Christine's story.

Blog buddy Christine emailed the following to weightisenough@helloross.com...

"My story doesn't feature a whopping weight loss. There is no spectacular and happy ending. In fact, I've come to realize that no weight loss story ever ends. Because maintaining a healthy weight is a life long journey (and by journey, I mean challenge).

I am 50 years old. About 4 years ago, I went to my doctor for a regular check up. This included a "weigh in" in the nurse's office. Wow. I was slapped in the face by the reality of my weight - 156. Now, that my not sound like a huge number, but I am short (5' 1") and petite. For me, it meant I was fat. Luckily, the nurse's scales vaulted me into action. I started a diet plan (is it a "diet" if it is permanent?). I had a protein bar and tea drink for breakfast, smoothie for lunch and a spinach salad for supper. (Ross inspired the recipe!) Every. Day. Boring? Hell yes. But the weight started to come off. I chose 130 pounds for my goal and reached it in 6 months. I was very proud of myself, and still am.

So, sounds great, right? But reaching my goal was really the beginning of my weight loss story. I have spent the last 3 1/2 years struggling to stay at that magic number. I weigh myself every second day. I stick to a very narrow selection of foods. I have been on cruises and managed to not gain weight, by taking the steps instead of the elevator (another Ross tip) and avoiding carbs.

Here are my sad realities, friends:

• exercies does not cause weight loss (for me)
• slip ups are just waiting to happen, usually due to fatty dairy or white carbs
• this will never end

Most of the time things are pretty good. I love fitting into everything, and can still get away will some popcorn at the movies or a non-fatte latte. But today I'm feeling down. I am up 3 pounds (that's alot) so I've had a very sparse food day. I know I'll get the pounds off. But sometimes it seems so unfair, you know? On Saturday, I met two girlfriends for lunch. We all had carrot ginger soup, then I had a small caesar salad. They both had amazing brie grilled sandwiches, then split berry crepes for dessert. They are both normal weight, and it just seems so unfair that I can never (never never) eat like that. I'm feeling sorry for myself today, so I apologize.

Anyway, that's my story.

Christine"

Email YOUR story to weightisenough@helloross.com!

Mike D.'s Story

Blog buddy Mike D., a personal trainer, has a unique insight into the universal struggle with staying healthy and fit.

Once overweight himself, he is now a personal trainer (click HERE for his website)! He emailed weightisenough@helloross.com to share his story with all of YOU!

"My Story:

The reason I got into personal training is because I’ve struggled with weight for a good portion of my life. As a kid, I played ice hockey and stayed active but was still overweight. It wasn’t until my freshman year in high school that I truly got fit and lost the weight. The reason: I had to. In order to make the hockey team that year, my coach sat me down and told me that my weight was hindering my ability to play to my full potential. He told me that I had to lose 20lbs over the summer – before the season started – in order to make the team and play the upcoming season. Long story short, I lost the weight and kept it off…until I “retired” from playing hockey at the end of my junior year in high school. I stopped playing ice hockey, I stopped working out, I stopped eating right and within a few months I put back on 40lbs.

It was my senior year in high school, the year that’s supposed to be the most memorable, and I was the heaviest I had ever been. It was disheartening and I wasn’t happy with what I saw in the mirror. I saw and felt what it was like to be fit, and within a few months I had let it all go. So in December of my senior year in high school I made it my goal to lose the 40lbs by graduation. Through diet and exercise, by prom and graduation, I met my goal and dropped all the weight I had put back on. Since high school I’ve managed to keep the weight off.

So that’s how I got into personal training. I naturally gravitated towards it. I always knew I wanted to do something in the health field because I had always been active and really saw – and more importantly, felt – the benefits it had on the body and mind. So, when I entered college I declared Kinesiology (the study and art of human movement) as my major because I really wanted to be educated and understand how the body works and the science behind it. Then during college I got my personal training certification and have used my education to really hone my practice as a personal trainer.

Observations

There are three main observations I’ve made about people’s weight loss struggles:

• Expecting too much: when people set off on a new fitness routine they tend to expect too much and are disappointed if their progress doesn’t reflect their expectations. People should embrace their progress no matter how small or big. Whether you lose 1-lb a week or 10-lbs a month, embrace that change and be conscious of your progress.
• Over working your body: people tend to do way too much when they first set out to lose weight or start a fitness program. They severely restrict their calories and start going to the gym everyday and work themselves too hard. This will lead to burn out. The goal is sustainable weight loss, not rapid weight loss. People who set out to lose a lot of weight at once are more likely to gain it back than those who do it gradually over time. Start by setting short-term and long-term goals and make smaller changes to your diet and exercise program, gradually progressing to bigger changes and more challenging workout routines.
• Diet: people do not realize the importance of diet. Nothing can correct a poor diet, no matter how much exercise you do. Start by keeping a diet log and write down everything you eat and drink – include calories when possible. This will make you more aware of what you are actually putting into your body. From there you will be able to see what you can change, take out and/or add in to make your diet more well rounded and suited for your weight loss goals. Remember, what you eat in private shows in public."

