Zelma I went to your page and What insight you have! I really enjoyed myself while reading! and your pics are fantastic!

Penny hope you get that water heater back up and running and you can get that water out of the basement! at least it isn't a finished basement...we had water damage and it ruined the carpeting and furniture.....man just a couple of inches of water really soak into cloth!!! LOL Here is prayers that you get yours dealt with speedily w/little to no out of pocket expenses!

Carol Congrats on the -4.5!!!!!! You are an inspiration!!!

Ratkity Good job on the stairs!!! I have a hard time if I run up and down from basement to our bedroom a few times in a row!

Tina It was sweet of your DH to make you lunch, but even better that you didn’t eat what you felt you shouldn’t! It’s rained off and on all day here in KY too! Everything is a soggy mess around here! Now they are saying snow by morning!!! UGH!

Annie I’ll keep praying that you get what you need in way of employment! That is so sweet that you want to be available for your DH.....I know I would much rather be at home but for now I work.....DH is great too he pitches in on everything!

Debi- Big hugs for the weigh in.....I’m sure it is just a hiccup in your path to weight loss. Sorry to hear about your basement hopefully this rain will end soon!! But, I for one would hope that we don’t get MUCH snow if any!!! As for the calorie difference on fitday, I know I’ve noticed a difference on Daily plate on occasion.....but then I thought about it....on daily plate people enter foods all the time so it maybe that I am getting one that someone didn’t enter everything correctly....so I try to double check the actual calories from the food I eat and then see if it matches, if not then I add my own with the exact calories.

GO Catherine!!!! Take it to them! I was raised Catholic and most of my family still practices, my brother has an imbalance ever since he had a blow to his head and had to have surgery. His then girlfriend now wife of many years, thought she could take him off his meds and he could live a normal life w/o them if they kept the faith and ate right etc.....my brother during those first few years had several severe episodes that he was hospitalized for......he can act almost schizophrenic when he is off his meds. She didn’t believe us when we tried to tell her......he is doing much better now. I hope you can get them to listen!

HUGS Julee! You have the right attitude “its another day” start with a new slate and new outlook and things are bound to get better. We all have those days where everything builds up and we blow.....or is it just you and I???? LOL



Well I posted my Orange Chicken recipe on our recipe sticky post......I finally uploaded the ingredients and figured out the calories etc.....it actually came out really good and I had two servings left over for DH & my lunches today!

Well I jumped on the treadmill last night about 30mins prior to going to bed......DH came in on the last 15mins (its in our bedroom) needless to say (and w/o using to much info) afterward I took a hot shower and came to bed for ummmm another workout LOL I was talking to DH this morning and told him I find since I've been doing more exercise or maybe its the diet........my "drive" has increased. I was put into early menopause due to a hysterectomy at age 29 and in the past 3 years have seen a decrease in that area.....DH likes this new change to say the least! LOL has anyone else seen this happen?


I tried posting some of this this AM but for some reason I couldn't post & had to leave for work....so I added some more to comment on others that had posted during the day.

Had a very ACTIVE day today at work....our regular Teacher was out sick so we had a sub.....she was good......but, our kids always pick up on it and REALLY act out horribly when there is any change in our normal routine! We have one student that needs attention.....creates disturbances to get attention.....will high pitch squeal to get attention LOL anyhow me and the other assistant tried to continue our normal routine and ignore such outbursts however it got really bad........this particular child hates to stand & walk.....so his consequence for bad behavior is a quick walk outside.........needless to say we went on at least 5 separate walks today!!! we physically have to hold him carrying his weight and walk with him....until he decides to comply and puts his feet down so he can walk on his own.....LOL just imagine a 2yr old temper tantrum lol but this child weighs about 75 lbs!!! I think that constitutes as weight lifting what do you think??? LOL

DH has class again tonight and DD is working......so I'm at home alone....maybe I will try the Hip Hop Abs again....Dh called and asked me to wait till he gets home to walk on the treadmill LOL

OHHHH best news today!!! I got my first letter from my son in Basic!!!! I cried through the whole thing! Dh asked why I cried and I said because it reminded me that I fell short on my letter writing to my own mother so many times.....and how special I felt that my son wrote to me.....and made me think how much my mother must of loved to get letters from me.....she passed away in 2000 and I still miss her!

DMPLS - Yeah a letter from your son how exciting! I remember the first letters that I received from both of my sons in basic. It just seemed like an eternity until I received one. I now have one son out (he was in for 2 years) and one son still in the service. He loves it. I miss him daily though and we talk often. Just write him as much as you can and send him envelopes and stamps!! I hope he will like it. Are you planning his graduation plans yet? You should and definitely go, it it awesome. I read the first letter over and over until the next one came in the mail so I know EXACTLY how you feel. The more letters they get from home it helps too! And send pictures to them as they can put them in their foot lockers. Yeah for getting under 300, I can't "weight"! You are doing great. Keep going. It was exciting just getting under the 350 mark when I weighed in on Sunday. All the water pumped out of the basement last night. We still have cold water so we had to boil it for baths. My 8 year old thought that was cool. Silly girl, she wouldn't want to have to do it all the time!!! I am letting the water heater dry out today and will try it tomorrow. My other daughter was going into the Y to walk and shower. I am on my way to tumbling with 8 yr old. Busy day at work today and just got off and on the go again. I am going to walk while she is tumbling.

Nancy - just a quick message before racing out the door. What you have talked about is the main concept that I have written about in my update on my webpage. I had "BECOME" my weight loss, and didn't have anything else to fall back on to identify myself once I was maintaining. Counselling after my dad passed away helped me to see that, but it sure was an eye-opener. My update is quite lengthy, but it may help to reassure you that others are going through exactly what you are feeling.

Take care,

Zelma

The meeting went well. There was a line in the movie Under Siege where the admiral says "If I can't by God control you, I might as well use you." That's where we are at. I've been asked to write a series of articles on a variety of topics. The first one will deal with one of my major issues on the best gift you can give your family is having your affairs in order. It will explain the differences between powers of attorney and living wills, that kind of thing. Plus there will be workshops for those involved in pastoral care in the parishes. I hope the Archbishop doesn't regret giving me a soap box.

I got on the treadmill tonight and actually jogged at 3.0 for about 10 seconds. I worked up to it, started out at 2.0 and got up to 2.7 and then thought, what the heck, I might as well try and jog.Kicked it up to 3.0 and took off! I shocked myself. I really didn't think I could do it, even though it was only 10 seconds. I didn't even hang onto the sides. I feel that was a huge NSV for me.
I also got some size 22 pants. Needless to say, it's gonna be a while before I can get those on. :rofl:

Carol, great job on the 4.5lbs lost. You'll be passing me up in no time if I don't get my act together.

Ratkity, You got it!! Baby steps will get you there. That's great you took the stairs. Keep it up!

Tina, Glad to hear your daughter's appetite is going down.

Annie, that would be great to get into the fire dept with all those adorable firemen. :rofl: I hope you find the job that is right for you.

Debi, stress has alot to do with weight loss. At least it does for me. You just have to think twice as hard about what you're going to put into your mouth. Try not to turn to food to deal with it. It's hard, but do-able.

Julee, sorry that things got to you. I think I would of smacked the person who asked if you were pregnant. Just me. I hope you're feeling better now.

Bernice, so glad you heard from your son. I'm sure he misses you just as much as you miss him. Sounds like your treadmill is getting hubby frisky. :rofl:

Catherine, I'm sure he is so glad to have you that he's going to ask you to do more and more. So ya better get ready for it!

