Thanks for the stories! They are truelly inspirational!

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Here is my story from 1998 had a baby boy that lived 17 days and died do to heart problems he was full term then a year to the date of losing him I found out I was pregnant with my daughter had her in 2000 I am on the up down roller coster I would lose some weight and put it back on.I am 5'9" and 202 pounds and I want to get back down to around 145 to 150 pounds my biggest problem areas are my boobs and stomach areas I have a ab lounge that I am going to start using now but my issues as far as food comes is I am a chocolate lover and cappachino as well if I could leave them alone or at least give one of them up I would be happy and know I get get rid of this weight.My husband has showed me some things to do with some weights to tone up my chest area I think my problem is the weights are to light so when we get some money in I am going to get some new ones.Wish me luck ladies now that my daughter will be in school all day now come Tuesday I am going to start working out alot more and watching what I eat .I could go on and on about my weight issues but will stop here for now.I think also if I had some one to work out with to help motivate me it would be alot easier too.In 1993 I had my first child I weighed 145 pounds before having him and when I had him I weighed 200 I dropped from 200 to 130 pounds being the lightest ever and I felt good too I ate alot of salads and fruits and vegetables and if I ate candy I ate sugar free.I am going to go back and try it again I have to lose this weight so I can start feeling good about myself again.

way to go ladies. although I don't do MILF I started on my own journey last dec. I posted my story twice since then. I can't get online daily, but I have made great strides in my quest so far and I've even already lost 15lbs.

allgirls

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allgirls, mom to 3 girls

Ok, here's my story.

I'm 37, have four kids ranging in age from 6 1/2 to 5 months. I was 21 when I got married and weighed 118 pounds, 5 foot 3 inches. I was active in high school and college and really never had an issue with weight. When I got pregnant with my oldest, I went from 135 to 183 pounds. Yeah, I was big. In between all of my four kids I've gone up and down but have been about 150 pounds - size 10. Not where I want to be, that's for sure. Three months ago I signed up to do a half marathon. I'm not a runner although my friend got me to do the Susan G Komen 5k run about three years ago and let me tell you, I was huffing and puffing coming in to the finish line.

In the past three months, I've been running 3-4 days a week. Last Sunday I ran 10 miles! Yep, stopped twice for a swig of water (about 45 seconds) and then kept on going. I have to say, I'm really proud of myself for doing this. I've been on and off exercising over the years usually taking aerobics classes for a few months or so and then I slack. But for me to run a full 10 miles is pretty incredible!

So, here's my beef. I've lost about 3 pounds since starting this training. I'm now at 145 pounds. I'm a bit frustrated b/c I have been running so much and haven't lost more. I definitely think that I feel better though. Physically I think that my body has changed a bit. It doesn't show a ton but I do think that maybe my fat is turning into muscle so I know that my scale won't change a ton with that. Now, my problem is that I'm a sweet FREAK!! I LOVE sweets. I'm totally a cake/cookie/cupcake type of girl. Anything I can bake and eat usually works quite well for me. I've been trying not to bake but then go and buy a bunch of crap. So I just officially signed up for MILF Bootcamp on Sunday and I've decided NOT to buy anymore sweets, bake anymore or eat icecream. Yep, it's going to be really hard but I think if I do this then I'll really see a difference in my weight. My half marathon is Sept 17th. 13.1 miles. I'm psyched.

I know that I'll get to where I want to be. Honestly, I don't think I'm so concerned about how much the scale says as much as what size my clothes are and how my body looks to me.

I want to be that woman that I see at the Y that I'm envious of her tight, chisled body.
I want to feel comfortable prancing around in front of my dh in next to nothing.
I want to wear sleeveless tops and fitted shirts and not feel my back fat, flabby arms, and roll around my pantline.
I want to buy a bikini from Victoria's Secret next summer and feel good wearing it in public.
I want to look at myself in the mirror and love and be happy with what I see.

Most of all, I want to be healthy for my kids, my husband, myself. :D

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I've been boo'd!

All,

I'm new this forum but have enjoyed reading your stories. It's always inspiring to me to see others working on improving their health--I took that leap 3 years ago and have lost 80 pounds so far. I still have about 10 I want to lose, but its not urgent. I started out a size 22 and am now an 8. It feels really good, but one thing I've learned: You have to make a decision to do things that make you healthy everyday because it's so easy to let anybody and everything come before taking care of yourself!

