Well, I seemed to have developed a weekend trend, and it's not a good one. Saturday was just horrible, food-wise. Sunday was a bit better, but not great. This is a trend that has got to go. I plan on being the model weight watcher this weekend. On top of that, I've been retaining water (probably because I haven't been drinking enough) and I feel all bloated and icky. Kind of makes it easy to want to stay on program today. My back is still bothering me, so I haven't been back on the bike. I think by tomorrow I'll be able to handle it. Tomorrow is my blood pressure check and glucose and cholesterol level tests at the doctor. Weight-wise I'm where I was two months ago at my last appointment (sigh), but I've certainly been more active, so he should be happy.
Sorry to hear about your blah weekend.. Mine was about the same... split a funnel cake with DH and didn't do very well during the week.. especially since I used most of my flex points one day... Monday no less! Good luck with your appointments..
Paragoddess - I'm back at school to get a Masters in Education - never thought I'd be back in school but it's what I need for my new career. Congratulations on losing 2 more! You'll be into a new decade soon and will adjust to two points less. Just a suggestion from the "drill sargeant" - if you up your exercise a little you'll earn more AP's and you won't miss them quite so much! I hope they fix the treadmill soon too.
Karen - way to go for getting on the treadmill early. I have been trying to get back into the early morning exercise habit and haven't been too successful.
Carla - Sorry to hear about your back and the weekend. How's about we all try to check in here on the weekend - I know I can use a boost on the weekends and coming here to talk about stuff might help? Congratulations on your Chinese dinner victory last week too - I find it hard to be OP with Chinese food - I usually blow a ton of FP's.
I have a gain to report from last week - 1.6 - ugh, but having faced the music I've been doing OK this week. I've used about 5 FP's a day but considering the circumstances I'm OK with it. I spent about 9 hours on the computer Sat catching up on an assignment for the class I switched into - and when I finished, around midnight, I had a whopping chest cold that was definitely heading to bronchitis. Thankfully, I had been cultured for strep throat on Fri evening (I woke up with a sore throat and when I got to school found out that 2 kids in the class had strep) and so I ended up filling the Rx the doctor had written me in case the culture came back positive (it was negative) - good thing I did because the congestion has crept back up a bit. I stayed home from work yesterday and rested (along with catching up on some reading). I had every intention of going in this morning but I was up coughing a ton at 4:00 and besides not feeling rested this morning my glands were a bit sore. Normally I would have gone in (this means I only have 4 sick days left until June!) but I can't afford to get any sicker since I have that state test on Saturday. I plan on going to class tonight but am going to rest as much as possible in the meantime. My workouts have really sufferred between my hip and the cold but that's why I like to get ahead of my weekly goal if possible.
Anyway, have a great one - it's time for me to get back to bed.
Judy
163.6/157.4/135
24/240 workouts
Judy- I've been looking into what it would take to get my masters... I have a BS in ECE/Elem... I graduated in 2001 about the time proration hit the state... so out of the 40 some folks who graduated with me.. 4 got public school jobs.. 2 of them graduated with their masters... so I went a different route.. I did daycare for a bit.. not my thing.. then I went into Emergency Services. I love that but really would like to get into education.. but I'm afraid a BS won't get it for me... so I've been looking lately at what exactly I'd need to do. We shall see...
Strep is nothing to play around with... it's good that you took a day off.. let the germies vacate the room.. I hope you get feeling better!
Paragoddess - Sorry to hear that you had a not great weekend either. Here's to a better weekend ahead for the both of us.
Judy - Sorry to hear about the gain. I'm also sorry to hear that you're not feeling well. I hope you can nip this in the bud. I think trying to get here on the weekends is a great idea. I'll certainly make the effort.
