Me too, me too!! Mandy here :)

Hi guys!

I am not sure what I weigh now (no scale, sorry)...but I know it doesn't feel like me! I can feel the weight and things I normally do with ease suddenly have felt a lot harder to do over the past year. I am going to go by my weight in the Summer which was just over 200 lbs.

I actually went to the Dr over this past Summer and complained of my chest hurting when I exercise. We walk frequently as a family and I was noting that when I walked up this on particularity deadly hill (feels like 90 degrees) it was becoming increasingly difficult. Little did I know but I had put on 40 pounds since starting the adoption process! I also do not have a full length mirror in my house, plus my husband was telling me thing like "the dryer is shrinking my pants too" AND "I think you actually have been losing weight"...while I appreciate what he was trying to do (save me from feeling hurt) - I can honestly say I had no idea the amount of weigh I had gained.

My goal is to get down to 150. So minus the 40 pounds I gained plus an extra 10 for good measure ;) I want to be healthy for when my kids come home from Haiti because I know that I do not want to be the one to feel sluggish when jumping around at the playground/beach/yard with the kids. I am a "hands on / active" parent and so it is important to me that I do not feel like taking a nap just an hour after waking up in the morning.

ALSO I want my skin to clear up! I have no idea if it is related to the weight gain but I know that I hardly drink any water and so maybe by flushing my body out a little better by increasing my fluid intake and exercising (sweat) it will clear my skin up as well.

Take care everyone - I am really excited about this blog and encouraging others and feeling supported! Thanks for the idea Steph :)

Mandy

I'm On Board

Hey Everyone:

I thought I would try this with our fantastic group, as I have managed to sabotage my earlier efforts at weight loss all by myself. More about that later.

I have 40-50 lbs to lose. Maybe more, but when I get there I will know. This is the most I have ever weighed. I lived most of my life from the age of 14 to 43 as a size 10. I did have to lose 45 lbs after my first pregnancy and 32 after my second one. I was not one of those women that "the weight just fell" off, I had to work at it, and hard. (And FYI, breastfeeding just made me hungrier) But at least I know how to do it. I also know it's not easy.

I started gradually putting weight on about 6 years ago. I attributed much of it to lifestyle changes, and there is truth to that. But also somethings started happening physically. Nerve problems in my right foot, limiting high heels and exercise. Last year I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's which is a thyroid condition. I have probably had it for 8-10 years. The good news is that medication can regulate this condition, the bad news is it takes awhile, but I am definitely on the upward mend. One thing that happens with me and my thyroid condition is that my blood sugar gets completely out of whack. Starvation diets are out for me. If I don't have enough fuel in my system I crash, and it's really ugly. The last few years I have overcompensated for this by overeating. I am deathly afraid of going into a low blood sugar attack. It makes me really sick and disoriented and takes about 24 hours to recover.

Another thing that happened this year was that after they started treating me for my thyroid I developed edema. Go figure. So I am limited on salt, although not terribly. But if I break the rules, even on 40 MG of Lasix a day, I have the worst cankles you have ever seen. So I have to watch my sodium, and Chinese Food is out, because MSG is the worst offender, and most Chinese places use it.

One year ago I was on no prescriptions, now I have 5, and if I don't lose some weight and get my blood pressure under control I will have to go on another. That from my doctor after my last visit in November. It got me pretty motivated, and I sat and thought long and hard about how can I succeed at this? I have done it before, after all. Here is what I came up:

10 Commandment of Weight Loss for Marta

1.) Drink water---lots of it!*
2.) Lose the booze (I am a native No. Californian and I love wine!)
3.) Exercise*
4.) Weight lifting 2 X a week
5.) Keep a faithful food diary*
6.) Keep calories at aprox. 1600*
7.) Do not eat later than 7PM*
8.) Do not eat fried food*
9.) 10,000 steps a day on a pedometer, and you will not gain weight.

10.) Plan, plan, plan. Then stick to the plan.*



*Every single day!

I stuck to this for about the first 10 days of December and started noticing results immediately. Let me say, I did not do every single thing on the list, but I did 6 or 7 things, everyday. The biggest change was that I felt better. I also felt better about not being out of control with food. It was a great feeling. It started falling apart the week-end that I had my kitchen torn apart and redone, we ate take out for 4 days. Then Cook's Holiday, then Christmas. I just decided to hang it up until after the holidays. But I was glad I was able to do it and stick to it for that small amount of time. I realized, I can do this!!! I had enough food in me (the right kind) at all times to keep my motor running and I never felt in danger of going into LBS mode.

The nerve problems in my foot have abated since I gave up heels, so at least I can walk, which I love to do. I'm also going to buy a bicycle in the near future because that is something I have always enjoyed, and I can do it with my kids. I know exercise is going to be a challenge with little kids coming home soon but for me it is critical in losing weight.

Lisa, I don't think I will be able to realize the sundress fantasy by the time I pick up the girls, but I hope to be well on my way to a better lifestyle and a substantial weight-loss. Last time I was in Haiti, Widmina held up a pair of my Capri's, and said in English "large!" and laughed. Ouch!

Marta

Janet's battle of the bulge picture "The Old Me"

Here I am at my heaviest weight in my life! I am only 5'1 so my body is not dealing with this weight very well. I am a walking picture of metabolic syndrome and now have diabetes. I have put me on the back burner worrying about everyone else first, so some real life changes need to happen.

I am trying to find a dietitian on my insurance plan to help with meal plan changes and understanding carbs and sugars so I can get off this med and get healthy!

Steph says Welcome to Team Up 4 Weight Loss!

Hello everyone, I'm Steph in California! Welcome to your New Year's Resolution, 2009! Let's drop some digits on the scale before we hit our double digit year - 2010! 

We want you to post pictures and tell us anything you like about why you are doing this. When someone blogs, others can comment for support.

Here's mine. This was taken Nov. 12. Check out the spare tire there!

The kicker came on Christmas when I heard my strapping big cousin that I have to reach up to hug (I'm 5'9") talking to his brother that he has lost some weight and was down to 240. I gulped...I weigh a few pounds more than he does!!! Something's GOTTA change: