2015 Starters – Moving Forward into Fall
 

Since the 2015 thread has gone way over 500 posts, maybe it’s time for a new thread. Hope that’s OK?

Summer is coming to an end - so many us have had great summers, lots of successes, SV’s and NSV’s that we’ve all shared, and some getting so close to goal or reaching maintenance.

So … Forward into Fall. Let’s keep going strong!


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I found you! I have been so busy enjoying my new life that i havent' posted in here too terribly much. I'm glad that everyone is doing so god and I have to comment on Destony: you absolutely rocked that dress! You look fabulous!

I am loving life more and more each day with this new body I have discovered that has been hiding away for years. It is amazing to feel sexy and beautiful again. It took hitting that 100lbs gone mark for it to sink in that I am back!; the "me" that used to have confidence and could turn a head every now and then. I sure missed that girl. So I echo Destony's sentiment: this diet is worth every penny I've spent, every craving I fought and every bite of off Protocol food that I DID NOT take when it was there taunting me. I have often seen the words : "Nothing takes as good as being skinny feels." I'm not "skinny," nor am I trying to get "skinny" but I know for a fact that being thin is the best feeling in the world!

Frawnie what to speak of all the medical expenses you will save for the rest of your life. I just read an article today about a study that said statistically people with lower BMIs develop dementia later than those with higher BMIs. And there are loads of benefits like that one that will save us all so much money in healthcare.
I looked at the monthly IP P1 cost as "health insurance".

Destony and Frawnie; your successes are so inspiring. Thank you for sharing. I can imagine how emotional it was to look fabulous in that dress or to hit that number on the scale. I'm sure when I hit my goal, I'll bawl my eyes out. Your journeys are inspiring to the rest of us to keep going.

Thanks Blue for starting the new thread - I know Lisa has been really busy this summer (good for her!)
:lol: Well that's a heck of a bra ;) you absolutely deserve every compliment :D

I was just thinking about this driving in to work this morning (where to stop - or more like, where is my body going to force me to stop). Like you, I am enjoying the simplicity of P1 eating - and of course the benefit of seeing the scale going in the right direction.
I have a problem though, because while I am 2.4 pounds away from my top end healthy BMI for 5'6 (and a HALF darn it lol), I still have a lot of wiggle and jiggle - tummy / thighs / rear / upper arms
This is where a coach would be beneficial. I have no idea what my body fat % is...I really don't know if I am small, medium, large boned - I get told quite often I have very small wrists - but then have shoulders like a linebacker :lol:
I've only had a few people tell me to stop...my boss / friend, who was very svelte (she's had 4 kids in 7 years and has a bit of a tummy now), agrees that 145 is a good goal...and maybe even 135.
The question though is how do I want to get there...if I can?? To my knowledge, I haven't been under 15X pounds since elementary / middle school (I was a very large kid :( )
I want to feel good in my skin. It was so AWESOME walking into cute clothing stores at Broadway at the Beach in Myrtle (outdoor mall) and actually being able to look at size M / 10's - DH saw me eyeing a dress and encouraged me to buy it ("That would look good on you" - wth???? who are you and where is my husband :lol: ) - & I would have IF I didn't think I still have a size or 2 to go...
My original goal had been an 8 - and I will be thrilled if that's what happens - but my body is still morphing.
I weighed in at 157.4 this morning - the size 10's I bought for the beach all fit well now (no muffin top)...one pair I can already slide off w/o unzipping!
My chiropractor even said this morning the changes in my body over the last 3 weeks are very noticeable.
Apologizes for the ramblings - my original goal is really in sight now, but is it really enough? I am also wondering if phasing off properly (at 145) & moving to exercise wouldn't be more beneficial?
I've mentioned a few times DH & I did Insanity summer of 2013. I started at 215 and over 10 weeks got to 193 - so I lost 22 pounds, but it changed my entire body composition. Again, I didn't measure but I know I lost a ton of inches because even at 190, my 14's were loose & my arms / shoulders were defined and looked awesome.
All that said, I wonder if losing the weight / fat (ie, I reset goal for 135) would be more beneficial than phasing out at 145 and working on definition. My minds-eye sees 135 giving me a larger "scream" weight zone as I phase out...

I can totally relate to wondering what our Ideal weight should be. I'm already hearing "wow you're getting so skinny". I'm 5'4" and over 160 pounds, I'm far from skinny LOL I really think people who know us and are used to seeing us overweight just aren't used to seeing us thinner so to them it's a more drastic change. If we meet people we've never met before they wouldn't tell us we're too skinny. So I just shrug it off, don't say much and chalk it up to that.

We aren't designed to be overweight, just look at all the health problems it causes! I think it's really just the state of our county - so many struggle with being overweigt, the "norm" is a higher weight than ever. If we look back to the 60's and earlier you don't see weighing as much as most do today and we don't think they look too skinny (well I don't anyway LOL). Even our clothing sizes are much larger than other countries.

I'm not saying we should be sickly model thin of course but I do think we have accepted an unhealthy norm. Clothing size is probably a good way to go for me - I want to be able to shop at name brand stores and wear say a size 6-8 - I think that's my goal.

Oh and yes! How I look naked is a good indication too LOL yes I'm 53 but I want to feel comfortable with my husband seeing me in my underwear without running for the cloest ;-)

And thank you Linda and Frawnie both for posting HOW WORTH IT every sacrifice you have made has been! I've struggled at events the past few weekends so to see those words are so encouraging to me - it motivates me to stay on plan so THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

Hi Beth (hysteria) - this might help you figure it out:
"I really don't know if I am small, medium, large boned - I get told quite often I have very small wrists - but then have shoulders like a linebacker."
https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/...ages/17182.htm

"Knowing your frame size can help you set reasonable weight goals. Enter your height and elbow width and this calculator will use standard insurance industry tables to show your frame size and ideal weight range. (Measuring the elbow, rather than the wrist, to determine frame size gives more range and accuracy, particularly for men.)"
http://health.bizcalcs.com/Calculato...ame-Size-Elbow

Elbow protuberances never change as adults while wrist circumference can have added fat at a heavier weight, throwing the calculator off.

Liana

Thanks Liana! That was VERY helpful - it appears for both wrist / elbow I am medium frame and ideal weight is 130 - 144

I am still planning to see how I feel when I get to 145 (ie - is burn out an issue? What are the Thanksgiving plans? etc...) hopefully in early / mid October and will adjust accordingly :)

It's hard to decide what your goal weight should be, when you're more than 50 lb away from it. OMG, 50 lb sounded like SO MUCH when I started :yikes:
I just picked a number (for me 150), which would have been a bit more than 50 lb. loss. But like you all, as I get closer to that, I'm giving it more thought.
Last time I was thin(-ish) :D I was 40, I had lost about 20 lb, and was wearing size 8. I felt OK at that weight, but not skinny by any means, if I could have stuck it out, looking back, 130 would have been better, healthier, looked better.
BUT... I was 40. This body may well be an entirely different story :?:

And as for looking good nekkid...that ship has sailed :) This body is never going to look like it did at 30 or 40 or 50 but it sure will look at lot better than it did a year ago :) ....... it already does, even with the "wiggles and jiggles"...

So right now I'm focused on reaching the goal I set. Will I change it when I get closer? Most likely. But I don't know what the number will be, I'm going to trust my body to let me know.

Linda - whether exercise and toning will get you looking like you want, it sounds like exercise worked for you before. So maybe. But maybe this is a question for the maintainers...maybe someone has already wrestled with and made this decision ...and ...good or bad?? Be interesting to hear what they say.

Liana - thanks for those links, I had never seen them before, and they are a great help - I always found BMI alone to be lacking

I love reading about how well everyone seems to be doing, it is so motivating. Congrats everyone. I wish i could post more, but work has been so busy this summer that i don't have time to check in often. But Busy is good at work, makes the time go much faster and i don't have time to wander around then and be tempted by all the treats others keep at their desks.

Right now i am just just over a lb away from Onederland by my scale at home(slightly more with my official WI but their scale is always about .5 higher than mine at home) and its so close it feels like it is teasing me. I leave for Vegas on Sunday so wont WI next week, but i am determined to be under 200 for my next official WI two weeks from now. It will be good motivation to stay OP as much as possible while away. Wish me luck!!! LOL

Good luck!!! You can do this!!!:carrot:


Cindy

Thanks Canadjineh for the goal weight links. Looks like my top end for a medium build is 138. I'll keep my goal as 140 for now and see as I get closer. Thankfully, the weight is now starting to come off my rear and thighs. Of course, it quickly came off my face and neck. If that continued, I was going to up my goal weight because I didn't want to look skeletal from the waist up and then heavy below.
It sounds like the low weights are new territories for some of us, I know for me, my lowest was 128 in high school 30 years ago.
New, scary and exciting territory for me.
Happy IP Thursday all!

