April Showers Challenge [Archive] - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

**Jennifer**

04-02-2006, 05:34 PM

I'm in. Sorry, with my computer being up at the new house, and with my work laptop going belly up on me last Thursday, I've been out of communication with everyone- and it's no fun! LOL. Also, I've been spending at least 1 day a week in our processing center, which is close to the new house, and there, I can't get online at all. It's a conspiracy!

The good thing is that as busy as I have been, there's been no time for getting myself into trouble. Still got the no chocolate for lent going strong, and thinking that this may be it- I may need Lent every month, with a different thing I need to master. It's been easy to steer clear of chocolate, even having it in the house, and at work, and on Zone bars, which I haven't touched at all because of it. Hmmm!

Goals to follow- I'll revise this post if I can't get on in the next day to post everything. But, fans are up, chairs are assembled, new glass top table is on the way this week- by the end of this week, it might be moving time! :)

(((((( Big Hugs to everyone- I miss you all, and wish I could get here more often. As soon as we move, you'll be back to daily annoyances :lol3: from me! ))))))

spcdcider

04-02-2006, 05:45 PM

Can I join in?
Cardio, build to 45 min a day 5 days a week
Strength train 3 days a week
Yoga 1 day a week
1 day to rest and reflect to stay focused.
1600-1800 cal per day
No eating after 8:30 pm and stick with eating every 3 hours.
6-8 glasses of water a day
Eat my fruits and veggies.
Add whole grains to replace white stuff.
No peanutbutter!
Lose 2 lbs a week.
I have got to keep at it this time.
Kathy

MsRD

04-02-2006, 08:38 PM

Happy April! :dance:

I weighed in this weekend and was down 1 more pound.....that makes down 4 pounds in the month of March! That also makes me incredibly deliriously happy.....the first real progress I have made in way too long1

Elisha.....Thank you for setting up this challenge. Don't worry.....it doesn't have to be pretty, just something to get us motivated!

Joy.....I want to lose 5 pounds in April too! Do I hear a challenge coming on?

Kristen.....Welcome! I love your goal of being social without food.....seems like every social event includes food, now why is that? Couldn't we get together to discuss a book, take a walk, see the sights......whatever....without having to be fed?

Betani......Potato chips? That must be a trigger food for you.....I can have chips in the house (and do!) and never have a craving for them. But.....let there be just half a cookie and it will be calling my name!

TBJ......25 straight days within calorie range! I know you can do it!

Jennifer......Good going on the no chocolate for Lent rule! It shows us how much we can do if we really focus! Woohoo......moving time.....I bet you can't wait!

Kathy.....Welcome! You have some good goals there......bet you are going to achieve every one of them!

Now.....my goals......I am so pumped from my success in March, I feel like I can do anything!
1. Keep calories 1600 or below....not to exceed 11,500 for the week
2. Water.....60-oz per day
3. 30 minutes of exercise...6 days a week minimum
4. Lose 5 pounds by month end

**Jennifer**

04-02-2006, 11:17 PM

Evening, chickies! Whew- long day! But the lawn is watered, hubby is back at the old house finishing up some work, and I took a break from putting away dishes to come post my goals.

1. Be fully moved before the end of April
2. Some type of cardiovascular exercise every day- 20 minutes
3. 3 32oz glasses of water at work each day
4. Continue with the Lenten chocolate ban
5. Continue with good planning & preparing meals in the new house
6. Did I mention be fully moved & have life in order, and exercise stuff all in one place for ease of use??? :)

Have a wonderful night ladies! Here's to April!

miss_elisha

04-03-2006, 10:29 AM

Morning chickies!

Well, it seems as if spring has finally sprung in my neck of the woods. Daffodils are blooming (except for mine, which are perpetually in the shade and still barely have buds), temperatures have been in the 70s for the past few days, and I even took the electric blanket off of my bed.

Yes, I am certainly feeling refreshed.

Yesterday was a fairly good diet day for me, though I didn’t get in enough fruits and veggies. I am making a more conscious effort to do so today, having already eaten an apple with my breakfast and packed a salad for lunch and fruit and veggies for snacks. Water this weekend was good, for once. Saturday… I think I added it up wrong, because my tally was only 72 oz, but I was drinking water all day and it really seems like I drank more than that. Yesterday I got in about 105-110 oz.

Calories Saturday were high—just over 2000—but I did get in my fruits and veggies. I just felt like munching all day though, hence the high calorie count. But I got in a full 60 minutes on the bike, so I don’t think I came out too bad. Yesterday calories came in at 1462, and that is a bit over-estimated because I counted full servings but often didn’t eat full servings. Exercise yesterday was 30 minutes on the bike and bowling.

I took my measurements on Saturday morning, and it wasn't pretty. But this morning the scale is down to 216.8, so it's moving in the right direction again. Next Monday I want to see 215 or below.

I got all the laundry done (YAY!), but that’s about all I did. I didn’t really try to do much of anything else. I’m not too worried about it. I do need to vacuum, but that will probably happen tomorrow, as I have some other things to do tonight: grocery store (I need more fruit!), visit the grandparents, get some gas, and I would really like to get a haircut, but I don’t know if that will happen.

At some point this week I’m going to make up a menu and grocery list for Easter dinner. My dad’s birthday is the 15th, so I’ll need something special for him too. This is my first family dinner, and it’s also the first time Steve’s family will be meeting my family. I’m a little nervous. And I’ve never cooked for his family before either. We’re not planning anything very formal (mostly because we don’t have a table large enough for 12 people, not to mention chairs), but I still want it to be nice. I want to make some healthy dishes this time. I told my mom and grandma that my goal this year is to find healthy but still tasty dishes to make for family gatherings, so I would be trying some new things, and they seem to be ok with it. We could all stand to be a little healthier.

Anyway, my menu for today:

Breakfast:
3 c. coffee w/FF vanilla creamer
1 packet cinnamon roll oatmeal
1 apple

Snack:
Broccoli and cauliflower

Lunch:
Taco salad:
Lettuce
2 T sour cream
1 T salsa
3 oz. lean ground beef w/green peppers
Crackers
Fun-size 3 Musketeers

Snack:
Dried apricots

Dinner:
Leftover, but I don’t know which kind. We’ve got tacos (or taco salads), pork loin, spinach fettuccine, meatballs, and I’m sure some other random stuff.

Dessert:
Banana
Possibly SF/FF pistachio pudding, we’ll see what I feel like. And how many calories I’ve got left at that point.

And of course, lots and lots of water!

Exercise will be 30-60 minutes on the bike, upper body weights, and a walk with the dog (depending on what time I get home).

Jennifer: Finally getting moved in, how exciting! (Trust me, I know!) We’ve been moved in for a month and a half and we’re still not all moved in! Good job at avoiding the chocolate—you are a stronger woman than I am! :lol:

MsRD: WOOHOO! You’re doing so great! Your goals look good, I know you can do it! Keep up the good work!

Kathy: :welcome: Of course you can join! The more the merrier! Your goals look great! It seems to me that more and more people, no matter what plan they’re following, are incorporating more fruits and veggies and whole grains into their diets—I know I am! Perhaps that is because it works!

TBJ: That is an admirable goal for the month. Can I ask, what’s your calorie limit (just for curiosity’s sake)? And how are your injuries healing?

Betani: Oooh… potato chips are evil! Good luck avoiding them! Usually they are a trigger for me, especially if there’s dip around as well, as I love pretty much anything salty. But at the moment I have chips and dip in my house that have been there for a week and a half and I haven’t touched them! It’s a small miracle, I think. Good luck meeting all your goals!

Kristen: :welcome3: It’s always good to see a new face! Your goals look good! Being social without food is always a challenge. If you figure out the secret to that one, please let us all know! :lol:

Joy: The goals look good chickie! I’ll be looking forward to seeing your posts every morning!

And now, here is some :dust: to keep us all going strong!

Yeah, ok, cheesyness. Time to stop. Have a good one, chicks!
~Elisha

JoyG56

04-03-2006, 12:02 PM

Morning...

It's a quickie as it is already 8am and I should start work. Ate out a lot this weekend but managed to keep things at a dull roar :D Not too much exercize but I finally did start washing the house.

We went to Harrison Hot Springs Saturday and lazed around for a couple of hours in the hot water... was heavenly.

Todays plan looks positive... will get in a walk at lunch and hopefully mow the lawn or walk the dog tonight.

Chow... ladies.

KristenElizabeth

04-04-2006, 08:27 AM

Ok all...

today I am sick ugg
so I am going to eat a litle but I don't feel like eating much so far i had 1 piece of toast and a glass of light oj.

miss_elisha

04-04-2006, 10:27 AM

Morning chicks!

Today is an ok day. Could be better (I could have gotten to sleep in), but it could be worse (after all, it is all bright and sunshiney). I am dead tired this morning and did not want to get out of bed, even though I went to sleep around 10.00 last night (got woken up a few times) and slept in until 6.30. This tired all the time stuff is really starting to annoy me. I’m in a good mood though, so it’s ok I suppose.

Calories came in yesterday at 1704, and I didn’t manage to get in enough fruits and veggies. I ended up with 2 veggies and 1 fruit. *sigh* But at least I keep trying, right? Water was good though, 106 oz (:lol: I just typed 1006… that’s a LOT of water!). No exercise though. It was so windy out the dog didn’t even want to be outside any longer than she had to. She did her business and walked right back to the door, so no walk. I sat down on the bike and started to pedal and my legs just felt like lead. I kept going for a couple of minutes thinking it would wear off, but it just got worse, so I stopped. What did I do instead? I took a bubble bath! Yay for bubble baths!

So last night was pretty relaxing for me. On top of that, Steve did the dishes for me yesterday. And there were a mess of them too! :lol: I was dreading going home to a kitchen full of dirty dishes, but they were all washed and dried! (I had to put them away, but he puts them in odd places anyway, so I didn’t really mind!) It was just such a nice surprise, and I felt so relieved. Typing it out like that it seems silly that I got so excited over him washing a few dishes, but at the time it was just the most wonderful thing he could have done for me. Even better than bringing me flowers or chocolate or… well, ok, maybe not jewelry. ;)

For dinner last night I ended up having 3 oz. of pork tenderloin with some mustard, 1 c. of spinach fettuccine (I measured!) w/1 T butter, and some baked polenta rounds with some melted Havarti cheese—man that was good! I wish I had had some diced tomatoes to go on it. I have a bit more polenta that I will probably bake tonight so we have it on hand to easily heat up.

OH, and the best part… the scale said 214.6 this morning. That’s down 2.2 pounds from yesterday! Now, now, I’m not crazy enough to think that I actually lost over 2 pounds yesterday, but I do think my weight could have been up a little yesterday morning because of ToM and my sodium intake. I’m not counting this 214.6 as official (Monday is “official” weigh-in), but I’m happy about it nonetheless.

OK, today’s menu:

Breakfast:
1.5 c. coffee w/FF vanilla creamer
1 c. Kashi Go Lean cereal
1/3 c. LF granola cereal (makes the Kashi taste a little less like trees) :D
1 banana
1 c. skim milk

Snack:
Dried apricots

Lunch: (I was going to pack a salad, but we only had a tiny bit left. :( )
2 sl. whole grain bread
1 sl. FF American cheese
1 sv. lean turkey breast lunch meat
2/3 c. Chex mix
1 kiwi

Snack:
Cauliflower and broccoli
Fun-size 3 musketeers (gotta have my chocolate fix)

Dinner:
Hmm… I don’t know. Perhaps a stir-fry with the leftover pork tenderloin and some veggies. More baked polenta with cheese, because it was super yummy. We’ll see what I have the calories available for.

I will exercise tonight, aerobics and weights. I might do my fat-burning yoga tape, or perhaps some Yourself!Fitness. Haven’t decided yet. Probably just the bike and some weights. We’ll see.

Hopefully I can go to bed early tonight. I really would like to get a decent amount of restful sleep.

Kristen, I hope you feel better soon!

Joy, ooooh, the hot springs sounds wonderful! I hope you enjoyed your time outdoors!

