Well, yesterday was ok for me. Calories were within budget, but I don't remember what. Water was good. No exercise though. Steve and I spent the evening talking about some stuff, and then we just went to bed. Yesterday was a long day for me.
As it turns out, we have to have a structural engineer (or something like that) come look at our house before we can get the loan because the back deck isn't in the best of shape. It's a stone deck attached to the house, and it doesn't look like it's sagging or anything, it just looks old. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. We're not fixing anything until after that inspection. Steve's dad says that if it fails that inspection we should just walk away, and Steve always listens to his father.
I'm getting so impatient. I don't want to start hunting again. I just want it to be done so we can move in and start my life already. I feel like my life is on pause waiting for this stupid house.
Anyway, I don't really have much to say today. Food will be decent, water will be good, and I will exercise this evening. Oh, and I'm down to 211.8 this morning, so that is good. I know that's the ToM weight coming off, but whatever. I'm so very tired today. Tomorrow is payday, and grocery shopping. Thursday (or possibly tomorrow) I will get new tennis shoes because the ones I have hurt my feet. Today will be meetings, and I have 3 interviews, so I'm not going to get anything done. Oh well. I guess that's corporate America, right?
OK, I'd better go. I have things to do. Have a good one, chicks.
~Elisha
I, Kari, do hereby commit myself to making healthful changes in my body during the next 12 weeks and beyond. I am undertaking this adventure in order to lose weight, decrease my body fat, strengthen and tone my muscles, make my body stronger and healthier, and make my life longer and fuller. I will follow the 12-week plan, and I will incorporate other healthy strategies as well. I will eat right, I will exercise, and I will drink plenty of water. There will be times when I slip, but I will get right back on track. I will not allow minor setbacks to deter me. I will accomplish my goals.
I will lose 80lbs! I will have 25% body fat! I will have a BMI of 23! I will be able to fit into and look good in my clothes! I will be able to talk without feeling out of breath! I will be stronger than I have ever been! I will have the energy to do the things I want to do! I will have the confidence to go out and do them! I will have the stamina to keep up with my daughter Emily! I will improve my health so that I do not die at such a young age like my Mom did! I will not be a slave to the family "fat" genes! I will love myself and therefore attract the kind of people that I enjoy spending time with and they will love me too!
I have been working on fitting exercise into my schedule for the past couple of weeks and have discovered that as much as I hate getting out of bed in the morning, it will be the only time of day that I'll have to workout. I'm done my mat leave soon. I'm back to work as of Monday August 15th. I'll be starting work at 7am and in order to be able to complete a 30 minute workout and have time to get everyone else ready including myself, I'll have to be up shortly before 5am. So I've been gradually getting up earlier each day in order to get my body used to the early morning. So far I've done really well. Actually with the exception of weekends and one day last week, I have been consistent for the past 2 weeks. Even yesterday and today, I was up early and working out. My husband Jeff has told me how proud he is of me. That always makes me feel good.
Now if only I could get on board when it comes to healthful eating. I'm usually okay during the day, but my husband is a horrible eater and he's also picky. So once he's home, whatever healthful choices I've made throughout the day are shot by whatever unhealthy supper we have. I've been going through some cookbooks, trying to find recipes that we'll both like, but it's hard.
I'm also not much of a cook. So if anyone has any suggestions on quick and easy meal ideas, please share.
Well I should probably get going. I'm so glad this site is hear. Thank you to everyone for being here and supporting each other
Hi there! Do you mind if I join? I've been wanting to try a challenge, and you all seem like positive people.
October 31 happens to be my birthday. It would be fun to ask for new clothes as a birthday present. I'll aim for 149 lbs. as a goal.
I've been plateauing for a month now. In order to get my rear in gear, I've been journaling food since Sunday. Journaling really keeps me accountable. I have to plan ahead in order to stay within my points/calories range. Yesterday I ate too much for lunch, and then had to muster some mighty willpower to not overeat the rest of the day. Live and learn. Today I did better for lunch and am optimistic that I'll stay within my goal.
I am on vacation, but staying home this time around. I tilled up a new flower bed yesterday and went to the garden center and picked up a few perennials and grasses.....all on sale! I planted them today, and transplanted some other plants....all of this in 90-degree heat! I think that counts as some serious calorie-burning! There is still more to be done.....isn't there always?.....but thought I would grab some water and lay in front of the A/C for awhile.
