Here is place where you can find some accountability, write down your food plan, or excecise and other helpful things.

Please feel free to join in!

Hi! I put my progress pics in March's thread, but I'll put them here too, just in case everyone misses them. These are my "anniversary" pics. 3/17/11 and 3/16/12. 113lbs and 56"

MJ - these photos tell the story my friend. AWESOME

I hope your trainer studies are going well!

I've been at a stall... but, I will never give up.

, everyone. I've been busy last week and had to recoup so I took a few days off exercising and a day off from weighing. But not to worry I am back and going at it again. I took a 30 min bike ride today wished I could have gone for more but it seems that my stamina just couldn't keep up .

mj5 - Great going! Nice job and great pics of yourself .

MJ you look GREAT !!!!

Hi!.. I seem to be getting back my mojo with food. I am taking meds that make me retain water - that just 'messes' with my mind. However, I am moving forward again.

Yesterday:
planned/measured/logged food
no seconds
stretches and strengthening
lots of water
left one bite at every meal/snack
tried to eat slower

I've planned for a healthy day.

Hi Jab!!!
Jinxy - always good to recoup. Give yourself credit for that 30 minute ride!

Have a great day to all.

Hi everyone! Hope you are doing well! My new workout kicked my booty! Wow. Felt good, though. SO excited about the 10k walk this Saturday!!! Can't wait to share it with you.


Beverlyjoy--Thank you! They are going well. Not as fast as I would like, but slow and steady is good. Never giving up is the key! Oh....silly meds! I feel your pain my friend. I 'knew' I was having an issue w/ a med....but still....keep at it. You can do it!

Jinxy--Everyone needs a break sometimes. Thanks!

jab--nice to see you! Thank you!

Enjoy your evening!

Hey all!

All is well here. 3 days of work left and then nearly two weeks of rest. 23 days smoke-free and very motivated to be as healthy as can be.
Especially after seeing your pictures Mj!!! What a difference! I also found one similarity which I liked - you are smiling in both pics! most people look really depressed in the before photo and I don't like that. Congratulations on your year-long persistence, effort and success.
Beverlyjoy - just like you said, never give up. Bravo for doing all those things daily and enjoying it.
jinxy - 30 mins on the bike is 30 more than 0! Good job!

“If we are facing in the right direction, all we have to do is keep on walking.”
Buddhist Proverb

Take care!

Hi! Awesome gym workout tonight! I was sweating up a storm!

Kitcherella--CONGRATULATIONS!!!! 23 days smoke free is awesome! Thank you! Funny story behind the "before" pics....well, first, I did NOT want to take them (who does, right?) Then....between the dogs running around and me closing my eyes....it took MANY tries before we got one we could use. I was laughing at my DH who was being funny.

Hi MJ -- great pics -- very inspirational --and Kitcherella -- good for you for 23 days without the cigs....that is inspirational too. conquering any addiction helps us with out food issues.

I'm struggling -- big time -- I'm having some office politics junk go on that really has my head turned around -- a close friend I thought has played me as a pawn in some office political stuff and I just don't think a friend should do that.....I have to get my mind off it and get back to working on healthy eating and get my arse back in the gym. MJ, your posts about that gym really do inspire me to get back. I had a great workout Monday so need to go back, and need to get back to healthier eating.

You all have a great day -- the accountability thread is great. I'm expecting my next post to show I'm back on track, accountable to myself, positive in action, eating healthy, and gaining fitness, losing fat in the gym.

Elizabeth

*hangs head in shame*

I'm back ladies! This has always been my fave thread.

I've regained almost half of what I lost. I wasn't doing very well for a few months. I Didn't realize until recently that my mental health being wonky was what was keeping me gaining. But as soon as I started experiencing multiple med changes over the last six months, the more I gained. Now that I'm back to being stable I'm also back on plan.

I find it so much easier, when I'm unstable my weight is the last thing I'm worried about, just glad that I am catching it before I gain it all back!

Update....my book should be done by the end of summer. Work is good, everything is great with my bf, we just had our 17 year anniv. Life is back on track. hurrah.

Anyhow, today:

b: 1 oz almonds, almond milk, 1/2 of a blondie
l: black beans, rice, grilled veggies with bbq sauce, corn, and hot salsa (delicious!)
s: Homemade guacamole and gf almond crackers
d: potatoes and carrots in indian spices
s: GIANT salad

I'm in a study right now, and I've decided only to weight when they weigh me once a month, I am trying not to obsess on the scale. Some days I FEEL great and feel like I LOOK good, but then I weigh and my self esteem tanks, so, no more of that for a bit.