OK, I’ve got a meeting to go to right now, so I need to post this and get moving. Have a good one, chicks!
~Elisha

JoyG56

04-04-2006, 11:26 AM

Morning,

Didn't count calories yesterday, but I'm sur yesterday was okay (under 2000).

Porridge oats & yogurt for breakfast

Baby carrots, pastrami w/mustard (no butter0 on sprouted wheat bread & an apple for lunch.

1.5 cup seafood (with peppers, onions & celery & spinach) alfredo for dinner.

Had the munchies so i had about 10 stone wheat thin crackers, 1 cup popcorn and finally about 1/2c yogurt (2% vanilla) which sated the craving.

Exercise was a 45 minute walk at lunch.

Water was about 54 oz.

Elisha WTG on the 2.2 pound loss... you CAN keep it there until next Monday.... I KNOW you can.

KristenElizabeth Welcome chickie!

Jennifer Great set of goals you got there! I'm sure you'll feel more on track when you get all moved and organized.

MsRD I want to lose 5 pounds in April too! Do I hear a challenge coming on? Bring it sista!

Kathy Hi, and welcome. That's quite a list of goals you have... NO PEANUT BUTTER.... how could you :lol: Do you have a weakness there ????

TBJ I think maybe you're on the right track with one goal..... and you hit the nail right on the head too. How many left days to go?

Betani Missed you chickie! You go girl, those library laps must be done ;) I'm with you on curbing the night time eating..... Seems once I started last night I didn't stop.... but carbs will do that to you!

Well I better get to work... I have an RFQ to prep for a meeting at 10 am.

Chow Chickies :wave:

Betani

04-04-2006, 01:00 PM

Allergies kept me up all night, so I'm exhausted today. With the exception of Saturday just before I made the decision, I'm still chip-free. I already gave up cookies and soda for Lent, so I'm counting on a lot of will-power to get me through the next couple weeks.

Got my laps in yesterday, and plan to today, but I didn't get in my strength training. Mood swings are killing me lately. I have a feeling it's seasonal affective, but if it doesn't get better in the next couple weeks, I'm going to ask the doctor about it.

***

Joy-- Sounds like you did pretty good so far. Imagine how rich the person would be who invents the perfect low-cal alfredo sauce...

Elisha-- Congrats on the loss! I haven't weighed in in a couple months. I'm afraid to!

Kristin-- Welcome! Glad to have you here!

***

Rrr. Time to get back to work.

**Jennifer**

04-04-2006, 02:26 PM

Afternoon, chickies! Well, back at my regular office, with a lot of work piled up, but having computer & internet access makes it all worthwhile!

Breakfast today was 2 strawberry poptarts, because I was starving, thanks to the time change. This is going to drag my butt down for the rest of the week until I can start to adapt. Ugh. Give me "fall back" any time- then I feel like I'm getting up earlier & getting more accomplished ;)

Lunch was a turkey breast & swiss chesse sammitch on rye, with a little bit of potato salad, and a big pickle! Dinner- no idea, but tonight will be night 1 of the great laundering event of 2006. If it's on a hanger in one of the 2 walk in closets, it is going to be washed, dried, and hung, and taken to the new house one night this week. Especially after the hurricane, with windows open for 2 weeks with no power, and all that humidity, and then no air conditioning for months...not bringing stale, musty stuff into the new house. Although I'll have more dryer lint than I could ever dream of! Any ideas on what I can use it for, besides stuffing for throw pillows? :lol3:

Ok, time to get back to working- would you believe the "replacement" refurbished laptop they sent me has a bad fan in it & won't boot up?

MsRD

04-04-2006, 11:47 PM

Hello! :wave:

After work yesterday, I went shopping for Mom's birthday present.....found her a darling outfit (on sale). Feeling lucky, I decided to try on a few things for me.....yeah.....it wasn't pretty. I don't know why I thought 4 pounds was going to make that much difference in clothes, but, after a brief struggle in a too small dressing room, I finally gave up.....sheesh! (And I remember when clothes shopping used to be fun......course, I was a size 9 at the time..."sigh")

Elisha.....You got that scale going down! All right! I know what you mean about being excited when the significant other helps around the house......DH actually vacuumed the family room yesterday! What joy!

Kristen......So sorry you are sick, chickie. Drink lots of water, get some extra rest.....you know the drill

Betani.....Allergies! Yes......'tis the season. HOpe you can get some relief, and a little more sleep too. Doesn't getting out in the sunshine help the seasonal disorder?

I didn't count calories yesterday.....seems like I just ate my way thru the day. Had a little better control today....1350.....quite acceptable. I did get my 30 min WATP both days though, so perhaps that will redeem me!

Jennifer.....You will be named laundry queen, if you get that chore done this week! As for dryer lint.....hmmm, I wonder if you could spin it into yarn and knit something?

Joy.....Lounging in the hot springs! Now you really know how to relax! You are doing great with your program......those 5 pounds will be gone in no time!

miss_elisha

04-05-2006, 10:04 AM

Morning chicks!

Things are going ok here. Still getting what should be enough sleep (7.5 hours last night), but also still tired. This is getting old.

Rundown of my day yesterday:
Calories—1732
Water—112 oz
Exercise—60 minutes on the bike, upper body weights
Veggies—4
Fruits—2
Weigh-in this morning—215.6 (I knew it wouldn’t last, but I’m still down overall, so it’s all good. My goal is still to get to 215.0 by Monday.)

I had the munchies last night, but I really didn’t want to give in. I compromised and ate a bunch of broccoli and cauliflower. The few extra calories I had came from some light ranch dressing. But I really wanted some Chex mix or chips or something crunchy and salty like that, so I thought the veggies were a good alternative.

Steve bought me flowers yesterday, brightly dyed daisys. They’re fun. He’s being so sweet to me lately.

Oh, before I forget to tell you, I’ll be in Baltimore for our company meeting tomorrow and Friday, so I won’t be around to post. I’m a little nervous (well, ok, a LOT nervous) about the food selection I’ll have available. At the last company meeting there wasn’t anything healthy at all. I’m going to take some healthy snacks with me and do the best that I can. At least I will have access to water!

Steve is going with me. It should be a nice trip. I’m excited just to get out of the office for a while.

But today I have so much to do—cleaning, packing, etc. It’ll be ok though.

Something just clicked in my brain. I know I do badly on the weekends, when I just want to relax because I’ve been running myself into the ground all week. I wonder if it has any relation to how tired I am. Monday I always seem to do fine on my diet, and even Tuesday. By Wednesday I’m starting to slack a little bit, and it just goes downhill from there. I wonder if that is because I get progressively more tired as the week goes on. I realized that thinking about my menu for the day.

Breakfast:
2 c. coffee w/FF vanilla creamer, 1 w/1 teas. caramel syrup
1 hash brown (the frozen kind, cooked with just a little oil, and napkined)
1 fried egg (also napkined)
1 sl. whole grain toast
½ T Brummel and Brown

Lunch:
Frozen burrito
Cauliflower
Cheese-on-cheese crackers
Fun-size 3 Musketeers

Snack:
Apple

Dinner:
I dunno. More leftovers. Whatever I’m in the mood for.

See? My menu is going downhill. And the next two days promise to be not so good.

Interesting.

On a completely different note, I was reading someone else’s journal this morning (forgive me for not remembering whose) and she mentioned going to Disneyland and not fitting into the rides and wearing a bathing suit to the water park. And it struck me: I’m going to Disneyworld in October for my honeymoon. I’ve been worried about what I’m going to look like in my wedding dress, and I hadn’t even considered what comes after. Now I’m all worried about how I look on the honeymoon. If I want to look decent in a bathing suit, I’m going to have to make it a lot lower than the 200 I was aiming for. I mean, I’m still going to work as hard as I can, but I feel more pressured now all of a sudden. Eesh.

OK, I’ll stop whining now. Have a good day, chicks!
~Elisha

**Jennifer**

04-05-2006, 04:11 PM

Afternoon, chickies. It's a gorgeous day here, and I managed to take a full hour lunch and go out over to the park to sit & enjoy the warm sun, and the breeze. Can you believe that it is 84 degrees here? Summer is already in full swing, and it is barely spring. This'll be another bad hurricane season, based on all the signs so far. Poop!

Last night I didn't get any laundry done- we went to Jennifer Leather/Convertibles looking at family room furniture. I found the most comfortable chair! Of course, the 2 sets we liked best are in the most expensive category, and will take 6-8 weeks to be made & delivered, if we choose them. Hubby was looking for more instant gratification, since sitting on the tile is getting old ;) I missed idol- we were in the store from 7:30 to 9pm! That chair must have been really comfy for us to spend that kind of time just chilling out & testing it. :)

Dinner was chicken tenderloins, mashed potatoes, and a little rice with corn & pimientos & onions in it. Yeah, need more veggies, but need to shop and move more. Food will improve, eventually. This morning, breakfast was 1 plain bagel with a hint of veggie cream cheese spread. Lunch was McD double cheeseburger and a small fry. Had to grab on the run. Dinner- TBD.

MsRD- LOL @ spinning lint into yarn. Everyone want multicolored hand-knit hats & scarves for Christmas? ;) Taking orders now! :)

Elisha- have fun in Baltimore! :) And even more fun, since Steve will be able to join you.

Ok, I'm in little kid distracted mode now, being outside in the nice weather was so nice I didn't want to come back in. Just 2 hours until it is quitting time, and then the laundry brigade begins. Oh, and I have to buy new black heels for work- these have finally bit the dust, and need to be retired. Maybe I'll stop at Payless on the way home. Don't want to invest too much in shoes that I'll beat the heck out of.

Have a wonderful hump day, chickies. Julie? Lisa? You chicas around? Who else is missing in action?

hikein2005

04-07-2006, 01:13 PM

Somewhere on the West Coast...sometime in the morning!

Phew! This vacation has been a whirlwind. We are finally at my sister's house and she is cooking us breakfast as we speak. I have not been exercising, although there has been a good deal of walking and beach combing, which has been fun! The food on the coast is awesome and I've been trying to eat some fruits and veggies each day. I indulged in some "sweet treats" yesterday, but other than that, have been really avoiding them! There was this cool candy store with candy from my childhood and I was a kid again...

Anyway...I just skimmed some of the posts. Nice to see some new faces and still the "older" ones! I'm hoping when I'm back from vacation that I will settle back into a workout routine and menu planning! but for now...know that I am here in spirit!

Hugs to all of you!

Here's a couple of pictures (if I can attach them) Can't, so you will have to wait til nex time! Sorry...

MsRD

04-08-2006, 10:30 AM

Good Saturday Morn!

Just weighed in......and the scale stayed the same. That was ok, as I know I indulged a bit too much this week....sometimes the exercise just doesn't compensate for all my sins. :lol3:

Jennifer......Your weather sounds beautiful....:cool: ..we are hoping for temps in the 40s here, though they are making wonderful promises of 60s next week. Get that laundry done, chickie, and let's get back on the 'moving' track!

Julie...sounds like you are having a wonderful vacation. It is soooo hard to stay OP on vacation...:o ...I will be leaving next Friday for vacation and am concerned about food choices and lack of exercise opportunities.

Elisha....Hope your Baltimore meetings went well and, as for the food choices, you can only do the best you can. Good job on not giving into the munchies too......that can be so hard!

Joy.....You lurking out there? I miss your daily posts!;)

Betani......HOpe you have those allergies under control! :) Did you get your laps in today?

TBJ.....How is your 'calorie limit' challenge coming? I have been doing just so-so......and the weekend is here and that makes it doubly hard!:(

Kristen....Hope your day is sunny! :sunny:

This is the last weekend before vacation, so I have to get clothes ready, clean out the car (road trip), and get the house in order. And kids are coming tomorrow for our week early Easter dinner...:dizzy: ...I will be 'flying' today!

hikein2005

04-09-2006, 12:02 PM

We got home around 1am this morning. It was a long day yesterday in an airplane or car! I'm always glad to be home and even slept in today (first time the whole vacation!)

