I have to say that yesterday wasn't so bad! We had church last night so I didn't get my exercise in but when i got on the scales this morning I was down two pounds!! 187 looks a whole lot better than 189!!
Exercise tonight - Pilates tape and a 30 minute walk.
Hi all! It's funny, but as soon as I decide to watch my weight, I feel very empowered that I can take control of myself (my weight/body in particular). Just the fact that I am starting the "plan" boosts me up.
I've been much better this week than the past 6 months! ;-) I'm not feeling hungry at all and I'm focusing on other things - keeping busy at office and always busy at home.
I guess it's mind over matter for me.
I'm taking tomorrow off from work. Weather here is still gorgeous and won't last long, so taking advantage of it while it lasts! I'm in Minnesota.
Hi gang
Thanks Elisha for the invite to this group. It looks like this is just what I was looking for,
My Goals for this month
1. Water no sodas
2. lose 5lbs
3. do not eat what the kids are eating at snack time at school (take a healthy alternative)
4. walk 5 days a week
5.replace the I cants do it thoughts with Just do it!!!!!
I have no idea how to get a ticker so
started today at 210. and I want to lose to 150
Ang
More than a decade's worth of studies from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Boston, revealed that serotonin, the brain's mood-lifting neurotransmitter, is affected by food, and it turns out that eating carbohydrates, not protein, boosts serotonin production. Carb deprivation can therefore dampen your mood, making you impatient and grumpy, says Judith Wurtman, PhD, director of the Program in Women's Health at the MIT Clinical Research Center. "It's not going to put you into a full-blown depression, but it can put you on edge," she says.
But much like the low-carb diet itself, scientists disagree on the low-mood theory. Pro-carb-cutters blame mood swings on carb-induced spikes in insulin levels rather than plummeting serotonin. One study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, compared weight loss in low-carb and low-fat dieters, but didn't find a difference in the mood of either group. But a British study from Oxford University of 42 women on low-carb diets found that those with a history of depression experienced a "striking but temporary relapse in symptoms." While the jury is out, you might want to keep a rice cake on hand if you're going low carb and are prone to low moods.
Originally published in Ladies' Home Journal magazine, June 2004.
Here's a quickie update for this evening, so tomorrow I can just post some comments!
Ang. Glad to see you here! Those are some great goals you've got set up, and we're here to help you achieve them! To get a ticker, click "3FC Features" at the top, then click "Signature Weight-Tracker" and it will give you instructions from there. It's really easy!
I just had another FABULOUS day, chickies! I did a 45-minute Yourself!Fitness session that *totally* kicked my butt! And I thought yesterday's workout was hard! What was I thinking?!?! So yeah, I'm a little pumped up right now. Water was 106 oz plus 20 oz of SF iced tea. Calories were right-on-target today, so I allowed myself one of those cranberry-coconut-white chocolate chip cookies Mom made a couple of days ago... YUM! They're my favorite! I really wanted one when I got home, but I told myself I could only have one *after* I did the full 45-minute workout, and it worked! And I only had ONE!!! WOOT! Actually, they weren't even as good as I remember them being, probably because they've been sitting here for a day or two already and they're almost crunchy instead of soft and chewy and ooey-gooey like cookies are supposed to be. *shrugs* That's probably a good thing.
Other successes of the day? I didn't eat my morning snack, so I bought a Big Grab of Baked Cheetos with my turkey sub this evening. Now, there's like 2.5 oz--1 oz being a serving--in one of those bags (which I am totally against--one container should be 1 serving, because that's how much people are going to eat, right?), but I didn't even eat 1 entire oz! I told myself that I couldn't eat too many of them, because it's easy for me to get carried away with Cheetos, so I had a couple and put them down, then a while later I had 2 or 3 more and put them away again! YAY ME!
Completely random note: if any of you like jazz-rock type stuff (not jazz rock, but some jazz and some rock, if that makes sense), I highly recommend the new Jamie Cullum cd, Catching Tales. Steve bought it the other day and it's wonderful. We've been listening to it for 3 days straight! It makes me want to dance, and that's always a good thing. Definitely a toe-tapper.
OK, I'll stop being random and overly excited for this evening. I hope you all had a spectacular day, and I'll see all of you wonderful chickies in the morning!
Hey, one more random note--next time I feel like crap or don't want to exercise, would someone PLEASE remind me of how good I feel *after* I exercise, like right now? If you could do that for me, that would be FANTASTIC, and it might save you--or earn you, whatever your preference--a tazer in the behind! hehe...
Yeah, ok, I'm really done now. Have a good night, chickies!