Still no bike riding for me. I was really going to give it a go this morning and planned on being up early for it, since I had the Dr. appointment later in the morning. I fell asleep on the couch and John woke me up close to 2:00 to come to bed because he was worried about my back. Wouldn't you know it, I couldn't fall back asleep (this is been happening to me quite a bit lately - probably some evil perimenopause related thing). So I got up and sat on the heating pad for awhile. About 5:15 I was just about ready to get up and put my exercise clothes on and I shifted position a bit and yikes, it hurt. So it was back to bed to be flat on my back. Wouldn't you know it, I fell asleep about an hour before I had to get up. So now I'm achy and exhausted and facing a five year old soon. Lovely. My doc agreed I should stay off the bike until the back feels better (it does ok when I'm sitting down or laying down and supporting it, but I move like a 90 year old when I have to walk), but he was very happy to get my exercise progress report, especially when I told him I had been up to 40 minutes. Nevertheless, he wasn't happy with by BP which had been 120/70 when the nurse took it and then climbed to 130/90 when he took it. So I'm still on the beta blocker and now I have to take a diurectic as well. Then I went to have my blood taken for the cholesterol and glucose tests. I mentioned to the tech that my veins are difficult and she went right for the hand without trying the arms. I guess she wasn't up for a challenge. I was a bit miffed because it hurts like the dickens on the hand, but then again I had been fasting, it was nearing noon, I was hungry and facing a 40 minute ride home, so I was glad to get it over with.
And now that I've written a novella, I'll wish you all a great day/evening.
Carla - I hope your back is better soon, you poor soul. I know how awful back pain can be. I made it through twenty years of nursing without a back injury and then hurt my back sitting at my desk last December while signing forms. Go figure. Sounds like you've had a miserable day. The weekend thing is history now anyway.
Paragoddess - Sorry to hear about your weekend indulgences!
Judy - Hope you're feeling better too! Sounds like you've really been suffering. Good thing you got the abx - even though your throat didn't need them, sounds like your chest did. Sorry to hear about your gain.
My weekend was less than stellar, although not too terrible. I spent 2 hours working in the garden on Sunday, so shall count that as a workout. Yesterday I came home from work exhausted and climbed into bed right after dinner. I'm very stressed at work this week - into some very heavy and unpleasant human resources issues. I got home literally vibrating after work, not helped at all by sitting in a traffic jam for an hour. Mike had dinner waiting, and I'm going to go walk away some stress on the treadmill as soon as I'm done here. Then I'm off to soak in the tub. I'm going to take the dogs to the beach in the morning and go into work a little later too. That should get the day off to a good start.
On a happy note, Jen got her cast removed today, and can start weight bearing next week. She sounded very happy on the phone.
Carla- being a Paramedic, I too play with people's veins.. I absolutly HATE having to go for hands... I would rather stick 4 times in the arm than once in the hand.. maybe because I know how painful hand sticks are... I sure do hope your back starts feeling better... Have you tried Celebrex? I know that works on my dad when his back starts acting up... he too looks like an old man walking when he first stands up...
Karen- I'm impressed that dinner was waiting for you! Dinner, a nice bath, peaceful sleep I hope!
So far for me this week is going well... My boss bought me a bag of Kisses yesterday... 1/2 pt each... 1 soothes the chocolate craving.. they're hidden in my desk.. heheeh
Karen - Ack, I don't envy you dealing with human resources issues. I absolutely hated that part of my job when I was in management. Add a traffic jam on top of it, sheesh. How nice that dinner was waiting for you. I hope the treadmill workout followed by the bath helped you relax. And what a great idea to start your day off with walking the dogs. The exercise makes you feel good and nothing like starting the day with loving creatures who are going to whine, complain, threaten, have a hissy fit, etc. I hope your day is going better today.
Paragoddess - My veins hide so well that after a few attempts in the arm, I'm usually more than happy to have the blood drawn from my hand. But sometimes the veins in my arms do cooperate, so I always appreciate a few attempts there first. I haven't tried Celebrex - maybe I'll ask John to pick up some for me on the way home from work. Kisses are a great way to tame the chocolate craving. Enjoy!
I'm reporting a .08 gain today. I anticipated it given my less than stellar eating and my sitting around like a sloth. Yesterday I don't think I was on my feet more than 5 minutes at a time. This morning I got up and felt about 90% better. I decided to baby my back one more day and stay off the bike. Then I made a wrong move when I was dropping off Ana at school and my back was right back where it was yesterday. So it's another day off my feet, another day that nothing gets done..... But I'm determined to stay OP today and tomorrow when I get up, if my back feels as good as it did this morning, I'm getting on the bike. I have got to get moving again.
Have a great day/evening.
