Sugarbusters Weekly Support Board 1/31 - 2/6

[Ellen]

http://members.aol.com/eldemila/sb_sign4.jpg

This is the
SUGAR BUSTERS WEEKLY SUPPORT BOARD where all of you who are following this WOE, or are thinking about doing so, are welcome to come join in and be a part of our wonderful group.

Other than finding support and friendship on this board, we also try to do something during the the week to add a little difference to our board.

MONDAY-MOTIVIATIONAL MONDAY
TUESDAY-TUESDAYS TIPS & FACTS & CHAT AT 9:15PM EST
WEDNESDAY-WEIGH-IN WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY-TASTY THURSDAY (RECIPE DAY)
FRIDAY-FRIDAY FUNNIES


Please take some time to check out our extensive recipe boards. Our RECIPE BOARDS can be located at the link below:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=89

Look for our QUARTERLY RECIPE BOARDS to post your favorite recipes and to see the most recently posted recipes. Recipes from the quarterly boards will be archived in proper categories at some point.


We have SEVEN INFORMATIVE BOARDS!!!! Please take a few minutes to visit them! New information is continually being posted, so please make sure you visit them often!!! The boards are listed below as well as the link that will take you to the boards:

THE RECOMMENDED READING BOARD
THE TOOLS & TIPS BOARD
THE FOOD INFORMATION BOARD
MOTIVATIONAL & INSPIRING THOUGHTS BOARD
MY FAVORITE SB LEGAL FOODS
SB 2002 BIO BOARD
SB 2001/2002 PHOTO ALBUM BOARD

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=87

We also have a SB WEEKLY EXERCISE BOARD that you can log your daily/weekly exercises on which is located on our weekly support board:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?p=766736#post766736


Then there's our latest addition to the SB BOARDS which is called OFF THE EATEN PATH This board is for everything NOT related to SB. You can use this board to post questions or comments on just about anything (okay, within reason). A book you recommend, a cleaning tip, a great website deal, etc. etc. Here's the link:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=90


NEWBIES! (aka new members) If you would like to REPLY to any of our threads, please hit POST REPLY not NEW THREAD, then type your message in and hit SUBMIT REPLY. If you need to edit your reply, just click on edit located in the body of your post and make changes as you need to, then hit SUBMIT NOW.


WELCOME! :D

[Ellen]

Good Morning! It's challenge time!

First, congratulations to all who achieved three or more days of exercise last week! It's great to see the posts in the exercise thread! Let's do it again! At least 3x this week, get in your exercise and post it!

How did everyone do on water last week? Remember to drink your water!

Did everyone get their Xs and Ox last week? Let's go for it again this week...stay on plan as many days as you can, and give yourself an X or an O in red on your calendar so you can see your progress.

Monday is Motivation Monday. Please share today something that motivates you. What is it that makes you continue when the going is hard, or the scale will not budge?

Ok, go out there and make this a great week!

[Ellen]

Good Morning!

The ice storm is only a memory of small patches of snowy looking areas in the shade. The large limb of the maple in front of the house still hangs on the tree, broken. Yesterday's 50 degrees were a welcome way to clear the ice off the streets. Back to the real world. Tom has already left for work, and I am plotting what I need to do today. I handed out the three invitations for the Chinese New Year banquet last night at church. Now comes the planning and cleaning. :) I keep finding recipes I want to try. I better not forget to clean out the freezer! :lol:

Eating over the weekend was so so. I was not off plan, but just not very careful about starches and such. Weight this morning is holding and I would rather have seen it down a bit.

I am off to make the bed, get dressed and make some coffee! Will check in later. :wave:

[Ellen]

CINDY: I just read your post from yesterday about the bagels...you are totally correct that the enriched flour is NOT legal. I found Thomas 100% whole wheat ones. They are ok, I think the sugars are 5g, but better than the others. The Sara Lee ones are whole wheat, but the sugars are so high in them! Too high and they are too soft! I like a chewy bagel, and the Thomas ones seemed more like that to me. Thomas also makes a 100% whole wheat English muffin that is really good, if you can find it.

[Solly]

Good Monday Morning Ladies.

Hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine was uneventful. Eating was 90% legal but like Teensy, the scale is rapidly increasing. I am up 10 lbs today from last Tuesday. Granted some of it I could understand, but 10 lbs? It's a little discouraging. But not to dispare, I am on a mission this week to reverse the situation.

Monet, I got my 5 x's for the week and my 3 exercises and my water (mostly). So I'm game for this week again.

Susan, thanks for posting some pics. We have been anxious to see them. You are looking beautiful and Ms. Belle too!

Bob, sorry your leg was bothering you. Hope you got it rested this weekend and it is better now.

Julia, so glad you felt like posting. we have missed you. Hate that you have been so sick. I hope it gets better each day. You will do fine with another baby. After one, there is no difference, two, three, Really, you will do great. And Jess will help out a lot I'm sure.

Cindy, I eat the Thomas WW bagels. I only eat 1/2 of one as it would count as 2 starches.

Toni, hoping you are back to normal today.

Monet, thanks for starting the boards. Glad your ice has melted away. I was thinking about you and Susan and Julia all weekend. I hate that stuff. Glad you didn't have anymore damage from the tree. I knew you could convince Tom to let you have the CNY. You are amazing.

Teensy, glad you decided to hang in there. I don't understand this either.

Got to get busy. Going to have my bagel and peanut butter. Had half a grapefruit earlier. Lunch will be egg salad on 1 piece of bread, pickle, orange. Dinner is a big chicken salad.

Be back later.

[Ellen]

JACK: I hate that you and Teensy have joined the 'two steps back turtle club' with me. I am getting desparate. I am seriously considering going to a naturopathic doctor to see if herbs will help where the pharmaceutical companies have not. I understand how you feel finding a ten pound gain where you should not. I have gotten four of those 8 I gained off, but it has been slow and difficult. Right now, I am up 33 pounds from my low back in June. I hope working out four days a week at Curves helps. I don't want to give up, cause I am afraid of how much I would gain if I did not stick to the program!

[Fillise]

Morning everyone!

Finally some sunshine here--all the ice has melted so we are good to go.

Eating over the weekend stunk--no x's for me! Woke up this morning and made WW SF blueberry muffins--that will keep me in breakfast food for the week. I can take the muffins with me tomorrow and Thursday to have with my coffee before my class. I have to get there by 7am to get a parking space! So I go to the cefateria and have coffee and breakfast before my class.

Monet--Thanks for starting the board. Glad you ice has melted too. Y'all got far more than we did. When is the Chinease New Year? Your dinner sounds like fun!

Jackie--EEEK! So sorry to hear about the big jump--maybe it will jump back down as quickly. I've found sometimes that a big jump when I've been good goes away as quickly as it comes. Now when I haven't been good. . . that's another story entirely!

Will have some of my cheesy veggie soup for lunch and I think some baked chicken tonight.

Have a great OP day everyone!

Susan

[techwife]

Hi everyone!! Happy Monday!! It's ten degrees outside!! ABOVE ZERO!! You know, after such frigid temps, it feels downright balmy!! :lol: The sun is shining and after lunch, I'll be taking Kyle for a walk to the bank and post office and probably to the store as well to get some well-needed fresh air. And I think it's also high time for a new snowman!!
:sman:

Anyhow...I did a very bad thing yesterday and had a filet-o-fish from McDonalds . We had to go to Syracuse and we only had a few bucks on which to feed the family and with the kids getting happy meals, I got the 2 fish sandwiches for $3 and split it with my husband. I just can't afford the salads at mcdonalds. So, after picking it appart, I guess the only illegal part of it was the bun and the breading (right?) and so, maybe it wasn't too terribly evil...but it is loaded with fat and calories...

But, no sense crying over it...just get back on the wagon again today, right? So, I've done my 20 mins on the airdyne and I've had for BF a half a grapefruit and only one poached egg on 7 grain bread. And coffee with splenda and half n half.

For lunch will be salad with chicken on top or a tuna sandwich. Hubby went to Albany for the week, so I think I'll have the salad and chicken for dinner.

I also had a slight gain. About two pounds. So, I've come up with a theory. You know over the course of evolution, our bodies have to deal with it's natural reflexes to do things for survival...like store fat when it gets cold so we survive the winter months. Right? So, is it possible that we're having problems losing weight because its cold? Maybe we'll all have breakthroughs on weight loss when it warms up? Just an idea. Wishful thinking actually...

Well, have to run...will do replies later on...

Kris

[Ellen]

TECH: I am SURE there is some truth to your theory. I have read that our metabolisms slow down in cold weather. Hypothyroid patients have a lower body temperature than normal...so it figures that when you are cold, you burn less calories. We will just have to wait for warmer weather to see if it helps! ;)


FILLISE: Chinese New Year is February 9, and it is the year of the Rooster, 4703 according to what I found. The dinner will be fun. Right now, I am working on the menu and hoping and praying the six I invited will come. I want eight at the table, so if any of them can't, I will have to come up with an alternate. I am about to go to the Asian market again, to get a few items to use tonight, when I experiment with a few new recipes. Tom is going to love the working up to this...hehe.

Gotta go get some stuff done around here. Later! :wave:

[woodfrogs]

Hi everyone! I didn't get a chance to post over the weekend, but I did manage to get more exercise, drink my water, eating was pretty good too.
We went snowshoeing yesterday, which was lots of fun.
What keeps me motivated is not feeling crappy and looking terrible(like I used to). I feel so much better, I have more energy. I love going to the gym and getting the muscles going. I really think I need to increase my cardio again. I have time today, so will spend some extra time on something cardio later today.
We watched Miracle(the 1980 USA hockey team movie) which we have seen before and enjoyed. Also saw Woman of the Year for the first time(Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn), very funny, but subtly funny.
menu:
egg, bacon, cheese on homemade rye toast
orange
celery/carrots
apple
whole wheat mac and cheese for supper
and another snack not sure what yet....
and I'll hit the gym later on.

The gain weight in the cold theory makes sense to me too. It's always easier to lose weight when it's warmer(at least for me).
Back to work I go....

Barbara
Poughkeepsie, NY

[GatorGal]

Hello everyone,
Hope y'all have a good week. I watched "Supersize Me" yesterday. That was an amazing film. And I guess that would be my motivational suggestion. Watch that film. I could not get over one of the extras on the DVD where they showed how long it took for various items from McDonalds and from a "real" restaurant to mold or go bad when put into a glass container and left for 2 months. The french fries did not change one bit!!! No mold, no breaking down of the potatoes, no nothing after 2 months. They looked like the day they were ordered! Yuck. Wonder what the fast food restaurant industry does to potatoes to change those French fries into a non-food item?

I got up and walked this morning and so far have 7182 steps. BTW, in the segment in "Supersize Me" that dealt with exercise, the man was wearing a Digi-Walker pedometer. :) I just ordered one for my DD for her birthday. $25 for the one that counts steps and distance.

I am trying this week to pay very careful attention to eating only when I am hungry. And I think I need to learn again what that feels like--to be hungry. I realize that I like the feel of food in my mouth. It is comforting. So I need to get off that treadmill of eating when I need comfort or some other emotional need met.

Jackie--Just hop on the wagon and eat healthily and you will start losing. Another thing I noticed in the film "SS Me" was the meal that the girlfriend fixed her BF right before he started on the month of fast food. It was all veggies--a lovely green bean and red pepper tart, a fresh green salad, some quinoa with veggies en casserole, and one other thing. It looked so yummy and healthy. I wish I someone to cook for me that would fix like that. I need to be Oprah to have something like that, (except when I go to France in May, where we will have a cook!!!!)

Monet--Good luck on you CNY dinner. If we lived close I'd come over and help you cook. I LOVE to cook Chinese food. As I mentioned, my DH and I took Chinese cooking lessons for several years. My favorite dish is a totally deboned but still whole chicken, stuffed with sticky rice and other stuff, baked and glazed with a soy/sugar glaze. It comes out the color of mohogany. I also have a good duck recipe that is baked--and not greasy at all--that you serve with small homemade buns on which you put little pieces of duck meat--and crispy skin!! :( Sort of like Peking duck, but in my estimation, better. I have tons of recipes, and we used to cook Chinese all the time, but not as much any more.

I have to quit and go study French. I get my test back tomorrow, I think. I have homework and have not even looked at my book all weekend. I also have a Bible class tonight. Too busy!! My DH is out of town for a couple of days. He went down to south Fla to play golf with one of his big clients. They do this golf thing every year, and every year it annoys me.

Have a great day. Pancho, I hope everyone is getting well in your family. Teensy--stay warm. And you too, tech.

[Toni48]

Good afternoon all- Here it is Monday already. I don't feel I'm doing to good right now with SB. I sure haven't got my water in and I've had some cheats over the week end. We had some pre made barbequed ribs yeasterday that weren't legal and I made some pretty good stuffed mushrooms with them. Hope I can just keep on and get straightened out better this week. That hospital stuff has kind of threw me a bit. My DH wants me to wait one more week till I start back on the TM so guess I'll do that. B- peanut butter ww bagel. Haven't had lunch yet so don't know what it is. But dinner will be chicken breast and a salad.

Monet- thanks so much for starting the board today. Your chinese new year dinner sounds wonderful. I would be so excited at coming. I wish we could get the Thomas bagels here but as yet I haven't found them. I was so excited to find a ww bagel. Maybe someday.....

Jack-K- Hope the weight stuff turns in the right direction this week. I know what a downer that can be...

Fillise- Your pictures were great. You looked so pretty.

Techwife- Brrrr! To cold for me to walk. But have a good one and stay warm.

Woodfrogs- Wow snowshoeing. My DH used to do that allot when he was younger. Bet thats great exercise.

Gatorgal- good luck on your french test!!! I'll bet you do well.

[Solly]

Susan, looks like you are on track with your muffins made already. I need to make something like that except maybe with cinnamon. I don't like BB.

Monet, I haven't exercised since Wed so I don't know if that has anythign to do with it or not. Going to Curves 4 x is a good start for you.

Tech, don't beat yourself up about the fish. Count it as your breads for the day and go on. At least you didn't have FF. I like your theory, I just don't want to wait until it warms up to start losing.

Barbara, snowshwoing sounds like lots of exercise to mee. Congrats on a good weekend of eating and exercising.


Gator, I wish I could get over eating when I'm bored. It is slow here today and all I can think about is what I can eat and I'm not hungry. Got to see that movie.

Toni, don't worry about the TM right now. I think you probably need another week too. You will get back on track. Don't you just hate it when you are going along to well and something like that throws you off track.

Just thought I would check in. Things are really slow here today and I am thinking of food. I really enjoyed my egg salad at lunch. Need to go do some filing. Yuk!

[GatorGal]

Jackie--I bet a lot of us eat from boredom, fatigue, depression or whatever emotion is our "favorite." If we could just not do that. All the thin people I know would NEVER eat when they are having an emotional letdown, or worry, or whatever. They do something else, and the emotions seem to turn off their hunger. So I guess that puts us in the category of "abusers." Horrors!! Do we abuse food? I guess so, if we are using it for another purpose than for what it is intended. If anyone has any good suggestions re. this, post it.
I guess I should go out for a walk when I want to eat even if I am not hungry. Just never felt like doing that. My worst time of day is about 4 pm. I could eat anything then.

[Solly]

Gator, I know this is trite and true, but they say if you know your rough time, then have things on hand (like veggies an dip, fruit) to keep you from eating the bad stuff. Yeah we all could go for a walk, do some exercise, but it boils down to we don't want to do that. Yes, we probably are abusers. I know food it too important to me. I need to find something to replace that focus.

[heartmom]

Well...let me backtrack a bit. Last week, I did 7 workouts, ate very well and how did I get rewarded? A gain. I let it get to me and then I had this attitude with what the heck, I might as well eat what I want if I'm just going to gain. So that's what I did. The ENTIRE weekend! So today, I'm really paying for it. I stepped on the scale to face what I had done. I'm up 8 or 9 above my low. That's what I get. I'm having such a horrible time staying OP these past few months. And it seems to be getting worse. I had a little "talk" with myself and had to do some serious thinking. I just refuse to gain back this weight I've worked so hard to take off, I DESERVE to be 140-143. I've accomplished so much. I also rented Supersize me. I have to be honest here. Over the past couple months I have eaten soooo many doublecheeseburgers and my fave, the fries. This was definetly an eye opener for me. I will no longer ever look at the fries in the same way again. Thank goodness. Man, if only I could get Robby to sit down and watch it(he won't). He eats fast food entirely way too much(heavy user). Anyway, today I am non-energetic due to all the sugar in my system. Not going to exercise today. But tomorrow I will get back on track with working out. I ate so much yesterday, that I was still full this morning and had awful gas! So I didn't eat until after 1. I had salad made with Low Sodium tuna, onion, cukes, brocolli, cauliflower and Carb Well Ranch. I skipped the cheese and the egg and tomato this time. I need to cut down on my fats and salt. I had 1/2 a grilled chicken breast for a snack. I'm a little hungry now, so I'm probably going to find something lowfat/low salt, and non-starch to munch on. Tonight I'm cooking hamburgers and making legal coleslaw. I'm eating my burgers plain with onion and sf/lc steak sauce. I've also decided I drink way too many Diet cokes. I'm cutting down on them to no more than 2 a day. Right now, I haven't had any. I have Ashley's bday party lingering in the corner of my mind. It's Saturday. I LOVE bday cake. I plan on endulging, but sending the cake home with someone so that I don't binge on it later. I just need to get in the right frame of mind. Before, when I was losing, I would eat occasionally off plan and be able to get back on track with no problems. Now, I've let it get the best of me. Time for recommitting. I don't want to be a downer for anyone here. I'm glad that I can type this as it is helping me re-evaluate everything. TEENSY- I know you are frustrated. I was there last week when I was doing everything right and I also gained. But I went about it wrong and just did more damage. I commend you for not letting it take control of you like I did. We have to hang in there. It's worked before and with some self-tuning or little adjustments to our regimens, it will work again. It just needs to hurry up :lol:

[THE BIG ORANGE BABE]

EVENING EVERY BUDDY!


Work was great...stayed the whole day, got all my work done....YOWSER!!!
My knee did really good today as long as I had my brace on. I took it off a few times becase it gets hot on my leg, but I put it back on when I cooled off.

MONET..thanks for starting the board! WHAT WOULD WE DO WITHOUT YOU?
Glad your weather is better. My Cousin in Greenville said they really had it bad. Their drive is down a huge hill, so they were stuck. They wanted to utilize their hot tub, but when they got a look at the deck, they both decided that neither of them wanted a broken hip, so they stayed inside!

SUSAN..I just can't make my breakfast from something sweet...after 5 minutes, I'm starving...give me the UNCLE HERSHEL'S at CRACKER BARREL anytime! I'm a breakfast lover, and can eat it anytime of the day or night!
In fact, I think I'll fix myself some for supper.
I've got a new picture to try to post...it's friends for MS BELLE....Keep your fingers crossed it works!

LAURIE...I just noticed that youve lost 110 lbs! GOOD GOING GIRLFRIEND!!!!!

TONI...get the THOMAS'S bagels...they are wonderful and I agree with MONET...better for you!

JACKIE....WATER WEIGHT.....I'm sticking to my story! It will be gone...I PROMISE!!! Thanks for thinking about my knee...it really hurts under the knee cap...like a jackhammer going off!

GATOR...I loved that movie...I suggest ANYONE on a diet to see it!!!

YUMMMMMMMMM...Had to stop and fix my supper...bacon and fried egg sandwich!!!

TECH..Sounds like a fun trip with the FAM...glad you had a good time.

BARB...your menu sounds so good...I love Mac n Cheese, but have never tried the whole wheat pasta...

Well...gotta go...time to eat!!

BOB

[techwife]

Laurie: You and all the other 100+ losers are my total inspiration for this diet. You simply cannot let the weight go back on. Honestly, I don't think it will, though...you work out way too much and you seem to have way too much energy. I learned in my college weight training/aerobics gym class that regular, steady exercise will sustain you for quite some time, even if you stop for whatever reason for some time. But, don't despair, you'll get back on track again. Just pick up from here and forge ahead.

I'm really thinking about my theory of our natural tendency to put on weight this time of year or when its cold. It seems like too much of a coincidence that we're all at a stand still or gain at the same time and we're all pretty much on plan...I truly believe we'll all start shedding very soon...as soon as the weather breaks. Hang in there with me, guys!! We can do it!! If we all stay on plan and keep up our exercising, I'm betting the 'spring shedding' will be faster and even more plentiful!!

GATOR: I'm with you on the depression eating thing. Maybe that's another of our issues. Studies show that this is one of the more depressing times of the year...we're all getting sick of the short days and overcast skies...not to mention any 'issues' we may be having with family and loved ones. I can tell you that depression put fifty pounds on me!! I had all kinds of 'stuff' going on in my life and it definitely took its toll. Don't have any solutions at this time...but...that's my opinion. OH, and good luck with your french classes!! Oui, oui!! (that's all I know...don't ask for more :lol: )

Toni: Hang in there with SB!! We're all having a slump at the moment. Once you can get back on the TM, you'll kick in...you'll see.

Barbara: So proud of you for having an OP weekend...complete with exercise!! Snowshoes sound fun!! We need some here!!

Susan: Send me some blueberry muffins, will ya? Do you have the recipe posted?

MONET: We have to ferret out this winter fat storage thing so we can all get back on the downward slope!! :lol: Here's hoping it ends sooner than later!!

Anyhow...Kyle got to ride his new bike today...all the way to the bank, then the post office and then to pick up Shelley from school and home. He was really working those pedals!! He should drop like a lead balloon in about an hour!! Then it's time for my bubble bath and then I'll be in a coma till morning! I did both my Air Dyne for 20mins this morning AND my walk in the sunshine in the balmy 20 degree weather!! It really did feel great after 30 below zero for so long...no frozen nostril hairs!! I know...grosss...but it happens, I tell ya!! :^:

BF
1/2 grapefruit
1 poached egg
1 slice of seven grain toast
coffee

LUNCH
giant salad (lettuce, cauliflower, green/red peppers, olives, chick peas, carrots, etc)
boneless chicken breast on top
blue cheese dressing

SNACK
1/2 orange
water

DINNER
Leftover turkey chili with beans
8 oz milk

I was weak on the water today. I had to go to ice skating and didn't want to pee half way there. :lol: I had about 40 oz all together.

Well, should run and fold towels before it's time for bed...and I have to make some tea. Good night everyone!! Hope we all see a pound or two drop tomorrow!!

Kris

[Cindylcing]

Good Evening.
Monet- Ill look for that brand of bagels. Thanks !

I think the colder months do make it harder to lose!

Menu for today:
breakfast- kashi cereal, 3 bacon, 1 slice ww lc toast
s- 1 cup green grapes
s- 8 radish
lunch- romaine salad with diced red pepper and 2 oz diced chicken breast and LF ranch
s- 1 oz pumpkin seeds
dinner- grilled steak, 1 cup steamed brocilli

[techwife]

BOB: SO happy to see you had a great day at work today!!

Cindy: Keep up the good work!! Your menu looks GREAT!! I bought some oatmeal today in hopes of ditching some of my eggs once in a while in the morning.

[heartmom]

Me again...BOB, it was 119 pounds lost when I got to my low of 159(my highest being 278). Today I'm in the UPPER 160's, ugh. Anyway, I've done good with my eating today, at least I'm pleased with that. Tomorrow I will get a workout in the morning and teach one at church in the evening. I've gotten where I don't weigh daily, but now I need to, to keep check on my weight to make sure it's going to go back down. I think I will "review" the original SB book tomorrow. That seems to perk me up and make things "fresh" again. CINDY- let me go look in the freezer about the bagels...ok, I'm back. Mine are Sara Lee, BUT they are the kind that say 100% whole wheat bagels, they also carry a hearty wheat which is what I think MONET is referring to. Read the labels. These say they are made from water, stone ground whole wheat flour, wheat gluten, cottonseed fiber, wheat protein isolate, corn starch, etc..the total carbs are only 22 and the fiber(subtract) is 7 g. The sugars are only 2 g. So very legal and the only one so far that I've found with the carbs and sugar that low. Just make sure you get the correct one. Oh yea, it has 11 g protein as well. Alright, I need to go and sort my bills(yippee). Check in tomorrow...

