Vicky-luckily I wasnt sore after mowing. Have fun with the new flooring. Chris and I are talking about getting new carpet throughout the house. We have green carpet right now and I hate it. Cant wait to see you in your dress for the wedding. Maybe I will try that goal of a size 10 by Christmas with you. I can wear some 12s and 14s right now. Good job with the workout today.

Dance-How did the run go with the coworker? Did you do any bargain shopping?

Yesterday was not a good food day for me. I didnt really have dinner, just snacked( I call it grazing, lol) So today I stayed on plan. I had a yummy dinner. Grilled shrimp over roasted garlic brown rice with red and black quinoa, steamed cauliflower and cherry tomatoes. With my mishap yesterday Im still hanging out at 189.

I jumped on the trampoline today about 15-20 minutes. Walked 1 mile. Did 1 hour step aerobics on wii. The calorie tracker said I burned 550 cals.

Tomorrow I have to watch my niece and nephews in the morning while my sister in law goes to a meeting at 10. Then have to be at the boys house to stay with the 7 y/o at 4pm. His mom and brother are going outta town and she didnt want to take him out of school for 3 days. So I'll be with him except school hours the next 3 days.

I emailed Sandy-she has a month to go with the training classes for her new job. She cant access 3fc at work, she was going to load it onto her phone but she is super busy.

Talk to everyone soon. I cant believe how small our group has gotten.

burgundy - I know, we're down to the few and the brave, right? ;) I'm hoping mygrits, staccie, aj, tifftiff and katylil come back to check in. You are a sweetie to help your sis-in-law.

maddiesmom - are you guys using one of those tools that looks like a giant wide spatula on a broom handle? If not, give one a try - they are awesome for scraping up old vinyl. I've done my share of that in the past and it's grim without help. I'm so impressed by your workout - wowza!

Decided to walk not run with my buddy tonight and did pretty well with the pizza - two small pieces of thin crust and tons of salad.

I'm so glad you guys are still here - and that the others come by when they can. I really think the MAIN reason I've stuck with this for so long is this group - you girls are the best!

Okay, girls, at the risk of boring you all, I'm going to start posting daily food and exercise again because without it I get sneaky and lazy *hangs head in shame*. So, today b: strawberries and ww cereal, l: chicken panang with broccoli and brown rice, d: rotisserie chicken, green beans, asparagus. Fruit for dessert and snack. I'm going on a lunchtime run (my usual 3 miles) at lunch in a few minutes. There, now I just need to stick to it all, right? I know this is really really bad but part of me occasionally thinks, okay, aren't we done yet? can't we go back to eating whatever we want? I KNOW I can't do that because we've all seen what I looked like when I did and it was SOOO not good ;) But that doesn't seem to permanent shut up the little voice. Do you guys ever get that?

ETA - phew, back from my run so doing okay so far.

I am still around! And I'm still reading. I'm just not commenting. Cos I'm feeling guilty. It's Freshers Week at my university so I've spent the week basically living at my friends house, going out, drinking lots, eating lots and eating BADLY and no exercise (except for all the dancing at the club!)

But I missed out on my freshers last year so I really wanted to make the most of this years and am not bothering too much. I know I've been a lot better than I would have been last year and I have healthy plans for Monday, but I still feel guilty!!! So yeah. I will be back properly properly on Monday! :) Hope you're all having a good week!

Katylil - I remember how crazy fun that week was (I spent my junior year of college at the London School of Economics) - it's just a short time and you'll be back in your normal routine soon so I'm sure you're not doing too much damage ;)

I'm struggling with sticking to plan, girls, I do okay all day until the evening and then I lose interest doing what I'm supposed to do. It's probably not helping that my bf has been doing that moody thing and I've been having sort of a pity party for myself sometimes. Yikes - just reading that back, I want turn this around right now!!! Okay, I'll shoot for going for a run when I get home from work as that always kills my appetite, maybe that will help.

Hope you guys are doing well...

Only have a couple minutes, will do personals tomorrow. Gotta go get the 7 y/o old the bus in a few.

Dance-I totally feel you on the "when can I eat whatever I want" thing. I do good all day too and in the evening after dinner my sweet tooth kicks in big time. I keep fruit all the time but I dont go for that. Chris has a box of andes mints in the fridge and I gravitate to those. I only have one or 2 but I dont even want to have those, grrr.

Gonna be gone all night to the boys house. Last night til probably wednesday. She has to work the weekend but I think their dad is getting them. If not, she has a backup when I cant so she will have to call her. I have plans, plus could use a break.

Talk to you all tomorrow.

burgundy - hope the overnight goes smoothly and glad you get a break later this week. Do you have fun plans?

