Exercise, Diet and Support #9

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  • Hey Ladies

    Welcome back...

    Well I had a bad food weekend...It was all tasty food but way too much...all celebration parties...ACK...On friday...there was a surprise farewell dinner for my collegue who’s wife got a great job in Vancouver...so they are relocating there..He will work from home for us...the genius of computers...Anyway, we went to a dinner party where my Boss picked up the tab...well...I consumed almost a whole bottle of white wine...my boss kept filling up my glass I ate escargots...snails in a buttery garlic sauce..then I had steamed salmon with veggies in a delicous sauce...and dessert was strawberry cheesecake..I had about half of it..but it was a very big piece...then we all went to a club where I ordered a diet coke but I got a full fat coke...so tons of calories by the end of the day.

    Then Saturday...my childhood friend celebrated 10 years of marriage so we went to a chinese restaurant where it is buffet but the waiters bring it out to you...you order what you want and the chefs prepare it for you...so needless to say...tons of food was consumed...no alchohol though.

    By Sunday...I was so sick from all that food that I stuck to 1350 calories and had foods like tuna salad and tomato soup and instant breakfast. I also had a couple of glasses of carrot juice mixed in with veggies and fruit....I needed to energize.

    So as you can see...its been a week of glutony...I am afraid to weigh myself..I will do so this weekend once I get a chance to get back to normal.

    Meal Plan for today
    breakfast: 1 glass of fruit and veggie smoothie, low fat peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat with metamucil
    lunch: homemade chili con carne
    dinner: shrimp and chickpea salad
    snacks: 2 granny smith apples
    beverages: water, tea and diet cola

    exercise: walk home, cycling and pilates

    Have a great day ladies

    Cyan
  • Life is really starting to happen
    Today was my second day away from home for school. It went okay. My husband did a good job of taking care of things at home. He got my daughter to school okay.

    Also, my husband accepted a new job today that was offered to him last week. It's a bit more money and lots of hours. A mixed blessing. We're both excited about it.

    AND...someone put an offer on our house!!!! YIPPEEE!!! We submitted a counter offer, so we should know for sure tomorrow.

    Food wise, Herbalife just didn't work for me. I don't like being told what to eat and when to eat and all that...so I'm back on Atkins as of today. It feels right.

    Cyan, looks like it's just you and me these days. Where are you Newie, Debee, Miki, Reina, Cjunk, Taiwan??????? I miss people when you're gone! Hope to see you all soon!!

    Lisa
  • Hey Lisa...thank goodness you are still here...I really enjoy chatting with you on msn...I dont know where are the other ladies went...how sad to see this wonderful thread slowly die...but hey..I will continue to post here so long as you do...so come on back ladies.

    Sorry to hear about herbalife not working out...figuring out what is best for you can sometimes be trial and error until you find what it is that works. Good to know that you are back on atkins. Like I was saying to you last night...I found that south beach was not for me when I tried it...I lost 7 pounds the first week but then when I switched over to phase two....I put back all the weight...I think in my case it was water I had lost.

    Hang in there!

    Meal Plan for today
    breakfast: carnation breakfast with skim milk and metamucil
    lunch: leftover chili con carne
    dinner: beef fondue meat on a whole wheat roll with garden fresh tomato salad
    snacks: banana and apple
    beverages: water, tea and diet cola

    exercise: water, tea and diet cola

    Have a good day

    Cyan
  • Hi, girls! I'm not MIA--I just started school, and I've been very busy--very nervous trying to organize myself--I haven't done the first day of school in 16 years!!--also, more car trouble--the second transmission doesn't work either--and we've learned this problem is rampant with Honda, so we're buying a new car, probably a Ford, since hubby can get a discount on them because he works for a supplier--not my plan to add to our debt, but this problem is serious, and we'd rather put money in something new than try to fix something that doesn't seem to want to be fixed, and the mechanics can't figure it out either. Thankfully we've not had to spend much money on this problem car's frustrating problem. Manufacturer covered the two transmissions, but how long can that last?

