newbie up for adoption.

[Sparrow]

Hello friends of the future!

I have recently discovered this here website and community, and it makes me really happy.

I'm from Ottawa, Canada. I'm a 23-year-old student and coffee shop employee. I can be really lazy sometimes. My user name is half a favorite Doctor Who character reference.

I've long been interested in health and fitness, partly because I'm a huge fan of team sports and all forms of hiking and kayaking and swimming and other activities that I would like to have a fairly high level of fitness for. I've also been been overweight for as long as I can remember, and all previous attempts to lose weight have always been short lived or half-hearted. I tend to lose interest after a few months of calorie counting and hours of the eliptical.

To be honest, my goal is to lose weight. I weigh in at about 190, and I'm a 5'3" girl who wears a Canadian size 14/XL. I feel like I have some fat to lose, but I have no interest in specifically obsessing over pounds and inches. I can go over a BMI chart all I want, but my recommended 20 lb weight range, really doesn't have specifically ME in mind. So my specific goal is to feel comfortable in my own skin, look good in a bathing suit, and this is going to involve some weight loss and some muscle gain of an unforeseeable amount. I'm also looking to initiate a lifestyle change and for this to not be a 3 month long weight loss, only to come back on when I get bored of 'the program'.

My biggest challenge is a lot of mindless eating, when I'm not hungry or consuming things with no nutritional value. I have a hard time with moderation and not paying attention to my stomach.

So I'm here looking for advice, help on where to start, and to benefit from other people's good ideas, and to find some like-minded friends to help motivate me to get where I want to be.

[gidget]

Hi Sparrow! I've just discovered the website too.

I'm in Perth, WA (Western Australia, not Washington!). I'm 28 and a couple of years ago I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, which is essentially an autoimmune disease that turns your immune system against your thyroid. Good fun! Prior to being diagnosed I was doing gym classes for hours on end, so I was in great shape but wasn't really enjoying the exercise, and wasn't eating the best food either. I'm 5'4'' and currently about 60kg (130 pounds).

So now that I'm less fatigued and have lost a bit of the weight associated with the disease, I've been looking at more enjoyable ways to exercise and eat. I'm the same way with food - I'll just snack on bad things if they're just lying around.

Best way I've found to avoid eating bad things is to just not buy them when you go food shopping - if you've got it at home it's much easier to eat than if you have to walk (or drive!) to the shops. I've also stopped eating gluten, and it's amazing how much junk you have to stop eating with that change! I'm pretty much limited to veggie sticks and nuts at work morning teas, instead of digging into the cakes and pastries.

I've completed about 4 weeks of a beginner's circus aerial training course and I'm loving it. Other things I'm planning to try are ballet/tap, running 12k in a fun run this year, and archery. I'm also doing the occasional Bikram yoga class and cycling to work.

Not sure if any of that helps, but they're things I've found to be good :-D

[shadowkat]

Hi Sparrow! Do you have a crush on Captain Jack too?

And hi Gidget - I'm in Perth, and did that circus course, and I have a bow. Are we sisters?

I'm new here too - nice to meet you both

[Maledictus]

Hi Sparrow! Do you have a crush on Captain Jack too?

Who doesn't? I do & I'm straight

Oh and welcome to the boards

[shadowkat]

Omg, geek faux pas - my brain went sparrow -> captain jack -> capn jack harkness - wrong captain, wrong who character. The shame!

[Ocelot]

Welcome. My advice is to set some goals, and see how it goes! There are more knowledgeable people around who can tell you better what goals to go for. Strength training three times a week seems to be optimum, plus eating healthy food, avoiding processed/junk/sugary food (I've quit sugar altogether as it has no nutritional benefit whatsoever, high in calories and makes you crave more of the same because it gives you short term energy boosts and then leaves you in the dirt!), and there are tons of different approaches around how to do it. You could count calories (but sounds like you're bored of that) or you could do intermittent fasting or you could go for something like the Paleo diet or you could do all of the above. Read all the threads in the forums here, they're fascinating. I suppose its about finding what's best for you. But 'real' food wins over junk every time and do make sure you're getting enough protein and eating lots of greens, as that will boost your energy and make you feel fuller! Wishing you strength

[cactuscat]

Hi Sparrow! Blink was an awesome episode - it gives me the shivers!