Hi there! My name’s Aerin, and I’m looking for someone to chat with over Skype, Slack, or email to help me stay on track. I don’t have a Facebook; it was toxic to me; it promoted unmindful behavior. I’ve never been overweight (I’m 5’2 and weigh about 118-120 now), but I was extremely thin for most of my life, and I’m eager to get back to that.

Overwhelmingly my biggest challenge in committing to a 5:2 plan has been friends, family, and my SO (who is wonderful, and wonderfully supportive of me no matter what, but this doesn’t exactly help me restrict my eating like I want to). I live in the Southern U.S., where 1/4 of the population is overweight and something like 3/4 is unfit and unhealthy. So when I confide to friends and family that I’m dieting, they look at me like I’ve grown another head, and then comes a deluge of, “Honey, you don’t need to do that–you’re already thin,” “I bet your boyfriend likes that extra weight, right?,” and “What, do you think I’m fat?” No! I don’t care if you’re overweight or not. I want to slim down because the weight I have gained is negatively affecting my self-image and I want to change that immediately.

I’m very talkative, and I would love to get to know anyone who has committed to the 5:2 as well. I’d love it if we could start a live group chat somewhere to share stories and support each other.