GeorgiaLady-I have the same afternoon snacking thing. I try to keep my hands busy at that time, by folding socks and sipping a Diet Coke while watching a good tv show, or doing some of my crafting/sewing at that time of day-so if you sew, knit, like to do crossword books, etc.-that is a great way to busy yourself so you don't eat.
I also totally agree with the journaling. I plan to journal the rest of my life. I want to always keep track of what I am eating-and besides, once you begin doing it-it really doesn't take all that long, and becomes a healthy "habit."
Aphil

Hello everyone!

Blow a big raspberry (TTTTHHHPPPPTTT!!) at me for not stopping in more often! I don't even have the excuse of being too busy - just the "oh my gosh, it's still deep snow/winter" doldrums.

Welcome GeorgiaLady! Congratulations on what you have already lost; and good luck with success here, which you're sure to have, with our great coach Aphil!

Oh yes, besides the weight loss so far, congrats on the lower BP, which you know goes hand-in-hand with good health. Hard to accept about having the higher amount of calories that you thought, isn't it? But it's absolutely true. Hey, if you've become accustomed to that smaller amount of calories at meals, perhaps the additional amount could go for when you are having a "snack attack".

And yes, don't deny yourself things along the way - don't "put off" living happily until you are close to your goal - this whole thing is part of our life's journey.

I also will never be fit unless I make a concerted effort - I HAVE to work out, I HAVE to constantly watch what I eat; and if I go back to my old lifestyle, I will gain the weight back and lose the muscle I have worked so hard for; so everyday is still a challenge. That sounds daunting; sorry, didn't mean it that way. Just meant that it just doesn't come easily or without effort, for me. It's also harder in the winter for me, as I'm not an cold-outdoor-loving person (then why the heck do I live in Vermont, right? haha) But it does get easier with time; with the new habits getting established; and riding on one's successes. And commiserating (sp?) with the great ladies here!

Aphil, thank you for sharing your pics! You are beautiful! Love the enhanced makeup, headwrap, and cool chest tat!! You must also have your belt that husband got you for Valentine'd Day - ?

The indoor tanning is still doing well to help with my winter blues. I am being careful with the amount of minutes, and using lots of moisturizer. I do realize the disadvantages, but still think it's better than having my family committ me to an asylum! :dizzy:

Oh! Aphil, tell this to your husband; see if he thinks my husband is nuts! Yesterday the temp approached 45 degrees, and was sunny. Joe charged up the battery on his Vulcan (motorcycle), and PUSHED it up our 100+foot driveway, which is totally packed with snow and ice; and took the bike out for a 30 mile ride!! Then I was so jealous; but didn't trust my abilities to drive his bike yet (we weren't going to get mine out, also) so I geared up, climbed on behind him and went for a ride! It was so great. My leathers kept me warm; snowmachiners were staring in amazement; people were laughing and giving us "thumbs up" ! fun!

That will probably be the only ride for the next month and a half or so, but hopefully it will hold me til then!

Kina, wow, you were so close to a 100 on that test!! Too bad that you weren't given credit for those few points. You are doing so well!!! congrats to you! And nice new avatar pic!

Kanola, woo-hoo to you for your progress! and for the wise, healthy choice of the salmon for you special dinner - yum.

Well, I am still at 145. If I want to pare a few more pounds off, I really need to get focused ( I "talk the talk" to others better than I can adhere to it!:o ). I am very encouraged by the strength I'm gaining in legs, and just faintly can see a new contour in the upper thigh area, but still have a ways to go. I am hoping that getting a little more fat off will allow the muscle to be seen better. I can identify that I'm just not keeping myself occupied enough to not think about snacking. It's that indoor confinement thing...well, I shall overcome!!! (somehow :D )

ok, this LONG post perhaps has made up for my absense!! hee hee

Take care everyone, and have a great Saturday afternoon/evening!!

