Turbo ~ I second the "WTF" to the 3-6 months... Seriously, now. It seems like the kind of thing where you just want to look at the doc and say "I'm sorry, but you're going to have to do better than that..." and then they make out like you're being all hyper-concerned if you want to know sooner...

Krampus ~ Meant to mention how much I appreciated the "MFF" (My Friend Food) identification. It got me thinking about the other, much more supportive friends I have in my life....

My Friends... on 3fc *warm squishy hug*
My Friend, Treadmill
My Friend, the Great Outdoors
My Friend, Tea
My Friend, the Notebook

In one of the random blogs I was browsing, a woman mentioned painting with watercolors as her favorite activity before bed. 'Ise like, who does that? Who "paints with watercolors" before bed???? And can I become that person??? My friend, watercolors before bed...

Nineteen ~ Congrats on your loss! Way to smash those pounds. ;-)

TO TURBO-
(Sorry all, hate to be a lurker, but i CANT STAND to watch this unfold any longer, lol)

Turbo, turbo turbo.... You arent preganant. I dont think you could get pregnant. You are lean. you are *trying* to get leaner (whether or not you openly admit it, you attempt to hit deficit numbers almost everyday, and have been this way for-- almost 2 years?) You are running, daily, and not eating enough to support it.
Your period has left. Youre body is in a chronic state of stress, undereating, and overtraining. Youre body knows it and has shut down reproduction. You can continue to go to the dr as much as you want, but nothing they can do will bring your period BACK. The only thing that will bring it back, is a LONG period of eating at/above maintenance, and backing off the training.... you have to gain fat, and you have to rest. It took my body 2 YEARS to get it back. It came on its own sweet time, after i had been written off, at 30 YEARS OLD as having menopause. I was uber lean, trying to stay that lean (by the tight, calorie controlled methods you guys all employ) and running and training for marathons. Its a symptom of metabolic adaptation, along with your "athlete BP and HR" which are ALSO a result of undereating for such long a long time. I just went to the Dr and my ambient HR was 34 BPM!! Lance Armstrongs resting HR is 38, and im PRETTY sure im not in better shape than him ;)

Im sorry for intruding-- i felt a voice of reason was needed ;-)

That will definitely mess things up. You'll have spotting until you finish with your next real period and move on to a new cycle of pills. Things will straighten out then.

Turbo, I'm no Doctor but I don't think you're pregnant either. Like the other person said you're likely at too high of a deficit and probably stopped ovulating. Most of those over the counter PG tests are very accurate so I wouldn't worry.

alex - i laughed at your admiration of 'watercolours before bed'. let us know if you give it a go! When i was growing up my parents and i used to go hiking a lot and we'd sometimes take a mini-watercolours set each, and sit down for 15min and all attempt to paint the same scene. Funny; cos dad ended up with a huge landscape with tiny houses, or sheep or whatever, and mum ended up with massive houses or sheep and hardly any landscape (i was in the middle somewhere). None of us are much good at art, but it was fun!

Well, my achievement of the day was to rev up my work colleagues to do a 6-month diet with me. 9 of them have signed up. First weigh-in tomorrow. The plan is you have to weigh less each last-day-of-the-month than you did the month before (unless you're already at target weight, in which case you have to maintain). Ends at end of Nov. So everyone can 'win' but it's a slow and steady thing. We'll weigh in every week and i'll plot the results, but it's the monthly weigh-in that's going to count. If you put weight on, you pay a penalty which is individually chosen - will find out tomorrow what people pick. I'm thinking of dishing out $50 each to everyone if i fail to lose weight each month which is $400 and damned expensive - but that's the whole point of a deterrent surely. All i have to do is be consistently good all year and it won't cost me anything....

hey, feathers! So excited that my weigh-in today was 144.4! I know this is silly, but I haven't broken 145 in a LONG time (since maybe before the holidays? But maybe once afterwards, can't remember).

I hope this continues! I would LOVE to break 140 some time in the next month! (I had thought that would be in April, but that was not fated to be for me).

@nineteen - aw, I know how that is, travel and eating a lot -- usually the damage is pretty minimal and temporary, just get back in it and it should be fine. Good job on the whoosh!

@novangel - I know exactly how how you feel. I have had a VERY high stress last couple of months, and a lot of the stress has been lifted in the last week or so, and I am still completely exhausted (and then I got sick) and out of it and can't seem to get my exercise routine back to normal.

@ange - the best fun I used to have was getting together with nearby neighbors and polishing off a bottle of wine, so fun since nobody had to drive! :) Unfortunately those neighbors moved away...but I love that kind of thing. Oh my gosh, that weight loss contest sounds hardcore! :) Let me know how that goes! I would love to do something at work like that, but I would be MORTIFIED to weigh in with anyone but myself or have anyone at work know what I weigh...:D

@Leaves - yep, work related class, in order to update a license for my current position, ugh. So not riveting stuff since I already actually know most of it, it's just jumping through hoops and doing busy work. Wow, you've lost a lot of weight! Amazing!

@Alex - yes, I am glad that ex and I have a good relationship. We have a lot of fun together. I'm looking forward to the summer and just having a companion around. This past week when I was really sick? It really made me sad that I lived alone and that nobody was around to see if I was okay or needed some tea or anything. Made me miss living with someone (whether that person be a partner or a good friend). And I share your enthusiasm for yummy dates! I'm addicted to them now! :D Oh, and I giggled about the watercolors! i love coloring in mandela coloring books, heh.

@Turbo - yes, I might have to agree with some of the others about the overtraining maybe contributing to your lack of TOM. Low 130s is on the more slender side for your height (on me even it would be okay, but a little on the chunky side, and you are about six inches taller). Nothing wrong with wanting to stay around that weight and maintain, but I wonder if the stress of it is affecting your TOM? I'm not sure. But I think you should for sure get the blood work done to rule out anything else, no baby surprises in 7 months!! :)

Hi Feathers,

I'm up cause I had a lot of Chinese food for dinner (at a restaurant with friends, not "sad lonely takeout" as if that means any difference) - 125.6 this AM. I had a GREAT HIIT treadmill session and could have kept going forever. I keep putting off going to the doctor to get my back/leg pain checked out because I am in denial that it could possibly be a herniated disc or something scary like that - not smart.

