Went to the gym this morning! Never managed to go in the am before so am really chuffed with myself!! yay!! And haven't weighed since Monday!! lol so am pleased with that so far.

Sharon - memory has been a real issue with the menopause, as has sleeplessness, hot flushes, weight gain and a bit of depression thrown in for fun!! NOT!! But I feel I am getting more adjusted to my lower hormone level and at least no more pain as my period pain was horrendous!! And of course no more worry about birth control, so there are plusses!! Hope its not your time, but am here and understand what u are going thro if u end up being early menopausal...

Everyone - have a good day ;)

Ammi - lovely to have u around again - hugz

Ammi i am putting way too much effort in to the WII lol!

OMG I am so nervous! I am going to look at another apartment today at 4pm. This one looks really cute from the pics online, is only 1 mile from my office and is in my price range. The thing is, that it is March 1 occupancy so I would have to move faster than I had planned. It would also be tough getting out of my current situation without causing my BF too much trouble, as he will have to start looking. Well, I will just have to wait and see how it is before crossing too many bridges in my mind. I have yet to tell him that I am definitely breaking it off with him. I kept trying to find the right time over the weekend and it never seemed like a good time. Of course there never is a good time for this sort of thing, so I will just need to make the time. Perhaps tonight. If not, then it will be with the counselor tomorrow. I am visiting my parents over the weekend, which I am looking forward to. It will also be good to give my BF some space after breaking the news.

I finally completely broke things off with the woman at the B&B. She called me twice and emailed me like 4 times during the workday yesterday with problems she was having. I finally decided that I just couldn’t continue being responsible for her problems and told her that last night. I have a full time job and I can’t drop what I am doing to help her out whenever she needs. She obviously needs someone who can give her a lot more support than I can. She was pretty upset about it, but she got on ok long before I got there and she will be able to continue on without me. I am sure she can find someone else to help her.

As of yesterday I have joined the ranks of the Gazelle girls! I ordered one online yesterday and I will try to start using it every day in the morning. I kept thinking about it and wanted to wait until I knew what was going to happen with my living situation, and then I decided to change my perspective and think that I would need to make sure my new apartment could accommodate what I need to lead a healthy and active lifestyle. I have got to get back to exercising more regularly! Not working at the B&B will help a lot, but mainly I have let myself get lazy about it.

Hey everyone! Just a quick pop-in!

Catherine I LOL at the thought of me bringing in the bowflex myself! My DH and a hand-truck were key! Besides, the thing only weighs about 220 lbs total. Not too bad.

It never occured to me that Bowflex may be an American thing. Anyone interested can look at www. bowflex. com (without the spaces of course) and you'll see what we got. We got the Blaze.

I've got to run! Everyone have a good day!

Nancy - Good Luck with the apartment. That is exciting. I understand about the break up too. You need to put yourself first and do what is right for you and it sounds like you are in that frame of mind. Good Luck!

Hey everyone-

I am so sick! I can't even get in to see the ENT about my ear until mid march! So I am going to try to go to the urgent care tonight. I really don't want to go to the ER but if the pain gets worse I will for sure! I think also I am getting a cold so of course that just makes my ear pain worse.

I have been doing HORRIBLE with food. I have gotten into that mode of I am sick and just eat whatever. Well DH and I sat down and we both want to get back on track. Since moving back from Barrow its almost like a culture shock. Fast food is available on every corner!

Ok well I am off to get some heat on my ear and take some cold medicine. Maybe I can just pass out and get some rest.

Sorry I can't catch up on personals. But I hope all of you see great NSVS and Losses! Take care and have a good rest of the week!:hug:

Today is on Achieving Flow in your workout routines. “Flow may be described as a positive psychological state that occurs when one is intently absorbed in an activity – whether due to concerted practice or one’s inherent curiosity. ‘Flow’ develops by bringing awareness into your actions, setting doable goals and providing clear feedback without judgment. When in ‘flow’, there is a total concentration on and intrinsic motivation for the task at hand. One has a sense of ease, serenity and timelessness when one ’flows’ with an activity. The ability to achieve flow in exercise requires choosing activities that are ideal for your skill level. If the activity is too easy, you will become bored and, therefore, unmotivated to continue. Conversely, if the activity is too hard, you may be prone to frustration and subsequent drop-out. By keeping the difficulty of the activity at a level that just stretches your ability and skills, you are likely to look forward to undertaking the challenge.” This is from Check Up magazine, written by Mike Howard.