Have a good night
Debbie

Hello all,

Another wonderful cold day here. I think we're due for ice and/or freezing rain overnight. Oh joy! I spent some time outside moving snow and ice from the wood pile so I could bring some wood in for the fireplace. I also found out that I have offers now from all three colleges (5 programs) that I applied to. So now I just have to pick one. I think in the end it will be Mechanical Engineering Technologist at the closest college. If nothing else, I can continue on to a full degree afterwards at night school. Other than that it's been a quiet day here. Just working away at staying on plan and exercising.

Ratkitten - I know I couldn't keep cookies in the house. I made biscotti a while back and I seem to be okay with just taking two small ones (planned) in the evening. I think it's because I couldn't eat them quickly. Starting back quickly after a bad period is good though. In the past I've let small slips turn into a long period of not paying attention. The stairs are wonderfull. I can walk miles on a treadmill, or even on streets, but stairs still give me problems.

Zelma - I looked around your site (thanks for mentioning the update). I have to admit something - I like my treadmill as well. I don't think I ever thought I would, but I do. :)

Julee - Ouch, that's probably not a good shirt. I have a bad tendancy to wear oversized tops. It's not really a good thing whe carrying extra weight, but I still seem to do it. If you like the shirt, it is possible to get someone to tailor it so it fits better. I've done that with some of my old shirts that I wanted to keep.

Wendy - I think that's the biggest problem, determining how much you're burning. My calories in is usually between 2000 and 2100 per day. Fitday tells me that my BMR is 2131, and that total cals burned today were 3349. I look at the so-called deficit since December and I should have lost just about 31 pounds. The actual is 32 so I suppose it's reasonably accurate. And yes, I know it's not a science. It's just about impossible to figure out how much you should be eating... at least that's how I find it.

Penny - welcome to the group. I'm not married, and don't have kids, and currently not working, so I don't have a problem finding time. I hope you manage to find some time for yourself. Yikes about the water. Perhaps you'll feel better after a (hopefully) warm bath.

WireFoxMom - since I now do the cooking for my mother I suppose I've made her way of eating healthier. She buys candy for herself, which I stay far away from. I'm interested in the cauliflower recipe if it works out well. I might try converting an old crockpot recipe I have for a cauliflower/white bean chili. I remember that it didn't keep well, and I don't need more than two portions so I'll have to work on that a bit.

debimitch - our nice warm weather came without rain (thankfully), so at the moment our crawlspace is clear. It's rare that you wish for snow, but I hope you get some. If you're going to weigh daily you really have to ignore the daily weights. I log them, but only count the Monday ones as weigh-ins. Not to say that I don't sometimes let the daily weights bother me. However, the longer I do it the more I see the daily fluctuations are meaningless. I actually added a page to my blog yesterday that showed the daily changes. I just find them interesting, but if you're too affected by them just try once a week, or even every other week. On the calorie differences - I use what the packaging says, since (in theory) it should be more accurate. However, I just checked my FitDay and a large egg is entered at 75 calories (so that's pretty much what the package said).

Bernice - even a small amount of movement is good. In the end I think it's more important that you do something you wouldn't normally do before. Just think, one day in the future you will be able to do the entire thing. How great will that feel?

Carol - It's great when things are too big, isn't it? I figure this spring I'll have to do the same thing, trying everything on and divide them up. I'll probably keep the things that are too big as I have someone who will alter them for me (at a very reasonable price). Congrats on the 4.5 pounds lost! Woohoo! I know we should all look for a reasonable loss each week, but sometimes I don't mind the up a pound one week so I can be down 4 or so the next one. It's sad, because even if it's just a couple of pounds per month it is still a downward trend and we should be happy.

BattleAx - I'm sorry that you've been struggling. It is much harder to get on, even when you know all the right things you should be doing. I hope you manage to get back to where you need to be.

Nancy - it is hard to stop the weight loss from consuming you. I find for those I know that I just mention that I'm back on track and leave it at that. I also don't want to be that person who talks about dieting all of the time. I also avoid those discussions with my mother since I could probably drive her crazy if I started. However, every time you turn around you're reading about diets somewhere. Today the paper was talking about how we (Canadians) don't know how to read labels and such. I hope you find your balance. When I stopped focusing I went completely off track. So for now I'll just obsess here and hopefully leave friends and family out of it. :)

Wyoming - that's something I think a lot of people struggle with - eating enough to lose, but not too little that your body suffers.

Angie - glad the doctor's visit went well. I think that's something I should do more often, but so far I seem to be in reasonably good shape... except for the weight!

Debbie - yes, we're all sick of the weather! I went out to the front today, as the snow has crept back a little and exposed one of the flower beds just a bit. I was looking (without luck) for the first of the spring bulbs. Heck, I'd settle for seeing the green tips poking through the dirt. I've never got back to the faster speeds I used to do on the treadmill. At the moment I use the incline to get my heart rate up. I'm at a higher weight than I was when I purchased it, so that may be part of it. Doing the WATP DVD I could walk faster, so it's got to be a mental block. I'm leaving it for something to do once I'm back under 300 pounds.

Tina - well, you're right, making the meal was sweet of him. It is a good thing he didn't see his work going to waste!

Annie - if you can afford to work part time I say go for it. I'm sure your husband will be happy if you're not so tired. That's kind of what I'd love if I can find it until I'm back in school. Something that will earn me a little money (so it's not always so tight), but that it won't take away from my exercise time. I'm becoming a little obsessed with keeping it up.

toofatforu - Good evening to you. A few more posts and you technically won't be lurking...

Catherine - Good for you, taking on the church. I'm not one for prayer, but even if I were, forsaking medicine and hoping that prayer will heal you is... well, just nuts! The only quote I can think of is 'god helps those who help themselves'. I'm pretty sure that medicine is part of helping ourselves. It's just too funny that you end up getting a writing gig out of it.


Well, that took a while! I need to check in a little more often. It's pretty much time for me to get to sleep as I didn't sleep well last night so I was going to try an early night. Good night all!

(and that is ice I hear hitting the window... sleeping in sounds kind of good right now)

Hi everyone,

I did better today, and as long as I can continue for another few hours, I'll have had an OP day.

Is anyone else excited about the idea that new fruits will be in season soon? I can't wait to see berries and melons.

Anne: Congratulations on being accepted by all 5 schools. It's wonderful to have a choice. I wish you the best of luck in the program.

Nancy: I know what you mean about weight loss being the focus of life. I've been at it for a much shorter time than you, but even so it has been taking up a lot of my life for the past 8 months. I don't know if I will ever have balance when it comes to weight management, but it helps to have other things going on in my free time. I keep busy, which is at the same time good for me and challenging. It's challenging because having lots of activities means lots of challenging food situations.

Like Anne, I don't talk about it much with friends and family, or anyone except you chickies. I do sometimes tell others that I am having a hard time controlling myself around food that might be sitting out. For some reason, it helps for me to say it, even if there's not much anyone can say or do for me. I'll even say it to practical strangers standing around a buffet table. I don't know why it helps, but it does. Oh, but I am off on a tangent from your discussion.

Zelma: I read your updated site, too. Love it. One point that sticks with me now is that you put the exercise equipment in the living room (lounge). I live in a small place and don't have a room specifically for exercise equipment either, and have stopped myself from messing up the aesthetics of my public space. Maybe I need to rethink this next Fall when I'm looking for indoor exercise options.

Julee: Belated Happy Birthday! I don't know what to say about the top. I recently watched How to Look Good Naked, and I'm one of the few who didn't like the show, but one of the take away points I got was how clothes make a difference in how heavy we appear. I have the tendency, like many of us, to hide under big, loose clothing. The show demonstrated that more fitted clothes are flattering.

Penny: Welcome!

Wyoming: It's interesting to me that a lot of members come here and say they struggle to eat enough calories. I have never suffered from this problem! I notice that at some point the appetite usually re-appears for them.

Tina: It was nice of your dh to make you a meal. Have you talked with him about the types of foods you need to eat now?

Catherine: You are a force to be reckoned with. I'm glad you stood up and said something. It is so dangerous to lead people to believe that they can eschew medications they need if they just pray hard enough. I think it is really twisting the idea of what is meant by the power of prayer. Not to get too far out there in the spiritual talk, but it is arrogant to think that we can control outcomes like that. We can't invoke miracles. Most of us, anyway.

I get confused by people who think they don't need to do anything but pray to make their lives better. As Anne said, there is a little phrase "G-d helps those who help themselves."

Oh well. I'm always wanting to talk about the subjects we're supposed to stay mum on: politics, religion, and money. I had to go so far as to talk about money as a profession. And it's all I can do not to talk about politics when I have another tab open on my screen and I'm constantly refreshing the page for election results.

To everyone I missed, have a great day. Stay on plan and treat yourself well.

Ratkity: We surely do channel each other a lot! I'm happy that you had an OP day and took the stairs.

Carol: Woo Hoo! 4.5 lost.

Annie: I hope you can find a good p/t job. If I could work p/t, I would. Life is too short.

Toofat: Hang in there, hon.

Debi: I notice that losing weight is harder when under stress.

DMPLS: Haha, that is funny about your DH and the treadmill.

Debbie: Great going on the exercise! Who knows, maybe the size 22s will fit sooner than you think.

Well peeps Good Morning! I have to make this a short one so no personals this am....

I just wanted to say.....I stayed OP all day.....ate a snack in the evening (healthy) that put me over by less than 100 calories......I figured it will all balance out this week.

DH is really struggling he came home from his classes on Mon & Tues very agitated not knowing why.....I packed him his lunch and dinner since he doesn't come home till 8 or 9 then he has a snack while he unwinds (150-200) after he eats that snack he seems to get better.....do you think maybe I am not giving him enough calories? his typical lunch consists of Healthy Choice soup cup & sandwich(45 cal slices of whole wheat, provolone slice, turkey ham or pastrami 2slices) he has a couple of snacks in his lunch box (string cheese, yogurt 60 cal, a piece of fruit) on nights I have to give him dinner too....I try to add the leftovers from dinner....keeping it around 350......and I throw in an extra snack. He had been complaining i was sending him with too much food to lose weight......so I have been watching the calories more but now he is grumpy because he is hungry.........he even said that if he sees no WL this Sat (his weigh in day) that he thinks he will stop! I keep telling him I have noticed a weight change and that he is less tired than before...etc....but this morning he tried on some jeans that he would normally wear last in his lineup of clothes for work (kinda tight) well they fit him along with a tshirt that has been snug on him for awhile....and he came downstairs and did a little model spin for me LOL guess he sees some changes and is happy about that! I hope he doesn't quit because it would be so hard for me to continue!!!

well gotta run and get ready for work and figure out what Im going to eat for lunch today....

ttyl chicks
Bernice

Bernice, ooh a hubby who models!lol;) You do know though that guys need a good few more cals than us ladies? Depending on his weight & height & type of work he does he should have 500+more cals than you as men have more muscle naturally than us, or something,:dizzy: lol. I would do him another 1-2 slice sandwich, or just give him an extra slice for his soup, the extra 90 and whatever fillings shouldn't affect his loss, especially if he's in a physical job AND exercising. Tell him well done! :carrot:It must be great having a hubby to diet with, mine is slim, eats FOUR white rolls at work, snacks on chips, drinks beer eats chocolate & full sugar sweets AND NEVER GAINS!!!! I hope the 'fashion show' has helped hubby to stay OP.;)xxxxxx
Anne, WTG on all those offers!!!:carrot: When do you start, Sept? In the UK most colleges start in Sept, some in Oct, you will be such a cute mature student by then! NOT that you aren't cute now, lol!;)xxxxxxx
Battle, so pleased you are feeling more in control, it seems silly to ban politics from forums, but then again some people are DEAD SERIOUS about it and can't debate like an adult.xxxxxxx
Nancy, I've never been focussed enugh for diet & exercise to take over 'me', wish it would!:devil: Just remember though you are a DANCER, whether you weigh 150 or 260! And you have lost a huge amount of weight, gained new interests, a new apartment and a healthier lifestyle, not that bad, eh? I'm sure you're just getting used to your NEW SMALLER size.:hug:xxxxxxxx
Julee, hmmm, not a nice thing for someone to say to you.:hug: I would have cried, probably had a bottle of wine too! I think you should hang it in on your wardrobe or have a pic taken in it & put it on your fridge to stop any temptations, also see if you know someone hand with a needle & thread & see if they can alter it to look more flattering. Sorry about MIL, she seems way too immature to be a mother, her job should be to buy you pressies, fuss over you both & most of all be SUPPORTIVE! :mad:At least you have a great hubby.xxxxxx
TFFY/Patty how are you doing? :hug:I had an email from Ammi, this falling from the OP waggon must be seasonal, I'm just back on it, as of Monday. What plan do you follow, is it w/w?xxxxxxx
Well I took the boys to school then slept in the spare room til just now, 12 noon!:o I feel better for it, I hate it when hubby's on nights, every sound makes me scared, not that we live in a bad area, I'm just nervous alone at night in bed, sometimes I miss my boys being little & sleeping with me when they were ill or had bad dreams.
I took some pics of the flowers in our front bit of garden, though the back gets lots of sun very little is growing apart from the roses, which have those lovely red/green sprouts on them.
I have to go & get the house sorted, I REALLY will try & keep up with everyone now.:hug:
xxxxsharon

Good Morning everyone...

Well, it has poured the rain, which flooded the front courtyard. Then last nite it snowed and iced over. So we have a nasty mess out front. The kids are on a 2hr delay so far. I am not sure if they will just cancel or try to get the kids there. I am contemplating how I am getting my son out to the car. I will be so glad when we are out of this place. We are looking into getting a house in July, , , we have 2 prospects so far. Neither house is my dream house, but around here the houses are built very weird. THey are split levels 2,3 and even 4 levels. One we are looking at is an actually bi level house. You walk in the door and either go up or down the steps immediately. The other is a tri level but you actually come in the door on the middle level. It also has a 2 car garage.

I did good for food yesterday, even with going out. DH woke up wanting to go to this sub place. I had a small chic o philly sub and split some fries with my son. Believe it or not I was satisified and did not even want a late nite snack.

Catch you all later.
Tina

Patti: Hi hun. Glad to see you post. I hope you start feeling more energetic soon.

debimitch: I think weighing daily is ok only if it doesn't upset you.

Julee: Sorry about the rude comment. That stinks. Hugs.

DMPLS: Yes, I have to say my "drive" has gotten higher as my weight goes down.

Worthapenny: Have fun tumbling.

Debbie: Wow. I'm impressed that you jogged.

Anne: Congrats on all the college offers.

Battle: So glad that you had a better day. I hope that today is even better. Hugs.

Sharon: I am not afraid at night because I have my doggies. Do you have a dog? They sure are a good security system.

Tina: I hope you do get your dream house or at least close to it.

Well, I'm at work and need to go work. Hugs to you all and I hope you drink your water and move your bodies.

blessings,
Annie

Good morning,

Well it's still snowing, with a lovely crust of ice under the swow. Someone has cleared the driveway and the walk, so I only had to take a little snow off in the backyard. The girl who parks in the driveway is supposed to do the driveway, but usually her dad does it. Although this morning it looks like someone with a plow did the sidewalk, driveway and walkway. We've got three different neighbours who do this from time to time. It's hard to know who unless you catch them in the act. It really is a great place to live. I noticed that when at my mother's birthday party a couple of weeks ago. I don't spend a lot of time talking to them, but they are nice people. I really am a little anti-social, but it's also because we've split up the yard work. My mother does the front and I do the back. This is because the trees we have are all in the back and a little tougher (sometimes) to take care of.

BattleAx - I'd be excited just to see the grass, or the first of the spring bulbs. I dug up the raspberry patch in the fall, renewing the plants. I need to purchase a few extra plants this spring as soon as I can. This is the first year in about ten that we'll probably not get many raspberries. I had a roommate back in college who was almost completely opposite in opions on some of the really big topics. We eventually had to agree to disagree. I was surprised that we got along so well, but not surprised that the friendship didn't last.

Bernice - I'm with Sharon. He will need more calories than you. And try not to hate it when he'll lose more on more food! :)

Sharon - it will probably be Sept, just not sure of the date yet. Funny, but this whole cycle just seems to fit. I should reach goal sometime in 2010 (boy that seems so far away), while I'm in school. It could mean that my new life will be my new life. I could end up working with people who have never known me at the higher weight. It's really kind of strange. Exciting a little bit as well. You know I do hate you a little (about the flowers)? :)

Tina - we live in a three-level split, although we came from a 4-level (5 actually since the sun room was off to the side and didn't match any of the other levels). I really kind of like them. Depending on how far in the ground they are you often get more light in the basement than you do with some homes. A lot of people feel they are never off the stairs, but that's not such a bad thing.

Well, off I should go to start my treadmill time. I got an email that my ordered book is on it's way, so maybe I can get it and start reading it before my afternoon exercise time. Take care all, and have a great day.

I am cranky. That"s not good for anyone. Himself is out of town for three days giving speeches. I couldn't go this time because they are in the town where his parents live. I love his dad, but will not be in the same area code as his mom. That's probably not very a Christian or even very mature stance, but she did try to have me deported, and got our first church wedding canceled two days ahead of time. Throttling her would also not be very mature.

I am embarrassed to admit I just don't sleep well when he is gone. I'm still tired from pushing myself yesterday walking at the mall. I guess I'll just sit in a chair and catch up on my writing. I don't play well with others when I'm like this.

Anne, how wonderful to be accepted at 3 different colleges. That's great that one is close to you with the classes you want to take. What were some of the other classes that you wanted to take?

Battleax, did you stay OP for the rest of the day? I know it can be so hard to stay OP but just realize that you've come a long way and you can do this. I have faith in ya!!

Bernice, I know men need to have way more calories than women do. Have you checked to see how many he is suppose to be eating? Just tell him you know what your doing and he WILL see a weight loss if he follows your plan. Use whatever you got to keep him going in order to help you and him.

Sharon, glad to see you back on the OP wagon. The more the merrier!!

Tina, I hope you get the house that you want. They sound really nice. I always thought the split level houses were so interesting.

Catherine, ok miss cranky, hope you get into a better mood when Himself gets back. Just rest and try not to think about throttling the MIL. That's awful that she did that to you guys. I probably would of wanted to, too!

Sun is shining and the frogs are going crazy around here. Sounds like there are hundreds of them around. It's still too wet out to do anything outside though so I guess I will do laundry.
I plan on getting on the treadmill and see if I can go longer than 10 seconds jogging. Wish me luck. I did work out with my hand weights too which are 8 lbs each and I did 50 reps of one set and 40 of the other. I'll try and work up to more each day. I need to have stronger arms. I feel like suck a weakling sometimes. :rofl:
Hope all are having a productive OP day
Debbie

Hello Again
 

This website is it. No matter how many times I leave, I always come back here. I have been gone this time due to illness (the docotrs still haven't figured it out yet) but I am finally ready to take back my life. I have been starting small - like housecleaning - decluttering my life - and now I am ready to tackle my weight again. I must say I am happy that my weight only went up by 1 pound since I left in December. As part of my decluttering, I came across an old weight loss journal. What a surprise - my heaviest weight was 336 in 2003. I got down to 292 in 2005, and I have pretty much been here since then (+/- 10 lbs). Gee, I wonder if this is a PLATEAU? I have 2 mini goals for right now - the first is to get to 286 - 50lbs gone, and the second is to get to 275- that's when I am going to document my weight loss journey with my second picture. I have the before pic - staged at 295. I hope to take a pic every 20 lbs to keep me motivated.

I am home today - yet another sick day - and I sure would appreciate talking to someone if anyone is online. I am staring fresh and for me, the excitement of starting over is in sharing the planning, the hopes and dreams.

I wish everyone all the best in your success!
Laura

HI laura and welcome back.Good job on maintaning and trying to declutter your life.Isnt it funny how much stuff in our lifes can slow us down.I feel so much better when I have a clean house. I am also finding that I have clutter in my mind also.lol
Debbie - cant wait to hear frogs here. I did see that my suprise lillys are coming up.
catherine - sorry your in a mood today.Try and enjoy the time you have alone. Take a nap or do something just for yourself today. Take a long bubble bath or curl up with a good book or my favorite a long nap.
anne- please keep the snow up there. I have had my fill this winter. I want to be able to go outside and play in my flowerbeds. I have noticed that weeds are still growing even with all the yucky weather.
babybear- we had snow overnight but thank god its gone today.
dmpls- My hubby eats way more food than i do and he can still lose weight.
I wonder if his sugar might be dropping...might want to check it.

While I was out of the room this morning one of the kids I keep knocked my keyboard into the floor. Did you there is a spring under the space bar? I got it put back together but its not working to good. I may look on the floor for another spring. I had never taken a key off before.
My eating has been good today but water intake is a little low. Guess i better drink up.
have a great day everyone.
debi

thanks for all the advice on DH's calories!!! I will have to let him know I think maybe documentation will work with him LOL if I say you have to eat more....he will say "you just don't want me to lose more than you" LOL

The sugar thing might be right Debi I will see how his sugar has been when he is crabby LOL will see today when he gets here if he is in a good mood or otherwise......maybe his sugar is dropping to low.

toodles peeps I will try to get on later and address personally

Bernice

Hi everyone:

It sounds like you all are doing well -- good job! I'm still here -- still hopping around :) The dr. is going to prescribe me Celebrex for my hopping leg, which ought to make it easier for me to get around (but still no weight on the cast). But the GOOD NEWS is that Friday I will be halfway done! Yay :)

I have completely stopped tracking exercise and calories for now -- I'll just start fresh when I can 1) get on a scale and 2) get off my butt!

The reward for not worrying was to have dinner with really good friends last night -- red wine and lobster pie and a wee slice of rhubarb pie. Hmm -- seems like it was a pie night! It was fantastic, and today my mood has skyrocketed! I feel so much better. Note to self, sitting at home and eating poorly = feeling lousy. Going to a friend's house and eating well, if not superhealthy = feeling good!