Elisha.....Having your house-to-be inspected is soooo important. As much as you want to get settled in your own place, you certainly don't want a house that is structurally unsound......that would be a headache and a big pain in the wallet to boot! When the inspector comes, try to be there, so you can ask questions.....they are usually very good at explaining stuff. And maybe it is something that can be rather simply (inexpensively) repaired.....or you might want to counteroffer with the owner to share the costs of repair.
Flirtigirl......It is so good to meet a new chickie! I hear ya when you say it is hard to fit exercise in! You just have to reserve time for you. Actually, I like exercising in the AM, as it seems to give me extra energy to get thru the day! I think we have a recipe thread on our Challenge......and you can find other recipes elsewhere on the 3FC site.
TBS......Welcome! You will find that this is a great group! We are all here to encourage one another thru this weight-loss adventure. Are you on any special plan? What kind of exercise are you doing?
Yesterday was great......calories came in around 1200 and I did 2 miles WATP! Yea me! I have to concentrate on more water......when I am home, I tend to reach for the Diet Coke much too often! Food today has been okay.....splurged a little on some ice cream, so no snacks tonight!
TBJ, Welcome! Just jump right in, we're glad to have you! You think you're plateauting? I've been on this plateau for about a year now... Let's kick it together, whaddya say?
MsRD, yardwork definitely counts as exercise! The way I see it, if you break a sweat and it lasts longer than 20 minutes, it's exercise. I played catch with Steve and that was exercise, and I'm positive your lawn/plant tending took more physical effort than tossing and catching a softball!
Oh geez, I'm goofy tonight. Brace yourselves for some rambling.
OK, so today was a good day. Calories came in at 1844, and I'm ok with that for right now. Water was good, as usual... like 150 oz or so, plus some hot tea this morning. Exercise--Steve and I played catch for about 25-30 minutes, then I did my WATP Walk & Jog dvd, so it's all good. The best part is... those interviews I mentioned ran from about 11:00am-2:30pm, so they bought us lunch. I ordered a salad! Can you believe that?! It was good too. I wanted the Cobb salad (my absolute favorite salad ever!), but they didn't make that anymore (I guess we had an old menu), so they gave me the closes thing to it, which was just a Cobb salad without the egg (and without avocado, but no one uses avocado because restaurants are cheap!). Whatever. It was still a tasty salad, and it had many fewer calories than a cheeseburger, so it's all good.
My grandma is coming to stay with us for a few days. I don't know how I feel about that. I mean, I love my grandma, but she's a little... nit-picky sometimes. She's one of the people that place a lot of value on money and propriety, and money and propriety are two things my family has very little of. She doesn't come to our house very often, and she actually stays here even less often, and most of the time it's better that way. I don't know. It'll be fine, I know it will. I'm just antsy because Mom is antsy, I think.
Other than that... groceries and perhaps new shoes tomorrow. If not tomorrow on the shoes, definitely Thursday. Yeah, there's a concert at 7:30 on Thursday, so it would be easier not to drive home for all of 30 minutes. I'll just go to the mall, buy some shoes, then go to the concert. There's a plan. Unless I can talk the family into going with me, then the shoes will have to wait. I don't really care, I'm getting new shoes within the next few days.
Yup, definitely rambling now. It's time for me to go to bed. Have a good night, chickies!
~Elisha
Exercise was good, food was not good. I was able to get in a 30 minute walk every day except Saturday. Food was practically a party every night. Too much fried food, too much alcohol, too much meat, too much dessert, not enough control!
I'm going to bed early tonight so I can get back with the program tomorrow.
Welcome TBJ333 - Great to have you join us This 12 week challenge will fit right into your upcoming birthday. Hmm .... what an empowering birthday gift to yourself - reaching your goal - and doing something great for your mind and body and health along the way.
Kari, I know what you mean about only being able to fit in the exercise in the morning. I find that getting up to do it is near impossible unless I get to bed early and get enough rest the night before. I'm up at 3:50am, and on good days I go to bed at 10pm. 80 pounds is a great goal - but I hope you don't intend to get it all done in the remaining 11 weeks PS I love your tag line " a good role model in trainin" !