Your friend,
Holly

Hello!
Holly-it's fun that you mention your husband going out for a winter ride...Jason tookhis out for a little sping on Thursday when the weather got up and was sunny a little. Still snow on the ground, but since it was warmer and the roads were clear-he went, and two of our "Harley friends" in the neighborhood went out as well! :D Thanks for the compliment on my pic-I didn't have on my belt in the pic-it would have been cut out when I cropped the picture, but the next one I post will have it in it. I just LOVE it!
Well, I have been so busy too-with the wedding flowers I am doing, and the costumes I am making, and everything else! AAAHHH!!! I have had a pretty bad headache the past three days, because we are getting a nice little front of snow, sleet ect. today through tomorrow. I have one of those bodies that are sensitive the the weather changes, and it warns me in advance of storms! :^: I just finished two bouttonieres for the ushers in this wedding right before I posted here.
I have another costume I am going to be working on over the next few months as well...making my husband a Star Wars Stormtrooper....very tedious-working a lot with ABS plastic to make the armor, and lots of modifications to make it wearable-ventilation, voice changing apparatus, customizing it to Jason's body...it will be a pain, but so cool when it is done. We are such BIG kids...we love our toys. :lol:
We are staying home tonight due to the yucky weather, and we rented a bunch of movies...Everyone have a great weekend, and get your exercise in-and I will talk to you all later!
Aphil

Hi girls,,,

Sorry I havent been around in a bit, but I have been in a slump.. now I know why. I went to the doctor and got my blood tests that I have to get regularly for my thyroid and he phoned me to tell me that is is really bad. He has increased my medication to the highest I have ever been on. So that explains so much..my hair falling out, my depression, my muscle pain, my sleepless nights, and so much more. I hope that the new dosage will kick in soon and Ill be on my way to feeling better.

Welcome Georgia lady ~~~glad to have you here.

Amy~~~~~ You are beautiful, just beautiful . Those pics are great!!!!!

Holly, Tryin hard, Kina, Christine and anyone else I have missed a big hello to you all :wave:


I promise to post more often , once I get to feeling better..
take care everyone..


Nancy:df:

Snowey:( I am so sorry you are feeling so awful. I hope that you get better really soon. Please take care of yourself...we need your wonderful smile here.

So here is my little get well boogie...

:cb:Get Well :balloons:Snowey! :cb: I am sending you lots of good thoughts.:goodvibes

:grouphug: and lots of hugs to you.

I am been very stressed but I have found my release in my website creation. I have even linked a page back to 3FC. But I have found that if I am doing that the most my hands will reach for is a tall glass of water which I set here beside me or some baby carrots. It is still in the growing phase, I plan to add more and more to it. It's a lot of fun. Maybe you all can check it out when you have time. I also have a really nice surprise at the bottom of the page. Sign my guestbook and please fill out the form at the bottom to get your surprise. If you would like to see my creation here is the link...

http://r_aniroc.tripod.com

Talk to you all again.
Hugs. Kina

Nancy, I'm so sorry to hear that you are feeling awful. I HOPE and WISH you are feeling better very very soon!!!

My "feel better boogie" to you! - (credit to Kina!:lol: )

The :wizard: bestowes :flow1: and :flow2: and a get-well bouquet of :balloons: so you feel like :cb: :dance: !!!

