Uber: I so understand the fretting on the scale. I'm still holding on to 254.4 and I really wanted to hit 253. The good thing is that we are going to go fishing this weekend, out of town, so I'm not going to weigh myself now until the official day, Monday. I'm going to be mindful over the weekend, and still record calories, but not going to get on the scale.

LaurieDawn: Good job on the C25K. I've heard such great things about it, but I've never really dug into what all you do! Keep us posted on the progress. And it sounds good that you're not dwelling on calorie choice yesterday. It's done, and now you can move on. Some days are just like that!

Mandy: Hoping for the best for you and the kitty! Hang in there!

Sandi: Sounds like a good idea to start a new thread. I hadn't noticed that it was getting so long. I'll be watching for it. Good luck with going to the candy store!! I am not a gummy bear person, but it would be tough to walk past the chocolate. Normally candy isn't the biggest temptation I have, but I do like sweets, too. Cake, cookies, donuts... it is hard to avoid them.

Glad it is Friday! I'm ready to get away this weekend if just for a little bit. I'm hoping for a good weigh in on Monday. I need to look for a heart rate monitor. They are changing one of the Spin classes that I like to something called MOI, meaning "Mind Over Intensity". It is based on getting your heart rate to different levels throughout the class. You use the resistance and different riding styles to get it higher or lower. They are going to have heart monitors there, but I don't really want to use a strap around my body that was worn by someone else who probably got really sweaty. Yuck. So, since the class sounds pretty cool, I think I'll get one.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Kitty update -

Brownie's out of surgery and waking up. She's staying over night because she needs the fluids... But we get to bring her home tomorrow morning. YAY!

Medical stuff: They went into the bladder and actually found a stone this time, and the doctor said that was good, because it makes many of the other more unpleasant possibilities much less likely. There was also a significant accumulation of crystallized urine in her bladder that needed to be flushed out again. Because of the stone and the 'sludge' in her bladder, she will need to be on a prescription diet for the foreseeable future, possibly the rest of her life.... the analysis of the stone will help them figure out which diet she needs to be on.

Stress about this and my hubby being out of town today... yeah, I kinda forgot to weigh in this morning until after I drank a bunch of water. Oops.

I did go to the gym last night and walked on the treadmill for a bit. For some reason we always end up watching food network in the gym. Seems a bit like torture, but we do love to watch Chopped and Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.

Losing 110 lbs is a big achievement and I'm still proud of it, even if I didn't maintain it and have to do part of it again. And when you say "I lost my freaking mind..." well, that is exactly how I feel. I'm still so surprised that it happened to me. I really thought I had the hang of maintenance. I really get what you mean about being a sugar freak-- that's my bugaboo too. The last time on plan I chewed a lot of Stride sweet peppermint gum. It satisfied my candy craving. But, I also wonder whether it might not be better for me to learn to live without satisfying that craving. A long time ago, I developed a very bad habit that having my arm elbow deep into a big bag of candy and eating it all was a good way to soothe my nerves. I think maybe chewing sweet peppermint gum is sort of like a heroin addict using methadone-- I'm substituting a less harmful practice for a more helpful one. Right now, I'm very relaxed and blissfully free of cravings for candy or gum. Wish it could always be like that.

Uber! Your post reminded me of something. I first heard this song in a spin class and it really hit home with me. It is by "Rudimental" (had never heard of them before) and it is called "Not giving In". It is on YouTube, but the video is icky. I didn't think the video fit the song at all, so if you go to listen to it, I recommend not watching the video too closely. I hated it. Anyway, here are the lyrics that I think fit for all of us:

Well, it's time to start the show,
Lost my heart and lost my soul.
Now it's the time that you won't know,
Lost my mind and lost my goal.

Mm, not giving in.
I'm not giving in,
Not giving in,
Ooh I'm not giving in, yeah.

This time, I'm gonna be stronger I'm not giving in,
This time, I'm gonna be stronger, no, I'm not giving in.

And, Mandy... I'm so happy for you and your cat!

Ugh. Well. I had a nice long post complete with personals and went to fix a typo before posting and it disappeared.

SO, to summarize... Hi everyone! I am out of my poor-kitty mood since she's home and seems to be doing well. My weigh in was 308.4, down 1.2 from Tuesday, and an even 2 from last Friday, bringing me to 10.6 for the month, and 22.2 overall. *Almost* out of the 300s. WOO!

I've got a little water retention going on (my fingers are swollen) so I assume that will go down a little bit more in the near future.

I also use sugar free gum when I've already had my sweet treat for the day and feel like I'm going to murder my husband if he steps between me and the candy dish (which he's taken to doing when I reach for a candy).... I keep Hershey's nuggets - the almond and toffee kind - in the freezer, so it has to thaw out a little before I eat it, which gives me a chance to decide if I actually want to spend my 50 calories on that small bite of chocolate, or if I want to eat something more substantial, like a whole peach, for a similar number of calories. (Yeah, 136g peach = 53 calories - that's a lot more volume than the piece of candy... and with a splenda packet, just as satisfying to the sweet tooth).

Diane, I have a "song" too... Keeps me moving forward. It's a country song, and a lot of the lyrics kind of resonate with my situation, especially my need to forgive myself for going backwards, and continue to move forward. Not 100% dead on, but it works for me. It's "No More Looking Over My Shoulder" by Travis Tritt. It was never a radio single, but it's the title track of one of his older albums.

Lyrics:

Seems like every choice I made would somehow leave me second-guessing
'Bout the green grass I was passing racing toward the other side
I thank God, for the blessing that I finally learned this lesson
One step in the right direction's worth a wasted mile behind

...

Oh, but one night, sick and tired of being sick and tired
I realized forgiveness was the only open road
I swear I heard those shackles snap the moment that I took that path
I never have one time looked back since the morning I arose

I hope you all have a wonderful day! :D

Ladies, if you are doing everything right and hit a stall... READ THIS. It's awesome, and makes a lot of sense and totally explains what's happening:

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat...uishy-fat.html

Yes, it's called "Of Whooshes and Squishy Fat" :D

Good morning everyone:

Mandy: so glad that your kitty is feeling better! And I love your link. You are too funny watching Food Network! I try to stay as far away from it as possible!

Diane: Thanks for the song! I love it! And you're right. I'm a huge proponent of never giving up. Most of what I've achieved in my life has come from this same attitude-- so why can't it work here?

So happy dance for me this morning. Unofficial weigh in, but I'm FINALLy down 2 which gets me back into the 260s! I'm pushing for 260 as a first mini-goal. Meanwhile, I'm starting to notice some improvement in my clothes. I have a nice pair of khaki capris, non-stretch, size 22. They were very tight-- almost too tight to wear-- at my higher weight. Now, they're comfy.

Uber - I have a pair of black cargo shorts that I wore 2 summers ago that I'm looking forward to being able to wear again before the summer is out. ALMOST.