We are a group of individuals who weigh or have weighed 300+, or near there. This group was formed to provide a place for others like us to find support and hope. We are aware of the distinct problems that come with weighing over 300 lbs.
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Motivational Monday
Tuesday Tips
Wednesday Wish List .. and What you are doing to obtain it.
Thankful Thursday
FUN Friday ... don't wait until you lose your weight.
Sit-up Saturdays - any physical activity
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we have found it to become a home. We invite you to join us.
WELCOME!
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How is everybody doing this weekend? I am doing ok, I even resisted temptation when Daren had a take away Kebab tonight. I sat down to WW cauliflower cheese (home made) and he tucked into the kebab, garlic bread and cheese and chips. I feel good that I said no to anything naughty to eat
Luan - how are you enjoying the weekend, do you go to the gym on the weekends as well, or do you give it a rest? The gym membership I am looking into is a council run thing. There are 5 Leisure Centres around the Swansea area and if I get membership I can use any of the Leisure Centre gyms, pools and fitness clubs whenever I want to. It's also cheaper for me to join because I am on a low income, so I get all of that for about $18 a month. Being that cheap means both Daren and I can join together, not like that private gym which was charging crazy prices.
Amber - I am glad to hear your uncle is stable. Let's hope he can leave hospital soon.
Do you get fed up of people (like me lol) asking you if Amber is short for anything? My daughter is called Beth and she hates when people say is it short for Elizabeth or Bethan. It is just Beth, plain and simple, and very pretty if I do say so myself lol. I forgot to tell you last time when you mentioned how kids can't say the 'b' in Amber, that I got my nick name because kids couldn't say my full name which is Ann-marie. It was either Ammerie or Ammi, and Ammi stuck.
A friend of mine found a load of downloadable WW stuff on eBay for 99 c. It was a load of info, recipes, point counts and on online WW calculator. If you come across it, it would be worth the money, don't be put off by the cheapness. I think once you get a calculator and know what points you need to be on then you can do the rest yourself. I hope you can find a calculator that isn't too expensive. The best part about WW for me is that I can really eat what I want. No more celery sticks and lettuce. At the beginning of a diet I prefer to eat a lot of vegetables because I can eat plenty and not worry about too many points. But when I am used to the diet and my tummy has shrunk I can have things like a Mars bar as a snack, or have cheese and toast People in the past have seen me eating something which normally wouldn't be allowed on a diet and they always say, I thought you were dieting. Perfect lol, a diet that doesn't feel like a diet. Can't beat that. When you said you had that cheesecake and felt bad about it, on WW you could eat that cheesecake guilt free as long as it was in your points allowance. Sounds like you made good food choices before that though, espeically getting your friend to throw out the lasagne, so it's not that bad treating yourself with the cheesecake.
Kayley - that is great news about your mum keeping her job. I am sure the last thing she needed was to have to fight the bosses. She has certainly been through a lot over the years. I am glad she is a fighter and that she has pulled through both times. My sister is the same, she has had a brain hemorraghe, breast cancer, and her eldest son committed suicide at 21. She's got through it all, no doubt with emotional scars, but she's the most positive person I know.
That's a shame that you don't live close enough to walk to any shops. I would find walking totally boring if I didn't have a destination at the end of it. It's one of the reasons I don't think I would enjoy a tread mill, give me a cross trainer, or a Gazelle Rider any day
Ah I see I was right about you having a falling out with Andrew. It's awful when we argue with our men, but even worse when we have other stuff upsetting us at the same time. I am just glad everything is ok now between you. If you are at his place now go and give him a big smooch
Congrats on the NSVs, the more you have the more motivated you will be to keep on losing
Velma - thank you for congratulating me on going to the dentist on the right day That gave me quite the chuckle!!
I also had another chuckle thinking of you and your hubby walking through town and people not recognising you. I wonder if any of them think OH MY GOSH, he's having an affair with another woman. No wonder hubby wants to make sure people know it's you lol. I bet it's beautifully strange for him too to have the slim new you on his arm. I bet he's constantly looking in store windows too, trying to get used to the new picture you make together.
