First Post!!

Here I am, giving the traditional first post :-) I hatte talking about myself, so I'm gonna give you some highlights :-)


-I'm 22 years old, living in Boston Ma, where I grew up.
-I went to Fairfield University in Connecticut, Where I graduated last May, 2009. I was a finance major accounting minor (a numbers gal). While I loved the schooling itself, I had a lot of trouble making friends. I initially attributed it to the fact that I was quiet, but it did little for my self esteem. By the time graduation rolled around, I came to realize that Fairfield just was never the type of place I was going to fit in. I graduated happy with my classes, with a few close friends, and am satisfied with that :-)
- I went abroad my junior year to London, where I met some of my closest friends, and had the best experience of my life. 2 years later I still want to go back.
-I was incredibly lucky to receive a temp to perm job at a mortgage company in their accounting department. I went permanent there within a month, and am happily working there 8 months later. It's a company that is incredibly good to their employees, and treats the customer with respect, which makes me respect them even more.
-I started dating a friend of mine right when I got back from London, and 2 and a half years later, we are still going strong. I won't lie, when I first met him, I thought he was cute, but I NEVER expected for him to be the love of my life :-). we have very similar wants out of life (travel, new experiences, etc), and compliment each other well.
-I come from an incredibly Irish family (my dad moved here when he was 18, my mom spent every summer at her aunts bed and breakfast in Ireland, and most of my cousins aunts and uncles are all still there. It is one of my favorite places.). Because of that, I often feel like I had a slightly different upbringing than most of my friends, and think with a slightly different mindset.
-I have three younger sisters( 21 19 16), who even though they drive me crazy I love spending time with them. My youngest sister recently lost 100 pounds on WW (weight watchers from here on out), and seriously has been my inspiration to try and lose the weight as well.

And I'll share more as we go along :-)

Now, a little of why we are here :-)

I have ALWAYS been overweight. Seriously I remember being 10 years old and feeling embarrassed because I couldn't fit into junior sizes. I hated going to the doctors, because of the dreaded weight talk. And the scale. And that look I would get. But its hard at that age to change how you eat. It's not like you cook for yourself, you know?

As I entered middle school and high school, I became an emotional and stress eater. I had a big test in high school, I would eat. I had a bad day at school, I would eat. I was made fun of because I was the fat kid, and always felt outcasted. I went to a catholic high school in my town, where I met an awesome group of friends, who made me finally feel included, and I was actually happy. By the time I graduated high school however, I was around 270 pounds. I had no concept of portion sizes, or how awful the food I was eating really was. And the fact that my friends and I went out to eat constantly, I was eating even more than I normally would.

Enter college, Freshman year didn't change much, I was still a size 20/22, (more 22) and pretty miserable, as I made few friends. I always felt embarrassed of how I looked. It really sucked. After that year I changed a lot. Tried to eat a bit better, (although I often gave in to temptation). By the summer before I went abroad I was down to an 18, and feeling healthier. I had my home friends, and a few good school friends, and through bad roomates and balancing work and school, I made it work.

Enter abroad, where I drank and danced to my heart's content. I met some awesome friends, and walked EVERYWHERE. I dropped close to 40 pounds, and worked out more than I ever did. I was so happy and content with myself, and was so sad to come home. I regret totally how I continued when I went home, because I wish I could say I got better about eating. But I didn't. I reverted right back into my old ways, with a lack of portion sizes, and McDonald's once a week. Having the BF didn't help, they aren't kidding when they call it love weight, because I packed on those pounds I lost.

After I graduated from Fairfield, and found a job, I saw the pictures of myself, and wasn't happy. I joined WW in October 09, but didn't really follow it. I lied to myself, underestimated, and didn't really devote myself. I quit in January, telling myself I can do this on my own! I went right back up to where I was in October, and rejoined in March. IT was my vacation to Florida that really made me change my ways. I got back from that, and saw the pictures. And I hated what I saw. I really recommitted Mid April 2010, and so far have stuck with the program, and lost close to 1.5 pounds a week. Some days I'm better than others, but I realize it's not going to be easy. I have been working on making exercizing fun, and tryiing new foods so I dont get bored, and constantly staying up to date on new ideas. I plan on using this blog to talk about my successes, my failures, and life overall. I Weigh in on Fridays, so I will be updating at least once a week, if not more.

I will be posting pictures periodically of my journey. to motivate me :-)

until next time,