Ruby Tuesday's
 

I'm not sure how new this is but I noticed today at Ruby Tuesday's that they have the nutritional info on ALL of their foods on their menu... not just the low-carb/low-cal ones.
I thought this was very handy. It certainly helped convince me that I was making the right choice in getting an under 500 calorie low-carb wrap rather than an over 1000 calorie burger!
The wrap was quite tasty too btw ;)
Just an FYI!

:)
Christine

YES...I love that Ruby Tuesday has provided that info...and Applebee's has their info for some of their reduced calorie/fat entrees available on their website (write it down!) and now Red Lobster has released that information on some of their items as well. I always knew shrimp cocktail and steamed crab legs and such were low calorie and healthy (it is the breaded deep fried seafood that is BAD) but it is nice not to have to "figure it up" now-so go to these sights and know going in what you can eat without guilt!
Wow this weekend was busy. The troupe dancers are learning a "skirt" dance (think along the lines of flamenco skirt dancing) to perform this fall-and we worked on that Saturday. In my regular class (with performers and just-exercisers) we drilled across the floor with finger cymbals. I was beat. :lol:
The troupe director and I are working together to create new costumes for the troupe dancers. What we are coming up with is earthtones...with a very earthy, gypsy feel. Noe squins or sparkle...but layers of fabric in earthtones...in natural silks and cottons...very "folkloric." The last two sets of costumes have had flash and sequins and glitter...and it is time for a change. There are going to be many layers to this costume...full pants with a drapey skirt over it...midriff tops with flouncy full sleeves...and a tight little midriff vest over it...and our belts will be more antiqued coins rather than flashy "new" looking ones. I WILL get pics up when we have them all finished. It will be a while...we have 13 women in the group...and lots to make/dye/sew!
On the exercise front...I am doing great. I have always had the motivation to get my exercise in and challenge myself in that area...but I think AF is on her way...all weekend long I have been wanting to eat the entire house. :lol: Silence-I feel your pain. :lol: I always get that way. I have been eating a little extra this week...but I am trying to still make it fruits/veggies/whole grains/lean protein rather than junky foods...so at least it is something decent.
We went to the mall this weekend, and there is a gourmet coffee shop in the bottom of the mall...it is on a little cobblestone path off the main mall strip...and it has the little cafe chairs and all...really nice to relax in. DH and I took Raiden (Jas was with my dad for the weekend) and went down for a cup. I had a nice cup of almond flavored coffee with a packet of Equal. It was heavenly and NO calories. Gotta love a treat like that!
I hope you are all having a great day!
Aphil

HELLO!!!! It's me, remember me? :D Working 6 days/week has me scrambling for free time!!! I also made friends in the "buddy - up" section, the thread "feeling discourage" was started by our friend Sprite, even though we haven't heard from her lately - anytway, I split my time between the two threads now - read that one if you wanna hear of Bad Biker Holly flipping people off if they cut me off :devil:

Still holding at 143, yay, though I have to watch out for the bites, licks and nibbles! Still exercising 5-6X a week; and keeping with more emphasis on cardio, tho' I'm kinda afraid of losing the muscle strength.

a broad abroad - a LAUGHED at the image of your dog vacuuming up the cherries - I had a husky who would stand on her hind legs to reach pears from a small tree, also :lol:

aphil, CONGRATS on down to 14's fitting!!!!!!!!!!!! and for seeing that wonderful vertical ab line. You WILL get the horizontal ones also, I just know it!!! and thanks for your sample eats, you're an inspiration!

silence, you're doing great!!

Am having a blast, as expected, riding the bike as much as possible...I'm at 26,500 miles on a bike that was brand new in May 2002. I'll have to tell ya, that's alot for Vermont :D

Have a great day, everyone!

and hello again to Idealperson!! :D

Happy Monday everyone!

Well, in spite of AF visiting and my overdoing the eating this weekend, I am still officially down this week! I weighed in at 175 lbs this morning, 1.5 lbs lost!! :D
Going to my mom's house today to make soap with the kit I bought her for her birthday. I think I'll be more of an observer as its Alexa who really wants to help. Hey, as long as I get to take home some bars of orange shea butter soap! ;) I have to be careful of eating though, as she tends to have bad stuff around!!
It sounds like everyone is busy busy (and somehow fitting in exercise anyway). I guess I'd better get myself moving because I have no excuses compared to you guys!
Aphil, those costumes sound great... I am a big fan of earthtones. I'd love to see pictures when they are done.

