After finding the non-welcome news that I'd maintained this morning, I decided I wanted to turn things around....so I just went out and ran 3 MILES! Which for me is REALLY FAR! Which I have not done since I was about 15 or 16--doing some quick math, that's 9-10 years ago! Man, it felt good to be able to do that. So I've reframed a negative into a positive--just what I needed today. I feel inspired & renewed!

Anyone else turning negatives into positives these days?

Jen

Wow!! That is great, Jen!! You have such a great attitude!! And, three miles??? Jogging??? That is fantastic!! Congratulations!!

Jina

Good job Jen three miles is awesome! I too found that I maintained this week. But I am making some changes this week so revamping a bit. My goals have been kinda shaky this month. Ok let's get on it and both get past 195 lbs!

I'm with ya, Jamie--let's get past this 195 spot! Onward & downward to 190! I like to go just 5 pounds at a time...

I just noticed... all of us that have posted so far on this thread (Jamie, Jen and myself) have very similar stats. We're all close to the same weight currently, and we all have the same goal! Now, if I can just run three miles like Jen...

No doubt, what's that like... shesh 3 miles! I like the 5 pounds at idea, just not quite sure how to make that happen...or 8 like Jina! It really inspires me to see you guys with the same goals succeed, makes me realize I can do it too! Well,I'm gonna try and start running at least once this week the 5k thing kinda fizzed out, also I'm gonna add a few classes this week cardio and weights, cut the soda- it's the first thing I go for when I get stressed, and keep tabs on my points. What are you girls doing this week? Jina how's TOPS working for you? And Jen what do you do with your eating/drinking that works so well for you? Talk to ya'll later and have a good sunday- I'll be working from 2-9 pm so think good thoughts for me!

Jamie, I didn't mean necessarily that I will *lose* 5 pounds in one week (though I wouldn't be opposed to that!), I meant I like to focus on 5 at a time. Break it down into smaller bits, so it's not so overwhelming. Sorry for the confusion!
As far as I what I do with my eating/drinking, here are a few ideas:
I drink mostly non-calorie beverages. The bulk of what I drink is water and Crystal Light. I drink milk occasionally, but get most of my calcium from mozarella cheese, fat free yogurt, and the milk on my cereal in the morning. I don't have soda or sweet tea anymore except very rarely, don't even usually drink diet soda. Not that you can't, but I don't really miss soda when I cut it out.
Otherwise.....I eat lots of "regular" food, but do mentally keep the fat content down on most of what I eat. I am a sweets person, so I do have dessert a couple times a week, plus fudgesicles & sherbet to tide me over in between! But I used to binge on sweets pretty bad, so the little I eat now is such an improvement! I work to get in 2-3 fruits a day, and try to get 2 veggies a day too. I just watch portions and hunger/fullness, mostly. I haven't counted calories or fat grams, or anything yet! And hopefully I won't have to. I want to learn common sense, that will serve me for life!
Well, that was probably more than you wanted to know!

Jen

Ok, so I'm a big dork! Focusing on 5 at a time sounds like a much better idea definatley more managable. How many workouts a week are you doing, and I saw you were weight traing, has that helped much? I am going to start this week, but I was wondering if I should still be doing a lot of cardio, it seems really time consuming and I need to figure out when I can squeeze it in and lift too. Any suggestions would be great! Hey don't we have the same b-day too (aug. 18th)?

I try to do at least 2 days of strength training every week, and I typically spend about 20 - 25 minutes doing so. I don't really take a rest between exercises, so I switch between upper and lower body during my sets so that my heartrate stays up and I get through it faster. A typical weight workout for me would be:

1 set chest, 1 set inner thigh
1 set chest, 1 set inner thigh
1 set shoulder, 1 set outer thigh
1 set shoulder, 1 set outer thigh
1 set bicep, 1 set gluts
1 set bicep, 1 set gluts
1 set tricep, 1 set calves
1 set tricep, 1 set calves

I ususally end with abs, and that tacks on about 5 minutes.

What does everyone else do?

Jamie, the similiarities just don't end for us! Yes, my birthday is also Aug. 18th! I turned 25 this year. It's amazing how many little commonalities we have!
As far as # of workouts per week, I have to say I usually do 6-7, but have done as few as 4/wk. during a few hectic weeks. Keeping up with my workouts makes me feel so much better in so many ways, so it's really become a priority. I do weights 3x's a week (M-W-F, usually, sometimes Sat. instead of the Fri.), and I think it's helped me to keep/gain muscle as I lose fat. I only spend about 25 min. doing the whole thing each time, so it's not a huge time commitment. All I do is about 5-6 upper body exercises (bicep curls, bench w/ just the bar, shoulders, chest flies, triceps, and lats), and then abs, and then leg press (I do my calf raises on it as well), and inner/outer thigh machine. That's all I do! I do 2 sets of 12-15 reps for each exercise. I do the 2 sets right in a row, with maybe a 30-sec. break between the 2 sets. I think all that helps me be faster! I'm not interested in building a ton of muscle, but I'd like a little, for tone, and I sure don't want to lose what muscle I already have, as I lose weight.
Hope that all makes sense.
On the days I weightlift, I also do the elliptical, so those are my most time-consuming days. Other days I usually spend between 30-50 min. on some form of cardio.
Well I think I've expounded plenty on my exercise routine! Hope that helps.

Jen