Carla
279/257.4/145
19 workouts/208
Carla - I'm so sorry to hear about your back. When it has been feeling better for a few days I have a suggestion - work on your abs at least 3 times a week. Your abs help support your whole trunk and strenthening mine really made a difference with my back. I'll second Celebrex - good stuff and doesn't make me bloat like Vioxx does. Sorry about the gain but I know it will be gone soon. I'm with you on lousy veins in my arms and after two tries there insist on them taking it out of my hand!
Paragoddess - glad to hear that your week is going well -mmmmm, love those Hershey kisses. Have you checked into the job market now? It might have changed since you graduated. Having no undergrad courses in ed I have to get a Masters. The dual cert is so I can hopefully get a jump here on Long Island - plenty of jobs in NYC but I *don't* want to do that!
Karen - sorry to hear about the stress at work. I think the HR stuff is the worse - takes the most out of you. Two hours working in the garden sounds like heaven and *definitely* counts as a workout! I can't wait until the weather gets warmer and we can start doing that too - also, we planted so many bulbs - spring is going to be a continual surprise since I don't even remember what we planted where! I hope the walk with the dogs helped.
I managed to get in a yoga workout yesterday when I got home but did not get up early this morning. My eating was so-so - I used a few FP's but still have some. My hip was bothering me last night so I gave in and took some Vioxx - I won't get to weigh in this week officially since my test is when I'd normally go to my meeting and since Vioxx bloats me terribly, I haven't been taking any sneak peeks - unusual for me. I hope to get in a yoga, Pilates or upper body workout tomorrow after we have dinner with Anthony - I think it will be a good idea to do something before Saturday's test. Tonight is my late class - the key will be not to snack when I get home. I watched Oprah's show yesterday with Wynona Ryder (sp?)which I thought was pretty good - I tried to stick with the "no food within 2 hrs of bed" but blew it - I'm going to try again tonight- that's a toughie!
Carla- I hope your back is better today... The fact that it felt so good yesterday morning means something... recovery is always slower than you want!
Judy - Yeah, I have checked into the market around here... If i wanted to move where I came from (Upstate NY) I'm sure I'd have no problem finding work.. Down here we're having problems with the state budget. There's talks about cutting 20% of teachers to save... I'm going to look into the private sector also.. they don't fall under state cuts... so we'll see.. I figure if I start looking now, maybe something will come open for the fall. One o fmy good friends teaches 3rd grade so she's helping me out by putting her feelers out!
I'm so glad this week is almost over... I'm trying to eat my breakfast right now.. a breakfast burrito - 1 flour tortilla, 3 egg whites, a serving of honey ham (Ultra thin) and a piece of cheese... all told like 5 points... and filling... This week is going SOOO much better than last week! I hope everyone had a fabulous Thursday!!
Judy - I watched Oprah too, only it was with Winona Judd, not Ryder. LOL - Winona Ryder is so thin, if she lost any weight she'd disappear! It was a good reminder that even fame and money can't prevent you from having struggles and I applaud WJ for doing this in public. I hope your hip is feeling better soon. I'm sure we'll both be back here before then, but just in case - good luck on your test Saturday. I'm sure you'll do fine.
Jess - I hope everything works out and you're able to make the switch to teaching. I've been contemplating going that route, but on the news today I heard that Chicago is undergoing huge budget cuts and may lay off as many as 1,000 teachers. While I'm not looking to work in the city, that's a lot of experienced teachers flooding the job market. I'm glad this week has been going better for you. Here's to keeping the ball rolling through the weekend and into next week!
I had a good day, program-wise, yesterday. I ate at target and not a point more and did manage to stop eating a few hours before bedtime. And thanks to my new friend, Mr. Diuretic, when I hopped on the scale this morning that .08 gain and then some was gone. I know not to get overly excited about a water loss, but it was a good motivator to stay back in the groove. My back is a bit better. Sitting is easier for me, but standing for more than a couple of minutes is still tough. Nevertheless, I can't stand sitting around all day any more (and I can't stand the state of my house), so I've tried to get a few things done around here and, drumroll, I got back on the bike. It felt good to be moving again, although I only went for 30 minutes. I didn't want to push it. My back did ok. The last 5 minutes or so were a bit uncomfortable, but nothing I couldn't stand. I plan on being back on the bike tomorrow - I love earning those APs.
