Delphi - LOL, that's what DH said, ohh I can hear her getting cheaper. Oh I've so been there with the "larger size" diapers. With work I used to go get them all the time b/c so many of the folks needed them and staff we too embarrassed. So there I go with a cart full pushing it out to my car. The greeter wouldn't even stop me to check the receipt. I'm sure they thought I was going to pee my pants right there if they did. I'm super glad they are getting things fixed up for you too, even though there is nothing worse than drywall, ugh.

Nella - I use a HRM, mine is a Polar F11, it was a bit pricey but i know there are ones for around 100 or so. I wore mine for a number of days all day and night to see how close my BMR was to the estimated ones we get online and of course for my workouts. Now I just wear it during workout times and I know what my approximate calorie burn is other than workouts so I add that all together and minus my food, and there you have it, your deficit! I also like it so that I know I'm pushing hard enough during my cardio sessions, some days I think I am and I'm not and other days I can sustain a higher heart rate without noticing so much. It just helps maximize the cardiovascular benefit b/c you're in "your zone" Oh and my estimates from online were very wrong too.

NSM - Thanks for popping in, we missed you but glad you're getting settled in. How nasty to leave the place like that, some ppl have no manners. And scrubbing walls does count :)

Shrinking Amy - when all else fails, it's always TOM's fault. but then usually you get that nice big drop after so it's worth it.

Yoovie - Welcome! Post often and we look forward to getting to know you.

Ruth - What was it about yesterday? That was my issue with the waffle, it was in my mouth before I even thought about it. Must have been the full moon, lol, oh well onto bigger and better things (or maybe smaller and better)

Sandye - LOL no worries, sometimes we miss things. I was thinking you were have some shower sexy time but then I figured it was probably little girls, lol, not nearly as much fun. But you could always do classic and use cardio x in place of plyo to reduce the impact. My knees are not great either and I wear my braces for plyo and I've never had any issues. However, it definitely is something to be careful with for sure, I usually feel it in my butt the next day from all the squats. My thoughts as to why classic is for you, is b/c lean is meant to drop fat and classic is meant to tone. As long as you lift weights and are able to do 12-15 reps to failure you won't get bulky. But once again, lol, it's up to you.

TTFN

The one I was looking at was a Polar F6 I believe. It was a pretty green color (green tea to be exact). I think my estimates from online are way off too, which is why I think I am going to splurge on this. I feel like I am working out way harder than it says I am when I enter it in on Fitday. Like it says I burn 190ish calories for a 3.5 mph walk for 45 minutes. I check my heart rate periodically through out (I have a standard HRM watch) and I stay in my burning zone on the high end.

Thanks for the feedback Tummy!

shrinking amy- Mexican food is one of my biggest pitfalls. I CANNOT for the life of me resist the never ending chips and salsa. Atleast you rocked it with your workouts to compensate.

jasonslea- good luck on the new job front.

jellofer- Hope you are feeling better. Good to hear you kicking *** on the C25K.

Sandye- We all overindulge at times. Don't beat yourself up. Now you know what not to do and gain back the weight. I'm sure you will be feeling better by tomorrow.

miss mallee- Yes, planning meals is the one thing that helps me stay OP for the most part. Its harder to give into bad choices if you have the right food near.

dcapulet- Holy crap, running for 50 minutes. Thats awesome. At this rate, you will be ready for longer races in no time at all.

Delphi- Its nice to have you back again. It looks like you did great losing weight while taking a little break. I'm sure it will feel great to get back in the saddle and start back up again. And what motivation you have to be unpacked already. It took me forever when I moved back in May. I'm glad to her that you and your kids are adjusting.

Imdedicated- Nice work staying OP. Weekends are soooo hard for me. I never realized how much I can rely on food as things to do. I'm straying away from that now, but it was a wakeup call. I think its so cute that you are planning a bday party for your mom. Is it going to be a surprise for her?

tummy- yay on the medium. One of the reasons I like love losing weight is of course smaller clothes. hehe, let us know how the headlamp works out for you while running.

nella- I know how frusturating it can be. I know for me personally, I don't have a loss every single week. Sometimes I'm the same, or up a little or down a little. Just keep doing what you're doing and your body will catch up.

