!