41.5 bmi: Not good!
 

Hey fitday!

So I have been on fitday for a while now and have been doing fine but I want some communication! So anyway, here is my story:

People always described me as "solid." I was cool with that because I'm a good German girl with those child baring hips that Hitler loved so much (sorry, I have a weird sense of humor...) but anyway. I am 5'8" and was right about 180 lbs when I graduated high school in 2008 and, believe it or not, that is pretty skinny for people in my family (with all the muscle that we have, a size 0 is simply not in the cards lol). A few months after I graduated I was in a car accident which left my back pretty messed up. In the following year I gained about 20 lbs. and completed my AA. The following spring I left for real college and in my nine months in the dorms at WWU, I gained about 40 lbs. (stupid dorm food!) and because of my back, I was unable to do pretty much anything but sit in bed and do my homework. I left the dorms at about 240 lbs. In the past three years, it's been about 10 lbs per year leaving me at a pathetic 273 lbs and a BMI of 41.5.

Life sucked.

I hated pictures of me, I hated leaving the house, I wouldn't do anything I hadn't done before. Life was tame and that's what I was accustomed to.

Then my sister in law had weight loss surgery. She had the gastric sleeve procedure and in less than a year she had lost over one half of herself. I was SO MAD at her! Well, not her, just the situation. She was able to find the money for this surgery and I would never be able to afford it. I needed to lose right about 100lbs so I did qualify, but even with my insurance I still would need $1,500 for the surgery (and I make $500 per month soooo... ya... not happening lol). I was just frustrated and didn't think I could do it without surgery because of my back injury. My brother and her live across the state so we don't see them often and they came to visit for the weekend. My sister in law had inspired my brother to lose weight. He had lost 60 lbs since the last time I saw him by doing a low carb diet and exercising. I am SO stubborn so I was like, "shoot, if he can do it, I CAN TOO!!!!!!"

I started with just the diet because every other time I started to be physical, less than a week in I would hurt my back so bad that I would be stuck in bed for weeks. After my first 5 lbs of weight loss, I started walking on the treadmill. I used to love working out and I LOVE the feeling of sweating and wearing myself out but I denied myself that because I didn't want to hurt myself. I wouldn't go above setting 2 (out of 12) and wouldn't do any incline to keep myself safe. I lost another 5 lbs and then my sister found the couch to 5K challenge. I WANTED IT. So now I'm working up to the first week. I can now job for an entire minute! I do that three or four times in my 30 minute walks. Pathetic, for sure, but it's more than I could do two months ago!

As of right now, I have gone from 273 lbs to 251 lbs. I have gone from a BMI of 41.5 to 38.2. It is my goal that by my birthday in one year (August 15, 2014) I will be 180 lbs. When I look at my weight report on here, tomorrow I should be at 254 lbs and today I'm beating that by 3 lbs! I think my end goal will be 170 lbs but my mom (who I am almost seriously a clone of) said that when she was 170 lbs back when she was my age, she looked like a greyhound dog (no stomach and HUGE rib cage... Great mental picture, right? lol) so I don't know if I'll want to be there, but we'll see...

So, ya. That's my story and If you think I'm interesting, friend me and keep me accountable! I need other people in my voyage (btw, I LOVE Star Trek) so lets communicate :)

Hi there, Davis and welcome aboard! Congrats to you for getting to your current weight! From reading your post, I think you might find the 7 Day Motivational Thread interesting. We start a new one every Monday. Here is the one started today: 7 Day Motivational Thread, starting May 27: New Week, New Start! Basically, every Monday, people post a list of the things they'd like to accomplish during the week. Then, as the week progresses, they update the thread with their progress.

There's no pressure to perform, no competition, just conversation, support, motivation, help, advice and a few chuckles along the way. Hope you'll consider posting there!

May 27-June 2 goals
 

I have been doing fine with my carb counting (right around 20 per day, but I don't freak out if I get a little more) I just need to fine tune it. I need more fat in my diet. Every time I splurge a bit, I lose about a pound the next morning. So goals:

Log as much of my food as I remember
Analyze my percentages (60-70% fat, 20-30% protein... ish)
30+ minutes of walking at least 6 days

Davis - fantastic job on the weight loss so far. You've lost weight the perfect way - slow and steady. Much better than your SIL's bariatric surgery, IMO. And, by the end of your weight loss journey, your good eating habits should be pretty well established.