This morning I feel bloated and just plain yucky! TOM decided to arrive yesterday morning...early, so that doesn't help!

My goals are the same as always. Try to stay on the straight and narrow...get back on that bike, eat and cook healthy meals. Starting today!

I hope to check back in a little later today with some pictures, but right now DH wants to use the office and computer!

Keep up the good work everyone and I will check in later!

Hugs

TBJ333

04-09-2006, 03:55 PM

Aloha. :sunny:

To you who celebrate, happy Palm Sunday. :D

I have not been doing well since the week or so before the bar exam. I am scared to weigh myself! :yikes: Yesterday, I came up with some new motivation. I discussed my plan with my hubby. And then... heh heh, you're all going to think I'm OCD in addition to bipolar... I made a spreadsheet. And posted it on the refrigerator for my hubby to see! Now my goals, AND how well I did on them, are visible. I have to be accountable to my hubby. :love:

Have been missing jujitsu terribly since I hurt my wrist. I'm still wearing my wrist brace. Thankfully, there are no fractures. And I'm having surgery on my knee this coming Saturday. Time to get the darn thing fixed. :twirly:

***
Kathy and Kristen -- Welcome!

MsRD -- You're on a roll. :D You're really keeping your calories in check!

Elisha -- My calorie limit de jeur is 1500. I've had a hard time sticking to a limt since the bar exam, though. How sweet of Steve to do those dishes. Maybe you could do something like the lady in the yogurt commercial does -- do you know the one I'm talking about? Where she hangs her bikini on the wall as inspiration? :p

Joy -- Heh heh, dull roar. That's a good way of describing eating sometimes. Thanks for asking about my goal... the problem with one goal is that if I mess up, I feel like I've failed for the month.

Kristen -- Hope you are feeling better.

Betani -- Yeah, mood swings can be bad this time of year. Hang in there.

Jennifer -- Are you doing any better with the time change?

Julie -- Yay for vacation! Glad you had fun.
***

Yesterday went well, because there was that darn spreadsheet on the fridge! :p

wwpeggy

04-09-2006, 04:07 PM

I just want to keep on keeping on.
Exercising, Portion Control, and hopefully lose 5 pounds and get below 170 by May 1 putting me only 15 pounds away from my WW Lifetime Member weight!! It seems like every year I say 'This is the last winter I'm going to be fat' or 'This is the last summer I'm going to be fat' and you know what? For the first time I honestly believe this is the last Spring I'm going to be fat!!!

miss_elisha

04-10-2006, 10:30 AM

Morning chicks!

:welcome: Peggy! You're doing a great job so far!

Well, well, let’s see. Where to begin?

Baltimore was good. Too much food, but I didn’t do too badly. I couldn’t really measure anything, and it was hard to keep track of everything, but I tried to focus on fruits, veggies, and drinking a lot of water. As a result, the scale was the same Sunday morning as it was on Wednesday—215.6. And then this morning the scale says 217.8, which I refuse to believe, as yesterday was a decent food and water day.

Exercise, however, is another story. Wednesday evening I twisted my ankle, and it’s still a little swollen and hurts to move or touch. Nothing’s broken, it’s just an over-stretched tendon/muscle, but it put me out of commission for a few days. I’m resting it and keeping it wrapped up whenever I can.

I’m doing well with my No Fast Food rule though. Haven’t had any since March 31, and I’ve been sorely tempted. Tonight will be another temptation. I’ve got to go get some groceries after work and won’t get home until late this evening. I put some ribs in the crockpot so I don’t have to cook when I get home, but I’m sure I will be hungry before that. Perhaps I will have some fruit or something to tide me over.

Today I need to make a menu for Easter dinner and a grocery list. Also, I’m going to plan meals for the week so I know what I need to get.

I really want to get an aerobic step at Walmart tonight. I had set that as my reward for doing well this past week and exercise. I didn’t meet my exercise goal due to my stupid ankle. I won’t be able to use the step right now anyway. I think I just want to know that when I am able to use it, it will be there. I want to start doing my Yourself!Fitness again, and I would really like to incorporate the step. We’ll see.

Today is payday for me. I’m sending in extra payments on my credit cards. I’m all caught up now, and I’m actually getting things paid off. It’s the most amazing feeling. I’m actually making some progress and sending them more than the minimum payment this month because I comfortably have room in my budget to do so. Two years ago it felt like I would never get to this point. It’s like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I know I’ve still got a long way to go, but I finally feel like I can make it out. I can breathe again.

That said, I need to buy some new clothes. All of my pants are too short, and it’s driving me crazy. That’s the down side of being tall. But really, I just need some new clothes. Of course, I am too cheap to just go out, find what I want, and buy it. I have to shop around and look for something that is “sufficient” and cheap. I don’t know if that is a good thing or a bad thing. I just end up dissatisfied with my wardrobe all over again. Maybe I will invest in one or two pairs of reasonably-priced pants that fit well and look good. Ha… I have to find them first. But I think the shopping will wait a few more days so it doesn’t kill me to walk around that long. Then again, I’d prefer to get all my shopping done at one time so I don’t have to make separate trips. Eh… we’ll see.

I also need to get my hair cut. I’m getting shaggy. I may do that at lunch time. More likely I’ll do it after work though. Or tomorrow.

So much to do, so little time.

Today’s menu:
Breakfast:
2 c. coffee w/vanilla nut creamer (yummy!)
1 c. frosted mini-wheats
1 c. skim milk

Snack:
Granola bar

Lunch:
Apple
Chicken breast, mozzarella, tomatoes, and a smidge of pesto on rosemary ciabatta bread
Fun-size 3 Musketeers

Snack:
Cheese-on-cheese crackers

Dinner:
Barbeque pork ribs
Either broccoli or green beans
Baked polenta rounds, probably sprinkled with cheese

OK, time to get to work. Have a good day, chicks!
~Elisha

**Jennifer**

04-11-2006, 09:41 AM

Morning, chickies! Well, it's been a heck of a week already! I'm walking around like a zombie, but my newest nephew came into the world last night. :) 7 pounds, 21 inches... and a week earlier than his C-section date.

Working on stuff at the house this past weekend, I got bit by red ants when we were in the yard, talking to the neighbor. Bites all over my left foot. Owwies! Got a lot of wash done to bring up, and either tonight or tomorrow night I'll take a ride up to the house & get it all settled into the closets. One of these days, we'll be moved, if I have to do drive things to the house piece by piece! ;)

Sorry I have so little to contribute today- I need a nap, big time! Happy Tuesday, chickies.

miss_elisha

04-11-2006, 10:27 AM

Morning ladies!

Yesterday was both good and bad for me. Eating was so-so, water was not enough, and there was no exercise. I ended up going clothes shopping rather than grocery shopping (which I will do tonight), but I didn’t find anything that looked good.  Imagine that. So I was in a crappy mood for a little while. I ended up buying Bob Greene’s Total Body Makeover and spent a while on the couch reading.

There’s one point where he’s asking questions about why we overeat, etc. He’s talking about emotional eating and he asks the question, “Why is food your drug of choice?” That question struck a chord with me.
I am very anti-drug, or at least anti-mind-altering-substances. I don’t really mind if other people do it, it’s just not for me. I don’t drink alcohol to the point of intoxication, I have never and will never smoke pot, etc. Most people that I know who use these substances do so as a way to escape reality or to avoid something in their lives (I’m not saying that is true for everyone, that is just my experience). I’ve always felt that you shouldn’t run away, that it would be easier and more productive to face whatever it is you have to face.
The other part of it is that I’m a bit of a control freak. For most of my life I have not felt like I’m in control of much of anything. I certainly don’t want to give up control over my own brain by giving it over to drugs. I can’t stand to feel like I’m losing control of my consciousness. When I do drink alcohol I stop immediately if I start to feel even warm, let alone buzzed, if not before, because I hate the sensation of being intoxicated. The very idea of doing that to myself disgusts me.
So how does food fit into this? It’s something I can control (at least theoretically), and it does not alter my state of consciousness in any immediate or easily noticeable way. It is one thing that is always readily available to me. It’s not illegal. I have free reign over what I eat. I control my intake utterly and completely. Oddly enough, since I do have that feeling of control, I let myself get out of control. It’s the one area where I can let myself go. And I certainly do. Food is my outlet, because I have forbidden myself other outlets.
So the question is, what other outlet can I use to replace food? Writing, reading, cooking (which could be bad, given my fondness for eating), shopping, decorating, designing, planning. Those are all things I like to do. I wish I could add exercising to that list. I can’t say that I like to exercise, but it is something I could do instead of eat. I’ve got to find another outlet.

Anyway…

Today is off to a decent start, and I actually feel somewhat rested. We’re having a catered lunch here at the office today, and there probably won’t be much healthy food available. I will try to do the best that I can though. And I *will* drink plenty of water today.

Menu for today:
Breakfast:
2 c. coffee w/vanilla nut creamer
1 c. Kashi Go Lean cereal
1 c. skim milk

Snack:
Dried apricots

Lunch:
Whatever they bring us

Snack:
Fruit and nut granola bar

Dinner:
Leftovers. Don’t know which kind. We’ve got a lot to choose from. But I’m not cooking.

OK, I have a bunch of random stuff to do at work today, so I need to get cracking! Oh yeah, and I have to travel tomorrow, so I won’t be around. *sigh* What am I going to do?

Anyway, have a wonderful day, chicks.
~Elisha

TBJ333

04-12-2006, 12:33 AM

Aloha --

Food has been going well. I have discovered the joys of microwave popcorn. Today, I was really craving some mozzerella sticks. I had formed the bad habit of buying frozen mozz sticks at the store, heating them in the oven, and then eating all of them. That's like... a 1000 calorie snack. :o Sometimes I'd tell myself it wasn't so bad, because that could just be my dinner. :doh:

Enough fond reminiscing. :/ I'm doing better now. Yes, the fridge spreadsheet is helping. Hubby looks at it every day. :lol:

TBJ333

04-12-2006, 05:57 PM

Yesterday I didn't eat much. Today, I'm planning to go out for lunch. Praying for moderation. :D

MsRD

04-12-2006, 08:38 PM

Hi!

Sorry I have been absent......we are leaving for vacation Friday afternoon, so am trying to get everything caught up at work and around the house. I made a week-long planner of things that have to be done, trying to spread them out, so I am not trying to do everything the last night. So far, so good.....which just leaves me to believe that I have forgotten something!

Elisha.....How is the ankle? A little rest and a hot compress ( or is it supposed to be cold?) and you are on the road again! Hmmmmm......food as our drug of choice. They are right, of course.....in moments of stress, instead of reaching for something more exotic, I reach for a cookie. As if that is going to relieve any stress! It sounds silly just to say it! But that is what I do! But finding a substitute habit is difficult......something more to ponder.

TBJ......I think you may have hit on something with your food spreadsheet! I love microwave popcorn.....and there are some really good low fat ones out there.

Well, my list says that tonight I have to clean out the refrigerator (sigh).....and probably should give some thought as to where this road trip is taking us. So far, all I have is 'Go to end of driveway and turn left......"

miss_elisha

04-13-2006, 10:10 AM

Morning chickies!

This is going to be a quick entry, at least quick for me, because I have a 3 hour meeting coming up in a few minutes. What fun!

Well, yesterday was a decent day. Water was good (especially for a traveling day), food wasn’t too bad, and I even managed to get a decent haircut and do some grocery shopping. Tonight will be hopefully the last of the grocery shopping for a few days and dyeing my hair back to its natural color once again.

I did, however, manage to beat myself even more. My right ankle is still a bit sore, and now my left ankle is being all achey too. And I smacked my hand on something yesterday (don’t remember what) and it is all scraped and bruised from the middle of my index finger all the way down across my thumb and onto my wrist. It’s not that bad, it just looks like I’ve been seriously injured. *rolls her eyes*

Steve and I are going to Applebee’s for lunch today. We’ve got a gift certificate, and it’s easier for me to eat healthily at lunch than dinner when we eat out. I’m thinking I’ll get a big salad… yum yum yum. I’m just in a salad mood today. Perhaps because I haven’t been getting enough veggies this week… hmmm…

Anyway, time to post and go to the meeting. Have a good day, chicks!
~Elisha

MsRD

04-13-2006, 10:27 PM

Hello!

