[Nicker]

Hello all,

I read the last post about looking for teachers trying to lose weight. I was the last person to respond on the thread and it appears as if that thread kind of died.

I thought I would try this post and see maybe if we can get a monthy thread running. I think I would find it really valuable to be able to "chat" with other teachers. I think our weight loss experience is different to some extent then it is for others.

I hope this thread continues and I look forward to getting to know some of you.

I have been a teacher for 12 years. Currently teaching Jr. High Science. I also have taught high school, primary, and upper elementary. Jack of all trades master of none.

[JoannaC]

Hi, me again. There was some junk at school this week for a holiday, and it threw me off. I gained back a little bit I am back on track now (I think) and wanting to get serious again. The problem I have been having is getting enough protein. We are only allowed to take vegetarian things to school, and no nuts allowed. So I have been finding it hard to find grab and go protein choices. Using up my carbs allotment is easy! I am using the food mover and find that the protein choices are hardest to do.

Btw I assistant-teach Grade 2 and teach Sunday school also. I am going to be taking an additional qualification in French and am looking for jobs in that area for September.

[Nicker]

You are only allowed to take vegetarian stuff to school?? What kind of a school is that? How bizaare.

I have been having a great week this week. I was pretty down last week as the scale was fluctuating up and down and in and out of the two hundreds. I have had several consequiteve days of losses now. Total of three pounds Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. I am happy about that. Looks like I have a hope of making my St. Paddy's goal after all.

I am confident that you will start back to the loss side too Joanna. We all have those times when we go up and down.

[babybelly]

I am Angela and I teach 4th grade in Louisiana. Right now everyone is pulling their hair out trying to get ready for the standardized testing. We will be testing for the entire week of 3/19-3/23. I really hate the way this state tests students. In Texas they test one day a month for several months to cover all subject areas rather than stressing the kids for an entire week. Also all special ed students are expected to pass on grade level. They are not given an SDAA test on their functioning level like they are in Texas. Is just isn't fair to the students. In 4th grade you must pass the test or you don't pass the 4th grade. Grrrr!!!!

Nicker thanks for starting this thread again. The last one was really dead.

JoAnna that is really weird that you can only bring vegetarian meals to school. What is the reason for that??

[Nicker]

Ugh. I hate standardized testing. Here we do them in grade 3,6,9, and 12. They don't determine pass or failure necessarily but the grade 9 and 12 for sure are counted as final exam marks. For my garde 9 classes the final exam is 30% of the course grade. Grade 12 it can be up to 50%.

I am so happy with the weight loss so far this week. Today there were donuts in the staff room. I did have one, but I am not to worried about it. I am not going to avoid all treats for the rest of myself and if I try to I think it will just cause binging.

I hope this thread gains some life. I think we have a lot to offer each other.

[Nicker]

Perhaps this will be talking to myself, perhaps this will move the thread up and since it is the weekend maybe someone will find the thread and reply back to it. I had high hopes for a teacher thread and I am really disappointed. Oh well, life is full of disappointment.

I have to go back to school today. I have assignments and projects to mark and my classroom needs a really good cleaning. I guess it is a good thing in a way. When I am at school I will be keeping busy otherwise I know I would be very tempted to have a nice long nap this afternoon. I have been very tired all week. Went to bed one night at 8:00 and two nights at 9:30. That is why I guess I feel behind in work now.

[SillyFluff]

Hi.

I'm a TA in a 2nd grade class half day and a 3rd grade class half day (I don't like how they split the TAs like this...when I was in school the TA was in one class all day long, not half and half). Anyhoo. I have been trying to find this teacher thread for a while..I knew there was one a while back. Come on fellow teachers, get on the ball here. Join us.

[haeyu14]

Hi. I'm 5th grade soc. studies and 6th grade science in central florida. My state does some screwy standardized testing too, that is totally unfair to the students and is held over the teachers' heads. If the students don't do well on the tests the school gets a bad grade and loses state funding. How ignorant is that??? The students aren't achieving, so lets cut their funding. There are also stipulations where students can't be promoted to the next grade if they don't do well enough (only in a few grades).

Anyway... enough about the idiocy of the FCAT tests...

I'm new to my weight loss journey, it's been 8 weeks and I've lost 25 lbs... I've hit a little big of a plateau and am getting discouraged. I know I am eatting well, and exercising a lot, but something just has stalled for me...

I love the idea of a teacher thread. I know what you mean about different challenges. I told all my students (all 107 of them) that I was trying to lose weight with the hopes that I wouldn't get chocolate for Valentines day... but it didn't work. I had a lot of chocolate that I had to give away.

Well... I'm looking forward to checking this thread to talk to my 3FC teacher-buddies.

[babybelly]

Morning Ladies!! High Ho High Ho Its back to school we go.

I don't check in on the weekends because for some reason this site doesn't pull up well on my home computer. I have DSL and all other sites work but this one takes for ever and usually shows up with errors. It is is just too frustrating.

I had a very good weight loss week. I am down 3 pounds. It has been 5 years since I have weighed this. Yipee!! Hopefully next week I won't blow it. During testing they bring us breakfast and snacks every day/ I just gotta make my self pick the water, juice and fruit and stay away from the cookies, donuts and candy. Yes, they have all of that on the same cart every day. Delivered to my door.

