[Itryharder]

We are the Turtle Group here at www.3fatchicks.com. We welcome you to join us as we work toward good health and fitness in a persistent manner. As our inspiration, we use the race between the turtle and the hare where the turtle was the victor because he didn't give up. We believe in keepin' on by using the skills and techniques we have learned from experience to keep us on track. We believe in giving each other support. Good luck to us all!
Judy
Itryharder
(for Lin and Lauren)

[Itryharder]

Hi Turtles,
We had gotten long. Check back in #240 because there are a lot of really good posts there.
Today has been a good day and I got to walk again today. Good luck to us all! :
Judy
234.6/191.8/170's by Halloween

[Princess1122]

Good morning all!

The temps are falling here and the Autumn weather is settling in... hard to believe the summer is over. Work has been really stressful for me for the past couple of weeks so I am trying really hard not to over eat since I don't have the smoking to fall back on anymore - to be honest with the meds right now I am just trying not to gain and will continue on that path till I get off of them. DH and I are starting to do a couple of things at the gym though and that is a step in the right direction.

I am leaving work early today to go see my hair-dresser, badly in need of a cut and color, way over due but things have been crazy and every extra penny has gone to the bathroom remodel so this is the first chance I have gotten. They are scheduled to start the bathroom this coming Monday - we are super excited!

Looks like D-DIL is going to follow the family pattern and the baby will be very big! DS was 11 lbs when he was born and his father was 13 lbs when he was born - D-DIL is going to carry on the tradition I think since she is measuring at least 30 weeks now and she is actually only 25. So it looks like a big bouncing baby boy for us... LOL!

Bandit: You did awesome as far as I am concerned! Getting thru a holiday with no gain is fantastic! Congrats and enjoy your time with your GF. I agree - the repair company seems totally disinterested also. The washing machine is behaving for now - ugh - it never acts up when the repair people are there but to be honest when it is behaving it is one less thing I need to worry about and I am all for that right now - the huge stress from the job is enough and about all I can handle right now.

Judy: Your costumes sound fantastic... how creative you are and what good sport your DH must be... LOL - my DH would never go for that, but he does not really like to dress up anyway. Im sorry you had a down day, I totally understand how you feel though, I am getting them a lot lately but I think it is the medicine that I am taking - very eager to get off of it. Take care of yourself!

Kim: Sounds like you are doing really well! I would love to eat a vegetarian diet but lack the will-power... LOL. Yep, the washing machine is misbehaving like a small child right now... ugh, too bad it is a much needed item. Good luck with being a guardian, you really are a special person to take on such a large responsiblity.

Live4evr, Peanut, Cherry, Tessa and all of your new Turtles... have a great day!

[KimL1214]

Princess1122~ Quitting smoking is hard enough, trying to lose weight makes things even harder, you're doing AWESOME!!! Congrats on another baby boy! Will-power wavers whenever I smell something with meat in it, but so far, so good...

bandit2~ Congrats on getting your button! Not seeing a gain in 6 weeks is GREAT, CONGRATS!

Itryharder~ Thank you! How are you doing today?

Things keep changing with my friends daughter. Now the state doesn't want to pull her, but wants immediate respite care available just in case, so I have been asked to do that. They had me sign everything, so if something happens and they do pull her, I can take her in immediately and she won't have to go into the system. I still have a hard time believing that this is all happening, my friend is a wonderful person and doesn't deserve to be persecuted like this, but the state has pretty much made up their minds for now and they're going to look REALLY stupid when everything comes out...
ANYWAYS!!!
Still no meat... I had a stir fry at the restaurant during work last night and as I stood in front of the computer screen to order it, my finger kept wandering from the veggie stir fry to the chicken stir fry... but it ended on the veggie. They're cooking meatloaf for school lunch today, and the smell of it keeps making me salivate. Surprisingly our school lunches are pretty good. The new company in charge only buys local products and has specific nutrition guidelines they follow so all the food is pretty healthy. No white bread or pasta, nothing fried, and a full salad bar every day. Where was all this when I went to school?
Happy Tuesday everyone!

[CherryAutumn]

Still here and trying to hang on and do my best. Good to read everyones posts. I will check back on the old one and make sure i didnt miss any.

[Itryharder]

Hi Turtles,
had a really nice day today. And thanks for the comments about me feeling sad. I know lots of this is due to the shorter days and less sunlight, but I need to keep on top of it.

Went to my writing group, then my dgfriend took me out for lunch for my belated I had a mushroom/eggwhite omelet and a piece of Whole Wheat toast. Yummy, and program friendly! We had a nice long chat. We've been friends for over 40 years. My word. does that even seem possible?
Okay---gotta run.
Cherry, keep on reading and doing your best.
Princess, yeah---I get it. Chantix is fabulous at getting people off smoking and you're to be commended for that. it will make your overall health so much better, but I know it's a drug that can have complications.
New baby to be is sounding so wonderful!
KimL, you've got a lot on your plate right now. I feel for that little child and your friend, but they are super lucky to have you in their lives.
Hey, good luck on the vegetarian thing! I'm cutting back, but I like your approach.
Bandit, enjoy your time with your friend. And for no gains up at TOPS. Weigh to go!

Gotta run, but want to wish lots of success to Aliez, Tessa, Mrs. Tho, and all the gals. We're doing great.

Judy
234.6/191.8/170's by Halloween

[life4evr]

Hey hope everyone is having a good day. Just a quick note before I go to study and then go see my grandma. She is conscious and breathing on her own so we are happy for that.

In other news:
So I had clincals today, which I usually have a not so good lunch, sweet potatoes fries are my weakness. I am pretty sure my body is about to starve by the time I eat lunch. So my exercise was in spurts today, alot of walking today. I tracked how many points two tbs of reduced fat peanut butter was and my feelings were very hurt. So I am going to have to rethink this whole peanut butter thing. I don't eat it often Hmm I think that's it for me.

Hope everyone has a goodnight.

[peanutt]

Just popping in to say hi! I hit my 10% goal on my Sunday weigh-in!!

Hope everyone is having a good week. I'll be back later in the week to catch up on everyone's posts and updates.

[Itryharder]

Peanutt, weigh to go! : and
10% is wonderful! Keep up the good work. This is fantastic! Can you give us an idea of what you're eating involves? You're doing great.
Judy
234.6/191.8/170's by Halloween

[alliez]

I made myself go to my meeting yesterday and glad that I did. I was up 1.2lbs. Yesterday at our meeting we talked about how easy it is to skip WI when you know you gained, and how much more important those meetings are than the meetings you attend with you lose. Really an eye-opener for me. I guess I knew that, but never really thought of it in that persepective.

I am continuing the walking, since Sunday I am up to 8.5 miles for the week. Going to try to get in 4 today, will have to see how the evening goes.
Here's to a back on track week and a 2lb loss to make up for the 1lb I gained this week!

[Itryharder]

Smart thinking, Alliez!

I had my WW WI today and stayed the same. I had a great week, food wise, but my exercise had slacked off. Here's to abetter WI next week.
Judy
234.6/191.8/170's by Halloween

[Princess1122]

Hi all, this is just a real quick fly-by to say hello and to read the posts and see what is going on... I can't stay but a quick minute but will stop back by when I have more time...

Take care and have a happy day all!
Princess

[KimL1214]

CherryAutumn~

Itryharder~ Hey, staying the same is better than seeing a gain (haha, I'm a poet, and didn't know it!)! Great job this week staying OP with food!!!

life4evr~ I'm a peanut butter lover too, but can't keep it in the house, otherwise I'd sit on the couch with a spoon every night... Sweet potato fries are a better choice than regular fries!

peanutt~ CONGRATULATIONS!!!

alliez~ Great job getting yourself to your weigh in and AMAZING job with your walking!!!

Princess1122~

TOM is kicking my butt right now!!! I posted all the new 20-somethings challenge stuff, came home and had some crackers and cheese, and CRASHED for about an hour. This is going to be my biggest challenge with not eating meat, as TOM is always a time when I crave red meat big time. I'm not sure if it's because my iron count is normally low, and drops very low when I have TOM, or if it's just a habit I've developed over the years. I have been borderline anemic for years, but my iron count is never quite low enough for me to go on meds. I've been taking some extra iron vitamins since dropping meat from my diet, but does anyone have any other ideas of how I can pump some more iron into my daily food?
Happy almost Thursday...

[Princess1122]

Hi Everyone! Another busy day here for me - I only have a quick minute before I have to get off of here and get to a meeting but wanted to say hi!

TOPS meeting and W/I tonight - I just don't want another gain - that would make me happy! 4 weeks on the meds down - 8 more to go before I can start to tapper off.

Best wishes to everyone facing challenges, W/I's, stress, etc. have a great day all!

[Itryharder]

Hi Princess, : tonight! I'm sending you the best. And congrats on getting in the meds and quitting smoking. Fab!

KimL, whoa! That's a toughie. Of course lean red meat and chicken and some shellfish are good sources of iron, but since you're going vegetarian, I looked up some plant sources for you. I found tofu, lentils, beans, dark green leafy vegs, dried fruit, spinach and broccoli, blackstrap molasses and iron-fortified cereals. I don't know if you are still eating eggs, but the yolk of an egg also has iron. Hope this helps. You're doing great!

So far, so good today. Dh and I walked on the boardwalk and then went to our local pizzeria and local Chinese take-out place to order in some food for our party. Ooooh, the smells were so delicious, but we both resolved to come home and eat right. It was not easy to do, but we did it and now we're only a couple of hours away from dinner. I'm trying the Sandra Lee recipe for Black Bean Burgers. I'll let you know if they taste good or not. Think I'll have a sweet potato with it and I'll make a nice little salad for high nutrients. Yay! Oh, I am trying so hard to follow advice my WW leader offered years ago. I am trying to eat only when I'm sitting. Wow! That is so tough, but I'm doing it. It is amazing how often tidbits of food find their way into my mouth when I am not even aware of it. Another habit to transform.

: to us all. The sun here is lovely today! to us all!
Judy
234.6/191.8/170's by Halloween