Sorry to hear that you are none too pleased at being given grade 2 to teach again. Would it help if you imagined all the little darlings are your own kids? Will you be able to ask to teach grade 4 again when the year is up?
BeingMe - where is it that you live? You said in your last post that rice is a staple part of the diet, do you live in China?
I am sorry your friend is moving abroad, but never say never when it comes to seeing her again. If not before, just picture yourself when you have lost the weight. You will go get a plane and you will pay for ONE seat, and you won't be looked at, or laughed at, AND you will be on your way to visit your friend. Until then you can keep in touch regularly I am sure.
CONGRATS on meeting your January goal already see you are well on your way to getting to your ultimate goal
Julee - I loved reading about your NSVs, it must be so cool being able to get into smaller clothes AND to have them loose in places
It's late, so I am going to have an early night. It's been a hectic week this week and I feel so tired. Everybody enjoy the rest of the weekend,
ammi - thats awesome! i really hope you do it. and seriously, no matter if it was 5 dollars, if you are paying for it, you will use it I did not go to the gym yesterday. i will tonight. because of the funky days i work i dont have a traditional weekend, so im not opposed to going on the weekend, plus theres less people there
Luan - yes you are right, the minute I pay any money out for a gym I will want to get my money's worth and some lol. It's the travel to get there that will cost, but when I am fitter I might even be able to walk.
I hope you have fun in the gym and work those lbs off too any nice men there lol?
Hey everyone! Just want to thank those of you that wished me a Happy Birthday. It wasn't anything too exciting, but that's OK with me. Went to Applebee's and only used 7 points for the Onion Au Gratin soup and Teriakki Shrimp salad. Was delish! Went to my parents and my Mom had made me a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting...my favorite. I had just a small piece and they understand why. When I got home I checked in the WW book and a 3" piece, about what I had, is worth 16 points!! I almost died. So with 3 points left I'll probably have a glass of milk and go to bed. Very tired today. Hope everyone is having a great weekend. I'm so proud of all of you..sorry I can't respond to each and every one of you tonight. I'll try tomorrow since I'll be stuck at home all day (I'm on call with the fire department!)
Sarah--excellent job on stayingin control for your birthday! Applebee's is great for dieting since they have so many WW choices on their menu (plus some regular meals that aren't too insane if you leave off the bad stuff). We almost never go there, though, because it's the only restaurant close to Jeff's office, so he goes there for lunch a few times a week, so he's sick of it by the time I want to go on the weekend
I did all kinds of active stuff today, although I didn't technically workout. Jeff went out with friends that he hasn't seen in a long time (to a boat show, so I certainly didn't feel like tagging along!), so I had most of the day to myself. I went grocery shopping, helped someone in our apartment parking lot jumpstart her car, cleaned like crazy (swept, vacuumed, dusted, picked up clutter...), hung a few things on our walls (still have boxes of random decor stuff that we never got around to hanging up), and then I decided I wanted some pillows for our living room, so I just got back from a late-night Walmart run So much for the lazy weekend I was anticipating!
Ammi - great work resisting temptation from DH's kebab. What is a NSV? Congratulations on the discount at the gym that is brilliant!
Amber - Still praying for your family crisis.
Kayley - So happy for your mother. I am glad that she has a union job!
Velma - I hope you are able to find interesting new materials for you 2nd graders. Maybe with the new material you wont be so bored with them than if you were using your old stuff that you used for years?.
Luan - I am glad to hear that there are less people at gyms on weekends, I thought it would be just the opposite, maybe I will go tomorrow then.
Sarah - glad to hear you had a happy birthday! Wow that is a lot of points for one small piece of cake...I am glad I asked for there to be no cake for mine tomorrow. What do you do with the fire department?
Jill - sounds like you had a very full day and got a lot done. Probably burned up a few calories along the way too!