Ammi-I don’t blame you for not hopping on the scales. There are times that I truly believe that it does more harm than good. None of us have got the strongest self esteem to begin with, and need no excuse to beat ourselves up any more than normal. You’ll know when you are ready to deal with the “one-eyed monster.” I’m doing a lot better. Even on days that I have a lot of trouble I’m not going above 3000, most days I’m right around 2000-2100. I’m content with that. Until I can get back in the pool, I’m content to hang in there. The arthritis in my spine and knee just won’t let me do some of the exercises that everyone else can. I can only really get a good work out in the water without hurting myself.

Nancy-maybe a quick move in date will be like pulling the bandaid off quickly. We purchased this condo and had a closing date in less than 3 weeks. We didn’t even get all the paperwork finished in time, and were technically “tenants” until the lawyers got everything done. It made moving from a bad situation a lot easier because we had no time to sit and dwell on it. (For those who don’t know, my husband’s house was in his sister’s name because she is a realtor and told him to let her handle everything. When we got married she basically forced us out, and he had to walk away from his down payment and equity, about $60,000.)

Lillion-You have a husband that moves things, wow. Mine was upfront with the fact that his domain was intellectual, and that “everyday tasks escaped” him. He owned not one single tool. He stored books in the stove. His dad is a medieval literature scholar, so I don’t think he spent much time with a hammer in his hand either. I will say this he does like to watch when I fix something and is willing to learn. Picking up heavy things might break his brain though.

Michelle-this may sound like throwing a water balloon at a tank, but try chewing some gum that uses xylitol as one of the sweeteners. Most of the Trident sugar-free and some of the Dentine have it. In Norway they did a study on giving kids xylitol gum, and the rate of ear infection and the need for tube surgery in the study group was a fraction of ususal. It is made from birch trees in Finland, and has natural anti-bacterial qualities. I suffered for years with ear problems. I had my right sinus crushed by a line-drive when I was 13, so it doesn’t drain good and has lots of places for bacteria to hide, and have suffered with sinus/ear infections regularly ever since. Once I had it so bad it progressed to Labyrinthitis, and I had to be taken out by ambulance because I literally could not figure out which way was up. Since I’ve been chewing the gum everyday, I have not had a single ear or sinus infection, and that has been over 5 years now. Health food stores actually sell it in a spray form just for the sinus.

CATHERINE~Thanks so much for the advice. I am going to look into the gum. I had a horrible time with tubes when I was younger. I think I have always had drainage problems with both of my ears. And I think I am getting a cold and the pressure is just making an already ear infection worse! Thanks again for telling me about the gum.:)

Em - good for you for going to the gym early this morning. How early is early? My induction tomorrow is at 9 am and already I am dreading getting up early enough to get there :rofl: I am such a night owl. But I will try to have an early night tonight!

Patti - :lol: too much effort into the Wii, is that working out your fingers, or really going for it with the boxing? It was boxing you bought wasn't it. My memory is like a sieve, sorry :crazy:

Nancy - so the decision has been made, I am sure that that in itself is a relief to you. I think that your BF at least subconciously will be expecting the news, so it won't be a big shock to him. The apartment sounds ideal, and like Catherine said, maybe having to move quickly will be a help rather than a hinderance. Good luck with it all :hug:

:woohoo: another Gazelle Girl, welcome to the club. How many of us is it now, I am losing count. I hope you will really enjoy using yours, it really makes exercising fun :yes:

Lilion - thanks for the link for the bow flex. I've never seen one so as soon as I am done here I will go check out that site. Hope you are doing well :)

Michelle - I am sorry that you are feeling so unwell, it's ridiculous that you can't get a normal appt at the docs until MARCH. If you do end up having to go to the ER I hope you won't have too long a wait. Feel better soon :hug:

Catherine - that's great that even on your 'bad' days you aren't really going OTT. I bet you are really looking forward to getting back in the pool. I had a bit of a brain wave with regard to me going swimming over here. I haven't been able to go to any indoor pool because we aren't allowed to wear shorts and t-shirts. Well I could do it without the t-shirt, but no way would I go swimming without shorts. It's not because of being fat, it's because of the huge scars down both my thighs. I am very paranoid about them. I tried on my hubby's swimming shorts, the type that go to the knee, and they just about fit me. Then it dawned on me that if men can wear those shorts, then why can't I. I am sure no swimming pool manager would have a leg to stand on if they tried to tell me I couldn't swim wearing them and a swimming costume together! When I can get some to fit I am definitely going to give swimming a go again, maybe even aquasize :yes:

Ok well I better go now, want to check out a few web sites and then it's an early night for me. I shall be back tomorrow to let you all know how it went in the gym :D

Hugs,

Ammi :grouphug:

Ammi i have a sports game that came with the WII but my husband got me Zelda for the WII and i gave my nephew my gamecube version and that is what i am playing... LIKE Caliegh i like using the sword lol!