Love, Holly

Hello everyone!
We got 6 inches of snowfall last night-yuck! I had to shovel the walk, and I guess that in the weather, the newspaper boy decided not to do his job today either! :lol:
Snowey-I hope that you feel better soon with the change in medicine. I am sure that you will be feeling more yourself in no time-and the other girls are right-we need you in here! ;)
I have been so busy...I am painting flower girl baskets right now. I found the perfect size and shape baskets...but wouldn't you know it-they are basket colored, so I have to paint them white...more work for me!!! I am going to hot glue white rose blooms all over the outside of the base of the baskets, so that it looks like a basket made out of flowers when it is done. The handle and inside still will be seen...hence the need to paint. I should have them done tonight...2 down, a zillion things left to make! :lol:
I have found the best low calorie treat for when you have the "ice cream cravings." They are called Sillouhettes Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches. They are in a clear plastic container of 6-sortof like the Weight Watcher brand, but they come in 4 flavors-vanilla, chocolate, peanut butter, and mint-all with the chocolate cookie outside. I love mint chip ice cream, so I got the mint...they are GREAT...and BIG-and only 130 calories. SO good. I found them at Wal-Mart. I also love the new Dole reduced sugar Fruit and Gel Bowls...especially the papaya in peach jello flavor-only 50 calories. Both make great lower calorie desserts for the sweet tooth.
That is my saving grace, finding stuff like that. I can stay away from all of the fried chicken, french fries, etc...but I have to have my sweets-at least one small treat each day in my calorie plan-even if it only a singe Hershey kiss. I feel much less deprived that way, knowing that I can have one small sweet thing each day.
My husband got his Weider home gym put together last night that he bought. He is going to work out 5 days a week-weight training on the gym and with weights 3 days a week-and cardio 2 days-either on my exercise bike while it is cool, or when it warms up doing things outside. He is 6' tall and weighs about 205-so he doesn't really need to lose much-just maybe 5 pounds or so, but he really wants to tone up and have more muscle like he did when we met. (When we met, his roomate had a big Weider gym and they had it set up in the spare bedroom of the house that they rented together-so he used it a lot.) He may eat terrible, but I am glad that he is going to get into exercising regularly again. :)
It is nice...I may use it now and then on my weight training days when I am bored with all of my tapes. So-now out in the garage we have the gym, my weight bench (for doing chest exercises with dumbells) and my exercise bike...plus the various dumbells that we share from 1 pound up to about 15. We are getting quite the setup-although it has taken us a few years to aquire it all!
Well, I need to get my kids down for theit afternoon naps...you all have a good Sunday, stay on plan with your eating, and lets keep our buns moving all week whenever we can-park in a further space in the parking lot so you get a few extra steps in going into the store...take out the trash instead of asking a spouse or child to do it...it all adds up!
Aphil

Wow! Two whole days and not a single post! I hope everyone is so busy and doesn't have time to post!
All is well here.
Nancy, I hope you're feeling better. I have to get my thyroid checked tomorrow morning--at my last check up, the dr was concerned because I have a lot of dry patches of skin. I guess it's a symptom.
Holly--I was reading the classifieds in our local paper and someone was selling a pair of size 8 leathers and I thought of you! It must have felt good to have the wind in your hair, even for just a little bit! Winter is back here in CT. The temps were in the teens this morning and it looks like more snow at the end of the week. At least our foot and a half from last week is melting in the afternoons!
Foodwise, I'm doing ok. It's TOM, but as least that explains why I was so ravenous on the weekend! I am still trying really hard to double up on the exercise during my PMS. At least then when I eat a little extra, I know I've worked at least part of it off. My aerobics teacher really has me working on my abs. I've been doing 100 crunches and 20 leg lifts every night. It makes the work we do at aerobics a little easier!
Aphil--how are all the flower arrangements coming? You are so talented and creative. If I tried to do it, it would look like a five year old did it!!
Hope to hear from you all! Let's make this thread the place to be!

Hi hi folks ... thought I might peek in there and see what ya'll were up to. I'm basically doing the "eat right and exercise every day" routine, so I thought maybe I'd fit in here.

Hello and welcome Raventoy! You'll fit right in with us!
I will post more later...but I have to get ready for CLASS! :dizzy:
Aphil

Hello Everyone!!

I'm a happy camper today as I am down another 2 lbs!!! I'm starting to feel like I may make it after all.

It's been cold and rainy here in Ga. the past week or so and it can be depressing. Can't really get out to exercise so I have to go down into the "dungeon" and get on the treadmill.

I have set up 2 appts. to have landscapers come out and bid on getting this yard in shape. Both sound promising and I'm looking forward to adding some curb appeal to the old homestead.

Hope everyone is doing great and staying well.

K.C.

Hello everyone!

Welcome RavenToy; sounds like you are doing what we all are; I welcome you and hope you find this group as friendly, motivating, and GREAT as I have!

Hi tryin'hard! My ride last week is now just a sweet memory; we have temps of around 10 now, with the wind whipping! ARGH! and below 0 forcast for tonight. Your method of doubling up on exercise before TOM is such a good idea...I really should give that a try. 100 crunches a night - whoa!!! Abs of steel for tryin'hard!

Aphil, so much work you are doing for the wedding! And I would love to see a pic of the stormtrooper's costume, when it is done...it sounds like, with the materials you said, it will really look like a movie-quality one? Awesome!

Hi GeorgiaLady; what is the weather like where you are? Sounds considerably milder than what we have up here!:lol: Hope you are doing well.

I saw a woman at the grocery store today, whom I haven't seen in over a year...we smiled at each other from across the aisle, then she came up to me and said, "oh my gosh! How skinny are you? Or are you trying to be skinny?"; I think maybe she thought she had blundered, in case I had been ill or something...but Lord, I weigh 145, which can't be mistaken for sickly unless maybe I was 6 feet tall!:lol:

Anyway, it was nice to hear her say that; because lately, as I've been doing the extra leg exercises, it seems that I see the thigh flesh hanging, in a way it didn't before...I know that I have more leg muscle than before, but really don't care to see that flesh hanging away from my thigh!!! Ugh!! I guess I'll always find something to critique about this bod, haha.

Hello to everyone else!!!

Have a nice night, and a good, in-control day tomorrow!!!

Your friend, Holly
My stats, for the newcomers :)
SW Feb. 2002 176, size 12 tight! or 14
CW 145, size 8 loose! and a few 6's

Send me some cold!!!
 

Hi girls!!

Just a quick hello from Down Under!! We had a hot Sunday and Monday and finally a break from the heat !!!

Holly - I laughed at your post about the bike ride!!! What a great thing to do (I hope!). When we were in Edmonton at Christmas, on Dec 28 there were guys out on their bikes... I could not believe it!! When I lived there I would have been wearing shorts at +5C tho.... no wonder I have a frozen brain!!! It was too hot to ride on Sunday so we went to the Zoo instead!!!

Hello all the newcomers!!! wave:

I had my usual stay the same weigh in this last week.... *sighs* so I am pumping up the aerobics and weights classes from 4 to about 8 this week!!! :strong:

And I am getting in full points of healthy healthy foods and more protein than usual.... one big change is NO TREATS this week.... going to kick that sugar habit once and for all!!! :cookie:

Well... I must run here.. this is my only night at home without a gym class right after work.... and I am going in the mornings again!! That scale is gonna move girls... yes it is!!!

Bye for now!!

Nola.
:cb:

Welcome Raventoy! And, I don't remember if I formally welcomed you, Georgia Lady! I think Holly and I are living vicariously through Nola and Georgia Lady! I'm sitting here in my classroom with my coat still on! It was 6 degrees this morning when I walked. Man, I can't wait for spring!!
Holly, I watched one of those real-life makeover shows last week and a woman who had lost a lot of weight had her excess skin removed. I would rather KEEP all my extra skin (and I have quite a bit!) than go through what she went through! OUCH! I remember the DR told me it would take over a year for my skin to shrink. FOr the most part, it has, but I still have a little "excess baggage" on my arms, my lower belly and my inner thighs. But, like you said, we'll always find something to complain about!!
Well, I hope everyone has a great day. Summer WILL be here before we know it and we are all going to look great!!

Nola, I know the scale is going to change for you soon. Those plateaus are aggravating but you've got to bust right through them. Dropping the sweets surely will help. I've noticed that I crave sweets less now that I don't eat them. If I really need a chocolate fix, I try one of those 0 carb chocolate bars with just 100 calories. Found them at Super Wal-mart of all places. About twice a week I just have to have one and it does the trick!

Hi Holli, The weather here is probably much milder than yours although we are not used to the extreme cold when it gets here. It has been a very rainy winter so far. Right now it's about 50 but the wind is not blowing so I can't really complain. It's just been so gray lately....kinda depressing.

Lately, I've been really counting my carbs and I'm starting to feel like the low sugar, low carb way has it's strong points. I haven't had a baked potato in a long time and am staying away from pasta and rice. I am eating veggies and fruits in moderation and sticking with the protein. I have noticed that my energy level has been consistently high and I can't remember my last headache.

Have a great day everyone!!!