[LaurieDawn]

New thread, y'all! We hit 500. Again. Yay for Carter for starting the thread initially, and yay for the rest of us for making it as vibrant and wonderful as it is!

Just checking in after my afternoon run. I decided to start on Week 1, Day 3, Toasted. For my running intervals, I ranged from 6.2 mph to 6.6 mph. For walking, I was at 3.7. Then I added some intervals at the end until I hit 3.25 miles. Then meandered over to the step machine for another 5 minutes. Still planning on doing my 4.25 miles this afternoon. Not happy about my current work making me stay another 2.5 weeks, so I'm going to focus on doing the bare minimum and taking full advantage of the added time to rock out my Beast Mode phase! Gonna need to start adding in some lower-impact stuff like the elliptical stuff, cuz I'm starting to feel a little roughed up.

[carter]

Good morning folks.

Thank you for doing the needful, LaurieDawn. I've read through everyone's comments on the end of the previous thread and it's good to see so many are present and fired up.

I could use some of LaurieDawn's beast mode myself. I've tried three times to write something about where I am with eating and exercise and all that came out was a long string of fretfulness. I'm tired.

TooWicky I hope your recovery continues to go well. I'm sorry you are feeling down. Try to go easy on yourself. You are not a slob; you have had a serious medical intervention and it's going to take some time to recover from that. Think about what was actually done to your body - maybe that will make it easier for you to give yourself a break.

garnetstring The dress looks superfun - you must be beside yourself.

Diane Glad your son's surgery went smoothly. I can't imagine how harrowing that must be, as a parent.

To all else: Good luck and good strength, and please send me some of your strength too.

[toastedsmoke]

Hey everyone! Okay so I got home late and fell on my dinner like I hadn't seen food in YEARS!!! I ended up being over for a fast day at 680 calories rather than 500 calories but I still consider that a fast as it is SIGNIFICANTLY different from what I'd normally eat. I DID end up working out as well for 45 minutes at like 11.30pm. I was exhausted by that point and was going to do a 15-minute easy breezy workout only but when I finished that I was like I'm already dressed and ready, might as well push it some more, so then I did an intense tabata-style workout which was great for fitness but was terrible for digestion- note to self: you don't need to be jumping around all over the place less than 90 minutes after eating. I had to sleep sitting up. Not fun.

Diane: I was really ill in 2012 and had a couple of major surgeries and my mom had NO patience with anyone. I was pretty chill (maybe the medications, maybe I'm just a chill sort of person in general, idk) but she was like fighting for my health rights or something and got into arguments with my surgeon, nurses, basically everyone got on her nerves. I think it was the worry and empathy and probably also the slightly jaded, robotic attitude of the medical people that made her so... antsy and irritable. I think it's normal and I totally appreciated it especially since I can admit my nerves were being got on too and I didn't feel able to speak up about it. And I agree, exercise is a huge mood boost. I also find working out easier in the afternoon especially if I've eaten at some point in the day before the workout. Working out in the morning requires a little extra pushing mentally and physically, but it does at least ensure said workout gets done!