Well, I'm off to get my day started. Hope everyone has a great week :)

Christine
181/175/125

Hi VermontMom - good to hear from you again. I was wondering if you or Aphil or anybody else could give me any pointers for being able to follow my workout DVD (aerobics). I tried it today for the first time and felt like a three-legged potato sack contestant. I kept moving when they got to a part I didn't quite follow but geez.
It's not a highly choreographed sequence its just me. Will it make more sense the more times I try? I will keep trying but I would like to enjoy it also ~wink~ Ideas, anyone.
Thanks

a broad-which aerobics dvd do you have? Some are a lot "easier" to follow than others. I pick up choreography pretty quickly...but my mom does not and needs easier choreographed vids...some are easier to follow than others. (Not easier in intensity-but not as "dancy moves.") The easiest I think to follow are Leslie Sansone Walk Away The Pounds-she cues really well...tells you what she is going to do next-and it is all pretty easy to do-marches, side steps, kicks, etc. You did right by keeping the movement while you were lost...and then jumping back in at a part you knew though. :) Some instructors though expect everyone to be a Rockette and just pick up all the fancy stuff right off the bat! :lol:

Silence-good for you on being "down!" :D I also love the Shea Butter...I talked about it in an earlier post-but the Bath and Body Shea Butter foot cream is the only thing that keeps my feet from being destroyed! :lol:

Well, yesterday's exercise was great. I did an hour of strength training (50 min +10 min. warm up and cool down) and when Jason got home-we took the kids on the local walkway and walked a mile with them. I can walk a lot longer-but we are trying to do it as a family-do what the kids can keep up with. They have a couple kids exercise videos, and we take them out for a walk about twice a week...trying to get them to grow up with good eating and exercise habits right off the bat. We usually go for the walks on my strength training days, and I do more intense aerobic/dance activity on my cardio days. It is good family time away from everyone else, the television, etc. and we do nothing but exercise and talk to one another for that time. :)

We were at Borders bookstore over the weekend, and I looked at a few new kids exercise videos-I think I am going to get them for Jasmine's birthday in September for her and Raiden to do. They had a kids yoga one aimed at 3-6 year olds (Raiden is 3, Jas will be 6 in September) and it looked perfect. Easy poses and fun music...that sort of thing.

Hope everyone is having a good day!
Aphil

Hi. My name is Anita and I would love to join this group. I have tried everything from WWs, Atkins, South Beach, Fit for Life, etc. and I am tired. I want to just focus on good old fashioned healthy eating, portion control and exercise. No gimmicks. No quick fixes. One day at a time is my new plan.

I am a whopping 223.5 pounds with a final goal weight of 140. I have an extremely long way to go, but I am not going to focus on the finish line, but instead the race.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Anita

Hey all! I am having a great day! I fit into my black Gap size 14's and I feel good! It's along way from the 18's that I had, but not near enough to the size 10's that I want. Anyway, I will deal with the here and now...

I hope you all are having great summers, you crazy biker girls, I'm sooo jealous!

I have been so busy with work: 22 juvenile delinquents to monitor and 16 apartments to keep rented...plus my own family of 4 kids! My transmittion went out last week so now I have a new vehicle...it is actually $10 less per month for my payments, only for another 5 years though...

I am planning a vacation at the end of August for a week in a mountain cabin...and a week off the first week in Aug. to help out my mom after her gastric bypass surgery.

I ate at Applebee's and their WW menu was great-I even split the Choc-Rasp cake with a friend...so good. I'm glad other restaurants are following the WW way of life-it's a good thing!

Gotta get back to work-have a great OP week!

Hello all.

Welcome Anita. You seem to have a great mindset so I see no reason you shouldn't be able to do it!

Aphil, do you know off the top of your head how much that shea butter cream costs? My feet have been SO dry since we moved to Arizona and I tried out some foot cream my mom picked up the other day and it was very nice but its $10 per bottle. Somehow, I'm thinking if its from Bath & Body, its probably expensive too. I guess it'll be worth it if it actually works though!

I did so-so at my mom's yesterday. They ordered pizza for dinner so I probably overate a little there but I didn't snack all day and such so I think in the end it wasn't so bad. I have to try punching it all into Diet Power and see what it thinks ;)

IP, congrats on fitting into the 14s! I actually think fitting into 14s is one of the best changes because most plus size stores start their sizing at 16! ;)

On a good note, the friend I buddy'd up with last time I lost all that weight is back on the wagon too and we are probably going to recreate our website together and try to keep each other motivated again. I really feel like things are clicking back into place now. Let's just hope they stay that way long enough for me to get back down below 150 lbs! (and beyond).

:)
Christine
181/175/125

Hi Anita!!!!

We are so glad to have you!!! ;) I started out at 211 pounds...and I think when you have a large amount of weight to lose...rather than just 10-15 pounds...it is a lot easier and more rewarding to think of it in smaller incremements and mini goals. Don't expect to be 30 pounds lighter in 2 months...and set and try to achieve smaller goals instead. It is a lot easier to set a goal to lose 5 pounds...and then reward yourself for making it...then set another small goal...then it is to sit back and look at the 40-50-60 pounds you want to lose.
My beginning recommendations at your weight would be to start at 1800 calories a day and see how you do. Split your calories throughout the day...eating 3 meals and a couple small snacks...1800 for instance could be 400 for breakfast, 500 for lunch, 600 for dinner, and 2-150 calorie snacks. If your goal is 1800 per day...then try to strive for 1750-1850. You are very seldom going to get "exactly" your target number. You want to eat smaller meals more often than eating twice a day 900 calories each time.
I also recommend that you start with light exercise-walking, or soemthing light at first-20 minutes a day to start. When you are in a regular habit of doing that-you can build up the amount/intensity/and add in other forms of exercise.
The reason I recommend it this way is because I do 45-60 min. of strength training 3 days a week. I take 2 1 hour dance classes per week. I do 2 sessions of cardio per week...and then add in any actual performances and rehearsals that I may have. *I am a performer* Now...to someone who is not used to this schedule or intensity...you are going to last about a week before you are burnt out and quit. Get in the habit of regular exercise FIRST...and then slowly inch it up. When I started at 211...I did a 10 minute abs tape 3 days a week...then slowly added in some walking...and a few years later I am doing what I am doing now.
It is about building the foundation, the regular habit of exercising and eating right-FIRST. A plan is not going to work if you burn yourself out in 2 weeks.
Drink plenty of water. If you are not a wate drinker...then try for 2 glasses a day for a week...then add a 3rd the next week...keep doing this until you are up to 8-10 a day. Baby steps. Get into the healthier habits slowly, so that they stick. :)
Keep a daily journal of your calories, exercise, and water intake. It really helps to see what you are eating and doing every day. I use a cheap mini sized notebook that you can get anywhere.
When you have progressed a bit...and gone down the first 10 pounds or so...then we can increase your exercise and drop your calories SLIGHTLY. Keep us informed on how you are doing...so that we can encourage you and help.
Welcome!
Aphil

silence-it is usually kind of expensive...but I buy it when they are having a sale like the buy one get one free type of thing...or when it is in a kit-like a pedicure basket with a bunch of other feet treats for less $$$$. The last basket I got had the shea butter cream...foot deodoraizer spray, sloughing lotion, and the foot soak. They are all great! Check out their bargain bins and sales whenever you go in there.
The Shea Butter cream is very concentrated...it only takes a little so it lasts a while. It is in their spa section of stuff...with the light bright blue and white packaging.
Aphil

Welcome Anita! I started at 209#, I did WW and got down to 143# (made lifetime) then gained back 23#. Now I am kinda following the WW plan, but doing it on my own...I am making healthier decisions and still struggling to get back into the exercise routine. It has been so humid here that it hurts just to sit! But excuses, excuses...we just need to keep making the right decisions for our lifestyle on a daily basis, no one can do it for us. Welcome to this site, there's so much wisdom and great friends here!

I really appreciate the warm welcome from all of you!

Aphil- thanks so much for the great advice. I agree with all of it. I am just doing something everyday, even if it is just walking for 10-15 minutes. Just so I can get in the habit of exercise. Then I will add to it as time goes on.

I was going to do 1500 per day, but I think 1800 sounds better. No starving.

My first goal is to get below 220 or to lose 4#s. I think that's what I will focus on.

Today I did a lower body scult class at work. It was fun. There's a gym in my building and my coworker and I joined together last week. Its fun having someone to work out with.

Anita

I always find that the walking with my family is a "no pain" way of getting a mile walk in...because we are concentrating on talking to each other...and the next thing you know it...we have hit the 1/2 mile marker on the walkway...and it is time to "turn around" to get the last half mile in back to the car.

When I was in college, there was a walkway that was 2 1/2 miles one direction nearby...so after class there was a few of us that got together 2-3 times a week and we walked it-there and back for a 5 mile walk. We had a good time catching up and gossiping...so the time went by quickly! My mom and I used to take aerobics classes as well when I was in junior high age-we had a great time together.