Guys, since this is a poop-as-an-acceptable-topic free zone, let me just say that I haven't HAD a poop in a few days, which is weird for me, I'm usually as regular as can be, just when I wake up, and I know that's why my weight hasn't budged today. Today was just plain 146.0. If I'd had a poop, it would be 145.something. *SIGH* That and being VERY sore from working out two days ago. Thank you, water retention! Also, I ate something for my one meal last night that was rather salty.

Guys, I'm having one of those discouraged moments. I've been in the 140s since last January at this time. Not once in all of 2012 did I get back down to my "usual" for the past 7 years or so, which was mid 130s (which is still too chunky for me, really). I would throw a party right now if the scale would just go under 140. Now I feel like I've made that so far away by way overindulging over the holidays. I've made it right to 140 a few times, but then it's like my body wants to bounce right back up to the mid 140s again and if it had its way (if I wasn't constantly freaking out over my weight), I would probably end up to 150 or so (whcih was my high in late October).

I NEED to be at about 135 to technically be a healthy weight for my height. That's about 10 pounds at this point, so discouraging. It takes SO long to lose 10 pounds, especially when you're not terribly overweight.

Anyway, just needed to whine a little. Thanks for listening!

By the way, I love IFing because you don't have to think so much about every little thing that goes in your mouth all day long. I hate thinking about food and eating and counting every single thing and obsessing. I love that all I have to worry about is my salad at lunch and then one meal in the evening, no snacks. And it's the ONLY way I know where I can live with a low enough calorie amount to lose weight and still be satisfied. Confession: I HATE most traditional diet foods. I hate low-fat/no-fat yogurt (like the real stuff), I hate skim milk, I gag on steamed broccoli and chicken breasts. Whole grain bread blah blah blah , being a negative nancy here! Thanks, I just HAD to get that out in a big confessiony whine.

QUESTION FOR YOU LADIES!!!

What cut/kind of underwear do you wear??? My underwear drawer is so sad, everything is too big and I'm facing stocking up on underwear but have no idea what kind to get. I'm used to getting sensible underwear to ensure minimal wedgies lol, but now I'd like to get some actual cute kind but there are so many dang KINDS!

Back down under 125 today! 124.6 WI this morning. Nice. I love the first two weeks of my cycle where I have a small appetite.

JetBlue has some CRAZY sales for winter flights. Very seriously considering a long weekend in the FL Keys...

LockItUp WOOOOOOOO you're shrinking!

Re: undies, this is my favorite: http://cdn.sheknows.com/articles/crave/boy-shorts.jpg

Comfortable, makes your butt look great, and you can pull it up to cover your stomach flap (well, I do that...)! I wear bikinis too sometimes. I own a thong but it hasn't made an appearance yet...not comfortable, because (TMI) I shave down there and if it's growing back at all it's just itchy, and scratching your a$$hole is not attractive, thus defeating the purpose of thongs.

olehcat I wish you success in pooping in the near future. Do you have issues normally? Sometimes I just don't poop if I'm eating at a caloric deficit because there is less food to poop. Are you good with fiber, macros, blahblah? I don't like Diet Foods either - I find a lot of it preaches to people that flavorless versions of unhealthy well-liked foods are the only solution, rather than "learn to make and like new things that are good for you and made from 'real' foods."

I'm feel like CRAP. I don't even know why but yesterday I just ate like garbage and had a bunch of drinks with my roommate and stayed up way too late. Bah!

This DOES NOT help me to get back to my happy body fat percentage! You know what will though? Hiring a trainer/nutritionist again. Yep, I'm going to do it. I'm shopping around right now to find a good trainer/program for me but hopefully within the next day or two I will be on my way to starting a new program. yeah, I can do my own training and nutrition but I've been doing that the past few years and frankly I'M TIRED. I'm tired of second guessing myself; "how many calories do I really need? More cardio? Less cardio? More weights? Higher reps?" Gaaah, it's exhausting. I want to spend the next few months just doing what someone else tells me to do. It will give my brain a break and it will help me by working with another trainer in order to perhaps pick up some new training techniques.

I'll let you know what happens!