Good day peeps,

I'm hanging in there, feeling a little more even after detoxing from my period of being off the wagon. I'm headed out for my walk soon, so the exercise is on track, too.

I love Lent, even though I don't celebrate it, because there are always good specials on fish. Later today I'm going to buy some sole and freeze it in vacuum bags.

Have a great day, everyone. Hugs to all.

Debbie-I don't get to see frogs here, or snakes for that matter. We have birds, and furry things that hibernate like gophers and bears. We get ants in summer time. I don't know what they do in winter.

Battle-better stock up on fish now, because it will be lamb season soon enough.

I got in about 5000 words on my book today, and now have a head ache. I got my mid term back. I didn't like the grade. She said she liked my paper, but only gave me a B+. I feel like eating peanut butter. I want to stomp my foot and have a proper temper tantrum. My next paper is going to be so long and complicated that she'll get a headache just reading it.

Catherine: I am done whining about my MIL. She has not yet tried to have me deported and she was lovely at the wedding, the whole dress thing notwithstanding. I have to travel a few times a year for work and I do not sleep well on those trips. I am so used to the warm body and the comfort...it's really hard to do. I am gone this weekend and I am not looking forward to it at all. You can be a person of impeccable faith, but mean is mean and it's ok to call it what it is :)

The congestion and sniffles have attached again. I was sure I had a temperature earlier but yet again I was wrong. I felt warm..but the thermometer disagreed. I can't get sick this weekend...it's just not an option. Argh.

Battle..thanks for the reminder about fish. I made some fabulous salmon last weekend that I just finished and I should get some more. My MIL looks for the specials on corned beef now too. She only cooks it (for herself and her husband) once a year but they enjoy it.

WI tonight. Fully expecting bad things. I did not use all of my extra points but this week I certainly used more points than I have yet...and the extras were really extra...the drinks and cupcake on my birthday and the desserts on the other days. Tomorrow we begin again.

Patrick Swayze has pancreatic cancer. This makes me sad.

ok so DH came home in a good mood......ate dinner and we discussed the calorie intake issue.....he asked if I would keep track of his calories on TDP as well as mine........so I opened an account for his and posted them......it says he should be eating 2200+ cals a day..........today he has eaten 1700 so far.....after dinner snack still to come so I think I will make it a high protein one.

He was asking me some hard questions but, what we assume is the best answer may not be so he asked me to ask you gals or what he has lovingly dubbed you gals "the calorie gurus" LOL

ok so if the daily calorie allotment should be 2200 would it be better to have
Breakfast 300
Lunch 600
Dinner 900
snacks 400 (spread out 3times a day)

Or something like this

Breakfast 600
Lunch 900
Dinner 300
snacks 400

He seems to think we should eat more in the morning and lunch since that is when we are the most active and it does make sense, but like I said we send this question to the gurus! LOL

Dmpls-there was a posting about this some where the other day. It may have been on caloriecounters. Alot of people actually eat5or6 mini-meals. I think it is what ever works best for you. It would be nice to go to sleep with an empty stomach.(well maybe not empty but not full from a late dinner)
My daughter said she is having problems with NYC because they all eat dinner so late. She is use to eating around 7 but said there they dont eat till9 or 10.She said the restraunts are full after plays. I would feel awful if i ate that late at night. She always makes fun of us for eating early between5-6.
debi

I'm back again, hoping to find the motivation to stay.

I've had a *lot* of crazy changes this year; some of which has made it hard to concentrate on what I've needed to. The fact that I've moved so far away from my hometown for the first time (2000 miles!) doesn't even scratch the surface. I might start a thread about my misadventures. ;)

Anyway, I just realized I was having bad reactions to certain artificial sweeteners (I posted a thread about it in this part of the forum). . . now that I've got it figured out I'm feeling a lot better so it seems like a good time to start some lifestyle changes. :)

Zelma – I just read your website update and it was great. Not great that you were feeling the way you were, but great to not feel alone with these identity issues.

Debitmitch – I agree with you that it is all about what works for you. I often don’t eat until 9 or 10 at night, but that is because I go to the gym after work instead of in the morning.

Bernice – It really doesn’t matter when your husband eats as long as it works for him. One thing he might try is to mix it up on different days. This can also be used to compensate for a lunch out instead of one he brought or another day when he needs extra calories for dinner. I personally eat more at night because I prefer having a more substantial dinner. If I eat heavily at lunch I am asleep at my desk by 3:00. But again, it is really what works for him because over the long run it all averages out.

Julee – I hope your weigh in goes ok. Birthdays definitely deserve a bit of slack though. Happy belated birthday!

Catherine – Can you challenge the grade if you don’t think it is correct? We could do that with several teachers and they would often back down on certain points when we explained why we did something a certain way.

Battle – I hadn’t thought about the fish specials. Thanks for the tip.

TheWalrus – I have to admit that your name makes me want to make Beatles jokes. Sitting at home and eating poorly is definitely a recipe for not feeling good.

Laura – A plateau is when you are doing everything right and the weight is still not coming off. Even so, you can look at this time as maintenance practice. That must be so stressful to have a condiditon that cannot be diagnosed. :hug:

Debbie – Don’t worry about feeling like a weakling – you will be strong in no time!

Anne – I have snow issues with my neighbors (in this case the tenants of the other apartments in my house) too. Mainly – I seem to be the only one in the house that shovels the sidewalk in front of our house.

Annie – Can I just say that you are looking AWESOME in your new pic?

Tina – Isn’t it an amazing feeling to realize that we can be satisfied with such a smaller amount of food?

Sharon – Thanks. You are right – I am a dancer and it doesn’t matter what size I am (well ok, it does matter since I will be able to do more when I am not hauling so much around).



I am somewhat bummed out tonight because I had to skip dance class. My knee is really bothering me and while I could have pushed through, I have a feeling that would be a bad idea. I will not be able to go back to the gym until Monday because I am going away for the weekend, but then again it is probably somewhat good so that I give my knee a chance to heal.

I had coffee with a guy on Saturday and we ended up really hitting it off. I am not sure at what level, but definitely as friends. In fact he feels like a bit of a kindred spirit including having weight issues of his own. He lives a bit north of me up in CT and so I am having dinner with him on my way up to visit my father this weekend. The whole weekend should be interesting eating wise, as I always seem to have issues when I go home.

If today’s weighing was any indication I should have a good weigh in tomorrow morning.

Goo goo g'joob! :D

Hi Peeps

I'm beat tonight but wanted to pop my head in. I am excited about the time change this weekend - if winter won't leave at least we will have an hour more daylight of it. I think my exhaustion is 1) too much winter and 2) I let myself get very hungry - leading to dinner out. Now I have a full belly, new clothes to try on and the feeling I will sleep good tonight. I made good choices at dinner and was well within my calorie range for the day - I have to quit having 1300 calorie days when I work out like I did yesterday - it kills me the next day - reminder to self: fuel the body.

Catherine - I can't sleep when he's gone either. I always do take some special time though - maybe to get my nails done or a new haircut or watching what I want on TV or eating cereal for dinner. It doesn't take much to make me feel like I've splurged on me.

Tonight at dinner we had a little chat about the recent comments about identity mentioned her by Nancy and Zelma - I was both surprised and pleased by DHs remarks and his insight. Battle - I think you mentioned not discussing it much but some being aware of it - that has been my plan and apparently is appearing as such to DH even - although in my own mind it is always there front and center.

