Took me a while to pass the initiative check, but here I am!

[Kyzel]

Hello everyone!

After moving to USA 4 years ago, the culinary "culture shock" (delicious things that come in exorbitant portion sizes!) and sedentarism (walk somewhere? you walk from the car to the store/house/work, that's it) kept catching me flat-footed, and the pounds quickly piled up. Almost 40lbs later, I decided that enough was enough. My immediate reaction was to fall back on very unhealthy habits that were "successful" in the past, but something clicked and I realized that I didn't want a quick fix, I wanted a permanent solution, and that required a lifestyle change.

Starting Stats (March 2012)

Age: Not 30 yet...

Height: 5'5"... okay, more like 5'4".

Weight: 182 lbs

Appearance: Plump/Flabby.

Once I figured that out, the first step was calorie counting and I was flabbergasted by how quickly they added up. Once that was somewhat in check, I started attempting to stay within the budget while also trying to take into consideration the nutritional value/quality of the calories I was consuming. Still working on that, but I'd like to think I've made decent progress.

Step 2 was exercise. At that point, I hadn't really done much exercise since 2006. I'd go for a bike ride every now and then, and I still do, but that's about it. The work out at home thing didn't work for me, so I got a gym membership and I go there three times a week. Sticking to that has been easier than I expected, it's part of my routine. I started with the C25K program, and I'm currently on Week 6 Take 1 (I repeat every week before I move on), and some light weight training / core exercises. About 3 weeks ago, I started mixing it up and going to pilates and body pump classes. On the day I have no classes, I go back to my free weights / core exercises.

I'm enjoying it and seeing moderate progress, which is good. But I'm still struggling with feeling inadequate whenever I step into the bulky men dominated weight area, since I tend to be the only female in there. Don't get me wrong, there's plenty of women who go to the same gym, they just stick to the elliptical/treadmill/cycling machines, and I use those too, but I want more. I pay as much as those guys do, so I've every right to be there, but I guess I just feel somewhat silly when probably 95% of the people in that area can probably lift me with one hand. I'd like to get to the point where I can feel comfortable enough to push myself further and get stronger, I just don't know how to get over those mental hurdles at this point.

Current Stats: (June 2012)

Age: Still not 30, but almost...

Height: 5'4"

Weight: 166~167lbs.

Appearance: About average, still some flab.

Goal Stats:

Age: 30 (As much as it sucks, I hope to make it to my birthday )

Height: 5'4"

Weight: ~140lbs.

Appearance: Fit and strong!

Anyway, back to my journey; 16lbs down the road, I've hit a frustrating plateau of sorts (4 weeks with +-1lb changes). Unfortunately, my permanent party member (aka husband), has absolutely no interest in joining me on this particular adventure, so I'm pretty much soloing through this and it sucks. With that said, I think that I'm at the point where joining a party with similar goals might help me towards the right direction and provide useful will save bonuses, and hopefully positive wisdom modifiers too.

So here I am, requesting to join your party, and hoping it will be a mutually beneficial exchange.

Stay active, adventurers

TL;DR: Hi! I'm an adventurer (with ranger tendencies) who is tired of soloing and is looking for group to a healthy lifestyle!

[Hermione Gainser]

Welcome!

I apologize on behalf of our nation for that whole tons of bad food and resistance to walking thing... it'll get ya every time. Where'd you move from?

What's your plan of attack? Edit: nevermind, read that :-) derp.

Please do not assume my derpness is representative of NF

[Kyzel]

Thank you! Let me start by saying that I absolutely love your avatar and the message behind it:)

No need to apologize, nobody forced me to eat your delicious food, I ate it very willingly, and they usually feed me 2+ meals (I still can't get over portion sizes...). I do wish there were more sidewalks though. If I feel like going for a walk around the neighborhood I either have to step on my neighbor's lawns, or share the road with drivers that are not used to pedestrians.

I migrated from Uruguay, a small beautiful country wedged between Argentina and Brazil. Fun fact: Uruguay fits 4 times in Texas. Agriculture is one of our main industries, so excellent proteins and fresh vegetables/fruits were extremely easy and cheap to come by. I miss that

Anyway... plan of attack!

My short-term plans are:

- Finish C25K program.

- Go back to the dirt trails on my bike (I used to do this somewhat regularly, but a bad wipe out left me with a 7 inch scar and a somewhat bad knee).

- Figure out why I'm plateauing and get over that.

- Overcome silly mental hurdles and get more serious about weight training.

Mid-term plans:

- Run a 5k.

- Get to the point where I can deadlift half my body weight.