Well, I am all packed and ready to go......tomorrow after work. (And that may depend on DH, as he has not been feeling well today.....and I made him promise that if he wasn't better by tomorrow, he would tell me and we could delay a day or so :crossed:

I have been doing everything else except watching calories......they have been too high, I am sure, and I haven't made time for exercise......sheesh! But tomorrow, I will weigh in.....and vow to come back from vacation weighing no more than that!

Have a wonderful week, chickies......I will miss all of you!

miss_elisha

04-14-2006, 10:22 AM

Morning chicks!

Things are going…. well, things are going. Yesterday was a plain crappy day, most of it having to do with work. Everything is going crazy, and everyone is getting mad, and I don’t know there’s a whole lot anyone can do about it.

So my plan for last night didn’t happen. Well, I did manage to get more groceries. But the rest of the evening was off. We had to go bowling because we missed a game on Sunday. We didn’t know we were supposed to bowl 2 games on Sunday (but even if we had known we couldn’t have made it, but they didn’t ask us before making that decision). So anyway, we go bowling. We thought they doubled-up on the games so that we wouldn’t have to bowl on Easter Sunday. Apparently they just doubled-up on the games because they scheduled their summer league too early and need us to be done 3 weeks sooner, so we have to double-up on games two more times as well, so we still have to bowl this weekend. Umm… not my fault you morons don’t know how to read a calendar. Grrr… We will not be bowling at the same place next fall. Incompetence will not be tolerated.

So food and water yesterday weren’t too bad. We ended up doing Panera Bread rather than Applebee’s for lunch because Steve took forever to get here and I had to be back in time for a meeting. But it was good, and I made a semi-healthy choice.

Tonight will be picking up the last few items at the grocery store and a birthday present for my dad, then home to cook dinner, dye my hair, and get started on the cleaning. Tomorrow will be more cleaning and some of the cooking, then Steve’s sister is coming to stay with us tomorrow night. Sunday is cleaning more, cooking more, eating too much, chatting with families, and stupid bowling.

Today’s menu:
Breakfast:
2.5 c. coffee w/vanilla nut creamer
Hash brown
Egg
2 slices whole-grain toast w/Brummel and Brown

Lunch:
Lean Cuisine
Banana
Fun-size 3 Musketeers

Snack:
Cheese-on-cheese crackers

Dinner: (I think, but subject to change)
Pork tenderloin
Broccoli
Rice

OK, I guess I should get back to my crappy job. Have a good day, chicks.
~Elisha

TBJ333

04-14-2006, 07:25 PM

Hiyeee...

Life is OK. Calories have been higher than my goal, but lower than what it takes to maintain my current weight. So I should be losing...

Am having a few feeling fat days. PMS time might be the cause.

Spreadsheet is definitely helping. Especially with the pop and fruit/veggie accountability.

Tomorrow I go in for surgery on the knee. Hope it heals fast!

hikein2005

04-16-2006, 07:41 AM

This will be the 3rd time I tried posting this...Fingers crossed! Grrrr....

I just typed a very nice long post...and hit the backspace key ( thought)and lost the whole darned thing! Grrr!

Happy Easter to all of you if you celebrate. If not, Happy Sunday!

It's been a week since I posted! No excuses, just lazy, I think. It's been hard to get motivated since being back from vacation! Food has been pretty much whatever...lots of Fast food and fried food. I did get in some exercise this week, albeit a bit light. Walked a few times and got in some yard work yesterday...raking! My back is a bit sore today, which means I really need to get back to my toning exercises!

I'm thinking about a "Mid Month Exercise Challenge"! Anyone up for it? I am going for 90 minutes of Aerobic and 40 minutes of toning. That's a total of 130 exercise minutes. It's been a while since I really concentrated on exercising, so I think it's about time I get back on the band wagon. The weather here is starting to get nice and I have my bike ready to go (tires pumped). I do need to wash it, though! I took it for a short ride this week with DD and it felt good to get on it! :)

The scale has not shown a loss or a gain (which is good) but I really feel FAT right now. I'm not toned at all and my legs look horrible (cellulite) and I'm achy all over most often. I feel weak and just plain lazy! So...it's time! Time to start this thing back up...not just for a few days, but for LIFE! I know what I need to do (we all do) and I'm so good at the lip service and writing it down, but to actually follow through for more than a few days or a week...well, that's another story!

Today is Easter and to me, it means New Life. So having said that, I want a new life. A new body. I need to make some sacrifices to work for it and I know how to. My Lenten sacrifice was not what it should have been, so I'm going to work harder the rest of this month and really put forth some effort.

How am I going to do this?

1. Dig out my spread sheet and start planning exercise and food
2. Set my alarm for 6am every day to start my day unhurriedly and work out, prepare a lunch, meditate (not necessarily in that order)
3. Record my food intake every day at the end of the day
4. Start each day with a positive affirmation to myself and end each day with something I am grateful for

I need to print that out and post it on my fridge!

Anyone who wants to join in the Exercise challenge, I will try to keep us all accountable. Just post your minutes here.

Have a beautiful Easter Sunday!

Hugs!

hikein2005

04-17-2006, 08:19 AM

Good Morning Chickies...
I feel good today, albeit a sore back again. Yesterday we went to my sister's for Easter dinner (she's a great cook!) and ate waaaaaay too much! So after dinner, she suggested going for a walk. DH actually came along. It was probably 2 miles and it felt so good! So I added my first 30 minutes to my "ticker"! I also dug out a "health" book this morning during my "meditation time" which might have some tips in it for me. It's a workbook of sorts, which is what I need to start focusing, I think!

Yes...I got up at 6am BEFORE the alarm even went off! I sorted a huge pile of paperwork that I needed to sort out, cleaned up my kitchen a bit, made myself and DD breakfast and had time for some morning meditation! It feels good Now I need to go get showered.

I still need to get out my spread sheets so I can start doing the menu planning, but for tonight, we are having grilled chicken and salad...maybe some leftover garlic mashed potoates that my sister gave me (along with a bunch of other stuff). Lunch is going to be some grilled asparagus and some deli turkey breast and a few Wheat Thins.

Gotta get running so I'm not running late today!

Hope you all have a great day! I'll make comments tonight...I PROMISE!!!

miss_elisha

04-17-2006, 10:33 AM

Morning chickies!

April showers are in full force in north-central WV this morning! Or at least they were. Now that I’m stuck in the office, it looks like the sun is trying to come out. Of course!

Julie, I’m up for a mid-month exercise challenge! My goal is 255 minutes. It is time to get back to business!

So I mentioned a few days ago that I’ve been reading Bob Greene’s Total Body Makeover. This morning I officially started on his program. He doesn’t give you a diet, merely a few eating guidelines/rules, like have an eating cut-off time (mine is now 7:30). The main part of the program is exercise. I really want to focus on exercise this month, and in the upcoming months. This is a 12-week program, with increases in the amount of exercise you do each week. Tonight I am going to print out weekly charts to hang on my frig.

This morning my alarm went off at 5am. Since I was late getting to bed last night, I turned it off and went back to sleep until 6. But then I got up and took Ella for a brisk 15-minute walk. I know 15 minutes isn’t much, but it’s better than nothing. And let me tell you, we were really hoofing it! I was sweating after just a few minutes. It was barely drizzling when we left the house, and as we went the rain got progressively heavier. By the time we got back it was really starting to pour, and we were both soaked. So I dried off Ella a bit, then hopped in the shower. Tonight will be another, hopefully longer walk (at least 30 minutes), then some stretching and some weights. The plan for the week is 5 30-minute aerobic sessions (walking, stair-stepper, or bike), 1 60-minute aerobic session, 3 15-minute weight sessions, and stretching every day. I’m not counting my stretching time toward my exercise minutes goal, so that brings me to my goal of 255 minutes.

But I do feel good today. Since I made myself get up and walk this morning, I feel like I actually accomplished something. And I had a healthy breakfast, so there’s something else good I did for myself today. I like it.

And food will be better. I set a new goal on my DietPower software to correspond to the 12-week program. This morning I am at 219.6 (though I know that is a little inflated because of all the food yesterday, and not enough water over the weekend). By the end of the 12 weeks (Monday, July 10), I hope to be in the 200-205 range, if not lower. If I can make it below 200… well, I will be a happy girl.

Menu for today:

Breakfast:
2 c. coffee w/FF vanilla creamer
2 slices whole wheat toast
1 T. peanut butter
1 T. apple butter
1 c. fruit salad (homemade, no sauce)
1 c. skim milk

Lunch:
1 ww bun
3 oz. roasted turkey
1 slice Muenster
½ c. baked apples
1 mini Cadbury egg

Snack:
Dried apricots or cheese crackers

Dinner:
3 oz. roasted ham or turkey (leftovers)
1 c. green beans
Salad w/LF dressing
Banana for dessert

The plan for tonight is to exercise as soon as I get home, then eat dinner, then spend the rest of the evening pampering myself: finally dyeing my hair and giving myself a much-needed pedicure. At some point I’ll print out those exercise charts I was talking about. :)

So anyway, this weekend went well. Friday night and all day Saturday were spent cleaning. On Saturday I did about half of my cooking too, so Saturday was a busy day. Steve and I did take Ella for a walk, so there was some exercise involved (besides heavy cleaning), and I got to meet some of our neighbors, so that was nice. Sunday morning was more frenzied cleaning and cooking. Yesterday was a couple of firsts for me: my first family dinner in our new house, my first time trying most of the recipes I made, and the first time my family met Steve’s family. Everyone ate till they were stuffed, everything turned out well, and everyone got along. Overall a very successful Easter dinner.

At this point I just have to talk about food for a minute. I made both a ham and a turkey, a Better Than Sex Cake, a dulce de leche cheesecake, sweet and sour carrots, garlicky green beans, rolls, and a big salad. Mom made pasta salad, my brother gf made the fruit salad, and my grandma made cheesy potatoes, devilled eggs, and pickled beets and eggs. I did pretty well eating though, or at least better than I used to. I had big servings of green beans and carrots and small servings of everything else. At one time I could have eaten that and kept going, but this time I ate that and was stuffed.

On a completely random note, I’m trying to cut back on my coffee intake, at least a little bit, and the amount of creamer I put in my coffee. Usually I will pour a cup with way too much creamer, then refill it a few times before I leave the house, then take a big mug with me. This morning I had one small cup with just a smidge of creamer and I didn’t refill it at all (I didn’t even finish it), and I still brought my mug with me, with a medium amount of creamer. I think it may have helped that I had a glass of water (after my walk) and a cup of milk before I even started on the coffee.

On another completely random note, Steve’s mom (who is a botany professor) gave us some advice on the plants we have and which ones to get, and they offered to buy us a lawn mower as a house-warming present.

Wow… now I’ve written a novel. OK, time for me to get to work. Have a beautiful day, chicks!
~Elisha

**Jennifer**

04-17-2006, 05:08 PM

Hola, chickadees! Hope everyone had a happy and healthy easter!

Man, oh man, I'm sore today. It's been a hectic week. When's the last time I had 2 minutes to post? I can't even remember. I don't know if I got to mention, but Roid got in big time trouble. So bad that she was in behind closed doors for nearly an hour. The very next day? More poop hit the fan, on different files. Oh, I was doing the "she finally got caught" super colossal happy dance! :) Wicked of me, but it was about time. This past Friday- even more poop hit the fan when she called off "sick" after leaving early on Wed for Passover, and then leaving a 1pm on Thurs for "sinus headaches".

I have an official move date. Perhaps all my whining here finally worked some wonders, because the movers are coming Saturday morning (4/22) and 3 big burly men will be helping to pack up the remaining bits & pieces of our stuff, load the truck, and dump us at the new house. :) They will move furniture into the final resting places, so that'll be nice, too. I am taking Monday & Tuesday off next week, and see if I can't get a big chunk of stuff weeded through and away.