MsP- Congrats on losing 5 inches! Thats huge. Oh and in my recent Shape magazine, it talks about a cook book thats all about recipes for folks with certain allergies (focus being wheat I think). I will let you know the name when I get home if you are interested.

NSM- Glad to have you back. I hope everything went well with your move.

ruth- I too am a little hungrier before TOM. I think as long as you just stay OP and workout, you should be fine after TOM leaves. Somtimes, if I push myself a little harder, I'm actually able to be down a few more than before TOM.

I have a lot to do at work today so thats making my day go by faster than usual. I'm on the second part of Phase 1 for South Beach. I am getting so tired of meat and eggs, esp the eggs. I think tonight I'm going to go get some tofu tonight and cook it up with some frozen veggies. But so far South Beach is great. I'm sitting at 243.6, so that means 3.6 lbs for my goal of 240 this month and down from 252.6 last Monday. I really hope that once I get into Phase 2, I'm still able to lose weight and not just gain it back.

Good Evening Ladies...

shasha ~ So you started South Beach..eh? How's that treatin' ya? No worries about phase 2 hun, you just keep telling yourself you can do it and you will..because you can darling.

Nella ~ I have a gowearfit, but it's actually a bodybugg model, sold by a different company other than body media, but I love it and definitely recommend it. Even if you go with a HRM, it's still very beneficial to weight loss. I tell people all the time, that I live by numbers, and with the band, I definitely have a firm grasp on those numbers and deficits.

Tummy ~ Haha...well they say great minds think a lot. Hubby must be bloody brilliant. Nothing sexier than a geek with a gun. :lol:

Sandye ~ Groovy to hear you are feeling a bit better. You know, I found this old cast iron frying pan whilst I was moving...just wanna throw that out there missy. You know, you're not the only one with a Grade A rollin' pin either...:lol: Now there's a chuckle...if any of you believe that I actually have a rolling pin, then you don't know me very well. I wouldn't even know what to do with it, other than chase after Sandye with it. lmao! Love ya girly. Good to be back!

Well as for me, it's been a groovy day. Picked the boys up from school and took them to get haircuts, as tomorrow is picture day and they were both little gentlemen. Made this momma proud. Other than that, the contractor finally finished up the windows and put in a new AC unit. He smelled funny....But anywho, tomorrow another contractor is coming over about the roof and the leak in the bathroom. Will I ever get one day of peace? I want to walk around in my exercise duds and stuff. I can't wait until it's just a sports bra and a pair of pants...that will do it. Oooooooo my, I found another before pic, if I can get it to scan on my printer I'll post it with my next progress pictures...OMGosh, it's awful ladies...I just sat there and shook my head. I look a lot heavier than 250 and probably was...but anyways, I'll get it up soon and I hope you ladies have a wonderful evening.

Alright got some info I need to update, but first I hope everyone had a great weekend and is doing well.
First I did get in 8 glasses of water on both Sat and Sun. Now for my Sunday menu
B- scrambled eggs with cheese and wheat toast
S- apple and peanut butter
L- 2 slices of homemade pizza with cheese and olives (I just discovered I like olives on my pizza. Wish someone would have told me this sooner, :lol: )
S- string cheese and cinnamon apple sauce
D- cucumber tomato salad
Yeah not much of a dinner and I didn't have anything else after that. I was so tired yesterday (woke up at 4 am) that I fell asleep at 7pm.

Today
B- cheesy egg omelet with wheat bread and jam
S- peach with cottage cheese
L Turkey pita sandwich with tomato on the side
S- rice cake with pb and strawberry jam; wheat crackers with ff cream cheese
D- Leftover homemade pizza with salad
s- Either a half a cup of spumoni ice cream or bakes caramelized apples.

water- just finished my 8th glass as I type this.

Tomorrow is my weigh in, unfortunately I got my TOM on Saturday but I snuck a peak this morning and I was still 130 so I'm hoping for a 1lb loss tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Shasha17a I love this c25k. Now if I could just get the scale to move. Great to hear that southbeach is working for you. Downward trends in the scale feel great. Keep up the great work.

