Happy 4th of July, gang! What’s everyone doing today? Pool parties? BBQs? A little nap in the hammock? Fireworks tonight?
DD and DS both arrived home on Saturday. This is the first time we four have all been together since Christmas and it’s so much fun having them here. I decided to make a traditional family Sunday dinner yesterday and discovered that I’ve couldn’t remember some of those recipes that I thought were indelibly burned into my brain. And ended up having to dump an entire pot of spaetzle (little German dumplings) down the disposal. Holy cow, I’ve forgotten how to cook!! Fortunately, I was smart enough the skip the traditional dessert and made a SF strawberry pie instead that wasn’t bad at all for 45 calories per slice.
I was supposed to work today but my one client cancelled so – yippy skippy! – no clients! I still have to sit down and plan out five workouts for tomorrow’s clients, but it’s nice to have a day off. DD and I are going to the gym to work legs and then to the mall to work the credit card.
Dinner for us is going to be grilled steak and shrimp, with grilled pineapple and veggies. Sesame rice for those who can afford the calories (not moi). DH and I will skip the fireworks but the kids will go with friends.
I felt much more under control with food this past week. My daily calories aren’t as low as I wish I could get them, but I haven’t binged at all. The scale is creeping ever so slowly downward. It just doesn’t make sense how easy it is to put on a few pounds and how incredibly long it takes to get rid of them??? I keep thinking back to how easy it was to drop pounds back in the early days of weight loss but those days are gone forever, I fear.
My trouble time of day is when I get home from late appointments at the gym. It will be 8:30 or 9:00 pm and I wouldn’t have eaten for 4 hours or so due to back-to-back appointments. I’ll inhale whatever I had planned but still be starving when I’m done and that’s when I tend to say to heck with it and keep on eating. It’s that deadly combination of too tired and too hungry and I'm just not sure how to deal with it. Suggestions appreciated!
Have a wonderful holiday, all, and Ilene, just celebrate along with us!
Happy 4th!!!!
Some beach and bbq on hand for me today. Enjoying a lovely weekend. All weekend should be three days in the summer. Some years I was the host for the bbq but the last few I just take it easy with the family. I finally figured out I don't enjoy the hosting so why bother!!!
Meg I wish I understood the post lost scale math!!! The same principals are at work in my life as well. So I am off the scale. It tends to set me up for problems because, I not only what the weight to come off as fast as it came on but even faster. I imagine ever week that I have lost a pound a reasonable amount of loss.
How about a snack right before you leave to come home, that 20 mins of digestion time might help.
Enjoy the hoiday.
The scale moved today for me too, just a fraction but it moved... I'm not into virgin pounds yet though, I haven't seen a virgin (pound that is) since Christmas....
Happy Fourth
I just got back from a very crowded gym. One client, then arms, shoulders and cardio for me. I've got a lot of packing to do today (and a lot of laundry first) then a bbq and pool party this afternoon and evening. Lots of shrimp, raw vegies and fruit are on my menu.
I haven't been on the scale in ages...but my clothes are fitting well and muscle definition is good. I've sworn off the scale and calipers for a while in the interest of mental health. If the number is good, I eat (binge). If the number is bad, I eat(binge and sob). If I don't actually know the number, I behave myself. I know, sounds
Meg, I have the same problem with evenings at the gym. I've done a couple of things to try to make it easier. The most important is I now refuse to take clients after 8pm. That's it. Too bad, my day starts early. After one very long day, I drove smack into the rear of an SUV at a stop sign in the gym parking lot and was too tired to even realize it was there (the SUV) So much for half a month's paycheck. We are people, not machines. I also take one of my protein muffins and take 2 huge bites between each client from 4 pm on. Not the ideal was to eat a meal, but they do understand, and it gets me through the evening. After my first year of training and feeling like I had to say yes to every insane demand that was made, I realized I'd burn out quickly that way. If the gym and my clients wanted me there longer-term, I had to learn to say no to some things, like training late or REALLY early.
Time to switch the laundry,
Have a good one...
Mel
Happy 4th of July to you american friends ! Hope your choices are smart and your scales are good!
It is so inspirational to start the week after reading your posts - I want to go to the gym NOW!
We survived our long weekend - on 1st of July we went for a hike. My friends joined us for 3 hour long hike - they have 2 y.o. toddler in the back pack and 6 y.o.son who is best friend of our 6 y.o. son. We never hiked together before (even though they thought we hiked but actually we walked before and I failed to stress the difference to them). Anyways, after first hour they said we are lost and why don't we turn back? They did not know we never turn back unless it is the matter of life and death. Somehow they conviced themselves that we can continue for another half an hour and after half an hour their anxiety diminished and we continued. We got lost again a bit later and had to go thru the grown forest and got some scratches but kids had their best time and laughed and sang songs, and we just followed. At the end we made about 6 hours hike and everybody was happy and our friends said that they learned what is the difference between hike and walk in my family and they asked to go for next hike togehter again...