As always I'm working on trying to accept myself and remind myself that existing is not a contest of weighing the least I have ever weighed or being leaner than other people. It's about doing things I like doing that aren't BAD for me (except a few times a year, hehe) and getting enough sleep and being competent at work and having fulfilling relationships with people.

Gearing up for that music festival next weekend - not excited about sitting in a car for 10 hours each way ESPECIALLY on the way back - going to make sure I locate some cheap motels on the way back for the sake of crashing if we need to. I won't compromise safety and sanity by having overtired/fried people driving. Does anyone have any awesome quick-slimming tips - like doing a keto/IP/Atkins induction for a week or something? Not like I actually will stick to it or anything, but you know.

Some pictures from recent excursions:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.n...78616568_n.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.n...35534251_n.jpg
Mother's Day! don't mind my bloated hangoverface

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.n...55436348_n.jpg

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphot...65716007_n.jpg
from our hike in the Adirondacks a couple weeks ago

olehcat Hooray for the low WI! It's funny and sad all at once how different certain numbers feel from other numbers. Are you all recovered from your illness??

ange82much Interesting idea for a contest. I'm sure "not having to pay other people for one's own weight gain" is a very strong incentive to stay on track - and with the new running route right by work you'll also not be able to use "nowhere to walk/run" as a reason to stay seated through lunch (I'm struggling with myself trying to talk myself into going for a walk, it's windy and grey but I don't NEED to sit in a chair for 8 hours straight!).

mkroyer Stop lurking and post sometimes! :P I tend to agree with what you've said about how resting and eating at maintenance calories will be the magic formula to bring TOM back.

nineteen Nice to find you have in fact not gained weight but lost it over a vacation! It really seems like a crap chute with those things...sometimes I feel like all I do is eat and I come back lighter, and other times I feel I'm being moderate in everything and can't zip stuff.

Alex I'm sorry to hear you've been feeling blah lately. Is it due to anything specific? How did the date go over the weekend? Graze box is an interesting idea - I think it would work great for some, but for those with a rebellious spirit like myself who freak out at the presence of boundaries or restrictions, could be totally ineffective and have the opposite effect.

Leaves Thanks for asking - the dinner was amazing and very rich. You know what's sort of funny is that my 2 girlfriends I see most where I'm living now also share our name - so on occasions we go out and meet people they think we're making fun of them by saying we all have the same name!

Turbo IMO you should definitely get a second opinion. Interestingly I also had low blood pressure and a lower resting heart rate when I was eating at a deficit, and both seem to have increased now that I eat maintenance calories or more most days. As long as you're not pregnant though who cares? :P

novangel Did the leggings come yet? You HAVE to post a photo! :P Sorry you have been feeling all crappy and tired. Has it improved at all since you made that last post?

xiaobaicai That sounds like an "involuntary refeed" more so than a "binge" if you have been logging 10+ mile runs regularly and didn't feel full. I definitely got nostalgic for some things in Japan but I have to admit the thing I missed most was being able to get a salad full of STUFF at restaurants like you can here - with cheese crumbles and fruit and nuts and all that stuff. CONGRATS on finishing that assignment!!!!

Olehcat Thank you! Congrats on the breakthrough! I know how that tiny nudge lower on the scale can make a huge difference to your momentum! Great work!! :)

Krampus Thank you! Also, I love your pics. You look fantastic!!!

I am happy I weighed in again at 141.

Hope everyone has a great day!

nineteen : Congrats on the low WI! That is definitely a huge kickstart!

Alexis : Jesus, WHO paints watercolors before bed!? I have SO not acquired this peaceful mind yet LOL

mkroyer : Actually, I am conscious of everything you posted. Actually, not having my period wouldn't be a big deal for me, knowing that I just enter Maintenance mode, struggling the right balance in this, being on a tight training schedule as my next half is coming toward me quickly, probably still not eating enough, despite the increased of calories I'm trying to eat lately.

All of this would make me go '' MEHHHH '' at my lack of periods... The thing is, we had a little contraception incident, 3 months ago, and since than it is WWIII between the ''you are maybe pregnant'' and the ''you are not pregnant'' iin my mind. I had to take the special ''take the next day'' BC pill, TOM came the next month (but was it really TOM? Or just spotting?) and after that, nada. The lack of TOM alone, I can do. The lack of TOM + that event = a bit more stressful :S

The doctor was pretty confident that I was not pregnant though, I did not have more symptoms + the negative tests, but the ''what if..?!'' is still there and annoying. :(

novangel : Thank for you comment, too. I must be so annoying with al those stories lol. I'm with Krampus, did the legging came in already??

ange : I love the slow and steady aspect of your little competition! And woooah 50$, you ARE NOT JOKING with this thing ;)

Olehcat : That is funny your mentioned the stress of maintaining, because I was readying about lack of period this afternoon, and I was ready a very good article from a clinic in France saying that ''mental anorexia'', like being obsessed by losing weight or not gaining, could sometimes provoked the absence of TOM. - Congrats on your low WI! You go woman!!

krampus : The part where you are saying when it's not about being a contest about being at the lowest weight you can ever be - well, I can relate to that :P Be careful about this 10 hours drive thing!!! I don't know about atkin/IP, but for the keto diet, the only thing I know is that it is INTENSE and that if you don't suffer epilepsy, you probably don't want to go through that :P Love your pictures - I would have stolen one of those duckies.

***

Back in the 132's this morning. I had a good lifting workout, I was able to increase the Barbell Squat of 5 pounds and I noticed that my form is getting much better.

I read all your comments and I agree with everything everybody said. I'm probably over-training right now and being just out of dieting mode and trying this maintenance thing, there's a lot of chance that I'm still not eating enough, even if increasing my calories of 200 felt hugeee to me. I feel like this typical eating disorder kid who don't know how it is to eat normally, know what I mean??

