Whee! I'm not fat anymore!

[Ratty]

Since May I've lost 45 lbs. I've gone from a big fat pig, to fat, to pretty damn studly. I've also been lifting weights for the last month and my arms are big and my chest is big and I feel sexy! I've actually started flirting again and it sure feels good.

Since I'm lifting weights and gaining muscle (I'm one of those people who gains muscle mass very easily. My jealous friend--who's no slouch in the muscles department himself--says all I have to do is look at a set of weights and I gain a pound of muscle) it's hard to say how much more I have to lose. 20 lbs I think, I'm still pretty flabby around the middle. At the end of May I was 255, now I'm 210.

For anybody else who's overweight, what are you waiting for? It's a great feeling and makes you more outgoing and it's easier to meet people. If I can do it in 3 months so can you!

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

1. Oh, to afford...

To join a gym. I so really need it and I am like you: I am blessed with the ability to have my hard work result in real gains and losses rather quickly.

Perhaps, someday, The Bush Economic Miracle will come to an end, my situation will improve and I can get after some important stuff.

I sure hope so.

[Ratty]

5. I'm pretty lucky

I have a gym at work I can go to. The biggest thing for me is the convenience and if it wasn't for that I probably couldn't have made myself go. It's a shame to have to neglect your muscles with their fabulous potential. I sure hope things turn around for you and us all come November.

[pagerbear]

2. Congratulations, but you're pissing me off.

I find the following sentence incredibly condescending: "For anybody else who's overweight, what are you waiting for?"

How can you take your experience and extrapolate it to everyone who has a few or lots of pounds to lose? How long did it take you to find the motivation and determination to see it through? How many times did you start and fail and get discouraged before finding success? How did you take comments like that before this? Don't you see everyone has his own point where he finds that motivation, and until then, comments like yours are really offensive?

And this is not even getting into the "45 extra pounds = big fat pig" thing.

[Ratty]

4. "Really offensive" is too harsh

I mean, give me break! Of course I should have qualified it with as my own experience. At 255 I felt like a big fat pig. I wasn't outgoing, wasn't interested in meeting people ... wasn't interested in a lot of things actually. Now my whole outlook has changed. For people who would like to lose weight, maybe it's useful to keep the end result in mind. A lot of things can change, all based on your self image and outlook. Oops, I mean all based on one's outlook. See, I almost did it again.

[pagerbear]

6. I know it wasn't your intention

...and I was probably a little rough. And I know do how excited you are--I've been there. But I hope you see my point, too.

[Cheswick2.0]

3. Congratulations

I am glad to hear you are feeling more positive about yourself.

[CanuckAmok]

7. Congrats!

I went from 200 in January to 175 in May (and now around 180), and it is a good feeling!

I don't gain muscle that easily, though, but I am more defined than I was a month ago.

For anyone thinking about this, you DO NOT need a gym... the best weight loss exercise is free: walking. Walk an hour a day with a friend, and before you know it, you'll be slimmer.

[Ratty]

8. I lost the first 20 lb without going to the gym

Absolutely true! You really don't need a gym. I only started going to the gym a month or so ago. The first couple of months, the ONLY thing I did was cut out fat and eat a little less. I was already walking a half hour to and from work.

[eleny]

9. I checked out the local rec center and am wowed!

I ordered a new bathing suit over the net last week. Then, yesterday, I stopped at a rec center 10 blocks from our home and boy are they cheap. Hubby will get a 50% discount after I join. They have:

3 pools with drop-in aquasize classes
steam room
sauna
whirpool
a whole floor of workout equipment
a weight room
a climbing wall
even a couple of pool tables
basketball and racquet ball courts
a dance room

It's been so long since I've been swimming and I can hardly wait. Yesterday I even saw fat ladies in bathing suits at the pool! Lots of smiling faces who said hi as I checked out the place. No more working out alone on my cross country ski machine. YAY!

Btw - congratulations on your success! Keep it up stud-o-licious!

[LWolf]

10. I'm waiting for a new thyroid.

Or something. While I run a gamut of tests to find out why I can gain weight without eating anything but dark green veggies and lean protein, and not lose weight no matter what I do, I eat a pretty strict, healthy diet. I finally went to the doctor when I started dozing off while walking. The doctor is pretty sure all of the bizarre imbalances they found on all the blood tests they did are centered on a sudden loss of thyroid hormone, but they want to rule out a whole list of other possibilities before they recommend a solution. So meanwhile, I take an iron pill for the anemia and eat small meals in a very narrow range of fresh foods that avoid sugars and bad fats, and continue to gain weight. I exercise when I can; the last two weeks I've been as still as possible, nursing a nasty back spasm; it flares walking from here to the front gate. (Today I'm moving much better and champing at the bit to get to all of the yardwork and other things I've neglected; we'll see how it goes).

I'm glad you're feeling better; I hope to join you later on in the year when we've nailed down what I'm "allowed" and "not allowed" to do for the best outcome.

:hi: