Terri--Glad you and DH liked the new doc! That's sooooo helpful. Baby shower was okay. I had what I think was prob. an ounce of cheese and one piece of really expensive chocolate. Passed up the cake, cookies, etc., because I wanted one of those chocolates. Then I went home and had a turkey sandwich and apple for dinner.
Luja--Glad you're back on track!
Valerie--So glad you had a lovely day. Here's to another tomorrow!
Wow! I spent the day at my son's babysitting while they went out and bought a lot to build a house. Pretty exciting for them, and I'm happy that they're getting what they want. It's been a long day, though. They wanted me to drive over to see the lot before they made a decision, then they showed me another lot they were considering, then back to the first lot! My son wanted to go home and think about it but my dil was ready to do it! I asked him what he was going to go think about, and he said you're right and they went and signed on the dotted line! Pretty unusual for my son to be that impulsive, but I'm so glad they did it.
Lilion~~Mmmmm, fresh tomatoes. I used to hate them when I was a kid, but love them now! I've read several recipes on here using Laughing Cow cheese. I think I'll try something soon--I bought a 3-pack of it yesterday at Sam's. I wonder if all rice cookers would steam vegetables, too. I've always thought I'd use one if it did, but I'm not sure about it.
Angela~~Good for you for the scale going the right way! Mine is holding steady, but I really think it's because I can't exercise yet. I did order some of those bands and I do have a stability ball, so I think I'm going to start doing some exercises using them. At this point, until this leg heals, that would be better than what I'm doing now...nothing! How was the food at the shower?
Stacey~~I'm in NE Ohio, an hour or so south of Cleveland, an hour east of Canton, and an hour NW of Pittsburgh. Dayton is in the SW corner of the state--probably 4 to 5 hours from here. I sympathize with your baby leaving--my son got a full scholarship to the local university here in town--you'd have thought he was going across the country the way I behaved!! You do have a fun-sounding job! Have you posted pictures of your creations anywhere?
Terri~~Good for you for finding a good doctor! I'm impressed with your plan for exercise! I'm doing low carb too. I feel so much better eating less carbs. Just not stuffed, you know? I really don't miss bread or potatoes much, either. I have found a couple bites of cake or a couple cookies and I'm done for the rest of the day. I love spaghetti squash and I often substitute mashed cauliflower for potatoes. Just have to stay away from sweets.
Valerie~~So glad you're feeling better about everything! Wasn't today just a beautiful day? Days like this make me happy that I live in Ohio. My son's lot is in Green...is that far from you?
Luja~~
I'm ready for bed--been a looooong day chasing after a 19 month old!
Hello my hen friends, I thought I would drop in and give you an update on what is going on with me.
My Sister came and stayed four days and visited with our Mom every day. It was nice to have her here. Mom is still hanging in there and is very clear minded right now. She does know what is going on, and boy does she hate being in that hospital bed. They have her in there because she had developed a sore on her leg just about where the wheelchair seat hit. They are trying to get it cleared up. Now she has a catherter (sp)? in and is confined to the bed. She can't stand up or walk so that is bad. Add that to not being able to see and can't hear much of anything. I tell you liviing to be 100 may seem like a wonderful thing to some people, but I don't want to go there. I feel so sorry for my Mom.
My weight is up and down like a yo yo. I am trying to do the veggie thing and keep goofing up! I just like meat! It is not a good thing for my gout though. Who would have thought, gout! What a miserable condition. Too much of the good life will do all kinds of unpleasant things to you. I am becoming aware that what we eat is what ails us a lot of times and we just don't realize it. OK, let us just say the older you get the more it affects you. Phooey! I have another b'day coming at me fast and I swear I just had one.
The only thing I can offer you this morning is I see where some of you are having my problem. I realized that I have been a member here since 2005 and am still right in the neighborhood of where I started weight wise, now what kind of deal is that? I should be ashamed of myself. The rest of you have done so well, you should be proud! I am proud for and of you. You know who you are.
Its a hot July Monday morning. Only cramps could add to the joy.
Okay, this morning starts my new commitment to a six month process. I am determined to do the six month program with the new doc. That means I start journalling everything, everyday and that my workouts can't be sleep cycling. The alarm clark named Daisy, went off at 5:30 so I was up and didn't lay down on the couch. It helped that I took allergy meds yesterday afternoon. I started with a few minutes outside stretching and moving while the dogs went out to pee. Then I spent 35 minutes on the exercycle. 10 minutes warming up. 20 minutes working at one minute intervals at various intensity levels. I was sweating big time at the end. Then five minutes to cool down. Ended with five minutes on the resistance ball doing ab and back work.
Yesterday, I read an interesting prespective on exercise in Weight Watcher's magazine. It was about when did exercise go from being fun to being drudgery? She talked about looking at exercise as preparing our bodies for going back to the fun we used to have as kids. She encouraged that we remember what it felt like to be young and all the things we used to do that we'd like to do again if we could physically. Exercise then becomes about preparing our bodies for that fun. Of course, one of my favorite things was that I used to ride my horse for hours. We walk, we'd trot, we'd canter..sometimes I was a western trick rider and some days I was an Indian, riding bareback. But I loved those hours by myself, daydreaming.
I was such a slug this weekend. I had a total revolt against being productive and doing anything that needed to be done. I did drag myself out to ride Spanky in the afternoon. I rode for about 50 minutes. He was pretty mellow because it was so hot. But he got a could blast with the hose when we were done and he absolutely loves to be hosed down. That was his reward. Mine was riding and the practice and work at improving my skills. My new 3 step mounting block worked great. Made for a swift mount and my left boob stayed in tact!!
Ruth - Good to hear from you and that your mom is hanging in there. Gout, ouchy! Hopefully, you can adjust your diet enough not to have to suffer it again.
Charlotte - Thanks for reminding me about cauliflower. We used to do that instead of potatoes too. How do we 'forget' the things that helped us be successful? A new house for your son & DIL, how fun! But wow a lot of work and big decisions.
Angela - Sounds like you did great at the shower. Very good choices.
Stacey - Looks like you had some great NSV at the city market. How did you get started making balloon dogs? Do you make other things? How fun!
Valerie - How did you make it through the weekend? Keep working at it. Set a goal for how many days OP you want to achieve and work towards that. Whether is five days in a row or 30. Give yourself something that will inspire you to keep working at it. (Another thing I read in WWM yesterday). I did ride yesterday. He did pretty good and I'm feeling it in my legs today.
to everyone! Time for the shower and to get off to work. I really need to do the five day weekend again.
Terri - great on your commitment! And you have Daisy to help you out. LOL Puppies are so much like human babies sometimes!
I got started with balloon animals by buying a kit from Hobby Lobby. It was addictive and by the time DH got home I made him go buy me more balloons. Two days later someone said "I'll pay you to do that." and a new career was born. Now I've been doing it for nearly 9 years full time for 8. Now we teach and have written 7 books of balloon instructions.
Ruth - sorry to hear about the gout. I've been told that it can be pretty painful. Hope you can get and keep it under control! It's hard to be caring for your mom and yourself at the same time, so make sure you keep some of that will power dust for yourself!
We're having a LOT of corn this week. A guy had 40 ears for $7 at the farmer's market on Saturday. I'm was going to fire up the grill and cook some today (love grilled corn) but the rain said otherwise. I want rain, so I won't complain too much. There were also some good sales on tomatos, but I forgot my cart, so I didn't want too much to carry back to the truck.
After finding out the gym closes earlier on Sunday I've had to re-adjust my goal a bit. Most Sundays in the warmer months I can't get there before 6, so on those days I'll substitute some time on the walking/biking trail near there. It winds through the woods and around part of a lake, so I'll bring my camera too. I love to take pictures. flickr.com/photos/ohwowballoons If you flickr add me as a contact!
My evil van bit the dust on Friday. The fuel pump went out for the second time. It's only a 2000 and we've only had it for 4 years. My MIL bought it for us because our other van was "unreliable". She wanted her son to have something she could trust. She REFUSED to let us have any input in the purchase and trusted her hairdresser's part time mechanic husband. The van cost her $8000. So far we've spent $5000 in repairs to it. The repairs would be cheaper but it's an all wheel drive model, so EVERYTHING costs more. I told DH we are NOT going to spend more money on this van. My rickety old pickup truck cost us $350 to buy and so far it's cost $50 in repairs over the past year. It's what we're driving right now until we find another van. I love my old truck, rust, dents and all.
Just a fly-by today - spent too long doing othe things to have time to post.
I was also a slug this weekend, but enjoyed every minute. I read nearly all of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on Saturday and finished up on Sunday. WONDERFUL BOOK! I'm just rather sad it's over, but it was ended SO well!
Sunday we went to Outback Steakhouse for dinner for my DH (early) birthday dinner. So NOT an OP day, but what'cha gonna do? The rest of his day was kind of a bust. He wanted to get a new tattoo for his birthday (he has two others) but one place was closed on Sunday, the second we went to didn't seem all that interested in helping him and it ticked him off so we left and went to a 3rd place that was supposed to be open, but was closed an hour early! So we ended up just coming home and drinking some wine on the patio and relaxing.
Ruth - I'm glad to hear from you and glad that your mom is doing well.
Ruth~~How nice that your sister was able to spend time with you and your mom. I know when my sisters came to town it always made things easier. Wow! I just looked and I've been a member here since April of 04 and I only have 60 posts! Hmmmmm.
Terri~~Hope the cramps didn't materialize!! Are you journaling in a notebook of some sort or online? I was a member of Calorie King, but they want $55 a year! None of the other online programs are as easy to use, or at least I haven't found one yet. I guess once you enter your foods that you eat, though, it wouldn't be so bad. CK really spoiled me.
Stacey~~You must really have a knack for crafty stuff to pick up making balloons so quickly! I don't have a crafty gene in my body...it went right from my mother to my dd! What will you do with all the corn after you grill it? With the price of groceries I'm trying to freeze more stuff this year. What kind of van was yours? Are you looking for a new vehicle now?
Lilion~~I've never read any of the Harry Potter books. Maybe I'll pick one up at the library. Outback Steakhouse--yum! I made baked ziti for my dd yesterday...it was their first day in their new house so I offered to bring dinner. They've done a nice job cleaning and painting their house.
I'm at work now, not working much. The boss is away today, and that always means fooling around for me. Did decently yesterday food-wise, even having baked ziti for dinner. Doing very well today, so far, but night time is usually where I struggle. I'm babysitting again tomorrow morning so my dil can go to a funeral here in town. Glad my dd has the day off so she can help me protect Raymond from poking fingers! Michael loves Ray's ears, and so far Raymond has been an absolute angel around him, but I'm always on my guard because you just never know with a dog.
So I was doing a little reading on the web site of the National Weight Control Registry and learned that most people who maintain weight loss exercise 60 minutes a day, and that the average calorie count for women who've maintained is 1300. So I'm thinking 1300 and 60 might make good goals. Boy they seem far away right now.
Charlotte--The shower was fine, I was a good girl, even though I ate a piece of chocolate. Have you ever considered doing strictly upper-body exercise until your leg heals? By the way, my mother's in NE Ohio, too. I'll be there in 2 weeks.
Ruth--Sorry about the gout, and sorry that your mother's in such a sad state.
Terri--Interesting thoughts on exercise. I'm finding that when I can make exercise something fun to start with, I'm more likely to do it Why it took me so long to think of that I'm not sure.
Stacey--Sorry to hear about the evil van! I think my very non-evil car might be destined for the junkyard before too long... it's a (gulp) 1990. It has been going strong! Only car I've ever owned. The thought of buying one is terrifying.
Lilion--Glad you enjoyed the last Harry Potter. I guess I'm just going to have to find time to read them.
Angela -- I've seen the stats on exercise. I'm not where may of the maintainers are, but in the summer I can average 40 minutes a day. That is just an average -- I don't know what the "spread" is.
But I don't think you have to worry about 1300 calories right away -- maybe it's because I weigh more than many people who have successfully lost weight, but I've been able to maintain a weight in the 170s on 2100 calories/day on average. Even if I get into the 150s (which I'm not trying to do), I don't see myself eating less than 1600 calories/day to maintain that... maybe more like 1800. I think it really depends on where you stop (as well as lots of other factors)...
Oh, I know 1300 is a long ways off, Heather, but I don't think I'll be able to lose much unless I cut calories a bit more than you; the last time I was successful (7 years ago) I got down to about 260, and at that time I had had to cut calories to about 1700/day in order to keep losing a few pounds a month.
On the other hand, perhaps if I can get my exercise up more, that'll help. Still, I'm losing pretty slowly right now, averaging about 2000/day. When I calculate calorie deficits, they really don't correspond to what I lose. Maybe I really need to build some muscle.
Anyway. That's all thinking long-term. Short-term, I'm still just trying to develop the habits that make 1900/day easy, and to increase my daily exercise. But thanks for the perspective: I guess there's some hope I won't have to restrict my eating quite as much as I expect. But there's time enough to find out, I guess....
Angela -- I do credit cardio and weight training for helping keep my calories up through this process. One of the reasons I do it, even though I don't want to most days. Still. And those calculators really are so variable, aren't they??
Have you ever had your thyroid checked? Just a thought...
I think you're right to think how to handle short term for now!
I've been paying a few bills so I'm running a tad late. I did 40 minutes on the stationary bike so that is two days in a row. However, today, it was not a sweat-inducing workout like yesterday. It is still something.
I had a great food OP day. I tracked everything and figured my WW points and kept within my allotment. It really helped that I take my lunch and snacks. I told DH last night that it makes a difference when I have a variety of foods - yogurt, grape tomatoes, fruit cup, cheese, crackers and a frozen dinner to munch on throughout the day. I don't get the urge to go get something in the afternoons. The next trick there is to keep a variety of stuff in the house. Also, since I had measured everything out and only took one portion, I didn't have the temptation to finish off more than I should.
Charlotte - you asked about my journal. I am using a organizer notebook that I got a Wal-mart. Gives me room to write down everything about the day - what time I got up, what levels of exercse, how much, what work I did, what I ate, anything to note about the day. What I did yesterday was write it down including the calories, fat and fiber. Then at lunch, I got onto the WW online site and figured out points and logged it in there. My main source will be the notebook and the online to help check points and how I'm using my flex points. This way I can take the book to the doctor each month.
I need to get dressed and out of here. Have a great day! to everyone. Love the convo Angela and Heather about calories and exercise. Its hard to find what works for each person.
Just popping in too. Salty snacks got me last night. I ate a decent dinner - pasta with zucchini/tomatoes and carrots with pesto, but it wasn't enough I guess, I got hungry later. Not good. I should have made a 3 pt sandwich with lots of veggies. Instead I had a granola bar. Then tortilla chips. Then Pringles. Probably had 8 or 10 pts instead of 3. Duh.
Good morning!
It is not a good thing for my gout though. Who would have thought, gout! What a miserable condition. Too much of the good life will do all kinds of unpleasant things to you. I am becoming aware that what we eat is what ails us a lot of times and we just don't realize it. OK, let us just say the older you get the more it affects you. Phooey!
I have another b'day coming at me fast and I swear I just had one.
I see where some of you are having my problem. I realized that I have been a member here since 2005 and am still right in the neighborhood of where I started weight wise, now what kind of deal is that? I should be ashamed of myself. The rest of you have done so well, you should be proud! I am proud for and of you. You know who you are.
Ruth
Why it took me so long to think of that I'm not sure.