I bumped my calories to a basal 2000 + bonus depending of the daily workout. I'm honestly still calories counting, to make sure to hit the number. I grew so used to smaller portions, that even at 1800, I had to take a snack in the evening to increase the number.

Okay, sorry for all those #firstworldproblems ramblinng. Peace ouuut!

Yes, they came! I know in the pic they look like a stretchy material but they're actually denim believe it or not. I had to get a size 10 to fit VS skinny jeans otherwise I'm normally a size 6-8, just depends on brand.

I really wanted the red ones but thought it would be too obnoxious if I wanted to wear them anywhere else besides work. I can post a pic of them later. ;)

I need to get off my @ss and get to the gym.

Krampus, love the pictures. :)

novangel Please do post a pic! :)

the weigh-in went well today at work, and i have 10 'victims' signed up, which is heaps really as there's only about 20 of us in the offices!

and my other achievement of the day was running the full length of The Trail
(6.1km) at lunchtime without stopping to walk for the first time, and 4 mins faster than this time last week! Still really slow, but i don't need to talk about that.

so it wasn't my most ever productive day work-wise but quite enjoyable!

olehcat - 3 of the girls weren't too thrilled about everyone knowing their weight either, so i weighed them 'in private' and then set their starting weight to zero, and from now on their weight is recorded as amount of weight lost (obviously i still have to see what the scales say, but no-one else knows - and to be honest, after they'd braced the scales, they weren't as worried about sharing it any more for some reason - although we'll stick with the weight-lost recording)

krampus awww, ducks. i've got a real soft spot for ducks. when i grow up and stop travelling all the time i'd love to have some pet ducks - it's a sort of ambition of mine. Good idea re the motels. Driving whilst tired is totally not on. Or even make sure the driver just pulls over and naps in the car for a bit, can work for a short time.

turbo i reckon you need to find another opinion or another test, just for peace of mind! Sure you'll be fine though!

nineteen great work on the 141

to all those dates-lovers, my sweet treat of the day at the moment is a dried fig after dinner. similar i guess, and unfortunately clocks in about 45calories but i'm using it as my end-of-meal indicator so that i'm not thinking about food again after that. Yum.

(((Turbo, Krampus, Ange, nineteen, nova, oleh + anyone else I missed...)))

I've been just kind of dragging my feet in the world of weight loss.

Still checking in here, trying to be accountable.

TOM just appeared and I was dangerously close to off the rails, so that's not feeling great.

Have also decided to just bite the bullet and go to a proper running store to get fitted for shoes, so have to to wait awhile to save up enough coin for that one.

Happy friday eve, all!

Okay, this is going to sound so dumb, but I have come to the conclusion that I am very good at maintaining my weight, but I absolutely SUCK and seem incapable of actual weight loss. This has been the case since well, five years ago, really. I've been struggling to get back to where I felt good (in the 120s where I was about 7 years ago before the upward creep started) but I sure as **** don't want to be in the 140s and there I've been completely stuck for over a year now. That's completely ridiculous and the only person I have to blame is myself.

Yeah, I'm feeling pissy because I weighed in at 146.6 today. Yes, I realize that it's probably water retention because I ate something with a lot of sodium yesterday, but still. My sodium high sure shouldn't be that high either.

Anyway, I've come to the conclusion that I just don't know how to lose weight. Okay, no. That's not completely true. I know how to lose weight, but I don't know how to do it and have a life at the same time. Or maybe "having a life" is supposed to be something you do only at maintenance? I hear of so many people who have willpowers of steel who are able to eat their very very healthy diets and just not go out much or drink much or do whatever for the months it takes to get the weight down. I don't seem to have that willpower. I am easily swayed by an invitation to go out for drinks or that siren call of Thai noodle takeout after a stressful week at work, etc.

Ugh, this is it. I either need to sh** or get off the pot. I need to stop agonizing and crying over not losing weight and then doing things that obviously sabotage the efforts. Moderation and fun is for maintenance -- or something. I dunno. Still thinking on it. But I need a long term plan for this summer, too, since my ex will be here and he loves to go out to eat. It's not that I can't go or that I have to ruin it for him, I just need a strict plan that I will follow and some leeway for treats. Hmm...need to think on it!

@krampus - baby ducklings! Cute frogs! You look really great in that pic. I think you're really right about settling in and getting to "live life" over being overly lean. *nods* I hope I can be in maintenance at some time in the not so distant future and have the same attitude. I'm mostly recovered but my nose is still dripping and I'm still hacking up a lung occasionally!

@nineteen - good job on weighing in pre-vacation!

@Turbo - I think it's really awesome that you are taking everything into consideration and are reading up and researching and are aware of that mind set where you are not quite sure how to eat normally and how to maintain!

@ange - Go you on the trail run! (I'm still thinking about those snake kits, lol). And as for the fig/dates, to me they do feel like a real dessert, so it's the perfect thing to have right after a meal, for that sweet treat that to me is the "end" of eating for the evening!

@alex - I hear ya, I hear ya! Keep checking in!

krampus- haha, yes. It was definitely a popular name in my birth year, I remember there being three of us in my dance class, and always at least two of us in class at school. Those ducklings are so cute!

nineteen- way to go on the weigh-in! :)

turbo- hope you're feeling better asap! I know what you mean about increasing your calories seeming huge- I felt like I absolutely stuffed myself at my parents yesterday, but totted it up to just over 2000 calories. Seemed like 5000!

novangel- yes, pics please! I bet they look fab :)

ange- I've never had a dried fig- are they nice? My gran has a massive fig tree in her garden but I always thought they looked really yucky! haha, guess I shouldn't be judging without trying.

Alex-bleh, hope you're not suffering from TOM too much! Take some time to pamper yourself!

oleh- good luck with working out a plan that works for you. The best way is finding something that is flexible and works for you. and one that lets you have treats! :)

I'm up a little today, went home to my parents yesterday as we went to the theatre. I seriously cannot believe the amount of food they buy! So as always, I ate too much while I was there, including a pretty big chocolate bar at the theatre. Really hoping to do some exercise today to get back on track, but it's pizza night tonight and there's a party tomorrow. Better get running now and not stop until tomorrow morning! :dizzy:

Zomg, you guys, I'm not dead!