Chin up Elisha. You sound a little down. Remember "Your life is now" I think it's a John Mellencamp song ... okay I gotta go "google" that now or it'll drive me crazy all night...ughh. MsRD is right, you gotta make sure that you are getting what you are paying for.... all things happen for a reason. Try taking an evening to pamper yourself with a nice bubble bath and early to bed and sleep until you wake up ....
Speaking of MsRD.... I'm just turning with envy... I so wish I had time to spend in my garden and appreciate it... right now it feels like a "chore". I have some weeding and tidying to do but all my time is spent on watering twice a day. Must say that is a peaceful and enjoyable portion of my Day. I'm taking two days off Friday & Monday, but I'm going over to DD's to babysit and puppysit. Maybe in September I'll be able to take some time... but then schools back in and I'll be even busier at work... if that's possible.
I have not been so successful for the past few days as far as eating and exercise goes... but today is a new day and so far so good
Time to check in everybody else..... Where are you?.... Come out come out where ever you are....
Here's two items that we can discuss today or tomorrow.
1) Remember your commitment. Refer daily to the contract you signed to do the best you can during this 12-week program. It will help keep you motivated as you face your daily stresses.
2) Take small steps. Don't feel overwhelmed by all of the lifestyle changes you want to make. Choose one thing each week to work on and stick with it. Commit to walking more each day, or eating more vegetables. Many small steps make for a successful life journey.
1) I have written out my pledge on my journal - it probably would work well if I took the time to write in my fitness and food journal or look at the front page on a daily basis gonna work on this one.
2) This is will really work for me if I give it a chance because, I have to make this a permanent lifestyle change, no more YoYo-ing for me. I know I'm not going to be perfect but I am aiming for that 80/20 percent (perado's rule sp). Last week I was trying to get to bed on time (worked only about 57% of the time) and exercise daily (about 79%). This week has got to be the journalling daily (1 for 2 so far) but I'm gaining. I think I'm going to plan ahead by writing what my weekly focus will be ahead until the end of the challenge.
Okay - here's the quick answer challenge. Each of use needs to say what our weekly focus will be for one week. Each answer has to be different.
Hmm, I don't know what has happened to my "quick reply". It isn't there anymore, plus - I don't get e-mails saying there are new posts. I wonder if I have changed a setting? Anyone have any ideas?
Anyway, my "QUICK ANSWER CHALLENGE" is
[COLOR=[FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode]RoyalBlue]Don't eat after 7:00 p.m.[/[/FONT]COLOR]
I guess my formatting didn't work properly! It was supposed to read:
DON'T EAT AFTER 7:00 p.m. - It was supposed to be blue/bolded/italicied. Oh, well, you get the drift. I copied Oprah on this one - she doesn't even eat a grape after 7:00.
I have a lot of changes I'd like to make, but trying to stick to idea of only taking small steps. One or two changes per week. I've already implemented the above 2 ideas, so this week I'm going to eat 1/2 cup of Firbre 1 Cereal everyday. It has 14grams of fibre and one of my goals is to increase my fibre intake.
Welcome aboard TBJ333. I'm also new to the challenge, actually I'm new to the whole internet support thing, but so far this group is really great. I really enjoy hopping on the computer and reading what everyone has to say. I hope you enjoy it as well.
MsRD, thanks for letting me know about the recipe thread. I'll check it out. I have the opposite problem with the water. When I go out, I usually order something other than water to drink. But I used to drink alot of Diet Coke at home, so I stopped buying it. My husband hates pop and I found I would drink a 12 pack within a couple of days. It was than that I decided to stop buying it.
miss elisha, good luck with your grandmother visiting. I find whenever I have someone stay with us that I don't even feel comfortable in my own home.
What concert are you going to?
Betani, where did you go for your vacation? My husband and I went on a Caribbean cruise last year and every night they had a midnight buffet and all the food was so beautifully designed. Right down to blocks of cheese being carved into various molds, like an Indian chiefs head and a fish jumping out of water. I know we went crazy with the food, but it was easy to fit in exercise, all we had to do was walk around the boat which equalled a 1/4 mile.