Otherwise my little daughter was sick yesterday and I stayed with her. Today I will go the gym with my gym buddy and I biked today to work and I hope to get back on track after my friend's B-day party on the weekend. Everything was so yammy and I ate about twice as much as I should have.
We had a nice Fourth of July. A little golfing during the day and fireworks at night. No big picnics as my parents were out of town. Probably for the better as my will power hasn't been worth a darn this week. I made homemade cinnimon rolls on Monday and couldn't stay out of them. They weren't even my lower-fat/cal version, they were loaded with butter and frosting! I don't know what I was thinking. I love to bake and usually I am very good at resisting but not this week. Plus I tried a new recipe that had more salt than I am use to and I have been terrible with my water. All these combined and my shorts are feeling tight. I need to get serious starting today! Unfortunately Friday we are on another camping trip. I must limit myself to 1 SMore (I know I should have zero but it is what makes the work of camping all worth while. Plus the rest of our meals are still healthy and lean, so I feel I can have one. The problem is stopping there!)
Oh by the way, I remembered that the 2 point SMores were actually made with fudge striped cookies and one marshmellow. I think I need to calculate the points for a real SMore. If I know the points it helps me to be good.
After golfing for 20 years, I have decided to take some lessons. After one lesson I have seen a great improvement. Why didn't I think of this sooner?!
I'm glad everyone had a happy holiday for those celebrating. My 4th of July food was less than fabulous. It was the leftovers that got me after I had been well-behaved at our big party. We got most guests to take their dishes home, but someone left a pecan pie in our freezer. It wasn't pretty. At least exercise has been OP all week, despite rain and impending tropical storms, and food has been mostly good besides that pie. I tried a WW version of General Tsao's Chicken last night and a Moosewood Cookbook 5-Spice (brown) rice, which were yummy and now I have dinner for the week. With veggies of course. I've been having chronic insomnia but consideration for a houseguest sleeping on our living room couch, which adjoins the kitchen, is keeping me out of the kitchen at 3am. I've pulled out my needlepoint and a scrapbook I'm putting together for my mother to keep my hands busy at night. You know what they say about idle hands.
Meg, maybe chewing gum would help? Brushing your teeth?
Gina and Mel, I'm trying to work up the willpower to join you on the no-scale lifestyle. I'm at least trying to cut it back to only once a week - I currently record my weight weekly, but lately hop on the scale more often. If I can get it back to that and behave myself maybe only every other week. I *know* if I'm being healthy or not, I don't need a number to tell me when I'm being honest with myself.
Although I haven't reached my goal weight yet I consider myself a maintainer and am looking forward to joining y'all here each week. I've browsed the Maintainer's Forum since day one and have found so much inspiration.
I still have 13 pounds to lose in order to reach my initial goal. There may be another 10-15 pounds after that but I won't know until I get there. I've seen lots of positive changes in my body over the past few months and I am much more interested in how my body LOOKS and FUNCTIONS than I am in how much it WEIGHS. This is why I consider myself in maintainence - I'm not actively trying to lose weight. Rather, I am continuing all of my newly formed eating and living habits knowing that the weight will take care of itself. Of course, with all of that said, I will still rejoice on the morning that I wake up with the "right" number staring back at me from the scale!
Beyond weight, my next major step will be consideration of a tummy tuck. I am lucky not to have any significant loose skin resulting from my weight loss. However, I am the mother of 3 young children including a set of twins. My twin pregnancy the C-section required for their birth left me with a less than attractive stomach. I have actually been pleasantly surprised by the difference weight loss and ab exercises have made. I have my fingers crossed that by the time I've reached my ultimate goals I'll have a tummy I can live with. But, I am not going to count on it (I want a bellybutton, darn it!). I've decided that this is the time to start looking into the matter with some seriousness so as to be prepared should the time come.
Along with Megan, I am slowly working towards joining the ranks of you who no longer depend on the scale. I've gotten sooooo much better the past month or so. I still jump on the darn thing every time I pass it but I am mostly unaffected by what it says (unless it is lower, of course).
I am pleased to report that our Fourth of July celebration was much better than planned. I live in the South and it just doesn't get more tempting than a good, old fashioned BBQ. Luckily, I hosted our party this year so I was able to incorporate plenty of healthy alternatives to the traditional high calorie fare. Oh, and it helped that after 3 days of preparation and planning all of the "naughty" foods were rather unappealing. A couple of ice cold bottles of beer were the closest to damage that I did and they were absolutley worth every sip. Ahhhh, if only Thanksgiving were going to be so easy! I started this journey on December 26, 2004 so this Thanksgiving will be my first MAJOR food oriented holiday since losing weight. Believe it or not, I've started making my plan already!
Thank you for having me here. I am looking forward to journeying through maintainence with all of you!