TooWicky: I used to be a late night eater too because I'm kind of a night owl. In fact, pre-2009 when I started, 90% of my bingey behavior happened in the witching hours, so when I got started the first thing I did was cut off eating past midnight. Even on my worst, most binge-monster out-of-control days, the one rule I never break is that one. Re: fasting, I actually just got started with the 5:2 intermittent fasting way of eating in the last few months and now it's become kind of solid with me. 2 days a week I eat 500-600 calories (Mondays and Thursdays) and the rest of the week, I'm supposed to be able to eat 2000 calories although I try to be more around 1300-1500 calories on those non-fast days. It's not as hard as I thought it would be actually and it's been working okay for me as I've been really grinding out the last few months. It's been tough. Re: feeling bad about surgery recovery, the surgeries I had in 2012 are similar to yours in that adhesions caused bowel obstructions and there was infection and then failed ressections, anyway, to cut a long story short all heck exploded and all this happened just as I was getting to goal and was at my fittest and fastest with running and all of a sudden, boom! I remember crying at my first doctor's appointment after going home, saying I didn't feel like I was getting better fast enough because I was constantly out of breath (did the physios give you that breathing practice thing you're supposed to blow into, use it. It really helps), couldn't stand or sit up straight, walked bent over like a very old crone and basically could barely eat or drink anything, and then he, with that wonderful bedside manner my mother loved, proceeded to tell me about some of his other patients who'd done the same surgery and all their complications, then he told me how much worse I could be and that I was wayyy ahead of the curve getting around by myself, eating anything at all. So all this long story is basically to say give yourself time, you've just had major surgery (someone touched your bowels girl! they don't like being touched), you WILL feel better, you WILL get stronger. FWIW it took me a month to feel like myself again with breathing and getting around easily and maybe a couple of more months after that to feel like I was myself again with running. What you need now is patience and time. I think it's awesome and heroic that you're getting what exercise you can despite the challenges.

Jessica: The outfit is sooooo cool!!!! Love the corset and skirt. What sort of shirt and boots are you going to wear with? Do you own this already? Very very cool! We'll need pictures of the final look of course when the time comes, eh?

Laurie: Yay new Thread! I'm inspired by your beast mode and getting beastly myself by challenging myself to do more of a workout than I have on my plan when i start.

carter: Sending you strength and energy and positive vibes. I think everyone has plan fatigue from time to time. It's especially hard when everyone around seems to find the energy and verve that one can't find in themselves. This journey is a hard slog and I guess the hard times teach us compassion and perseverance and all those other annoyingly necessary virtues that help us be better people. So there are two bright sides: 1.) you'll get your fire back, just keep pushing through and trying to at least maintain for a bit if nothing else; and 2.) your current struggle to get back in form is for the greater good of mankind, you'll come out stronger and better for the experience than if everything was storybook easy-breezy. Or something. Anyway #takeoneformankind


Okay so just to check in with C25K, first of all please please join me and Laurie in doing C25K even if you're just thinking about it- you never know if you'll finish if you don't start. Today was my first time ever doing it outside so i don't know exactly how fast I was going, I just know it's probably faster than I go on the treadmill because I had to keep telling myself to slow down and pace myself. I started from W2D1 in the end since I completed a second cycle of week 1 about a week ago. Running outside was interesting... good and trippy (meaning lots of potential to trip and fall splat, not that there was any high other than a runner's high going on) but interesting. I got home from that and got a head start on my evening work out (copying Laurie's 2-a-day schedule) with some intense tabata training and yoga. I have an upper body strength training workout this evening which shouldn't be too bad for the digestion- not so much bouncing around y'kno.

I wish everyone a wonderful on-plan day.

[allisonm]

so how do you guys actually stop yourself from bingeing at night? i understand you make a rule for yourself, but thats not working for me. please help.

[toastedsmoke]

Hey Lyn, I'm terrible at moving and change and packing etc and for me it's stressful and then I eat and that's no good AND that's without having limitations to what I can do exercise-wise to release some stress. Give yourself a break, the weight will come off. Plus as you say, it might just be water weight! #crossedfingersandtoes I think it's awesome that you're planning on beasting it right into your move. I'm in awe!