Everyone say, "Thanks, Mike D.!" and click HERE for his website!

Also share YOUR thoughts on what he shared in our COMMENT SECTION and share YOUR thoughts by emailing weightisenough@helloross.com!

:)

Ross

Melissa's story.

Hello!

Blog buddy Melissa just emailed the following to weightisenough@helloross.com. I can't post every email I get, but I will post many. Send yours and you may just see it here! If you don't, send it again!

I love how she sent a "before" & "during" picture as opposed to an "after" pic. We are a work in progress, peeps!

What stage are YOU at?

:)

Ross

"Hi Ross and blog buddies, here is my story.

I am a 43 year old woman who has struggled with her weight since high school. An extra 10 lbs became an extra 30 and the extra 30 became an extra 60. Through the years I have gone up and down and I have kept weight off for years at a time, but then something triggers me and I go back to my bad eating habits and refuse to excercise. Last year I found my self hitting very close to 200 lbs. I am only 5.1, so that translates into that really sexy word....obese! Don't get me wrong; I was still smoking hot, but very uncomfortable and having aches and pains. I wanted to feel good, live a long healthy life and wear high heels again!

I had a friend who started working out with a personal trainer. Her trainer started a bootcamp and charges such a reasonable fee, how could I not do it? So I started eating healthy, keeping a food spreadsheet and then joined the bootcamp with my friend. Before I knew it I was really into working out. Bootcamp is several times a week and then on the off days I would take a spin class or workout at the gym or do a little run walk routine. I also work only 2 miles from my home so I started walking to work several days a week. Today I completed my third 5k race and I was able to actually run the whole thing. I came in last...but first in my book for not stopping at all!!

I prefer not to weigh myself. I know where I started and I weighed myself at the 6 months mark. I had lost 43 lbs at that point. A healthy slow weight loss. I don't want to focus on the numbers. I enjoy my new way of life and I am also working hard on knowing what triggers me to go back to my old ways and working through those emotions and feelings while still being good to myself! Because I deserve it. We all do.

My advice for what is worth. Find a friend to join you in the journey. When I don't feel like working out, my friend grabs me and we are out the door and visa versa. Don't weigh yourself often. If you reduce your calories and increase your movement you are guaranteed to lose weight. If you feel like you are slipping up talk about it. Tell someone. Don't keep it a secret. Sometimes just saying it outloud gets you back on track. Never have bad internal dialogue. You are a foxy and gorgeous person no matter what you weigh! Find a goal to head towards. Mine started when I found out I was going to fashion week in NY. You can be fat in my part of the world, but you cannot be fat at fashion week! For crying out loud, Rachel Zoe was two rows in front of me!

I've attached a before and during picture. Because I'm not at the after stage....not quite yet. Feel free to use them if you are able and edit my story as you see fit. And yes....you can't see them, but I am wearing some fierce heels in my current picture!

Melissa"

Email YOUR story to weightisenough@helloross.com!

Brad's story.

Blog buddy Brad wanted to share his story, so he emailed it to weightisenough@helloross.com. If you have any words of advice or relate to him, share them in our COMMENT SECTION (at the end of each blog entry).

Here is Brad's story...

"OK, Ross. Here's my story in the 40 minutes I have left to kill at work.

I'm fat. I've always been fat. My family is full of fat people. I have no delusions about my weight.