Scales ... where do I start ... it is like one of the "bad boys" in high school - you know you shouldn't but you just can't help yourself. I have been trying to wean away. My new thing is to ONLY weight myself the last Sunday of the month. Other than that, I use Ilene's patented "pants-o-meter" and will do a caliper reading one every 3 or 6 months (still working on what is right for that). My bottom line is that "Maintenance" means I do NOT have to weigh in and get wrapped around that number every week (or day, in my case )
I have a new issue, and feel a little silly, but , well, I know one or two of you have been through this and can help me. When I think of myself I still think of me "before". I am shocked (pleasantly) when I go by a mirror or see myself in a photo or window. So, I find myself staring and admiring. Yes, I still manage to pick on individual parts, but the overall package looks pretty darn good to me. I am also much more aware of what I wear and "just because it fits" is no longer good enough. I have never been a "girly-girl" and this vanity thing is new (and scary) to me. How much is "too much" and how long does it last? I guess this falls in that area of "feelings I never expected to have".
Just zipping by to say welcome to Tricia and bon voyage to Rabbit. Excellent question, Ellen, and yep, it's happened to me. More later, I hope - I've got a 6:30 am client so need to hit the showers and get going.
I have a new issue, and feel a little silly ... this vanity thing is new (and scary) to me. How much is "too much" and how long does it last?
Silly? No way! Too Much? Never! Ellen, one of the joys of girldom is playing with girls' toys. There's clothes. And accessories. And fragrance. And cosmetics. And accessories. And shoes. And lingerie. Did I mention accessories? My dear, there is just no way that any of it can be too much. Admire yourself to your heart's content. If you've never gone into a store and tried on clothes just to see how wonderful they look on the new you, go for it. Try on colors and styles you never tried before. Curious about how something you saw in a magazine might look on you? Try it. You don't have to buy a stitch. And you can do it as many times as you like. But above all, enjoy it.
About makeup ... if you're unsure of what you like or what looks go, have you face "done" at a cosmetics counter. Now, before you go, repeat after me: Makeup sales clerks are barracudas. They rival any used-car salesman. They will make you think that the world will end and your face will fall off if you don't buy everything they show you. DO NOT BELIEVE THEM. Buy only what you like, even if it's a single lipstick. But give it a whirl. It's great fun
Meg, have you come up with solutions to your apres-workout feeding frenzy? What can you take with you to the gym? Do you have access to a frig? A cooler bag? I find in these situations that something with some carbs helps fill me up more than, say, an apple. (THat doesn't make sense does it? Apples are carbs.) Oh well. One of my fave fast snacks is a piece of string cheeze and half-a-dozen Kashi crackers. Other faves are yogurts or a banana. Really easy to eat (sorta like Mel's bites from a muffin, which is also a good idea.) Another good one is to measure out an ounce of nuts ... very filling. I think the key is being able to eat something BEFORE you walk in your front door ... even if it's only in the car. You know full well that you want to give your brain a chance to catch up with what's in your stomach... oh, I just thought of another ... do you eat popcorn? (I can't remember your triggers...)
Re: the scales. Mine sits on my bathroom floor, but I don't get on it these days. The last time I ventured forth in that direction, I confirmed that I was up by about 8 pounds, and I know I continued to, ahem, grow. I also know that if I step on them today, it will send me into a tailspin, even though I've been eating clean for more than a week at this point. For me, this is the key: I know that it will take me until the fall ... maybe even Christmas ... to lose these 10 pounds. (I've always been an extraordinarily slow loser; I plateau a lot.) Knowing that, I know that there's no reason to get on the scale. My mind is my worst enemy. So, I stay away from the scale and do what I know works. My pants will tell me all I need to know.
For all of you who recommended that I read "Full Catastrophe Living," a million I have much to say on that topic, but no time this morning to say it. Instead, let me bid a warm welcome to Tricia and greetings to everyone else.
Thank you, Aireegrrl. Wish I would have read your post before I went into Chicos today - a huge NSV as I can now wear their clothes and look like a million bucks. I got 2 pairs of slacks and 2 shirts. If I would have read youtr post, I probably would have gotten more. Oh, wait, maybe it was a good thing I waited until I got home. Lat week I did go to N-M and got properly fitted for bras and look life I have had a '"lift". Next week on to the makeup counter... Thank you again! I guess I deserve to be a little vain now and again. Ok, just now.
Maintainers - Week Of July 4 - 10
What’s everyone doing today? Pool parties? BBQs? A little nap in the hammock? Fireworks tonight?
Fortunately, I was smart enough the skip the traditional dessert and made a SF strawberry pie instead that wasn’t bad at all for 45 calories per slice.
I keep thinking back to how easy it was to drop pounds back in the early days of weight loss but those days are gone forever, I fear.
and I stayed with her. Today I will go the gym with my gym buddy and I biked today to work and I hope to get back on track after my friend's B-day party on the weekend. Everything was so yammy and I ate about twice as much as I should have.
)
I have much to say on that topic, but no time this morning to say it. Instead, let me bid a warm welcome to Tricia and greetings to everyone else.