Anyway, I thought I'd share my weight loss story. I submitted it to a health newsletter my neighbor writes. I hope it helps you as much as your stories have helped me!

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Chest pain is a great weight loss motivator, but I wouldn't recommend it.

Three years ago, I was almost 80 pounds heavier than I am now. At 240 pounds and a size 22, I was killing myself with my eating habits. I was an R.N. and knew about nutrition, but didn't apply what I knew. Instead I lived like a typical American; my life was so packed during the day that I didn't feel like cooking or exercising when I got home at night. Instead I lived off fast food, snack foods, soft drinks and relaxed in front of the television. Sweets were my special treat.

Those habits gifted me with 80 excess pounds and a prescription for high blood pressure pills.

My life changed when I got up from the sofa too fast one day and experienced a crushing chest pain. It only lasted a second, but the pain terrified me. God spoke to me in that second: "It is not supposed to be this way." I chose to believe Him and my life changed. I had a doctor's appointment later that week and I wrote on the back of the appointment card: 'Today is the day I turn my life around.' After 20 years of diet failures and broken promises, I finally told myself the truth. I still carry that card to this day!

I started making small changes: I gradually replaced fast food with slow food like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, small amounts of meat like chicken, fish, and lean beef on occasion. I taught myself how to cook quick meals and how to save money on healthy food. I replaced soft drinks with water, knowing that this one habit could cause me to lose 12 or more pounds in a year. I started exercising in the morning before work, knowing that if I waited until I got home, other things would grab my attention and it wouldn't get done.

The biggest reason for my success was practicing spiritual disciplines regularly, like prayer. I also had the support of a coworker who was in great shape. I learned that you don't have to overhaul your life overnight. I do still have fast food on occasion, but I don't attempt to live off of it because I know now our bodies are not designed for it. I select healthier choices from the menu instead. I even teach classes at my church now on how to lose weight and save money while doing it. I've had a great response from them!

My advice to others is from a quote by business philosopher Jim Rohn: "Failure is a few errors in judgment practiced every day; success is a few simple disciplines practiced every day." The key phrase is 'practice every day.' It's what you do consistently that counts. So start practicing a few good health habits consistently and you too will lose weight, gain energy, and grow stronger every day.

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Kim_gem
Take it Back
http://www.lulu.com/moneywise

Thanks Kim. I'd love to hear more about saving money and eating healthy. I really struggle with this. I'm trying to raise my kids to crave good food, not junk but also have to make ends meet each month.

I'm sure there are lots of us on here who struggle with this.

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Dottie

Mom to Michael 6, Matthew 4, Katherine 2, Ellen 1, and new baby EDD 10/29/08

Nice to meet you Dottie! I hear you about struggling to make ends meet. That's one of the reasons I came up with my program. After I lost weight, I kept hearing others tell me "Eating healthy is expensive." To be honest, it can be expensive if you buy fruits and vegetables out of season, only eat organic products, and you buy a lot of exotic grain products and spices. Plus, it can be expensive if you are buying "not-food" foods (chips, sodas, candy, etc.) on top of the healthy stuff. But then I figured out how to eat healthy on a budget. I will say that it takes planning; if you leave things to chance you'll settle for the "quick and dirty" meal as I call it...it's cheap, but also unhealthy. You want the best of both worlds...cheap and healthy.

I thought about how much my excess weight cost me...it cost me years of truly enjoying my body and not being able to do the things I wanted because it slowed me down. I think a few minutes of planning is worth me looking in the mirror and being happy with what I see. Also I think of life as like a tree: The roots are your relationship with God (spiritual health); the trunk is your physical and emotional health; the branches are all the roles to be fullfilled: wife, mother, friend, family member, and other. Your roots and trunk determine the strength of the tree as a whole. The problem is that most of us spend so much time tending to the branches that we forget about the roots and trunk. That's a recipe for disaster.

I'll end it here (I can write about this subject all day!). Since I'm new here I was wondering...are there organized chats? I see a chat room, but not scheduled chats.

Kim

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Kim_gem
Take it Back
http://www.lulu.com/moneywise

Kim-
I PM'd you!

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~Jenn~

Hi Vtmom,

I wrote you back

Kim

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Kim_gem
Take it Back
http://www.lulu.com/moneywise

Kim,
I didn't get it... How did you send it? Can you try me again? Thanks!

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~Jenn~