allisonm: Bingeing is kind of a hard thing to overcome because it's not usually only about the food, but also the underlying things that cause the compulsive behaviour. I used to binge really late at night so I made a hard and fast rule never to eat past midnight which has helped with late night eating but now means I get my bingeing done at a normal hour- ha, which is really no better. I know I can't say x or y or z is the magic thing that will eliminate all your bingey behaviour forever because behaviour change is messy and is not caused by one sole thing so there's no one specific thing that will fix it. I definitely still struggle and in the past month, have eaten myself sick on several occasions even knowing and hearing my internal voice tell me to stop AND I'm the kind of binger that actually tracks my binges- like I'll actually log the 4 granola bars followed by the half loaf of bread I ate, and even that doesn't stop me. I think most of us on here and I mean 3FC not this thread alone, even the most successful, still struggle with it. That said, if you're caught in a bingey cycle right now and need to cut it out at least immediately, maybe you can identify the foods you binge on late at night and throw them out/give them out right now. I try to avoid cooking and leaving accessible leftovers because that's just begging me to eat them that same day so I can "start afresh" tomorrow. Snacks are also binge-y for me, things that are easily accessible so like protein bars, granola bars, cookies, crackers, nuts, chips, cake, candy, bread etc because it's so convenient to get to- no cooking required. I've thrown trigger food out and squeezed detergent many a time just to snap myself out of binge mode. Getting out and exercising also helps, not allowing myself to be alone with food when I'm in binge mode also helps, doing things like painting my nails or brushing my teeth and swishing mouthwash are also emergency measures when I'm in a cycle of bingeing. But really, none of these things are obviously long-term solutions to the behaviour in the first place. I'm sorry you're struggling right now.

Guys, I actually came back to check in because I found something awesome and inspiring and amazing on Facebook which is funny coming from me because I'm hardly ever on Facebook since I usually find it the opposite (of an inspiring place and besides I'm also ironically given my love of a long post, #team140charactersorless). Anyway, I don't know if you guys have heard of the #thisgirlcan (This Girl Can) campaign? It's I believe an English campaign to encourage women and girls who feel intimidated or put off about getting into exercising and sport or think they need to already be athletic or fit or slim or whatever to participate? Anyway the video I saw on Facebook (where I was actually doing work but that stopped me from doing said work and has had me watching their videos all afternoon) was this one. Anyway they have a really cool online presence so if you DO check the video out (with headphones if you're out in public or at work), you can also find them on Facebook, YouTube and they have a website too. This was kind of my afternoon obsession, rather than actual work... :/

[carter]

Originally Posted by allisonm

so how do you guys actually stop yourself from bingeing at night? i understand you make a rule for yourself, but thats not working for me. please help.

What are you bingeing on at night? Is it something that you can remove from your environment? How does the binge begin? Can you change your behavior to avoid that first step?

If you are more specific about what actually happens when you have an evening binge, we can be more helpful about how to avert them.

I agree, rules are not enough. I also have to engineer my environment and my behavior to make following those rules a little less difficult than the sheer application of will.

I have found that it is much, much more difficult to stop a binge than it is not to start one. I know that if I eat even one bite in the evening it is likely to escalate and become very, very difficult to stop.

So I try not to take that first bite. If I don't go in the kitchen in the evening, I can't take the first bite. So I'll make myself do my kitchen chores right after dinner instead of delaying them to later in the evening when my appetite is firing and my discipline is weaker.

And I try not to keep in the house the sort of foods I am most likely to binge on. Even when I do binge at home, the worst I can do is overeat cheese sticks and nuts. Lots of calories, for sure, but at least plenty of nutrients and protein to go with them. Better than eating an entire loaf of buttered bread or a pint of ice cream or a box of cereal with milk or (whatever else). If those things are not present, I can't binge on them no matter how strong the urge is.

Does that help at all?

[garnetrising]

Laurie, I want to run... Maybe I should convince my father to let me have the treadmill that he only uses as a coat rack.

Carter, I am a little bit.

Toasted, a basic top probably in an off-white shade. The skirt is on layaway at a local shop and I placed the order for the corset and bolero via Etsy the other day. Boots are going to depend on what I can find that suits the colors of the whole outfit and the length of the skirt.