[Ellen]

Evening everyone! Its been another long day for me. I went to Harry's, and the new Asian market again. Laura wanted to get some more cute Japanese candy. :rolleyes: I needed to find Lotus seeds and Chinese sausage for one of my recipes. I got them both, and found some other interesting stuff. I tried not to spend any money at the Asian market, as I have spent way too much already! :( I did find a stone ground, whole wheat and brown rice Udon noodle at Harry's. We had them for dinner tonight and they were superb! Here is my menu:

B: ww waffle, coffee with half and half

L: ww/buckwheat ramen with broccoli, onions, bok choy, and two eggs poached in the broth

S: Fruitto ice cream (sweetened with fruit) at the Asian market- I had the red bean and 9 grain flavors. Yum!

D: beef curry with celery, carrots and onions on ww/brown rice udon, several pieces of fried calamari

I got two chickens to fix tomorrow night for dinner. I am looking forward to playing with recipes over the next week or so.

GATOR: I guess you did not see my reply last week. I have made that debone whole chicken recipe. My recipe is steamed, then rolled in cornstarch and fried to make the skin crispy. Is your recipe baked? I would love to make it without the steaming and frying. Would you be willing to email me how you cook it? It is luscious isn't it? Chinese cuisine has always been my specialty, I honestly don't know why, but I have always loved it. Its great now that you can find all the obscure ingredients. Years ago, it was rare to find even celery cabbage, but now every grocery store has it. It amazes me what I can find at Publix even!

I had intended on replying to everyone, but I just looked at the clock! Yowzers! I have so much to do before bed, and I am SO tired! I better get going and make my replies tomorrow morning. :grouphug:

[GatorGal]

Jackie--Your comments are interesting. So, I'm not the only one . . .
Why do we use food at those stressful times, when it would be so easy just to go for a walk? A walk is not THAT hard. I always wondered if I took a walk, would I end up back at home after that 30 minutes or 40 minutes of walking still wanting that thing to eat. Does anyone here ever get out and do something else instead of munch when you are going through some emotional event, e.g. worry, boredom, stress, etc. etc.? How has that worked for you?
Jackie, normally when I want something to eat during those times, I don't want a carrot stick!!! A nice candy bar would do nicely. :devil:

I just got back from my Bible class. Got over 12000 steps in today; that's about 5 miles for me. Also did my weight training. Guess I'll post it on the exercise board.

[GatorGal]

Monet--I'll e-mail you some recipes in a day or so, probably tomorrow afternoon. This is no frying. When you serve it you just cut right across the chicken and serve a "slice" of chicken and rice stuffing. I have a couple of unusual others that I'll also send you. If there is any thing you'd like to try or anything special, let me know and I'll send you the recipe. I have TONS! Even octopus. (Not my favorite. :) )

[GatorGal]

Wow, I must be "talking" a lot. Three posts in a row. I was just thinking that it might be fun if we had a "Supersize Me Event." We could all watch the movie during the same week and all post about what really got our attention or what specific detail really "spoke" to us. After watching it, I still can't get over those fries still looking like new even after 2 months. And it certainly made me think about what fat and sugars do to my body. No wonder we feel sluggish at times! Anyway, just a thought.
Gotta go walk. I had a decent breakfast: a SMALL bowl of shredded wheat n' bran with fruits and skimmed milk.

[Solly]

Good Tuesday Morning.

The stupid scale (love to blame it on something other than me) was down 3 pounds today. Of course I was hoping for more. (Aren't we always) :^:

I got in 1 mile on the :treadmill: (17 1/2 minutes and 15 minutes of wt training (arms last night and my surgery arm was bothering me so I was afraid to do too much). Better than nothing I feel. Dinner ended up being a big salad with steak in it. Like the O'Charley's black and bleu salad. It was good, althought I got tired of chewing. Nothing after dinner.

We had to run tot he post off to mail my DH's jury duty form. He is trying to get out of it and then had to run by the funeral home. So my night was cut short.

BF; 2 eggs scrambled with cheese, 1/2 c oj
lunch: Amy's pizza, orange
Dinner, pork chops, mixed veggies.

Tonight I am going to make that chicken enchillada recipe that is on the board. I haven't made it in years. Need something different.


Heart, I think there is something in the cyber-air making us gain. Glad you are recommitting. Sometimes it takes a good talking to to get us back on track. Why not just have 1 bite of that birthday cake instead of a piece. Maybe the bite will satisfy your urge and not do any damage. Find some comfort in the fact that the gain is not fat. I'm sure you don't see any difference in your clothes. It will come back off. Why do we do the things we do?

Bob, so glad you had a productive day at work. Wonderful that your knee felt better today. Hope that means it is on the mend.

Tech, OK I'm holding you to the shedding of the pounds come warmer weather. You had better be right. You are doing great with getting that bike out of the way early. Good job!

Cindy, :wave: Have a great day.

Gator, I totally agree that a candy bar would be much more satisfying than carrots, but if you tell yourself you can't have it (plus I don't keep any junk at my house) than carrots are better than nothing. Let's try to mentally notice than when we are face with a situation, boredom, stress, emotions, etc, we find a substitute for food. Let's see what we can come up with to fill that void and see if it works or if we still eat afterwards. I say let's try it the rest of the week. Game?

Monet, you are really getting into this CYN. The people at the Asian market are going to think you are Asian.

Off to do some work. Be back later.

[techwife]

Okay, you guys...so I forgot to tell you last night that I stopped to get a small pizza for the kids after ice skating and when I got home, I dutifully got out my leftover turkey chili from the fridge and ate that for dinner!! I didn't even have a pepperoni!! Well, ironically, that would have been legal...but I stayed clear of the dern thing altogether!! I'm really proud of myself. I kept smelling it in the van and I really said to myself...I'd love a slice of that pizza, but I'm so sick of seeing no loss on the scale and that's really more important to me right now...seeing the scale move...than having some 'soul food' (food that's good for the soul, not the waistline!!). Besides, chili is soul food in it's own right, anyhow.

Still no loss on the scale this moring...but I did get my 20 mins in on the Airdyne this morning!! Will probably walk later on, too, since it's only zero outside, but no wind makes it seem not too bad if you dress properly. There's not a cloud in the sky, but there must have been some moisture in the air overnight because the bushes and fences are all covered in frost and are all sparkly in the sunshine!! Very pretty...specially from the warmth of my kitchen window with a hot cuppa coffee!! :D

Flylady check: Exercise is done...bed's made, I'm showered and changed, all I need to do is actually finish drying my hair and put on my shoes (which look peculiarly like slippers! :lol: ) Sink is anything but shiny...will go there after I finish drying my hair. Should probably do a 27 Fling Boogie and I definitely need to bless the house!! First, laundry. Actually, first...more coffee...then laundry. :p

'K, gotta run!!

Kris

PS...GATOR: I have an afghan I'm crocheting and when I get in 'snack mode', I work on that and watch Foxnews. Or read a book wiht a cup of hot tea. ;)

[GatorGal]

Jackie--Yep, I'm game.
Tech--Great idea. I have an afghan I'm cross stitching and I could do that. and watch TV. Think I'll try it.
Fruit--Where are you?

[Ellen]

Good Morning! The bed is made, the sink is shining, I am dressed down to my feet, but no shoes! (I draw the line at shoes!) I am on my third cup of coffee, :coffee: and just got back from taking James to work. I usually go over to Curves after I drop him off, but my back is really bothering me as are my knees today. I just did not feel up to it, so I will spend the time instead cleaning. (yeah, right! no, really! I better! I have so much to do!)

GATOR: Yes, you slice across the chicken in my recipe too, and serve a slice with the chicken around the rice stuffing. Sounds like you and I have a similar interest in Chinese cooking. I have a ton of recipes too, but please send me your favorites. You can never have too many recipes! :lol: I taught a Chinese cooking class for several years, and collected recipes from a few Chinese friends. I have not made Peking Duck in years, but then, I am not fond of duck. I really enjoy the simple, every day stuff. One of my favs is Bean Curd and Parrot. Parrot being spinach. Its a simple dish, but delightful. I really miss the bean curd at times... I tried Thai and Japanese, and even a bit of Vietnamese cuisines, but I always seem to come back to the Chinese. Its so varied with all the different regions, I think you could spend a lifetime on it and never grow tired of the food.

TECH: Good for you on passing up the pizza! I would have struggled with that too. I tend to make excuses, but I think your approach of deciding you wanted results on the scale over pizza was key to your success. I need to do a 27 hundred fling boogie! :lol: The other night, my son came up and told me he was doing his flyguy thing, and executing a 2700 fling boogie! He was about serious too...he threw out so much stuff, he filled the huge trash can on wheels we are issued by the trash pick up company! His room is looking much better, but he has to do a few more of those 2700 fling boogies before it will be presentable! I guess that is what happens when you move from an apartment into one room.

JACK: The Asian man at the Fruitto stand definitely thinks I am strange! He gave us samples of the different flavors, then Laura and I got a cup of two flavors. Their product does not have sugar in it, but is fruit sweetened, with something else they will not divulge but is supposedly natural- maybe xylitol as that is big in Asian countries. I got the flavors he specifically told me were aimed at Asians. Red bean, and 9 Grain. I will probably get the green tea next time. The 9 Grain was delicious...had a strong brown rice flavor to it. You have to have had red bean to know what it is like. I like it, though many non Asians do not. Laura got the Lychee and Mandarin Orange. That is a great combo. I am probably going to buy some to use as dessert for my dinner party. I just hope I can refrain from inhaling the stuff before I serve it! ;)

CINDY: If you have Thomas products, look for their 100% ww English muffins! You can use them for hamburgers, or even make eggs benedict with them! I don't know why I love English muffins, but I do! (of course, I love most foods..that is my problem! ) How are you doing with the SB? Is it getting easier to get the fats down? How is work going? I remember you were working a lot of overtime...has it settled down for you?

HEART: Instead of eating birthday cake, could you make cupcakes? Then you could limit yourself to one. Kind of like automatic portion control.... My problem with the Sara Lee bagels is that they don't taste like a bagel...they taste like a slice of round bread. To me, a bagel should be dense, and chewy. The Thomas brand is more bagel like to me. Just a personal preference. How is Boogie doing? When do you all go to DisneyWorld?

BOB: Yay, for making it through the day! I sure hope the ole knee gets better and better! Looks like our trip to Sarasota will be the first week of March. Will let you know the particulars as soon as I can!

WOOD: Was that ww mac and cheese a homemade, or a mix? I have a DeBoles ww mac and cheese in the cabinet that I got months ago, and keep forgetting to fix. :( How is the weather up there? Its warmer here...though rainy looking. I thought about a walk, but they are working on finishing the last 10 feet of sidewalk up on the 'main' road...so I will avoid getting in their way! (I almost missed my street rubber necking at them working this morning! :lol: )

FILLISE: That is pretty bad that you have to go in that early just to get a parking place! I guess some lucky person is praising you when they arrive late and find your vacated place when you leave. Good idea on the muffins. Mr. Tom loves oat bran muffins, and he will only eat blueberry. :rolleyes: I tried apple cinnamon, but no, he did not like them. Let me know when you are ready to come visit... I found some more great stuff...like ww udon noodles! They were really good!

Ok, that is it for me. The house cleaning calls.... (squawks?)

[Solly]

Techwife, Weight Watcher's new commercials has a great slogan. For the life of me (chemo brain) I cannot remember it now. But everytime I hear it I think it really applies. Something about wanting something more. If need be, you could have just ate the topping off the pizza. But you derserve a big :cheer: for eating the chili instead.