I tried to get to the gym this morning and felt like death, so I quit and went back to bed. I slept HARD (Like, drooling on my pillow hard) and then got up, showered, and came back to work. I feel a bit better and hopefully this afternoon I can finish up my workout or at least do a bit more so I don't feel like a total slacker.

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LockItUp - Well, my undies depend on what I'm doing. TBH, if I'm wearing gym clothing I usually don't wear any! My shorts all have liners in them and my pants are spandex/stretch material, so there is no risk of anyone seeing anything they shouldn't... I just don't like getting workout wedgies!
If I'm wearing my work uniform I prefer the Victorias Secret Pink "yoga" panties. They make them in different cuts, but I like the regular bikini cut. Super comfortable, light material, and actually very flattering too.
In my regular clothes (jeans, slacks, skirts, etc.) I still opt for VS but usually go with one of their varieties of thongs.

I'm sort of a VS snob. I have way too much lingerie and hardly wear any of it!

Oh yeah, my wedding pictures turned out really great! They were fairly expensive but since it was in Vegas we had the wedding and the very next day the pictures were ready for us to take home! I got them all on DVD plus we got like a bazillion prints, a poster, an album, and all sorts of other goodies with our package. It was a better deal than most I've seen. Thank you Mandalay Bay! haha

Olehcat - You know what? I'm having a hard time right now too and feel pretty discouraged, but the only thing we can both do is just keep on keeping on! When I get frustrated and just feel like "F it!" and want to eat the WORLD, it NEVER helps! I always feel worse and it just prevents me from getting any closer to where I want to be.

So as you saw above, I'm going to hire a trainer and WORK MY ARSE OFF! What can you do to get those 10+ pounds off? Can you find something to really motivate you? A workout partner or program? A 'biggest loser' type competition? What about scheduling an event or photo shoot or something that gives you a deadline? What, in theory, would really get you to kick things up a notch and melt those pounds away? Maybe we can all brainstorm together to find something that will fit the bill.

Oh the poop issue - Drink lots of water, and maybe try to get a bit more fiber into your diet today. Flax seeds are great for that, as is broccoli and really any veggies!

Krampus - Glad you had a great workout yesterday! My workout yesterday was pretty nice too... I'm sore today but not uncomfortably so.

What sort of dumplings did you have? I make my own and I haven't in quite some time... maybe I need to do that again!



** I totally know I skipped a bunch of stuff and I'm a slacker today but I'm HUNGRY and it's time to eat!** Back later

JossFit I think relinquishing control to someone else will absolutely give you the time and structure you need to recharge (and collect ideas)! Sorry you've been having a rough time of it - I like days when I can muster up the energy needed to retry the gym after a failure in the early morning. The dumplings were frozen Trader Joe's Thai vegetable flavor...they are soooooo good. I think dumplings might be in my top five food groups.

Spur-of-the-moment spontaneous decision to go to Florida Keys has been acted upon. Gives me a month to get in bikini shape (who am I kidding, I'm in bikini shape right now, haw haw haw!). I never do well with vacation goals so I'm just going to see what happens.

We're tent camping and I'm 100% guaranteed to have my period since it is a vacation - I'm so excited to see Hemingway's cats!

Turbo ~ She didn't even really acknowledge the comment... lol Her response was "do you do a lot of travelling?" With salespeople, I just feel like behaving out of the norm is amusing... for me :P. And dude, when I worked in retail, I appreciated when people put a spin on their requests.
I'm cracking up over your passionate celebrity hating. I usually put passion into all my celebrity followings.
How was your first run back?

Krampus ~ Long weekend in the FL keys sounds amaaaaazing!!! Not a bad place to head in the dead of winter. And look at you, back down to your pre-holiday weight already.

