Needing a shot in the arm!

[Stardust]

Hi all! I just don't even know were to begin. (Deep breath :yawn: ... here we go ...). I was a very skinny kid and I believe it stemmed from being hyperactive. As the hyperactivity subsided, my weight crept up to normal levels and sometimes a little over (I just had to watch what I ate for a week or two and then I would be okay (low fat, of course)).

After I graduated from high shool and went to work full time as a secretary, my weight crept up, got married at 20, got divorced, etc., ( I believe you can see a pattern here) and my weight went up more. Since I have tried so many diets, I had become such a successful yoyo dieter ... good loss and then up higher than when I started. I was very lucky that I didn't have any heath issues ... normal BP, good cholesterol, normal blood sugar and such, but some years later I ended up with CFS and was involved in a car accident, that I still suffer from and these problems contribute some to my struggle.

I am 5'10" and large framed. A good weight for me is 150 lbs. I have allowed myself to be as heavy as 335+. In 2000 I lost 76 lbs. (from 335) in 9 months following Atkins. I was thrilled. Then I became pregnant. Having a fear of ketosis and pregnancy, I went totally off Atkins and gained 26 lbs. in six months. At the end of my 7th month I was diagnozed with pre eclampsia and I had balloned. I ended up with Eclampsia and in the hospital ... one week before I delivered our little angel my weight was back up to 335. I was gaining at a very high rate, so I can imagine I was close to 350 when my daughter was born. I was so big, they couldn't do a spinal. Now, that was humilating.

After Alexandra was born, I dropped down to 304 by time I had my first checkup (Nov. 2001) after the birth. I started back on Atkins Jan. 2002 with hopes of losing weight and dropping my BP. My BP was staying up after having the Eclampsia and I was so scared. I did drop some weight and my BP is now lower than I ever remember it being. :roll: I still don't quite feel back to normal yet, tend to be extra tired, more achey, and less motivated. Yeah, I hear new mothers can experience this, but it seems like it is more than that.

Anyway, I know this WOL works and I just need some extra umph to stick to the program. I can do wonderfully for weeks and then blow it for weeks. I am having a problem sticking to it this time around. I know I am so addicted to carbs ... I can find a way to overeat zucchini if that is all I have available to me. lol

I have been keeping a journal for some time and posting here and there, but I have never braved posting here. Why? I have no idea. Here I should be understood very well. Well, I have crawled out from under my rock in search of some umph.

Is anyone willing to give me that needed shot in the arm?

Happy losing to all,
--Lisa

[Talon]

I think there are quite a few of us here who are willing to give you a "shot in the arm", or more precisely a shoulder to cry on and lend an ear when needed, and even the occasional cyber-hug. :bhug:

You can do this for yourself and your daughter. Post in your journal here, we are all in the same boat, we understand.

[Shark01]

Lisa,
You are off to a great start already (335-268 = 67) :thup:

My problem is kind of like yours. I can stick to a diet religiously for a couple of months, then get off track and gain some or all back. One reason is that I get bored of the same foods after a while. I am doing well by switching diets every now and then (right now, Atkins & CAD) to keep it fresh. So far so good :cool:

[Stardust]

It was nice to receive your responses, Shark01 and Talon. I will heed your comments and accept cyber hugs as needed. :D I will check out your journals soon and see what you have been up to.

I hope you are having a great summer,
--Lisa

[Tigra1965]

Dear Stardust

I just wanted to add my big hug for encouragement. Well all need that 'shot in the arm' occasionally and this is the place to get it.

Keep up the good work and happy LCing :bhug:

byeeeeee :wave:

[Stardust]

Hi, Julie!

Thanks for the hug. :D

Good luck on your path to goal ... looks as though you are clipping along. Keep up the good work.

--Lisa

[cogin]

Hi Stardust. We all need a shoulder to lean on .and encouragment. This is a great place to find it so you did yourself a real favour by posting here. There is lots of good advice and a wealth of experience on this site. I think we all tent to lean on each other and pull one another up by the bootstraps if needed. 'YOu can do this' and "I'm in for the long haul" are tow things to remember. Come here whenever you need or enter in my journal anytime.

[TheBetty]

You lost 76 po8unds, Stardust! that's incredible! In spite of your setback, I think you are amazing. I hope to lose a lot of weight while letting my body heal, and I can only be thrilled for you--until I lose that much myself. Welcome! :)

[Stardust]

Thanks for your input. I am feeling a bit better now. It's just at times I feel discouraged, because I have so much more weight to lose (even though I know I have lost a good portion). It's just a mentality I need to get past.

Thanks again for your encouraging words and the best of luck to you on your journies.

--Lisa

[Sherry B]

You know why yo yo dieting is so bad for you don't you? You know why when you do them and then go off and gain back you gain more? It is because of the muscle tissue that is lost during most diets.

Low carb helps, you don't lose as much muscle when you eat high protein, but if you want to really help yourself you should start lifting weights. Build some muscle, increase your metabolic rate.

My biggest problem with this diet is the same as yours, I do well for awhile, get discouraged, go off, and cheat and then have to struggle to bring myself back to it.

I've been lifting weights (in my basement) since June, and this time I have managed to keep my lower weights more in a maintenance level even during my cheats.

I do still gain back if I go off the diet and cheat, but it is more like 5 pounds of water weight that I gain, rather than the 12 pounds of water and fat I used to gain back (almost immediately).

The water will come back off within a few days of sticking to the diet again, the 12 used to be more of a struggle to take back off again.

Anyway I have been where you are (too many times to count), I too get discouraged, still find myself off the diet and struggling to get back on, but lifting has helped me to minimize the damage I do to myself during cheat phases. If you are interested in getting started I have some suggestions for how to do it. Some sites I can send you to to help you get started, etc.

Let me know. We are both in the same boat.