Jess - it's good to know your name! Were you certified in NY? From what I hear, the certification requirements in NY are tough enough that they are accepted by almost any state. Sorry to hear about those budget cuts for your state and Carla's. I find it unbelievable that faced with problems, governments cut education - what kind of citizens & people do they expect they will see in the future as a result of the cuts. Your breakfast burrito sounds yummy - and very close to what I like to make for breakfast when I'm not rushing.
Carla - Oooops - it was Judd ;-) I LOL about WR - she would disappear if she lost any weight. I'm glad to hear that you were able to get on the bike. I once read a book that said that moving is the best thing for your back when it hurts so I try to do it whenever possible. Thanks for the good luck wishes. I'm glad we are planning to have dinner with Anthony tomorrow evening - it should be a calming kind of thing instead of my being at home and worrying about it.
Well, I'm in the library having just finished one of the 6 gm of fat or less subs at Subway - not bad for a dinner on the run. Time to review the test prep book one last time before my 6:40 class.
Good morning all! Just a quick note to 'fess up. I got home from class yesterday (it's such a good one) and I was definitely working on a second wind. I had the points left so I decided to have a beer to relax, kick back, and start getting ready for bed. It didn't work as I planned - instead I had a mini-binge and ended up using up what was left of my FP's plus about 6 more! Oh well, I had a very low point breakfast, have a WW Smart Ones for lunch and then will try to be reasonable at Friday's today. I should try to get to Dottie's and see what she has on the place. I think it must have been nerves plus the beer! Oh, and I stayed up way to late. My goal for today is to eat reasonably and get a good night's sleep for tomorrow!
So, are we going to try to check in this weekend? I know I for one could use the encouragement - Tony and I are going to our favorite Italian restaurant tomorrow night and then Sunday we are at my Mom's for my sister's birthday. I weekend fraught with danger! Oh, and I decided this morning on a new goal - I'd like to be in the 140's by my birthday (end of March). I think that will be a great birthday present to myself!
Judy - Sorry to hear about the slip-up, but it's not a major one and you can recover. Aren't those Subway sandwiches a god-send when you need a quick and easy meal? As for Friday's, I'm not sure that Dottie's site is in synch with their menu these days, at least it didn't seem to be the last time I checked. But by all means check again. I was there for lunch last week and had the Pecan Crusted Chicken Salad. All in all, it wasn't too bad. I forget how I calculated it, but I think I came up with 11 or so points. Aside from the chicken, it was mostly greens with about a point worth of bleu cheese. And I had the dressing on the side, of course. Very good. By all means, I'll try to check in this weekend. It sounds like you have a very challenging weekend. Be careful that the relief of having the test over and done with doesn't cause you to lose your guard. I think you're goal is very doable and I'll be rooting for you.
I had another good day yesterday and actually ate 2 points below target. Although it was a snacky, grazy kind of day and dinner ended up being 2% cheese on Natural Oven bread. But still. I hopped on the bike for 30 minutes again today. Judy, what you heard about keeping moving makes sense. At any rate, my back is probably still at about 50-60%, but I can stand for longer periods of time, so I'm making progress. And I got good news from the dr. today - my test results (cholesterol, blood sugar, and kidney function) came back fine. My cholesterol level is still freakishly low - 105 (up from 95 a couple of years ago) - especially given my weight and less than stellar eating habits of past, but hey, I'm not complaining. And given my family history of diabetes, it's always a huge relief to hear that my blood sugar level is normal. All in all, a great way to start the weekend. Some challenges, but not too great, for me this weekend. Tomorrow we have one of our symphony concerts, so we'll be going there. My MIL is watching Ana and she'll be making dinner for us, so it will be a bit tricky, but I should be able to navigate it. I was a bit bummed that we're going to the concert rather than a party we were invited to, but the concert is much safer, program-wise, at least. Sunday I think we'll visit my mom. That could be a bit dangerous, but again I should be able to handle it. At any rate, I plan on having most, if not all, of my flex points still in my back pocket to help me during the weekend. And I'm going to try to get in a bike ride tomorrow and possible Sunday too.
Hey all! I weighed in on Monday 2/9. It was my first weigh in since Christmas! I have seemed to gain some weight. So I can't wait to see what the scale says on Monday 2/16. I've stuck with my program, so hopefully Ive lost a pound or too!
Weigh In at Home 2/9 - 2/15