Monet, Call me weird, but ice cream that tastes like brown rice does not sound appealing.

I have been busy up until lunch time, so no time to be bored and hungry. I did have a snack of celery and peanut butter. I'm good until dinner now.

[Pancho]

Good Afternoon:

Wow, where did Monday go? I left here yesterday morning around 9 a.m., and didn't get back home until after picking Britt up (around 3:30 or so). I had so many little errands to run.....Wal-Mart, bank, mall, 99cent store, pick up pants from alteration shop, etc....). I went to a new Wal-Mart that opened here because they had a Desert Schools Credit Union inside. When I got inside, I said to the bank attendant, "this place is huge!!" She said that it is the biggest WalMart in the state of Arizona. They have a McDonald's in the store, and you can pay for all your groceries and other items at the register and order and pay for your lunch from McDonald's right there and pick it up on your way out. We didn't, of course, but what a concept. What next?

I did go to the gym on Saturday and Monday, and I will go tomorrow a.m. too. I hope to get there Thursday and Saturday this week. Britt's school is going on a field trip to the zoo on Friday, so Lane and I are going to go too. Eating has been good, but I will have a slice of Carrot cake tonight. Britt made it for me for my b-day. Heck, I probably would have forgot it was my birthday if it wasn't for her. My DH didn't say anything this morning. I go to get Britt up for school, and she jumps out of bed like it's her birthday, and says, "Happy Birthday Mommy." She is so sweet. It's amazing how quickly our birthdays roll around when we get older, and how slow they were coming around when we were kids.

I already got to my homeo doctor for a refill on some supps, and to Whole Foods this morning. I think everyone is catching on to the Agave; they can't seem to keep the light syrup in stock.

Monet: Thanks for starting the board and for the challenges. I think you should at least have a consultation with a homeo. A Chinese New Year party sounds like fun.

Jack: Good attitude. Keep up the good work, and those numbers will keep going back down.

Fillise: Way to plan ahead with those muffine. If you fail to plan you plan to fail, "they" say.

Tech: The Filet-o-Fish sandwich is the only menu item I like at McDonald's, other than those terrible FF. I am going to have to watch that Supersize Me movie; it sounds interesting. The tarter is full of fat on those sandwiches too. BUT, it is behind you, and time to move on. I know, at least physchologically, that I do much better in warmer months. When the weather is cold, we look for more comforting foods, and our bodies are covered up anyway. In the spring/summer months, we are wearing less clothes, salads tastes much better, there are fresh fruits and veggies in abundance, etc... I mean really, as far as fruit goes this time of year, it is pretty much apples, oranges and grapes....boring. Good job passing on the pizza!!!

Wood: Keep up the great work with your exercise!!

Gator: Thank for the great reminder. I don't even like to give my kids FF unless they are baked anymore. I have to rent that movie; it sounds so interesting. So you are home studying while your DH is off playing golf :p . Hope you got a good grade on your test.

Toni: Hang in there. Once you are able to get back on the TM, you eating will also fall back into place. You were doing so well, and you will again!

Heart: I really feel that you are overtraining. Your body will hold on to everything, just like when you don't eat enough. Also, when I exercise, I have a ravenous appetite, and it's real important to "snack" on the right foods, and even too much of the right foods add up. I'm sorry that you got discouraged; I think we are all there right now. I have been doing well, and was still at 122.5# this morning. I know that doesn't seem like much for a lot of the people on here, but when I was showing 119/120 for so long, and it is slowly creeping up, it scares me a bit, but I am going to stop those numbers and not let them go up anymore....you with me? I'm with you on the birthday cake; Britt made me a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting (my fav. cake), so I will have a small slice tonight, and try not to have anymore. I wish she would have made me her favorite cake instead :lol: . I get those bagels too. I get the entire Sara Lee bread line; their breads are WW and they are soft and yummy!

Well, I gotta get a few things done around here before I have to go get Britt. Lane was sneezing and had a runny nose earlier, so I am sure she is getting Britt's cold.

Gotta run!
Take care,
Nat

[GatorGal]

Monet--I just sent you the recipes.

I got a 96 on my test. :) The only things I missed was where we had to write out sentences phonetically.

I parked off campus and walked to my class from there. It's about a mile each way, so now I have over 11000 steps. I don't even have to walk later in the neighborhood, if I don't want to.

Pancho, I had to laugh when you talked about paying for the McDonalds stuff at the Wal-Mar register. Ha Ha. You'll get a kick out of "Super Size me."

[Ellen]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PANCHO!


:gift: :balloons: :hb:

[techwife]

Hope you have a GREAT DAY today, Nat!!

Eat lots of OP cake if you can find any!!

:hat:

[Solly]

Nat, Have a great birthday!! :hat: :balloons: :gift: Enjoy your day

[Solly]

Gator, great job on your test and your steps today.

[heartmom]

Alright, the scale was down from yesterday, but I'm still 5 pounds above my low of 159. I haven't had any energy today at all. I finally made myself do the 3 mile WATP earlier after much procrastination. That's about all I've done today. Just been laying around. I have to teach exercise this evening. Guess I'll drink the SF energy drink(by Stacker) that I've had in the fridge forever. As for the bday cake, my Mom is getting it from Winn Dixie and it's already ordered. There is no way that I can take 1 bite and stay away from it, that will just make me end up overendulging in it. I plan on having no more than 2 slices and sending the rest home with somebody. Anyway, that's about all I have time to post. I need to start cooking before I leave at 5.

MONET- I think the bagels I get are chewy, that must mean that yours are REALLY chewy. I don't think I've seen that brand here. Where do you get them?

[techwife]

Menu today:

BF:
Oatmeal (with splenda and skim milk)
Grapes
Coffee

Lunch:
Smoothie
water

Snack:
several triscuits
Monterey cheese
water

Dinner:
chicken salad sandwich on 7-grain bread with green peppers
more grapes
water

Snack:
two pieces of dark sf chocolate
ingredient questions...what is lactilol and polydextrose. Something tells me this is hidden sugar. I got this chocolate for christmas and have been rationing it carefully ever since. :lol:

Will add replies later...bye, guys!!

Kris :flow2:

[fruitloupe]

Hey gals!

Just flying by to say hello and let you all know that I'm still here - just busy. I don't have time to post or read posts this week - we ride Monday night and we have gatherings, etc. all week. I'm still at my 12 pound loss - but I haven't been 100% - which I knew I wouldn't!

Just bear with me until Wednesday. I'll try to pop in and say hi before I ride.

Missy

[Cindylcing]

Hi all. Monet- Ot at my work normally is like pulling teeth to get any and them boom they want us to work mandatory OT all of January. So come to the last week and we are all pooped and here comes the email..Mandatory OT for the whole month of Feb ! So its still going on. Have to look at the bright side I guess .... which is extra money...and thats never a bad thing.

Im doing great on SB. The first time I tried this It seemed so hard..lol but I think I wasnt ready then to do the lower fat. This time I was. Ive got my fat % down to the mid 40's so im really happy about that. Thats a 30 drop !
I think I had one day it dipped into the high 30's. But I'll have to work at that number.

I will look at a different store this Saturday for the bagels. I'll look for both brands mentioned and see what I can find.

Todays menu:
breakfast- 2 eggs, 2 bacon , 1 slice lc ww toast
s- 1 apple with 1 tbl pbutter
s- 1 celery stalk
lunch- ham sandwich on ww bread
s- 1/2 cup LF cottage cheese
dinner- turkey shish kabobs with onion and redpepper-broiled,
Romaine salad with diced raw brocilli and carb options blue cheese dressing
s -sf creamsicle

[woodfrogs]

Today at work was nuts! So I'm on the puter after 40 mins on the tm and 50 ab lounger crunches to post!
Food was good today:
bacon, egg, cheese on homemade rye toast(1 slice)
1/2 roast beef sand on rye, lettuce, tomato, dab of mayo & cup of chicken noodle soup
tortellini and homemade sauce
and I'm about to go have some sf jello

lots of water


Monet - the mac and cheese was homemade and is all gone! I've made some of the box kinds, but I like mine better. the weather has warmed up a bit. It got to 36 today and I had my car window open about 1/3. It felt balmy after last week!

Nat - Happy Birthday!!! I always say that birthdays are better than the alternative. Did dh surprise you with something later in the day I hope??

Plan on more snowshoeing tomorrow for work, it's supposed to be warmer tomorrow, so I need to finish some field work. Also planning for the Big Game, we have people coming over, I plan on staying OP. I feel a renewed sense of commitment. I NEED to be under 200. Although I did get a very nice compliment today from someone I hadn't seen in a long time. She couldn't believe the difference. But staying at 208 just isn't going to cut it. More exercise planned for the rest of the week!!

Barbara
Poughkeepsie, NY

[woodfrogs]

Hi everyone,
I see I was the last one on last night. SO I'll be the first this morning.
No gain or loss last week. I guess that's better than a gain. But I was feeling skinny, so had hoped for a loss. Hopefully next week. I'm soooo tired of being stuck at this weight. Any thoughts? I've increased my cardio. Not sure what else to do at this point.
menu:
bacon, egg, cheese on homemade rye toast (1 slice)
1/2 pb sandwich on pumpernickel, orange, apple, carrots and celery
not sure about dinner yet.

Barbara
Poughkeepsie, NY

[Fillise]

My goodness--where is the week going?

I'm still struggling this week, don't really know what the problem is, except that like Gator, I struggle with emotional eating. Jan and Fed are always difficult months for me (dreary, cold and depressing--my mood matches). I have no energy and no motivation to do anything. I need to get my natural light lamp out and sit under it every night to see if that will help. I go through this every winter and my mood and energy always seem to pick up one the days start to get a little longer and a little warmer. Lent begins next week--that always helps.

Part of what I'm struggling with is no exercise. I have a membership to a gym, but I never go. I'd love to have a treadmill here, but have literally no room (Monet can tell you, my house is very tiny). I've been looking around to see if I can re-arrange to make room, but so far haven't come up with anything that might work. I have to either get my head around going to the gym, or stop paying the money for it every month. I could have a top of the line treadmill for what I have spent on the gym membership over the last few years!!!!! But when I ge ready to stop paying it seems too much like I'm giving up for good. So I keep shelling out the money, but not going. How stupid is that?

Sorry to be such a downer so early in the morning, but I wanted to sort out what I've been struggling with and this is the best place to do it.

Susan

[Solly]

Happy WIW

Hope the scale is good to everyone today.

As for me, I'm down 5 since Monday, but up 4 since last WIW. Go figure. I didn't get my exercise in at all last night. :( Had my tennis shoes on and ready to head to the basement when I got a call that my aunt (85 yrs old) was having some problems and could I go check on her. She lives in a retirement home. It sounded like she may have had a stroke, but I think she is just going down. She is 45 minutes away, but I am the closet. She has no children and only 3 nieces/nephews who live out of town. So we went and ended up taking her to the hospital. We didn't leave the hospital until 11:00. I had started making the chicken enchilladas before I left so I had to finish them when I got home. I didn't get to bed until after midnight. I'm :tired: today.

Had planned on doing some extra cooking last night too, like muffins and salad dressing.

Oh, by the way I found this recipe for a glaze for porkchops. It was made with bourbon, honey, (I used agave), ginger, red and black pepper, & soy sauce. It it was great on the chops. The bourbon may not be legal, but you don't get that much. Something different.

Heart, glad you are seeing the scale go down. Be careful with that cake.

Fruit, have fun this week and espcially on Monday. But I'm sure you will. Just don't too far off track you have done so great.

Cindy, I know what you mean about the OT. My DH has been working it for the last 8 months. THey told them Jan 1, no more OT. Now he is back working Saturdays.

Barbara, how do you stay on the TM for 40 monutes. I can hardly last 25.Sorry you didn't see a loss. Yes it is better than a gain. Wanna trade? Are you eating enough?