I'm sorry to going MIA! I've been crazy busy with work and prepping for my Ragnar Relay (coming up on June 7 & 8). :carrot: Spending a ton of time outside and very little on the computer. It's been gorgeous biking weather, FINALLY! Finally spring in Wisconsin! I've been hitting the trail with some long rides around the lake to break in the season.

Not much else to report. Wednesday and Saturday morning Farmer's market is finally up and running again. Makes me extremely happy.

novangel : Yes, post a picture of the pants!! Oh and by the way, I love what you said concerning on the A&F petition subject. It's like you took everything that was rambling in my brain and put it into nice words ;)

ange : That is an awesome improvment on your run! Way to go! 4 minutes faster is amazing

Alexis : Sorry to hear you've been feeling a bit down :( Hope you'll feel better soon!

For running shoes, you could use a little cheat ; you can go try some in a store and take note of the brand and size that fit you best and than order the pair on https://www.33-off.com/ , they have great discount usually.

olehcat : I think I can return to you what you said to me : being aware of you are not quite sure how to lose weight is probably already a big step. I understand you so much about your thoughts on the upcoming summer... Are you still running a bit? Keeping up with the training could help create a deficit without having to cut too much in your food intake?

Leaves : Pizza night sounds like a good night ;) Have fun!

Aidanqm : Hi!!! I love your new picture :) Are you still in marathon training?

***

Hi! Weight is doing great and the body seems to react nicely to the calories increase. Working my way on not stressing to much over food ; last night we went out for beers with a friend, we are planning on eating out tonight and we are having people over for dinner tomorrow night for BBQ ribs. As long as it's quality food, it is fine with me, I think.

We are trying a resto we've been wanting to try forever tonight. It's some kind of French/Fusion cuisine but with local products, the chef guy is praised by tons of people. The only thing is that it is more expensive but they have this 20$ menu if you get there after 9PM. Our plan is to go watch Iron Man 3 and than head out there have a late dinner. CAN'T WAIT.

Here's the menu, I have no idea to get, I wanted to have your opinion but they don't have an english page RAGGHHHR. http://www.auguste-restaurant.com/me...u-couche-tard/

Have a good friday ladies!

Looks yum Turbo, if I weren't a vegetarian, I think the Chinese style pate or the coq au vin look good. I'm a bit freaked out by black pudding, lol.

And the ravioli to start, yum!

ange Great work with the run! :)

alexis I hope you feel better soon! Wise move about the shoes -- good shoes are so important.

olehcat We are in a similar situation! I'm good at maintaining, but extra weight slowly crept up on me, too. I hope you can find the inner fire/determination you need. I know it is so challenging. Hopefully we can cheer each other on! :)

Leaves Have fun tonight, and I hope you had a great run! :)

Aidenqm I'm so happy about the good weather, too! This Spring was a really, really slow one...

Turbo I clearly need to brush up on my French! The Poisson frit sounds good to me, though. :) Let us know how it goes!

I am really happy to report another pound lost! I am down to 140!!! It's a bit surreal. I think it will take some patience on my part to get into the 130's, but it's such a happy thought to be getting back there.

Such a good run! I ran about 2km without stopping which is further than I've ever ran before in one go. On such a high, huge personal record! :D

Leaves That is amazing!!! I could only dream of doing that. Congrats!! :)

nineteen ~ Hurray for the downward progression! Well done, you!

Leaves ~ I like your idea for some pampering. That might definitely be in order. And excellent job on the 2k run without stopping!

Turbo ~ Thanks for the sneak cheat website> :thup: If/when I actually get up the nerve to go to the store, I'll probably buy whatever pair they recommend for me (planning on at least $100...yikes!) but then buy any subsequent pairs online, once I know what brand is best for me. I think it'll help to have that professional evaluation to help me know what to look for in a running shoe, plus if I actually go there and take up their time and expertise, I'd feel like a jerk if I didn't buy the shoe there.

Krampus ~ Pics are soooo cuuute (and delicious)!!!!

AidanQ ~ Hi there! Good to see you back.

Oleh ~ I hear you on ALL of that girl... I feel like it's a situation of JUST DO SOMETHING ALREADY!! I want to scream at myself...

~~~
Planning on a marathon session of Game of Thrones season 3 tonight w. my bestie. I'm excited to check out Mance Rayder, played by one of my favorite actors of all time: Mr. Ciaran Hinds. Yay!!!
(actually the whole reason my stupid friend suckered me into watching the show to begin with....)

Then planning on baby-sitting on Saturday for a family I used to sit for ages ago. Possibly marathon part two (depending on how far we get tonight) then meeting up with Mr. PhD for a street fair on Sunday.

I get your feeling, about feeling not nice of getting their expertise but not buying there LOL This plan was actually the initial plan of my boyfriend, who loathes spending big amount of money. He was all ''I'm so going to do that to save money!'' but when the time came, he actually got his pair at the store too :P Personally I'm a bad actor, I could never fake ''meeeh no I'm not sure about the shoes'' if they do fit.

Have fun with you GoT marathon! Is the whole season out there yet? And Mance Rayder is cool, but I so don't get the guy at the same time. Ahh, wildlings :P

it's weekend!!! yippee!! beautiful weather again here and just back in from a run with the dog. Breakfast and 3FC time now - perfect start to the day.

leaves -you really made me excited for you when you said you're on a high after 2km non-stop! Congratulations!!! It's a fantastic feeling to clock up a personal best and there's no stopping you now! If you can do 2km you can do anything you want going forward. And what? Your gran has a fig tree but you've never had the figs??!?! I like dried figs, but fresh figs are heaven-on-a-tree! Try them....

olehcat great post. totally totally understand and i've been there too, thinking that i was losing weight for years but in reality standing still! Exactly the same reasons as you, just too much 'normal life' getting in the way. A couple of years ago i broke out of that and had my best weight-loss effort, and it was by doing the obvious - just being more strict 95% of the time. But the difference was my head space. For some reason that i can't readily tap in to, i was motivated to do it, and i actually enjoyed it and i didn't feel deprived, and perhaps most importantly i had a long range view and considered one month at a time - so if i lost 1lb over a month i was happy, and kept repeating. So basically i totally understand, and i also know it's possible to change and still enjoy your life (a lot) but i don't know how to force your head to get there mentally (when i figure it out i'll write a book and become rich and retire.......)

nineteen another lb?? you're going gang-busters! Great work.

Alex i watched the first season of GoT on a long haul flight somewhere and then decided to read the books. Pheww, that was long-haul for sure. Dull going after about the 3rd. Why does he like dumping the most interesting characters and focusing on some other trivialities?? Hope he gets back to the good stories for the next book, whenever that's out....

turbo mmmmm. foooood. report back on what you picked at the French place. Actually 4 mins faster on my run isn't good at all really because that was the first time i was able to run it all, so the week before i stopped for a couple of walk-intervals. There's still plenty of room for improvement believe me! Happy that i can run 6km at least now anyway. It's something to work with.

aid hello! I'm new here (second time around) so we haven't met! Ragnar Relay? What's that?

Not got much to say for myself. Hubby and i had a 'date night' last night and went to the pub for a couple of wines and some greek food, which is part of my allowable 'off plan' part of The Plan. Good times. This afternoon we're off to a friends house-warming party where loads of our friends will be, but i've nominated myself for driving duties, and since it's an afternoon do i'm planning on a zero calorie event (will take some soda water and cut bits of lemon but keep off the food which will be nibbles all day so i'm sure no-one will notice or care). I had a mini-woosh yesterday and dropped 1lb, but was up again this morning (after the night out!). It all makes sense and overall i'm dropping very slowly but steadily!

Holding steady at 140 lbs.

Hope everyone's having a relaxing Sunday. :)

Just checkin' in real quick! My waist has been steadily at 26" for about 5 days, now, so I'm gonna go ahead and move my ticker! I know it's just 1/4", but when you're looking to lose just those tone-up/vanity pounds, a whole inch is a helluva lot!

I only logged 22.2 miles last week, since I wanted to take it easy with getting myself back into the swing of my usual running schedule. If I'm not too heinously lazy today -- and I'd *better* not be! -- I'm gonna do a 14+'er. I like to end my long runs at the grocery store, so that I can treat myself to some shopping as a reward for my efforts :P

Thanks everyone for the congratulations. Haha! I tried to go again yesterday, but part way round saw a huge group of kids with some kind of terrier/cross dog that I think attacked another kid. There was so much shouting and barking and some guy yelling so I didn't fancy doing the circuit again! :( I don't think anyone was serious injured as another woman took the dog away and it all calmed down but it was pretty unpleasant to be going past of.

I've been up a couple of pounds for the past few days, probably due to all the salty party snacks and things. Been peeing pretty much all morning, so hoping I might be losing some retained water now lol.

Congrats on the measurement xiao, I'm sure I can only dream of a 26" waist!

Leaves: Ughhh. I am pretty well terrified of dogs, and so seeing a one bite a kid would probably freak me out so bad that my whole day would be ruined. And about the waist measure -- I really hope it's accurate, because when I take it, I blow aallll the air in my lungs out and then draw my torso up tight. I do make sure I can fit a finger under the tape, but I'm not sure if the measurement is artificially low.

Hey Feathers,

quick check in, my weight is up after a weekend of massive food fest. I don't mind much though, it will probably go down at some point with water and coffee. And anyways I regret nothing, the food was amazing. At the French/Fusion place Friday we had a ''turn over''-poutine (it's like, little balls of poutine... weird be so good), blue cheese pears and nuts salad and veal liver with bacon flavored potato. I wanted to lick my PLATE.

I'm happy to go back on track, even if we started the week this morning with banana bread waffles (it's a holiday here today). It's in my calories log though, so if I am careful for the rest of the day, there is no big problem.

I want to do good this week though, I have a race next weekend and I've been drinking alcohol for the last 4 days in a row. I'm good for a little food/alcohol detox this week.

Happy Monday ladies!

Happy Monday Feathers! I'm terrible about posting as sson as things get super busy here. <back to lurk mode> You guys are awesome...keep on keeping on.

I've been MIA too I was having major laptop problems. After $120 I got 99% of it fixed but my left button is shot. I can tap the mouse pad for now instead but I'm done buying computers...next time it will be a tablet.

I haven't been to the gym since Friday but my weight feels fine. I will try to go tomorrow. I'm on my cell so I will talk more later. Night!

Happy Tuesday Feathers!

I blew up over the weekend - spent the weekend in Connecticut being laid-back. We stayed with BF's sister and her boyfriend who cooked us delicious meals and entertained us with mycology anecdotes. They have a jar of dehydrated laughing jims (waraitake) - I really want to try them sometime. BF's mom's birthday was last weekend so we went to Home Depot and got stuff to make a fence for her garden. Her boyfriend s between chemo treatments and smoked us up - nothing like sharing a joint with a guy dying of lung cancer, tell you what. Spent the day hauling rocks and dirt around, found and held a baby snake that musked on me, and planted cucumbers. Of course BF's mom made a ton of amazing food - strawberry shortcake, egg casserole, toast and butter and bacon for breakfast, and for lunch two hours later tomato soup, tomato cheese pie and stromboli. All the food she makes is stuff I would never seek out or think to eat but it's all soooooooooooo good.

In the evening we went to the AA sober club open mic with BF's dad and I had a cheeseburger and blueberry pie with ice cream - the place purports to be friendly to all ___ Anon groups but Overeaters Anonymous would be sh!t out of luck. The music was so laughably bad - a cover band playing awful songs like "Play That Funky Music" as well as songs about PARTYING IN THE SEVENTIES, a 16 year old kid who played scream-y blues/rock and roll and shredded the heck out of a Telecaster but looked at me like I was Satan when I asked if he played metal, and countless others about finding faith and recovery and struggles. BF's dad made me play a 3/4 size violin onstage with a couple Christian acoustic guitar guys - he had CALLED THEM before my arrival and asked them specifically to bring a violin, so when they got onstage they said "I HEAR THERE IS A FIDDLE PLAYER HERE" - I couldn't decline without being a jerk so up I went, shaking the entire time and tuning the teeny tiny toy violin while playing it. Needless to say it wasn't my best performance ever, but given the nature of the audience everyone was really impressed or at least pretended to be. I love that my gut response to their praise was "guilt" - it is pretty clear I need to work on being less performance-shy and be able to accept compliments.

Mainly due to hardly eating anything yesterday I am down to 124.6 this morning after blowing up and seeing 127 yesterday. I am in crunch mode this week since that festival is at the end and I am going to wear CROP TOPS. Made a very tasty dinner last night - chicken and greens with applesauce and cumin - tonight is MALL MADNESS with my roommate. Forever 21 has a ton of amazing tops I want. Like THIS.

http://www.forever21.com/images/main...9428810-01.jpg

Hope everyone is well!

novangel Computers can be a real PITA, they're almost as bad as CARS sometimes when it comes to costly repairs. I have an Apple laptop that is about to poop the bed. Not gonna replace it with another Apple laptop unless I trip and fall on some money.

BlueIsis It can be hard to keep up. I'm just glad someone still reads the thread!

Turbo I'm in Montreal the weekend of May 31-June 2 and I can't WAIT to stuff my face. Good luck with the detox! Once you start drinking (esp with warm weather) it is hard to stop!

Leaves That dogfight/attack? sounds really unsettling - better find a new route! Congrats on your running accomplishment - nothing feels better than running X distance nonstop for the first time. I remember the first time I ran for 5 minutes without walking I couldn't believe it!

xiao Running to the grocery store is a great trick! I used to do that in Japan (granted the grocery store was only 1.5 miles away). How will you get back from the grocery store? Or is it near your house?

nineteen Nice weigh-in! Glad you are on a downward trend!

ange82much Greek food is so good, definitely worth the indulgence. I always volunteer to drive my friends to and from parties and/or going out, too - keeps me in check since I always fall asleep AND get awful hangovers if I overdo it. Are you feeling more like yourself now that you're running regularly again?

Alexistrophic Hope you're feeling a bit more human! How was the date with Mr. Ph.D?

Aidangm There you are! I figured you were busy biking and being outside now that you're not confined to the walls of the gym :D Glad to see you're doing well!

olehcat Wish I had an answer for you. I don't drink a lot (maybe 1-2 nights a week and then I have 1-2 drinks) but I can't say "no" to going out to eat or something homemade at a gathering. I dunno, what's worth it to you? Have you started lifting weights? :D That's really the only reason I can eat as much and as sloppily as I do without gaining weight.

nineteen : you are getting really nice results lately! Must be super motivating :) keep going!!

Leaves : It is always cool to hear about people personal records! You go on that 2k!!

Alexis : So how was this GoT marathon? The boyfriend and I decided to give the series another try after being really disappointed about season 1.

ange : Did you succeed during your house warming party /zero calorie plan? I always have good intentions like but it is so hard to fight the fooooooooooood

xiaobocai : I'm always amazed by the length of your run! Woah. I love stopping at the groceries too after a run, to get my traditional chocolate milk :P yummm!

BlueIsis : Hope you're doing well :)

novangel : I am still waiting for a picture of those VS pants! ;)

krampus : Okay, I just ate and I am super full, but I still managed to drool over the description of the food your boyfriend's mom cooked. OH YEAH, rock that CROP TOP! I just can't make up my mind on trying one on, my stomach and I are still not on the best terms :P Ahhh, I'm gonna be in Montréal THIS coming weekend! Might even go back the weekend after you,re there, it is the Formula One weekend and the boyfriend wants to go check out car... (yaaaaaay)

***

Hi Feathers!!

The weight is back down under my red line, so everything is fine in the world. I succeeded at my first day of Detox Clean Eating/No Alcohol yesterday, despite having the boyfriend pressure to have a glass of wine so we can finish a bottle so it does not go to waste but I said no to peer pressure to drink :P

I did NAWWWWthing yesterday, I was kinda sore from my 18k training on Sunday. Seriously, that run was GLORIOUS. I felt so great and I think I can consider a PR in my next race. We add gnocchis with homemade basil pesto last night, I chopped so much at the poor Basil plant, I doubt he'll make it :P it was nice making good gnocchis though, I had try it before and they were aweful, but these batch with this new recipe was much better. It is nice to clear some kitchen frustrations off my chest :P

We are having beef on the BBQ tonight and I have an 8k with intervals to do at some time this afternoon... Life is good!

Have a nice week, Feathers!

Hi, all!

I've been having a crisis of weight loss thinking the last few days, so I've been quiet, trying to decide on a plan I can stick to and not obsess over food. I am willing to make sacrifices (in fact that's necessary because I didn't get at my current unhappy weight by doing what I should be via eating), but I'm not willing to live on diet food, if that makes sense.

I really like the idea of eating fewer meals (like one main meal and a smaller meal) per day so that the main meal can be satisfying.

Also I've not been exercising consistently the last few weeks. I feel disgusting on that front. Must change. But I'm being indecisive about what to do as far as exercise. Run? Less cardio? More lifting? HIIT? There is so much contradictory information. I know one of any of those is better than doing nothing.

@Leaves - yes, I definitely need to have something that will be flexible and will work for me! That's why I am veering toward doing the one main meal a day with it mostly being healthy food but some treat element to it. Heh, I always overeat when I go to my parents' house for some reason! :) Great job on the run!

@Aidan - you look great in your photo! Yay for farmer's market! Ours has opened up, too, but I don't usually start going until June.

@Turbo - my exercise has been crap ever since I got sick last week (er...almost 2 weeks ago). I've taken a few long walks, but that's it. I really need to change that pronto. When my ex gets here next week, we usually take a lot of long walks (10 K (or 6 miles)) daily. But I do want to add running back in and some lifting! Oh, and my French is rusty but everything on that menu looks amazing! Congrats on getting your weight back under the line again.

@nineteen - thanks for the encouragement! Definitely difficult to get motivated right now for some reason! I feel so weary from starting and restarting and restarting again. *takes deep breath*

@Alex - oh yes! And for me, it's just stick with something already! :-p Oh, wow, watching a show with a friend (especially if wine is involved, lol) is one of my favorite things to do! I hope you had fun!

@ange - That's very wise what you said. The times I've been able to drop weight is when I've been strict 95% of the time, too. Like I'll eat beautifully healthy six days out of the week and then loosen up one day a week. I don't mean stuff myself silly, but just won't worry about what I eat. OR I might eat really, really strict for five days a week and then on the weekend be slightly looser. I hope your party went well on the zero calorie plan! :) That's SO challenging for me when I'm around in a social situation. But I do find that a good club soda with lime or lemon in it is good, also if I'm trying not to drink alcohol at an event! :)

@xiao - your running sounds like it's still going great, though. Good idea to end the run where you can have a reward of shopping. :)

@krampus - Such a good point. When I am in the zone with running (that is, consistently, without getting sidetracked by health which I feel like I've had happen about a billion times in the last few months) or schedule problems, then I can get away with eating a LOT. I need to recreate that for this summer, I think! Yes, and get lifting started (again *sigh* :))

krampus: I had to laugh at your "mycology anecdotes". It's been a long while, but I would love to get in on some of that once I get back to the States. Problem is, those things always give me pop-up thunderstorm diarrhea, which makes for a very interesting come-up experience :D. Also, to smoke and run is, for me, better than "life after death" (as they say around these parts). Some people get too lazy to run, but I find that it really helps me settle into a comfortable groove for long distance pacing, and (most importantly) keeps my mind occupied. Frankly, if I've got some on hand, I never run without it. I'm coming back to the States in a little over a month, and outside of family and Whole Foods and libraries/bookstores that aren't stocked entirely with harmonized media products, that's basically all I'm thinking about doing. Running and biking trails with my good ole' friend.

Turbo: BLUE CHEESE PEARS OH GOD. Those sound insanely delicious and I don't even like cheese that much. Let me guess/fantasize -- did they also have walnuts and brown sugar on them? I'm drooling. Seriously.

olehcat: I know it's a bit of a longer shot, but have you been checked for hypothyroidism or anything like that before? I mean, with a fair amount of effort, you should be able to see at least *some* results, provided that you're not totally underestimating how many calories you're eating a day. That's something that I fell into doing when I lived with my boyfriend before coming to this new city. I made very little progress on my weight loss during that time, because I think I consistently underestimated the calories in stuff like bread and fruit. I don't know whether you count calories or not, but honestly, if I don't count calories, then I simply don't lose weight -- I just maintain. Too much slips through the cracks.
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Just did a few personals here, and so I'm sorry if I left anyone out!

So I've been using this new tactic in my weight loss efforts to great success, and am now down to 55.6 kg and a loose-tape 26" waist. Also, my hip-bones have recently made a re-appearance!

You know how it can be sometimes hard to get definitive information on how many calories are in things? Like, one website will say 1/2 cup of instant oats is 150 calories, where another will say it's 240 or some crap like that? I've been eating a bowl of watery porridge-style oatmeal with every meal and counting it as 240 (+1 TBSP sugar @45 cals, so a sum 285).

The Quaker site, however, says that instant oatmeal is 150 a half cup, and I think their count is probably the most accurate. Because all this calorie business is nothing more than a psychological game for me, if I can trick my brain, I can trick my stomach. So I've been going up to about 1800 a day with this inflated count, and then at the end of the day, pulling the "air" out of my total. If I count those oatmeals as 285, but they're in fact 90 calories fewer, then I can knock off 270 calories and find myself comfortably in the 1500s range with no real effort. I'm gonna get sick of eating oatmeal, but this technique is working so well that I don't even care.

Well i managed the zero-calorie party on Saturday, stuck to the soda and didn't eat anything. It was easy really because i was committed so therefore i wasn't asking myself 'should i, shouldn't i' all the time. And i caught up with lots of champagne-swilling friends which was fun and funny. Didn't feel deprived at all this time, although i couldn't do it all the time.

The Writers Festival started here last night, so i went to the opening address of that which was good, and will be going to a couple more things over the weekend so looking forward to that.

Did a2hr walk on Sat, and then my 6.1km work-run twice this week. On Monday i did intervals of run 0.5km, walk 0.25km, jog 0.25km and repeat for 6km. It was hard! Cranked up the heart rate monitor for the first time in about 2 years and hit over 180bpm in each of the 'run' bits. And today i just jogged the whole thing, but managed a minute faster than last week, so i'm slowly getting fitter which is great. Also had a whoosh in the last 3-4 days and dumped 2lb after a bit of a plateau. Happy days!!

So this is serious, my friends! :) I think I had my click moment finally. I had a last hurrah of Chinese takeout last night, but no more of that for a long time. I even changed my ticker/profile numbers to reflect that this is the starting point. My first mini goal is to get back to 144. That, actually, shouldn't take long at all because I was just 144 last week and so a lot of this extra weight is very probably mostly water weight. After that, this s*** gets real. I REALLY want to see back under 140 again and be where I was 2 summers ago at this time, which was in the mid 130s.