    Foodwise, I've been eating too many sweet things--last week it was because I hadn't gone grocery shopping, and good choices were not there. I did better this week, but if I was at school, and there was a treat, I'd eat the treat instead of healthy food that I had brought with me. So far no weight gain, but I'd better be careful. I've had trouble sleeping the last few nights because of nervousness, and I tend to eat carbs to help myself fall asleep--carbs help in production of serotonin, which promotes relaxation. Low serotonin is an issue for me anyway with OCD. Prozac regulates the brain's proper use of the chemical. Today we had a power failure at the school--an outside transformer problem, but the goofy electric company kept thinking the problem was in the school, so we had to go to the emergency procedure plan, which means we go into the church with the kids. We spent from 9:30 a.m. till 2:30 p.m. there, with breaks outside for lunch and walking around. We did get to go in the school and get our supplies once it was determined there was no fire, so we did have limited school. But because the electric company solved the problem too late--2:35 p.m.--we cancelled school tomorrow. I can clean my house and do lesson plans. It was a LONG day, but I did have the opportunity to get to know my students better, which is a really good thing, especially with children that may need extra help. I ate lasagna for dinner tonight, picked a little while clearing the table--not really a good thing, so I better watch myself. Generally, though, I am finding it more and more easy to stop eating when I am full, or to say to something I had planned to eat--"You know, I'm full. I really don't want to eat this." Years ago I would have eaten it simply because it was there. So I am succeeding in making lifestyle changes which will be permanent, even if I do slip back from time to time. Well, I'm going for now. See everyone later. Hopefully more people will come back. I'm not leaving, even though I may sometimes miss a few days if I am really busy. Bye all.
  • Hello. Newie, I know what you mean about being busy. You must be stressed because I have seen all the things my kids' teachers have been doing and I don't know how they do it all!!! Teachers definitely don't get paid enough!!! That sucks about your car problems. I hope you get it all worked out! We are having my husbands car fixed tomorrow.

    Today was okay. We never heard what the people though of our counter-offer on our house. Hopefully tomorrow. It was reasonable, so if they have a problem with it... oh well.

    It was my son's first day of school today and he loved it. He was so excited to go. The bad thing is that he gets out at the same time as my daughter but their schools are about 15 minutes away from each other!!! We're going to check into bussing for my daughter once we move in with the in-laws.

    My husband will start his new job on September 13. They are going to pay our Cobra insurance for us until their insurance kicks in! WOW is what I think about that! It's nice to finally work with a company who pays the employees what they're worth. They even told him that in 90 days he will get a raise above the amazing amount they already offered him. I'm so pleased with this company so far.

    Okay...food... Well, I'm back on Atkins. I think the problem before was that even though I was sticking to the plan, I was still consuming too many calories. I was just constantly stuffing food in my mouth. I don't know if it's emotional eating from stress or what, but I'm working on it. Speaking of stress, I read something today in my pathophysiology text book about it. I will share: "..it is thought that severe stress, physical or emotional, may cause a temporary immunodeficiency state owing to high levels of glucocorticoid secretion in the body."

    So, in other words... when we have stress we are more succeptable to illness.

    I also found this on the internet and thought it was very interesting...

    Constant, long term stress can be responsible for weight gain because of the way cortisol, the stress hormone, acts on the body. Cortisol has both a short term and long term effect on the way the body uses glucose and stores fat.

    In the initial stages of stress, cortisol is responsible for mobilizing fat and glucose into the bloodstream so that it can be used quickly for energy. It does this by breaking down proteins in the body, and turning them into glucose. Cortisol also increases insulin levels to let the glucose into the cells so that they can use it for energy.

    The stress response system evolved to deal with sudden stressful events, like being attacked by a predator. First you have the fight or flight response, involving both adrenaline and cortisol, which produces a quick blast of energy, then when you've escaped you need to replace that energy. So one of the later effects of cortisol is to increase your appetite and increase fat storage.

