Welcome to the Group

Welcome! We would love get to know you, so please tell us a little bit about yourself. You can choose any format you'd like, but most of us here share some or all of the following details:

1. History with weight loss:
2. History with Calorie Count:
3. Reason for joining this group:
4. Some interesting details about yourself, such as your job, your family, your pets and your interests:

And now just go ahead and make that first post!

Hi there!

I just joined the group, so I figured I would go right ahead and make the first post!

I've struggled with my weight ever since i hit puberty (in 5th grade!!!).  I went from being a bean pole to chubby in no time flat.  I was always self conscious and always felt like the ugly duckling no matter who i was with.  I have always been athletic, but the fat never came off until my senior year of HS when we finally got a soccer team - even though i got down to a size 8 from and 11/13 i still felt fat.

I gained all that back and then some in college and then kinda leveled out until i started my career. Then i packed on another 15 - 20 lbs putting me at my all time high of 174 in january of this year. 

I started with calorie count on Jan. 17th and was pretty successful. Up until June of this year i had dropped 22lbs. Then i took a  bit of a hiatus and gained 2 lbs back, but i am back in action!

I realized that the scale was not my friend at all and it was starting to bring out some terrible feelings/actions in me. So as of August 1, I had my boyfriend hide the scale and it won't come back until August 31. 

I thought it would be interesting to join this group - i hope others join as well!

I work for a local government planning large events. I love my job, though it gets stressful at times.  I live with my boyfriend and we have been dating since highschool - 7.5 years! I have no pets and no kids yet, but if i ever get married i hope to have both!

Who's next?

Hey there!  Here's my intro (although I've been meaning to update my personal profile for a long time....)

1. History with weight loss:  Was fairly average and active most of my early and teen years, but then I broke my foot my sophmore year of college, and I never did get around to taking care of that "freshman 10", which turned into the Sophmore 15, then the Senior 20.  Got to about 165 just after I got married, and it got up to 170 when I joined a gym.  I was making some decent progress, although not as much as I would have liked, but then I had not made any effort to change my eating habits.  Then I got pregnant in late 1999 with my first boy, and after that, my weight went up and stayed up at around 190-200 for a while due to a combination of inactivity and poor eating habits, specifically portion size control.  Then I applied for life insurance, and even though I knew the ramifications of my weight for a long time, the medical exam really put things into perspective for me - and I decided to change things.

2. History with Calorie Count:  When I started here at the end of January 2007, I was at 185, but I had been actively changing eating/exercise habits since October 2006 when I was at 200.  Even though I was successful at losing weight before I found CC, now I know I'm eating a lot healthier, and I love all the tips I get on healthy products and recipes.  I'm 5'6", and I'm currently at 155.  My lowest so far has actually been 148, but I've gained a little due to strength training (and I'm still trying to get used to this maintenance calories thing).

3. Reason for joining this group:  I was approached by CC customer support as to if I would be interested in participating in the roll out of the groups feature - and I said yes.

4. Some interesting details about yourself, such as your job, your family, your pets and your interests:  In September I will have been married for a wonderful 14 years to my best friend, and we have two boys, ages 5 and 8.  Yep, I'm in a houseful of guys (except for the cat)!  I graduated engineering school in 1993, and currently I am a Quality Engineer for a company specializing in designing automatic meter reading (AMR) systems.

My interests are pretty varied.  I've taken an active interest with getting healthier because of CC, but I've also developed an intense interest in cooking, and consequently, I've become a kitchen gadget junkie (Williams Sonoma rocks!).  I love to do yoga, kickboxing, and I've started strength training.  Other hobbies include cross stitching (when I have the time), reading, and collecting fine china (specifically tea cups).  I'm starting to get more involved in my sons' school activities, and since my youngest was diagnosed with autism, have been a strong advocate for Autism charities and awareness.

Okay then, who else is here?

Hello, fun to see a St. Louis group, hopefully we'll get a few more to join!

My two kiddos have gone to bed so I'm mostly brain-dead, but we'll see if I can sketch a reasonable clear portrait of myself.

History with weight loss:  I gained about 50 extra pounds when I quit college and a food-service job for a full-time desk job, plus met my future husband and dined out all the time.  I've bounced around with progress, but didn't see good results until joining CC a few months ago.  I still get lax and bounce back up occasionally, but I'm pretty optimistic.

My two pregnancies actually helped me more than they hurt me.  I lost all the baby weight both times within two weeks after the baby was born, and each time I lost a couple extra pounds too.  So although I now have a 1-year-old and a 2-year-old, I weigh less now than I did right before my first pregnancy.