JoyG56, I know what you mean about writing in you journal, I have such a hard time with it. I can't believe how early you get up. I'm usually in bed around 10pm as well but I get a full hour more than you. It's hard to imagine getting up that early, but whatever you have to do to fit in the exercise. I know for me it's worth it and I'm finding that it's getting easier to do. The hardest part was getting out of bed, so I moved my alarm clock across the room. I had no idea how easy it would be to just fall back into bed after hitting the snooze button. So I've set my alarm for 4:30am, just so that I'm not falling behind if I do hit the snooze and if I manage to stay up, then I do a longer workout (or take a longer shower. )
As for my goal of 80lbs, no I don't plan on doing that in the next 11 weeks. My goal is 10 lbs. But I would like to be fit by next spring. I'm thinking of having another baby and if I can get pregnant next spring, say april, than the timing would be perfect. So my goal is to lose this weight before I try to get pregnant, so that I can start the weight loss effort all over again 9 months after that. And I'm glad you like my tag line. My daughter Emily (10 months) is my biggest motivator right now. I don't want her to have weight problems like I have, so if I can teach her how to eat well and exercise than her life will be better than mine has been. And isn't that what every parent wants for their child, a healthy, happy life that is better than your own.
Well I should get going, my day yesterday was ok but I'm hoping today will be better which requires preparation. I think I'll try to get as much done before my daughter wakes up.
Let's see... I already posted about yesterday, so I'm not sure I have much to say!
Today will be ok. One of the senior partners is visiting our office today and we're having a luncheon, so who knows what food will be like for lunch. But breakfast was decent, I can generally control myself at lunch (there are lots of other people around, I don't want them to think I'm overeating), and dinner should be ok too. Not sure what we're having, but Mom said she's grilling, so at least it won't be deep fried and smothered in cheese.
And I plan to exercise tonight, probably the elliptical and weight machine. It might be hard with grandma there, but I know that she wants me to lose weight, so she won't complain.
Anyway, I've got a ton of stuff to do today. I do have comments, but I'll have to come back at lunch for that. Have a good day, chickies!
~Elisha
Oh, my Quick Answer.... umm.. not so quick for me. Let me think...
Plan my dinners in advance.
My vacation was very nice, even if I fell of the wagon food-wise. I visited my gramma in Elkhart, IN for her 89th birthday. We all went shopping in Kalamazoo, Shipshewana, and Saugatuck over the few days we had, so I got a lot of walking in, in addition to the 30 minute power walks I took almost every morning. I did go down a pound, despite the party food on Saturday. New weigh-in is 153.5.
1. I don't keep my printed pledge with me all the time, but I keep a clipboard with my food and exercise logs with me all day, and I have a 3-ring binder with the tip sheet print outs, my pledge, and completed logs. So, I've been mindful for the most part.
2. This week I'm going to work on a 9:30pm curfew on snacks. If my blood sugar becomes an issue, I will make a 5 almond exception, but that's it. It usually isn't a problem at night, anyway, but I'd like to have a plan just in case.
I think that counts as some serious calorie-burning! There is still more to be done.....isn't there always?.....but thought I would grab some water and lay in front of the A/C for awhile.
...that would be a headache and a big pain in the wallet to boot! When the inspector comes, try to be there, so you can ask questions.....they are usually very good at explaining stuff. And maybe it is something that can be rather simply (inexpensively) repaired.....or you might want to counteroffer with the owner to share the costs of repair.
You just have to reserve time for you. Actually, I like exercising in the AM, as it seems to give me extra energy to get thru the day! I think we have a recipe thread on our Challenge......and you can find other recipes elsewhere on the 3FC site.
Are you on any special plan? What kind of exercise are you doing?
Let's kick it together, whaddya say?
This 12 week challenge will fit right into your upcoming birthday. Hmm .... 
what an empowering birthday gift to yourself - reaching your goal - and doing something great for your mind and body and health along the way.
I find that getting up to do it is near impossible unless I get to bed early and get enough rest the night before. I'm up at 3:50am, and on good days I go to bed at 10pm. 80 pounds is a great goal - but I hope you don't intend to get it all done in the remaining 11 weeks 
PS I love your tag line " a good role model in trainin" !
with envy... I so wish I had time to spend in my garden and appreciate it... right now it feels like a "chore". I have some weeding and tidying to do but all my time is spent on watering twice a day. 
Must say that is a peaceful and enjoyable portion of my Day. I'm taking two days off Friday & Monday, but I'm going over to DD's to babysit and puppysit. Maybe in September I'll be able to take some time... but then schools back in and I'll be even busier at work... if that's possible.