    This can be a problem if you're under constant mental or emotional stress with nothing to flee or fight. Cortisol will slowly break down muscle and bone to provide energy, elevate your appetite, and cells that are receptive to cortisol will store fat. Because fat requires less energy to maintain than muscle, this decreases your metabolism. And the fat cells around the waistline are the most sensitive to cortisol, so this is where you are most likely to gain cortisol-induced weight.


    So, ladies, take a deep breath, relax. STRESS MAKES YOU FAT!!
    I find this a fascinating theory!! I am definitely going to work on relaxing.

    Lisa
  • Hey, Lisa--that information about stress, lowered immune system, weight gain, and cortisol was great!! I've been hearing about that a lot on TV lately, and I've found a definite pattern in my own life with stress or not sleeping well (which is very stressful on the body) and more susceptibility to illness--I'll get a cold, or my OCD will act up--also, what I said yesterday about craving carbs when I am stressed so I can relax--and trust me, healthy carbs like fruit or carrots are not what I want. I want that which will get that rush of insulin and serotonin going--SUGAR AND FLOUR!!!!! I've even noticed that if I have a period of time where I eat lots of white flour, sugar, etc., that I tend to retain fluid--basically become bloated in the hands, face, tummy. I've dealt with a lot of stress throughout my life, and I have ALWAYS had trouble with my waistline being too large for the rest of me--even when I was at my lowest weight--122 lbs. on a large frame--downright skinny!! Now that could be either genetics or cortisol or both happening there, but I've seen plenty of personal evidence to say that you've really got something there with what you shared with us. I too try to keep my stress level down--ha! ha!--maybe manage it and take care of myself in the midst of it is more like it--because I really believe that stress is an enemy of good health. Speaking of managing stress--I am really glad to be off school today. It will take some of the pressure off me and help me to get a little ahead of my class--also, I've got to get those two girls of mine to help me clean the house--wash the kitchen floor, finish the laundry, and clean the cat hair off of everything it sticks to. Cyan, I know you have cats--do you have anything you do that helps keep cat hair off furniture and rugs, especially--or methods you use to get it off easily? Or do I just resign myself to having a furry house that I just have to keep working to keep reasonably clean? That furry stuff is the only part of having a cat that I really detest. Everything else is pure heaven--well, maybe the litter box isn't quite heaven. Well, got to go. Have a good day, all. Hope to see everyone else back soon. Maybe they are all in the midst of getting back into school too, and it won't be long till they come back. Bye!!
  • Ola chickitas Looks like its just us three LOL Man I havent been 122 pounds in sooo long.

    the other day I bought my first pair of size 8 stretch jeans...and they fit...ok tight...and yes...too tight for me to wear outside...although some women might wear them...anyway...I squeezed into them...woohoo....I bought them because they were at a sidewalk sale and they are mexx...and they were only 15 bucks...so I figured I would make them my fall goal pants to fit into...and I might just say so myself...they are very flattering on me...heheheheh

    Meal Plan for today
    breakfast: carnation breakfast with milk
    lunch: beef vindaloo with carrots and chickpeas
    dinner: chicken breast with green salad, garden tomato, onions and feta (some tzatiki on the side too for the chicken
    snack: banana and apple

    exercise:walk to work and home, cycling and maybe pilates

    have a great hump day

    Cyan
  • Hey Ladies

    Its a beautiful day today...lots of sun but the temp is just right..not too hot...hot humid..just the way I like it.

    I woke up hungry today...so I had breakfast and then at 10.30 I had half of my lunch..weird...but there are days where I will eat anything in sight. LOL

    Meal Plan for today
    breakfast: toast whole wheat with cream cheese light
    lunch: chicken breast sandwich on portuguese bun with branston pickle
    dinner: shrimp, chickpea and tomato salad with feta
    snack: yogurt and three oreo cookies( damn..they were in the fridge at work!)

    exercise:walk to work and walk home and cycling and some pilates

    Have a great day

    Cyan
  • Hi, ladies--it's been a long time since I was 122 lbs. too--1988 to be exact--for me that's too thin. My periods went away for almost a year when I was that thin--not too good. I'd like to be about 135. Even 145 would be good. I went to the store to try to buy school clothes for myself yesterday--at the store where I used to buy all my favorite things--every 18-20 was too big, except for a couple of skirts, but they made me look sloppy--too much material. Even one of the 14/16 tops was too big. I was really surprised about that. A 14/16 button down blouse with a collar was too small, but I don't look good in a collar--it makes the top half of me look bigger, and it's already big enough. Last I checked, I was 157.5 lbs. I'm pretty tired tonight--had a good day at school. These 19 students I have are such a joy--so cooperative and helpful and interested in learning--even the boys who mess around aren't incorrigibles like some of them last year. They will calm down and do some work. I literally walk around my classroom smiling. I told them--so they wouldn't think I was goofy--that I was so happy to be with them, and that I enjoyed them so much, and I was smiling because I was happy. Well, I'm going to check out a music company website to buy a clarinet for my younger daughter, so I'm going. More soon.
  • Tgif
    Yippee...it's Friday! I'm up having my morning computer time while my children get themselves ready for school (with minimal help from mommy). I like how my daughter's school starts at 9am. At her other public school in Kindergarden it started at 7:50am!!! That's just too early! I didn't sleep well. My 4 month old slept with the me the whole night and he is a kicker...already. The other night while he was in my bed I had a dream I was being attacked by a dear....?
    Someone put an offer on our house on Monday. We countered. Since then, they've asked about a couple of things and come to look at the house a second time..but here it is Friday and we still haven't heard anything!!! Not a good scenario for reducing my stress.
    Well, I started out the week at 203.5 pounds on Sunday. That was the last day I attempted Herbalife. I ate whatever I wanted that day and started Atkins on Monday. Today I am 197.5. That's 6 pounds!!
    Cyan, I am definitely going to buy a microphone today. That was so cool. You didn't sound a thing like I imagined.
    Newie, I hope school is good for you today and that you have a good weekend!

    I hope more of our flock make it back here soon.


    Have a great day!

    Lisa
    Lisa
  • Hi Ladies

    Thanks to the 3 of you faithful ladies who keep this thread going. Altho I dont make it in as often as I'd like to lately, I would just die if it closed down. I love knowing you're here whenever I can get around to joining you so PLEASE continue.

    After a stressful past 6 months and almost unbearable last few until recently, my appetite returned with a vengeance the last couple of weeks. I have eaten everything in sight. I am determined starting tomorrow to get back on track. ( I know...ought to start today huh..lol) But it's a holiday weekend.

    Things here are slowly but surely improving. Phil is totally committed to me and to our marriage...I'm the problem now. I get up each day telling myself that the past is in the past and I have to get over it and not bring it up anymore. Sometimes that happens but others, the tiniest thing might still set me off. He never knows what kind of mood to expect from me these days. I definitely have more good days than bad ones now so that's a good thing. Just wish I could erase both of our memories of a few things. Would make thinks easier. I do know that I cannot for the rest of our lives hold this mistake over his head. I dont try to do that...it just comes out sometimes. I can go from the happiest high to the lowest disappointment in a day. Working on it tho...and like this weightloss journey, I refuse to give up.

    So many changes have gone on with me the last several months. You all know the part about my marriage. Then also, my youngest sis, Joy got transferred to Utah.(her husband is in the airforce) She's the one with the two adorable kids, Kaylen and Isaac who I miss terribly already. They are now a 25 hr drive from here. They have been gone a couple of weeks now. I have 3 sisters and this is the first time ever that any of us have been more than 2 1/2 hours away from each other. We're all very close to this is a traumatic thing for us.

    I also have had some changes at work. I worked fulltime for 13 yrs but for the last several altho I worked most days, I kept a part-time status so that I could be off as needed for my kids...ballgames, school parties, etc etc. Anyway, I have been training people since January in the Bookkeeping/Transit department. Someone else gave their notice a couple of weeks ago so I decided that to get a break (mentally)I was going to have to take the job myself...the one I've been training others for. I just cant bear the thought of going thru all that again with someone new so for now, I will do the job myself which means working every day Mon-Fri and occasionally Mon-Sat. It will mean more hours but definitely less stress. It's much easier doing the job than teaching it. My boss was thrilled that I wanted to do that and says if I get tired of it, we'll once again resume the training...it's just up to me when or if that happens. He also said if I wanted to train someone on just a few of the things, enough that if I really needed time off they would know enough to get by just as my backup then that was fine also. For now, I think that's what I'll do.

    So that pretty much sums of my life lately. Glad I finally got to come in and update ya'll on things with me. Now I have to find time to catch up on the individual posts. Hopefully everyone will eventually find time to wander back in with us. I plan on doing better at that myself.

    Lisa, Cyan and Newie, thanks again for always being here. Have a great weekend!

    MIKI
  • Miki, I was so glad to see a post from you!!! I've missed you! I'm glad that things are going better for you for the most part. I understand about it being hard not to hold it over your husband's head at times. It's a hard thing. Here's some "not asked for advice" (sorry). You need to have some alone time mentally recommitting yourself to starting completely over with your husband. Just saying to yourself in your mind or out loud, "we're starting over. The past is the past and I'm thinking about the future" Okay...sorry But, until you're ready to do that, your husband should be patient and understanding and not get angry with you about your feelings. That's cool that your job is working with you so well. Good for you! As for you eating everthing in sight, we'll hold you to getting on track tomorrow! I'm sure Cyan has some more cyber kicks there waiting for one of to step out of line!

    cyan, I love my microphone and can't wait to talk to you again. You do have that Canadian accent where your voice infliction goes up at the end of each sentence. It's way cool! Everyone here should get a microphone and we could all talk together!!!

    Well, hope everyone else is doing good. Newie, hope you are enjoying your holiday weekend!!!

    Lisa
  • Thanks Lisa...I have missed you too! Dont worry, I can use all the advice I can get so dont worry about that. The truth is I know that's what I should do...it's just sticking to it that's the problem.

    Eating today hasnt been bad at all..just have to keep it up the rest of the week.

    I have a mic too (somewhere!). One of the kids disconnected it to connect some headphones or something I think. I used to have the mic with the headphone attached but the one we have now is just the mic which comes thru the speakers. Our computer is in the living room but sometime when nobody is in here watching TV, I'd love for us all to talk. It would be cool to hear how everyone sounds.

    Well better run. Luke is working on homework that he should have done before now and needs help. I'm not too happy to find out he had a long weekend and waited til now to mention his math homework.

    I'll be back when I can. Everyone have a good week.

    MIKI
  • Hi, ladies--hope everyone is having a good holiday weekend. Miki, don't be hard on yourself for your feelings. Despite the fact that your marriage is on the mend, and both you and your husband are committed to each other, you've been through a real trust trauma, so it seems natural to me that it's going to take some time to get over it. I had a couple of ideas--I hope I am not overstepping our friendship here. I agree with Lisa that your hubby needs to be understanding of your feelings and give you time to work through them--you need to heal!!!! And denying the anger or stifling it won't make it go away. It will just end up hurting you--you'll start eating like crazy or doing something else destructive to yourself. I think it would be good for you to cultivate some healthy ways to express and work through your feelings and generally take care of yourself, so your anger (natural and normal by me!!) doesn't poison the healing of the relationship. Also, I hope you guys are communicating about all those feelings that you are experiencing. It seems to me that would be part of the healing. I mean, what happened DID happen, and while you can't erase that fact, healing YOU hopefully would be part of the whole process of moving on for both of you. I can't remember if you said you are going to couples counseling. I hope my opinion isn't too much two cents, and that I haven't offended you. If so, I apologize.