I can hardly believe it- 4 months after the house is finished, we're finally going to be making it our home. Housewarming Party! Bring your own chairs! Plenty of room for everyone!

And then, next Wednesday, the commute begins, with half hour lunches, and less Roid time. More prep time for me. A killer kitchen, with room to prepare many things at once. Breakfasts & lunches will be packed. And mentally, things will be coming together. If I can just get back to that place where I was when everything was clicking....the food fell into place, and the exercising was the only thing I had to make a concerted effort to fit in. I sure hope this change of scenery jump starts the mojo in a big way.

Have a wonderful week, chickies- I will try to get in here in the mornings to update. If not, as of Saturday I'll be back with my computer! :)

((((((((( chickies! ))))))))))))) :grouphug:

hikein2005

04-17-2006, 10:14 PM

Evening Chickies...

It was nice to hear from you Jennifer. Can't wait to have you back full time!

Elisha...Your Sunday dinner sounds divine! You did awesome, chickie! And glad you are joining me for the "Mid Month Challenge"! I am so ready!

TBJ...I hope the knee is feeling ok. I'm sure there's some swelling right now, but hang in there. I'm sending good vibes! Keep up the good work and soon you will be back to Jijitsu!

MsRD...I know you are on vacation (where are you, anyway?) but I hope you are enjoying yourself. Know we are thinking of you!

Joy...I haven't seen a post from you in a looooooong time! You need to get in here and join us for this mid month challenge! Time is ticking away...(tick, tick, tick!)

I don't know where the rest of you are, either! Maybe this April weather is getting us all outside!

And speaking of that, I went for another 30 minute walk tonight. :) Not as fast, but it was 30 minutes, anyway! I'm hoping to get up to 40 minutes by next Monday!

Food today was good. :)

Water was lacking a bit, but I am still drinking! Probably only about 50 oz. so far...

Hope you all had a great day! I'll be getting up at 6 again tomorrow, so need to go get some rest now!

Hugs!

miss_elisha

04-18-2006, 10:28 AM

Morning chickies!

Yesterday was a decent day for me. Calories were a little high—around 1925—but lower than they have been for a while, and it was healthy food, so I’m not too worried about it. Today is more healthy stuff. Water was good yesterday, coming in around 115 oz. Exercise was 15 minute walk in the morning, 40inute power walk after work, 40inutes of weights (took me longer than I thought!), and 10 minutes of stretching.

I discovered a flaw in my “No Eating After 7:30” plan though—I didn’t get done exercising until 7:40! :lol: I went straight home, changed my clothes, then started right in on the exercise, so it’s not like I was dilly-dallying around and wasting my time, either. Anyway, I had a quick dinner (small piece of pork, a big salad, and a roll) and stopped eating by 8:00.

I didn’t get any pampering in last night though. I started doing random stuff and by the time I looked at the clock it was 9:30, so I just got ready for bed. I was tired! I’m still tired!

Figuring I would compromise, I set my alarm for 5:30 this morning. I kept waking up every 30-45 minutes all night long, so I know I didn’t sleep very well. When the alarm went off, I plopped my feet on the floor and pushed myself up. My legs were so wobbly that I almost fell right back down. So I reset the alarm and slept for another 30 minutes. I tried talking myself into skipping my morning exercise altogether and just doing it this evening, but fortunately I don’t listen very well. I told myself that I would rather get into the habit of doing it in the morning, just to have it out of the way for the day. I know it’s going to take a while to get into that habit, but if I do just a little every morning I will get used to it. So I put on my shoes and Ella and I headed out the door. It’s not raining today—in fact it’s beautiful out—but it was cold and frosty at 6am. We took the same walk we took yesterday, and it took us 1 minute longer. We weren’t moving quite as fast this morning because my legs felt like rubber before we even started. But we were still clipping right along, and I did break a sweat, so I guess I’m doing something right.

Also, I packed up all my Easter candy this morning and brought it in to work. I left it in the kitchen for everyone, and knowing the people in this office, it’s probably already gone! :lol: I was going to bring some of my leftover cheesecake for the guys in my department, but I am out of Tupperware! I sent it home with everyone else full of leftovers, or else it’s in use at my house. :lol: I told the guys that if they will bring me some Tupperware tomorrow I will fill it with cheesecake and bring it back to them. I certainly don’t need it in my house, even if I did use LF cream cheese! Anyway, all the candy I have left at home is a few mini Snickers, a few Nestlé Crunch eggs for Steve (I don’t like them, so no danger there), and some Jelly Belly. I am not giving away my Jelly Belly! Easter is the only time I get them, and I love them, and I don’t just sit and eat them, I’ll have 1-2 at a time and savor the flavor like you’re supposed to. So that little bag will last me a long time.

So the plan for tonight is once again to dye my hair and give myself that pedicure. Of course, first thing on the list when I get home is exercise! Cardio might be walking again, but I might decide to do something else, Yourself!Fitness, WATP, or the stairclimber. Then stretching. No weights tonight. I don’t think my arms could manage it anyway—they’re a little sore today. So then dinner, then printing out the charts I didn’t get to print out last night (Steve took his computer apart again, and mine is routed through his computer to the printer, so no printing for me). Then comes the pampering.

Steve says he’s going to buy a lawnmower today and cut the grass. I’m not holding my breath, but it would be nice.

Menu today:
Breakfast:
2 c. coffee w/FF vanilla creamer
2 sl. whole wheat toast
1 sl. FF American cheese
½ c. egg beaters
1 T. LF mayonnaise
2 oz. ham

Lunch:
2 sl. ww toast
3 oz. turkey
1 sl. Muenster cheese
½ c. cheesy potatoes (yesterday after having just the apples I was craving something starchy, so I added a few potatoes for today)
½ c. baked apples
1 mini Snickers

Snack:
Dried apricots

Dinner:
Leftovers. Don’t know what kind. Probably some carrots, green beans, whatever else I feel like.

OK, meeting time. Have a good day, chicks.
~Elisha

TBJ333

04-18-2006, 04:46 PM

Belated Happy Easter to those who celebrate. :)

Knee surgery was uneventful. I'm on crutches, but improving every day.

Eating has been bad, partly out of comfort food.

hikein2005

04-18-2006, 08:56 PM

It's another beautiful day here in WEst Michigan! WOW! And tomorrow is supposed to be as nice and warmer! Yea!

Today was good. Food was pretty good. I did eat some really fatty (but yummy) ribs leftover from Easter Dinner for lunch today. I don't usually eat fat on any meat, but I like it on BBQ Ribs! Whatever! Other than that and a piece of chocolate that I had at work today, I did pretty good. But the thing I HAVE to share is what DD shared with me today.

She's been reporting that she's trying to eat fruit or a veggie at lunch every day. She's kind of picky with hot lunches, but I make her have them, because I was tired of her telling me what she wanted in the morning and then not eating any of it at lunch....So...today she reported that she drank a whole glass of water when she got home and that she had a vegetable at school with her lunch (her favorite Raviolli) and that she was eating a healthy supper (chicken & salad)...so that was THREE healthy things she ate today! I told her I was proud of her for thinking about what she eats and that she makes an effort to eat things that are healthy for her. Hey...at least she knows what is healthy at six. I never knew what was healthy until it was too late and I had gotten fat!

It's such a fine line to walk in teaching kids about being healthy because I don't want her to obsess, but at the same time, I want her to know what is good for her and what is not. She ALMOST borders on obsession with the food thing. To the point that I worry she may become anorexic when she is a little older. Let's hope that doesn't happen! Let's hope she is just a "normal" child with "normal" eating habits! She does like junk food but is ok with eating "just a serving"! YEA!

OK...so off my soap box now!

I'm going to watch American Idol tonight, so I need to get going.

No formal exercise tonight but I played soccer in the yard with DD and we walked through our new "Meijer's" that just opened about a mile from our house today! That was after a day of work and walking lots at work.

TBJ...so glad your surgery was uneventful. That's always a good thing. You are in my thoughts, chickie! Chin up!

Hugs to all!

miss_elisha

04-19-2006, 10:22 AM

Morning chickies!

Julie: I agree that it is good that DD is conscious of being healthy. On a side note though, something occurred to me. You said that you never knew what was healthy until it was too late. I don’t think that was the case for me. I knew what was healthy, I just didn’t make any effort to eat it, and my parents never made any effort to incorporate it into my diet (or their own, and they still don’t). I think (and hope) perhaps that is a sign of the changing view of nutrition in our schools. I remember being told to eat fruits and veggies, etc, but then being served cheeseburgers, macaroni and cheese, and French fries for lunch. Then by the time I got to high school they were serving green beans with the cheeseburgers, mac and cheese, and fries. I know schools are still not nutritional havens, but I wonder if they aren’t getting at least somewhat healthier, especially with the recent publicity surrounding child obesity. Just a thought. If you have an insight into that (having a child, you would know more about it than I do), I would be interested to hear it.

TBJ: Glad to hear you’re improving! Comfort food is a danger to us all! On a completely random note… have your pets gotten to come live with you yet? I remember you said they were in quarantine, but I forget for how long. I was wondering about that this morning for some completely unapparent reason. Just my natural curiosity, I guess.

Jennifer: How exciting to finally be moving into your new house! I know you’ve been waiting a long time for this, and I can totally relate! Now… when can I visit?

It’s a beautiful day here! The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and on the way to work I noticed that all the redbuds along the interstate have turned to that brilliant shade of pink that I love seeing every spring (it seemed to happen overnight, because I didn’t see it yesterday). It’s already 70+ degrees out and it’s supposed to reach 81 today. I’m loving it!

As I predicted, Steve did not get a lawnmower yesterday. He says he will do it today. We’ll see.

So yesterday I got in a 14-minute walk in the morning, 30 minutes on the stair-climber after work, and some stretches. Calories came in at 1721. Water was somewhere around 90 oz. The scale is at 218.4 this morning. Whatever.

I did have a mini-binge episode at dinner last night. I set my eating cut-off time at 8:00pm, and it was sort of like “I have to eat everything I possibly can before 8:00!” I didn’t, but I wanted to. I ended up having small portions of a bunch of different things. I just wanted to eat and eat and eat. Then later when I took my birth control pill, I realized what it was—PMS! It gets me every time! But I am NOT going to let it win and set me back this month! I know what’s going on, and I’m going to fight it and beat it!

I finally gave myself that manicure and pedicure I’ve been wanting last night. I didn’t manage to dye my hair though. And why not? Because I came up with a better pampering idea—I went to bed early! :lol: I was in bed by 9:15, and that’s super early for me. Of course, I didn’t sleep well and woke up a few times, but I’m not too incredibly groggy this morning, so that is good.

So this morning the alarm went off at 5:30, and I promptly turned it off. Then I laid there for about 7 minutes and talked myself into getting up. I told myself that if I got up early enough I could get in my entire cardio workout before work and I wouldn’t have to do it when I got home. So I got up, put on my shoes, and took Ella for a walk. We walked for 24 minutes, so longer than we have been walking in the mornings, but still not quite enough. I’ll take her for another 15 minute walk this evening. At one point, I was trying to take the long route to extend the walk, I walked around the practice football field by the Jr. high. Little did I know, for some reason only part of the field had been mowed, so I ended up getting my feet soaked in the grass. The field is on the opposite end of the neighborhood from our house, so for the second half of my walk my feet were cold and wet. But, I did it, and my shoes will dry, so it’s fine.

But now my entire body is sore and achey. I feel like every single one of my muscles has been tensed for about 6 hours straight. I know part of it is from the weights session I did on Monday (I think I used too much weight on my dumbbells—I will adjust them for the next session), but I think most of it is just because I’m not used to so much exercise at such an intense pace. I was going to do weights Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, but now I think I’ll change that to Monday, Thursday, Saturday, at least for this week.

So tonight will be a quick walk with Ella, then stretching, then dinner, then mostly just relaxing. I think I’m just going to put off the hair dyeing until the weekend.

Ugh… I want to quit my job and go home. I want to go back to school and learn something useful. I want to hit the lottery.

