I will be 47 years old in July, married 27 years, and have three amazingly wonderful children (24, 20, and 13). My weight has always been an issue for me as I am tall (5' 10") and big boned. With my body structure, I would never look thin ... and sadly have used that as an excuse that it really doesn't matter what I weigh. As the case with so many others, I've used food to comfort me through life's many struggles. But last year I found myself turning 46, weighing more than ever before (225 lbs), and depressed due to marriage challenges and the fact that two of my children were leaving home. I knew something had to change but lacked motivation.

Kiki, my BFF of 29 years (OMG!!!), has shared some of the same weight struggles as me over the many years. She put together a "Biggest Loser" challenge contest at her work a year or more ago and talked me into participating. Although I was far from winning the contest, I did lose some weight. I was very pleased with myself, but quickly put back on all the weight I had lost. When she rolled out a new challenge late last year, I joined again and had much better results. Enough that it finally hit me that YES, I can do this if I stick with it. So I set up a home gym and for almost 5 mos now, I work out at least 6 times a week. My first goal was to get under 200 lbs, and man I jumped for joy when that happened! As of this week, I am at 189 lbs. Surprisingly [to me], only a few people have noticed/commented on the weight loss but for once I don't care - I'm doing this for me, not for what others think.

Kiki has been my biggest moral support and we have now joined together to make our weight loss goals happen. We are buddies through Jawbone UP24 and now through FatSecret. I love that now I'm accountable to others for what I do (or don't do) throughout the day and for what I eat. I'm a newbie to this site and welcome all tips!