ENFJ... if you gals know what that means!

I weighed this morning for the first time in 4 weeks! I thought it was longer... It felt longer! Anyway, I'm 165, which is fine by me! It's 2lbs under the stinky plateau still and just 1lb higher than "normal" and 2 1/2lbs higher than my lowest weight. I'm also 23.1% BF, which is great, since I was 23.8 last time I looked, so the 2lbs I've lost since the plateau is 2lbs of pure fat! Yeah baby!

Speaking of babies, my arch nemesis at kickboxing is preggers! Actually she isn't my arch nemesis, but she is my competition for first female black belt in the club. So... I might well get that black belt first, even though she is 1 belt ahead of me! Is it evil to be pleased that she's had a "set back" in her training, even though it is a lovely thing to happen??

Oh and I resisted Maltesers last night and got a big fat-free yoghurt instead.

Sprinkle me with for the weekend though....

Hey Frus .... congratulations on breaking your plateau. Just where does one find this magical will power dust??? I'd like to have a truckload delivered to my house!

Seriously...went out to dinner last night with a friend to meet the people that we are going on vacation with (12 days in the Galapagos Islands (should lose a few lbs there between hiking & swimming for 8 days) and Ecuador.

I was pretty proud of my food choices...I wasn't too bad (but I wasn't too good either lol). Opted for grilled shrimp and 2 itty bitty grilled lamb chops over plain rice, also half a pita bread with yogurt sauce but that didn't seem too unhealthy. I splurged on a bit of wine with dinner but didn't go overboard on that either, so I am feeling pretty good. Greek food is one of my favorites and I did manage to stay away from the gyros and the oily dips so I consider it a victory (even if only a little one).

Anyway...off to check my e-mail and then into the shower. Have a great day!

Well done! That's something I don't do well - eating out! I'm working on it!

Can you order me a truckload when you find the ?

dasi, I am so jealous that you are going to the galapagos....you will have to give us many details. My boyfriend and I have always talked about going there but he didn't think it was affordable.

Things on my end are going all right...better food choices and keeping up with the exercise, as always. I have started going to bed earlier to make sure my sleep habits are healthy too.

Good Morning! It's very encouraging to come here first thing in the morning and hear from all of you!

I think I'm back! Yay! I've managed two days in a row of good, clean eating and plenty of exercise. It doesn't sound like much, I know, but I'm feeling that mental "click" too so I think I'm really, really, about to lose these blasted 20 pounds. Don't go back and read any of my previous posts because I'll sound like a broken record. But I have that feeling that I think most of us get when we know for sure we've made a REAL commitment. It is the feeling of control, ya know?

I've been letting these 8 pounds I've gained bring me down a bit. But, last night while I was working out I was thinking about them and trying to give them a postive spin. Here is what I came up with. I felt exceptionally thin during the couple of months that I spent weighing 134 pounds. We just got some pictures back taken during that time. Imagine my surprise to see that I WAS NOT exceptionally thin. Now, I liked the pictures and I could see that I looked "normal" but I felt better than normal at the time. I think that is why I became complacent in the first place. So, here I am 8 pounds heavier than the weight that I felt so grand at. And I feel fat. Not just plain old fat, but the mental fat that makes you uncomfortable in your own skin (and favorite jeans!). And that is what has me going again. Not self hate, but that fearfulness of what I know comes next if I don't get back on the ball. I believe it would have been very likely that I would have lollygagged around 134 for the rest of my life had I not gained back these few pounds and gained a new perspective in the process. I always knew I wanted to go lower than 134 but I don't think I would have actually done it. All of the weights between 214 and 134 are sort of a blur so all I could compare were the two. And, let's face it, chubby or not, 134 seems a heck of a lot better than 214. These 8 pounds have given me an opportunity to compare 134 to something a little less drastic and I'm able to see that nothing in between is where I want to be. None of it is good enough and I know I can do better.

Dasi, your vacation sounds wonderful. We won't be able to do that kind of traveling until our kids are a bit older (read: GROWN lol) but I really look forward to the days that we can. And your dinner out sounds very reasonable. Good for you. We have a Greek place that I just love. They have a huge outdoor deck with lots of vines and plants and on Saturday and Sunday afternoons they have someone playing really laid back music out there. And the food is awesome (especially washed down with an ice cold beer). It is one of my favorite places to go in the Spring when the weather starts to warm up.

2frus, I don't think you have to feel guilty about your competition having a set back. I mean, it isn't like you wished she'd break a leg so you could get the black belt first. At least I assume you didn't. LOL!

Hope everyone has a successful day!

I'm exactly the same way. I've really been struggling this week. Even though I've been totally on plan and exercising every day, I'm not seeing any movement. Scale or measurements. So, here I am totally frustrated and ready to have a minor binge. So far though I've managed to avoid all the temptations. GIVE ME STRENGTH!!

2frus~~Congrats on the red belt and the red shoes too!! I don't know how you avoided the scale for a whole month. I couldn't do it.

lucky~~Glad you've found your motivation and have managed to find the track again. 134 sounds like a dream to me. I've really been feeling like I'm going to be stuck at 150 for the rest of my life.

daisimae~~Vacation......what does that word mean anyway? lol Sounds like a dream trip.

lizz~~Glad things are going well for you.

teapotdynamo~~You are definitely NOT a failure! I have days when I feel like that too. I've lost 75, yet it's the last 10 that are going to defeat me.

Gaylyn

It's a bit shocking to see myself quoted! But I'm glad if it helped you Gaylyn.

I kinda fell asleep this afternoon. Missed a couple of snacks but I'm running out of exercise time too! I'll go do back and biceps in front of the TV when something starts at 8 pm.

Hello! Hello! What new this week gals?

I'll tell you what's new - I've lost 2 pounds! Hip, hip, hooray! It is almost as much fun losing them the second time as it was the first. LOL.

Ah but you're so much wiser about keeping them off this time too! Congratulations.

Well done lucky!

I had a double kickbox last night, which was fun. Spent most of the day making flapjacks (healthy ones!!) and feeling sick from Splenda overdose it doesn't say on the packet that 1oz splenda does not equal 1oz sugar!! So I overdosed the Splenda by about 4 times... I sorted it out ok for the second batch though!

Hoping to just take it easy and have a rest day tonight. I was going to go to a ballet class, but I hurt my foot at kickboxing and probably couldn't take an hour and a half on my tippy toes. I might go next week just to see what it's all about...

Then it's kickboxing tomorrow morning, wedding dress trials in the afternoon and Brussels on Sunday! What a hectic weekend!

Great googly, moogly, frus! Kickboxing, ballet, running, wedding planning - is there anything you DON'T do?

You know how sometimes you can't see the trees for the forest? Well, this week I've realized that when I eat better I want to exercise and when I exercise I want to eat better. You would think that after almost a year and a half that I wouldn't need to remind myself of such things. After a few months of maintainence then a slow but sure gain, this week has been like taking a brand new look at weight loss.

So now I'm taking a fresh look at maintaining this weight loss too. I think I've come a long way given that at no other weight loss attempt did I stop gaining once I started but, clearly, I have a lot to learn - mostly about myself. After all, I understand the basics of maintaining it is applying them that I don't have much exeperience with. I am wondering if I am not one of those people who NEEDS to be losing weight (or at least in that mindset) to keep what I've lost off. I've been talking to and thinking about all of the people I know who have never been overweight. They are forever complaining of wanting to lose 5 pounds or so. It always drove me crazy. But I'm beginning to think that this is a part of their maintaining a healthy weight. Maybe it isn't that they really think they need to lose 5 pounds but that focusing on these imaginary 5 pounds is what keeps them from gaining. I'm all about healthy habits, and lifelong positive changes. It is true that this is not a diet but a lifestyle change. Perhaps, though, a slight "diet" attitude isn't so bad over the long haul. After all, it was when I became satisfied with myself and my progress that I became complacent and gradually put on these 8 pounds. While I am certain I can reach my goal weight and stay there perhaps I'm not mentally/emotionally capable of letting go of the "high" that losing weight gives me. Or something like that!

Oh, and Susan, I don't really get the whole TGIF anymore either. I kind of miss it! But, now that I stay at home with the kids instead of working there isn't any difference between Monday and Friday or Tuesday and Saturday. Heck, I usually don't know what day of the week it is! Still, happy Friday to the rest of you!

yeah tgif, but I'm all thrown because I took yesterday off anyway I usually don't know what day it is, but I try to keep track so I don't end up kickboxing when I sould be at home or vice versa!

Lucky~~Good for you on losing two pounds! I've often thought about how I'm going to maintain also. I think I'll be one of THOSE annoying people saying that I still want to lose 5-10 more lbs to keep myself focused. I definitely do better with boundries.

2frus~~You sure sound like a busy lady! I envy your ability to take all your classes. I'm stuck with home exercises. Maybe when the kids are older.....

Susan~~Sorry to shock you!

Today marks 10 months since I started. So the grand totals so far are.....
75 lbs lost
8.25" off my bust
10.5" off my waist
14" off my hips
4" off each arm
7" off each thigh
For a total of 54.75"!!!

For today I'm going to be content and proud with the progress I've made. Tomorrow I'll worry about the last 10. lol

Gaylyn