In a quest for 200... and angry. *Kinda NSFW

[Phil 3.0]

Hello to everyone. I signed up for NF a while ago, but never actually came back until today. For some reason, it didn't get a spot on my list of priorities.

I have a common backstory, it seems. Fought weight issues my entire life, haven't been 200 or less since high school, and actually have shaved off a large portion of weight at some points in my life - only to gain some or all of it back.

About 2 years ago, a good doctor gave me a wake-up call. I am 5' 9" tall, and (at that time) I had weighed in at 363 pounds. I was tearing up my clothes, couldn't make it up a flight of stairs without feeling like I was going to have a heart attack, and was generally miserable.

I made the decision to attack it. 18 months later, I stepped on the scale and recorded a weight of 253 pounds. I had lost 110 pounds by altering my diet, and getting into the pool almost every day.

A "bunch of family things" happened, and I made the mistake of taking my focus off of my health again.

Today, I had trouble getting my pants on. I looked in the mirror and thought: "Holy Shit... WTF happened?"

I took out the scale. I'm back at 295.

I'm a bit emotional right now... but the one I feel most is ANGER. How could I let this happen? How could I be so stupid - again?

Bottom line: I know I need to get back on track, quick. It seems like everyone here is in a great mindset, and I want to change my life for good and level up.

As a matter of fact, I'm headed out for a walk.

P.S. - I just hesitated for a second to click the "Submit New Thread" button to post this thread, but I just couldn't stop - I want to apologize if this intro post seems too negative.

[CapN_Tommy_Sunshine]

Welcome! Do you have a plan in mind? We have a lot of people here that are willing to help. Any specific goals?

[Phil 3.0]

First: Get to 200 even. I know I want to do more, but the first thing that I want to attack is the out-of-control weight.

After my 30-minute walk, my ankles and knees hurt like hell. I think I'm going to have to go back to the pool for a while.

I know that with my high-stress job that keeps me in an office chair for 8-10 hours a day, the first thing I'm going to do is just break the barrier of thinking that "I don't have time to do this."

Where would you recommend starting on the diet? I've looked at Paleo, and I don't think I could do that cold turkey and stick it...

[unicornassassin]

Booo, that sucks, dude

Get back on that horse! And punch the horse in it's stupid face!

Dietwise I try to avoid processed food as much as possible, period.

Also- I developed a scoring system for this six week challenge here that I am really loving! Not that you need to be vegan and whatever like me, but you could figure out your own goals and score them similarly. I love it because it takes away the guilt from "bad" foods. I know I'll eat them sometime during this challenge, but I'll make sure to limit it so it doesn't wreck my score.

Good luck, dude! There's so much awesomeness from NF to help you!

[Oklibrarian]

Fall down N times, Get up N+1. We've all been there, believe me.

[Eurydice]

Welcome!

Paleo is pretty stringent, yeah. I do Primal, myself, which is a lot like paleo plus dairy. If you want to work your way up, my suggestion would be to start out by dropping grains. It's not a small change my any means, but it's not as huge as going cold-turkey paleo and it seems for a lot of people to make the biggest difference. Don't be me and stand in the canned-vegetables aisle googling "Are olives primal?" on your phone - just work on the grains and worry about the rest once you've gotten comfortable with that change.

You're right about the mindset. That's one of the things I love about this board; everyone is really focused on positive changes and being all the awesome that you can be, instead of focusing on how hard it is to keep your hand out of the cookie jar. It's hard to stop living your old life until you've found a new one you like better.

[seraphsong]

My advice, and I'm no expert:

1- Cut out refined sugars and processed foods.

2- Find some form of exercise that you enjoy, and do it.

3- Build a support team, whether they are people in your "real life" or here on the forums.

4- Just do it. No excuses.

I feel for you, man. I ballooned up to 295 at my heaviest when my mom got sick.....8 years ago. I weighed in at 289 last Tuesday and started my journey for real this time. I'm right there with you, and we can beat this.

[Phil 3.0]

Thanks to all of you for the kind words and motivation.

After a few days, proud to report that I have taken a swim every day since.

On to phase 2... a new menu to a new me.

[Phil 3.0]

Just an update that since starting here on NF (in May from my OP, not my join date), I am down 20 pounds to 275. Think it's time for me to move over into the Base Camp and get a bit more focused. Did it using the recommended principles: Get active (do something, anything!), and no processed foods.

I'm no longer drinking soda, I have eliminated all processed foods (although I am finding new surprises every day of things that I have to cut out), and I have been swimming every day.

Sorry for lurking so much, but as I nail down a routine that really works for me I will report back with more info to help the cause!