~Elisha
I did my 25 minutes of the bike yesterday morning! It's becoming a routine, at least 3 days a week! Yea! Food was ok for b-fast & lunch! Supper was out again, but I choose a "Chicken Taco" Salad. It wasn't great, but I ate most of it...and had a few of DD's fries (about 10) and one piece ofher chicken tender (fried). Last night I finished up some sugar cookies that DD and sitter made, made the frosting and began to devour 2 or 3 of them, I'm ashamed to say! So, calories were not where I would have liked them to be yesterday.
I weighed myself yesterday because I was pretty sure I had lost a few lbs.! It was late in the day at work, so the scale has not shown a loss! DANG! But I will not give up! I'm doing the right thing most of the time, so I know it will come off...and I am exercising again, so that will help boost my metabolism. I'm taking off today from exercise! Gotta get going to work a little earlier...
I got my new minivan! Feels wierd to have a different car after so many years with the same one! We are going to sell my Taurus. We brought a movie along last night to check out the DVD and took a short little drive to the next town. DD was glued to it, of course! I will have to take a short course on how to operate all the bells & whistles on that van...geesh! How can a car be so complicated???? LOL!!
Well, gotta scoot! Have a great weekend...if I don't check in, it's not because I'm not doing well...I just have a busy weekend planned!
Hugs to all...and WELCOME to Ang!!!! YEA! Another one joins!
Woo! One final update, then moving on to comments! The scale shows me down to 213.8 this morning! That means that not only are the pounds gone from this past weekend, but they took a friend with them! YAY!!!
After I saw that I felt like saying, "Aw, heck, I can ease off a little today, since I'm doing so well." But that's a load of CRAP! I should use this as motivation to keep going, because it's working!
OK, now on to comments!
Julie: You sure are one busy chick! GREAT job on the exercise! Get that down, then work on the food--it will fall into place! Hope you're enjoying your new van!
Joy: Thanks for posting those tips! I always like getting new tidbits of information! How's the class going? Learning lots?
Ang: Water *really* helps. I think it also makes me more conscious of how I'm doing in other areas of my diet/fitness. It's like, I'm doing so well here, I don't want to waste it by being bad elsewhere. You and I have about the same weight and goals! Watch as we melt away together!
Birdie: You CAN take control! It is very empowering to know that you're doing something good for yourself, isn't it? Keep focusing on what works--maybe some of it was emotional eating out of boredom or habit, so focusing on doing other things will keep the urge to eat away.
Bethe: GREAT job on the exercise, and the 2-pound loss! WAY TO GO!!! You reminded me that I need to get back to my Pilates!
Betani: Do you have cable or satellite? There are a ton of workout shows on, generally early morning, that you could either workout with in the morning, or tape and do them at your convenience. The benefit there--they're different every day!
Rosie: The regular soda really adds up the calories, doesn't it? It's ridiculous! I've given them up... I'd so much rather get my calories from food than beverages. After a while, they taste too syrupy sweet anyway. I'm to the point now that I honestly can't tell the difference between diet and regular soda at a restaurant--I have to have Steve taste them and see which one is mine!
MsRD: Glad to hear you're feeling better! Now put down those M&Ms! I'm putting you down for 240 minutes, and you'd better reach that goal!
TBJ: I try buy clothes when I can afford it to, because I actually don't have that many. I usually end up getting frustrated and declaring that I will not buy anything else until I am in a smaller size--sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't! Have you been to any more martial arts classes? Hope you're doing well! (hehe... that smiley is just plain funny)
If I missed anyone I apologize, but that's as far back as the page goes!
Any other takers for next week's Exercise Challenge (11-14 to 11-20)? So far I've got:
MsRD: 240
TBJ: 140
Elisha: 180
MONDAY, Nov. 7 (HealthDay News) -- Observations of overstressed rats may help explain why dieters so often fail and binge-eat instead.
A combination of stress, deprivation and exposure to tempting food pushed the rats to overeat, according to two studies in the October issue of Behavioral Neuroscience.
One study by researchers at the University of Bordeaux 2, in France, tested three aspects of eating behavior in rats: motivation (how bad they want it); anticipation (how excited they were in advance); and intake (how much they ate). These three aspects of eating behavior were tested in relation to food type (ordinary lab chow or yummier chocolate cereal) and satiety/hunger.
The second study examined the link between binge eating and opioids -- neurological "feel good" chemicals that play key roles in food response in both the rat and human brains.
Rats binged on a particularly favorite food -- Oreo cookies -- when they were both overstressed and forced to diet. Either condition alone did not lead to binge-eating, according to researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
However, giving the rats an opioid-blocking drug reduced binge eating in the stress/dieting rats.