I am feeling a little better. I got good news, my mom got a shirt and a pair of pants at an estate sale for me and they both fit...but get this...the pants are a 22 a long way from a 32 !!! Hurray!!! so maybe even if the scale is not moving so much I am losing inches. They are a little tight but wearable!!! I am so happy about that! The only place they are tight is around my belly and butt ring (where they are on the same level). every place else fits fine especially the waist. Ta Da, good news of the day!
Hello everyone... Just wanted to speak up (I've been lurking) and say that I'm still around and anxious to get more involved with this board. My baby boy will be arriving this Friday via c-section. UNLESS he decides to get things moving sooner which is FINE BY ME! lol. I'm still so anxious to get my recovery out of the way so I can dive into my new lifestyle. My Mom & I have plans to join the Y and start exercising together a couple times per week. I've been researching healthy eating and getting meal plans together. (The "nesting" effect is also affecting other parts of my life) AND I asked my Doc the other day what my total weight gain has been for this pregnancy because honestly, I haven't been keeping track. He's been telling me I'm "doing fine" and I just believe him. SO I found out... 15 pounds! Only 15 pounds total gained! Now, I still had pounds left from my 2nd child but I'm just happy I didn't gain another 25/30 like I did before. So, that's about it.... everyone here seems to be doing so well and thanks to you I CAN'T WAIT to start working my butt off and losing this weight. Thanks a million...
p.s. Has anyone checked out the biggestloserclub ? I find the show inspiring and wondered if the program was worth paying $20/month...
HippieMomma - Wow congratulations on your soon to be out baby! That is awesome that you only gained 15 pounds. Be sure to work with your doctor on the exercise and if you are breast feeding for sure check with your doctor on your diet.
It sounds like you have a good game plan and it should be easier with your mom to support you in the Y. I think I am losing weight faster because my mom is dieting too right now. It is so nice to have support.
ZedAus--I teach 2 year olds, and that has it good points and it's bad points . But mostly I just love my kids. I've got some sites that I like but I'm not sure how geared toward school age they are, I only ever look for my age group. But let me look into them and see what I can find. I do have several home school cir. sites that I found to have a lot of useful information. But I was looking for stuff for my neices to do at home so that is still preschool age, but as far as I can remember they included school age too. I'll look and send a private message if I have anything.
Julee--Thank you. I wasn't really beating myself up about it, I was just dissappointed in myself. But I compentsated, or tried to with healthy choices for the rest of the day and I got in all four miles of walking so it wasn't failure, just a bit of a disappointment.
Ammi--Honestly no one has ever asked if Amber was short for anything, so no I don't get tired of it *lol*. It didn't bother me at all, and I had never heard of Amberly but I think it's a gorgeous name. I love my name, when I was probably in the fourth grade I hated it. No one else had it, and I was the only one in my class with a unique name. I wanted to go by my middle name, which is Dawn, because my class had three Dawn's *lol*. Now I wouldn't trade it for the world. And Amer, and Am by a couple of really close friends, is the only thing I have ever been called by anyone but my dad. Except one of my little girls at school *lol* she couldn't pronounce the A so she called me Damer. Now I thought that was funny! I haven't found that on ebay, but it sounds like the type of auction that is reappearing so I will have to look. SOOOOO many pages of stuff come up when you look for WW...I go through about three pages and give up the looking. Guess I need to narrow my search. Thanks for the tip I will llook for that.
I love fruits and veggies, a lot of times when I have a choice I choose a salad over other meals. But buying enough fruits and veggies to meet the 5 a day guidelines is a heck of a lot more expensive than buying a box of mac and cheese. As I said I went and bought fruits and veggies at the grocery store the other day, and next weekend I will have to go back and buy food that my guys and the girls will eat. Well Anja will eat the fruits and veggies but Kaitlyn refuses too, as does my father. So I not only have to buy two sets of groceries but I have to prepare two meals. I try to prepare my stuff for lunches on the weekend in bulk and then seperate out my portion every night. That seems to work pretty well. And I have a back up plan if I forget my lunch because I'm running late. I keep a bottle of salad dressing that is low carb low fat at work and can just run down to Mickey D's and get two side salad's for $2. And that's a lot a salad.
BTW, I love the name Ann-marie
garnetfairy--Thank you for the prayers. And as an update, my uncle's blood sugar levels dropped again in the hospital and he's back to being pretty unresponsive. They don't know why they are dropping. I'm glad he's where he can be monitored closely this time though.
BTW Congrats on the 22's fitting!!
I had a great day today. I got up, worked out first thing, then my brother and I took the girls to the zoo. It was pretty here, a little windy but still beautiful. The zoo added another mile to my walking for the day, but I'm not counting it because it wasn't exercise-specific. Then we went to my favorite steakhouse where I had only the salad bar and soup. (It was actually only hard not to have the bread and croutons on my salad. They have the best bread and their croutons are made from the bread. Yummy...but I had not one bite of them.) Then we came home and the girls and I took naps. Then this evening I cleaned my desk, a huge accomplishment . I've been trying for three weeks to get it cleaned, and that was one of my non-diet goals for the week. I weigh-in tomorrow though...and I'm pretty nervous about it. Crossing my fingers...going to workout now.
I started The Simple 0-to-10 GI Diet yesterday. You have three meals and three snacks (you are eating all day so you don't get hungry at all). It's a little complicated because it's more whole foods than I'm used to (so I can't just buy a TV dinner), but it's SUPER HEALTHY.
I know this is going to sound gross, but the bowel movement I had today was the least stressful one I've had in a really long time. Apparently the amount of fiber you eat on this diet is very good for you. (Sorry. I was just so pleased with it that I felt I should mention it. Some of the medicines I had been taking, which I mention below, had me all messed up for a long time.)
I'm going to take it one day at a time. Hopefully it will work for me. I think I may have lost some fluid already because I peed all night long (my husband even commented about how many times I got up last night).
I'm going to give it my best shot. Cross your fingers for me!
~~~
BeingMe ~ I also am trying to take a more natural route with the PCOS. My doctor had me on Metformin for the past several months, which required me to take Immodium and Phazyme every day during that time (so I would be able to keep everything inside during my work day and not be embarrased). I got chest pains and was so fatigued that I started having to leave work every day to go home and lay down in the middle of the day. I stopped the Metformin myself!
I am trying a "more" natural approach now. I also added Chromium supplements, but also CoEnzyme Q10, zinc, magnesium and a B-complex tablet (per recommendations I found on a PCOS Web site from a doctor). I have to stay on the BC pills because they are the ONLY thing that keeps me from having a never-ending period (the last time it happened, I had my period for 1 1/2 years straight). At this point, I'm seriously anemic so I can't afford to bleed anymore, hence the necessity for the BC pills (unfortunately).
I have found that it's good for me to do an online search on PCOS every month or two. If I don't find out something new that helps me, then at least I am reminding myself why it's so important to lose weight. I had almost thrown in the towel this last time around, but seeing all the complications of PCOS and being reminded of them again put me back on track (I am the kind of person who needs that).
I hope your natural treatments work as well as I've heard they do. Please let us know what happens.
HippyMomma ~ Wow, you're about ready! That's wonderful. Nesting is important. Do whatever you need to do to be ready to bring this baby into the world. We'll be thinking about you.
~~~
Well, I'm off to greet my bowl of bran flakes and skim milk. (Woo hoo!) LOL.
Oh... P.S.: I gained four pounds that I now have to take off again. Grrr. (Let me go update my ticker now...)