    My students are angels compared to what I had last year--so eager to learn, to be helpful, to be kind--even the ones who mess around will actually listen to me!!! I am so happy. We bought a 2005 Ford Focus Saturday and traded in that Honda Civic that didn't seem to get its transmission fixed. The new one is such a nice car! I drove one for almost a week during one of my car renting periods a couple of weeks ago. Of course, we are in more debt--what else? But at least we have reliable transmission. And it's the prettiest color--called French Blue--like the Microsoft Internet Explorer blue all over our internet screens. Hubby had the first step in the process of getting a dental implant on Saturday also. Oral surgeon drilled down into his jawbone to install a "screw anchor" which is supposed to accept a titanium screw to which will be attached a false tooth. Yuk!!! Of course, insurance doesn't cover this--considered cosmetic, but we don't want to file down perfectly good teeth to create a bridge for him. Luckily it takes about 8 months, so I have that time to come up with the $1300. We paid $450 Saturday. Thank God we are both working.

    My food is interesting. I am only eating when I am hungry and what I want to eat. It's a very weird feeling but very right for this time in my life. I've never done that before. I think I'm eating less, and fairly balanced. I do eat sweets sometimes, instead of other things--not in addition to them, so it will be interesting how this all works out. I use a lot of calories when I am at school. I think I get quite a bit of exercise, since my classroom is on the second floor, and I do those stairs several times a day. I rarely sit down before noon too.

    Well, I'm going to get going. I don't have a mike at this time, and I don't really think I want to get one right now, if it's all right with you guys. With talking and listening to others talk all day, computer time is really quiet time for me. I never even turn on my speakers unless a phone call is coming through, and I want to hear the message. I know it's fun to hear one another's voices; I have a penpal in Australia, and whenever I talk to her on the phone, it's so cool. Maybe sometime soon--bye for now.
  • Hey Ladies!
    Hi everyone-it's been ages since I have come online to this site to post but I have been reading every now and again and like everyone else I would miss not coming here!! So I thought I would say a hello to all. I was on vacation for 10 days and start back to work tomorrow--sad to go back as my next vacation won't be until Christmas now!! We went canoe camping at Algonquin Park and also up to a cottage for a few days. Did a bit of mountain biking as well. A very active week and I think I should try and keep it up during the work week which is much harder!!

    Newie, like you these first few back to school weeks will be hectic so I am ready to jump back in to things as I work at a children's centre where we work with schools a lot.

    Cyan, sounds like you are still determined and focussed but have some days where you need a good Cyber Kick!! I can't say that we are much different so I will spare you this time!! I don't have a microphone for my computer but a friend just moved to Mexico to work and has a microphone internet phone connection so I will be getting one soon as well and will let you know when I do.

    Miki, times have been rough, but they will get better. Trust is something that is earned and built back over time. It is impossible to have that happen over night honestly, so don't be hard on yourself for the process is a process and is normal. Just be yourself and allow yourself to express your feelings in other ways so that it does not stay pent up. We are here to support you through that if you feel frustrated and need to vent anytime.

    Lisa, I hope that all is working out well with your house offer and that your kids are enjoying school. What is it like for you to go back as well? Congratulations to your husband for his new job!!

    My fiance and I are thinking of going tropical to get married next year as that way any immediate family who want to watch can save to go down to see it. I would love to be able to afford Hawaii, but have to look into it more--we'll see!!!

    In terms of me and eating and exercise--I have been exercising a lot and I have been eating a lot. I have been gradually putting on weight each year I get older-- a pound here or there but not happy with it. So my goal before getting married is to increase weight bearing exercise to get my muscle mass to increase so it burns off that extra fat I have put on!! I have about a year to go to get to my goal!! I am starting by incorporating some regular weekly swims that I enjoy so much as they are right up that alley!!

    Talk to you all soon,

    Cjunk