Happy New Year to the both of you :)

I've just joined the President's Challenge, and I'd like you to join me! What's the President's Challenge, you ask? It's a great way for you to be active and have fun. You can choose from two free challenges that will help you get on a healthy track for an opportunity to earn awards:

• The Presidential Active Lifestyle Award (PALA) challenge, which helps people make physical activity and healthy eating a part of their everyday lives
• Presidential Champions, which challenges you to be more active more often—the more active you are, the more points you'll earn toward our awards

Join my group, and we'll help you stay motivated. Here's what you need to do:
• If you already have a President's Challenge account, log in at http://www.presidentschallenge.org/ and look up our group in the My Challenge application using the group number below.
• If you don't have an account, create a free account at http://www.presidentschallenge.org/, choose which challenge you want to participate in, and look up our group in the My Challenge application using the group number below.

Group Number: 945099
Group Name: 3FC-challenge

Once you join this group, you will be able to:
• Log your activities and earn points that will count toward our group's total and will help you earn President's Challenge awards
• See how you're doing compared to other group members
• Interact with other members in our group forum
• Add a profile picture that will display in our group (or you can hide your information from other group members, if you prefer)
• Get even more motivated to be active and healthy!

See you soon!

OK Marie ~ all joined up ~ next I have to figure out how to use it and log stuff etc.

No, Marie ~ I did not invite DH. The eating/food issue has been the source of much hard feelings for me toward him over the years. I felt like I was doing a good job by having something I liked and trying to control the portions. He is such a disciplined person ~ he totally would never be able to understand how if I am trying to eat better, why I would ever not stick with it 100%. And he would never understand my frivolous ways of spending ~ it is not cost effective to buy the items I did as opposed to buying chips (for example) in a huge bag, or a 1/2 gallon of ice cream. (That would have been trouble for me ~ I would know they were there, and they would have been calling to me ~ I am weak and would have eaten the whole bag of chips and the whole 1/2 gallon of ice cream. If I was strong around these kinds of foods, I wouldn't be in the situation I am in now.) So, I went and made my purchases alone ~ and ate and enjoyed eating them alone without the food police looking over my shoulder.

I try to stay away from the wrong kinds of foods for as long as I can, but I am human and to think that I can be perfect and never have another cookie or ice cream is unrealistic. So, when those times come that I just have to have something ~ I deal with it by buying a single serving of the thing I am craving. That is usually enough to satisfy me. And in that way, I don't have any stuff left over that would get me in trouble. I would be foolish to kid myself and think I could leave any left overs alone.

Marie ~ I am ok really. Part of me wants to blame him, because if he wasn't the way he is about it, I think I could have maybe done better. At the same time, nobody was there shoving stuff down my throat. I did it to myself and I knew better. Food was my "drug" of choice. My dr once told me that I medicated my self with food ~ to deal with the difficult situations in life. (My husband was also his patient, so this dr knew what I was up against ~ LOL.)

I have had eating issues ever since I was a kid ~ not sure how or why it started. Sneaking food, closet eating etc. The weight didn't become a problem until adulthood ~ though I have always seen myself as "fat".

I wish I was as fat as I was way back then, when I thought I was (but wasn't yet).

Yes, my daughter and other family members are very supportive. DH tries to be (he is actually much improved from how he was in the early years of our marriage), but doesn't understand ~ he can't help it ~ it is just the way he is ~ if it doesn't make sense to him, he doesn't understand. It's all good. :)

Happy New Year Gals! The football bowl game in Florida was a great time but I came back with a few more pounds on the belly! I loved all the holiday fun but I am also relieved it is over until next year. My plans for the day-nuthin!!! My husband has sworn off sweets and alcohol for the entire month of January. That is not something I am too interested in but it should help nudge me in the right direction health wise. I went to the store yesterday and loaded up on all kinds of great food to cook at home although it looks like I already have plans to go out to eat tonight. I will be ready for a good week going forward though.

Marie-Sorry to hear about the skiing injury. It must be difficult to miss out on all the outdoor fun. Well, let it heal and you will be back on the slopes in no time. There is still plenty of winter left.

Gayle-I do not include my husband in any of my weight loss endeavors. We think too differently. Thankfully he does not try to "help". However, I am very guilty of critiquing his food choices often. I really am just thinking of his health. I love him in any shape or form but I want him to enjoy good health and vitality.

Hi Marie and Tera,

I am back on track with the food, and have almost undone the damage I did over the holidays.

The exercise (biking) I haven't gotten back on track with that again yet. I am planning for Tuesday. Maddie will be back in school, and it will be easier to do it.

Marie, I haven't had a chance to figure out how to work the president's fitness challenge thing yet. But, like with the biking, I will better be able to once Maddie is back in school.

Marie ~ glad you are on the mend and having less pain.

Tera ~ glad you had fun during the holidays. You'll get back on track :)

Hope you both are having a nice weekend.

Hi Marie, Tera and Deelee,

Hope you are all doing well and not freezing too badly.

I'm doing pretty good with the eating, but still have not gotten back into the swing of my bike riding.

Marie, sorry, I still haven't had a chance to get back to that president's fitness challenge thing and figure out how to work it.

I woke up at 4:30 this am and could not go back to sleep. Things on my mind. I wanted to get my thoughts down in a document ~ gathered all together in one place. The day just seemed to disappear and it was chilly and dreary out. I should have walked on the treadmill. Oh well, I'll try again tomorrow.

I got to talk to my mom and it was a fun visit. If I am repeating myself, forgive me. She is in a nursing home ~ memory care unit. Sometimes when I call, she is out in the common area with other residents and near the nurses station, and they will pull up a chair for her and she talks on the phone there. When I get her there, she doesn't talk very long, she realizes that she is at the nurses station and she is trying to not tie up their phone too long. And partly (this tickles me), she sees the other people doing stuff and is itching to get back over by them and see what they are up to. Sometimes, she is in her room and she has a phone there and when I catch up to her there, she talks longer. Most of the times she is out by the nurses station. But I am happy about that ~ knowing that she enjoys being around the other people. She seems to be doing well and is happy there and well taken care of.

Hope you all are well ~ have a nice evening.

Hello Marie, Tere, Deelee,

Got back to the bike riding today. 1/2 hour. ETA: I did better with the exercise, but not quite as well with the food later in the day. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.

Marie ~ hope your injuries are healing nicely and that you are having less pain.

Tera and Deelee ~ how are you both doing?

Sorry I have not been posting lately. My job, although part time, is very hectic for numerous reasons. Since I was gone last week, I figured I could put in some extra hours this week and try to catch things up. I did accomplish a few things but there is still a lot of straightening out left to do. Anyway, I did not eat well or exercise all week. Going forward, I am finally going to get back on track. It always takes me awhile to behave after my forays into lax eating and exercise practices.