Thanks, Ammi! I am in the Philippines. I am feeling bit better now. I guess if it is meant to be to see her again then it will happen. I have to save up for that though! LOL. That would be too expensive for me and besides there's the visa issue which is so hard to attain here :P
Tashabella, I still read PCOS related sites but only to gather info about supplements and such. Just a few weeks ago I decided to read a forum and all those negativity really got me down. :P I also took Metformin but not long enough to see the difference. I might try it again. Maybe you should take the Glucophage XR because I've read that people are reacting better with the extended release type. Oh, I took Diane-35 and Yasmin too but I got off it because BC pills really made me very moody and depressed. Plus, I gained weight with it. People kept telling me now that I gained much more weight! And the only thing that I changed was taking the pill for 4 months. I'll just use the progesterone cream to induce my monthly period. It works for me. And hopefully when the hormones are more stable already I'll have my period naturally.The skin vitamins I am taking already have Zinc. I was thinking of adding magnesium too. I'm Googling about Coenzyme Q10 right now. Goodluck to us!
HippieMomma, congrats!
My day today was spent... sleeping! LOL. I couldn't sleep at all last night. I finally did at around 7:00 am and slept like a baby after that. I woke up, ate and did some cleaning.
I ordered a new dress and sandals that I am going to wear on my get-together with friends. I hope they would fit or won't look so bad. I'm so used to wearing jeans and button down shirts now so wearing a dress would be different for me. My biggest concern in wearing a dress is my tummy. We'll see
BeingMe ~ The depression with Yasmin for me is horrible and my GYN gives me meds for that, but he admits he doesn't know how to find the right mix of meds for me so it's difficult. (It's better now than it has been though.) Like I said I have to stay on Yasmin for now ~ I wish I could stop. Maybe if I lose enough weight, someday I will be able to get rid of all of the meds. That's my goal. That would be great!!!
CoEnzyme Q10 also goes as CO-Q10 and some other weird names. It is an antioxidant that is supposed to give you energy and boost your immune system. It also is said to support heart health (it is helpful for us because people with PCOS are at high risk of heart disease). I thought I'd try it. God knows it can't hurt.
What a lazy day I have had today. Well lazy in as much as I haven't hardly moved from my bed. I did however get all my emails answered and my snail mail too, and finally with time to spare I am here before I have to make tea (evening meal)
Sarah - well done on making the healthy meal choices on your birthday. What a shocker about that tiny piece of carrot cake though huh? I know it's meant to be healthy for you, but sadly as you have discovered, healthy doesn't mean low calorie or low fat. I had a similar shock many diets ago. I had been to the shops with my daughter on the way to visit her nanna. She wanted a McDonald's and I thought why not. I was going to be good though, so I bought a sandwich to take up to my MILs after we had been to McDonalds. So I sat there, practically drooling watching Beth eat her cheese burger and fries, but also feeling proud that I wasn't giving in and even pinching one fry from her. We go to my MILs, I eat my sandwich, and then I take the pack home so I can work out the points. It was 14 points!!! I could have had a burger and fries for less than that!!! I was not amused lol. Now I carry my points calculator with me everywhere. I am not going to get caught out like that again.
Jill - sounds like you have worked off a few lbs with all the running around you have been doing. The housework is definitely a great way to work off lbs. I haven't done any proper cleaning in a week. Just tidied up, and my SD has been on floor duty as a punishment. I will have to work doubly hard next week to make up for my easy week this week
Garnetfairy - thanks for the congrats on not giving in and having a take away with the family last night. Mind you, half way through the night I wish I had....Daren had a spicy kebab and garlic bread and the stink coming from both his mouth and his butt was most unpleasent Now if I had eaten garlic too I wouldn't have been suffering. The things I endure for this diet
NSV means a non scale victory. I actually prefer them to what the scales say because the scales LIE lol.
You had a HUGE NSV by fitting into trousers in a size 22 instead of 32 which I guess you were at the start of your diet. I bet you couldn't have been smiling any brighter. well done you!!
