Hello everyone!

I have literally just joined this community and I can't say enough how excited I am to be here and be able to turn to a multitude of different people with my questions, concerns, issues, whatever it may be when it comes to health and fitness.

A little about me: My name is Kimberly Barnes age 21, recently Kimberly Farmer but I just got married on August 23rd =) My husband is a United States Marine and stationed in San Diego, CA. I am currently living in central IL with my parents until I move out there with him in a couple of months. I'm a huge buff for horror movies, music, and sports. I love sports. And I have a major passion for writing. One day, I hope to write for a major magazine....I suppose I need to get over my fear of large groups though eh

I'm currently at that point in my life to where I should be able to walk around in a bikini and not feel terrible about it, and be able to wear tank tops or tee shirts and not feel like my arms are too fat. Everybody tells me that I am crazy, but I'm really not. It's not a case to where I want to be a stick thin girl, I have my curves and I want it to stay that way. I'm just slightly overweight and want to get down to a more healthy weight for my age and my height. I'm currently at 163 and want to be down to 130 where I'm "supposed" to be. So here I am. This is my first major step. My husband tries to motivate me, and he does wonderfully, but I think that this site will help me tremendously. So hello everyone =) Any words of wisdom or motivation would be grateful. And I am looking forward to getting to know so many new people.

Welcome, Kimberly,

Looks like you're on the right mindset-track, now comes the boot camp.

Tell us about your plan that will take you to your target and keep you there.

Welcome Kimberly! How tall are you btw?

Good on you Kimberly good luck.

Hey there. Welcome. I just joined today.
I hear ya about wanting to wear tank tops and bikinis again with comfort. I'm right there with you.
I'm starting Johnson's Up Day Down Day diet today..
do a google search and let me know what you think..

Well to address all of you, first and foremost I am 5'2. Yuck. I wear heels literally every day of my life because of that haha. People don't even realize I am as short as I am. Anyway, being as I am that short, my weight for my age and height is considered overweight. And might I add, it is mainly accummulated in the midsection....stomach, lower back, hips, thighs, and behind. However, lately I have started to pack up some weight in my arms and at the back of my neck like the buffalo hump people talk about? I hate it. I'm definitely going to be asking for some help on what to do in those areas of need, you can count on it. Ha.

Secondly, right now I am currently unemployed so I plan to pretty much go at this full force as best as I can. I recently hurt my hand/wrist so I won't be doing to much with the weights or anything just yet, but I am going to do the current challenge of walking/running for an hour a day, I have a program that I have read up on and heard nothing but great things about (Slim in Six), even from my sister in law, I am slowly giving up soda (that's probably my biggest hardship), my husband is helping me with the diet part because I have no idea, and I am no longer eating past 7:30 p.m. That's the current run down. I'm sure it's not the best way to go about it.

Started day one, and that walk was amazing this morning. I'm usually just sitting around the house watching movies.



Oh and I looked at that up day down day diet you were talking about. I think it's really important to let yourself indulge so that you don't get the sudden urges to just go all out, but I'm not sure about that one. Maybe I will have to try it.

How far did you walk/run? And remember... try to do something productive this afternoon, whatever it may be.

Kim, it's great that you are ready to make a change! The first thing you want to put a priority on is your diet. Cut out the junk: sodas, candy, white bread, pastries, high fat cheese/dairy products, highly processed foods, anything with the words hydrogenated (or partially hydrogenated) vegetable oil (or any kind of oil) on the ingredients list. Do eat the good stuff: fruits, veggies (especially beans, legumes, and green leafy stuff), berries, plain oatmeal, lean meats (low sodium), low fat cheese/dairy, nuts (plain - not salted or flavored), natural peanut butter, EV olive oil, eggs, and whole grains. Once a week, you can splurge, but spend the majority of your time focusing on all these good foods.

Go ahead and take the first couple of weeks to get used to the new eating. The walking sounds like a great way to get started on the exercise. After you get accustomed to that, you will probably want to up the effort, but for now, the diet should be the focus. (Btw, if you want more info on the healthy eating, check out the Abs Diet. It is a great resource.)

Welcome aboard.

Sounds like you've got some reachable goals and some folks in your life to help, which means your blessed more than most.

Focus on your diet as thats the key point of any weightloss program.

Mix in some good cardio with some weight lifting and you'll see a new you in a few months coming along nicely

I just re-read my post, and wow I am like a walking Abs Diet book. I guess there are worse things.