Hugs to all,
Carol

Laura, welcome back! It's always good to come back to something that helps you get OP again, and this is the place to do it. Just start out slow and don't overwhelm yourself.

Debi, yep, I knew about the spring under the space bar. Only because one of our kitties decided to barf all over the keyboard. I know yuckie!!!

TheWalrus, yay for feeling better after a good meal!! It's amazing how we will still fall back into eating junk and feeling lousy and then realizing why we started eating better. Keep up the good work and I hope you can get back on your feet soon and get moving again.

Battleax, how did the walk go? Any word on the job front as far as moving?

oooooo Catherine! You are in a bit of a mood aren't you. :rofl: take it easy and get rid of that headache. I would take a B+ for sure as I used to just get c's and d's in school

Julee, Hope you had a great WI. I had heard something about Patrick Swayze, but didn't catch it all. That's awful. Poor guy.

Bernice, I don't know about the rest of you, but I try to have about the same amount of calories for each meal and then my 3 snacks spread out thru the day. I don't eat after 9p.m. if I can help it but if I'm really hungry, I'll get a protein bar. I think it's great that he is getting so "into" it. I'm sure it's going to help you so much to have a buddy going thru this with you. I wish my hubby would try and lose. He did the first couple of times that I tried to lose, but this time, he's no help at all. He's still eating the candy, chips, junk. I'm pretty immune to it now though.

Ewing, welcome! Glad you got the artificial sweetner thing under control. That must of been something to figure that one out. Post often, we love to hear the adventures of the newbies.

Nancy, that's great that you and the new guy are hitting it off. Sometimes it's best to start out as friends. Ya never know what can happen after that! Hope ya have a great WI!

Carol, isn't a great feeling to make the right choices while eating out? It's such a sense of control and makes the whole day better. Keep it up!! O my gosh! We turn the clocks up this weekend???

I got on the treadmill again today and did 20 minutes again with 3 - 1 minute intervals of jogging. I plan to add 30 seconds every couple of days. I'll do some weights later tonight while I'm watching tv. I'm surprising myself! Staying OP really well too and getting my water in. I hope to get out there and mow the grass tomorrow if it's dried up enough. Planning new gardens and in a couple of weeks I'll be able to start my veggies inside so they will be strong for outside come spring.
nite,
Debbie

Nancy-I suppose I could technically appeal the grade, but it isn't a huge part of my grade, and she was right on the part she dinged me on.

She's also another former tribunal lawyer. She probably wouldn't have played nice about it. I know I wouldn't have. I got 10/10 on my first paper, so it isn't personal. If my final grade isn't what I think it should be, then I'll appeal. I guess there's a difference between what I want to get, and what I think I deserved, and what I probably did deserve. I will just knuckle down on the rest of my work.

Good evening all,

Well, I got the book I ordered the other day - The New Rules of Lifting for Women. I spent too much time today reading it and will likely start incorporating the strength training part next week. I'm not planning on following their specific diet plan, although I will work at upping my protein. I'll have to work with the weights I have at home for now (I can go up to 16lbs on the dumbbells, not sure how long that will do). Once I know I'm more into it I might break down and look into better equipment.

Debbie - It's always nice to have choices. The other courses were also engineering ones (Industrial, Manufacturing, and Mechanical). Even 10 seconds of jogging is a great start. I see in a later post that you are up to minute intervals - wonderful. I found that last Saturday doing the WATP. There was a 10-min mile in which you do jog forwards and backwards a little. I was surprised I managed it. Although I am going to wait until this Sat to try and repeat it. I do also hate you for the mowing the lawn... just a little! :)

Laura - I'm not sure it's a plateau, but maintaining any weight loss is a good thing. It's better than going up. Good luck on restarting your weight loss.

Debimitch - I used to regularly snap keys off the older keyboards to clean cat hair out from under them. On a longer space bar there are often two springs. Depending on the kind of keyboard, there may also be a wire that needs to snap into a holder.

TheWalrus - spending times with friends when you're recovering is a good thing. Just think, you're halfway there.

Catherine - I know that's what I'm not going to like about going back to school - grades. I'll be okay with the math/science type courses, but I think the language course will be the toughest. Sometimes it feels like the marks for some courses are so subjective to the person grading them. I remember taking a problem solving course at a college a few years ago. I was in it with someone I knew. Part of the mark was for an oral presentation. She and I got (what we thought) were mediocre grades on the presentation. Now, some of the presenters were horrid. Part of it was because a number of them did not have English as a first language. The woman I knew was in the same boat, but did a good job. She found out that one of the guys got a higher grade (and freaked). The presentation was poor, but the teacher seemed to be grading based on how well he thought the person could do. I understand the point of encouraging people, however, part of the job we were both doing at the time (and the other person was hoping to get) involves dealing with customers, leading team exercises, etc. Being unable to stand up and make that presentation is a big problem. I've been in other classes where if you don't get up and present, you get zero for that assignment. He only subtracted 10 or 15% for not presenting. Okay (rant over). :) Doesn't it feel better that you're not the only one having a tantrum!

Julee - I'll keep my fingers crossed for the WI (although it's likely already done). My worst day since I started back in December was my birthday in January. I'd slipped a little on New Years, although not too badly. My birthday on the 4th was a complete disaster. It took I think 10 days before I was back to the same weight I was on the 2nd.

Bernice - you're probably going to get different answers on the breakdown of calories. I think it depends on how well the person deals with hunger and access to food. I couldn't do the large lunch / small dinner as I would be in the house (lots of food) and I'd be hungry. Ask him when he feels hungriest and try and adjust more calories before that period. Also look at the times of those meals. When I commuted, my meal times were:

Breakfast: 6am
Lunch: 1pm
Dinner: 7pm
Bedtime: 10pm

Using the hours between meals/snacks is sometimes the best way to determine sizes of meals. For myself, I could work until 1pm without needing a morning snack. Yet I would often come home about 4pm and take something. My late dinner meant that I didn't need a late night snack. He shouldn't get really hungry at any point (although we all know there are times we will be hungry. I didn't add the calories above since I don't remember what they were. I would say it was a small breakfast, medium lunch, small snack in the afternoon, and a larger dinner.

Since I'm now eating just over 2000, I'll show you my day now that I'm home. I used my Feb stats from my calorie tracker (that's why the numbers are odd).

Breakfast: 10 am (235 cals)
Lunch: 2pm (575)
Afternoon Snack: 5pm (55) - it's 90 when I take it, just not all days
Dinner: 7pm (670)
Evening Snack: 10pm (500)

When I change my exercise next week I'll likely try eating breakfast earlier and putting in a morning snack. I find at the moment that I simply look at what's left for the day and put it in the evening snack instead of bulking up other times.

Ewing - welcome back. That's a pretty big move you did there. I did see the sweetener thread. It never did affect me that way, but I'm glad you found the source of your troubles.

Nancy - well, my snow issues are good ones! It turned out that it was the daughter herself that shoveled this morning. Her dad came over today and asked about parking his car in our driveway so he could use his snow shovel with less problems. He knows it's okay, but asks in case we we're going out (since that blocks our garage). The coffee date, now dinner date, sounds promising. Perhaps I can live vicariously through you until I get to the point where I put myself back out there. I did get interest the last time I was down under 300, but I was never comfortable enough with where I was to do anything about it. That's something else I'll have to work on. You inspire me in that area.

Carol - I think the best idea is to fuel the body after the workout, without thinking about it. I usually take lunch after my morning workouts, but in the afternoon I take a protein shake (although I may move a piece of my lunch fruit there as well starting next week). You definitely do not want 1300 calorie days with heavy workouts. That's what got me into trouble a couple of years ago. I do know that it's hard to think of food as fuel, but you really do need to.


Well, I think that's it for me tonight... time for sleep!

Julee- :getwell:I hope that your sniffles go away!!! Take some extra vit C drink some Grape Juice I know that always helps me and its easier on the stomach than Orange. I hope your WI went well! I hadn’t heard about Patrick Swayze, that is sad!!

Debi- I scanned the Caloriecounters forum and got a lot of insightful info!! Thanks! Along with all that the “gurus” here say......DH & I feel we need to up at least our breakfast meal for him......I sent him with extra quick things for him to eat once he gets to work.....we eat oatmeal together around 5 or 5:30 on rare occasion do I get up early enough to cook him breakfast. Maybe I should start creating some quick frozen breakfast things with higher calorie content. (like home made frozen burritos etc...):hun:

Ewing- I too get massive migraines some of which was attributed to artificial sweeteners but also other things played a part. My hormones being out of wack was one of them. Now that my hormones are more under control, I don’t have the issues with artificial sweeteners.

Nancy- I feel the same way you do about dinner.....we started eating our dinner prior to 7pm and then only allow a healthy snack in the evenings.....we use to eat anytime we all were home, some days it was at 9:30 or 10pm!!! And I’m talking a dinner of 1000 calories plus, with no regard to fat calories. So this change in eating times has helped let alone the more healthy eating. I think I have a better perspective after listening to all of you guys.....pretty much as long as we don’t over eat on Calories......we could eat them all at 7pm and we would still lose weight because our body will burn however many calories it needs to regardless of when we consume our calories. Sorry about your knee but you are right to let it rest. :cheer2:Wooohooo on the coffee date, hope dinner is just as nice!

Debbie-Yes I agree it is nice having someone to do this with and for....we are doing it for ourselves but helping each other is also incentive. He weighed yesterday just cuz he couldn’t wait till Sat since he put on jeans that were tight last week....and this week they fit he wanted to know what kind of weight change he had....he lost 4lbs! Tonight is his long nite of classes he works 8hours plus 5 hour class tonight....so I packed him a protein bar ontop of all his snacks, lunch & dinner....I told him if he felt like he should eat it during class or on his break because he wont be home till 10 or later and we usually have our evening snack around 9pm or so.....hopefully this helps him out today. I’m going to see about doing what you do on the treadmill after a week or so more. I did try to add an incline but decided after a few secs that wouldn’t work right now. I do start it at 2.0 and increase to 2.5 then on my last song I cool down at 2.0......told Dh I think I will increase it to 2.5 & 3.0 next week. I haven’t walked yesterday or the day before since I had my mini workouts at work with students I was drained when I came home....but today I plan on it!:woops:

Anne-Thank you so much for your info on your calorie intake! Since we have breakfast at 5 or 5:30 I keep that at 100-200 cal then he has a snack mid morning to complete what I would call his breakfast calories....just spread out......for another 100-200 then lunch anywhere from 300-600 depending on if it was leftover dinner. Dinner is usually 600-800 and then the rest is snacks between lunch/dinner and after dinner. So I guess I will just boost his breakfast calories at first and see how he feels.

Last night I sat down and wrote my son a letter, even though I will not be able to send it for another week or so. Waiting on his return address, I was thinking of him since yesterday was his first full day of boot camp. I pray he did well, he is VERY athletic and can take just about anything anyone dishes out to him in stride. So I know he will do ok, just the worry-wort-momma in me LOL

I was OP for calories and did a lot of extra movement(lifting kids and short quick walks) so when I came home I was worn out.....didn’t do any walking last night. I need to today.....tomorrow we have the day off so I will do some sort of workout as well tomorrow.

Well I must finish getting ready for work
Toodles peeps
Bernice

Funny you all should be talking about grades! Seems like that's all I do sometimes! Grades are subjective to some degree. Not just for the person you are grading, but as a teacher my mood and concentration level affect my grading sometimes. For some assignments, I have my students turn them in with only their student IDs and not names on the paper. Then I can grade anonymously. That's interesting sometimes.

I try to be specific in my assignments (e.g., do this and this AND that) and when I grade, part of what I look for is this and this AND that. But some papers are written more clearly, others less so. That also figures into the grading.

Grade appeals become difficult. As a teacher, I would rather have a student come and ask me to go over why he or she got a certain grade. Sometimes in the process I realize a mistake! But to appeal a grade in a way you need to see all the other papers and how they were graded... it's tough...

Good luck to all the students in the group!

good morning everyone,
Well looks like I'm heading to walmart this afternoon to get a new keyboard. I got the wire back in place but a spring is still missing and i really have to strike the bar hard to make it work.
I am kinda sore this morning. I increased weights last night and I can really tell it today. Its a good kind of sore though. I know I am making progress.
Looks like we are in for yet another snow storm starting at midnight tonight. They are saying this could be our biggest one of the season. up to 8".

Have a great day everyone.
I will do personal after i get a new keyboard. lol I never dreamed how much i use the space key.lol

thanks for all hte support. this site is awesome and so is each and everyone of you!!!
debi

Ewing – Welcome back! So you moved to be with your BF? I think you were talking about possibly doing that when you were here last.

Carol – That is really cool that you have such a supportive hubby. It is definitely important to eat enough – especially on days when we work out. The body needs fuel to rebuild after you use it!

Debbie – I don’t think I have mentioned how impressed I am that you are doing intervals with jogging. That is amazing!

Catherine – It is definitely important to know when to pick our battles.

Anne – 16 pound dumbbells should do you for awhile. You can always increases the number of reps in a set if you are finding that they are starting to feel light. You can also try slowing down the lift and making it really controlled – if you aren’t trying to get your heart rate up that is. I am glad I can inspire you about the dating. It feels really weird for the queen of wanting to live vicariously to have people wanting to hear what I am doing.

Bernice – It must be hard not being able to communicate with your son. Do they let them send email at all?

Heather – Oops - when I said appeal the grade I meant go to the teacher and ask him/her about it – not to take it directly to the school. I know that especially in my audit classes there were several instances of the book saying one thing but new laws saying another, etc. that made more than one answer correct depending.

Debi – I love feeling that kind of sore. It makes me feel like I really worked!

I am having a crazy hungry day. I woke up really early (5:30 – ugh! I am not a morning person) and was hungry so I had a protein muffin. I had my breakfast here at the office – a bowl of Kashi GoLean at about 9:00 and I am already hungry! This is crazy.

I am so ready for this day to be over already since it is my effective Friday. I am really looking forward to spending time with my dad this weekend.

I am happy to say that the scale dropped another two so I feel like I am moving in the right direction again. It will be really tough to keep up the momentum this weekend with not one but two meals at restaurants with buffets as the only option. I will just have to do the best I can and not go overboard. I am bringing a laptop with me so that I can continue to check in.

Anne, don't hate me too much. It's still way to wet out there to mow and then another storm is coming in this weekend. I'll see how it goes tomorrow though. :rofl:

Bernice, Yes, definitely try the jog intervals. I know it feels really good to do something besides just walking on there. I feel I'm accomplishing something when I jog, and I guess in reality, I am. I just jog at 3 which I feel is comfortable. I can't do the incline because of my back for some reason. It just starts hurting. You would think it would with jogging too but it doesn't. What you've planned for hubby sounds like he'll make it thru the night. I'm glad his jeans are looser, it's such an incentive to keep going.

