[iluvya1]

Obviously....I'm new. Just kind of curious where everyone's from....I'm from Chicago (or very close to Chicago) I guess I'll reveal a little about myself. I'm 27, single, If you haven't figured it out by my picture, I'm a girl.... Never married, no kids. Trying weight loss "prescription" drugs for the first time. Meridia did wonders but was way too expensive even with insurance. Now it's phen's turn. much much cheaper. I've been trying to lose weight probably my whole life. I get discouraged pretty easily when I don't see results. I've lost almost 25 lbs in the past two months so I'm holding out to see what happens next. I'd love to get down to what I was before I quit smoking. That threw 40 lbs on me!! I'm almost there.....15 more to go. Of course I have bigger goals than that. We'll see what happens, right???

[Sunny D]

Welcome!! And great job on quitting smoking! That is a big accomplishment right there! If you can do that you can definitely lose the weight! We are here for you!! Good luck and see ya around!

[jenstarns]

Hey I am Jennifer, living in TX, have lived in lots of places, KY, TN, NC, and Germany. I will be 34 in July and I am married with 2 kids. My idea of fighting my weight before I had my kids was fighting 10 pounds(what I wouldn't do to go back to that) except when I quite smoking I gained no weight for the 1st few months then all of a sudden 15 pounds came from no where I guess I got excited that I hadn't gained weight and went CRAZY lol Now I am down about 10 from when I started Phen May 24 !!!!!!

[got2loose2]

Welcome aboard my fellow Illlinoisian! I am from the Brookfield Zoo area...pretty close to you! I packed on some pound when I quit smoking too but I feel so much better now! Weight loss has been a life long battle for me as well and I am positive it will continue to be. One day at a time! Good luck on your weight loss journey!

[iluvya1]

Thanks for the welcome ladies It seems that a lot of you have accomplished a lot....I can't wait for it to happen for me!!

[iluvya1]

Got2loose2 - Our numbers are kind of similar...I'd love to hear what you're doing that's working for you!!

[YANIE]

Way to go on weight loss!!!!!! Welcome to the boards!!!!! You will lose all you want and more, more, more!!!

[jazzygal72]

Welcome! This place is the best!

I'm from Seattle.

Our starting weights are almost the same.

Good luck, it won't be easy- but it's SOOOO worth it!

[n8rgrl]

hey neighbor!
Ok, not that close, but I live outside Champaign. I grew up near Chicago-Joliet, New Lenox, Minooka, Manhattan areas. Until I went back to school last fall, I was driving my girls to Schaumburg for dance a couple of times a week, or downtown for Bullskidz practice. I still have family in Manhattan and LOVE to shop in Orland Park!
It is an amazing feat to have quit smoking! Congratulations! You are soooo much healthier carrying around an extra 40 pounds for a little while, than to be little and still smoking. Be proud! The weight will come off. If you can quit smoking, then losing weight will be no big deal! You've got amazing willpower if you can overcome smoking.
I'm a newbie too and I look forward to hearing from you more. Good Luck!

[angelchar77]

Thats so cute that you have a nickname of illiniosian. LOL I am a michigander.. hehe nice to meet you. I grew up in Michigan and left for the Navy at 17. Since then I have traveled to many countries. (cuba, Guam, Thailand, Singapore, United Arab Emirates. I have lived in MI, TX and now currently reside in Cali with my hubby and two cute boys!! Good luck with your journey!!

[got2loose2]

First you need to remember that the bigger you are the more calories you need to maintain your bodys functions ( beating heart, breathing). Many people here are eating around 1000-1200 cals a day. That caused me some problems. My doc has me eating 1500-1800 per day now. I eat small meals and snacks every 2-3 hours and drink about 90 oz of water. I was drinking over a gallon a day...that messed with my electrolytes and caused an abnormal ekg. Apparently you can drink too much water! I cut all whites from my diet, bread, rice potatoes, sugar, pasta and replaced them with whole grain versions. Portion size is key. 1/4 of a boneless skinless chicken breast is a portion. I used to eat the whole thing! 1/2 half of my dinner dish is veggies and only 1 serving of fruit per day. I do a high protien high fiber low fat plan. It breaks down like this:

protein-20 % of daily cals (300 cals)
carbs- 60% of daily cals (900 cals)
fats 20 % of daily cals (300 cals)

20-35 grams of fiber per day.