*sigh*

OK, I need to work now. Have a good day, chickies!
~Elisha

**Jennifer**

04-19-2006, 04:29 PM

MsRD- hope you got a destination for this road trip! If not, I'm going to suggest "turn south" and come on down to the new house. We'll just have to time it so Elisha gets here at the same time, too. Party at the new place, chickies! :) I know, too late, you're already on the road. ;)

Elisha- cool with the lawnmower, and also his mom being a botany prof. We're still trying to figure out what we'll be able to grow, since 99% of the places claim we're Zone 10, but the agricultural maps show us as Zone 9. Yeah, I know, it's hot as hades, what's the difference, right? All the darned plants say zone 3-9...and it'll be just my luck that the difference in heat vs. not freezing will cause the plants to self-destruct.

TBJ- good luck with your surgery- we'll be thinking about you!

Julie- I miss you, girlie! We need to coordinate our darned schedules already! Waaah! I need my chickie therapy! ;)

Ok, we're getting down to the 11th hour with the move. Hubby has already freaked on me and tried to move it to next week. After I've scheduled the time off, and my boss is off for 3 days due to a funeral. Not able to change at the 11th hour, and NOT COOL, dude! So, 1 argument later, 1 stormy AM, and no talking for about 8 hours, and supposedly we are still on for this weekend. I just want to move, already!!!

We might be driving up there tonight with some things we don't want the mover touching, like our fireproof little mini-safe, and my few pieces of jewelry. We'll lock those away in the master bedroom until everything is moved in. Maybe even take up some of the small plants that might otherwise get roughed up in a big truck.

Ok, this has taken 2 hours to type between calls & crisies. Hopefully more tomorrow before the packing & moving starts- if not, I might have to post & add a picture of the chaos of the move.

Happy Hump Day!

TBJ333

04-19-2006, 08:09 PM

Aloha --

Eating improved a little yesterday, and I've eaten three servings of fruits and veggies as of lunch today. Better. Still eating too much, though. :o

I went back to my doctor today. The Provigil did not help last month. So... it's official... I'm taking a stimulant, starting tomorrow. :eek: The stuff is called Adderall (Lame name! :lol: Of course, Strattera sounds like it would get you high (stratosphere), and Provigil sounds like it would keep you awake (vigilant). I guess the drug companies have good marketing skills. But still -- ADDerall? Ugh!).

It's a mixture of amphetamine salts. One side effect is weight loss. On the one hand, yay; on the other hand, who wants to lose weight with drugs? I've been proud of myself for doing it the natural way, even though the weight loss has been slow. I'm not going to turn down weight loss, but still, it seems unnatural to me. I guess it doesn't matter in the long run if I'm improving my eating and exercise habits. *Sigh*

***
Julie -- Thanks for the well-wishes. :) Your daughter's "just a serving" habit seems reasonable, not obsessive. Obsessive would mean never eating any junk. Her attitude is healthy. She must have a rad mom. :D

Elisha -- Yep, our pets moved in with us in early February. The quarantine lasted four months. Sad, but they handled it well. Good job on your exercise yesterday. Ella certainly is helping you sta active.

Jennifer -- Thanks for your kind thoughts. Ah, yes, totally understandable that you want the move to be DONE.
***

My mother sent us a box of Easter chocolate. I'm not usually too bad with chocolate. Especially since Hubby will eat most of it -- probably by tomorrow. :p

hikein2005

04-20-2006, 12:02 AM

ARgh! Today was busy! In the nursing home industry, we have an annual survey by the state surveyors. They can walk into our building anytime, any day (within a given window of time) and today was the day! They will be there for a few day and haunt us all the whole time they are there. At least they are friendlier than what I remember when I first started working in nursing homes! But it's a stress we can all live without.

Here's a fact for you...Nursing Homes are the 2nd most regulated industry in the world (2nd to Nuclear Plants). We are regulated in just about everything we do from washing our hands to how and where they can give residents meds to what rights residents have...the list is endless. And it's not just State, but Federal regs. It's such a racket! And then...they just keep taking money away from the old people and make it harder for us to care for them! Something has GOT to change! Maybe TBJ...you could be an attorney representing the geriatric population in Nursing Homes! Anyway...I'll be glad when they are gone and our survey is done (of course, if we get some "bad" grades, they will be back sooner to check on us!)

OK...and back to my day...:dizzy:

Food was decent. I'm not keeping track of calories, but I know I am getting my fruits and veggies, which is what I really need to focus on.

Water...must have not been enough because I am sitting here parched, but I know I drank more than yesterday! <Sigh>!!!

Exercise...I did 20 minute walk tonight to DD soccer practice. The field is just a bit down the street, so I opted to walk after eating out tonight. I did have a grilled chicken salad and only a half roll at Logans! Yea me! Not even a Margarita! :(

Elisha...On nutrition in schools. I could write a novel on the lunchroom chaos in public schools, but I will just comment on the nutrition part. DD's school offers a veggie with every meal and then they have a "fruit bar" or they can get juice or milk. The meals are acutally pretty "kid friendly" but they do try to keep them nutritionally sound. They also offer turkey or ham salad or submarines. DD gets them quite often because she's so darned picky about "chese"! She hates it...and won't touch antyhing with it on it! That's fine by me, but geesh...take the cheese off!!! LOL!!! I've been trying to get her to eat a fruit or veggie at school every day. She rushes through lunch to get outside to recess, so it's important that she eat something!

TBJ...you were cracking me up with the drug name analogies! Too funny! And thanks for the compliment on being a "rad mom"! :o I try! DD is obsessive about a few other things with food, but NOT junk food! She loves that! She hasn't vomitted lately, and I'm hoping that was a passing phase, but that was one of her control issues with food. She also is turning into a vegetarian, not that there is anything wrong with that, but she used to LOVE meat! Of course, I remember not liking even hamburger as a kid! I drove my Mom nuts!!! Glad you are eating your fruits and veggies, chickie!

Jennifer...Husbands! They can be so irrational!~!!! I hope you get moved safely and expediently! Yea you for sticking to your guns! HUGS! We'll catch up soon!

Gotta go...my eyelids are closing as I write this!

miss_elisha

04-20-2006, 10:20 AM

Morning ladies!

Another beautiful day here, if still a bit chilly. It is supposed to warm up though—highs in the 80’s. I’ll take it! Of course, a give me a month or so and I’ll be complaining about the heat! :lol:

Well, yesterday was ok for me. Calories came in at 1914, water was about 96 oz., and exercise was a 24-minute walk with Ella in the morning, then 20 minutes on the bike, a full set of weights, and a full set of stretches after work. I wasn’t planning to do the weights, but then I just felt like getting it done so I wouldn’t have to do it today. I lowered the weight on my dumbbells though. It was still a challenging session, but more manageable than last time. Today my muscles are actually less sore than they were yesterday.

This morning I got up at 5:30, but I didn’t feel like walking today. I just didn’t want to be cold. So I got on the bike instead and pedaled for 22 minutes. I’ll do more when I get home, possibly WATP. Hard to tell with me. But there will be some form of cardio, and stretching.

Steve did buy a lawnmower yesterday, and a trimmer, but he didn’t use either of them. I was going to mow, but there was no gas for the mower. I did weed one of our flower beds a little. I will probably do more of that tonight. Also, I will tell Steve that if he will get some gas I will mow when I get home. I actually like to mow the lawn.

I didn’t sleep well yet again. At one point I woke up and sat up, and I actually thought it was time to get up and started to do just that, but then I looked at the clock and it was only 2:00am. Today I have a major headache, and I’m wondering if it’s not because of the lack of sleep.

I’m doing well with cutting back on my coffee. I’ve been drinking less every morning, and using less creamer. This morning I accidentally put a little too much creamer in and when I took a drink I almost spit it back out because it was so sweet. And the mug of coffee I have right now is too sweet too. I think I’ll just switch to water and not finish it.

I brought most of the leftover cheesecake to the guys in my office (I left a piece at home for Steve). I’m just glad to have it out of my house. Perhaps tomorrow I will bring them the rest of the cake. Depends on if I have any Tupperware or not! :lol:

When I go home I drive right by a McDonald’s, a Wendy’s, a KFC, a Subway, a Quizno’s, and a Dominos (all within a block of each other and my house). I’m proud to say that I have stuck to my guns this month and not eaten a smidge of fast food. Each day I drive by these places and I am invariably stopped in traffic waiting for someone to pull into or out of one of them. I look at the people in the vehicles, stuffing their faces and slurping their super-sized soft drinks, and I’m a bit disgusted. Mostly at myself, I think. I don’t want to do that to my body anymore. The people I see are generally overweight, and I see the kids in the back seat stuffing their faces and slurping their soft drinks, and I want to tell them what they are doing to their bodies. I want them to stop.

But alas, that’s not my decision. But now that I have stopped, I don’t want to go back. I am sure that I will eat fast food again at some point in my life, but certainly never again on a daily or even weekly basis. The thought makes me cringe. *shudder*

So last night Steve and I sat down and worked out a very sketchy budget. When we were done writing down all of our income, expenses, due dates, and interest rates, plus discussing what we wanted to do with our “extra” income, I asked him how he wanted to handle it. He said that we wanted to sit down with our bills this weekend and figure out a budget. :?: I said, “Isn’t that what we just did?” Apparently not. It’s weird, dealing with him. He’s never had to worry about money, never had to handle it particularly well, and certainly never had to budget. I’m on the opposite end of the spectrum, so I’ve always had to budget and not spend money on random stuff (which I do anyway, hence the debt). I added up my bills and everything I could possibly think to subtract from my check—groceries, gas, prescription, everything—and I had about $150 left. He said “so you can’t really afford to contribute anything.” I told him I would pay the water bill (around $90) and he looked at me incredulously and asked how I was going to live on $60 for two whole weeks. Umm… that $60 is what’s left after I pay everything I need to pay. That’s the idea. At any rate, now I’m somewhat determined to show him it can be done. Besides, I’m used to having about $2.37 in my bank account. ;)

So anyway, now I need to go look for another job, and perhaps do some stuff at my current job. What fun. Have a lovely day, chicks!
~Elisha

TBJ333

04-20-2006, 04:49 PM

My, how our group has dwindled... :?: Hope everyone who's missing is doing well. Come back and give us a holler, even if you aren't doing well! Maybe the end-of-the-month slump is encroaching. Don't give up!

***
Elisha -- You're really on track these last few days. :D I remember an old post of yours, in which you said you have trouble with the weekends. Sending you good vibes so you can keep up your good work in the days ahead:

:hug: --> Elisha

Julie -- Aw, that survey must be stressful. Hmm, elder care law. There are so many awful stories about elderly people who live in nursing homes and don't receive good care. I feel bad for those people. At the same time, there are people like you who clearly care about the residents. :cool: Too bad a few lousy caretakers cause nursing homes a bad reputation. Yes, helping elderly people would be a noble career. I'm really hoping for criminal law, though. Who knows. :^:

Sorry to hear about your six-year-old vomiting! :hug: That news is sad. I was reading a vegetarian website the day before yesterday, and the site said to watch out for people who might use vegetarianism, and especially veganism, as a way to hide food restriction. I had a friend who probably did exactly that thing. :( Tell your daughter that you know a lady on the internet who is vegetarian, but who is overweight, anyway. ;) See how she reacts. You're doing a good thing by encouraging her to eat fruits and veggies. Maybe she'll see that eating more of the right foods will keep her in better shape than just eating less. You're a good mom; you don't need my advice. :)
***

First day on Adderall is going well. I took the pill an hour and a half ago. No side effects! The dose is low, though. We'll see whether it works.

