Ah. There is that, I suppose. If or when your financial situation improves, you can still keep it in mind, though. My Y (which I am assuming is typical) offers a few different dance classes and I think one of them might be tap.
Joining late I guess…
I’m currently on location in Costa Rica. I can’t weigh myself often but that’s actually for the better: it keeps me from getting obsessed. I know that I can’t be people’s idea of “thin” (I’d have to get a chunk of hip removed, for that), what I want to do is be able to take a nice walk (“nice walk” means 3-4 hours at 3-5mph; while in college I was able to do 7miles in an hour if the traffic lights helped) without feeling short of breath, keep my upper arms from looking like flagpoles with the flag rolled down, and the behind in the “wow, niiiiiice ass” ground as opposed to the “fat ass” ground.
After several months of greasy factory food, occasionally combined with Mom’s food, last September I weighed in at 165lb. Early Christmas, 155lb. Two weeks of Christmas food (after 3 months of black beans and rice and salad and chicken and “don’t people in this country ever eat fish or any other kind of beans”, I fell upon the baked salmon and the Christmas sweets and so forth like Attila’s hordes) , 160lb.
I don’t know how much it is now, but unless I’m imagining things (which I thought I was, right before Christmas, but I wasn’t), my arms look more or less like they did before falling into The Feeder’s hands. My jeans are loose even when just-washed. So I’m thinking 155lb or maybe already a bit less.
Yay me!
Now if I can keep it down over Easter-at-Mom’s…
I’m living in an apartment complex with a nice gym but I can’t shove myself there in the week. I’m a morning person so I’d like to go there as early as possible, but there isn’t enough time for a full routine and a shower between the time it opens and the time we leave for work. So during the week I’ve been doing stretching exercises (the same ones I do for warmup and warmdown when I go to the gym) and using cans of beans as weights. Each can is about 1.5lb and the weight doesn’t wiggle about.
I went to the Y this morning, and get this, I ran a mile. Not all at once, though. Thirty laps on the indoor track is 2 miles, and I ran the odd numbered laps. Kicked my butt, too, but I’ll do it again and keep at it until I’m running all of those 30 laps.
I also heard from a locker room buddy that I’m getting noticed for the amount of weight that I’ve lost. 
I can also report that the plateau I’ve been on for the last month has broken. this morning at the Y, I was at 237, following a month of wobbling 238-241…
Good and bad things…
I ran two miles at the gym on Monday (well, ran 1.75, and had a little brisk walk for .25). I’m really excited to have some physical stamina returning.
On the down side, this weekend I totally splurged unnecessarially. Eating because I’m bored. Gah. Well, it just means that I probably made no progress this week. Oh well. I’m trying to not focus on such short-term ups and downs, since I feel like they just lead to feeling guilty or like a failure for small indiscressions.
I’ve been meaning to join these threads, but I always forget. I started Weight Watchers Online in June of 2005. I’m down 30 lbs, and I’m 27 lbs from my goal weight, so I’m a little over the halfway mark (but only 13 lbs from my max weight for my size).
Exercise is the same as always: six hours a week. But that hasn’t really changed much in 10 years (other than types of exercise and such.) I’m happy to say I can count on one hand the number of times I didn’t meet that goal that I wasn’t out of town or post-surgery.
I’m now around 183 so I’ve probably lost a pound in the last two weeks. Not much but I have had the flu which made me drink copious quantities of juice and made me fairly immobile. Though the good news is this, I’m training for a half marathon in about 11 weeks. Once I start running those longer 10 mile runs, I better lose this weight!! Otherwise it’s just not destined to be!
Goal is 170
Waenara, there IS a solution to the bathing suit dilemma. Wear a pair of guy’s swimming trunks over your own. I find it breaks up the lines nicely, covers what absolutely needs to be covered, but still lets me swim.
I’m still treading water and reminding myself that if I keep doing the same things and expecting results that is the definition of insanity. Call me crazy 
So, last week I had a decent week and my weight stayed under 180 for the whole week but then the weekend came and this week I’m hovering around 181 so far. I know, 2 lbs. Nothing to get strung about. Just can’t seem to break out of the maintenance zone that I’m apparently in.
It’s March. I’m not ready to give up yet.
I think you should go swimming, Waenara, and as often as possible. You have done an incredible thing, losing the weight you have. I think you should celebrate your achievement by swimming to your heart’s delight. Do what you love.
And as far as your fear of appearing in public? Two things. One, people are pretty much obsessed with themselves. They are not going to be thinking about you as much as you are thinking about you! Two, even if they are, in a judgemental way, whether they express this or not, who gives a flip? Anyone who would judge someone on their physical appearance is a pig, anyway.
(Can I use the word pig in a weight loss thread??? 
)
Enjoy your new body. Feel the freedom! Feel the joy!!
Can I join the club?
(I found out I lost five pounds today! …and promptly went out and celebrated with a McDonald’s meal. :smack: times eight billion)
Down two pounds and back to the weight I thought I was at two weeks ago. This yo-yo thing is getting kind of old but at least I’m losing.
Now if I can just manage to make it to the gym more than twice a week. I made it Monday and Tuesday but have skipped out since Wednesday and will have to do some laundry when I get home if I want to go tonight. I plan to now but don’t know if I will then.
Initial Weight: 360 lbs
Current Weight: 208 lbs
Goal Weight: 150 lbs
152 down; 58 to go.
I’m down 14 pounds in 6 weeks now, with 6 weeks remaining for this program cycle. I plan to continue the very low calorie diet, assuming I’m continuing to lose. I rejoined my gym, and went yesterday. We’re supposed to work out every day, but today I’m headachy and feeling yucky. Tomorrow for sure. My goal is to get strong enough to do the eliptical trainer.
