I started my lifestyle change on 1/26/11, but did not join fatsecret until 2/2/11. With the start of the year, I knew I wanted to lose weight, so the first step was buying a scale. I had not been on one in a couple years.

I weighed in on 1/26/11 at 374.8 lbs. I decided to follow the Atkins program because I have lost weight on it in the past but never looked at it as a way of life. When I weighed in at nearly 375 lbs on that day, it was the heaviest I've ever been in my life (I am 5'10" tall, large frame). Discovering I have 200 lbs to lose was a hard pill to swallow. A change MUST come!

As the old saying goes, I am sick and tired of being sick and tired, and diabetes runs rampant in my family history. I am tired of avoiding the mirror, feeling ashamed, and allowing weight to prevent me from pursuing life. I am fortunate that, thus far, I have yet to fall victim to diabetes or heart problems. I do, however, have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), which is another motivating factor for me to pursue a low carb lifestyle.

I have not always been heavy. I was chubby as a child, but slimmed down in my teens and fluctuated between 125 and 150 on my 5"10" frame in my early teens to early 20's. After getting married at 24, weight has crept on and off and then on again, but I have never been anywhere near my desired weight of 175. Whenever I did gain back, I gained even more to go with it (the dreaded yo-yo). My last significant weight loss (also through Atkins) was in 2006 when I went from 323 lbs to 262 lbs.

As of today (2/2/11), I weigh 368.2, a loss of 6.6 lbs in a week. I realize my weight loss will not always be so swift, but I am happy with this to get myself motivated to keep on keepin' on!

As for other areas of my life, I am a knitter, crocheter, avid reader, pet lover with two dogs and a cat, occasional writer, media junkie, pop culture fan, observer of people, armchair psychologist, and a wife of over 17 years (no kids).