I managed to eat five servings of fruits and veggies yesterday. But I had too much pop. Last week, I was successful in my new goal of only five pops per week. :wizard: (My old goal was limiting myself to one pop a day.) I know I can improve. I usually start challenges on Saturday. After then, I should be recovered enough so that I can't use surgery as an excuse to indulge. So I'll make next week's goal a repeat of the five pops per week. I did it before... I can do it again. :drill:

One annoyance in my life right now is that I'm depending on Hubby to cook, and he doesn't cook healthy food. He seems to forget that in order to cook at home rather than go to restaurants, he has to buy the food and prepare it! :lol: When I got out of surgery, Hubby bought comfort food, which I appreciated. He said he bought "junk food" to cook for meals. Well, when I asked him what we had at home to cook for his vegetarian wife, all he had bought was frozen deep-fried onion peels and mozzerella sticks. :tantrum:

He hasn't done any grocery shopping since I had my surgery. And then every time mealtime approaches, he asks me what I'd like to eat. I ask him what he has available to cook. He gets this confused look on his face, almost as if he expected food to appear in the refrigerator. And I look at him with my eyebrows raised. I'm being a little immature and passive-aggressive. :o Hubby has doted on me like I'm a princess. :sumo:

Normally our relationship is great because we communicate and tell each other if we want something. But now I want him to figure out for himself that he has to put forth effort in order to cook at home. :snooty: Maybe I want him to figure that out because it's normally me who does the cooking, and I want him to know that I really do work in this household. (Yeah, I'm a little insecure about being unemployed right now. :( )

I see other women suffer in relationships because they won't ask for what they want; they just assume their partners will read their minds and provide for their needs. And when their partners don't do that, the women get upset. I've always avoided that behavior. I should correct myself now. :yes:

I did some internet research on Adderall, and one thing I noticed was that people on the drug write really long posts... guess the drug must be working. :lol: If you've read this far, thanks! :hug: Guess I just needed to vent. :blah:

hikein2005

04-20-2006, 10:24 PM

Evening chickies (Elisha & TBJ)...and...wherever the rest of you are! ;)

Today was another VERY stressful day! State surveyors still in our building. They will leave tomorrow by noon, hopefully! I spent almost 2 hours today cleaning our popcorn machine because they pretty much said it was disgusting. They didn't use those words, but I'm sure they were thinking it! It was disgusting and even all the scrubbing I did for an hour on the kettle itslef, didn't get it spotless, but it's not covered with grease and salt anymore! Yea! I just hope it still works. Ikind of got it more wet than it should have gotten. Anyway...I'm just hoping they won't give us a citation on that! Grrr!

Sooooo...needless tosay, I turned to food as a comfort today as I was scrubbing this stupid kettle! I had icecream and ate some chillin and cornbread in a HUGE hurry (so I could get back to the scrubbing...whatever!) I was so thirsty when I got home, I guzzled 2 huge glasses of water. I'm sure I didn't get enough in, but I tried. Too busy!

I'm really tired tonight, so I think I'm going to go to bed early.

TBJ...That was the LONGEST post I think you have ever written. I love to read your posts! :) And thanks once again for the compliments. You are so sweet! Husbands! They drive us crazy for a reason sometimes! I don't know why, but they do! I think that's what God made them for??? LOL! Glad you are feeling better. I sure hope your knee feels good enough soon so you can make a trip to the grocery store, at leasT! :hug:

Elisha...Budgets...just the word makes me cringe! Not so much the budget part, just the part about "discussing" it with the spouse! Eh! Keep standing up for yourself and your abilities! You will show him! And you will have all and any debt paid off in no time! Way to go on the Fast Food "fast"! I'm proud of you!!!! :hug:

Night chickies! Have a great Friday!

miss_elisha

04-21-2006, 10:13 AM

Morning chicks.

My head is pounding this morning. I took some Excedrin Migraine (usually the only thing that even phases my headaches), and that brought it down to a dull roar. As soon as I came into the office this morning I had 3 different people tell me to go home. I might in a bit. I have a couple little things that need to be taken care of today, and I have to reschedule a meeting, but if I can manage that I think I will go home and go back to bed for a while.

I didn’t exercise this morning. I’m taking today off. I like taking Fridays as my day off from exercise, mostly because it’s the last day of the work week too and I get to just go home an veg all evening. Plus it was raining when I got up.

I got in a bunch of exercise yesterday though. Yesterday morning was 22 minutes on the bike, then 33 minutes of WATP Walk & Jog and a full set of stretches after work. Then I had some dinner, then I mowed the lawn, then washed all the dishes.

Water was good yesterday, 112 oz. or so, but calories were high. I do ok during the day, but then I go home and pig out at dinner. I’m just so hungry. As a result, the scale is at 218.2 this morning. I’ve been working my butt off all week, and no progress whatsoever. But, at least I am getting into the exercise habit, and if I plan my menus my eating will fall in line. One thing at a time.

Steve and I were planning to go to Applebee’s for lunch today, but obviously that won’t happen if I go home. That’s ok. I don’t feel much like eating at the moment. I brought a mug of coffee with me, and just thinking about taking a drink is making me a little nauseas.

So what’s going on with me this weekend? Hopefully Mom and Dad are coming over either tomorrow or Sunday to help us figure out some house stuff. Dad can help us estimate the cost and importance of remodeling projects, and Mom can tell me which of the green things in my flower beds are weeds and which are not—and she wants to talk about wedding stuff. Also, I suppose Steve and I will work out a more precise budget at some point. I plan to go through my cabinets and frig to see what we have and make some meal plans and a grocery list.

OK, chicks, that’s all I have the concentration to write this morning. Have a good day.
~Elisha

TBJ333

04-21-2006, 09:45 PM

Hellooo --

Yay, the Adderall has no bad side effects. :) Happy happy, joy joy. I did notice a slight decrease in appetite. Not in a bad way, though.

So food was good yesterday. And today I haven't been using crutches at all. I go to the doctor on Tuesday and he'll take out my stitches. I bet by the time my parents are done visiting, I can go back to jujitsu and at least do Yawara (the standing up stuff).

Happy Friday.

**Jennifer**

04-22-2006, 07:51 PM

Saturday check in from the "moving in progress...

Townhouse was all packed yesterday. Last night we came up to the new house to drop of the last of the things we didn't want the movers to mess with. Got back to the townhouse about 10:30, we were out cold by 11pm. Hubby got up before me and was working on the last of the laundry. I got up at 6:30, fought to stay in bed until 7am, then got things moving. Movers got there at 8:15. By 9am I had kitties in their travel carriers, their food, 1 litter box (didn't clean it, just dumped out the old & put new litter to keep some of their smell on it & not freak them out too much) and headed out with the crew to get them used to the house a little before people started showing up, making noise, and scaring them poopless.

Movers got to the new house here at 3:01, and pulled out at 5:15. Needless to say, I am surrounded by a world of cardboard and chaos. :) It's a good thing- really. The one complaint that I have about the company/movers- they didn't disclose that after 8 hours on the job, the rate increased to time and a half. With as much time as they took to pack, and then get here, we freaked a little over that part, and told them not to worry about assembling the beds & the dressers/mirrors to save time/money. Then, after the fact, they *****ed about the travel time, and charged for an hour and a half, not an hour, like was discussed on the phone. Hello- I gave you my damn address from, and to, when we arranged this. Your failure to check mapquest should not be MY problem. Grr. I'll debate that with the powers that be on Monday. In the meantime, I'm taking a 5 minute break to check in. Working in the master bedroom, getting the dresser, mirror, 2 5-drawer chests, and 2 nighttables scrubbed down, drawers squirted w/ clean cotton fabric refresher spray (I loves me some Yankee Candle goodies!) so that all the clean clothes going in will smell nice, but not all feminine/flowery.

Hubby was here briefly during the hoopla, but thanks in part to the lovely timing on several people's part, he's back at the old house, finishing up some work that absolutely has to be completed before he can head up to help. I really want to have our room totally set up as a thank you to him for all the time he lost yesterday & today babysitting these guys, and all he's done to manhandle the things I just can't do myself. He works so hard...and then he still doesn't get any peace. So, if I can get the master bedroom done, and have all his clothes put away, and then maybe do the little guest room next to his office, he'll be able to really see a big difference in a short time.

Having a diet mt. dew for the caffeine- this is going to be a long, dirty, sweaty night. I had better lose a few pounds when I check this #&%!@ scale when it comes out of a box!

Will check in later/tomorrow with an update, and a sore part checklist.

Elisha- how long did it take for your cats to get adjusted & come out from their hiding place? I have 3 cats hiding in 1 small bathroom- 2 behind the toilet & 1 behind the door. They won't eat, drink, or do more than lay in the stupid litterbox- not actually *go* in it. Double Grr!

Night for now, chickies- hope everyone is having a lower-key weekend than I am!

TBJ333

04-23-2006, 12:51 AM

Hi,

Life's OK here. Still no side effects from the Adderall. :cheer: Kind of a funny story... Hubby drank a can of some kind of cappuccino drink. He said it consisted of 80% sugar and 20% caffeine. He was so boingy and talkative afterwards. :dizzy: I told him it was funny that he was all boingy, while his wife, who is taking an amphetamine, is acting perfectly normal. :p Of course, people who need this kind of drug are supposed to act normal while taking it, not boingy. So I guess the fact that I'm less boingy when I'm taking speed than my husband is after drinking cappuccino is a good thing. :D

Speaking of caffeine, I'm going to have to cut it out of my diet! Yep yep, caffeine combined with Adderall is not a good thing. Maybe I will drink less soda as a result. :o

Food was good yesterday. And I walked around without crutches, all of yesterday and so far all of today. :D The doctor will remove my stitches on Tuesday.

Jennifer -- Good to hear from you. :hug: How thoughtful of you to appreciate your hubby. :love: He sounds like he works hard. And having moved my cat four times, my experience is that it takes two days for them to feel comfortable in a new home. Don't forget that kitties like to prowl at nighttime. They're probably raising hell when you're asleep. :)

Well, leftovers for dinner tonight. Then we might go out for a movie. I want popcorn and a pop. Don't know whether I'll get them. I haven't eaten that many calories today. On the other hand, I don't need junk food... Maybe I'll see when I get there. :)

miss_elisha

04-23-2006, 09:15 AM

Morning chicks!

Well, this weekend is going well for me so far. I'm actually doing better this weekend than I did during the week! :lol:

I've stayed on track with my exercise. Yesterday was 40 minutes on the bike, a 40 minute walk with Ella and Steve, weights, and stretches. Water was decent, but less than usual (I really need to get a bigger glass for the house--it makes it so much easier!), probably around 80 oz. Calories came in around 1435. We had lunch at Applebee's--I had fajitas--but I was still full by the time dinner rolled around, so I didn't eat anything after that.

I did end up coming home on Friday. I watched a movie and laid on the couch, sleeping most of the day. I kept my calories in check, but pretty much everything I ate was junk food. And I took Friday off from exercise. It felt good just to veg for a while. I still have a headache, though not as bad as Friday. I don't know what's up with that. Usually when I get headaches like this it's because I'm not drinking enough water, or I haven't had any caffeine. But neither of those is the case right now, and this headache just won't go away.

So anyway, I also managed to make up some meal plans and a grocery list for the next couple of weeks. I went through my frig and pantry to see what we've got, and it turns out that I don't even have to buy a lot of groceries or do a lot of cooking. But some of the things I will make are lasagna, peanut chicken, chicken with lime sauce, cumin roasted potatoes, peppered steak with horseradish chive cream, and parmesan crusted chicken. I'm trying some new recipes, and all of them are healthy. :D Most of them came from my new issue of Cooking Light (love that magazine!). I'll let you know how they turn out.

Also, Steve and I talked about it yesterday, and I'm finally going to get to start working on my nutrition degree. I've been wanting to for a while, but it's gotten pushed aside because I didn't have enough money, enough time, etc. But if I don't just do it, it'll never get done, and it's something I really want to do. So I'm going for it.

Jennifer: It took our cats a few days to come out of the basement. Then we got a dog and they went back in the basement, and are still there. That's partially our fault, because we have a barrier up so the dog doesn't go after them, but they're getting acclimated and the barrier will be removed soon. That'll be a fun day. But TBJ is right--2 or 3 days, they'll prowl around at night, then all will be well.

OK, enough chatter from me for the moment. Time to find something for breakfast, then perhaps a movie. Have a good day, chicks!
~Elisha

TBJ333

04-23-2006, 08:45 PM

Hello!