Did strength training. I love planks. I've noticed that I'm having to rediscover how to hold myself in a plank though. By which I mean planking is a vastly different experience when you're 40 inches smaller and nearly 75 lbs lighter. Your body weight sits differently. I've been going back and forth this morning about whether or not I'm going to take Luna for a walk before work. I both do and do not want to. Last night was so long. Tonight's probably going to be busy, too. My thighs have a light ache - the good kind - from the last two mornings of strength. But I don't want to overdo it. I think the bottom line, though, is that I need to get off my butt and just do it. If I don't do it today when I have time, it's just one more step toward not doing it at all again. And I know that once we've taken our walk, I'm gonna be in a wonderful and energized mood for the rest of the day - I have all those days and months of proof from this summer and early last fall.

[LaurieDawn]

Originally Posted by carter

I have found that it is much, much more difficult to stop a binge than it is not to start one. I know that if I eat even one bite in the evening it is likely to escalate and become very, very difficult to stop.

This. So much this.

Also, what Toasted said about the millions of different strategies.

I really have only one thing to add. I fight binges. I finally am seeking some help in therapy to help with the food addiction that I was just diagnosed with (two weeks ago, in fact). But I am still 80 or so pounds down from my highest weight. I say this not to minimize the binge problem. And both Carter and Toasted, who have successfully maintained large losses for a significant periods of time (despite some regain in both of their cases) have said they have binge issues as well. I have a huge problem with binges, and it makes me physically ill sometimes, in addition to the weight issues it exacerbates. But you don't have to solve the problem in order to make progress. You just have to figure out ways to control it most of the time. Knowing this gives me hope.

Toasted - I LOVED that video you posted. I glanced at the comments, and it emphasized the need for the video.

I wanted to take more time for personals, and I might come back, but I still have some prep to do for an afternoon hearing. Just quickly, I want to report that I am on Day 4 of BEAST MODE, baby. And beast mode makes me very, very sore. And it doesn't mean that I can bench 85 pounds more than once, as I discovered today, so back to 80 pounds I meekly went. I had a court appearance this morning, and just stopped at the gym on the way back to my office, and rocked some heavy lifting. Not as much as I would like, but it was satisfactory. Looking forward to some afternoon cardio. Work = slacking. (What are they gonna do? Fire me? Please fire me!) Food & exercise = beast mode! I also resisted pizza and ice cream last night. Instead, I had some steak and shiritaki noodles for dinner while the fam ate pizza, and sipped herbal tea while the fam indulged in ice cream. Cuz beast mode, y'all.

[garnetrising]

The walk... IT IS DONE! RAWR!! Just under a mile because I had to come home and change and leave for work. I'd forgotten how easy it is for me to just keep walking when I don't have somewhere I have to be. Stupid work... if it wasn't for you, I'd still be walking now.

Also, a free consultation appointment has been made with a bankruptcy lawyer. I need to know exactly what my options are and what my best option is. And, in case, I forgot to mention it, transcript evaluation started Friday afternoon. Then they were closed for three days because of the weekend and the holiday yesterday. So I wait. Rather anxiously.

[Slashnl]

Hi all. Thanks to everyone for the well wishes for my son. I appreciate it!

I started C25K last night after work. It is somewhat light right when I get home, and it gets a little too dark by the time I get home, but I really prefer walking/running outside as to walking/running on the treadmill. What a cool program! I did W1D1, so just starting out. It was definitely doable. We'll see how I can keep up as it gets more challenging. I didn't want to drop any of my other workouts, so I'm just adding C25K 3 days a week, after work. If the weather is bad, then I'll go to the gym and use the treadmill. The road in front of my house is a little busy, but just up the road, I can turn onto another country road that is less busy. It felt great to be out there!!! I'm excited about it.

I went to Body Pump this morning. I felt a little soreness in my legs, but it was still ok. Good workout. I'll skip C25K tonight, and go to spin tomorrow morning. Loving the feeling of being stronger/more fit. I just hope the scale starts understanding that my efforts need to be rewarded! Just need to keep focusing on staying on plan with food. I keep thinking about warmer weather coming up and I am so looking forward to it and I want to be a little smaller!!!

No personals today. Gotta run. Just have to say that I like all the helpful comments from everyone. I don't have anything to add on binging at night, but what great advice from everyone else!!