Since there is obviously no way I could have influenced that through any special strategy, I take zero credit for that.  However, regardless of whether the weight I need to lose is "baby" weight or from before that:  one important struggle I share with other new moms is the insanity of trying to be healthy in our newfound baby/family life.  It is crazy difficult to manage family meals, getting a babysitter in order to work out, or even being able to afford participating in mom-and-baby style classes.

Okay, I was going to go through the other points too (history with CC, reason for joining, etc.), but I need to crash soon.  That 5:00 alarm doesn't wait...

Hi St. Louis!

1. History with weight loss:

Food has been a comfort for me since I was a child, our family had a weekend place and I was the youngest of the cousins by 5 years, consequently I hung out with my parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents. As my older siblings and cousins socialized I kept myself entertained and some of that eterntainment was food.  So food has always been much more than fuel, its mixed in with nurture, entertainment, stress eating, oh yea and hunger.  As a kid I had skinny legs and a heavy middle, in Jr High my biggest desire was to be a cheerleader...I so wanted to wear that cute uniform...I exercised and practiced walkovers, cartwheels, flips, jumps and splits and finally made the squad in 10th grade...yep, it took me 3 years of tryouts but I did make the "b" squad.  Along with making the squad I found my waistline and kept it through my 20s.  When I was 26, after having 2 pregnancies, I needed to lose 20 pounds and went on the Rotation Diet.  This diet rotated between a few days of 900 calories, and1200 calorie days, resulting in a rapid weightloss of 20 lbs.  This was the start of my yo yoing...I regained the 20 plus 10...

The next successful weightloss came via lots of $$$ with Nutrisystem.  I lost the 30 and the minute I was off the diet, regained plus 10.  A series of diets, all losing and then regaining all plus some yo yo'd me up to 200.  In 1995 I lost 30 and got down to 170 through WW.  Unfortunately the Yo yo syndrome returned and the last few times I've lost with WW was only 10 lbs, gaining it all back plus some.  Whew. My lifestyle was not stellar, when I am stressed, Di eats, bored Di eats and it was all to common for me and hubby to have a couple of beers or glasses of wine at night with dinner.

2. History with Calorie Count: So, I'm tired of dishing out money for the latest fad and tired of meetings, and tired of looking at my fat butt!  I came upon Calorie Count this past winter and love the site, it offers all and more than WW online site, plus it's free.  What I need to do is be more consistent with my entries and stay within my allotted calories. The exercise is doing well.

3. Reason for joining this group: To network some more, I was very happy to see a local group here on CC.  Does anyone belong to ClubFitness? 

4. Some interesting details about yourself, such as your job, your family, your pets and your interests:
I live in O'Fallon and commute to Wash U where I work at the business school.  I've been married for 26 years to my highschool sweetheart and we have a daughter and a son.  I enjoy day hikes to the area parks, some of my favorites are Klondike Park, Creve Couer, Quail Ridge.  My husband and I also enjoy biking the Katy Trail. 

Part of my lifestyle change is becoming more active and participating in groups, I recently completed Fleet Feet's "couch to 5K" program, I swim laps during lunch but plan to switch to a.m. and join the sunrise swimmers at Wash U. 

My goals for 2009 are to compete in Sprint Triathlon's which there are quite a few in the St. Louis area, hence my running and swimming efforts.  Just dieting has failed me several times over, and I am discovering I enjoy the team/group type challenges...maybe it's that old drive of wanting that cheerleading uniform, now I want to be able to sport tri gear. :)  And in actuality a much tougher bill to fill. ;)

I'm 48 and you could call this my midlife crisis, but at least I am handling this in  a much healthier way than I have in the past few decades.  April 28 I signed up with a personal trainer at ClubFitness for 3 mos.  I lost 25 pounds and -15 inches overall.  According to CC I have 56 more pounds to go. 

 

Yay for ClubFitness!!

I'm also working on the Couch to 5k program, hoping to run my first 5k race before the year is over. I'd like to then progress with a 10k and then run the Lewis & Clark 1/2 Marathon in Sept. 2009.  A triathlon would be tons of fun, but i am not a very good swimmer!

 

Original Post by msmeg1984:

Yay for ClubFitness!!

I'm also working on the Couch to 5k program, hoping to run my first 5k race before the year is over. I'd like to then progress with a 10k and then run the Lewis & Clark 1/2 Marathon in Sept. 2009.  A triathlon would be tons of fun, but i am not a very good swimmer!

 

 See, that can be your next class...swimming improvement ... I took a stroke improvement class at a local Y back in 2001.  I think the runners have the advantage in the sprint tri's, I'm going to compete at least one and see how it goes.  I have tendenosis in my right achilles that is taking a long time to heal, I do hope I'll be able to run again.  Where are you taking the Couch to 5K? 

Just doing a mixture of treadmill runs and i try to do at least 1 day of each week outside either around my neighborhood or through the neighborhood or park by my office. I'm on week 3, just did day 1 yesterday and it wasn't that bad. Afterwards i jumped on the stationary bike and rode 8 miles.

