[Riverite]

Welcome, Tara-ites! April brought up the beginning of our focus on daily checking in. It is a pleasure to get to be introduced to you ladies. I am eager to continue getting to know you and to continue supporting each other on this journey.

For May, let’s focus on our motivation. What is motivating you to continue this lifestyle change?

To help with motivation, consider the following:

1. Make a list of all the reasons you want to lose weight. Post the list wherever it is you need to support—maybe on your mirror to remind you every morning, maybe in your car to avoid picking up not so good for you food, maybe on your TV to remind you not to munch at night.

2. Buy yourself a calendar and some cool stickers. For every day you meet your goals, give yourself a sticker for that day on the calendar. Watch your successes add up.

3. Be positive! Post your successes. We want to hear about them!

4. Reward your behavior, not your weight. Your weight will change—it is your behavior that must stay the same. Be good to yourself after so many days of achieving your daily goals.

5. Remember: “Habit is habit. It is not to be flung out of the window by any man (or woman!), but coaxed downstairs a step at a time.” Mark Twain.

May is our month—let’s go!

[Rowenna]

I love the start of a new month. I'm a sucker for "excuses" to start fresh and I think May is the perfect motivation! That's a great list of things to keep in mind, Riverite, and I will definitely be making a list like that soon.

Good luck in May, everyone! Talk to you soon!

[freakiel]

Riverite, that is awesome. I'm going to do that list idea today.

The day I have been fearing and also anxiously awaiting is here. Last day of Medifast! Huge supermarket shopping spree after I get off at 1pm today.

[freakiel]

Yay! My zero net carb cinnamon bagels just arrived! Haha along with that I ordered some low carb chocolate mini muffins and some fiber gourmet mac and cheese.

[Rowenna]

I only have a minute -- but Ariel, please tell me where you got the bagels and mac and cheese!

[freakiel]

locarbu.com

[craftykath]

Riverite, your suggests are perfect. I put a list up over my vanity last night. ^_^

And...I weighed in today. I lost 3 pounds this week! I wasn't expecting that at all!

[freakiel]

craftykath- grats!! that is so awesome.

so i did my supermarket shopping spree. $144 and 2 hours later my cabinets are overflowing.

[Rowenna]

Ugh. I was feeling so pumped this morning, I had a great day, ate good breakfast and lunch, did pilates, strength training, and a little bit of cardio. Then I got in a fight (not really a fight, more like we just disagree on an important issue and it's very stressful) with my boyfriend and things have just gone downhill. All I want to do is eat chocolate and milkshakes and cookies and cry. I thought about going for a walk to try to get my mind off of it, but I just don't feel up to it, and I'm afraid if I walk anywhere I'll buy food (I live right downtown, close to dozens of delicious places for food). I know it is stupid to want food when it will do nothing to solve the problem, but I have no idea how to get over this!

I'm glad the rest of you are doing better than I am. Hopefully things will get better.

[freakiel]

Rowenna- just remember not to give food any strength over you. You are a strong, dedicated, beautiful girl and you can overcome such a simple thing as food or cravings. I hope things get better for you!

[1day@atime]

Can i ask you a few questions about the medifast diet?
Did you order online or find a place to purchase?
Is it expensive? comparable to Jenny craig or the other one ??
Do you just drink a shake every meal?

Thanks....

[freakiel]

1day@atime- i ordered offline at tsfl.com . the first month is ~$250 and every month after that is around $300-350 depending on what you order. there is a huge variety of products. i actually rarely drank shakes. mostly ate bars, oatmeals, soups, etc. the food is pretty decent for what it is.

[Rowenna]

Originally Posted by freakiel

Rowenna- just remember not to give food any strength over you. You are a strong, dedicated, beautiful girl and you can overcome such a simple thing as food or cravings. I hope things get better for you!

Thanks for this. I was really upset, but I ended up watching a movie by myself and working on the blanket I'm crocheting, and then I went for a long walk with my friend and got some girl talk in. That did lead to eating a brownie, but it was only a small one, and it was much better than it could have been.

Tomorrow is a new day! I am so much better than the person those cravings want me to be!

[freakiel]

Rowenna- in my opinion, some times its necessary to give in to small bits of cravings for sanity's sake. So I've been spending all evening working on my meal plans for tomorrow, tell me how it looks:

Breakfast – 11AM
Chobani Non-Fat Greek Yogurt
3 Strawberries Cut in Half w/ Splenda

Snack #1 – 1PM
Atkins Bar

Lunch – 3PM
Atkins Shake
½ PB Sandwich:
1 Slice
1Tbsp PB

Snack #2 – 5PM
100 Cal Snack Pack

Dinner – 7PM
Low Carb Tortilla
One Steak-Um
¼ Cup Mozz Cheese
Lettuce

Dessert- 9PM
Skinny Cow Bar

[craftykath]

Rowenna, I agree with Freakiel's advice about allowing yourself to give in to cravings. There are ways of doing it without going overboard. Lately when I've craved chocolate, for example, I've eaten one piece of Hershey's Bliss dark chocolate. I've found that if I deny myself something I really want, after a certain amount of time I'll give in and go overboard, even binge. 'Bad' foods aren't horrible if you're exercising (which you definitely are!) and only eating it in careful moderation.

Freakiel, I personally think your plan sounds great. I'm not paying too much attention to my carbs (I probably should), but if I was that's a menu I'd appreciate. Also, those Skinny Cow bars are great. ^_^