Biggest loser on CF.....

Just saw this thread and wanted to input my own little story (partly because, admittedly, I just left basically my entire life in one country in which I'd spent two years to return to a town where I know no one - so if this rambles a bit, I do so for my own refreshment).

All through my life I was obese clinically (well, since age 6 or 7). I first really twigged to something when I found out at an assembly on fitness in the 5th grade the principal's weight, and found out I weighed more. By the time I hit high school I was 6' and about 275 (that's about 183cm, 123.5kg).

At the end of first year university a friend of mine, who had been at the similar weight as I had, convinced me to do Atkins - which led to me dropping down to about 225 or so by the start of the new school year. My family was supportive over the summer, and after I came back over winter for Christmas. They did little things - like making sure we always had low carb snacks/chocolates etc when the family was doing things in which we used to have regular types of chocolates/snacks.

Through sophomore year I maintained. Finally I broke summer of sophomore year over the craving for a simple piece of toast with butter. It's rather odd, it seems like the most bland food in the world (one reason we use it as a food for people recovering from flu/gastroenteritis) but for some reason that piece of toast tasted so good.

I managed to keep off the weight by exercising some, and then generally cutting down on my calories. I found the number one thing Atkins did for me was it forced me to carefully read everything I put in my body. Chocolate bar at 300 calories? No siree bob. What about some unsalted almonds? What, only 120 calories in the bag and high protein? Sign me up.

But that largely was just maintenance.

While living in Japan after graduation (and for the last two years, it's the country I left behind to return to Canada) I decided to drop some more weight. I started doing stairs to supplement the exercise I got naturally by bicycling to and from work. Soon I was dropping weight again - down to about 89kg - or 196 pounds.

I hope to keep working down but I've somewhat plateaued. Back in Ottawa I've got a gym membership and am doing some minor weight training (since my upper body particularly is utterly weak - my lower body still remembers being 275 and my thighs and calfs are somewhat large/tree trunk like; if anyone played football, I have what linemen call a bubble butt physique) and elliptical work (35 minutes including cooldown for about 5~600 calories a day). Plus I tend to also bicycle for about an hour or so a day to and fro.

So yeah, that's my story thus far. 275->197. I'd ideally like to get down to at least 184; which is about my BMI for being "Normal" for the first time in my life since I was about 6. The ultimate goal is to get down around 175 and thus be 100 pounds lighter than I was. I'd also like to add some umph to my frame. So I guess if there's anyone here that has experience weight training or in some similar vein, I'd love to hear from you.