HippieMomma - wow how exciting that your baby is going to be born in just 5 short days. Will you have anybody to help you out when you first get home until you have recovered from the C Section? I really hope it all goes well for you, and I sure hope you have a digital camera coz I am going to be nagging you to see photos of your new little treasure
Sounds like you are really looking forward to getting on track with losing weight, don't go pushing yourself before you should though. By all means watch the diet, but exercise will have to wait that bit longer. Only putting on 15 lbs on this pregnancy is great, I put on 28 lbs when I was pregnant. Never lost it either. Actually I have lost it about 10 times over but keep putting it back on again and some
If we don't hear from you before, then good luck for Friday, and I wish you a speedy recovery
Amber - I hear you on the fresh food thing. Everybody like Doctors and the government nag about how many obese people there are in the country, well how about bringing down the cost of healthy fresh food? That would help a lot. It's harder too when you have to cook one thing for yourself, and different stuff for the rest of the family. I used to do that with my lot but they are old enough to appreciate that it helps me to make good food choices if I don't have to cook different stuff for them. So I think my girls are fed up of veges, and low fat stuff, but they aren't moaning too much
Snap, I was the same as you, I hated my name in school, but I also hated and still hate my middle name, so I decided I wanted people to call me Laura. She was my fave character in the Little House on the Prairie series. Of course nobody would call me that, but I did try. I loved that TV show, and I am currently getting a box set of each series on DVD for birthdays and Christmas etc On and another Snap, my sister's kids who are all adults by the way, and my exes kids all call me Am.
We aren't allowed to put links on here, so I will send you a PM with a link to that Ebay WW thing I was telling you about. There might be others, but this is pretty much what my friend had.
Sounds like you had a lovely day out, all that fresh air and walking, I can just see the lbs dropping off. I am glad you had such a nice time. I bet the girls loved the animals too. that is great that you only had salad and soup when you went to the Steak place, talk about making excellent food choices, AND you didn't eat the croutons either I hope you are repaid for your good choices when you have your WI tomorrow. Good luck.
Tasha - You are obviously eating much healthier to have the old bowels working nicely. I am glad you got to go without any stress. I for one have no problems with bowel talk lol, having had my large bowel removed and finding a message board with other people in the same boat as me has really taken any taboo from 'poo' talk
Good luck with the GI diet, you will have to let us know how you manage with it and how the weight comes off. Don't worry too much about your 4 lbs gain, I am sure you will soon work it off again.
Beingme - why couldn't you sleep last night? Was it the upset about your friend leaving? I am glad you caught up with sleep today, and that you are feeling a bit better about your friend. I am sure you will see her again
Woops, got it wrong guessing you lived in China, I bet that's a silly assumption a lot of people make when a mention of daily meals of rice is mentioned. Or is it just me that's silly lol Have you always lived in the Philippines? I am UK born, Aussie bred, and now am back living in the UK.
When is your get together with your friends? I hope you will have a lovely time, and that your dress will look beautiful on you. If you are worried about your tummy, perhaps a light cardigan or shawl could be worn with it too, just to help disguise any bulges?
Ok well time to go cook my evening meal. So to everybody I say enjoy the rest of your weekend, and for those having WI tomorrow, good luck
Wow, a lot to catch up on since I'd been busy the last week or so and haven't had a chance to get over here until today. Happy Sunday to all of you.
I had my Synthroid raised recently, and I think it is having SOME kind of effect, because when I weighed in, I am eight more pounds down. Oy! Thing is, I hadn't changed my recent plan in the least.
I did go "off the wagon" a little on Friday when I had to do a review on a show and a couple friends came with me. I had a couple of Pepsis, nothing alcoholic, since the two glasses of champagne last Sunday left me a little bloated. But I got right back on the horse yesterday and considering the somewhat large loss, I am not complaining much.
300+ And Ready to Try Again...#816
see you are well on your way to getting to your ultimate goal 
I did not go to the gym yesterday. i will tonight. because of the funky days i work i dont have a traditional weekend, so im not opposed to going on the weekend, plus theres less people there 
So much for the lazy weekend I was anticipating!
Hi again :)
(Let me go update my ticker now...)