Glad to be back.

mj lookin' good lady!

Hi everyone! Just popping in before I finish getting ready for my ROADTRIP tomorrow! I am heading to a friend's house for overnight. We are doing a 10k walk in Central Park on Saturday morning. I am SO SO SO excited!!!

Elizabeth and lottie--Great to see you both here! Thank you

I'll check in when I get back!

mj -- have fun on the central park walk -- woooo hooooooo you go gal!

lottie -- you're in the right place, and It's great you're in a study.

I'm still the same.....but today things got better at the office. she retired, a good friend called me and we had a long talk tonight, I've just got to get my nose in a computer at work and ignore the office politics stuff.

Here's to us for a good day tomorrow!

Hey, sorry I have been MIA for a few days, had to deal with a few hard challenges and strong emotions. I want to apologize before you read my post because its going to be long and I totally understand if you want to just skip it, I just need to get it all out.

I had an extremely stressful weekend with my husband who had to complete something that was 205 pages for school, it was pretty intense and was due on the 2nd and it drained me working on that with him. I dont know if it was the stress from that, that caused the down hill spiral but it couldnt have helped. I dealt with some intense cravings, and made some choices that I am not exactly proud of. We both over ate during this time period, thats just a cold hard fact that I have to accept. What didnt happen though was the fast food trap, the chowing down on a whole bag of lays potato chips (tho I did consume 4 servings of Kettle cooked organic salt and vinegar chips in one sitting), and we stayed away from unhealthy processed foods. I did eat my calories in dark chocolate, eggs, veggies, and home-made salsa and tortilla chips. It was a small comfort to be able to turn to better choices this time but next time this happens (I know it will because life doesnt stop because you are trying to watch what you eat) I am hoping I can focus more on the over-eating portion of control. I thought for sure I would gain 10lbs but according to the scale the last few days it was around 1-2lbs.

It seems like once it rains it pours, my husband only has 3 more weeks of school and then he graduates with his Masters, and then that leaves 1 year of dissertation and 1 year of internship and while its exciting and awesome that the class portion of his degree is over, its almost terrifying. All he has known since he was 16 years old is college (he started early and has spent the last 10 years chasing his dream of having his PhD in his field, but now that its drawing near its like, what do I do once the chase is over?), and our whole relationship has been while at least one of us was in school. So its stressful trying to imagine what the new changes are going to mean for us. We also have a friend that is going through a separation and she is going to come and stay the next 3 weeks with us until her apartment opens up, and while I am not really stressed about her being here (she is great company) I feel like I may be taking on some of her stress just because I feel a great deal of empathy for her, and literally the day after she leaves my husbands family (4 members) are going to be coming to stay in our apartment (600sq ft 2 bedroom) for 2 weeks to be here for my husbands graduation. These are great people and I enjoy them and their company but they are from an island that has limited food choices and once they come to the city they enjoy eating out (they never get to at home so I understand this) but I am worried about making the right food choices while they are here, and how it will affect us financially (eating away from home is expensive). Then literally 1 day after my husbands family leaves, I have a cousin I have never met coming to visit (my mother was adopted and just recently found some of her biological family). I have also stopped taking 2 of my medicines (doctor has allowed it since they were preventative) and I have no idea what type of imbalance they can be causing. In the middle of all this a young local woman who was abducted 2 months ago was found in a local lake, my husband and I had helped in placing flyers around our town and the local city and I know I am not going through the amount of heartache that her family is going through but its still breaking my heart and I think about it often, its not the end that any of us wanted and I am feeling somewhat spiritually crushed.

*sighs* thanks for letting me get all of that out, hopefully it will help me move past these emotions I am feeling.
Still trucking along, and hoping everyone else is doing well!

mj5- your pictures are AMAZING! You are such an inspiration and thank you so much for sharing these with us! I am sorry to hear about the drama at your job coming back and I hope that it ceases to exist! I am excited for you and your 10k walk this weekend! Take some pictures! It would be awesome to get to walk in Central Park, well for me anyway!

Beverlyjoy- I love your attitude of never giving up!

Jinxy- something is always better than nothing and your stamina will catch up. recouping is good to, I feel better after having a few days of trying to get my mind back in the challenge.

Kitcherella - so awesome 23 days free! You are an amazing woman! And yay for time off from work, rest rest rest!

Elizabeth779 - Welcome!

Lottie63- welcome back!