Had a nice OP day. I really appreciate the info on wheat-free living. I bought some stuff at the grocery store today that we're gonna try this week.
Nella-I will definitely look into getting that book you mentioned. And thanks for the product recommendations, too. That's super helpful since it's new territory. I know it's in a lot of stuff. I was trying to figure out what to eat today and I was hard pressed to make up a days worth of meals without including wheat and dairy. Crazy!

Tummy, thanks for your info too. We're good with eggs, but not so much with milk, so it's good to know almond milk can be used in things like cow's milk. I avoid soy, so can you shoot me that recipe or tell me where you found it? I gotta start writing some of this down. I will forget it all otherwise. LOL

Shasha-I'd love the name of the book. I'm probably not eliminating wheat 100% forever, but I'd like to try it for a couple weeks and see if it doesn't make a difference for DH and, to a lesser extent, me.

Well, I better go get some sleep. Tomorrow morning is gonna come early, but then every morning seems to now. I am not an early morning person. I would love to sleep until 6:30 or 7, but this isn't dream world, so I will cope. ;)

I eat out of boredom....I know that so I'm def working on that aspect, I'm really just tired of being fat....the skinny girl in me is ready to come out!
Yes, it's a surprise but for some reason I feel like someone isn't going to keep the secret. I really hope they do....

I hope you continue to lose of the 2nd phase also! You've already done so well!:carrot:

Good Morning Ladies :wave:

Not too much going on this morning. Sent the boys to school and eating my breakfast. Then I am gonna strap on ye ol' Ipod and get to truckin' on the treadmill. I'll check in with you ladies later and have a great day.

Good Morning Ladies!! Look! No barfy smilies this morning!!! :carrot:
:lol:

Nella~ I completely missed your post about the P90X! I'll definitely keep you posted! So far I'm finding it tough, but in a good way and it's not at all boring! He keeps things going and switches things up so much that you don't have a chance to get bored! I love his enthusiasm and he's not over the top 'Denise Austin' enthusiastic, so it's not annoying. Plus, they're really working!!! Panting and sweating right along with me--makes me feel like less of a schlub! :lol: A word of caution though--ask whoever you buy it from if they guides really do come with it--mine was listed that way, but he guy was a liar. I ended up finding the workout guide online (for free) and was able to read through it, but I'm still out the nutrition guide and calendar. :( On the HRM--I have the Polar F4, I love it! :) I wish I could have had a little more patience when I bought it and ordered a pink or red one instead of my baby blue one though. ;)

Ruth~ I feel your pain girlie! I went bonkers this weekend and I'm still paying for it! I am up so much that I really need to update my ticker! It's awful! But, I'm up, dusted off and you are too! So let's get back to eating the good stuff and working out!!! Yee haw!!!

Tummy~ I posted about my post P90X soreness over on the exercise thread--feel free to head over there and laugh at me! :lol: "Shower sexy time" :lol3: Bwahahahahaha! Yeah, that's not happenin'!! I swear, we can barely squeeze in quick showers alone in this house let alone anything else. No, it was the girls in there with me...sigh...one day I'll shower alone on a regular basis! ;) Congrats on your dd being out of diapers at night!!! I'm still waiting on Ab to stop needing them. Em has been out of them for over a year--she was my earliest to pt full time.

shasha~ yeah, 'over indulge' isn't quite the word I'd use for what I did! :lol: Perhaps 'lost my everlovin' mind' is more appropriate I think. ;) I'm over it now--I paid for it dearly yesterday and I think I'll be 100% by tomorrow, I'm back OP and I'm stayin' there!!! Hope phase 2 goes as well as phase 1 did!!! I bet you'll be happy to start adding stuff back in huh?

Delphi~ lay that fryin' pan and rollin' pin on me girlie!!! We don't want them going to waste just sittin' in the cupboard do we? ;) Glad to hear the work is almost done on the house--I'm sure it's irksome to have them there, but it's really cool that the owner is stepping up and making it a nicer place to live for you and your boys! :) Have fun hitting the treadmill today girlie!! :)

ButterflyDiva~ I really gotta check your posts before I eat breakfast! :lol: I need to start spicing things up in the mornings! Here's hoping you see that drop today on the ol' scale! :)

MsP~ I hear ya on the mornings coming too fast! Once school starts it seems that the days just seem to whiz right by and there's barely time for sleeping at night! Hope you had a great night sleep last night! :)

Cle~ ooh, I'm a big boredom eater too! I'm better now, but before I would just mindlessly munch all day long if I had nothing better to do--which, I usually did, but I munched anyway. I hope that everyone keeps their lips zipped and that your mom doesn't find out about the party!!!


Okay, so I'm going to change my ticker to reflect my actual weight--it's shocking how much I can gain in a weekend of salty/sugary junk!!! So if I can manage to get back down to 135 before the end of the month I'll call it a victory! Seriously ladies, I gained almost 10 lbs!!! Sodium is the devil!! :devil: Not sure what it is that makes me so sensitive to it--but I am and I hate it!!!

So, down a little bit from yesterday (thank goodness) and sitting at 139.4 (or .2, I can't remember) so at least I'm not sitting in the 140's anymore! Whew! Got my 1st workout out of the way and I'll be doing my 2nd one after hubby gets home. I need to tidy the house, hit the grocery store and finish up the laundry (until it reproduces overnight and leaves me more for tomorrow ;)). Other than that--I'm going to chill today. P90X is workin' me! I'm pretty sore and lovin' it!! :carrot: But, it's got me moving a bit slower today. :lol:

Happy bit of news to report: Hubby hit the treadmill today! :carrot: I got all :drill: on him this morning and told him to get his butt out of bed and come downstairs with me! I told him I'm not taking no for an answer anymore and the time is NOW! No more excuses!!! Yeah, I let him have it! With love of course. :D He even thanked me for it afterwards!!! ;)

Okay ladies, get out there and have a fantastic day!! And be sure to...

Drink Your Water!!!
:D

Sandye Glad the scale came back down some for you. I think I was up almost 3lbs yesterday, I didn't stay on the scale long enough to know for sure, lol. But after a good day of exercise, tons of water, and eating well I'm now only up a pound. Congrats on getting DH on the treadmill. Mine doesn't like the treadmill but he will lift weights or walk/jog outside with me if he has time.

Well the pizza last night turned out delicious. I ate maybe just a touch more than I had planned but still within my calories. I drank extra water yesterday and spent 47 min walking/jogging on the treadmill. As a result I'm only up a pound today. Which I realize now that it wasn't just the cake that sent the scale up, its also pre-TOM water weight. I hate that I only have two good weeks out of every month. The other two weeks, I'm very lucky if I lose anything during that time. Its so aggravating.

Sandye-Surprisingly, the morning was okay. I wasn't completely dragging like some mornings. The run was decent, rain and all. Gotta love fall. Ooh, I printed the lasagna and marinara recipes. Now to actually get the rest of the stuff and make it... Glad you're feeling the P90X, in a good way. Way to keep challenging yourself! You'll have that pukey weight off in no time and get about the business of maintaining. ;) And...Yay on DH hitting the treadmill! Mine has missed walking this past week mainly due to schedule restrictions, but I know he wants to, so we'll find a way to work it in.

Cle-Hope mom's party goes off without a hitch. I hear ya on wanting to let out the skinny girl inside. I'd felt that way for years before I actually was willing to change in order to let it happen, ya know? This is your time! I know you'll continue making the good choices to become even more the incredible woman God created you to be!

I think feeling less sluggish this morning may have something to with finally realizing I need to cut back on some foods that we (my family) have intolerances for. I know I can't cut them out entirely (though yesterday I did a pretty good job of it), but if we can cut back and trade out some stuff for better alternatives, that'd be great. The kids are already showing resistance to the change, so I want it to be gradual and if I'm lucky most of it will go unnoticed! One thing is the peanut butter...we love peanut butter. I had them try almond butter this morning--one DD loved it, one didn't at all. It'll defintely be a learning process, but it's fun to try new things and see what works for us (taste-wise) and what doesn't. Fun, Fun, Fun! I was down a touch this morning to a new low. I'm actually fine with any loss since the middle of the month always messes with me and we're almost there. I just want to not give in to TOM cravings, drink plenty of water, and come out of mid-month unscathed!

Ruth-You and I both! I just saw you posted when I did, but I also feel like I have a rough couple weeks. Mine are in the middle of the month...so I'm hoping to contain it somehow this month!

Morning Ladies,

Nella - No problem, mine's pink with this cool asian inspired display, it's purdy, lol. It's the little things that get you through your day. But it's also nice to see how the workouts are progressing, like you can do the same workout more efficintly and have to work harder.

Shasha- Yes, I'll be sure to take a picture of my nerdy self running down the road, lol, it's gonna look funny but I guess not as funny as me laying in the ditch with my butt in the air. Holy almost 10 lbs in a week! That's crazy talk. I'm sure the way they ease you into the second phases you'll be fine.

Delphi - Oh picture day, I can't wait for that around here, hopefully they keep there tongues in their mouths ;) So when is all the reno time done around the new place? Oh I can't wait for new pics, the time is coming! Those bad ones just make the now pictures look better, but I hear ya, how did we ever look at those and not do something sooner I'll never know.

ButterflyDiva - Hope that loss comes through for you today, TOM is full of surprises.

jellofer - The scale sure is being evil, but it doesn't really stand a chance long term though, running is just a fat melter, plain and simple!

MsP - The almond milk recipe is from an old veggie cookbooks I've had for years so here it is. Oh and I love almond butter, makes me happy, lol. my dd won't eat it either but dh will.

Almond Milk
(makes 2 cups)
1/2 cup blanched almonds (you can buy them white or blanch yourself) - keep in freezer when not using
2 cups water

1. Grind almonds in blender/food processor until a powder
2. Add 1 cup water and blend on high 1 minute
3. Add remaining 1 cup water blend on high 3 minutes
4. Strain through cheesecloth and refrigerate

I find it lasts about 5-7 days in the fridge and just needs a quick shake prior to using b/c it settles a bit.

One thing we found really awesome is almond milkshakes, I've been trying to find ways to remove some dairy for dd and love this recipe too. Use 2 frozen bananas to 1 cup almond milk and whip up in a blender. You can adjust the liquid amount to make it thicker and more like ice cream or thinner for a milkshake. We add cocoa or strawberries and alter the "ice cream" flavour but it's fantastic and all she (or me) is eating is fruit and nuts! The "Almond Dream" variety that is sold I find tastes the best but has some thickeners and chemically stuff that I would prefer not to eat but in a pinch it tastes good anyway. They sell it in chocolate, vanilla and original varieties.

Cle - Ah yes, the boredom eating, I used to eat tired and unhappy alot too, lol.

Sandye - Yes, those solo showers are so nice, one time right after dd was born dh was trying to be all sly and wanted to come and shower too but it was a big no, I never get to shower alone and no one is gonna ruin that, lol. I didn't laugh at you, plyo is still hard, it's doable but I get a great sweat out of it and still burn in the 740-780 calorie range. The nice thing about the resistance days is that the stronger you get the harder you can modify the moves so it never really gets easy as long as you push yourself. I love how they all get totally out of breath too, like when Tony holds his knees before the gap jump and everyone is grimacing and such. I like seeing it be hard for other ppl too cuz it is hard. Wow, 10 lbs now that was some insane amount of sugar and such, you must be sensative to that stuff holy. I popped up a pound after my waffle and felt all bloaty but I concede you were more bloaty, lol. Whoo hoo oh the dh, that's fantastic, did he get to watch you all jumping and such, that would be awesome, no wonder he wanted to come.

Ruth - So glad it's trending down for you too, everyone's heading in the right direction :)

Today was day one of having to do my p90 in the morning b/c dd is not napping super soundly anymore and yesterday was a gong show of strength training. So today up before dawn and jumping around like a crazy person. I do love that it's done early though, it's nice to have the whole day ahead with only bonus workouts left.