Susan, you can sort out here anytime. How about going to the gym first thing in the morning? Or on your way home in the evenings? is there someone that can go with you to be your exercise buddy?

Bob, how did you do at work yesterday?

Nat, did you have a nice birthday? Any great gifts?

Country, are you lurking? Get back on here.

Got to run to a meeting, hope to check back after lunch.

[Ellen]

Just a quick fly by here. I did not get on the scale yet. I might in a bit, but after last night, I doubt it. The dinner was high in sodium and not only am I all puffy like a sausage, I had vertigo bad this morning. A sure sign I had too much salt...soooo...
I am really having to fight the kittens lately. They are getting really bad about getting in the sink, on the counters, and poking their heads through the blinds while sitting precariously on stacks of books on top of my bookcase. They have torn up the rug in front of the hall bathroom- who knows why? Its not like there is anything IN there that they need. I am feeling a bit frustrated with them.

FILLISE: Do you have a Curves in Auburn? You might find it more enjoyable then a gym. I love going to my Curves...makes it easier to go when you enjoy it. I can't imagine where you could put a treadmill...but when there is a will, there is a way. The question is, would you USE it? I go in spurts with mine...

I will be back later to do the rest of my replies...

Breakfast this morning was oatmeal with a bit of agave and milk on it, and coffee with half and half.

[techwife]

Hi Guys!! Is it WIW already?? I'm in at 170 still. No loss, no gain. BUt I feel really energized with my new morning schedule of getting up a half hour earlier and riding the AirDyne for 20 mins. I really dread getting out of bed and literally throwing myself on the seat, but the time really does go by faster when I'm practically half asleep for most of it.

I'm having a giant, legal breakfast today. I was really starving!! But I'm having a whole orange, a half of a green banana, half a cup (precooked) of oatmeal with splenda and skim milk and two sausage links. Its like my body is saying, "Okay, if you're going to abuse me with that evil AirDyne so early in the morning, you're gonna have to feed me, too!" I'm never hungry for breakfast. I jsut eat it because I"m supposed to.

Anyhow...

Jackie: You're Aunt is really lucky she has you! I know it's tough to take care of an elderly person close to you. If something unfortunate happens, at least you'll know you were there for her when she needed you!!

Susan: I hear ya loud and clear with the mid-winter blues! My brother has severe depression this time of year and has to go on medication to get through it. I try to get out even in the cold to take walks and at least get some fresh air and hear the birds chirp. Especially on sunny days like we're having today! As far as belonging to a gym and the physical constraints in your house for a treadmill...I hear ya there, too. I've always worked better belonging to a gym...but even better if I sign up for a class because it comes with a schedule that you have to stick to or you'll waste the money you spent on it. What's lacking in your exercise schedule, at least from my standpoint, is structure, maybe? If you signed up for a class and paid for that, then you'd know that every (for instance) M/W/F you have to be at the gym for class at 7pm (or whenever) and make it a priority to be there over everything exept family emergencies. You need, and deserve, to take this time out for yourself!! And while you're at the gym, then you can go work out with weights afterward or beforehand if you have time. Just a suggestion...take it or leave it. Personally, I don't live close enough to a gym up here, but if I did, I'd join. My personal experience in having an in-home exercise set up, is that I procrastinate into not doing it at all...if you have to make the effort to drive to the place to exercise, then I tend to do it more often...it seems like more of a formality in my life.

Anyhow...I have to go clean my breakfast dishes...that George Foreman really stinkS if you don't clean it right away...the grill, I mean, not the man!! :lol:

[techwife]

MONET: I'm so jealous...I love kittens!! Even when they're bad. Actually, especially when they're bad! :lol: They're so darn cute and mischievous. But I know your frustration, too...they can be a bit overwhelming..but remember that before you know it, they'll be resembling scatter rugs, laying around in sunbeams, staring at you as if to say, "Don't bother me unless you have a can of cat food...and while you're at it, could ya clean the litter box?" Our cat used to jump on the counter and shred a whole roll of paper towels. He liked toilet paper, too. Best weapon? A squirt bottle...a little squirt in the fur will teach those kitties what's right and wrong. And it's fun and stress relieving for you, too!! :lol: Better than my dad's old weapon...one of those boat horns they use at football games. After we'd stop laughing, we'd peel the poor cat off the ceiling and then be mad at our dad all day for being so mean to the cat. Poor thing...it really was funny, though.... :lol: In moderation.... :^:

[Pancho]

I hope it is a good WIW for everyone. It wasn't for me....I was at 123.5#. I forgot to weigh until I was halfway through my protein smoothie. BUT, I also had a slice of cake last night, and two slices of pizza. My DH brought pizza home so I wouldn't have to cook (which was a good thing since Britt had therapy after school, and we didn't get home until almost 6 p.m.).

I also didn't get to the gym this morning....I'm feeling so discouraged. Britt woke up coughing in the middle of the night, so I gave her some honey. Then Lane is getting Britt's cold and she was up 3 times. When you are only getting 6 hours of sleep anyhow, and then you are up 4x's, it doesn't make for a very good night's sleep. I had the alarm set for 4 a.m., but Lane woke up right before that, and wanted me to hold her. By the time I was done with her, I wouldn't have been able to make it to the gym and back before Britt had to go to school. So, I just laid in the warm bed for another hour until I had to get Britt up for school. I told myself that I would do one of my exercise tapes when she naps, but I also feel like napping too. Hmmmm.....what a dilemma. It is so hard to commit to exercising 4 days a week when you have kids....you never know what could prevent you from going. But, my kids needs have to come first. I'll be able to get 4 days in next week, I hope.

Thanks so much for the birthday wishes. We had that evil pizza and cake, and then I opened the gifts that Britt and DH went out to get over the weekend. They got me a huge body pillow, which is the softest pillow I've ever felt; it is like the microfiber. They sell them at Costco for $9.99. I love sleeping with a big pillow. They also got me a bath pillow and a Kenny Chesney CD. So, it was a fine birthday. My DH is taking me to see George Strait this Friday night as my big gift! I sure hope Lane is feeling better and I don't get this.

Gator: Congrat on the high score on your test. Keep up the great work on those steps. We are going to the zoo Friday and I will try to remember to strap mine on.

Tech: Go with the regular dark chocolate (65% or greater). It actually has health benefits and doesn't have those dreaded sugar alcohols in them. That's too funny...I am sure the AirDyne has a disclaimer or warning on it somewhere not to use while sleeping :lol: . It is good to have a big breakfast...that or lunch should be the biggest meal of the day. When I was in Sears, looking for polo shirts for Britt for school, I saw that they have scrubber sponges that are made especially for the George Foreman grills. I heard that the newer models of George Foreman grills have removeable grills on them, so you can just pop them out and clean them. I already have two of his grills, so I highly doubt I'll be getting one of those, but what a concept.

Cindy: I think cutting back on that fat will make a big impact on your weight loss, as well as your overall health.

Wood: You will be out of those 200's soon; just hang in there, and keep up the great work!

Fillise: I hope you get out of that "funk"; my dad goes through that during the winter months too. I think that if you have a hard time finding motivation to go to the gym, you will have a hard time getting motivated to work out at home; it's too easy to put it off and find other things to do. Once I get to the gym, I know that I am there to work out and that I won't leave until I get that workout in. When I had a treadmill at home, I rarely used it; I always found ways to avoid it. BUT, on the other hand some people (like Heart, Jack, Teensy & some of the others) are great at working out at home. I like the atmosphere of the gym; it gets me motivated and moving. Hang in there, the warmer months are coming....

Jack: Sorry to hear about your DA; I hope she is doing better today. I hope you are able to get some sleep tonight; I know I will be going to bed early. Can you post the measurements on the glaze? It sounds yummy!

Monet: That's one thing I don't like about cats. They seem to get anywhere they want to be and everywhere you don't want them to be. I feel puffy and gross today too; when am I gonna learn? I guess a birthday is a good enough excuse, but what excuse do I have for the past two months? I think cutting starches out for awhile will help...I've gotta come up with a plan. I've been having protein smoothies for BF for 4-5 mornings a week. That helps cut out a starchy carb for BF, but I've got to find good alternatives for dinner and lunch too. I can do it; I've done it before!

Well, Lane wants to play, so I gotta run!

Have a great day,
Nat

[Toni48]

Dang I just hate to come here and write that I've gained 1.5 lbs. this week. I'm just kicking myself. Hopefully from now on will be better. I've just been sloppy and have eaten to many starches, not enough water and vegetables. Just streching SB as far as I can. I even had pancakes one day with real syrup on them. So I know where I went wrong and hopefully can fix it this coming week. Well now its time to quit gripeing and get on with the rest of my life. We may get snow this afternoon. And its cold and rainy right now. I think I may need to build a fire. Guess I'll post this with my new weight gain on my ticker.... boo hoo.......

[Ellen]

I got back from taking James to work, and going to Curves, and the three devil kittens look like angels. They are sleeping here, there and everywhere. Laura's year old cat is being very sweet too. They are always little :devil: :devil: :devil: 's in the morning...bored I guess!

TONI: Don't worry about that 1.5 pounds! Now that you are recovered from your hospital stay and getting to the point you can get out and walk, and the weather is hopefully getting warmer, you should start back down soon! Remember, this is a way of life, not just a diet!

PANCHO: Cats do tend to have minds of their own. They say, "Dogs have owners, cats have staff..." :lol: I hope you don't get that cold the girls are passing back and forth. Take extra vitamin C. It is hard to get exercise in when the kids are small....my sister lost a lot of weight when he kids were small, and all she did was walk with them...a LOT. I really should walk more. I just wish I had someplace I could walk to. Just walking around aimlessly irritates me. I like having a destination! Those couple extra pounds are frustrating, but I am sure you will get them off soon. Glad your birthday was nice....enjoy your date out with your hubby!

TECH: I do love the kittens, even if they are frustrating! Did I tell you about the one that got the bag stuck on her neck and freaked out? Poor thing...she ran like greased lightening all over the house and ended up under the recliner in the den. She did not come back out for two and a half hours! We do use a squirt bottle on them. The one is just plain stubborn, and will be blinking at the squirt bottle while wiggling her little butt to jump on the counter! I can't wait until they go in to get fixed. :s: Then when they start the kitty 500 in the morning, I can throw them outside!

JACK: I hope your aunt is doing ok. I am glad you could go and take care of her. At least you are down five of those pounds! I forgot to weigh this morning, and did so just a bit ago, after breakfast, and three cups of coffee. I was down 3 of the eight that jumped on last week. I believe it is more like five, but since I had eaten, I really don't know. I admit I feel discouraged....but then last night's dinner was high in sodium, so I ought to wait a day or two to feel discouraged.

WOOD: Maybe cutting out starches for a few days would help? I find that to be somewhat helpful when I am stuck. Maybe I ought to try it too! :D I have to admit snowshoeing sounds like fun! Its been so long since I saw a decent snow fall...I ought to go visit my family in Chicago! I could never get my husband to go with me though. He hates cold weather!

Ok, time for my five minute room rescue, though I really feel like taking a 15 minute restorative nap. ;) See ya all later! :wave:

[Ellen]

Oh, and a tip on those George Foreman grills: if you lay a wet paper towel on it as soon as you take the food off, and close it, when you come back after having eaten your grilled whatever, you can literally just wipe the grill plates clean. I read that somewhere, and BOB also posted it here a while back. I end up using a second paper towel that is wetted and wrung out to wipe it clean. It works like a charm!

[heartmom]

Hey, all. Like Susan, I am feeling the winter "funk." Just kinda dreary with the days cold, wet, and cloudy. Ready for warmer weather and some sunshine. It definetly zaps my energy. Anyway, today is WIW. I'm at 162, down 6 from Monday morning. That was definetly alot of fluid retention. I'm sure it also helped that I was very strict with my meals,etc..but today I was ready for some "regular" SB meals. For BF, I had a 2 egg cheese omelette topped with salsa and sour cream. Lunch was a very big salad made with tuna, cheese, 1 egg, veggies, and Ranch dressing. I actually still wanted something after eating that so I had yogurt(BB carb freedom). For supper, I am making Mexican meatloaf, butterbeans or butterpeas, and turnip greens. Hope the scale doesn't go up tomorrow because of the increase in food and fat. I'm taking Pancho's advice and re-adjusting my workouts. Still going to do them, just will do some less intense ones. For example, I was going to do Burn it Up(very brutal workout)today, but instead, I did the Ramp it Up which is alot less intense. So we'll see.