Nancy, aw, thanks.
Have a really great time at your dad's. And congrats on the two pounds gone forever!! That's great news. Any more contact with the new guy?

Another beautiful sunny day. But from what I hear, it won't last. I hope to get out there and do something even it it's a walk down to the mail box. I know we need to go to the dump, that's always fun.
My Mom got her results from the doctor and it turns out they found something growing in her cultures so they say it can be cured with antibiotics. That was a real relief since there are so many things that could of caused it with alot worse results. So we're very thankful for that.
hope all have a wonderful day! Keep moving, drinking and posting!
Debbie

Well somewhere along the line a miracle occurred and I manages to lose .2 lbs. I also made a point of wearing really light clothing yesterday and even took off my bike shorts that I had on under my dress so as not to weight in any heavier than I was going to...but whatever. .2 is .2 and I am happy that it wasn't a major gain (which I would have deserved and lived with). DH had a big loss and he was happy so I was happy for him. He wore his jeans this past weekend for the first time in months.

What I also realized was that the planned binge was all fine and good but after 3 days of sweets I want to detox. I felt cruddy from having so much sugar and am looking forward to some healthier days ahead. I am antsy about this weekend since I can't really control what food is being served and what will be available for me to eat. I am coming armed with plenty of things that will work for me though and hopefully I'll be alright.

I am feeling a little less sniffly today which is good. I took a pill last night and probably will pick up some vitamin c drops later. I tend to not go for juices because I don't want to drink my points. I don't remember the last time I had OJ..and I love fresh OJ...but it's too many points to sacrifice for something that doesn't fill me up the same way that fruit does.

All is well...

Hi everyone,

I just bought some cookie dough and just before digging in I threw it out. I'm really really struggling lately. I don't know why. Well, actually it may be because I am feeling a little depressed. I feel that I am falling off the edge with my eating. I don't want to and I need to figure out how to recommit. Eating and gaining weight will hardly do my mental outlook any good.

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Debbie: The job is off the table. I apparently severely blew the interview in SoCal. I'm devastated over it...more so than with most jobs I have gone after.

Nancy: Congrats on the loss. I'm excited for you that you hit it off with a date. I hope it turns into something nice.

Julee: Good for you, on the .2 lb. loss. Any little bit is good. Yes, once in a while the planned overeating isn't terrible, as long as you are sure the price is worth it. Sometimes it is. You can get back on track.

Debbie: It is a relief to hear that your mother has something that is very easily treatable.

Battleax, so sorry to hear the job you wanted, didn't go thru. But so glad you threw out the cookie dough! Everything happens for a reason, so hopefully something even better comes along. Is this part of the reason you are struggling to stay OP? Is there anything we can do to help? It's so easy to fall back into bad eating habits. Just one little break down and I'm off. Just hang in there and focus on what needs to be done to get you back on track.

Julee, .2 is better than a gain any time. Good news about you hubby too. I bet he felt really good.

I don't know why, but I have this terrible feeling that when I lose my weight, that I'm going to have a big butt, big shoulders and a small waist. I don't know if it's just a freakout moment, or why I would even think this. I saw a woman that was on a show who had the lapband surgery, and her hips were still huge, with a small little waist. I feel I'm proportioned well, a little big in the bottom compared to the rest of me, but it's still worrisome.
Anyhow, just wondering if anyone else has these nightmares.
Debbie

Good afternoon all,

So at the grocery store I looked at the Skinny Cow ice cream bars, but... I bought the Häagen-Dazs. I don't know why, but I was truly craving ice cream today. I had a few things to pick up so I looked at HD's website before I left to remind myself not to buy a pint. I do like their sorbets, which aren't too bad, but I didn't think I could divide it up. So it was out. I looked at the ice cream bars, but they all started at around 300 calories. So I decided I would look at the lower calorie options.

Then I saw it... smaller Häagen-Dazs ice cream bars. The vanilla almond one was only 200 calories. I kind of glanced at the Skinny Cow ones and then decided I'd rather have 4 really good ice cream bars than the low cal ones. Of course once I got home I realised that the Skinny Cow ones were still 140-150 calories. They also contained a lot of additives I'm trying to avoid (ie. high fructose corn syrup). So I'm feeling rather virtuous about my more natural choice. Ha ha ha. :nose: Well, I had only one and put the others in the back of the garage freezer. I'm in it every day getting dinner stuff out, but I think I can avoid scarfing down the rest of them. I've always said that I can work anything I truly want into my plan, so this was what I did.

Bernice - how long will your son be away (ie. how long is his tour)? Will he be able to come home between basic and wherever he ends up? I don't know much about the military, especially the US one. We had a family friend who spent his career with the Canadian one, but he was a friend of my parents. I don't even know much about where he was stationed.

Heather - I think sometimes we just like to complain about them. I can't think when I've ever appealed a grade, although I know I've discussed them when I thought the grade should have been different (although rarely). This may change, but as a rule I get good grades - when I apply myself. I noticed that in my college transcripts. The first few years my grades were impressive, but not so much in the final year. This was when I decided that I didn't want to do what I was going to school for. It became harder to apply myself.

Debimitch - I figured you might have to. Of all the keys, the spacebar is the one that doesn't take well to being taken apart. Sorry to hear about the snow. It's warming up a bit today. I think I just won't look at the forecast. It's almost at the point where I feel like saying 'ignore it, it will go away'.

Nancy - it is strange in what other people find inspiring, isn't it? I know when I was around and just under 300 I found I was getting some attention from men that I worked with. Some of it was just the usual flirting a lot of them do, but I was kind of surprised. The last plant I worked in, well, I was the only woman in the plant after 5pm (and technically the ones that were there before 5pm were in the office). I think I'd even gained a little weight while working there, especially near the end when I hated it. When I gave notice I was really surprised that one guy hinted about going out, now that I didn't work there, and another was more direct. I did what I always did, I pushed them away. Again, something I have to work on eventually. Congrats on the scale moving. I sometimes use that to motivate me to make better choices. Although the last buffet/party I was at I chickened out and took a protein shake before I went. It kept the hunger at bay so I could think about the choices. Good luck.

Debbie - as long as the weather you're getting produces good cherries this season I'll forgive you. Although our local cherries are good, and the BC cherries and very nice, it's always a good day when the Washington State cherries show up at Costco. And yes, I think about the body image a lot. I've never had an adult body of the correct size so I just don't have a clue. As a child I was chubby and as a teen I was overweight, and a little top heavy. However, I suspect that when I get to my goal weight it will be a body shape I've never had. Oh well, I'll worry about that then. Even if it's not a great shape, I'd still rather be thinner.

Julee - I have a friend who swears by vitamin C / zinc pills when he's getting over a cold. I've never tried them, but you never know.

BattleAx - sorry about the job. I know sometimes even with jobs you're not sure you want - that you want to have the option to turn them down. Don't let it derail your wonderful progress! I'm not really the one to help you with cravings, as I myself gave into one today. The best thing is to ignore the urge to mindlessly eat (which you already did). The other thing I could suggest is to satisfy it in a healthier way. If you really want cookies, how about buying one decadent one from somewhere. (ie. how about a 220 calorie White Chip Macadamia Nut from Subway)

Well, that's it for me for the moment. Take care everyone.