Hey everyone.
Congrats to everyone having a good day. Today was a medium day for me. I managed to get myself up at 5:30 to do 35 minutes on the gazelle. I was successful at breakfast and lunch. Midafternoon, I got totally stressed, craved chocolate an had a chocolate bar. 3 Musketeers to be exact. (I'm currently working on a huge, huge $$$ job for one of the Trump Towers....that's major stress for me)
I'm cooking dinner as we speak, and caved into a piece of Abby's birthday cake while I was cooking. :nono: :frypan: :drool: So, I'm very unhappy with myself. BUT, tomorrow is another day. I have no more $$ to get into the vending machine. :rofl: I've got a good lunch and breakfast planned. I'm clueless as to dinner. I have lots of good stuff in the freezer, but I'm so tired when I get home lately.
So sorry to not do personals, but I have to check dinner........and all the kids that were naughty yesterday are still naughty today. :tantrum: :bomb: :( :dizzy: ...these icons show all the emotions dealing with them too!
:hug: til tomorrow!

Hi ladies
Wanted to quickly post, and apologize i havent done personals. this is another very busy week for me at work.
Well, i am happy to say, i lost 5 lbs this week:) my teamates did equally well i think, one is weighing tommorrow. this may put us in 3rd place, hopefully! ive worked very hard this week to watch my food and excersise. i am happy with myself for that.
I hope everyone has a good day tommorrow, and hopefully i will be able to post something longer tommorrow too.
Have a wonderful day:)

Ammi-Have you seen the new style of swim racing suits? The ones the women wear go all the way to the knee, some to the ankle. I know that you could find a speedo aquablade to fit you. I think they call them leg suits. They can be expensive, but a cheaper option would be to buy a dive skin, and have it hemmed to the point you need it. A dive skin isn’t made out of neoprene, it is made out of spandex just like swim suits. You wear them in warm water or under a wetsuit to make it easier to get off and on. If you don’t sew, just take it where you’d get a pair of pants hemmed, and have them hem the arms and legs right where it would be comfortable for you. I had a woman in my water aerobics class in Florida who wore a full dive skin – ankle to wrist – because she was very cold natured, and she would get muscle cramps.

Sandy-If you are going to eat a chocolate, 3 musketeers is probably not such a bad choice, so don’t beat yourself up too much.

You all have me interested in the Gazelle. Which one did you all get? Would someone as heavy as *me* be able to use it? I need to start exercising.

Hi All,

Well I did it, I had my induction at the gym, plus a work out. I really LOVED it. I was totally shocked at how hard the Elliptical machine was, after 3 minutes my thighs were screaming at me to stop, which I did lol. I also used the treadmill, recumbant bike, weight machines that work out your leg muscles, and an arm cycle which gives a great upper arm work out. I really really enjoyed my time there, and wish I could afford to go every day!!! For now though it will have to be just once a week, but I know that will be my fave day of the week :yes:

Patti - good job we aren't neighbours lol, Caleigh would be constantly knocking your door asking to play Zelda!! I am so glad you are having such a great time with the game yet at the same time are getting a great work out. What better way to work off some lbs :D

Sandy - did I miss that it was Abby's birthday? Sorry if I did, and belated birthday wishes to her. What did you buy her? I hope you were able to put your stresses behind you for at least a while so you could enjoy her special day with her :hug:

Kymberly - wow 5 lbs in a week that is awesome :woohoo: :cheer2: Do you think the incentive of the Biggest Loser comp is keeping you so motivated and doing well?

Catherine - thanks so much for your suggestions. I hadn't heard of those dive skins before, but I had seen those aquablade suits on Olympic swimmers. Now if I had the figure of those swimmers I would jump at buying one of those suits. As it is I think I will stick to the mens swimming shorts, they are more flattering to the fuller figure :rofl:

Torister - I love my Gazelle Rider and would definitley recommend it to you. Mine is the Elite and it takes up to 300 lbs. It's not one of the ones that has pistons for resistance, but to be honest, I get such a great work out I really can't see how I would benefit from the pistons. I know some of the more expensive models go up to 350 lbs, so yes they will take your weight! Go check out Tony Little's Gazelle Rider web site, you will be able to see all the different ones on offer and the specs for each.

Okie dokie it's my lunch time now and I am starving lol. Take care all and I'll write again later,

Hugs,

Ammi :grouphug: