Wow!
 

TOM = time of month

Duh...
 

Sandy, thanks so much for your kind words! Your last comment made me smile - yes that is very much the reason for the cranky face! :D

Great job Ghost Girl!!

... Leslie, we've been watching Biggest Loser since season 2 - I was really motivated by it (when I used to exercise a lot), but now, unfortunately - it just leaves me discouraged (I don't think I'll ever see 13-20lb/wk weight loss), especially b/c this conversation eventually arises during the show:

my hubby comments: "if they can do it how come we can't"
I reply: "I could too, if I was on a fat ranch"
to his reply: "excuses, excuses"

(ok. enough of a snapshot into my exciting life! :dizzy:)

Before my hip injury, I used to...
exercise at the gym 4hrs/day (2hrs am + 2 hrs pm)
+ walked the dog 2hrs/day (45 min am + 30 min lunch + 45 min pm)
+ walked to & from work 15 mins x 2)
= 6.5 hrs/day every day x 5 days + Saturdays & Sundays

every day for 3 months & lost 38lbs

... my point being - it IS possible to work out a lot - unfortunately with the distractions of life & work, it becomes too much & that's why I said that I could do it if I lived on a fat ranch (where my only focus is exercise & lose weight)

I couldn't do it, not realistic for my life at all. I have had periods of time when exercise focused strongly but it came at a cost to other things, I could not continue to exercise even 2 - 3 hours a day and not be neglecting my family or work or .... but thats just me. Now I work 12 hour shifts, fit exercise in when I can, make an effort to get at least 1 hour 3X week in as well as some dog walking etc. but it has to fit my life or else I will not maintain it.

I have watched the biggest loser off and on if I happen to be home ...... but I applaud them for sticking with the program and for being willing to put themselves out there on international tv

Yep, Shells, it was hard - that's why I'm so glad I happened upon Atkins and now exercise 1-2 hrs/day (dog walks + pilates)!

- Losing weight, whether with an extreme or moderate exercise routine, requires dedication and determination.

- So stay focused ladies & have a great week!! I'm looking forward to our next weigh-in on Saturday!!

No to "The Biggest Loser," please...
 

Please let's not discuss TBL on our challenge thread. I don't watch it and don't want to read about it. I'm living in a real world challenge every day and could care less about temporary tv reality participants.

If TBL is an interest, please start a "TBL Fan Thread." :p

Ouch, ouch, oweeee! This thread is a little more specific than some; we are FOCUSED on supporting each other in our 30 Pounds by Christmas Challenge. I'd really like to keep the focus...I'm just sayin'...

Starting a "TBL Fan Thread" is a good idea; the show has millions of fans and regular viewers. Enjoy.

Ghost girl, I love your ticker...it's so cute! And it's counting you down. Three pounds is a really good loss. Keep up your witchy ways and you'll be down 30 pounds, no problem!

I lost two pounds this week and was glad to get it. Thanks, Cher, for the encouraging words. Enjoy your Labor Day and be safe.

Hello all,
life is good, weight is bad. My hubby is home. Yay! and we found out he doesn't have to leave so soon. However, my weight has done nothing but go up. I will weigh in next Saturday with everyone. I was traveling and didn't have access to a scale. So next week it is.

I think we should start a new thread next Saturday. I agree with Sandyfanny that it should be a strictly weigh in thread.

LeslieLou- I would love to discuss Biggest loser any day of the week. We love that show.

It's all good...
 

Ghost Girl, celebrate your loss and stay on plan...our bodies are complicated, and they just won't always do what we want them to! A three-pound loss is excellent. I'm a little jealous...just a little because I know how hard you worked for that loss. The weight will come off.

Lts Girl, traveling always seems to affect my loss; I showed a five-pound gain in one week on a weekend trip...but I lost it the next week (and then mysteriously regained part of it). I think we tend to drink less water; we're eating food that we don't know for sure what's in it; and we might miss our walks or the exercise in our daily routines. Celebrate your guy's being home with lots of indoor exercise and yummy Atkins' eating. Make that man a pot roast! :love:

Santa Sighting
 

My first Santa sighting...yesterday in the grocery store, a Paula Deen special holiday recipe magazine. My very next thought was: "The 30 Pound Challenge! OMG...it'll be here before we know it!"

If I were 5'10", a man, and had amazing metabolism, I'd live off of Paula Deen. Since I'm none of the above, I did NOT buy that pricey, FAT magazine.:mrsclaus:

Monday's Here!!
 

Good Morning Ladies :flow2:

Now's the time to drink our water, eat our protein, & lots of veggies!

Our weigh-in is in 5 days :D

Have a good one!!

/cheryl


p.s. We'll continue using this thread to record our weight losses & any struggles that we may have in reaching our 30lb weight loss goal.

Labor Day was not good to me :0( But today I shall prevail!!!! Back on track and eating Atkins induction ALL THE WAY!!! No cheats!!!

Happy Tuesday!!!

Good morning. I just happened upon your thread and wondered if you allow late joiners? I fell off the Atkins wagon in the spring and have gained quite a bit. A 30 by Christmas challenge is just what I need to get back on track. I weighed in today at 223.

Today will be a Terrific Tuesday!
 

:welcome2: Sunnynurse - many of us here are starting again!

Be strong everybody - Our weigh-in is in 4 days!!!!

Here's sending out some :dust: to Ghost girl, Hairchick, LTS girl, Sandyfanny, Shells, and Sunnynurse!!! (hopefully I got everyone)

The More the Merrier...
 

Welcome Sunnynurse! I'm a second time around Atkins girl too...I know it works if I just work it!

Labor Day wasn't perfect, but not too bad. Back on track today. I enjoyed stocking my fridge at school today, and it was great to have cold water and a good lunch handy.

More signs of Santa yesterday...the Dollar Store has their decorations, Christmas wrap and all sorts of nonsense all over the place... :p

Cher, thanks for the encouraging words and that big sprinkle of :dust:

Thanks for the welcome, Cher and Sandy. It's very tough to get back on track. But......I'm going to do it! Good luck to you guys.

On Track...
 

It is tough to get back on plan, but I think it's tougher to carry an extra 8 ten-pound bags of taters. I have good days and not so good days and moments when I think it's too much to deal with, but I know that my health and my happiness are more important than sugar and flour.

We CAN DO IT!:broc:

Happy Hump Day :)
 

Well ladies - it's 'hump day' today & I don't know about you, but I am dog-tired and I need an extra shot of energy and motivation to get through today! (maybe another :coffee: will do???)

...3 more days til weigh-in!

It is hard to get motivated. I have a bootcamp class today that I need to push myself to go to. I wear shorts to it and have gotten it into my head that I look ridiculous ...... and I have to keep brushing that negative thought away and just remember what I am doing this for.

Good for you Shells! Bootcamp :drill:!!!

You go girl!! ::cheer2:

Bootcamp...
 

Bootcamp is such a great thing to do...you get lots of gold stars for actually going! I wish I had time to do something like that; the most I can do is walk my dog. I leave home before 7 and never get home before 5, which includes an hour and half commute to school. EXHAUSTING!

I'm with you, Cher. It's only Wednesday, and I'm wiped out. High school kids and all the hoo-ha that surrounds teaching just sucks the life right out of me. I'm walking Puddin' around 7; I have to rest up! :p

I realized today that when I lose the 30 lbs from this challenge (when we all lose these 30 pounds!!) I will have lost 102 total and be just 20 from my ultimate goal. That got me really excited! Thanks Cher for starting this challenge and best of luck to everyone participating! We got this :D

Ayda-K...I'm sorry, I missed you :hug: You'll be well on your way to meeting your goal for sure!!!!

.... on a side note .... I PASSED MY EXAM!!!!! :woohoo:

I quote: "Regarding the exam, it was a very well thought out analysis of the transcript. You hit everything that I thought about it myself. I simply cannot add anything extra to it."

so I guess I can say goodbye to emotional eating :o

Congratulations on passing your exam Cher!!

I know I haven't posted much lately. Still around, just enjoying time with my hubby.

Chat with you all later.

Thursday ... dun-dun-dunnnn
 

Enough with yesterdays emotional eating, I'm getting back on track - drinking my water & eating my eggs!

With 2 days to go til weigh-in, I've gotta mind my p's & q's :)

Have a great day chickies!

/cher

pssst... I'm thankful for this challenge - after yesterdays little splurge, I would've thrown in the towel, and continued eating off plan - but because we have a weigh-in, last night before bed, I 'pulled up my socks', said to myself, "self - this is only a blip. you can turn around from this & chose to start eating properly again to lose weight for Saturday" .... (just thought I'd share)

May I join? I'm doing Atkins-SBD now. I'd love to lose 30 by Xmas!

I'd like to jump in also...I was 184.6 last Saturday, 4th September. I'm not sure if I can manage 30 lbs by Christmas, but if I don't it won't be for lack of trying. :)

I've been using Atkins for about 6 weeks now, as a change from my first 7 1/2 months of calorie counting this year; I think my metabolism got too used to what I was doing and I got pretty badly stalled. So, I decided to shift a bit and take a different approach to eating, and of course continue my exercise regimen. If I don't exercise my weight number just sits there, I'm afraid. The scale is moving again... I think I will manage 2 lbs this week.

Welcome Calluna! Congrats on your progress!! Remarkable!!

ARGH .... totally blew today, first time in a very very long time. Entertained family and hadn't really planned for the events of the day .... ah well, tomorrow is a new day and it starts with bootcamp at 930 am

1 more day til weigh-in :goodscale

... be strong ladies & have a great day :)

/cher

Hi Ladies!

I want to join you all in this Christmas challenge. I am optimistic in trying to achieve the goal of losing 30 pounds by Christmas!

So today I have officially started the Induction phase. If you have any recipes for breakfast/lunch/dinner/SNACKS that you really like please share it with me! I'd really like to know what you women are eating during the day on Phase 1. I don't want to get stuck eating the same things over and over again.

Thanks for letting me share this journey with you xoxo

Welcome, Nona
 

Nona, welcome! Glad you've joined us...check the "What's for Dinner - A Place to Post" thread for menu ideas; there are lots of recipes embedded in our posts. There's also a recipes' thread for low carb on the main forum page. Again, all of them aren't for induction, but it's very helpful.

Also, I love Linda's Low Carb site; be sure to check out her recipes and menus. Not all are suitable for induction, but many are or can be adapted. Here's the link:

http://genaw.com/lowcarb/index.html

Shells, you've come a long way with your weight loss, and you're handling your little oopsie really well. No worries.

Weigh in tomorrow, buddies. Here's a big sprinkle of:dust: for all of us! Can't wait to see how we've done.