It appears that my 22 glasses of water yesterday flushed out whatever issue was sticking me at 162 for the last 7 days. I hadn't realized it was so long until I checked this morning. But 5 days of 162, then 163 yesterday and down 2 pounds today but part of that was bloat. Finally some movement! About frickin time, gee wheez. So glad to see that, would really like me some 150's sooner than later.

TTFN, talk to you ladies later!

Hey Chickies

Just checking in as my internet is out at home again though it wouldn't have made much difference as swamped as I am with work. No time for personals which is a bummer because I miss all you girls!!!

I'm doing my usual maintain until Friday when I usually lose 1-2 lbs. I had a moment of "maaaan" when I realized my weigh-in is next weekend and I'm only 4 lbs from when I last got weighed and then I realized that hey... if I'm trying to lose 8 lbs a month and I've still got 2 weeks left then... DUH I SHOULD be at 4 lbs lost. Sometimes I'm a mental idiot.

Hope everyone is doing well. Sorry this can't be longer.

Hey everyone, was missing yesterday as DD and I spent our first weekend with the ex. That was weird. We are not getting back together, in fact I have told him I wont even discuss the option of getting back together until at least June of next year. He is doing everything he can to work on his issues and is on meds and going to parenting classes, DV classes, personal counseling, and 2 different VA PTSD groups each week so I really couldnt ask more of him, but I just don't want to rush things, so I think another 8 months is a good way to see how things go. I picked June because both my jobs will be over for the summer too and I will probably be moving then so it might be a good time to figure out what my plans are. Anyways, the ex has a few friends living with him now, so DD and I headed up there and we all hung out and I tried to let DD and him spend as much time together as possible and hung out with our friends instead. Finally he pulled me aside and wanted to know why I was being so cold, and I wasnt...just being distant. It is hard trying to have any kind of relationship with your ex who you havent really seen in over 2 months, so I didnt really know where to start. Later that night we all sat down to watch a movie and he wanted to cuddle and I told him that was too intimate for me and we finally had this big ole talk and I told him I dont want to open myself back up to him until I know what is really going to happen. I know I do love and care for him, and he is DD father, and I know he really loves us and wants more than anything to be together and be a family, but his PTSD is too much to handle sometimes. I know he is taking all the steps he can to work on it right now, but still I dont want to rush back into anything...so am not really sure how to handle this.
Anyways...good news is that both him and our friends all made comments on how great I look. I knew that was a big step for our friends who are guys to say something. I think it is alot easier for a girl to approach another girl and say something about how great you look and have you lost weight, but men are a little scared of bringing up weight. So I know there must be a big difference if guys are brave enough to say something! TOM has finally left and I think bloating must have gone with it as I can fit into so many more clothes now! I think I almost officially fit into more size 18s now than size 20s, and this weekend I pulled out a pair of sz 16s I had and figured Id try them on for goal pants to see how they fit, and they fit now! I was in shock. I had another pair of size 15/16 jr pants I got out and they go on, but dont button, so those are now my official goal pants!
TOM finally went away, but I ate alot more than usual this weekend, so I was still afraid to get on the scale. Then last night after I worked by butt off in the gym (running 16 mins for C25K now!) a little spotting happened again so I have no idea what is going on. I know exercise can really mess with your cycle, but I don't think I am overdoing it. I only exercise for an hr each day and take Sundays off. I usually do cardio (running, elliptical, arc trainer, etc) for 40 -60 minutes and then everyother day I do ST circuits and cut back on the cardio that day. Does that seem like enough to really mess me up? If anything I thought maybe I should be upping my workouts! Well anyways, I have to go to work....but the whole reason I got online was to say that the scale said 249 this morning! Hoping it sticks around.....
Have to run and no time for personals, but I did want to say that Sandye---you look so cute in your 5K photo! You really look awesome---your skinny girl eyes need to appear soon hun because you look gorgeous!!!!!

And Delphi, so glad you are moved in and getting all settled!

Well, off to work hope everyone is doing awesome!