Pancho- try not to get discouraged. I think you're doing great. I bet the scales will be back down by tomorrow. You did alot better than myself if pizza and cake were offered on my bday. Why not workout at home on days you can't get to the gym? Let me know how the concert goes, I LOVE George Strait.

Alright, I need to go and pickup the house some. At least make it look like I did something today,lol. Tomorrow I do plan on really cleaning everything in preperation for Ashley's party Saturday. I'll be too busy on Friday and Saturday to fool with it. Hang in there guys! It's already February so March and Spring are on it's way!

[Solly]

OK I was feeling stressed and looking for something to eat so thought I would use this board as my diversion. I'm not even hungry.

Thanks for the well wishes for my aunt. They found a UTI but that is all so far. I think she is just going down. She won't be able to take care of herself so we don't think she will be able to go back to the retirement home. She may need a nursing home for awhile at least. My niece works in a NH close to my house so if she could get in there, at least we would be close to check on her. But even though we have been the only family she has had for the last 30+ years, she does not consider us family and we don't feel we are in the position to make the calls. Least we do something her nieces out of town would not approve of. We are sort of in a rock and a hard place. Oh well, we are hoping to let the hospital & Drs make the call.


Monet, Don't get discouraged, get mad and show those nasty pounds who's boss.

Tech, hang in there, with all that bike riding this week, you should see a drop by next week for sure. Just don't fall off the bike while you are sleeping.

Nat, glad you had a nice BD> I love George Strait. I am thinking of getting Toby Keith tickets for my DH for Valentines. I got them last year and then had to give them away since my surgery was the day of the concert. Hopefully nothing will happen this year. Hope you don't get sick for the big night out. It is nice when we can follow our schedules day in and day out, but life happens and throws a big curve ball sometimes. We do what we can and get back to routine when we can. Don't worry about the gym.

Toni, Don't fret about the gain. Considering what you have been through you will be back on track and exercising soon and it will be gone before you know it.

Heart, WTG on those 6 pounds. Just shows it was water.


The glaze recipe was:
1/3 cup bourbon of choice
1/4 cup agave
1/4 t ginger
3 T soy sauce
1/4 t black pepper
1/4 t red pepper

Just brush it on. I think they also suggested marinatiing the chops in it too. Something different to try.

bf: was cereal bar
lunch was left over Amy's ww pizza 1/2 orange
Dinner will be chicken enchilladas.


OK coming here has help get my mind off eating. Off ot get some work accomplished today.

Have a great evening everyone.

[techwife]

MONET: I know...I could never understand anyone that couldn't just love kitties. But to each his own. My cat gets tangled up in the grocery bags, too...so funny after you've saved them. Another trick, if your cats are utterly defying the water squirting thing, what works for me with my cat is that he's terrified of the Lysol can. Trust me, I've never sprayed my cat with Lysol :eek: , but whenever I change his litter, I spray it with Lysol and if Kitty even sees the can, he squints at me and looks at me like I'm the devil incarnate and tears out of the room to hide under a bed. So, whenever I want him to get out of something, I jsut get out the Lysol and shake the can and he's gone for at least an hour!! :lol: I just love cats. And I just love your comment about 'dogs have owners, cats have a staff..." :lol: That's so true...

And thanks for the trick on the George Foreman!! I'll be giving it a try tomorrow!! It's grocery day again (pray the car starts!!) and I'm going to try fish on it. I'm going to buy lots of fish and keep it for lunches. I just love fish!!

Pancho: Those darn pancakes and syrup will getcha every time!! I'm going to get some whole wheat pancake mix tomorrow and try them with apple sauce. Once upon a time, I used to get WW frozen waffles (I'm sure they were really with white flour with ww mixed in) and ate them with applesauce instead of syrup. It was actually really good!! In a potato pancake kinda way...

Don't worry about the 1.5 lb...just hike up your skirt and get back on the wagon, sistah!! ;)

Nat: Luckily, the AirDyne works the arms, as well, so I have something to hold onto!! :lol:

Okay, my menu for today is:

BF: Oatmeal, 1 orange, 1/2 banana (mostly green), 2 sausage links, coffee

Lunch: Chicken salad sandwich on 7 grain bread, grapes, water

Snack: Monterey cheese, triscuits, grapes, water

Dinner: Dunno yet...will likely involve some sort of green leafy things and meat. :lol:

Gotta run!! Kris

[techwife]

HEART: SO glad you re-lost your six pounds...let's hope you don't find them again!!

Jackie: Glad we could help distract you from the fridge!! :lol:

Oh, and just for the record...I like dogs, too...but I've never owned one before. I'm pretty sure my cat would fire me if I got one.. :lol:

[Teensybean]

Hello everyone--

Sorry I haven't been here for a few days. Just been busy and on the run. My birthday was Monday, so on Sunday morning dh decided to take me up to Chewelah for the brunch at the casino. (I think this is more for him, than me!) I did really great at breakfast. Had a salad, a cut of prime rib and some breakfast meat. No pancakes, waffles, potatoes,or desserts. Just before we left, I got lucky and cashed in for 153.00. So I gave dh 53.00 and kept the 100.00 and added it to what Bill gave me. That gave me a couple of hundred for some new clothes.

Then on my birthday, Monday we went up to a different casino to get my birthday credits from them. (By the way, we are not big gamblers.....we usually only spend 20.00 each) They had just finished remodeling and had added on to their buffet. It was fabulous. They had everything..... a hugh soup and salad bar, Mexican, Asian, Italian, and what they called Northwest and a carving board with different meats, and also a sugar free dessert section.
I ate a salad, a piece of mesquite chicken breast, some fahita mix minus the tortilla, a spoonful of cashew chicken, and a small piece of sf cheesecake with sf, ff ice cream. Yeah!!! And I lost my 20.00!!

Yesterday we had to go pick up my car......and pay that bill.....1039.50! OUCH!! Part of that was just maintenence, replacing the timing belts (4 different one) and water pump that they recommend every 60,000 miles. But the compressor for my A/C is what was making the noise. So that had to be replaced. Anyway I am set now.....and I went shopping for some clothes. Spent one half of my money.....Got a new pair on shoes (so I can start walking again) 2 pairs of jeans, 2 pull over tops, new undies, and some socks. They are just starting to put out the summer stuff. The capris and tops, so think I will wait a couple of weeks and then go back.

Brant showed up this morning with his gal friend, and surprised me with a beautiful bouquet of flowers!! And he hates to buy flowers, says it is a waste of money, because they just die, lol. Ramona's birthday is today, so they both took the day off to play. They were headed to town to see a movie and have lunch.

I ended up with a 100% OP January!! And 21 days of exercise for the month, Yeahhhh!! I decided that I am not going to weigh myself until the middle of February. I have become too obsessed with the numbers on the scale. I want to beat myself up when it doesn't move, or shows a gain. Even when I know it can't be fat.......I just plain feel like crap. So I am going to avoid it for 2 weeks and see how that works. I am also dropping a day of exercise. I am only going to work out 4 days. Wish me luck!!

Today's menu--

1/2 grapefruit 1/2 hour before;
venison hot link
1/3 c Roman meal hot cereal with 1/4 c sf syrup
Lite 85 yogurt

snack-- apple

L--
Romaine lettuce, with 1 scoop vension chili, salsa, ff sour cream

snack--orange

D--
Meat sauce over WW spaghetti. (I am trying this with some ground turkey. Will let you know how it turns out.)
salad
1/2 c sf banana cream pudding

Okay-- on to some replies......

Woods-- Boy, if I knew what to tell you, I sure would. It is very discouraging isn't it. Hang in there. It will come.

Fillise-- Having the room for exercise equipment was my problem too. I finally settled on the "Total Body Trainer" by "Body By Jake" It is wonderful. And is only 42" long. He also has some other exercise equipment. His new one is called a cardio cruiser and looks very interesting. I am planning on checking it out.

Jackie-- Hang in there. It seems that quite a few of us are not seeing much results. But you did lose that water, or some of it. We just have to keep plugging along.

Tech-- You are doing great in the exercise department. Just keep on keeping on and the scale will start moving for you.

Pancho-- Happy Belated Birthday! Looks like we are a day apart. Mine was on Monday. Glad you had a nice day and enjoy the concert. I just got the new CD of his 50 # 1 hits.....it's great!

Toni-- (((HUGS))) You are not alone!!

Heart-- I agree with Pancho.....I think if you are going to exercise that much, you need to eat more. I am dropping a day and only going to do 4 days a week for awhile, and then maybe only 3. Just to see if it helps any.


C U !!

[Cindylcing]

Happy middle of the week!
I weighed this morning and nothing for this week.

Teensybean- Im scaling down my workouts a bit too. Ive been doing too much cardio for me. Im adding back in some pilates and some lower body floor exercises and I may start next week doing 4 days a week instead of 5. I really believe that our bodies get so used to our routines we need to shock it a bit.

Menu for today

breakfast- oatmeal, 1 slice cantaloupe
s- 2 celery stalks with 2 tbls pbutter
lunch- leftover turkey shish kabob and veges
s- 5 radishes, 4 walnuts
dinner- stir fry mixture with steak, brocilli and red peppers, romaine salad with carb options blue cheese.
s- plain yogurt with added blueberries

[GatorGal]

Susan--Funny you should talk about paying for a membership to a gym but never going. Clark Howard just had a piece on his radio show about that very thing. He said that most gyms, esp. the big ones, really hope you don’t use their facilities. If everyone that paid actually came, they could not sell as many memberships because it would be too crowded. His suggestion was good: find a place where you pay as you go. That way, they will do what it takes to get you there because when you show up, they make money. I actually pay to have a personal trainer one day a week. It costs me $25, and it is the only thing that actually gets me there. I know I have that standing appt. and I can’t miss it, or else. I don’t like to lift weights, but it really is good for my health. My DH and I go one other day during the week, and then my DH is my “personal trainer.” He knows that I won’t go unless he actually arranges to be there at the gym. That is also another reason that I walk. I find walking on the TM at the gym very boring, even in front of the TV. So I have my pedometer to challenge me, and I keep up with what is going on in the neighborhood when I walk by all the houses every day.
Except for today--it rained! :(

Congratulations to all the losers today. I actually forgot to weigh. I had to eat my breakfast at work today. But I had a good day eating-wise.
B. oatmeal with cherries and sk. milk. small glass of OJ :yikes:
Lunch: stir-fried “moo shu” pork, 1/2 apple
Dinner: practice for a tasting dinner I’m having in a month--1/2 tilapia filet topped with shrimp, lobster and scallops topped with a beurre blanc sauce, fresh baby green beans, sautéd mushrooms with scallions and garlic, and crispy fried ( :yikes: again) julienned sweet potato. It was gooood!

Re the tasting dinner--we go to a club that has a “chef’s table” where the chef fixes about 10 courses that are tailored to just what you like. We tried to get reservations because we wanted to take some friends. But the chef just couldn’t find an evening to accomodate us. So, we decided to have our own. So I will be the chef, and the other husband will be in charge of the wine. So far, this is what I think I’m going to have:

Paté on tiny croustades
Roasted red pepper tart
Fish course--as described above
Poultry course--roasted breast of duck with cranberry sauce, served with ratatouille
Beef--Filet of beef topped with Crispy fried sweet potatoes, sautéed mushrooms
Cheese and fruit
Dessert -- probably a lemon souffle cake
Coffee

The courses will be tiny and served on smaller plates, so that each one will be just 3 or 4 bites. I might have sorbet between a couple of the courses, but probably not.