Another good week with both eating and excercise. The scale hasn’t moved, but I’m pleased to be doing well in both categories.
Well, it looks like I’m going to get some accidental exercise starting mid-April.
I’ll be starting taking the bus to work, which - because our public transportation sucks here - means the closest bus stop to my job is .6 of a mile away. So a 15 minute walk in the morning and again in the afternoon.
This is a good thing. Getting up 10 minutes earlier so I have time for a real breakfast is my current goal. Plus not going out to lunch for the rest of March. Around April I’ll be ready to start my next goal of working up to walking 3 miles a day. My nature doesn’t conform itself well to getting exercise on purpose, but if I don’t have any other choice…
I’ve lost another pound! That’s a total of 11 pounds since June of '04. (Down to 159.)
I know, 11 pounds isn’t much in a year and a half, but it took me until Thanksgiving of '05 to figure out twice a week at the gym wasn’t going to cut it. I’m now getting up at the godawful hour of 4:45am (that’s in the morning, you know) and getting to the gym four times a week. I’m seeing some serious progress. I’ve discovered the stairclimber machine…that burns, but I can feel my butt muscles working. The only problem is as the resistance gets higher I tend to sink, so I’m stepping off the floor instead of in the air (does that make sense?)
I have realized that one chicken breast at dinner will fill me up, there’s no need for two, and I’ve been keeping a food diary (one New Year’s resolution that actually stuck.) Lunch at work is yogurt, crackers, nuts, sesame sticks, Fruit[sub]2[/sub]O and a V-8. The other thing I found is instant oatmeal. Two packets for breakfast fill me up quite nicely until lunch. V-8 is pretty good too at filling you up.
I’m also listening to my body, and trying not to keep eating after I’m full just because the food is yummy.
Remember…nothing tastes as good as thin feels.
Down 20 since 27 December!
My weight fluctuates, but it still trending downward. Yesterday I had a spoonful of peanut butter for ‘breakfast’. Just wasn’t that hungry. I was getting rather peckish in the mid-afternoon, so I went to the corner market. They’re more of a convenience store, but they do have a limited quantity of fresh food. I bought a chicken breast, a red bell pepper, a green bell pepper, and a bunch of green onions. I chopped everything up and cooked it in a pan with a little olive oil, minced garlic, salt, and ground red/white/black peppercorns. When it was done I poured on some hot Thai peanut sauce and cooked it until the sauce was boiling. Not bad, but I wished for rice. I had a zero-net-carb dark chocolate candy bar for dessert.
Ok, here’s a question. What do you do if you’re a cooking cripple? I seriously have no skill in the kitchen at all, somehow whenever I go near things they undercook, overcook or burn to the bottom of a pan. When I get home at the end of the day, the last thing I want to do is go in the kitchen. Are there any healthy ready-meal options, or very, very basic meals for someone who is completely useless in the kitchen? I can handle steak, bacon or anything else that just needs to be left to cook for a while then eaten. If it has a recipe I probably can’t manage it.
It depends on your diet. I’m counting carbs, so it’s pretty easy for me. Except that I get very tired of meat. Last night’s dinner was very easy. I just chopped everything up and fried it in a pan on medium heat. It only took a few minutes to chop the peppers, onions and chicken, and then it cooked in about ten minutes with me stirring it every so often. And I’ll bet it would have been good without the sauce, too.
Another favourite is artichoke. Just boil it until it’s done, then melt some butter with garlic salt in it. I also like asparagus. People will tell me I cook it wrong, but I just put a little water and salt in a pan, cover it, and boil it for a few minutes. (I snap off the ends, rather than cutting them. I’ve never had any hard bits that way.)
Get a bag of salad and some low-cal dressing or olive oil and vinegar. Put the salad in a bowl and put some dressing on (not too much!).
Slice some Roma tomatoes and sprinkle shredded romano cheese on them.
Heat up some olive oil in a frying pan. Chop up half an onion and put it in. Add minced garlic (which you can buy in a jar, so you don’t have to chop it yourself). Cook over medium heat until the onions are translucent. Slice a Roma tomato, and slice the slices in half and put them in the pan. Add salt and pepper and a teaspoon of capers. Put in a tilapia fillet. (Move the veggies out of the way.) Turn the fish once. Serve it up and pour the veggies on top.
Put a salmon fillet on a sheet of aluminum foil Score it down to the skin about an inch apart, and once longitudinally down the thickest part. Pour some Soy Vay Very Very Teriyaki on top. Seal up the foil and bake it in a 375°F oven for about a half an hour (depending on the size of the fillet). Open the foil for the last few minutes. This one is super easy, and very tasty. I like it with asparagus.
I know it can be hard to cook when you’re tired and famished, but it’s worth it. If you don’t know how to cook, you need to practice. The more you cook, the more you’ll be able to cook. Don’t be afraid to experiment. If something doesn’t come out just right, eat it anyway and try it again another time.
niblet head: Please don’t forget to drink lots of water to counteract your V-8 intake. The stuff is GOOOOD, but very high in sodium. Sodium is higher in most processed foods than natural foods, so I tend to avoid them.
badgers, I’ve tried the South Beach Diet frozen meals, and they’re not too bad. Other things that come to mind, if you’re too hungry to cook when you get home, is that because you haven’t eaten since noon? Try to eat a little something mid-afternoon that’s a healthy carb and some protein or if you have a commute, right before you leave work. (I’ve lately discovered pistachios and dried cherries as a snack. Yum!) I know you feel you have no skills in the kitchen, but if you are willing to try, I very much like The EatingWell Diabetes Cookbook. Very short, very easy recipes that are low-carb and yummy. I particularly like the lemon sage turkey tenderloin and the mango curry chicken breasts! I am learning to cook m’self, and I thank god for this cookbook!!