I'm not "obese" anymore!

[Erudite]

Well, I just have to share! My BMI is finally 29.9. When you're "30", you're in the obese category. When you're 29.9, you're just "overweight"...lol, but I am pleased not to be obese anymore. I can now wear my favorite jeans and my wedding ring without discomfort.

But I'm on a mission to get all the way to normal. And after 6 weeks on a "program" (its not but I'll explain that in a minute) I finally think it's possible. My next goal is just 3 more pounds, before my birthday in two weeks, so that I can to get into another pair of pants that I haven't been able to wear in awhile. I figure measuring by clothes is a pretty good way to go. I hope my favorite jeans mentioned above don't fit me in a couple of weeks!

So here's what I've been doing. I found this site: [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] . It's completely FREE to join and use a kajillion different tools to help with developing a healthy lifestyle. Weight/inches loss is the goal, but the overall goal is developing a lifetime of healthy habits. There is no "program" beyond watching the calories in vs. the calories out. Their biggest suggestion and the thing they help you with the most is TRACKING. Track your food, your water, your fruits and veggies, your fiber, your cholesterol....etc. etc. etc.

They help you set reasonable goals (none of which include 10lbs in 2 weeks darn it) and then support you with meal suggestions, exercise suggestions, a recipe calculator, numerous articles on health topics, motivation topics, fitness topics, and a gigantic message board system that provides you with a whole lot of people working on the same goal you are. It has been really amazing.

Because I was sick in August, I'm only down 3lbs from when I told you all I'd lost 10, but it has been "easy" in the sense that I have all the tools to do it and I'm not starving in the process. I actually look forward to meals and planning meals and making sure that I get the right whatever. I'm trying new things all the time and carefully measuring them. It's been so GREAT!!!

I would think...even if you're on weight watchers...that you'd find something helpful in this site so I just wanted to share. I'm happy to answer any questions anyone has about it if you want to give it a try. It is FREE if you don't feel like you can afford WW or get to the meetings (which is my problem) and it is AMAZING. Check it out!

[5ft Diva]

You sound like a new person, E. I'm so happy for you! Congratulations.

[runamyrun]

Congratulations! That is awesome!

[PhillyGirl]

Way to go! You give me motivation to lose the weight I want to!

[Dia Minha]

Yeah, Erudite. I am so happy for you. I know how exciting it can be to loose that label.

I was hoping by the time I got around to posting on this thread, that I too could say I had joined the ranks of being overweight and have left the obesity label behind. However, my body had something else in mind for me this week and I still have a couple more pounds to loose.

I just wanted to add that while reading your post I kept thinking, wow, this is just like WW. So I have to admit I laughed a little when you suggested us WW members take a look at the website. I haven't had a chance yet, but I will. Last night in our meeting we talked about what we do for educating ourselves on healthy eating and being all around healthy. I love the WW plan, because there are specific guidelines to follow, however, you can still add to it to see what works best for you. So to say the least, I love learning about new ideas and new ways to be healthier. The nice thing about WW is that you only have 25 or so points to keep track of instead of 2,000 calories. Really what you describe is just like WW except for that detail. Did you know you could join WW on line and get all the information? It is cheaper than meetings and you don't have to leave your house. Just thought I would share.

Dia

[Erudite]

Thanks Dia. I knew that about WW online, but I needed "free" instead of "cheaper". I don't keep track of my calories or anything else. The system does as long as I log all that I eat and exercise. I just started having the system keep track of sodium intake and I'm amazed at how hard it is to stay within recommended levels of sodium. Everything else has been fairly easy, but I'm having to work at that one a bit, It's nice to be able to plug in a couple of foods and then make the choice on which one will be the best for me. Last night...lol...I went with water; I'm glad to have tool that helps me make that choice for the right reasons.

Oh, I also find that I'm generally low on protein as well. I do fine in carbs and fats for the most part, but need to watch that I get enough protein without too much cholesterol. I know that most people don't want to know that much about their food, but since I just plug in what I eat, I learn without too much effort on my part. It's been good so far!

[Dia Minha]

Ok now that sounds interesting. I would love some help on keeping track of sodium and it would be nice to have a way of tracking fiber without having to write it all down.

When you said tracking I just thought of my tracker. It is a very simple system kind of like a check book register. I start out with 24 points and subtract them as I use them. Then I have boxes to check of for water, fruits/vegetables, milks and oils. If you are an online member you can just imput your foods like what you were saying and it will figure it all out for you.

I know I tend to be too low on protein to, because I don't really like meat. I get most of my protein through diary, eggs and legumes so it would be nice to have a way to figure those servings out as well. The problem is that protein is important in weight loss. Most people that hit a plateau, do so, because they aren't getting enough protein.

Could you post a direct link to that or is that something you have to go through the registration process to access?

Dia

[Erudite]

You would need to be registered so that you can start building your profile and it saves all your stuff. It's [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] . And the trackers are excellent. I use the message board for my support group. There's one called LDS Ladies and we're all working on the challenge to drop at least a size by Christmas.

[Dia Minha]

Thanks Erudite. I registered last night and played around with it a little bit. I'll need to work with it a little more, before I'll know if I can make it do what I want it to.

Dia