Why Hello there!

I'm Amy. I'm a 21 year old college student in Atlanta looking to lose a few pounds. Well okay, more than a few...

I've been overweight my whole life. I have the pictures to prove it! (see below) I can't remember a time that I felt really comfortable in my body. I'm sure that others can relate to the "I'll do that when I'm skinny attitude." Well, I've decided that I've missed out on too much while I've been waiting. So this lifestyle change is about stepping out of my comfort zone and experiencing life as much as it is about losing weight. Don't get me wrong--becoming healthy is a big part of it. But I can't expect to be a different person on the inside just because I look different on the outside.

So. Here are the details. I'm looking to lose 60 pounds to put me in the 'healthy' BMI range for my height. (5'7") I'll probably reassess at that point, but I think it's a good goal. I'm trying to not set any deadlines for losing the weight. I don't want to be discouraged just because I didn't hit my goal at a specific date. Instead I'm trying to set weekly goals that I can achieve. So for my first week:

-walk to all of my classes (no stupid unreliable buses)
-workout at the rec center at least once
-track calories everyday

I don't think these are too extreme. I already walk to most of my classes and I've been tracking my calories for the last couple weeks. I just want to make sure I keep it up.

Gah, I hope that if you made it this far you aren't bored to tears. I've been so inspired by the people on this forum, so I hope that putting myself out there will help me keep motivated. Thanks to everyone who has checked this out!

P.S. The 3rd picture below was taken about a week ago. It's my official 'before' picture. Taken just for you. =P

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Woot I get to be the first person to post in your diary...unless I don't type fast enough and somebody beats me to it, lol. Anyway I saw your newcomer post and how you'd tried south beach in the past but are counting calories now. Good for you...took me alot longer to catch onto that one. I kept doing Atkins even though it was too restrictive because I'd get some results. But then I'd always stall or get to the point I couldn't take it anymore and end up gaining the weight right back. Counting calories is so much better for a life style change. Sparkpeople and fitday both have some good tools if you want somewhere to figure out your calories. Looks like you're off to a great start and your goals are right on track. There's a bunch of us tryin to do this while going to college so you'll definitely have people around who know how hectic it can get. I have the hardest time on exam weeks...I'm going to have to plan ahead for finals so I don't crash and burn on the calories, lol.

Thanks for replying so quickly! I didn't think anyone would be up so late. I guess it's the college lifestyle. lol

I've been tracking my calories on dailyplate. It's my favorite website that I've used so far. I find that I'm a lot more thoughtful about what I'm eating when I know I'll be recording it later.

I'm just trying to get through this week much less finals week. I don't even want to think about that. I'll probably devise some plan later in the semester to make sure I stay on track, but right now I'm just taking it day by day.

Hi Amy!

Just wanted to wish you good luck! You have such a beautiful face, you're going to look stunning! Not that you don't now, cause of course you're beautiful at any size...but I know how much more CONFIDENCE you'll have and that's amazing!

Anyway...i'm babbling! Good luck!

~Selina~

My first 'official' day is going pretty well. I walked to my first class this morning and actually got there on time for a change. (The buses are always unreliable at that time of day.) I was a little sweaty and warm, but it felt nice since we're finally getting some cooler weather down here. I love fall. It's so much nicer walking around outside when it's not 93 degrees with 90% humidity. My first attempt walking to that class in August had me red in the face for twenty minutes. (Where's the tomato face smiley when you need it?)

I've been tracking my calories for the last couple of weeks and I've found that it's surprisingly easy to fit into the calorie limit when you're eating real food. You know, like fresh veggies and fruit instead of packaged, processed junk. I haven't had any crazy cravings so far, which is a definite improvement to how I felt during the first two weeks of South Beach. I think I never made it that far with SB since I was just grudgingly following the rules until I could plan my next self-sabotage. There will always be foods that are my weakness, but if I don't put myself in a situation were I'm tempted, I'm fine. I know that a situation will eventually come up, but I'm happy in my little healthy bubble for the time being.

I've been feeling really good lately about this whole lifestyle change. I know a lot of that is because I've just started, but something feels different this time. Every attempt I've made before to lose weight I've imagined myself at my goal weight and how great it will be when I'm there. That can help with motivation, but I was always skipping over the hard work part in the middle. This time around I can almost visualize myself at different points in my weight loss: how great I'll feel after losing the first 10 pounds, realizing that I'm not quite so out of breath walking around campus, noticing that my pants are loose around the waist, feeling for the first time that I'm in control of my own body and not the other way around. I know this optimism won't last forever, but I'm riding it out as long as I can.

Anywho, enough with the touchie-feelies. I decided to take some measurements today so I could track my progress in a non-weight related way. A lot of members have suggested this since you can see results in your body even if the scale doesn't move. So here we go:

Bust: 41"
Chest: 37"
Waist: 36"
Midway: 40"
Hips: 48"
Thighs: 29"
Knees: 21"
Calves: 20"
Upper arms: 16"
Forearms: 12"


Obviously the last five measurements are for each respective appendage, and I'm happy to report that I'm mostly symmetric. Also, I'm thinking of renaming 'Hips' as 'Butt' since it makes a rather large contribution. Yes, I confess I seem to have some "junk in the trunk;" I've come to accept it. The number of measurements may seem excessive, but I want every opportunity in the future to record a loss.

So, congratulations if you made it this far! You win five gold stars!* Thanks to everyone who replies--I'll make sure to check out your profile/diary/stalk you forever!

Just kidding! Thanks for all of the support!

*is not actually worth anything

I'm glad you're feeling good about everything so far!! Good job!

Lol, I'm not symmetric. So I only measure one side, when it comes to legs/arms! I'd spin myself in circles if I had to measure both, keep track, etc.

Hey..I want my gold stars! Even if they arnt worth anything! lol!!

Hey girlie, how are ya? I was MIA for a while but I'm finally catching up with people and wanted to stop by and check in. I see you've been on recently but not posted. Hope everything is ok. Drop me a line when you have time

Okay, so I've been MIA for more than 4 months now.

It's probably not uncommon for someone to start up a diary and then quickly abandon it. I only made it 3 posts in before neglecting to update 'The Amazing Adventures of amydee.' It turned out to be more like 'The Short-lived Attempt to Share my Limited Experience.'

This post is not to list all of the reasons (lame excuses) for not keeping up with this diary. Part of what kept me from posting sooner was the thought of having to explain why I hadn't checked in sooner. Two weeks became ten and then the holidays arrived and I really couldn't be buggered to do anything but watch the entire season of Firefly in one week (good show btw.) The shame is that I actually had some success losing weight. And even greater success in not gaining all of it back over break. I wish now that I had kept up with this journal so I could go back and remember the sheer joy in seeing the scale start to go down.

Despite my hiatus from the boards I've been doing pretty well. After losing 8 pounds in a little over a month I maintained close to that number from Thanksgiving to mid-January. I've been slowly gearing back up to my previous weight loss efforts and I've seen a few pounds loss in the past month or so. Part of my re-dedication to becoming healthier is coming back to the boards. I've been putting more thought into my weight loss plans based on a book I'm reading (more on that later) and I think talking about how I'm feeling is important to staying on track.

I've updated my ticker to display a new weight loss goal. Getting to 190 pounds would put me just inside the 'overweight' category based on BMI. While that may seem like a strange goal, it's exciting for someone who has been officially obese for as long as I can remember. Once I get to 190 I'll set a new goal for 160 that will put me at a 'normal' weight. Breaking it up this way makes it seem that much more possible and it's motivating to see I am almost half way to my first goal. Call it mind games, but I'll take whatever I can get.

Anyhoo, sorry for the long post, but I needed to get this out there so I could start refreshed. Thanks to everyone who checked in. (Especially douknowjello!) I have a lot to talk about, but I'll save it for another day in the spirit of not boring you to tears.

Hey Amy SO glad you're back but you didn't have to explain a thing. Your journal is for you and you should never feel obligated to explain yourself when life comes at ya. People have reasons and I joined in June last year but since then have had a few times of disappearing for several months at a time. I felt funny too though. Again, I'm so happy to see you're back though and that things are goin good for you! Oh I got a puppy while you were gone So when you get a chance there's some recent pics in my journal *hugz* ~Lisa