Had a little slip-up last night...my mom and sister were supposed to be coming into town today but then ended up coming yesterday. We went out to a kind of Mexican/Burger/Pub food type place near me, and I DID resist the Bacon Cheeseburger (which used to be my fave) in favor of a grilled chicken breast with swiss cheese, but I did get fries. Though, incidentally, the portion of fries they gave me ended up being much smaller than what they usually do, so that was good!!

I wasn't really so mad at myself about that, but when I got back to the apt, I had 2 PIECES of my sister's birthday cake that my mom had made. I really didn't need to do that...ggrrrrrrrr. Ah well. All will be okay. I'm going to stay on track today. Tomorrow I'm going to give myself a little freedom to go 100 - 200 cals over what I normally do because it's my cousin's baby shower and kind of a big family event (she's the first of my generation to have a baby...my grandmother is ECSTATIC!), so there will be cake and stuff there. There might be a little gain this week, but it's important to me to be able to celebrate with my family :)

arts, What's important is that you are not beating yourself up. Enjoy your week and have fun! And you can be back on track!

arts- i like your approach, i think sometimes we (well, me really) get caught up so much in weight loss that we forget to enjoy life. Good on you for not beating yourself up! And for getting back on track

man, i am so beat today from moving various construction items. I was going to go to the gym, but after 6 hours of moving bricks and bags of sand, i though i had done enough :D

Wow... the thread is really quiet today, huh? :)

I did my C25K today, and then some ab workout using the stability ball. I was about to do some more workout when my DD woke up...so it looks like I will be doing more late at night again like yesterday.

Nothing much today... just staying home with my DD, cleaned up all the pantry and cabinet, threw away some junk food... :)

BBL

I had an awesome day. My hubby and I stayed the night in St. Louis, MO after we went to a Cardinal's baseball game last night. Today we went to the mall and I actually got to buy clothes from NORMAL mall stores!!! I was soooooo happy. It was so funny because I just couldn't help but smile really big while walking out of the fitting room.. I am sure I looked like a totaly dork! But it has been so long that I have been able to buy mall clothes (other than from like sears or something).

I am kinda scared I am not going to enjoy myself on my Europe trip because I am going to be so worried about weight. I love you look-out arts. I just don't know how to do it.

I don't know how to enjoy my trip without worrying too much about weight but also not gaining all my weight back. I have toyed with the idea of only eating half and putting the other half on a doggy bag so I can taste and enjoy myself without getting bloated and feeling icky. What do you think?

Honestly I think 1/2 the entree of what I order is the best bet and try to stay way from the worst things on the menu and avoiding deserts and apps.

The last few days for me have been awesome. I have stayed about 1.300 average and have worked out 5 days with week and hoping to do the same next week before I leave.

Taylor -- I think the thing is that you have to ALLOW yourself to have fun!! Ya know what? You might gain a pound or two in water weight from the plane ride or because of food you're not used to, but you can only make the best choices you can. You have to make an effort to let yourself have a good time. It sounds counter-intuitive, but it's really true!! I think only eating when you're hungry is really important. When I was in Italy last summer that how I operated (though I wasn't serious about losing weight yet, I knew I wanted to but I don't think I was ready..), anyway, the others in my family just ate and ate and ate. When we got back, my mom/sis had each gained over 9 lbs. I had gained 1.5. And the whole time we were there I feel like they were talking about how stuffed they were. You CAN enjoy yourself without going crazy :)

I had a good time at the baby shower. It was a little rough just because some of my family doesn't get along, but it was good to see my cousin and the rest of the fam as well. I had an NSV, as well!! One aunt who I haven't seen in about....6-9 months probably, immediately said "WOW!!!! You've sure lost a lot of weight!!" That felt good because since I see myself every day, I don't really see the changes, but since she's sort of seen the "before" and "after" (well..."during"! ha!) she noticed, which was really nice.

Stressing out about eating on the trip has made my mind fill with negative thoughts. Like, "Well, why not put the diet on hold until you get back? It's only 2 weeks?" But I won't do that. This is a lifestyle that is going to stick with me through thick and thin (haha).

I have been reading a lot of food and how to eat. Like, taking your time with a meal. Enjoying the taste, texture, visual aspects, being thankful and mindful of food. This, along with portions, is something I hope to accomplish on my trip as well as my everyday life. It's going to be a new goal of mine.


I took yesterday and today off from working out because it has been so hot here. I will start up tomorrow and I will get in 5 more workouts before I leave which means 5 out of 7 days I will have worked out and I can feel good about that.

arts Congrats on your NSV! That must feel great! Thanks for the advice and I am going to start practicing that!

i think you will do fine taylor, you have a lot of strategies and are very "food conscious" so i dont think you will have trouble at all :)

Im down 1kg this week :carrot: feels good. And this is in spite of the person who decided to eat their Chinese takeaway under the gym airconditioning vent, making the whole place smell like fried rice :lol:

You are going to do good Taylor since you are already aware and thinking about it! And you know what, you are going to a totally different country! So enjoy yourself and have a great time. Just don't be so stressed out about gaining weight that you will ruin your fun. You will do just fine!! And, if you happen to gain just a little, you know exactly what to do to get that weight off! :D

Thanks for all the words of love guys!

I have been so stressed about eating on this trip and I had to stop myself mid-binge today. I feel like I am not going to be able to stop myself on my trip and so I should just quit now because I won't ever reach my goal weight.

I only ate half of a 100 calorie pack. I poured two into a bowl and started to chow down in defeat but then through them away after about a handful. I just couldn't do it. I went and got a diet coke from the store instead.

You guys are right. If I do gain a little weight on this trip I know exactly how to get it off and a free trip to Europe only happens once in a life time. I just need eat only half of my meals, put the other half in a doggy bag and enjoy my time there.

I never knew a vacation could be this stressful. Ugh.