Well, I’m rambling. I have to stop and go study. I have another quiz tomorrow.

[Ellen]

Evening everyone! Its been a busy evening. I was playing with the chicken stuffed with glutinous rice recipe Gator and I have talked back and forth about. I wanted to try it as a stuffed chicken breast...worked ok, but it was messy. I tried to hurry and you just can't smash out chicken breasts fast, or you get 'holes' in them! :lol: I spent hours on a cool Chinese recipe site I found, drooling over recipes and trying to decide what I will actually fix. A Chinese banquet usually has three soups, as well as a variety of dishes served inbetween the soups. With eight people at the table, I really should have eight dishes for the main courses. Years ago, when I used to do a banquet every year, I had a bunch of favorites I always fixed, but its been so long, my favorites have changed! :dizzy: To me, half the fun is trying to decide what to fix! The worse thing about my doing this kind of thing is that I never want to finally decide! I may go to the market the day before and change the menu because something looks good, and I want to buy it instead of something else.

GATOR: Good luck on your quiz! Your tasting menu sounds pretty tasty to me! :) I had crispy fried sweet potatoes at the Vortex a few weekends ago after we went to the High Museum. I am thinking of trying to fix them...care to share any tips?

TECH: Add to the other joys of owning three kittens the fact that the biggest sister seems to have gone into heat today. She has been terribly annoying! Very vocal and affectionate when she is usually quiet and standoffish. I guess we are going to have to go through that three times since its another three weeks until their appointment with the Catsnip vet...oh joy! Our oldest cat would probably like to fire the whole staff, since he was decidedly irritated with us that we acquired the year old cat, AND the three kittens! He will come in when its cold, but during the summer, he stays outside all day long.

CINDY: Hopefully, after a seven pound loss last week, you weren't disappointed at staying the same this week??? I agree that sometimes you just have to change your workouts to shock the old bod into responding. I am trying to get in four Curves workouts instead of just three to see if it helps me get losing.

TEENSY: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! :gift: :balloons: I am sorry I missed it, but I hope you enjoyed it! Sounds like you did pretty good winning $100, and staying OP at those buffets! I think its totally awesome that you had a totally OP month in January! You ROCK!

JACK: That is great that you thought to come to the board to avoid eating. I do that too...that is why I spend so much time on here! I want to eat all the time! It helps, but I can be so bad! Today, I did not eat a real lunch, but made some popcorn. Then, by the time I made dinner, I was starving! I made chicken stuffed with rice, and miso soup....at least I did not pig out! Baby steps...baby steps!

HEART: I think its a good idea to change your workouts...you may be over training. Have you ever read Body For Life by Bill Phillips? It's a very good book on training, and how much, how often and what to eat while training. He is also very motivating...in fact, I think I will pull out my copy and re-read it for motivation. You can probably get it at the library. I hope Ashley has a great birthday! How old is she going to be?

That is it for me..I have to go fix Tom's lunch and prepare the coffee pot for the morning. I am trying to establish good morning and bedtime routines, and it has been very hard! I am doing it though...except for the shoes! Flylady is really great, except for the bit about the shoes. :lol:

Night all! :wave:

(PS. BOB, where are you?)

[Teensybean]

Gator-- I would be so afraid to try something that elaborate.....kudos to you and your friends. Sounds like fun.

Monet-- I sure wish I lived next door to you......you are the one that ROCKS I don't mind cooking, but.....I could never pull of something like you and Gator are doing. Your CNYD sounds fabulous.....and I love Chinese food. Your guests should feel very flattered that they are the ones chosen to enjoy your labors of love.

[woodfrogs]

Hi everyone!
Got some good exercise yesterday. Walked in the snow for an hour, then walked for 30 mins on the tm, and did our usual 3 games of bowling. More snowshoeing today....and I hope to get to the gym later, if not today, then definitely tomorrow.
menu:
bacon, egg and cheese and 1 slice rye toast(homemade)
carb control yogurt
1/2 pb sand on pumpernickel
carrots/celery
apple/orange
dinner will be some sort of beef/gravy thing over ww noodles and veggies

Had a veggie delite sub from Subway last night, really quite tasty!

Monet - I will try the starches idea. Try to limit to 2 per day or less and see if that helps.

I'm hoping to increase my treadmill time on non-gym days. For awhile last year I was walking for 1 1/2 hours, figuring the more calories burned the better. But got out of the habit in the summer with the nice weather. So, now it starts again. I go to the gym 2x a week and really do a thorough workout. Paying the $$ to them every 2 weeks gives me a reason to go. I'd hate to be wasting the money. When the gym was on the way home, I was in there 4-5 times a week. But now it's a bit more out of the way, hence 2x a week. If I could ever coordinate with my Dad or sister, I'd probably go more often.
Have a great day everyone!
Barbara
Poughkeepsie, NY

[Ellen]

Monet is not in a good mood. I went to dust the drawer for my keyboard today, and decided to do a thorough job of it. I took out the wireless keyboard and went through all the junk, only to realize one thing that SHOULD have been in the drawer, in the corner where I keep it when not wearing it, was my wedding ring. It was not there. I am absolutely sick about it. I can't think of where I would have moved it to, since I have not been able to wear it since my surgery. I was too swollen and had not tried to put it on recently. Anyway, its not where I am sure I left it, and I have no idea where to look.

I will check back in later...I need to go squirt a few kittens....

[Solly]

Good Thursday Morning Ladies.

Got my exercise in last night. Feel much better about it. I hate when I have to miss one. Will get one tonight to make my 3 for the week. But need to do more. I really need to work on getting up earlier and getting at least the TM done before work.

Nothing exciting with me today.

Teensy. so sorry we missed your birthday. Here is some belated wishes :balloons: :hat: :gift: Glad you had luck at the casino, one anyway. That is awesome that you had the whole month legal and all that exercise. I think it is a good idea to stay off the scale for a while. I think flowers are a waste too,but every once in a while it is nice to get some.

Gator, you dinner sounds so elegant. I bet it will probably be better than the restaurants.

Monet, your dinner is getting more elaborate as it goes. You will have tons of food i'm sure. You guests are very lucky. Sure hope you found your wedding ring. I would be devestated. Pray to St. Anthony. He never fails.

Baraba, 1 1/2 hours on the TM? WOW! I'm impressed.

Be back later.

[Ellen]

A quick fly by...I found my ring. I am embarrassed to say I put it in a ring box in the drawer in my desk... duh!

I am doing one of my least favorite chores today...defrosting the freezer. I have not done it in probably two years, maybe more. Its really bad, and I am loathing it. I have water boiling in pans to speed up the melting of the humongous chunks of ice that are all over the shelves.

One of the kittens is in heat. Man is she annoying. She is trying to get the attention of Laura's cat..a fixed male...and it is actually kind of funny. She keeps murring at him, and he is trying to sleep. You can see from his posture that he wishes she would just go away! She has rubbed all over him, licked his ears, and he keeps moving away, and looking at me as if to say, "can't you tell her to leave me alone?"

I better go check on the freezer. I can't wait to get this job done! I threw away all kinds of stuff that was in the freezer, even stuff in tupperware! I have no place to store the tupperware, and I don't feel like washing it and trying to find a place for it...its all old stuff anyway. So, I tossed it. I actually feel good about that. I am sure I threw out enough to qualify for a "Flylady 27 Fling Boogie"!

:wave:

[Pancho]

Good day SB pals:

I still only have 1 day of exercise this week. I will be getting a lot of exercise at the zoo, pulling Lane around in the wagon, and will go to the gym on Saturday a.m. I hope to get my four days in next week.

I was at 122.5# this morning, so down a pound from yesterday, but still up 2.5#'s from my "regular weight" of 120#'s. My eating has been pretty good, but still not 100%. I will get there next week.

Lane is not feeling great; she's got the sniffles and a little bit of a cough from the drainage. She was playing "restaurant" w/ Britt the other day, and poked the inside of her mouth with a straw. Now, she's got a big canker type sore between her botton lip and her teeth, and it is really bothering her. There's not much that can be done for it either, and I feel so helpless. She has highly sensitive teeth, since her teeth are so new and the roots haven't fully established yet, so she can't suck on popsicles. I bought her a milkshake yesterday and that helped for a few minutes. I gave her some Tylenol, which did nothing. I bought some orajel (teething gel) and put that on, and that only helped for a few minutes. I also bought the Triaminic throat spray and tried spraying that on there, but to no avail. I talked to the pediatrician and they advised me against using the numbing agents since it also numbs the throat and can cause a child to choke. Heck, I never knew that; I used it on both of my girls when they were teething. I even put some orajel on Lane before she ate last night, so she could get some food down her. She had only taken two bites of her BF and lunch. It is just not going to be a fun few days around here; she is miserable.

Britt's feeling better and has been back to school all week. She is celebrating her 100th day of school today. She brought 100 pixie sticks to share with her class.

Toni: Hang in there; I'm right there with you!

Monet: I do take high dosages of vitamin C ascorbate daily, as well as my garlic and my whole food supplements to help boost my immunity. So far, so good. I've also been sucking on elderberry extract lozenges since Britt first came down with her cold. Thanks for the tip on the grill; it does seem to clean up so much better when it is still warm. I am with you on the "no shoes." In the summer, I am always barefoot, and in the winter months, I am in my socks, unless I leave the house. Britt is the same way. We will go to someone's house, and the minute she walks in, she kicks off her shoes. Everyone thinks she is being courteous, but she really just wants to get her shoes off :lol: . Your wedding ring has to be around there somewhere. I can understand you being upset...but I am sure it will show up soon! Hang in there.

heart: I usually eat BB Lite 85 yogurt, but ran out awhile back and the store was out of them too, so I got the carb freedom one. I actually compared labels the next time I went to the store to see what the difference was, and noticed that the carb freedom is higher in saturated fat. I stick to the Lite 85 now, because it all adds up. The carb freedom does taste thicker and creamier though. I do workout at home when I can. If Lane is not napping, it is difficult though. She is only 2 1/2, and it is tough to keep her occupied for 45 minutes while I exercise. She usually ends up crawling through my legs while I'm standing and bouncing on my back/stomach if I am on the floor. It doesn't make for a real productive workout. Beachbody has a video called Tony and the Kids, and I am going to get it for the girls. Britt always wants to workout with me when I workout at home. Are you enjoying the new home?

Jack: Glad you turned to us instead of food; I hope it helped. What a difficult position to find yourselves in with your aunt; good luck with that situation. Deirks Bently is going to be opening up for George Strait, and he is from Phoenix, so it should be a big party...I can't wait. I like Toby Keith too; that would be a fun gift.

Tech: Don't you have any Agave syrup? We don't even have syrup in our house anymore. Whenever I make French toast or WW waffles or pancakes, we just mix the light and dark agave and use that in place of syrup. It is delicious with a little cinnamon sprinkled on top. The kids haven't complained once.

Teensy: Happy Belated Birthday to you as well!!! Glad you had fun shopping for clothes; it is so nice when we can spend a little money/time on ourselves. My DH parents sent me a $50 gift card for Dillards that I still haven't used; I'd like to go out by myself to spend it. You did an excellent job on your eating on your B-day!! And what an accomplishment January was for you...high five!! It's probably a good idea to put off weighing for awhile if it gets you down. If I was eating right and exercising, a small gain wouldn't bother me. For me, it is the fact that I haven't been exercising as often as I'd like and my eating hasn't been great....so my gain is warranted. I got the George Strait CD for Christmas. We will listen to it on the way to the concert. I can never listen to it with the kids; Britt wants to listen to her Keith Urban CD, and Lane wants to listen to her Dora CD.

Cindy: Remember to try to add in some strength training exercise as well. It increases your metabolism for longer than cardio. Are you feeling satisfied with your menu? I would be starving.

Gator: Howdy. I hope you enjoy your dinner; it sounds like fun.

Wood: When I was pregnant, I got the veggie sub at Subway a lot; I really enjoyed it then. I haven't eaten at Subway in probably a year. Keep up the great job with exercise. 1 1/2 hours on the treadmill; I can't even imagine!

