I'm not sure who normally starts these challenges so if I am stepping on toes, sorry! I was just anxious to get it started.

Now that the Memorial Day Challenge is officially over, who wants to join me in the July 4th Challenge? We have a little over 5 weeks in this challenge so I will make two goals:

1. Get to Onederland

2. Lose 11 lbs

My starting weight for this challenge is 201 lbs. Good Luck to everyone!

Hi everyone! I'm a goober and haven't been checking in weekly. Sadly, I gained 2.6 and then lost some of it but not all.

SW: 174

CW: 173

GW: 164

Hopefully the scale and my body will begin to cooperate!

I had a good week. Not as good as last week, but I'm not complaining. I'm going to ride the wave and enjoy it while I can!!

HW 335

SW 257

CW 248

GW 245

Wk 1 -6#

Wk 2 -3#

8# from joining the Century Club. Can I do it? Yes I can!!!

HW 335

SW 257 (5/28/12)

CW 243

GW 245 adjusted to 235 on 6/17/12

Wk 1 -6# (6/4/12)

Wk 2 -3# (6/11/12)

Wk 3 -5# (6/17/12: a day earily)

I guess I'm never gonna get to 155 at the rate I'm going. LOL. STILL hovering around 160 I have alittle while longer. I think I'll be solidly below 160 by July 4 though. I started exercising consistently 2,5 weeks ago so maybe my body's in SHOCK!! Haha

Ok, the first part of the week started out not looking so good and then *poof*, it started to start happening for me. Hope next week is just as good. I started spinning class 2x a week and Zuma 2x a week, so I'm sure that's helping. 5# weight loss this week!!! If I make it past my goal, I'm just going to keep working towards my final goal!!! Hard to believe I'm this close. It seems soooo close, yet soooo far away if that makes any sense!

Starting Surgery Weight: 271

Current weight: 133

4th July Goal weight: 130

Final Goal weight: 120

Starting Surgery Weight: 271

Current weight: 138

4th July Goal weight: 130

Final Goal weight: 120

Lost 4# this week!!! Yeah! 4th of July here I come! I just realized I can now wear size 4 slacks!! OMG! I don;t think I have ever worn a size 4. I blew right past that number back in junior high!!

Ok' date=' the first part of the week started out not looking so good and then *poof*, it started to start happening for me. Hope next week is just as good. I started spinning class 2x a week and Zuma 2x a week, so I'm sure that's helping. 5# weight loss this week!!! If I make it past my goal, I'm just going to keep working towards my final goal!!! Hard to believe I'm this close. It seems soooo close, yet soooo far away if that makes any sense!

Starting Surgery Weight: 271

Current weight: 133

4th July Goal weight: 130

Final Goal weight: 120

[/quote']

Wow, you are so close. That's exciting! To lose 5lbs in one week so close to goal is amazing. Congrats? Do you mind if i ask, how tall are you?

Sure, I'm 5'3". I'm doing the no carb thing right now and hitting the exercise EXTRA hard to zero in on the final goal. I want to see that 120# so bad I can just taste it!!

Wow, you are so close. That's exciting! To lose 5lbs in one week so close to goal is amazing. Congrats? Do you mind if i ask, how tall are you?

Sure' date=' I'm 5'3". I'm doing the no carb thing right now and hitting the exercise EXTRA hard to zero in on the final goal. I want to see that 120# so bad I can just taste it!!

[/quote']

Good for you. I'm 5'5" tall and set my goal at 140 and was told this goal was too little for me. If you are hitting 120, then 140 sounds about right for me. What size are you in right now? How far out from surgery are you?

Sure' date=' I'm 5'3". I'm doing the no carb thing right now and hitting the exercise EXTRA hard to zero in on the final goal. I want to see that 120# so bad I can just taste it!!

[/quote']

Do you also realize you've lost more weight than you weigh right now? Just incredible!!! I pray for this kind of success. So happy for you.

WOW!! You know..... I never thought about it that way, you are right. That's pretty cool to think about.Thanks for making that observation! :-)

Do you also realize you've lost more weight than you weigh right now? Just incredible!!! I pray for this kind of success. So happy for you.

In dress type slacks, most often it's a size 4- depends on the manufacturer. In dress suits, size 10 petites usually. In jeans, size 4's or 6's. My one year anniversary is this coming Thursday. I had hoped to be at goal by my anniversary but I'm ok with it- I'm very close to goal. I think that if I had the loose skin removed, I would be a size down in everything automatically, but financially, that isn't in the cards right now. Plus, it seems that most surgeons recommend waiting for your weight to stabilize for at least 6 plus months (prefer a year) before doing plastics to be sure you have leveled out where you are going to stay. We'll just see where I'm at then.

