So far, after two months, I have lost a total of 20 pounds ands and 20 inches!!!

It was definately a challenge starting Phase 1 again, but I was back in the swing of things by the end of the week. I am now in the middle of my first week of Phase 2, but I did not weigh myself yet to see what I lost during my week of Phase 1. I will just combine both weeeks and hope for a good weigh-in.

The first week of Phase 1 was hard for me because I truly had no desire to eat more (that¡¦s a first?º). By the end of the second week I was able to finish the increased portions, and I found myself taking a bite of things I had totally made ¡§off limits.¡¨ As silly as this may sound it was a little scary for me because this is where I run into trouble and start really overeating, but I am so proud of the fact that I did not do that! That is a huge sign of progress for me. The only downside is that now I am really going to have to implement some serious self-discipline and limit my calories again on Monday as I start Phase I. I will do it, and I am drawing on God¡¦s word, which tells me that ¡§I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.¡¨ I know I cannot accomplish this in and of my own strength.

Again, I am trying to keep my eyes focused on the goal of maintaining permanent weight loss and a healthy lifestyle. Even though I know slow and steady is what I need in order to not only lose but keep off the weight, I still get discouraged from time to time. So I keep trying to drown out the negative ¡§self-talk¡¨ with refocusing on the fact that I am not where I was and that I am doing something about it. I must believe that if I do the right thing long enough, I will reach my goal.

Even though I am only at the end of my eighth week, I feel like I have been doing this for six months?º. So I feel like with all of the work I have put in up to this point, I should surely be able to fit into my bikini?º! I have gone down one clothing size so that is progress!

I am also excited because I now look forward to and literally crave exercise again! Yeah!!! In fact, it is really helping me to manage my stress better!

I will post my results next week. I want to give a big thank you to my incredibly supportive family, friends and co-workers!!! Your support is such a huge help to me!

TerryO

thank you, JulieB

I am trying not to compare my results with everyone else's because we are NOT COMPETING with each other, and we are each at a different place, utilizing different diet/exercise regimes.

I have to say that I really believe that the Curves eating plan is the best one I have come across. It is very doable, offers great variety and helps to increase your metabolism so that you sustain your weight loss. At first I was very nervous about the eating plan, but I am finally getting it. While it is hard to lose weight one month, maintain the weight loss for the next month and repeat the process until you reach your goal, I am excited to finally have an approach that will not only help me lose the weight but also keep it off!!!

Darci has been extremely helpful with explaining the plan and offering helpful tips. She has also worked very hard to create an energetic, encouraging and supportive environment for her members. Furthermore, she has a dedicated staff that is always helping, challenging and supporting members.

So for the next four weeks I will be doing Phase III (I just did one week of Phase I followed by three weeks of Phase II). For the next month any time I gain 3 pounds above my low weight, I will revert to Phase I until I go back to my low weight, then resume Phase III. A little difficult when you want to keep seeing a loss on the scale, but Darci assured me that I will still continue to lose inches.

It was sooooo good to hear from you Paula!!! I am sorry I have not been able to call you back. Between Elijah and I being sick and the business of life, I have not had a chance. But I will as soon as I get a moment. I appreciate your encouragement! How are you doing?

And, you are right---the pain to get healthy is so much better than the pain of keeping things the same. How is it going for you? Can you believe we've been at this for a month and a half? Time goes so quickly.

I've been waiting for you to write before I write to you. I am so glad we're in this together. Keep up the good work. You are in my thoughts and prayers. Blessings, Renee

So how did I get here? Well, I have always struggled with trying to maintain my goal weight and needing to lose 20 to 40 pounds. Part of my problem has been not implementing and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Even though I had the proper knowledge, I still gravitated toward extreme dieting/exercising regimes that I could not possibly maintain. However, after our 2 ½ year old son became seriously ill, later diagnosed with Stage IV High Risk Neuroblastoma and given a 34% chance of living. Our lives were turned upside down. Unless you go through something like this there is no way to understand how this affects every aspect of your life.

I spent the better part of the next two years in the hospital with our little guy, away from our family. My diet consisted of hospital food, vending machines and take-out. During the few periods of time Elijah and I were home, I was caring for him, trying to spend time with our daughter (I missed her so much!) and attempting to catch up on so many things, I did the best I could with preparing meals. I was emotionally and physically exhausted, so most meals were quick, pre-made items. I don?t believe they even qualified as ?semi-homemade.?

We are so blessed that our son is now strong and healthy! He is an absolute miracle! It took Elijah the better part of a year to rebuild his strength. Once he did, I realized that I was in worse shape than I thought because I could not keep up with him. In fact, I had gained over 100 pounds, and I was not able to function as I previously had. I was so upset at myself for allowing this to happen. I was miserable. Our family has been given a new lease on life, and I do not want to waste it.

That is why this opportunity is an answer to my prayers. I am at the place where THE PAIN TO STAY THE SAME IS GREATER THAN THE PAIN TO CHANGE. I am hoping that being accountable to the public along with utilizing the help I am receiving will help me not only break the old habits but to establish and maintain new healthy ones. This opportunity means so much to me!!! The only way I am able to have my business out there is by focusing on the goal. I can?t wait to see the difference between now and November! I hope others are encouraged in the process.

I am so blessed to have an incredibly supportive family! I have a husband who has loved me, quite literally, through both the thick and, thin. He has never treated me differently despite my ups and downs. I appreciate him so much! I have no excuses!

I am excited to share this experience with Renee, Brad and Jason! We can do this!

God's Blessings, Linda V