Haeyu ~ Wow that is a great weight loss in only 8 weeks. BTW what is your name?

[haeyu14]

OMG I hear your pain! I just had a birthday and the PTO at my school is wonderful and lavishes gifts of wonderful baked goods on to their teachers... but I don't need the huge plate of cookies and brownies that showed up in my mailbox today. I hope I didn't offend anyone when I put it on the table in the work room w/ a note asking my co-workers to share in my bounty. That would have been WAY TOO MUCH temptation if I would have brought it back to my classroom... especially when I'm not having a good week (mentally, not with eating or exercise)

Will talk later!

[SillyFluff]

I did good today. We had a meeting to watch a behavior video and they had ice cream. I politely declined and drank my diet dr. pepper and at my serving of gardettos (i was craving salt and 1 serving it like 150 calories) and cheese. For breakfast I had a granola bar. I shoulda had more but I draw a blank when it comes to breakfast because I used to not eat it. For lunch I mixed tuna into a chef salad (minus the tomatoes and cucumbers, they didnt taste right), a little packet of fat free mayo and a little packet of relish.For my morning snack I had a serving of gardettos.

[Nicker]

I finally feel loved. LOL Someone else finally posted in a teacher thread after I posted. I was getting a complex. Thought maybe I smelled bad.

Today is was my official weigh in. Last week was a great week for me. So great that I actually changed my Easter goal. My Easter Goal was to lose 9.5 pounds between Feb 19 and April 8. I only changed it by 1.5 pounds. Today I waw down 3.4 pounds from last monday.

I hope that this week is good too. I usually find that I have a good week and then a not so good week on the scale. Even when I am on plan. This is my tenth week in the journey and I am down 20.8 pounds total.

Currently I am teaching mostly junior high science. I have 1 high school science too.

Haeyu, I think it is great that you told your students. 7 Years ago I had gastric bypass and I was very open with all of my classes (then mostly grade 4/5 split but I did have one high school class). They were all so supportive. I remember one of the littler kids saying "But what if we like you now?" I just told them that I would be the same person just a lot less of me to love. The kids and staff were all excited and happy with me as I lost.

Now I must mention before anyone gets the wrong idea here about gastric bypass. The surgery gets enough of a bum wrap and I don't wasnt to be responsible for contibuting to that. I am still very supportive of gastric bypass. It really did save my life. The gastric bypass was very successful and I lost weight and I was doing very well at maintaining the loss. I would have the surgery again tomorrow if I could. I maintained for two years before I got sick. When I got sick I got down to 112 pounds. That is the smallest I have ever been that I can remember. I was very sick for a year before being diagnosed with Crohn's disease (which is also in no way related to the bypass). In order to get the Crohn's under control I spent the better part of two years on high doses of prednisone. Steroids are nasty nasty drugs that totally wreek havoc on your system and cause some major weight gain. Not even the bypass was able to battle steroids. I ended up with a perforated colon from one of the rounds of steroids. I ended up in emerg on my birthday needing emergency surgery. That was 2 and a half years ago and I have had two major surgeries and one more round of steroids since then. I have now been off the steroids for a year and a half and I am taking control again. I am **** bent to get back to my pre-Crohn's weight which was 150. (I was 240 pounds before the bypass and I started my journey at 215 this time). When I get down to 145 I will see my surgeon about my long awaited tummy tuck. This surgery will be for me!!!

Sorry for this being so long. I guess I just want people to better understand me. You all know the deamnds teaching puts on us. By then end of the day many of us teachers are beat. Just having a chronic illness I find I don't have the energy I used to either so I am exhausted at the end of the school day. I know that exercising is good to help with weight loss, but it takes all I have to get through most days with teaching, prep work, marking, parent meetings, staff meetings, calls home..... So it may take me a bit longer but I know that adding in an exercise routine for me just isn't realistic and if I am going to do this the rest of my life it needs to be realistic.

I hope I didn't scare you all away. I promise future posts will be much more brief!

[babybelly]

Wow Nicker what an ordeal to go through. That is awesome that you were able to increase your Easter goal.

[haeyu14]

Going to be short message today. It's a work day for me, so I'm only in for another 15 min or so.

Nicker- Wow! You're one strong woman. A friend's mom has chrons, so I have seen what that can do to someone. I've had several friends who have had the bypass surgery too. I was thinking about it, but wanted to give "the hard way" (as my friend Jeannie says) one more go before I went ahead with it. I'm kinda glad I'm doing it the hard way because I'm getting more satisfaction out of it. (and amusing my parents when I call w/ little victories)

Anyway, ladies. Have wonderful days and I'll check in tomorrow.

[Nicker]

I was upset this morning. Yesterday I left school at 9:45. When I got home I was really tired. It had been a long day but I had drank 3 litres of water and I have been sticking to the plan... This morning scale up 1.5 pounds

Does anyone else notice that you seem to gain when you are lacking sleep??

I planned on staying at school late tonight too, but at 8:00 I thought I need to go home. My head hurts and I teach a full day tomorrow with no preps. I need some sleep.

I am 150 calories under today. I hope that the scale is at least back to where it was on Tuesday tomorrow. If it is up more I will need some shoulders to cry on. That gets so discouraging.