I've had some people tell me I shouldn't loose anymore weight, but what I have learned by taking a few polls with close personal friends that I know I can trust their answers is that I look like I weigh less than I really do which really has almost always been the case. Imagine hearing, "You're not that big.... when you are 200+". I never really knew if that's what they thought or were just patronizing me. Either way, deep down I knew different. This will put me smack in the middle of the BMI range scale. Not that I hold that as golden, but I am using it as my guide. The plan is that once I reach maintenance, I will plan to monitor my weight in that if I start to exceed 125 or WORST case 130 (I tend to put on weight just by looking at bad food it seems), that I know it's time to get busy and get things under control. I have learned to "listen" to my body and when I did a 10 to 12# regain after my long trip to Europe earlier this Spring, I started having that tighteness in my body knowing my body had taken on extra weight and it didn't feel good. So, I'm hoping I experience the same feeling once I level off at goal and if any weight were to start coming back. I know that getting to goal is only half the battle, but I'm determined to make it work. I've worked too hard to get here. The bottom line in how much you decide to loose is to base it on how you know your body to be and of course suggestions from your Dr. One other thing is that I am finding that over time, my weight is somewhat redistributing. My face is a perfect example. There will be weeks or more where my face looks real gaunt, but then before I know it, it just seems like overnight, it will look more normal- thinner but not gaunt. Our bodies just have to have time to adjust.

Good for you. I'm 5'5" tall and set my goal at 140 and was told this goal was too little for me. If you are hitting 120, then 140 sounds about right for me. What size are you in right now? How far out from surgery are you?

In dress type slacks' date=' most often it's a size 4- depends on the manufacturer. In dress suits, size 10 petites usually. In jeans, size 4's or 6's. My one year anniversary is this coming Thursday. I had hoped to be at goal by my anniversary but I'm ok with it- I'm very close to goal. I think that if I had the loose skin removed, I would be a size down in everything automatically, but financially, that isn't in the cards right now. Plus, it seems that most surgeons recommend waiting for your weight to stabilize for at least 6 plus months (prefer a year) before doing plastics to be sure you have leveled out where you are going to stay. We'll just see where I'm at then.

I've had some people tell me I shouldn't loose anymore weight, but what I have learned by taking a few polls with close personal friends that I know I can trust their answers is that I look like I weigh less than I really do which really has almost always been the case. Imagine hearing, "You're not that big.... when you are 200+". I never really knew if that's what they thought or were just patronizing me. Either way, deep down I knew different. This will put me smack in the middle of the BMI range scale. Not that I hold that as golden, but I am using it as my guide. The plan is that once I reach maintenance, I will plan to monitor my weight in that if I start to exceed 125 or WORST case 130 (I tend to put on weight just by looking at bad food it seems), that I know it's time to get busy and get things under control. I have learned to "listen" to my body and when I did a 10 to 12# regain after my long trip to Europe earlier this Spring, I started having that tighteness in my body knowing my body had taken on extra weight and it didn't feel good. So, I'm hoping I experience the same feeling once I level off at goal and if any weight were to start coming back. I know that getting to goal is only half the battle, but I'm determined to make it work. I've worked too hard to get here. The bottom line in how much you decide to loose is to base it on how you know your body to be and of course suggestions from your Dr. One other thing is that I am finding that over time, my weight is somewhat redistributing. My face is a perfect example. There will be weeks or more where my face looks real gaunt, but then before I know it, it just seems like overnight, it will look more normal- thinner but not gaunt. Our bodies just have to have time to adjust.

[/quote']

Wow, I hope you are so proud at your 1 year mark regardless of what you weigh because you really have had incredible success. Thanks for sharing your story and motivating me.

Thank you. Yes, I am proud of myself. When I get ready for work in the morning, it's almost always a new experience because I am wearing my clothes different. Doing more tucking of blouses, not afraid to show off my figure basically and its just really different.

Wow, I hope you are so proud at your 1 year mark regardless of what you weigh because you really have had incredible success. Thanks for sharing your story and motivating me.

I haven't done great this week. Being pre-op, I'm fining it harder than ever to not just eat everything in site! I did have a bit of a NSV: we went to a Chinese buffet and I ate half as much as I would have originally. That was a big deal for me.

SW:310

Pre-surgery W: 292

Surgery Weight:?

Current weight: 298

So I've gained 4 lbs. this week. Meh.

Okay, phewwww, had a short stall and it kinda worried me there for awhile. Things are back on track and down four more pounds. I have 11 pounds to go and only 16 days to do it. Maybe I was a bit too aggressive in my goal. No matter, I'm still going for it!

HW: 358

SW: 335

CW: 302, 297, 293

GW: 282

After my stall, I stepped on the scale today, and showed a loss of 2lbs! Hooray!!