Food so far today:
b: whole wheat cereal with skim milk
snacks: almonds, string cheese, honeycrisp (yum!) apple
l: whole grain baguette, panera onion soup (no crouton)
d: chicken breast, spinach, tomato and avocado salad

I'm going to run when I get home (although it's always hard for me to do that at the end of the day) and am planning on a walk with friends tomorrow. And I will NOT allow myself to become a bump on a log this weekend, no matter what!! And I will probably drive you guys nuts by posting all the time too ;)

ETA - Okay, the run didn't happen (kind of saw that coming) but I'll get in extra exercise tomorrow. I made a giant batch of ratatouille tonight so I should have plenty of veggie-filled lo-cal meals for a while. Am also going to bring some over to a friend that's having a hard time. I used to be a baker of sweet things for any possible excuse - now I bring ratatouille, how things change ;) Off to take a bubble bath....

Morning, girls!
Plan today is a long walk and b: strawberries, cereal, skim milk, s: plum, almonds, l: ratatouille, chicken, couscous, d: tbd - maybe salmon and salad.
What's new with you guys?

Just a quick note to let you all know I'm alive.

After my workout on Tuesday, things went downhill. Woke up Wednesday morning with numbness in my leg and foot. Went to the ER and they said that it had to do with my sciatica - which I never experienced before. They gave me a lot of drugs and sent me home - no MRI, no xrays, nothing. They put me on bedrest for 3 days.

So today I went to my specialist - still can't feel anything below my knee. Specialist said that obviously what they have been doing to treat my symptoms has not helped the bigger problem, so we may have to go the surgery route. He said after a year, I should be getting better, not worse. The back is contibuting to the numbness and my left side is weakening, which isn't a good sign. Had another MRI today, have to go to the specialist again next week (he told me to bring my husband) so we can discuss our options. Looks like he's leaning toward surgery, which honestly scares the crap out of me. Guess we'll see what happens.

Obviously, no working out and I'm scared beyond belief. We'll see what the future holds for me.

Dance-the overnights went pretty smoothly. It was nice just having one. I'll have them again for about 8hrs tomorrow evening/night.

Vicky-so sorry you are having such a rough time. Any change after the bed rest? Let us know how you are. Surgery can be scary but if it will help it can be a good thing.

Had a get together at the indian church. Its the 150th anniversary of the church. They had KFC cater and I am happy to say I stayed away from it. I filled my plate from the veggie and fruit trays. But I did have a small slice of banana nut cake that Chris' cousins aunt made. She is a wonderful cook.

I did take a walk but only a mile. Its really cold and rainy here today so I didnt want to get soaked. Do not want to get sick. Gonna try to get a workout in before 8. We are going to some friends house for game night.

Talk to everyone soon

maddiesmom - :hug: :hug: Oh sweetie - I'm so sorry it's such a tough time - that must be so scary. You are so strong and determined - I know you'll get through this with flying colors but I'm sure it doesn't make the meantime any easier. We'll be thinking about you lots - keep us posted when you can.

Thanks ladies.

Bedrest didn't do anything except keep me bored with daytime t.v.! It's strange, the pain in my back isn't bad, but I can't feel my leg from the knee down and I can't feel half my foot. I really don't think bedrest is going to do it. I'm hoping for a simpilar surgery rather than the spine fusion, but we'll see. I'm only worried because now I walk with a limp and I'm traveling to DC for the wedding on Thursday. I'm hoping to see the doc before I leave to see how much time I have before everything gets worse. Not sure if he can give me that timeline.

Thanks ladies for everything, I really appreciate your friendships. The hubby doesn't really want to talk about it - I know inside he's scared to death too, but doesn't want to freak me out. I just need to vent and everyone is worried but doesn't want me to know it. I will keep you all posted.

Such a bummer about the timing with the wedding right around the corner. Will the dr let you be up and about for the wedding? Would a walking stick be helpful? It must be beyond weird to be numb like that. If you do end up needing surgery, think of the shape you're in now vs, say, two years ago and how much quicker your healing process will be because of it and how much less strain you're putting on everything with your skinny self.

Just got back from a run and am cooling down still (around 80 out there - yikes!). I did a cooking binge this morning - toasting and seasoning pepitas (mexican pumpkin seeds), making tortilla soup (sans tortillas)and roasting butternut squash, zucchini and yellow peppers to make sure I have plenty of veggies around this week. It doesn't sound like much now but just washing all the dishes about wore me out ;)

Good day so far - B: cereal, fruit and skim milk, L: lentil soup, whole wheat pita, apple. Plan for dinner is Chicken, zucchini and asparagus. I'm usually so tired by the time I get home from work but I really should get in some exercise today. Any tips to help me avoid the couch when I get home?

Vicky-thats got to be the strangest thing not to be able to feel your leg and foot. Hope you dont have to go thru the spinal fusion. Do you know if you are gonna be able to see the doc before you leave for DC? Are you in pain constantly or does it help to sit?

Dance- I need you to come to my house and do some cooking. I bought some fruits and veggies today. I bought an extra large cabbage. Any recommendations for something to make? Gonna give half of it to my SIL. Do you have stairs at your house? Climb the stairs or do some lunges/squats/jumping jacks. Come on, you can do it;) I need to get a workout in too, so lets do this together. I rented a new wii game, Fitness Fun. Gonna try that out.