• 1998 - I topped out at about 360 pounds. Keep in mind I'm 6'2" so super fat, but not needing a forklift to get out of bed or anything. I had a 7 and a 1 year old and thought, "I really need to fix this." Let me tell you something: There is no better diet than a divorce. I spent a year living on my own and fighting for custody of my kids. Living on my own meant eating here and there when I remembered. This meant never breakfast, a cheese sandwich for lunch, an egg and cheese bagel for dinner. I lost 100 pounds and was down to a much lighter 260, but still FAT. I felt worse than when I was at 360 - cold, tired, weak and sick all the time.
• 1999 - Miraculously, I got custody of my kids and slowly started gaining my weight back. I leveled off at 300. I managed to stay 300 for several years through a careful balance of not dieting and not over-eating for several years.
• 2006 - I drive across the country to live in San Francisco. (Did I mention gay happened to me at some point?) I get to SF and step on the scale - 314. WTF? It's starting again. So I immediately lose the 14 pounds by simply starving myself for a couple of weeks.
• 2007 - I hurt my back. Or my hip. Or something. No one can tell for sure what's happening but I have tons of problems that are all working in a way that prevents me from doing more than walking and lifting light things. After physical therapy and multiple cortisone injections which help moderately
• 2009 - I meet with a surgeon. He tells me it's too risky to operate on me because I'm so fat. I need to lose 50 or 60 pounds to consider surgery - without being able to exercise at all. I'll say it again - WTF? So I'm starving myself again, but not as much as before. Breakfast is 2 egg whites, 2 veggie sausage patties, 1 piece of flourless bread. Lunch lately has been an apple or one of those healthy Amy's burritos or something like that. I also have 2 diet coke's throughout the day. Just before leaving work I have a fruit snack. Dinner is something small and sensible. White chicken, brown rice, veggies, etc. When I feel hungry again, I just go to bed.

I'm hungry all the time but I just keep thinking about the pain in my back, pop a vicodin and continue on. Now I'm down to about 285 with 25 more before I can talk to the surgeon again. I feel weak but I'm not tired, cold or sick this time around. I just know I'm going to make it down to 250 (where my doctor said is probably a normal weight for me given my height and overall large build) but I also know that once I recover from surgery I'm going to put it all back on again. Not try to be a defeatist, just being honest.

I don't know if you care about any of this, but I feel better.

-Brad"

Thanks for sharing, Brad! Remember, gang - this only works when people like Brad (and YOU) step up to the plate (pun intended) and SHARE!

Email weightisenough@helloross.com!

Welcome to Weight is Enough!

Hi, blog buddies!

Welcome to Weight Is Enough, a new part of the HelloRoss family! In an attempt to enrich my life by living up to my potential and connecting more with all of you, I'm trying something new around here.

Think of HelloRoss.com as the main "network" with other "channels" all aimed towards helping us connect and live a better life. Weight Is Enough is just one of those channels.

Let's get started...

I have spent my entire life hoping, wishing, dreaming of & working towards 4 things: love, career, family & health.

And, as I get older, it becomes clearer each day that, for the most part, there's not too much one can do to control any of these.

That is, of course, except for health. And, boy oh boy, have I always had an issue with my health. Most specifically, my weight.

I know my personal struggle with weight is not unique. Most everyone I know has had the same issues with weight.

Mine began as a child. Growing up fat is just as difficult as growing up with anything else that makes you "different" than everyone else, and the scars of that shame live with me still today.

It wasn't until after my father died that I decided to face my dragon and appear on a television show called Celebrity Fit Club. I knew the accountability that came with being weighed in weekly on national television would force me to really take the process seriously.

I did. And it worked! I lost an insane amount of weight and everything changed - the way I interacted with the world and the way the world interacted with me. It was fanfreakingtastic.

But it couldn't last. I was eating less than 1,500 calories a day and working out nearly every single day and - I'll never forget this - the moment I ate my first carb, it all starting falling apart.

Let's face it, carbs are delicious - nachos and cheese plates and carrot cake and, and, and...

So, as the years rolled by, I added more and more to my own rolls.

And now, as I type this, I have no idea how much I weigh. I know it's not what I did at my highest, but I know it's nowhere near my lowest, either. I need to get back on track, but I feel lost.

I start my days well - thinking about it in the shower and then look myself in the mirror thinking, "Today. You'll begin today. Only eat salads and lean meats. Go to the gym. You've done it before. You know what you need to do. Today. You'll begin today."

But then noon comes around and I'm running to a meeting and a sandwich is easier to grab than a salad on my way out the door and, oh sure, thanks, I'd love a couple pretzels and, yeah, okay, sounds fun, I'd love to grab happy hour after work and... crap.

Tomorrow, take 2. Promise. But it's an endless cycle.

And that's what this process is about - ending the cycle, doing it in a healthy way and finding accountability with all of YOU!

So help me. Let me help you. Share with me.

I'm going to document my process - with pictures, text and video - and share it with all of you. But I want you to do the same. And, luckily for us, the age of technology makes it very easy to do just that!

Please make your own videos, take your own pictures, write your own stories and email them to weightisenough@helloross.com!

I will post many of your emails here on WeightIsEnough.com to help me, you & all your blog buddies!

Let's get healthy together, gang, whether it's for the first time or all over again.

WE CAN DO IT!!!

What do you say?

:)

Ross