I reached my diet goal!!! Yippee!!!

I have fibromyalgia, lupus and arthritis, so I know about pain! I cannot exercise much, either. Sip on ice water. It helps to speed up your metabolism. Eat apples and celery. You actually burn more calories eating them than they contain! Grapefruit is the same, but I always have to add sugar to offset it's tangy taste, so I avoid grapefruit. (Splenda is good, zero calories, but it's just not the same as sugar.) I started eating more fruit, snacking on applesauce and salads with low calorie dressing. (Salad Spritzers is great! One or two calories per spray... you control how much you eat!) No diet pills for me! There have been too many adverse things said about them in the past few years. I don't trust them. Don't stop moving! Do what you can, when you can. Rest often, but get back up and do something even if it's only a few minutes. I have my really bad days when I don't move around much at all, but I force myself to take short walks, even if it's only around the house. I'm so sorry to hear about your back injury and hope it is better soon. I also hope that some of my suggestions helps you lose weight. It helped me! Good luck to you!

Thank you very much for all your great tips. I will try them out and see if they help me out. They were great and I really appreciate you sharing them with me.

Read the other replies in this post. I've mentioned so many things that I used for my weight loss that it would take me an hour just to write them all again. LOL I try to add one more thing every time I answer someone, so here's yours: If you aren't sure about the nutritional content of what you eat, go to a nutritionist, or even your doctor, to make sure that the things you DO eat are well-balanced. Also, there is a sad but very true fact about pregnancy. It stretches our abdominal muscles outward and they are never the same again, unless we have plastic surgery (tummy tuck). I've lost the weight I wanted to lose, but my waistline is nowhere near what it used to be! This is the sort of stuff they don't tell you about in all the books about pregnancy and motherhood.

Thanks so much for your wonderful compliments! I'll keep on truckin! Hugs to you, too, Tianna!

Look at my previous responses and you'll see all the tips I used. (Too many to list again.) I didn't mention above that, if you are on some types of medications, like anti-depressants, it will be extra hard to get rid of extra weight. I was one like that. If you are on any medications, read all you can about them to see if they will cause weight gain. Sometimes, that is the culprit. You should see your doctor to see if there are any medical reasons why you cannot lose weight, like thyroid problems. I guess that's why I was so happy to have finally reached my goal. It took a long time! But if you don't give up, you'll get there. Good luck!

Thanks so much! Compliments like yours are always a great boost to not give up. I'm on a medication that causes weight gain, so I'll have to keep passing up the bakery section of the grocery stores, and it's people like you who are an inspiration to keep going. Thanks again and good luck!

I honestly couldn't tell you how long it took for the first 10%. I wasn't keeping tabs. Maybe that's one reason I succeeded... I didn't get frustrated by weighing myself every day. I think the time it takes is going to be different for everyone. There are so many factors involved: metabolism, amount of exercise, how often you cheat (yeah, I did my share of cheating... I just didn't go overboard), medications, things like that. One important thing to remember is that you must maintain a well-balanced diet. Don't skimp on vitamins! If you aren't sure you're getting enough, take a vitamin pill each day. There are some on the market now that are specifically for weight control. Just don't give up. That's the main thing. Even if you slip and gain a few pounds back, just keep moving forward with your diet and exercise. If even 10% seems like a long way to go, aim for 5%; then another 5%. Remember, each time you reach 5%, the next 5% will be less weight to lose, and the next, even less. Good luck to you! You know you can always count on the good folks here at myLot for moral support!

You're quite welcome! I hope what worked for me will work for you as well. Yeah, the smaller goals are SO much easier to attain, just keep setting new ones. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! I wish you all the best with many, many years of happiness.

Thanks so much! It's always good to share dieting successes with others. They help you to keep going. Friends are wonderful support! Thanks again!