The findings may explain why some people on diets relapse into previous poor eating habits and why even one slip -- such as eating a single cookie -- can trigger 'pigging out' in people already predisposed to binge-eating.
The research could also help in the development of methods to help people avoid overeating, control their weight and improve their health.
As a wise man once said, it is finished. I have felt **** and emerged victorious. OK, maybe a little dramatic, BUT I AM DONE WITH MY BAR EXAM APPLICATION!!!
Ya-hoooooooooo! (Howl of the law student.)
***
MsRD -- Hubby's ancestors settled in Michigan... then his parents moved to New Mexico. Smart idea... And yes, the junk food apparently helped my husband. He felt much better yesterday. Maybe you could substitute carrots? Mmm, carrots, curl up in a cozy arm chair and eat your carrots... yum...
Eisha -- Congrats on the house news. Any idea when you close? Yay for the scale going down. Down, down, down into a burning scale of fire/The pounds come off 'cuz they feel your ire/And you burn, burn, burn/Off your spare tire, off your spare tire. No, I haven't watched any more martial arts classes, because Hubby and I have been so busy setting up house. I need to watch some classes soon, before I lose my nerve.
Julie -- Wow, a loaded van. Sounds like a fun toy. And I hear you on permanent hair removal. I started going to a salon for waxing treatments. I just couldn't stand stubble and ingrown hairs. Plus, I feel cleaner with the smooth results of waxing. Now I have to find a salon here in Hawaii... any advice? And don't worry about the scale. My WW leader once said that the scale doesn't know what day of the week it is, so maybe the scale will show a loss later.
Joy -- About the moderate goals, I was thinking about everyone in our group, not singling you out. I want all of us here to feel good about accomplishing something -- people say that the best way to build self-esteem is to set a goal, work hard, and achieve it. And you're right about tatt oos being a medium for emotional strength. There's just something about taking control over our bodies, especially for women, and making them into what we want them to be. So often we see images of women as blank canvases, women portrayed as something to showcase something else, such as clothing or makeup. Tattoos are a way of saying we're not a blank canvass, for popular culture, society's expectations of us, or even our mothers. Thanks for the info on seratonin. Ever since I found a proper medication for bipolar disorder, I have been losing the weight that I had put on over years of taking lithium. No doubt part of the reason is that now that my mood is better, I no longer turn to food for a boost.
Rosie -- Two hundred over isnBete't so bad. And you know what caused it, so next time you'll have incentive to avoid it.
Betani -- How about something contemplative to start your day? Prayers/meditation/journaling, whatever is right for you.
Bethe -- Woo-hoo! Another scale victory!
Birdiegirl -- Yep, a lot of people say losing weight makes them feel empowerd, and gaining it makes them feel out of control. Glad to hear that you are feeling an emotional reward for all your hard work. You deserve to be happy!
Ang -- Howdy and welcome. Your goals sound smart.
***
Early morning light
Harbingers a healthy day.
Strength within myself.
End of the week......and now on to the weekend! A friend and I are catching a bus to Chicago tomorrow AM and shopping til we drop (which doesn't take as long as it used to!) On Sunday, we have a potluck dinner with our car club group.....should be a fun day as long as I watch my portions and food selections.
Julie.....Congratulations on the new van....so glad you are enjoying it! Stay off that scale until you really really start to feel the loss in your clothes.....then you are sure to see success!
Joy.....You are going to be a beautiful mother of the bride! Mother of the bride gowns can be so awesome! I'll see you with Leslie tomorrow!
Betani.....Check out the exercise videos on ebay.....you might pick up a used one at a pretty good price.
Bethe......Good going on the 2 pound loss! All your hard work is starting to pay off!
Birdiegirl.....Just making a decision to live healthier gives us such a mental boost! You are so right in focusing on other things besides food.....I am making a list of 'to do' things for this winter when I can't be outside as much1
Ang.....Welcome! You have created some good goals there!
Elisha.....You are soooo pumped! Just reading your post inspires me!
TBJ......Congratulations on completing the bar exam application! Whew! Now.....what comes next?
I have been keeping the calories within range all week and have exercised 30 minutes nearly every day.....already I can feel my clothes are a bit looser! I am so excited about finally making some progress, but not going to 'break the spell' by weighing in.....not until the day before Thanksgiving!
Gotta gather somethings together for tomorrow.....have a great weekend, chickies!
How are you all doing this weekend? Enjoying it, I hope!
Quick post by way of update. I'm finding that if I let myself slip a even just a little bit out of routine then I really want to go off track, so I am NOT giving myself that opportunity, and here I am posting like a good girl.
Yesterday was good. Calories came in at 1393. This morning the scale says 213.2. Still going down, go that is good. I did 30 minutes of Y!F yesterday, even though I really didn't want to. I thought I had decided to skip it just for one day, but then I felt guilty and did it anyway. YAY me! Food today is going ok (more on that in a minute), water, not so much (never goes well on the weekends), and I'll do another 30 minutes of Y!F here in a bit. Steve's taking me to the movies tonight to see Wallace & Gromit... I told him I would go see that with him since he agreed to go see Harry Potter with me next weekend. Yeah, we're a bunch of kid-movie-loving dorks. I'll get a Diet Coke and leave it at that. Movie popcorn makes me feel all greasy and gross anyway.
Mom and I went out shopping today for my best friend's daughter's birthday. She'll be 2 on Friday. Now, I have only really been good friends with her for less than a year, and she wasn't really in my gift-giving circle last year at this time, so this is the first time in... well, ever, that I have gotten to shop for little girl stuff. That stuff is SOOO cute! Mom and I ended up getting her 2 cute little outfits, plus some cute pink pajamas, plus I told Dani I would get her a Disney princess toy as well (more shopping to do!). We also got a little Xmas shopping done, so that's good too. They opened up a new pizza and pasta buffet in the mall, and the entire mall smelled SOOO good. Mom kept saying "pizza sounds really good," and "that's a really good price for a buffet," and "I am getting kinda hungry." I kept replying, "No, we don't need to eat that greasy, fat- and calorie-laden junk," and "I've done good on my diet all week, I'm not going to ruin it on pizza," and "we can eat when we get home, I don't need to spend the money anyway." It worked. We came home and had leftover lasagna. I had a small piece. I also had some of my yummy garlic herb cheese with crackers, and a few of Dad's tortilla chips with hummus. But I am still doing on track for the day, so it's all good. Dinner is dilled chicken and some type of green vegetable, though I'm not sure what just yet.
OK, so much for a "quick" post from me! I hope you're all having a wonderful Saturday!
~Elisha
Sorry that i havent been posting. i've been a real ***** for the past couple of days.
i'm just really angry at the ways i've been treated and don't really have an outlet for it. i just dont want to be nice to anyone anymore and i feel the need to go completely numb.
the water's been out the window...as in i havent gotten in any lately. wednesday was my day off and friday and thursday i've been right on point as far as calories go. i managed to get in 20 min of latin cardio today...although now i dont feel like doing much else.
that's all for now,
Rosie
Last edited by Extrinsic Rapture; 11-12-2005 at 03:31 PM.
Reason: typo
I've got some time tonight for some comments, but first want to let you know that my days have not been as "healthy" since Thursday! When I start the day off with exercise, it seems that I am more conscious of what I eat and have much more energy. The last couple have not started that way and I can feel it! I did however, get a comment today that I look as though I have lost weight (which is untrue, since i have gained)...but it was nice to hear, which means maybe the exercise is helping with toning...it does seem to show on my body! Now...if I could just feel it!! LOL!
Rosie...I'm sorry you are feeling this way! You say you have not outlet for this anger, but there is always an outlet...somewhere! Search deep...you will find a way. Anger is never good when one holds onto it. Maybe you can share with us? Maybe not...but anyway...I always find that if there is no other outlet, journalling is a great solution! Then...if you so desire...you can later destroy the evidence!!!! Read some of the articles in the articles thread. There might be something there for you! ((((((((((((Rosie))))))))))))
Elisha...WTG on the exercise (didn't you feel that thread of the tazer????) even if you didn't want to do it! And your calories...and persistance with your Mom! Girl...I'm so proud of you, I could just hug you!!!! (((((((Elisha))))) Oh...and little girls clothes ARE fun to shop for...I just wish they wouldn't grow up!!!!
MsRD...WTG on the loose clothes feeling and exercising every day! I'm proud of you, too! Hope you bought something "fun" for yourself on your shopping trip!
TBJ...YEA YOU on finishing the bar exam app! That sounds horrendous! Enjoying your weekend in the islands, I hope? When is hubby coming back home? Is it this week? If it is...then hope you make some friends while he is gone so you aren't too lonely! Get a breath of fresh air for me...I think our winter is surely on it's way! Today was almost 60 though, here! Windy...but nice! Sorry...no advice on the salon...there was a few at AlaMoana mall (is that still there?) and some on the strip...when I was there...but I wouldn't have clue, now! I'm not familiar with the area you live in since we didn't have a car and I spent most of my time there right near where we lived!
Bethe...way to go on the 2 lbs! That's 2 lbs you won't ever see again! Yea!
Betani...Love your Haiku's! I feel the same way you do, though about boredome with the same thing. Right now, the exercise bike is working for me since I can't walk like I'd like to...but I have a feeling, I'm going to be wanting something else this winter! And the diet...oy! Same thing! I do fine with the same thing for a while...then boredome overtakes my motivation! Not pretty!
Birdiegirl...Isn't it great to feel so empowered? You go, girl! Keep that enthusiasm coming our way! It's contagious!
Welcome to Ang!!! Glad you are with us!
Joy...where are you??? We miss you!!!
Hope I didn't miss anyone! Have a great weekend (what's left of it!)
I am feeling pretty dragged out this AM......had waaaayyyy too much fun shopping yesterday! I only bought a couple little things, but just being in a big city and doing something different was energizing. We shopped at the Water Tower Place and then walked down Michigan Avenue nearly to the river....and back again......and that is quite a hike for those not familiar with Chicago!
Elisha.....The scale keeps going down! Great Job! And you talked your Mom out of pizza out....I am so proud of you! It sounds like your shopping trip was much more productive than mine, but we both had fun!
Rosie....Sorry to hear you are in a 'bad place' at present. Hope things start working out for you. Keep exercising.....somehow I have found that helps.....and find someplace, someone to vent. Holding all that anger inside is not good, either mentally or physically.
Julie.....Don't you love it when someone comments that you're losing weight! Even if it doesn't show on the scale, it means that you are toning that muscle and it shows!
Joy....hope you are having a super weekend!
I made a Mandarin Chicken Salad for the potluck today.....have to find a ballot box for the elections....and pack the picnic basket.....and assorted club paperwork. Yike! I better get going!
Well, well, the weekend is going well for me. Calories were just a tad high yesterday, coming in at 1530 for the day. Not enough water (tsk tsk). Weekends are always so hard on that score. I'm trying to focus more on water today though, and am currently working on a big 30 oz. glass of the ultimate beverage.
I did my 30 minutes of Y!F yesterday, and I just finished 45 minutes today. Also, we're going bowling tonight, so there will be a bit of exercise there. And I plan to drink water at the bowling alley instead of Diet Coke like I usually drink.
We didn't go see Wallace and Gromit last night, because they only show it at 1pm and 4pm. So we went and rented some movies instead, and we did some laundry. I know, how exciting are we?
The scale is down to 212.6 this morning. Today I feel the same way I did yesterday--I've done so well all week, I'm not about to mess it up by going overboard today. We did have a fairly large breakfast, and I'm making a large dinner (meatloaf and mashed potatoes and broccoli), but breakfast was late, so there's no need to have lunch. I'll have an apple or something if I get hungry in the meantime. Yum... an apple sounds good right now.
Anyway, I need to go hop in the shower. I hope everyone is having a lovely weekend! I'll post more tomorrow, and some comments!
~Elisha
Some Diet Success Tips from LHJ
Ang. Glad to see you here! Those are some great goals you've got set up, and we're here to help you achieve them! To get a ticker, click "3FC Features" at the top, then click "Signature Weight-Tracker" and it will give you instructions from there. It's really easy!
Water was 106 oz plus 20 oz of SF iced tea. Calories were right-on-target today, so I allowed myself one of those cranberry-coconut-white chocolate chip cookies Mom made a couple of days ago... YUM! They're my favorite! I really wanted one when I got home, but I told myself I could only have one *after* I did the full 45-minute workout, and it worked! And I only had ONE!!! WOOT! Actually, they weren't even as good as I remember them being, probably because they've been sitting here for a day or two already and they're almost crunchy instead of soft and chewy and ooey-gooey like cookies are supposed to be. *shrugs* That's probably a good thing.
Get that down, then work on the food--it will fall into place! Hope you're enjoying your new van! 
You reminded me that I need to get back to my Pilates! 
I'm putting you down for 240 minutes, and you'd better reach that goal!
(hehe... that smiley is just plain funny)
Another Reason Not To Cheat
Smart idea... 
And yes, the junk food apparently helped my husband. He felt much better yesterday. Maybe you could substitute carrots? Mmm, carrots, curl up in a cozy arm chair and eat your carrots... yum...
Thanks for the info on seratonin. Ever since I found a proper medication for bipolar disorder, I have been losing the weight that I had put on over years of taking lithium. No doubt part of the reason is that now that my mood is better, I no longer turn to food for a boost. 