We did just get something in the mail this week from the Y - maybe I should check out the swimming courses! Thanks for the suggestion.

 

Decided to take the groups plunge, so here I am!

Weight:  never used to be an issue - in fact, I was chronically underweight despite eating normally.  Turns out I actually was ill, which it took doctors 15 years (and untold misery on my part) to figure out, and my body used all the extra calories dealing with that.  Once that was dealt with, trying to get my hormones back in balance led to my weight ballooning.

3 years ago I finally got my behind in gear and dropped 20 pounds.  Unfortunately, I'm an emotional eater, and 2006 was a year of emotional upset - yep, put all 20 pounds back on.  Now I'm trying again, but I have restrictions I didn't have before that I have to work around (such as arthritis in one knee).

I haven't been with CC long (3 months), but what I like about it is the ability to analyze your own recipes (I seldom eat out or eat processed foods).  To my delight, it seems my diet is not out of whack; I just need to exercise more.

I go walking in Forest Park on my lunch hour with coworkers, and do folk dancing 2-3x/month (sound easy?  you try it sometime!), and the weight is gently, slowly, coming off.

Interests:  I'm like a traditional woman with a modern twist.  I like to cook, sew, and knit.  I make costumes for fun, as well as make my own wine.  I sing and dance because I CAN.  I live in a big old brick house near the brewery, which I'm in the process of getting fixed up just like I've always wanted to - hurry for lines of credit!

Hi Axejudge,

I'm an emotional eater too And my food is not the best, with all the exercise the pounds are being very stubborn!  This is my hormonal week and I'm not doing too well. 

I'm switching my lap swimming to mornings and plan to bike during the lunchtime through Forest Park...maybe I'll see you and your group...

DiP

There are certainly plenty of bikers in the park; we're always worried we'll get run over!   One coworker is hearing-impaired, so she can't hear the bikers coming, so it can be really disconcerting for her.

That is always startling when they come up on you unaware. 

I tried my first spinning class this a.m., other than a sore bottom I did okay.  I did the 5:45 a.m. class at the St. Peters Club Fitness and will be back on Thursday.  The instructors were very helpful in setting my bike up correctly and giving me the general guidelines. 

Hi guys!! I'm so excited to see a St. Louis group on here!

My name is Sarah and I have lived in St. Louis for about 3.5 years now. I am getting married next month and have been working hard on gaining muscle lately. I am 6'1" tall with a muscular frame, and I never had much of a weight problem until I discovered the glory of pizza and beer during college. Sadly, I managed to pack on some pounds during my four years of undergrad. Luckily, I got back on track about 2.5 years ago and lost 60 pounds. Now I'm working hard trying to lose inches and gain muscle. It is fun to see my body changing and to see how much more in shape I am now.

I belong to Bally's fitness in Clayton and I also am a proud member of "Buck's Bootcamp." Our bootcamp was recently on St. Louis magazine's A-list. YAY! I've noticed great results and have been having a lot of fun.

I am getting married next month and I'm super excited!

Welcome to the group!

I've just gotten back into free weights after neglecting my strength training for quite a while. I guess i thought that cardio would be the answer to all my problems, I was sadly mistaken!  Even after just 2 weeks of hitting the weights, i feel like i look better already!

Yay for strong healthy bodies!

1. History with weight loss: Growing up I was always very active.  In high school I was a cheerleader all four years and ran track my junior year and loved it.  Unfortunately my senior year I had my second of four knee surgeries.  After about 6 months of recovery time I was out of shape and out of the habit of exercising.  I slowly gained weight until about 24 when a medication helped me pack on about 30lbs in less than 3 months.  About 3 years ago I switched from a very active job to a desk job.  I am so tired of sitting.  For the first two years of my desk job I continued eating whatever I wanted and hanging out on the couch at home, which is what I had always done.  I gained about 40 more pounds.  During this time I also stopped smoking, I will blame the weight on that. 

I had never attemped to lose weight until fall of 2007.  I started out on my own just trying to eat healthier.  I probably lost about 7 pounds.  In January of 2008 I started using CC and lost about 20lbs by about March.  I have lost nothing since then and have actually gained about 2lbs back. 

My lovely HS cheerleader, never sat down, was so busy I often forgot to eat body was between 125 and 135.  I have always had a very athletic build, arms too big to fit in short sleeved button up shirts, thighs too big for jeans to fit well, small waist (well, until the last 40lbs).  Luckily that body type has helped me gain weight evenly and not look too much like a blob.  At my heaviest I was about 210.  I am currently about 188.  I am 5' 4". 

2. History with Calorie Count: When I started using CC I used it religiously everyday.  Surprisingly enough after about 4 months I started slacking on CC and stopped losing weight.