Well, I better run. I'll check in later.

Take care,
Nat

[Toni48]

Well thanks to my wonderful friends here with all their encouragement I had a wonderful OP day. I stayed in the kitchen and made things yesterday for the first time in ages. So I made a yummy meatloaf made with part deer burger, cooked cabbage, and coleslaw last night. I even made a lime chiffon pie for dessert. I've got some egg salad made for todays lunch. I'm even drinking plenty of water. So again thanks so much you've all been so good to me... This board is GREAT...... sorry this is so quick but DH is coming home from lunch and I'm running late...

[techwife]

IT IS 40 DEGREES OUT TODAY...ABOVE ZERO!! It's so funny how the frigid weather makes temps in the upper 30's, lower 40's, when they finally come around, seem down right balmy. So nice to walk around with your jacket unzipped with no gloves and no frozen nose hairs!! :lol: What really boggles me, though, is the people still out ice fishing. It would take weeks of subzero (which we've had) and then still I wouldn't get out on the ice if the temp was above freezing. Freaks me out!

Well, I was a bum this morning and didn't go on the Airdyne. My hubby decided to come home last night (he's working 2 hours away) and see us and I was so happy to have him here, but by the time I got him out and on the road again this morning, my son was up and then I decided to skip it for today. And I'm up two pounds. Bummer. But I did my grocery shopping today and that is sort of considered exercising to me and I'll be walking to get my daughter from school which is a mile walk both ways. So, that'll have to be enough for me today. I also missed the president's speech last night. My hubby has an almost rabid loathing for all things political...so we watched South Park instead :dizzy: I was just happy to have hubby on the couch with me for a change... ;)

Not much time for replies...I still have some groceries to put away...meat to clean and put in the freezer, etc. I got my Tilapia and some bay scallops for ME!! Monet, I'm so happy you found your ring!! I would be sick, myself, if I ever lost mine. I've misplaced something, too, and maybe I'll get your luck in finding it...Shelley has all these annoying fundraisers for ice skating and the last one is to sell $50 worth of raffle tickets. I sold $41 worth and was going to pay for the rest myself, and I can't find the tickets OR the money anywhere!! It think the cat knocked it off the counter and into the trash as that is the last place I saw them that I can remember. I'm just sick about it. If I don't come up with the tickets and the cash today I have to pay for them all myself. Crap... I'm really hoping that this is the last year she does skating. She can't skate on one foot for anything and so many of the moves she's supposed to be learning are so dependent on skating on one foot. I think she's reached her potential and maybe it's time to move onto guitar lessons or singing or something...we'll see... :^:

Really gotta get ready to get out of here and get walkin'!! Will insert replies later!!

Kris

[techwife]

Addendum to last post: TOM is here...which explains the two pound gain. Let's hope the two pounds goes away when TOM goes away :lol:

[Ellen]

UPDATE ON THE FREEZER: Did I mention I absolutely LOATHE defrosting the freezer? Its taking for freaking ever! I feel cantankerous now. I had a egg custard for lunch...and some rye chips. (they are NOT legal...shame on me!) The egg custard is legal...its made with fructose and only has a little in it to boot. I made it with 1% milk too.... Good stuff!

Anyway, back to the grindstone! I am using boiling water to steam the ice and a hair dryer. There is a huge chunk in the upper corner (its an upright) that doesn't look like its melted down even a quarter of an inch, and its been four or five hours! sheesh...I hope I can get in bed by 11 tonight! :rolleyes:

[heartmom]

Quick post- have to get up and make chicken salad for tonight's supper before I go to church. Anyway, I "think" I'm down 1/2 a pound, but not sure since my scales don't measure 1/2's. Today, though, I've been munchy and have had more than I should. I had a sf/lc fruit smoothie and 2 momentum(lc) bars in addition to my BF and lunch. I'm feeling guilty also about not working out this morning. Usually on Tuesday and Thursday, I get 2 workouts in(church plus home). I'm hoping the scale doesn't show a gain tomorrow. My husband thinks it's funny for me to lose weight just to put back on a couple(hoping no more than 2) Saturday. I figure if I'm going to have a gain it's better to get what I can off before it happens,lol. I know, I'm ridiculous. Well, I've reduced my workouts from up to 7 weekly to just 5 and reduced a couple of the intensities. I feel guilty about it.

Menu:

BF- orange and lc yogurt
Snack- LC bar
Lunch- Big tuna salad made with veggies, 1 egg, cheese, and Ranch dressing
Dessert-LC yogurt
Snack- LC bar
Snack(again!!)- lc/sf fruit smoothie
Supper- will be chicken salad sandwiches(probably 2) made with mayo, celery seed, dill relish, egg, etc...on Wheat n' Fiber bread(the rest of the family is eating chips with theirs).

Pancho- I knew you would be down again today. Yea, I guess that is tough when you have a kiddo hanging on to ya!

Monet- Have you found the ring? I hope you do soon. I've had that "sick" feeling before about losing jewlery, not fun at all.

Alright, I really need to run!

[Cindylcing]

Monet- so glad to hear you found your ring. That would of been terrible to lose those !

Gatorgal- that menu does look Great ! mmm

Pancho- thats for the advice. I do do strength training at least 2 x a week sometime 3. Im now in menopause so I know that its very important for that phase of life also .
Im satisfied with what Im eating but I sometimes think my calories should be a bit higher. I try to eat something every couple hours. Do you guys go for a certain calorie amount a day or just eat when your hungry?

Todays menu:

b- 2 eggs, 3 bacon , 1 slice ww lc toast
s- LC zuchinni/carrot muffin
l- 3 turkey roll ups with swiss
s- apple
d- Large romaine salad with diced chicken breast with LF Ranch
s- 1 oz walnuts
s- plain yogurt with 1/4 cup blueberries added

[THE BIG ORANGE BABE]

EVENING EVERY BUDDY!!!

DANGIT.....I miss a few days and find out that I've missed not one, BUT TWO BIRTHDAY!!!!

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY.....NAT & COLLEEN!!!! Hope you both had good days filled with everything wonderful!!!

MONET....HERE I AM!!!!! Sorry I've been MIA, no excuse, just MIA....Your fussing has reminded me WHY we have self defrosting freezers....I dont envy you at all!!! How are the plans for the party coming along?

JACKIE...My knee has been behaving its self....This week has been good so far! I'm an impatient person, but I guess that I'm going to have to suck it in and start being patient! This is going to take some time...

GATOR...I need to get a pedomoter...one of those like you got your Daughter sounds nice...where did you say you got it?
Your menu sounds really good for your party...let us know how it goes.

CINDY...those roll ups sounds good....I'll have to get the makings...that would be good for my lunch at work....

TECH....did you lay out in the sun today???? That's hot for y'all this time of year!!!

TONI...you had me until I read deer meat I can't stand anything wild...never have...it gives me the shivers!

NAT...I'm sorry that Lane isn't feeling well, but thank goodness Brit is better.
You have a never ending cycle going on up there...

BARB...MY LIVING GAWD....someone would have to call the paramedics if I stayed on the TM that long! Hope you got some results!

Gotta go for now, I've waited too long to eat supper.....

Have we LOST Crystle????

BOB

[Ellen]

Good evening everyone! The freezer is done! Yay! I have everything back in it, and boy does it look roomy! :lol: I better not go shopping and fill it up! Maybe I will clean out the fridge freezer tomorrow! NOT! I have had enough to last at least a week.

Dinner tonight was beef and broccoli in black bean sauce, hot and sour soup, and soba noodles. (they are buckwheat, and legal) Ruth and Erik came over to use my computer and internet since theirs is not connected right now. They stayed and had dinner with us. James and Laura went to the improv theater, so it was just the four of us. To celebrate finishing the freezer, AND cleaning up the kitchen after dinner, I am sitting here posting and enjoying a glass of Fonseca Bin 27 port. I don't think port is legal, but after my day, I kind of don't care! I WILL sleep well tonight.

BOB: I am glad you checked in. I was about to hop in the car and drive down there to kick you in the booty. I hope we have not lost Country...and where is SEF? I thought she was going to come back?! I miss both of them. I wonder too where Sebray is...

HEART: Stop feeling guilty right now! Seven workouts a week is probably too much. Please read that book by Bill Phillips I mentioned...Body For Life. This guy is a champion body builder, and started EAS supplement company, as well as Muscle Magazine. He knows his stuff, and he says six days, alternating days of cardio and weight training is sufficient. Cardio is never more than 20 minutes! You increase the intensity but not the time. He says he wants to have a life AND be in shape...if you over train, you will not see the results you want. Your body freaks and hangs on in case you are going to starve! Same as if you are eating too few calories.

CINDY: Your menu is looking good! I was relieved to find the ring, for sure. There were many years I could not wear it as it did not fit, but I got it resized about fifteen years ago and have worn it almost all the time since. It feels weird not to have it on, but my other ring, which is also white gold, reacts with antibacterial soaps and causes what looks like a burn all around my finger. I know this, so why did I use that soap? I don't know...I guess I need my head examined! :rolleyes:

TECH: Did you find the money and tickets? I sure hope so! Once when I was a teen I was supposed to go to the zoo with the family I babysit for, but she could not find her car keys! She finally had to take a bus up to where her husband worked, get his keys and make copies. She never did find them, and we figured her 2 year old son dropped them in the trash. Keys are not a big deal compared to all that money! I sure hope you found it!

PANCHO: I am with Britt...get the shoes off! I hate wearing shoes! I used to work out at Curves barefooted, until the owners found out and made a 'rule' that you had to wear rubbersoled, closed sole shoes. Grrr....

Ok folks, that is it for me. My port is gone and I think I will weave my way to bed now! :lol: Nighty nite!


:wave:

[Teensybean]

Evening gals.....

Not much going on today. It was gorgeous out today so we started doing some pruning. Dh was the lucky one, and got to get up on the ladder and start on the apple tree. I just puttered around and did my pussy willow. I may have waited a bit too long to start on it as it was starting to bloom in a few places. This 40 degree weather in January and February has everything confused!!
My cat was out following me around. I finally got her to come to me and sit on my lap as I sat on the front porch. She showed up here as a stray a couple of years ago, and the only way I got her tamed down was to put some food out and sit very still. She finally started coming to me, but only if I was sitting down by her food dish. Two years later.....that is still the rules. I go into the shop and she heads right for her food dish and wants me to sit down and pet her. So now I am trying to get her to know that it is alright in other places too. I go into the shop and let her crawl on my lap, and then I pick her up and take her out into the sunshine and sit on the front steps with her on my lap. She will stay forever as long as I keep petting her. But once she gets down, it is back to the old rules again......she is a funny girl.

Menu for today--

B-- venison hot link
1/2 c Fiber One, 1/4 c ff milk, 1 Splenda, 1 tsp cinnamon
Lite 85 yogurt

snack-- apple

L--
2 crab legs
3 oz carrots
2 sf caramel nips

snack-- orange, chili pecans

D-- Leftover spaghetti with meat sauce
1/2 c sf pudding with lite whipped cream

water--96 oz

Frogs-- You are doing a great job on exercising......you should be seeing some real results. Keep up the good work.

Monet-- I am so glad you found your ring...... I don't wear my wedding set around the house or to do yard work. I got tired of having to pay to have it fixed. So when I go somewhere I have to remember to put it on, and sometimes I forget!! Thanks for the bday wishes.

P.S. Defrosting the freezer is my LEAST favorite thing. I do it every fall just before we get our new beef.

PP. SS. I have 3 freezers!!!

Jackie-- Thanks for the bday wishes. The flowers he got were absolutely gorgeous!! The white roses are starting to open this morning......the house smells good!! Isn't it funny how much we change along with our weight loss....I never would have thought that I would be unhappy about missing exercise, but I do when I don't get to do it for some reason or another.

Pancho-- You managed to get below your goal, so I wouldn't be too worried about your slight gain. I think you will probably lose it before you kn