atomicpunk1974

When I first started, I had hunger pangs all the time because my body simply wasn't used to eating the smaller amount of food that I had to stick to in order to stay within my calorie limit. A friend of mine who started about a month before I did told me that she had had the same experience but that after three weeks her…

I was in the exact same situation at the beginning of April and am still recovering. Those were the toughest three weeks I went through in a LONG time! I coped with it by going to a chiropractor who effectively treated the pain, doing a lot of biking, which didn't hurt much, and spending the time when I otherwise would…

Yes, this has been critical for me, too. I used to hate cooking, but now I've learned to enjoy it and to love having leftovers to eat on days when I don't have time to cook.

Thanks! I've always preferred to wear short shorts when I run in order to stay cool, but I've tended to feel self-conscious about it. Part of this process for me has been about learning to appreciate my body with all of its imperfections and refusing to feel like I have to hide it. When I feel ashamed of my body, then I…

I started losing weight when I became a ski instructor, and then when ski season ended I took up running in order to not gain the weight back. At first it was torturous to run, so I just made myself do it every other day. Then I built up tolerance for it, and then I started enjoying it. Then I found out that one of my…

maryb2374, I really like the quote you have for your user pic! It's so true!

Thank you! It's good to hear this. I've been in regular exercise habits for far longer than I've been in good eating habits and absolutely love to run and to ski. I hope it will be as helpful to me in keeping the weight off as it is for you!

Thanks! I definitely do feel a difference out there on the slopes... I don't get nearly as sore or tired as I have in past years! :)

That's SO awesome! Personally, I think that how I feel when I take care of myself is much more important than how I look. Congratulations on your success!

"Atomic Punk" is an old Van Halen song, and I love Van Halen. Also, I ski on Atomic skis, and skiing is my passion in life.1974 is the year I was born.

That is SO AWESOME! The best runner's highs are the ones that come from achieving your goals.

I have experienced some intense lower back pain from running as well, but when I have it has usually set in while I was running. I think that for me it's only a problem if I'm too tense while I'm running. What helped for me was focusing on my breathing as a way of relaxing during my run. I don't know if that would help for…

I don't know about the nicest, but I tend to remember the oddest nice things people say. I work with people who have mental illnesses and perceive a lot of things differently than most people do and also who don't always have a lot of social skills. So some of the more interesting things they've said to me (all meant as…

Running has definitely helped me with my butt and thighs. So has skiing.

Yes, exactly! I don't know how they can really consider pizza sauce to be a veggie after all the processing it goes through. How much veggie is really left? It really bothers me that the schools are giving such inaccurate information to kids about nutrition! Isn't a school supposed to be all about educating kids about the…

I live in MN, where we get tons of snow, and I LOVE it! It seems to me that people who find outdoor activities to enjoy during the winter (downhill skiing for me) love the winters, and people who don't have activities like that hate them.

I just got my skis back from the shop, and they set my bindings at 6.5. They said that there's a 15-20 pound range, so I guess I'm probably good for the season.

I don't think it really matters in terms of calorie burning. I would say that the best time to exercise is whatever time of day you feel most motivated to do it.

Two winters ago at the beginning of the season I fell, and my ski did not pop off right away, which popped my ACL off my shin bone and took a chunk of the bone with it. Ever since then, I have been careful about my binding settings. I guess now that I only have one ACL left, my chances of another ACL injury have decreased…

I'm a ski instructor in Minnesota (I live in Minneapolis), where we don't have mountains. I teach at Afton Alps, and my ski instructor friends and I go on trips together. I've been to Colorado a couple times and loved skiing at Arapahoe Basin. I also went to Austria once and skied at Kitzbühel, which was quite an…

Awesome! I'm a ski instructor in Minnesota, and there's nothing I love more than skiing! Count me in!

Awesome! Personally, I think that feeling stronger like that is one of the best things about doing this diet and exercise stuff. :) Congratulations!

Thanks!

Oh, yeah, and this is the same clothing I'm wearing in my profile pic.

I'm a runner too, and for me it helps to keep working on increasing my speed and my distance so that my body does not get too used to my runs. It can also help to do different kinds of runs. Some days I do short fast hilly runs, and other days I do long slow flat runs. They work my body in different ways.

My husband and I spent a week hiking in the redwood forest along the Del Norte coast of northern CA this summer. It was the most amazing place to hike! Those trees are so awe inspiring! And I loved some of the ocean views at the edge of the forest. That was definitely the best hiking I've ever done.

I get headaches when I exercise in the morning and then don't eat enough of my calories for the day right afterward. Sometimes I try to save too many of my calories for the day for a big dinner. Then when my blood sugar drops I get migraine-ish headaches. I don't know if this is the same thing you're experiencing, but for…

For me it usually helps to increase my exercise. More intense workouts tend to boost my metabolism.

I wouldn't have fat liposuctioned out after reading this article: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/01/weekinreview/01kolata.html and learning about the long-term results of liposuction. Here's an important quote from it: The result, published in the latest issue of Obesity, was that fat came back after it was suctioned out.…

I had the same experience when I started this. What helped me was that a friend told me that after two or three weeks of staying within the calorie limit, her appetite adjusted to it, and she stopped feeling hungry all the time. So I pushed through those first few weeks too, and the same thing happened to me. It's hard at…