I log my food at http://caloriecount.about.com/. It produces a chart of my percentages and gives me a grade. I tweak it the next day to get closer to my goal.

I work out 3 times a week. I am a member of Ladies Workout express, a curves type of place, but have been really bad lately!

In the past I told myself that I wasn't going to obsess over what I ate and that I would make healthier choices. That never worked for me. This time I decided to obsess over everything that went into my mouth and it is working. I am at my lowest in 13 years and I feel great. I come here as often as possible for help and inspiration! I know it sounds hard, but after 2 wekks it becomes second nature. I know what I can and can't eat now without having to weigh and research.

You have to plan ahead. Healthy choices have to be on hand. If I eat out, i check the restaurants web sight beforehand. Plan, PLan, Plan!

Hope this book like reply helps you. I am here if you have any questions!

[Raquel]

Hi and Welcome!

I'm Rock - 42 and in TN - I spend almost as much time in TN as I do FL.

I've heard wonderful things about Meridia - too bad, most of the good stuff is so darn expensive, just like Fresh Produce And better cuts of meat! Grrrr.
Crappy stuff - like little debbie cakes and fast food are cheap. LOL

You'll love Phen. If you have any questions, just post and post some more, there is a wealth of information here people we'll spew forth to help you and you can just keep trying things till you find what works for you.

so I have some things I'll throw out.

Measure now. At some point your weight loss will slow down (and it's SO discouraging to see the scale not budging) - but you'll be losing inches and not pounds. so Measure!

Take BEFORE pictures because you may not be able to see the difference in the mirror, our mind plays tricks on us. (Phen doesn't help, lol) the pictures will help you SEE it.

Whatever eating style you chose, try to select one that's going to work for you long term.
Starting out with a breakfast bar, a salad for lunch and dinner is a protien shake. The reality is, how long can you do that.
Versus: 2 egg whites and some turkey bacon. maybe a mini snack, Chicken salad for lunch and dinner, another protien mini snack and then dinner lean meat and 2 veggies.

Drink water, half your body weight in ounces is the advice I got when I started this forum. That formula works for me. Also water cures most of the Phen side effects, It helps w/ leg cramps, headaches etc.

Throw out, give to a neighbor or food bank, any food that is crap food and sabotages your weight loss efforts.

And my favorite suggestion - PLAN. Plan your meals. So you are not caught off guard and grab something that is not the best choice. Also - if there is a function that you KNOW there is going to be foods you can't resist (going home to moms, birthday parties, dinner parties, etc) PLAN - Plan the next couple days meals to compensate for that.
A great way to do this is take a down day and cook and prep ahead. My day to do this is Sundays. I boil eggs, make chicken salad, make a huge salad that I can scoop out of.

I'll stop babbling now - Enjoy your new lifestyle - HEALTHY!

[iluvya1]

Thank you guys so much for the support!! I appreciate all the information too. I think my weakest area is planning everything. I plan for about a day, then pack a lunch...and forget it on the counter!! I can't even tell you how many times I've done that

Also, thanks for the nice words on quitting smoking. I keep trying to tell myself that if I did that, I can do this. It's rough but I figure I'll get through it, just like all of you.

I try not to deprive myself of something if I really want it. I think that's where I've failed before. I just try to control how much of it I actually have rather than going CRAZY and devouring 10 times as much as I should just because I know it's off limits. It seems to still work.

We all need to treat ourselves at times, but like Raquel said, we just make up for it over the next few days and be cautious.

I'm so glad to have all of your support and remember, you have mine in return!!!