Joss ~ Boo for feeling yuck this morning, but if you had some good bonding time with your roommate, then maybe the extra cals were worth it.. And sheesh, if you're tired, maybe you needed the sleep more than the workout? I'm sure you've read the studies about sleep and weight-loss... And if you're looking to go pro with fitness, it sounds like getting a new trainer/program would be a good investment for you.

lockitup ~ I'm on the hunt for some good undies, too. I like VS also, although I can't help feeling like you're paying for the name/image (as with anything). I'm holding out for the semi-annual sale, though. I like the yoga pants in hipster or bikini styles. They tend not to show lines through clothes and hug your butt in an attractive way. Just buy a size up from what you would normally buy (I go for a Large). I'll also go VS for just plain cotton bikinis or hipsters.

olehcat ~ *hugs* Hang in there. Especially as featherweights, I think that we hover on the edge of those last 10-20 lbs... We know that they make a difference, but it's tough to find the motivation. I'm kind of in the same place. Just know that it can be done.

*The Orchestra Debacle*
I play viola in a community symphony (we're actually not that bad- our average concert attendance is around 200+ people) At our last performance, we did Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherezade. There's a huge brass entrance in the 2mvt and the principal trombone completely missed it (didn't realize conductor was beating in 1, not 4). We ended up restarting the movement for the recording, but we all got a little off center after that... I was off count for a bit, too (I sit first stand second chair) to the point where the conductor had to yell out "one, two, three, four!"... Bit of a trainwreck... I apologized profusely afterward.
But all was fine at rehearsal. He started out with a "happy new year" and we all just went on from there.


On the topic of...
s'mores - Sweet nelly! I made smores toast last night. Toasted Ezekiel bread + choco chips + marshmallows under the broiler... De-LISH.

coffee - I usually make it in a french press and this morning I saw the Cayenne pepper just sitting on the counter.. so I added a dash before I poured the hot water over the coffee. Kicker! Loved it. Like chili peppers in chocolate. Also lovely.

krampus : I'm taking down the Christmas Decorations at a snail pace, meaning I'm taking down everything except the d*mn tree that will take like 2 hours LOL Woah Florida!!! Lucky girl! Sending good vibes to delay your period LOL

Lockitup : This is the foaming thingy I was talking about!



It works AND it is cute on my counter LOL. To be honest, I'm describing it that way because I have no idea how this device is called LOL. Should have look on the box before throwing it away! And there is also the fact that my vocabulary in English is much more limited than my French one I gues that is mostly why I'm describing so much instead of NAMING things LOL

For undies, I'm with Krampus, I'm a fan of the boyfriend cut. I hate tongs with passion

Olehcat : Oh well, I guess that in my head, every states in the US have snow except Florida, California and Arizona! My knowledge of the states are prettyyyy slim.

How poopin can destroy our momentum! And I think the time after the holidays are always rougher... It's not the holidays anymore and we are left alone with our gained weighed and this new year to face and everything. You are not alone in this though We're gonna get the end of those last pounds!!

Joss : Sorry to hear you're feeling crappy But you know, sh*t happens, now move on! If you can get a nutritionist and a trainer, go for it! This might take off a bit of stress off your shoulder and allow you to relax and let someone else do the hard job

Alexis : The poor retail girl LOL Once, I was shopping with a friend and she was looking for boots. we entered a place and she asked the retail girl : ''Okay, I need boots so smoking hot, my boyfriend won't let me take off to go to bed''. The FACE. We went to another store ahah! SMOOOOORES TOASTS!!! It must be the best thing in the world. I'm gonna need to try this! And yeah, I love celebrity gossips LOL. I love reading them when I drink my coffee. Right now we are on the Taylor Swift case and she gives us a lot to talk about bwhahaha.

***

Heyyyy! This morning I woke up and while I was heading for the bathroom, I glance at myself in the mirror and, ohhhh marvelous vision, my pouch tummy wasn't looking to pouchy as it did in the last 2 weeks!! I really wanted to dance. Well, the pouch is still there, but it's not like I am 3 months pregnant anymore. I even cheated and stepped on the scale : I am still at 142.5 though, but is still a 3 pounds drop since 3 days ago. Can't wait to be back on the 130's, but I feel so much better and releived to see the weight going down.

I also went for a run yesterday afternoon. There is good new and a bad new. The good : the hip was not painful! I only did 3.33 km but I was still thrilled about it. Now I'm focusins on going back SLOOOOOWLY and not pushing it. The bad new : my cardio seems to have deserted me real bad LOL. I did 3.33 km slowly and I had to really be careful not running to fast so I wouldn't be totally out of breath. Oh well, it will come back eventually. I only pray that the hip will hold on as I run more on it.

I'm not feeling like eating all the food in the world neither, which is a good new. I prepared a huge recipe of soup for dinner last night and even made friends again with the califlower (I was really mad at the b*tch for cheating me 2 months ago, making illusions that some califlower alfredo past would taste JUST THE SAME. LIIIIIIIIES). The soup had califlower, few carrots, 2 branch of celery, 1 onion, fresh ginger and curry powder. Let's give that to the califlower, the soup was super creamy, without any addition of cream. We had that with a grilled cheese and I just had another bowl for lunch with a side of aspargus/grated parmsean. And I'm fuuuuull!!!

Turbo In American English that's a "French press." Voilą!

Happy Hump Day! Feels like it should be Friday!

Joss...I think hiring a trainer is the perfect solution for you. It will allow you to work with someone with new ideas, and honestly...everyone is more accountable when they are paying for a trainer. Funny enough, I was just talking about doing the same. Just pay someone to lay-out a routine for me and someone to "check-in" with since I want to workout out at home. I agree about not wanting to waste time "doing the wrong workout". Any exercise is great obviously, but when you have a specific goal, you don't want to think back to things you could have done for better results. Professional athletes have trainers & nutritionists. There is nothing wrong with getting a new perspective.

Oh...and I am a huge lingerie junkie too. I buy underwear all of the time. We just got a VS in my area, so it's been a whole bunch of new undies!

Olecat...Hang in there. The last pounds are the hardest to lose and the MOST frustrating. All of us feathers feel the same right now.

Krampus...Congrats on the low weigh-in. It feels so nice when you break a sticking point. Keep up the great workouts because they inspire all of us.
Florida Keys is one of my dream trips...Fly into Miami or Lauderdale, then drive the coast and check out all of the "islands". We almost booked it 2 summers ago, but we ended up on another trip. Can't wait to hear about it.

Turbo...I feel your pain...I still have a holiday tummy too.My strength isn't back either, but keep going and it will come back
We were in Mayan on our Mexico trip, also near PDC. We like it there. We go often and we like the area for the value for money as well. Plus, it's a short flight for us.

Lockitup...Thongs, Thongs and more thongs. I love hipsters at night for sleeping though.

Alexis...You have a great attitude about your weight losses and gains. I wish I was not so uptight about it. I feel your determination too, but you never hard on yourself when you know you're off plan. I love it! Thank you

_______________________

Well today seemed better; a bit less bloated and not as hungry. Weight is not going down too fast, so I know it's fat gain. Water weight is long gone!
My strength is down, but it's been building again. I have not missed a day of working out since I got back, so that is good.
Everyone...KEEEP ON PUSHING!

After looking at what is a french press, I can say that it is not one! It really looks like one though, but it's especially designed for milk ; the little net thingy at the bottom is not completly the same. On this one there is a space on the outher line of the press with a spiral thread going around it that would not retain the coffee if you would try to make some with it.

But thanx for the coffee press word, we also own on of these for when we go camping and I had no idea how this thing was also called :P

Okay, after being unemployed for a few monthsand becoming a housewife more and more everyday, I thought I got the hang of the house chores and stuff.

Thankfully, ma cat is always there to challenge me and make a purpose of my life.

Here how ''Changing bed sheets with the Feline''.

First, you gotta prepare mentally the Feline to the upcoming bed sheets changing because the Feline is obviously living in denial and is refusing to face the reality.



Along the way, you gotta face and deal with the Feline exploring his new hiding place, which he probably think is the best and most discreet hiding place ever.



... explaining the ''WTF'' expression of the Feline when he realized you already discovered his new den.



After you kicked him out of his spot, don't beleive he'll let you be in your sheets changing activity. As soon as you turn away to get the pillows, he will quickly realize that standing with attitude ON the bed sheets is another great way to prevent you to conclude the process.



I'm seriously not ready for kids, I can't even deal with my cat!

Hello Feathers!!! So far I am having a fantastic day. Started the day with a fried egg and avocado half sandwich and a great workout! Then I had lunch with my mom which is alway nice. Tonight the BF and I are going to see A Servant of Two Masters, I'm a huge theater nerd so I am so excited. We might have take out Chinese food for dinner. There is a place by my house that is wonderful. Too bad each of us usually gets our own order of cream cheese wontons, can we say sh!t loads of fat and calories but oh so delicious! I also bought myself a new jacket, I can't stop shopping even thought I'm totally broke since going back to school.

LockItUp I buy all kinds of underware. I personally don't shop at Victoria's Secret because I find it too expensive for the quality. I don't know if you guys have Marshall's and Tjmaxx in AZ but I love to shop there for undies, you can get lots of cute ones in different styles for super cheap. Great job on the 137.6 by the way!

JossFit Its always a good idea to change up your workouts and eating. Sometimes that definitely means getting other people involved. I bet it'll be a nice break for you and maybe you'll learn some new cool stuff. While I was at the gym today, I watched the instructed in one of the fitness classes. She had the participants doing some where bridge where they were lying on their backs then would kick their legs up in the air and land in a bridge. It looked pretty crazy.

Olehcat I usually don't buy stuff that is too much smaller, lesson well learned in the past. But its good incentive to keep it moving. I have to agree though that the last 10-15 pounds tend to be the hardest to lose. I don't usually do diet stuff either. I just make my own food most of the time and count calories. I am one of those people who feels that if I can't learn to get it now and lose weight how will I eat it and maintain my weight. I love veggies and I found fun ways to cook them. Last night for dinner I made a cheese sauce with reduced fat smoked gouda and sharp chedder cheese throw in some eggplant, mushrooms, and onions that I had sauteed then put the whole thing over some brown rice pasta. It was super good! I think in total it had about 600 calories in it, I budget 1500-1700 a day depending on my workout. I have only really lost about 5 pounds in the last year or so. I have lost a ton of inches thanks to weight lifting however. I went from about a 10/12 in pants to fitting 8s and some size 6s. My dress size has gone down incredibly, I just bought an amazing dress to wear to a cousins wedding that is a sze 4. So hang in there and remember its a life style change and it take time.

Turbo Your cat is adorable! Glad the weight is starting to come off and you are not feeling as uncomfortable. I believe you milk thing is called a "Milk Frother."

Alexis That is super exciting and really cool that you play in an orchestra. I am always a little envious of individuals who can play instruments. I never learned one as a kid and keep saying I'll try to pick one up as an adult but have not gotten around to it.

Quick update before I crash for the night... I'm physically and emotionally exhausted!

I DID hire a trainer (actually I'm in the process now... have a bit more paperwork to do tomorrow and then we can start setting up the program) but I decided if I'm going to hire someone, I'm going to hire the BEST! Anyone heard of Kim Oddo? He's trained like all the top bikini and fitness competitors to include some of these ladies;

Nicole Wilkins -


Dianna Dahlgren -


Anyway... it's a big deal. I am doing a "Competition Look" program so it will be fairly intensive with the intention of getting me into the sort of shape you see above. Can I do that in 12 weeks? Um, probably not... but I KNOW I'll be closer to it with his help than I would without it!
It's pricey so thats where my tax return will be going, but it's my gift to myself! Besides, think of all the money I'll be saving on dining out... hahaha

So in order to start this program I had to do my 'before' pictures, and boy was that humbling. Sure, I don't look "bad" per say, but it's amazing the difference between now and a few months ago.

Fortunately it's just fat right? It DOES go away! haha

I imagine I'm going to be very tired and cranky at times but not having to do anything other than follow the program will be a nice mental break for me.


Oh, and on a much more fun note, the s'mores pancake as promised! (I won't be eating too many of these on this program, that's for sure...)



It's not super pretty but you get the idea; chocolate chips and mini marshmallows all melty and delicious.

Thank you, ladies! I am so grateful for all your kind words! I was really in a funk today!

@lockitup - oh man, I don't think I can help you with the undies. I do not own any cute undies! Not yet! ;D I am afraid I go for comfort only right now.

@krampus - hehehe, I RARELY have poop problems! Although I had a mini poop just after I made this post today! Good point about maybe not taking in as much calories, thus having less of a poop! OMG, and periods on vacation!!!! When I used to get a period (I'm on medication to stop it altogether because it's so horrible and ruins my life basically), I used to be able to tell when my period would come. That's easy! Whenever I had a special event planned or a vacation! ) I hope that's not hte case for you! OH...am envying your trip to the Keys - have always wanted to go there! (I lived in Florida for 5 years and never made it down there!)

@jossfit - I hope you feel better today by now! Maybe you just needed a really big rest! I felt like that on Monday, like absolute crap after my first day back to work after vacation. I went to bed ridiculously early and then woke up and have felt just fine the rest of the week! I haven't considered a big competition of any kind with myself, mostly because my time will be so precious to me this semester. *SIGH* I was originally going to try to train for my first marathon -- but I literally will not have time with the 8 credit hours I have to take on top of working full time this semester! I will be lucky to get my exercise in 4 times a week this winter/spring! ))) But my big challenge will be with what I put in my mouth. If I can really dictate when I allow anything to go past my lips, then I can feel somewhat accomplished, especially if, no WHEN, I see success!

@Alex - LOL! Oh yes, that's a familiar type of tale! Your director sounds really cool, though! I remember when I was in college (and a music major) a professional orchestra from a nearby city came to perform at our college. One disaster after another befell them, starting with -- they had forgotten all their music!!!! So the concert was SUPER late getting started, and then the music librarian back in their city was faxing the music as fast he could. So their performance was really screwy with four-five people trying to share music from one stand, etc. At the very end, weirdly enough, the mini bleachers that the chorus was standing on completely collapsed!!! Luckily nobody was hurt, but it was just insult to injury!!!

@turbo - wise words, wise words! And yeah, we don't always have super cold winters where I am, either. Today was 50 degrees (or 10 C). I used to live in Florida, and yeah, it was summer year round there! AND OMG your cat! I have a cat who somehow can HEAR when I'm trying to put sheets on the bed. He has to be right there in the middle of everything, and he's 16 pounds!

@bayzee - thank you!!! That's what I'm going to keep telling myself. I can do this, I can do this!

@domlacha - thanks!!! Yes, thankfully I also do like most veggies. I love ROASTED veggies (especially kale and cherry tomatoes and red onions, all crispy in the oven) dipped in hot sauce. I love salads. I'm just not fond of steamed vegetables alone that much. And I just can't make myself love broccoli. I like it raw sometimes, but never cooked.

Ladies, hi again! I just shared the below to another chat group I'm in and thought I'd share it here, too!

I woke up feeling so liberated about my weight for some reason this morning and thought I'd share.

I like my method of IFing and one main meal a day where I get to indulge a little because I've saved most of my calories for then. I don't mind skipping breakfast (not into breakfast foods at all, and mostly I'm always eating in a rush at that time, plus there are temptations to get a scone on the way to work!) and I don't mind eating a very light salad at lunch (everyone at my table at lunch eats super light salads. I would feel like a piggy if I dared even eat a sandwich then, LOL). And I don't mind the hunger that really settles in around 2 p.m. and goes right to dinner. I really don't. So I want it to work SO MUCH. I think I can make it work, even if I have to tweak things as I go along.

In an ideal world, I would have my main meal at lunch, but can no do since I don't want to have it at work (I want to enjoy it at home).

Anyway, about the being liberated about my weight...I weighed myself this morning and I was up from yesterday. I think I know why. I ate a very sodium-filled soup last night and I did (*cringe*) have a glass of wine last night even though I said I wasn't going to do that during the week and it is my last week on my BC pills and I tend to bloat up during that week AND my muscles are still really sore from my workout two days ago. So I really am retaining tons of water right now, I think. I mean, I'm so sore, I can hardly stretch without pain, so yeah, am definitely having a lot of water retention in my muscles.

Anyway, I just realized this morning that I just wasn't going to care about the numbers. I wasn't going to flip out at the fluctuations. I was going to keep doing what I'm doing for at least a month, so I can see what, if anything, needs to be tweaked. I feel like my body has no choice but to let go of fat if I'm eating less, doing strength training three times a week, and running four-five times a week!

Onward to today!