[Kirsty]

Helloooooo! Anyone out there?

I'm guessing our numbers will be somewhat depleted today! Hope the US gals have a happy thanksgiving. So it's up to you Canadian ladies and me to keep the thread flowing. And on rereading this post I have certainly done my best to write a lot!

Firstly, sorry I haven't been around so much lately. Work has been far too busy. Still, only 3 more weeks to go until I head home for Xmas - eek! Where does the time go? And just over a month till JenK comes to visit me!

Secondly, this may seem a bit random, but I've noticed that we all have a tendency to hit plateaus or put weight back on, even though we all really want to get to goal and stay there. I'm not sure of the best way to deal with this, but speaking from personal experience I reckon it's got a lot to do with willpower. Although I'm still under goal (weighed in officially today at 152, goal weight is 154), I always seem to get stuck around 5-7 pounds heavier than I want to be. And I know it is because I cheat. I stay on program for a few days then take the weekends off and go crazy. That's not too big a deal if I want to maintain but it doesn’t help me lose. I also sometimes underestimate points. I like them to add up to the right number, even if they shouldn't! So I'm going to be good, and I mean good, until I get to a weight I'm happy at (don't worry, I think 145 is the lowest I'd ever go, I'm not totally crazy!). And then I'm going to maintain it. I think we really need to treat the program as a lifestyle change. It works, but only if we make it work. I know now is probably the worst time of year to get strict about things, but we can do it. I can remember weighing in the first week after I reached goal (back in Dec 1999!) and I had put a pound back on. That scared me so much I tried to be good for the next 2 weeks, which incidentally fell over Xmas and New Year. I still ate a full Xmas dinner but tried to go for lots of low-point options and not so much of the high-point stuff. I didn't always count points, but I didn't snack too much or drink booze till the evening (I think my family are alcoholics the amount of booze flowing from the 24th to the 26th!). And I did the alcoholic drink followed by low-point non-alcoholic drink thing on New Year's Eve. I wasn't perfect but I did so much better than if I had given myself free reign. And when I next weighed in I'd lost 3 pounds. And I'm hoping I can do it all over again this year!

Gosh, sorry if I'm sounding all pep-talky! It's mostly for my benefit but if it helps anyone else that's fine by me. Apart from willpower, the things I do wrong are: I eat when I'm not actually hungry and my portion control lacks...control. So that's the two areas I'm going to target over the next month (along with the drinking lots of water, 5 portions fruit & veg stuff!).

So - what 2 things are you going to change about your lifestyle?

Jayne - hope you had a nice flight. I'm still loving my knee-high boots. They make me feel so good!
Tonya - did you watch Ice Age? I got it out the other night but didn't find it very funny. Much preferred Monsters Inc and Shrek.
Ali - hope the guy situation sorts itself out. Do come to the UK!!
JenL - hope you're ok after that horrible meeting.
Rina - how's your mouth?! The WW gods must have been trying to tell you something!! Perhaps that's the way to avoid eating extra points....
Belle - I think I've caught your cold too - sniff! How's Carmen doing?
Deb - you'll have to keep us posted when you do start dating!
KT - glad you've got your car back!
LoriD - i'm jealous of your tan. glad you had a good vacation!
Lori - I'd weigh in on the Saturday, cos knowing you have to go and weigh in will probably make you keep an eye on your points during thanksgiving dinner! What did you decide to do?
Becky - you will be a beautiful bride. TOM is certainly evil. He's creeping up on me but I'm going to beat him! My biggest challenge tonight will be oatmeal & raisin cookies. I'm making some for BF and they are so hard to resist when warm out the oven. I've saved enough points for one. And it will have to do! I've got to get tough on me.

Hope you all enjoyed your holiday and for those that aren't on holiday, come out and post! Don't leave me all alone!!!
Kirsty

[Belle2000]

Wow, I feel all inspired. I thinkyou may be onto something! I know I am bad with "estimating" portion sizes. I rarely if ever really measure anymore and that is probably part of my problem. I know that I don't "overeat" in the typical sense of the word, and I excersize regularly. So it must be the extra points that are creeping inot my serving sizes!

I don't fear xmas since I live on my own. Its one day for me - I don't take home leftovers and I don't cook here so I am pretty well off the hook! I like it that way.....but I still knwo that mom and b/f will get me some chocolate for xmas. Bernard Callibault no less! YUMMY!

Happy thanksgiving to any US lurkers...!!

Kirsty, what size (in North american sizes) are you now? I am a 16. I find it weird that my co-worker always tells me she was a 16 at 165 (which incidently is my first goal weight). If I am a 16 now I expect to be smaller then, like a 10/12 (that's like almost 40lbs away). I guess she must be a really loose chubby person...?? Or maybe I hae a lot more muscle? Wierd, eh...!?

I would like to be a size 10. Whatever weight that turns out to be, that would be great. I still marvel sometimes taht I am a 16 adn not a 22/24 sometimes. But a 10 is a good size for me I think (I am 5foot7).

Anyway, must get back to work. Kirsty, hope you feel better - my cold is shaping up but b/f is pretty crappy today!!

BBL

[Belle2000]

Rina - awww...your new sister is super cute! Congratulations!!

[Kirsty]

hey belle! now i'm not "all by myself", it's "just the two of us"...
i'm not quite sure what size i am in north american sizes. i think maybe a 9/10 (i got a dress recently that had an american tag on it and that was what it said). i've got CBH (child-bearing hips) so i doubt i'll ever get lower than that (on my bottom-half at least).
i watched a great programme on tv the other night about an american girl having surgery to make her bum bigger. why, oh why, oh why!? you got to see the whole operation. yuck! the surgeon sucked fat from her thighs, belly and sides and then injected it into her bum. she had a fantastic stomach afterwards, but i can't say i liked her bum as much as she did! and seeing the pain she was in for weeks after the operation, there's no way i'd consider getting liposuction or a boob job. her boyfriend paid for her op and they'd only been together 6 months. it's a crazy old world out there. would anyone here have cosmetic surgery? has anyone!?

[Belle2000]

I too have CBH. I have been told by older men that I'll get snapped up b/c of them. I think that's a riot! You are probaly an 8/10 in N. American sizes (assuming US are the same as Canada, I don't know...). Funny how different people hold their weight though, eh?

Have you heard from Lolly lately? Is she going to re-join us at all?

I have considered a boob job - not bigger, but a reduction and moving my nipples up. I don't like my boobs, but I am learning to appreciate them a bit more the older I get. My b/f is against any kind of surgical operations and he doesn't like girls that are too thin. My co-worker (half aisan) is a size 3 (that's pretty darn small) and he thinks she looks ill. He gets grossed out watching Grace on Will and Grace. So do I. The wedding episode was disgusting - her ribs protruded further than her boobs. That girl is too thin.

I would also not consider surgery for weight loss, or taking medication. The risks and long-term effects are too high. I respect other's decsion to do that though, especially if it means life or death.

Oh hey- I was walking to work with my b/f this morning and we were on the corner when I saw a guy staring at me in my periferal vision. I immediately recognized the "homey G" limp - it was my ex-b/f! I was a bit startled. I looked at him and he kept glanceing at me. I signaled to b/f that it was him and he laughed too - he still has the limp....he is the blackest white guy I 've ever known (or so he thinks - he is a rap star in his own mind). Its too bad he started gambling and drinking and cheating, because he was a nice guy for the first few years....I never regret breaking up with him but I do wish he'd find someone and move on. Theother day my mom called me to say that he was at his mom's house and saw an old woman on the news and thought it was my grandmother so he had his mom call my mom to see. That was the first time it hit home that he still thinks of me/my family so much. He never really believed I'd leave him, which is why he never made an effort to change. It shocked him when I finally did. I know I left him in a bad spot since I always paid his gambling debts and stuff, but I couldnt' continue and ween him off my $ and taking care of him....I had to look out for myself. I just wish I didn't get a twinge of guilt when I hear he isn't doing any better/more with his life....

ANyway, Kirsty, my one buddy on the thread today, I should get my bum (and CBH) back to work!!

[Horsey girl]

I'm here too! Although you guys may already be gone. I like your attitude Kirsty - it's true, the basic matter is willpower and I agree that we do it to ourselves. I need to kick myself in the butt every now and then when the willpower gets very low. Now would be a good time I think.
Belle - I know exactly how you feel with the boob job - I want my boobs to be "perkier" and I think that would involve moving the nipple. I would however, never have plastic surgery. I can't stand going under general anesthetic for one thing. Also, I want kids and I want to nurse and I hear that type of surgery can affect your ability to do that. When I lost my weight (the first bunch before falling off the wagon) I lost a lot in my boobs (from a 42DDD to a D36) and I've gained a bit back but NONE on my chest and it's the one place I don't mind putting on a few pounds.
Rina - cute sister - she looks absolutely precious. I can't wait for my friend to have her baby so I can hold a newborn again. My youngest niece is 2 and they're just not as cuddly at that age.
Oh, and one great thing about CBH - the wider they are, the flatter your tummy appears to be - at least that's my bright side of it.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all the americans - Hope you're having a good day!
KT