[LaurieDawn]

I'm baack! 2-minute hearing for the win, baby!

Jessica - I am totally loving the dress you're rocking for the con. I've also always been envious of your planks. My goal is to start doing planks and push-ups at work on 2-minute breaks. I can do a 60-second plank, but it ain't pretty. And yes - responsibilities too often get in the way of really good walks. Yuck.

TooWicky - Don't be embarrassed. Own that feeling! Recovery from surgery sucks, especially because it interferes with your fitness goals. However, as "they" always say, weight loss begins (and mostly ends) in the kitchen. Your focus of just eating reasonably healthy food in reasonable amounts seems to be working for you. Yay, good scale results!

Diane - I plan on doing a 5K in April too! And I do like having the app on my phone tell me when it's okay to start walking, and when I need to push the speed. Still deciding exactly how I'm going to use the program to fit my current needs, but love that you, Toasted, and me are in this together! Also, it looks like all three of us are incorporating some 2-a-days in this. You two make my beast mode look weak. I'm only doing mine because I am neglecting my actual job, but you guys are making all of it work together. Yay, inspiration!

Allisonm - I already addressed your very astute question, but wanted to add that we're thrilled you popped in, whether you're just dipping your toe in for that single question or whether you intend to become a regular part of our group.

Lyn - Restrictions on exercise have to be the worst. So sorry you have them. But it sounds like you're developing a plan to work with them. And the starts/stops - I'm all about those. Some people start and never seem to slip. Hooray for them. But I have yet to be able to do it, which is why I involve myself in these little challenges. I know that I have to pay attention to my weight for the rest of my life, but it works better for me when I break it down into smaller chunks.

Carter - The slog is the worst. Surviving the downs can be so incredibly draining. I have lots of strategies to break out of them, as I know you do, but they don't always work all of the time. I am very hopeful you find the magic again, and find it soon. White-knuckling is totally doable. But it's not nearly as fun as soaring through the weight loss.

Personals done! Woo hoo! Have I mentioned how much I LOVE this group? K. I have one small work project to complete before I head back to the gym for some cardio. (Frankly, the multiple work-outs a day are great, but I hate my current 3-shower-a-day habit.)

Have a terribly terrific day, everyone!

[allisonm]

thanks so much guys. i lost 110 lbs about seven years ago. i was active on this board as "watchhershrink". i've gained most of it back after two spine surgeries, a baby, getting married, and a million other things.

everything seems so much harder now. especially the bingeing at night. but those are good tips, i know i need to keep certain foods out of the house. i guess i need to put my foot down to my husband and keep the sweet carbs out of the kitchen. also i need to go to bed at a more decent hour so i'm not over tired and making food decisions.

[MissLoud]

New thread and look at us go!!

Just a flying visit!! Day three and I really had to white knuckle it through went for 2 walks and a bit of a boogie to a workout in youtube, I'm so unco! Was fun though I better see some scale action soon or they are going out the window at the moment they only want to go up not down at the moment.

Right got to go - keep strong sisters

[LaurieDawn]

The computer ate my post! So I will summarize. Still in Beast Mode, but yesterday was skimming the bottom of it. Went to the gym twice, once for strength training, once for running. Neither was great. But neither was super lame. Ate fairly well, but strayed a bit too far from plan to be official Beast Mode-worthy.

Lyn - Convenience foods are my specialty! Let me know if you want suggestions as to tasty, easy, nutrition-dense foods for when you have no kitchen. Blah on extended PMS. I am also a tea drinker, but I drink exclusively herbal tea (okay, occasionally decaf green tea), and I love it. Stevia's tasty as well, though I only ever include it on rare occasions.

Kelly - Thanks for popping in with your upbeat enthusiasm! I want to incorporate more exclusively fun exercise.

Allisonm - I also had really good success in 2007/08, though I stopped just short of losing a full 100 pounds. I think rediscovering the magic is easier than the initial discovery, but it's never easy. And not gonna lie -- I feel like I have mini-journeys almost every couple of weeks, where I am looking to restart or recommit.

