VictorianThymes
New member
Hello everyone!
It has been years since I have considered weight loss, and now that I want to lose it for the right reasons, I figure now is the time to re-sign up on this forum.
I used to be a regular member of this forum in 2005 - 2006. However, I have decided to sign up under a new username because I am a different person now, and I want to have a fresh start. Hello to my old friends Maleficent and T-Trucker if they still post here!
Anyhow, I have always wanted to lose weight because of vanity. I would lose it for special occasions or for other people, and always gain it all back plus more! I would overdo the diet and exercise to the point where it was torture (to me) and I would quit. I haven't done any serious dieting or exercising since early 2009 when I got down to 200 pounds (which is the lowest I have been since I was in high school!).
For the past 3 years or so, I have been completely comfortable with the way I look. I now weigh 300 pounds, but I am perfectly comfortable with my body image. I found some great hobbies, became more independent, more mature... and could care less how I look or what people think! Heck, if the doc told me I was in perfect health but I still looked heavy, I wouldn't care at all.
I have had a few scares, though... I have been to the doctor twice, once was for a scare relating to my heart. Even though he told me that my heart is probably just fine, he said that my weight is really bad and needs to be gone. While one side of my family has extreme longevity (the women live to be 100+ years old) the other side is the opposite... Heart problems run on that side, and it is considered a major feat if you make it to 70. Unfortunately, my grandmother had serious heart problems (She had to take 30+ pills a day) and only lived to be 68. Before she passed away, she told me her heart condition skips every other generation in females pretty much saying: "You're next!"... It was a bit of an omen, but I kind of blew it off. She was in perfect health before the heart condition and when it came on (she was in her late 20's) there was no diet or exercise that could do anything about it, so I figured I could do nothing about it as well and decided not to worry. After the scare I had this summer, I became worried that she was right and maybe I really am next! My mom has even confided in my boyfriend that she is afraid that I will inherit my grandma's heart problems just like she said... I figure if I can't prevent it (which I will try), at least I could deal with it better if I am in good health.
The doctor also told me that if I want to have a baby (which I would in the future) there could be many bad complications because of my weight, and a very good chance I would develop diabetes. He says that even if I don't have a baby, I have a good chance of developing diabetes, even though no one in my family has ever had it. I got my bloodwork back about a week later, and was relieved to find out I do not have diabetes, and my cholesterol is also fine. I want to keep it that way so I have made the decision to lose weight for my health! I live in the buckle of the stroke and diabetes belt, and I also live in one of the top 3 unhealthiest states... I want to be healthy!
I am going to be trying the slim-fast diet (at first) because it's the one I feel I can do best. I have done it in the past, and it was my favorite. (Atkins is my least favorite... I just can't stomach or afford all that meat!). I am usually not hungry in the mornings anyway, and I have a major sweet tooth. I know that what I really have to do is a lifestyle change, but Slim-Fast can help me get the ball rolling. I have also planned a daily walk that is about 2.5 miles.
I am also going to start walking to the grocery store and back. It is only 1.5 miles away, and it will save on gas! I used to love growing up in a small town when I was little because I could walk everywhere, and I love nature. Now that I live in a small town again, I have been driving everywhere. Why? I really don't know! Time to quit holding the chairs down with my rear-end and get up and walk!
I am also going to post two photo's of me... One from 2009 when I was 200 pounds, and one from now at around 300 pounds. Since my whole family is quite large, maybe we can make the grocery store thing a family activity. Anyhow, I have always enjoyed everyone's company on here, and felt bad that I kind of let everyone down 5 years ago by gaining my weight back. Now that I am losing it for health and for ME only... I feel like I can succeed. Sorry for the long post, and thanks for reading!
-VT
Pic 1: May 2009 - 200 lbs, Pants size 18
Pic 2: August 2011 - 300 lbs, Pants size 24
Goal: Whatever weight the doc says I'm healthy!
It has been years since I have considered weight loss, and now that I want to lose it for the right reasons, I figure now is the time to re-sign up on this forum.
I used to be a regular member of this forum in 2005 - 2006. However, I have decided to sign up under a new username because I am a different person now, and I want to have a fresh start. Hello to my old friends Maleficent and T-Trucker if they still post here!
Anyhow, I have always wanted to lose weight because of vanity. I would lose it for special occasions or for other people, and always gain it all back plus more! I would overdo the diet and exercise to the point where it was torture (to me) and I would quit. I haven't done any serious dieting or exercising since early 2009 when I got down to 200 pounds (which is the lowest I have been since I was in high school!).
For the past 3 years or so, I have been completely comfortable with the way I look. I now weigh 300 pounds, but I am perfectly comfortable with my body image. I found some great hobbies, became more independent, more mature... and could care less how I look or what people think! Heck, if the doc told me I was in perfect health but I still looked heavy, I wouldn't care at all.
I have had a few scares, though... I have been to the doctor twice, once was for a scare relating to my heart. Even though he told me that my heart is probably just fine, he said that my weight is really bad and needs to be gone. While one side of my family has extreme longevity (the women live to be 100+ years old) the other side is the opposite... Heart problems run on that side, and it is considered a major feat if you make it to 70. Unfortunately, my grandmother had serious heart problems (She had to take 30+ pills a day) and only lived to be 68. Before she passed away, she told me her heart condition skips every other generation in females pretty much saying: "You're next!"... It was a bit of an omen, but I kind of blew it off. She was in perfect health before the heart condition and when it came on (she was in her late 20's) there was no diet or exercise that could do anything about it, so I figured I could do nothing about it as well and decided not to worry. After the scare I had this summer, I became worried that she was right and maybe I really am next! My mom has even confided in my boyfriend that she is afraid that I will inherit my grandma's heart problems just like she said... I figure if I can't prevent it (which I will try), at least I could deal with it better if I am in good health.
The doctor also told me that if I want to have a baby (which I would in the future) there could be many bad complications because of my weight, and a very good chance I would develop diabetes. He says that even if I don't have a baby, I have a good chance of developing diabetes, even though no one in my family has ever had it. I got my bloodwork back about a week later, and was relieved to find out I do not have diabetes, and my cholesterol is also fine. I want to keep it that way so I have made the decision to lose weight for my health! I live in the buckle of the stroke and diabetes belt, and I also live in one of the top 3 unhealthiest states... I want to be healthy!
I am going to be trying the slim-fast diet (at first) because it's the one I feel I can do best. I have done it in the past, and it was my favorite. (Atkins is my least favorite... I just can't stomach or afford all that meat!). I am usually not hungry in the mornings anyway, and I have a major sweet tooth. I know that what I really have to do is a lifestyle change, but Slim-Fast can help me get the ball rolling. I have also planned a daily walk that is about 2.5 miles.
I am also going to start walking to the grocery store and back. It is only 1.5 miles away, and it will save on gas! I used to love growing up in a small town when I was little because I could walk everywhere, and I love nature. Now that I live in a small town again, I have been driving everywhere. Why? I really don't know! Time to quit holding the chairs down with my rear-end and get up and walk!
I am also going to post two photo's of me... One from 2009 when I was 200 pounds, and one from now at around 300 pounds. Since my whole family is quite large, maybe we can make the grocery store thing a family activity. Anyhow, I have always enjoyed everyone's company on here, and felt bad that I kind of let everyone down 5 years ago by gaining my weight back. Now that I am losing it for health and for ME only... I feel like I can succeed. Sorry for the long post, and thanks for reading!
-VT
Pic 1: May 2009 - 200 lbs, Pants size 18
Pic 2: August 2011 - 300 lbs, Pants size 24
Goal: Whatever weight the doc says I'm healthy!
