After our latest addition to the family, I've got about 35-40 lbs to lose. I'm feeling SPARKLY again and starting to make some real progress. I've made some goals. Those are pretty much as follows:

*Get training to run a full marathon again. Complete said marathon in 2013.
*Cross train this time around. Don't focus so much on running. Going to be doing ST and other cardio fromt the get go.
*Feel comfortable in my swimsuit by the end of the summer 2012.
*Be ...

After our latest addition to the family, I've got about 35-40 lbs to lose. I'm feeling SPARKLY again and starting to make some real progress. I've made some goals. Those are pretty much as follows:

*Get training to run a full marathon again. Complete said marathon in 2013.
*Cross train this time around. Don't focus so much on running. Going to be doing ST and other cardio fromt the get go.
*Feel comfortable in my swimsuit by the end of the summer 2012.
*Be flexible in my end goal weight. Don't get stuck on the idea of a magic number and feel like a lame loser if I don't succeed.
*Have fun
*Love my life
*Enjoy my family and friends
*Be happy


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I'm DONE! And now, to maintain! I have DONE gone and lost over 100 lbs... depending on how you look at it. My highest weight EVER 261 lbs. I spent a number of years in the 250s. My highest ever Spark weight, 232. I am now comfortable and looking maintaining 125.

And, I'd like to say that "losing" is really the wrong word for this. Losing things is easy! (by the way, have you seen my keys?) Getting rid of weight is hard. It's hard! REALLY REALLY HARD! It's a simple equation.

Use more calories than you take in!

But making that equation work is HARD. It's exhausting. It's emotional. It's draining. But, it's also worth it. And if I can do it, anyone can. I believe the greatest challenge to success is ourselves. We think we should lose the weight overnight. You did not gain this weight overnight, you will not lose it overnight. Once you really accept that this process will take time, and probably lots of it, you are in a good place!


I am a stay at home mom of one beautiful preschooler. I am also an aspiring actress. I take classes at a pretty prestigious conservatory and am really beginning to feel like I am making some progress there. I am also wife to one of the most amazing men that ever walked the face of the earth.

I started Spark in 2007 at 222 lbs. I started 2008 at 230 lbs. YIKES! I obviously wasn't being very successful at this! I went on a very strict and green diet in January 2008 and lost 14 lbs. It was unmaintainable. I couldn't eat anything I wanted and I was BORED BORED BORED with food and so I started to "cheat a little bit"... and I then stalled completely for months and months and months. I didn't gain weight, but I couldn't really lose it either. I played with the same 5 lbs for about 6 months. I am now eating healthy... a wide variety of fruits and veggies, lots and lots of fruits and veggies, but with little "cheats" planned in to a healthy lifestyle.

I snapped a tendon in my leg in June 2008 and was forced to take a step back from exercise... which was good for me. It forced me to relax a little bit and I guess by taking a break, I must have jumpstarted my metabolism again! Because, in September, nearly 1 full year after starting Spark People, I lost weight again. And since then, I have been very slowly, but steadily losing! I have become a DONE GIRL! I am so very DONE!

I realized in June of 2009 ago that things weren't progressing the way that I wanted them to. I hadn't lost any weight since Christmas. In fact, I had gained some of it back and crept back up to over 200 lbs. I knew that something had to change again. I decided that I needed to get back in touch with myself in ways that I haven't been in years. I started therapy. I started keeping a food journal instead of logging my food in the SP tracker. I found that the journal worked for me much better than the tracker, because I was much more honest with myself about what I was eating. (maybe that wasn't 3/4 cup of ice cream. It was only a half cup.) When I wasn't counting calories anymore, I started losing weight again. I started exercising more. I started being more honest about how much and the intensity of workout I was getting in. And I began to really see some progress again!

And as time went on, I plateaued, lost, maintained, lost, and went through the normal cycles of weight loss. But, eventually, about 18 months after I started therapy and journaling, I finally declared that I was DONE! I don't need to lose any more weight. Time to maintain!

Read More About MEL_UNRAU (Updated February 25)

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