3. Reason for joining this group: I have lived in St. Louis essentially my whole life.  I like it here, except for the humidity. 

4. Some interesting details about yourself, such as your job, your family, your pets and your interests:Well, first and most exciting:  I am getting married in September 2009.  I have been dating Mr. Wonderful for a little over three years.  We knew that we were absolutely in love with each other about a month in and after 9 months of dating we bought a house and have been living together since.  We got engaged on Valentine's Day 2008.  Our relationship is everything I wanted and then somethings that I didn't know that I wanted.  He is very supportive and loving and cute and is my best friend.  I am very lucky (and my friends like to remind me of that).

We have a very furry house, literally (anyone with big dogs understands).  We have an 8 year old retriever/chow mix named Haley and a 1 1/2 year old pit bull named Patch.  We also have a 2 1/2 year old blue cat named Salem.  I got Haley when I moved off campus in college.  I knew from the moment I saw her that she was suppose to be my dog.  She is my soul mate of pets.  Patch was a rescue operation from a guy that didn't really know how to take care of him.  He has come a long way from the super skinny puppy who was afraid of everything and had major separation anxiety.  He is now a 60lb dog who is goofier than anything I have ever seen.  Salem was from a rescue group and was my idea.  I have always had both cats and dogs.  My fiance didn't like cats, but I insisted.  He and Salem are now the best of buddies.  We also keep a salt water reef tank and a small fresh water fish tank.  The salty fish are looking forward to moving into their new 90 gallon tank.  We can't wait! 

I currently work full time at a desk and am a full time night student.  I will graduate with my bachelors in spring of 2009 and hope to go straight into a masters program.  Anyone know anything about UMSL's Masters of Accounting?  Yes, it probably wasn't your dream job as a kid (definitely wasn't mine) but I would like to be an accountant (corporate).  It just took me a long time to finally decide on a career. 

Hey Crystlpace:

Another former cheerleader...my days go way back...to 1978!  I work at desk job and a student at night too.  When I quit smoking in 1987 I gained a lot, about 30 pounds, more than typical exsmokers.   Welcome to STL group.

Original Post by set24:

Hi guys!! I'm so excited to see a St. Louis group on here!

My name is Sarah and I have lived in St. Louis for about 3.5 years now. I am getting married next month and have been working hard on gaining muscle lately. I am 6'1" tall with a muscular frame, and I never had much of a weight problem until I discovered the glory of pizza and beer during college. Sadly, I managed to pack on some pounds during my four years of undergrad. Luckily, I got back on track about 2.5 years ago and lost 60 pounds. Now I'm working hard trying to lose inches and gain muscle. It is fun to see my body changing and to see how much more in shape I am now.

I belong to Bally's fitness in Clayton and I also am a proud member of "Buck's Bootcamp." Our bootcamp was recently on St. Louis magazine's A-list. YAY! I've noticed great results and have been having a lot of fun.

I am getting married next month and I'm super excited!

 Congrats on the upcoming nupials!  Bootcamp, that is some serious exercise!  Where do you meet?  How much? 

Original Post by axejudge:

There are certainly plenty of bikers in the park; we're always worried we'll get run over!   One coworker is hearing-impaired, so she can't hear the bikers coming, so it can be really disconcerting for her.

 Hi Axejudge,  I thought of you last night, I walked for an hour after work and before my evening class in Forest Park.  Such a lovely place to walk and it felt great to be outside enjoying the sites.

Original Post by msmeg1984:

Yay for ClubFitness!!

I'm also working on the Couch to 5k program, hoping to run my first 5k race before the year is over. I'd like to then progress with a 10k and then run the Lewis & Clark 1/2 Marathon in Sept. 2009.  A triathlon would be tons of fun, but i am not a very good swimmer!

 

 msmeg,  Did I already ask...which ClubFitness do you go to?  My home base is K&N in OFallon but I go to the Bass Pro, St Peters, Creve Couer and Rock Hill locations to catch classes coming in to work or on the way home.

Original Post by di_p:

Original Post by axejudge:

There are certainly plenty of bikers in the park; we're always worried we'll get run over!   One coworker is hearing-impaired, so she can't hear the bikers coming, so it can be really disconcerting for her.

 Hi Axejudge,  I thought of you last night, I walked for an hour after work and before my evening class in Forest Park.  Such a lovely place to walk and it felt great to be outside enjoying the sites.

Nice.  My schedule is getting ever more frantic as I prepare for a convention next month, so prying out the time to walk is getting harder and harder.  I've taken off work today and Monday so I can get more things done; if I don't go walking I'll probably do something I have on my DVR (don't have to go anywhere).

I usually head to the St. Charles Location. However, the o'fallon ones are convenient for me at times as well.