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?