'T'will be a good day today. Double cardio sessions. Might even try to slip in a third. Commitment to breaking three times today at work, each time for 1 set of 12 chair dips, 1 set of push-ups (as many from the toes as I can, followed by 10 from the knees), and a brisk walk down three flights of stairs, through the basement, and back up the second set of stairs. And restocked my food at work.

Beast Mode, Day 5 in progress!

[toastedsmoke]

Hey everyone. How's your Wednesday going? I'm doing alright. Super tired from all the waking up early and sleeping late to work out but I am getting up without hitting snooze (who KNEW that was possible? My mind is blown!) and working out so there is that.

Jessica: Yay walk!!!! And cheers to all the steps you're taking to rock out 2015!!! Fingers crossed the transcripts work out as you'd like!

Diane: I'm so excited you're doing C25K with us. I'm the opposite, I rarely to never run outside but it is nice to be out there getting it done. And there's something to be said for having a schedule to keep you on track.

Laurie: I'm glad you liked the video. I identify with it so much because when I first got started in 2009, I'm THE LAST person that would ever have thought they'd be trying to get into beast mode. I hated the outdoors, I hated sweating, I hated panting, I was a bit of a germophobe about gyms etc AND I didn't want to be "the fat girl trying to work out," (#reversesnobberymuch, #lackinginselfironymuch) and yet here I am, trying to be a runner again, loving getting fit etc. WHO KNEW?! 3 showers a day IS a lot. At least you're super clean as well as fit. My exercise motto is that half-arsed is better than none. Even not killing it at the gym is better than not going at all AND you went. TWICE! If that's not beasting it, then nothing is! I'm super inspired by your Beast Mode and you're pushing me to do more and be better and challenge myself as well.

allisonm: It IS a lot harder the second time around somehow. I don't know why that is. I don't remember struggling this much my first go around. Maybe it's because we now have a more realistic view of how hard this journey is to go through and maintain afterwards so it's a little harder to give up bad habits this time around. I dunno. But you're not alone AND you can do this. That's probably the only plus of being a regainer, knowing from experience that if we dig in, we CAN succeed and lose the weight. Going to bed early(er) for the win!

Kelly: Here's to the exercises that are white-knuckled. They're almost more meaningful than the ones we breeze to because we were just THAT close to sitting down and saying screw it! I'm a terrible dancer stuck in a land of people with rhythm who can make the stupidest looking dance moves look cool... I save my dancing for when NO ONE is actually watching. As an aside, when I lived in America, the gym in my apartment building was in the windowless basement and I suppose in some misguided attempt to bring light to the space, they had mirror walls but the machines faced the mirrors. Imagine watching yourself huffing and puffing on the treadmill, dripping with sweat, mug all squinty with hard exercise-face??? The height of uncool! My theory the more uncool you look, the better you're doing it. Look at record-breaking olympic weightlifters when they lift... I mean... #justsaying #takingaharddumpface

Lyn: Yay 2 days on plan!! And 2 lbs down of water weight!!! Onwards and upwards!


This morning I got up and did W2D2 of C25K. I think I'll be doing it 4-5 days a week (at least for the duration of my Diet Bet) rather than the 3 days a week of schedule. When I got home from that, I did 2 circuits of intense cardio dvd and then I did a little yoga. I'll do something strength-y later this evening. My plan to do a second workout in the evening after I get home have been a bust recently as I'm exhausted by the time I get home. Like I eat and then I sleep in a chair till I wake up enough to actually get up and go lie in bed. I'm hoping I'll get used to it soon. I might need to start getting up earlier and maybe doing both workouts in the morning before work. #tears Anyway, today at least I WILL get my evening workout done. I'm committing to that. Tomorrow, I might look into exercising for longer in the morning and doing all my extra workouts at the same time.

I hope you all are having a wonderful day. Thanks for being so universally awesome!