So, last night... I just kind of picked at my dinner. Got popcorn and pop at the movie, but just kind of picked at that, too. Went to a bookstore, bought some science fiction, and had a really yummy de-caffeinated coffee drink. :love: That drink was the only food/beverage that I've really slurped down since starting the Adderall. Today, I went out to lunch after church, and again, I ate , but I didn't eat as much as I used to. I had ice cream afterwards, so it wasn't like I was depriving myself -- just a little less hungry.

Well, enough about amphetamines. :) I have been working on good habits, not just eating less. Yesterday I ate fruits and veggies. Today I've only had two as of lunch. I used to eat fruit for breakfast, but apparently citric acid makes the new med less effective. So I've been eating cereal instead. Cereal is perfectly healthy for breakfast, but I had a lot easier time getting in my five fruits and veggies when I could eat fruit for breakfast.

Yes, I have been drinking fewer sweet beverages as a result of the caffeine ban. Today I wanted a Thai iced coffee with lunch... couldn't have it. And I don't seem to drink as much non-caffeinated soda as I used to drink the stuff with caffeine.

Anyway, food has improved a lot over the past few days. Here's hoping I can keep up the good habit. I really would like to reach that goal of 149 one of these years. :^:

Happy Sunday. :)

miss_elisha

04-24-2006, 10:24 AM

Morning chicks!

I may have to go take notes at a meeting in just a few minutes, so this may jump around a bit. Can I just say that I’m really starting to hate my job? Isn’t this why people have secretaries?

Anyway…

So I went home on Friday and laid around all day. The headache got a little better, but it remained for the rest of the weekend. It’s gone for the moment, but I’m not counting on it staying gone.

I did good this weekend. Calories were good… Friday: 1665, Saturday: 1435, Sunday: 1535 (I think). Water was good. Exercise was a lot.

This morning I got up at 5:25 to exercise. It was drizzly and wet out this morning, so I didn’t go for a walk. I got on the bike, but my body just did not want to move. I’m exhausted this morning, just completely drained. My body feels heavy and worn out.

I thought weekends were supposed to leave you feeling refreshed.

Ah, and the headache returns. I knew it wouldn’t last long. I have a headache more often than not.

So I’m going to take this nutrition course, right. Steve and I discussed it, and we think we can work it out. It’s something I really want to do. The problem is, the down payment is $800 (it’s a whole degree program, not just one class). Yeah, we can manage the $100 per month payment plan, but where in the world are we going to come up with $800? We can save some each month, and I guess that’s what we’ll have to do, but it just feels like it’s getting put off even more. And knowing how bad the two of us are at saving money, it feels like it’s never going to happen. There’s always something more important.

I really wish I could quit my job and go back to school. But if I quit my job, I can’t afford to go to school. Sometimes money really sucks.

Moving on…

So I’ve been doing the Total Body Makeover for a week now. I’ve been following the rules, doing the exercises, everything I’m supposed to. I’m having a couple problems though. Problem #1: It appears I have to keep my calories low AND do all the extra exercise to lose anything. Now, now, I know that it takes diet and exercise to lose weight. But he says you shouldn’t really have to monitor your calories too closely if you follow the rest of the program, which I have been doing. My calories haven’t been too far out of whack, but I’m hungry a lot more now (and that’s saying something, because I’m always hungry anyway). I’ve got to find some foods that last longer in my system and give me more energy. Which leads me to Problem #2: I’m worn out. I know that exercise is good for me and will eventually lead me to having more energy. But how can I force myself to do all of this extra exercise when it’s hard to lift my feet to go up the stairs? Is this one of those “fake it till you make it” situations? Problem #3: I have no time. I didn’t have any time before, and now I’m spending the vast majority of my free time exercising. I don’t have time to do anything else. Cooking, cleaning, laundry, socializing, all falling by the wayside so I can exercise. Problem #4: The program is built around increasing your exercise time each week. There are actually 2 problems with this, 1 being the aforementioned lack of time that is Problem #3—if I don’t have enough time now how am I possibly going to have enough time in a couple weeks when I have to devote even more time to exercise—the second being that I haven’t really been doing an exact amount of exercise (which, I realize, may contribute to said lack of time). How do I increase my time 2 minutes per day if my regular amount of time is random, 32 minutes one day, 43 the next, 37 the next, etc.?

I don’t know. If anyone has any suggestions, I’m all ears. But I’ve already decided that I’m going to stick with it until my birthday, May 29. That day will mark 6 weeks following the program. If at that point I am not seeing a reasonable amount of progress, I’m giving myself permission to find something better. I should be able to see some improvement in 6 weeks.

OK, today’s menu:
Breakfast:
2 c. coffee w/FF vanilla creamer
1 sv. breakfast casserole (I made it healthy—around 300 calories for a huge chunk)

Lunch:
2 small Salmon-Dill Cakes
Sweet and Sour Carrots
1 sv. Potato Chips (yeah, I know)

Snack:
Dried Apricots

Dinner:
Dunno. Leftovers or something super quick.

I did go through the pantry and frig this weekend to figure out what we have. And I planned some meals for the upcoming couple of weeks. As it turns out, I don’t really have to buy that much stuff. I made out a grocery list around my menu, and since I didn’t have to buy that much I included some other handy things to have on hand that I don’t necessarily need right now. But, as I’m trying to save money, I might not get them this time. My main goal right now is to spend as little money as possible.

Anyway, that’s about all I’ve got to say at the moment. Time to go scan the classifieds and possibly do some work. Have a good day, chicks.
~Elisha

hikein2005

04-24-2006, 10:34 PM

OK...so I haven't posted in a few days! Ahem! Been a little busy...actually, that's just an excuse! I have just been doing so poorly with exercise and eating that I'm ashamed of myself! Tonight I had 2 glasses of wine and a huge candy bar...that was AFTER I had about ahandful (or two) of these yummy chocolate orange truffles while shopping for an anniversary present tonight! It's DH & my 13th anniversary. I guess I felt entitled to a little treat! But that's just the icing on the cake....it's been like that all weekend...and quite frankly since last week! I've got to get this under control! Ahhhhhhh!

OK...now that I have that out of my system...

Our survey went ok. We ended up with 6 citations which were minor compared to what it could have been. And...we did get cited on the dang popcorn popper! That won't happen again! Of course, it will be the joke with our staff for a long time to come! HA! It is now completely cleaned and I did a "test" batch today to make sure it was ok! Seemed to be working fine!

Anyone watch Oprah? I watched her show last week about women who have let themselves "go"! It was interesting. She has a bunch of stuff on her website on how to self improve, if you are interested at Oprah.com I think I am going to try to check it out! My menu planning isn't working so well...

Jennifer...Glad you are all moved in. Hope you got your bedroom done before hubby came home! That would have been cool for him! I take my DH for granted lots too. He's always doing something around here to make it easier for me! :) Gotta love that! I have been hoping to catch you on line sometime, but you must be a busy girl! And when you get done putting all that stuff into place, I'm sure all you want to do is crash! I would for sure! Hopefully sometime soon!

TBJ...Glad the Adderal is working for you. Maybe the lack of appetite is a good side effect for you? Enjoy the tropical weather, though ok? Spring has sprung here in the Midwest, but nothing beats those tropical breezes!!!

Elisha...Keep on hangin on girl! Sometimes we have to do the things we don't like to do to make our jobs go smoothly. Sorry about the secretarial stuff for you! It could be worse! You could be scrubbing cast iron with a wire scrubby til you have no fingernails left! ;) The exercise doesn't sound too awfully bad. Maybe you can figure out how you can get in more without compromising your duties at home. For me, it's pure laziness when it comes to exercise. I just don't WANT to...and then when I finally do it, I feel so much better! What about getting that blood work done? Did you ever do that with your Dr. appt.? I still say maybe you are anemic or have mono?! This fatigue has gone on long enough for you! :hug:

miss_elisha

04-25-2006, 10:54 AM

Morning chickies!

I smashed my finger in a drawer while putting away dished here at work this morning, so my typing is a little slow today! You’ll have to forgive any typos! :lol:

Let’s see… yesterday was a good day. I did 30 minutes of Yourself!Fitness after work, plus the fitness evaluation at the beginning (I reset it). Lots of crunches, jumping jacks, squats, lunges, push-ups. Ergh. But I got a good workout, and I sweated buckets, so it’s all good. I drank over 100 oz of water yesterday, and calories came in around 1630. I did so well at dinner last night I had room in my calorie budget for a chocolate chip cookie and half a glass of skim milk. Yummy!

You would have been so proud of me at dinner last night. I ended up having 1 cup of whole wheat pasta (I measured!) with 3 oz. of turkey breast and 1.5 cups of mixed veggies in herbed tomato sauce. And it was a big plate of food! I almost thought I wouldn’t be able to finish it. But… yeah right, me, not finish something? It is to laugh. But anyway, it was very tasty, and healthy. I will have to buy more of those veggies.

The scale is down to 215.6 this morning. Yay! Moving in the right direction.

Ella and I went for a short walk this morning, only about half a mile. Oh, and I got a new pedometer, so now I can keep track of how far I’m going. I’ll do more exercising tonight.

I have to stop at the grocery store after work though. I’ve got my list made out, though I will probably adjust it during the day today to make it a bit healthier and more budget-conscious. I really want to save as much money as I can so that I can start my nutrition class. That, and I just want to prove that I am capable of saving money. :D

I found out this morning that I have to go to Salt Lake City for 3 days next month for work. I’m excited. I’ve never been there, but from what I’ve seen on tv it looks very pretty. I have to reschedule a few appointments, and I leave on Mothers Day, but that’s ok.

So I tried to call my doctor’s office this morning to #1, pay my bill, #2, refill my prescription (the one I called to get refilled 2 weeks ago that still hasn’t been taken care of), and #3, reschedule my appointment. I was on hold for…way too long. Granted, I didn’t have anything life-threatening going on, but how did they know that? No one should *ever* be on hold for that long at a medical facility. It was within normal business hours and everything.

Anyway…
My menu for today looks like this:
Breakfast:
1 c. coffee w/FF vanilla creamer
Breakfast burrito w/1 tortilla, ¼ c. LF shredded cheese, ½ c. egg beaters, green peppers, and onions
Cappuccino w/1/2 c. skim milk, 2 teas. chocolate coffee syrup, and coffee

Lunch:
Turkey sandwich: 2 sl. ww bread, 1 sl. Muenster, 3 oz. turkey breast
½ c. LF cottage cheese
1 c. fruit salad
1 sv. BBQ soy crisps (Have you tried those? They’re yummy!)

Snack:
Dried apricots

Dinner:
Dunno. Probably leftover whole wheat pasta and more turkey breast and some sort of veggie.

Julie: I'm planning to talk to my dr. about the fatigue next time I go in. I did have some blood work done in September, but they didn't test everything, just the basic stuff I guess. I'm borderline anemic, but I knew that, and I already supplement with iron. I'm also writing down my food intake, exercise, and water so I can show it to her and prove that I'm not just whining. ;)

Anyway, I need to get moving. Have a good day, chicks!
~Elisha

hikein2005

04-26-2006, 10:03 AM

Alright you chick-a-dees!!!! It's time to come out of hiding and report in! A new month is going to be here in just a few days, so it will be time for a MAY Challenge! Spring is here and I know that means busy times for many of us, but we need to help one another out and be supportive. I know I need it and I'm sure most of us do!

So....here's the challenge for the remainder of the month (that's through Sunday!)...Post once a day...let us all know you are comitted to this challenge board...and I want to hear one POSITIVE thing about your day!!! :)

OK...and for me...well I'm plugging along and NOT losing weight OR inches! I am tired of it and really, really, really want to make that change. Foot is still bothering me...arch supports or not! My back aches all the time! I'm not eating healthy and certainly not exercising to speak of (other than the exercise I get in my daily routine, which is more than some, but not as much as others!) So...I'm ready to start AGAIN and I would love to have all of you here to help me with this journey! PLEEEEEASE??!!!!