I had yesterday off work mostly because I had to go get a crown at the dentist (which was traumatic because despite 5 shots of novocaine, I STILL felt pain, geesh). The rest of the day I did some serious thinking about my life, including this little failure. I decided that today, Wednesday, May 22, was going to be it. No more fooling around. I do suck at counting every little calorie, but I am going to make healthy choices 95% (stealing ange's number there, lol) of the time, whether I am in a social situation or not. I am not going to give up my wine, but I will have way less of it. I will have occasional days when I will just let go and enjoy, but I will feel better doing that when I have some weight loss under my belt. Not just yet.

Social events? They are all over the place in my life. I have my sister's family/nieces coming into town this weekend with multiple food things happening, my ex husband is coming into town soon after that, there are two end of year parties involving food at my school this week and next. I HAVE to find a way to get around all these minefields without just giving up.

Today's challenge is to get my running restarted again. Even though it's been less than a month since I did the half marathon, illness and laziness have made me feel like I need to start right at the beginning of training again. Today I will do 20 minutes of walking/running outside. I also have some strength training and little exercises in a list to do that I can do right in front of the t.v.

@ange - what is the Writer's Festival? That sounds really intriguing. And go you on keeping the party zero calorie.

@xiao - I have had blood tests and my thyroid comes out normal, however, I am pretty sure that's not the problem. My problem is really simple - I eat too much and I give myself too many passes. I feel like I've been in a constant state of agonizing effort, but I haven't really. I know that it really is me and my mindset, not my body and that's what I need to solve. When I was doing a low carb diet very strictly without cheating back about a year ago (which got derailed when my divorce happened, *sigh*), I dropped weight like crazy and felt how lucky I was to have such a great metabolism. So I know that if I stick to something and just do it and not give myself so many "days off" from it or don't get bored or discouraged and have a Chinese takeout binge, etc., then I will succeed. It's almost like I'm waiting for someone to come up with this PERFECT formula for me of guaranteed success (if you do x, y, and z, you will definitely lose weight and will not hit a plateau) and I'm feeling surly about dealing with the trial and error, and that's what ends up tripping me up every single time. It's all so silly. I wish I was better at being consistent about counting calories. And that's awesome about you being able to trick yourself with the calories. :D

nova- boo laptop. Hope you get it sorted!

krampus- oh man, I'd never heard of stromboli before. Now I want it so much :( Didn't know you played the violin, that's cool!

turbo-double yay for excellent runs and kitchen success. Sounds yummy :) Glad you enjoyed your meal out, that menu looked so good!

oleh- seems like you're working out a good lifestyle for yourself! I know what you mean about all the different types of workout, but like you said, any is better than none! If I were you I would find things that I really enjoyed (maybe a combination of types) and do those, mixing them up when I wanted a change. I figure that especially with body weight exercises (burpees, push ups and all that kind of stuff) really going for it burns quite a lot of calories as well as toning so double bonus :D (not that I like doing burpees at all..)

xiao-So much oatmeal! haha, sounds like it's working for you though. I like going for the higher calorie figure when logging, good idea!

ange- You're kicking that plan girl, way to go! Congratulations on the whoosh, sounds like you're really upping your fitness too. yay :)

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Not really much to report here, I'm back down from my weekend splurge, hoping that I might be down to 142 by Monday. *fingers crossed*. Still feel like I haven't lost anything from my chest though, boo, need to go bra shopping soon! Don't want to spend lots if my size is going to change soon though :(

Otherwise, I have an exam on Saturday. 9am on a Saturday morning, why is my uni allowed to do that. grr! :(

Hi Feathers -

Down another pound, this "totally not eating" thing is working short-term but I am already jonesing for a massive refeed! Just gotta push through til the weekend. I ran 2.5 miles yesterday and was literally so hungry with dropping blood sugar I had to walk a bunch. I don't know how people do VLCD or eat <1300 calories a day EVER.

I went shopping last night and realized I hate everything in stores and I'm becoming so oddly shaped that I can't fit into clothes because they are not designed for hulk shoulders, a small waist and thick thighs. I did buy a pretty crazy crop top at Charlotte Russe, it's not online unfortunately so I may end up subjecting you guys to pictures of it on me.

Leaves 9 AM exam on SATURDAY is brutal. You guys should riot and rebel! You don't sound too worried though - so I'm sure you'll be fine. Being "in between" sucks for shopping!

olehcat Good luck on the click moment! Your plan sounds very manageable and sustainable - lots of people set themselves up for failure after 3 days saying stuff like "I'm gonna do Shaun T's Insanity TWICE A DAY EVERY DAY" and just never complete it. I hope you find success in navigating all the social events too!

ange82much Nice kilometrage! (mileage? I don't know if that works) Are you a writer?

xiaobaicai Ha! They are actually mycologists who go on forays in the woods and know the scientific names of all the shrooms! I only have two mycology anecdotes, one in Amsterdam and one in a cabin in the woods this past February, all involve not being in any condition to be in public and lots of laughing. I admire you - you must be using the S-strain and not the I-strain because I always plant myself directly in the path of whatever snacks are handy and get nothing done. Interesting Jedi mind tricks with the calorie counts!

Turbo MMMMMMMMMMM BBQ beef. It sounds like you are really well prepared for your race! :D I know you'll do great! Shame we won't be in town at the same time! My old roommate P. French (he is French) is in Montreal for a conference for his doctorate program and we are having a joyous reunion.

ange Congrats!!! :)

olehcat I'm really happy for you...I think things have finally "clicked" for both of us, and it's exciting to be back in that mindset, isn't it?? We will get back to the 130's together! :)

Turbo That meal sounded *amazing*! Also, I'm sure you'll do a great job this week with your "detox." :)

Leaves Good look with your exam! Sorry it's so early...that stinks!

krampus Congrats!! Definitely post pics! :)

(Sorry if I missed anyone)

Not much new here...I feel like I kind of ate a lot today, but it may not be as bad as I think. Still at 140. Hoping to be at 139 by the end of the weekend.

I hope you're all having a great night!

olehcat congrats on the new start, and hope you really get stuck in and make the changes you're looking for. The writers festival is a festival of literature really. Novelists, journalists, poets etc from all over the world come to town and talk about their books, their motivations other discussion topics, tell stories, all sorts of things and i'd say there's a few hundred events over the course of the week that you can go to. I"m not a writer but i like to read, so find it interesting!

nineteen just noticed how much weight you lost (4 years ago)! Wow that's an amazing lifestyle change. How did you do it? How long were you at top weight for? Are you confident youll never go back?