I was having the same fears lrg! I am already fairly pear shaped (I've been told hourglass too b/c I have a small waist - but I don't think my boobs are big enough to qualify for 'hourglass' lol) and was losing so much from my chest...but as I dropped around & below 170, it started really coming off the hips and thighs too.
I am actually starting to like the way my legs look ;)

acid - have a FANTASTIC time in Vegas! You can do this! :woohoo: Can't wait to see your post on getting into onederland!!!

blue - lol - I hear you on the 'looking great nekkid' issue...and its not just age (I am 38...). I am never expecting to look like (insert super skinny model here)...but I already feel so much more confident in the buff than I did 75 pounds ago. I can look at myself in the mirror - something I completely avoided at 200+. Obviously, I still see issues...but I also see RIBS! :D and a collar bone! :D and hip bones! :D and sexy legs! :D and my FEET! :D :lol:

I was wondering as our bodies continue to change, if anyone else has experienced aches & pains? My boobs have shrunk (I only have 2 bras that fit now) and during the process, it felt like I had a pulled muscles - both sides! My hips have been getting achy for a while too...and it seems to coincide with drops in my weight - I guess, maybe, its the fatty deposits that have probably been there for god-knows-how-long dissipating and things are shifting :?:

Have a great vacation, Vegas is so much fun! and I'm definitely wishing you luck staying OP, how exciting to be so close to Onederland. You'll do great!:cheer:


Beth - Can't say I've noticed any more aches and pains, but I still have a lot of them there "fatty deposits" :lol: I do like your thought that yours are dissipating and shifting, sounds good to me :D

I mentioned that my last weight loss was when I was 40-ish (about your age), and I wasn't even that much overweight then, went from about 160 or so to 140. Of course, once the weight was off, I tried to eat healthier, but over the years, it all crept back on. I've heard the statistic that on average, most people gain 1lb for every year over 25. Not too far off the truth (OK, maybe a bit more than that for me :o)
Of course, I tried lots of diets over the years since, sometimes I'd lose 10 or 15 lb, but all just temporary. I've finally realized that all those diets are just about losing weight. But I think the most important part of IP for me is going to be P4 - maintenance.
I know that getting to over 200 was a real wake up call for me, and I knew I had to find something that worked, I'm so glad to have found IP, because it definitely is working...but I'm not sure if I would be as good as staying OP if it wasn't for 3FC and all the support and encouragement and information from you all.

OK, maudlin speech over...on to today.
Weekly WI... only 0.4 down (still, it WAS down). A bit disappointing, must admit : (but it's been hot and humid here this week, so I'm hoping it's just water :crossed: ).
I have a vacation planned starting in 2 weeks, I've been hoping to reach 40 lb loss by then (I'm at 35.4) so hopefully I'll have a couple of good weeks coming up

Beth -
I had quite a bit of muscle pain/ache back stuff. My physical therapist and also my chiropractor both said that when the body's center of gravity changes (which it does with weight loss) everything in the body needs to readjust - all the very small to the very big muscles and also the spine need to learn to hold the body in the new way. So the body is constantly shifting. I also had a lot of problems with balance (I do pretty extreme yoga so that's where I noticed it) because my body had to learn how to hold itself again. I also noticed things in the ribs, etc. - I carried most of my weight in the stomach, so when it had less to hold up, it started to cause aches. My therapist said it was because it was like my muscles were working so hard to hold the weight that they almost numbed out - and when they had less to hold and less work to do, they actually kind of "woke up" like your foot falling asleep and waking up -
so there was actually less pain, but I was feeling it more because they were more "alive" due to actually being able to relax.

I also had to get adjusted at the chiro more frequently as all of this was happening my spine also was adjusting.

Thanks Amber! I forgot about the balance issue...& I've got a nasty rib 'pull' right now *ugh* lots of stretching!

I had to start going to the chiro again in May because of the hip pain - she also mentioned the balance / core issues from the weight loss and suggested yoga :o Sadly I have access to classes here at work and am a member...I've been enjoying my daily walks though so didn't want to trade up.

Woohoo, down 1 lb this week and into 60's!!! Every pound in the right direction is important because I work so hard for it. I love this program. Finally feeling in control cause I finally get it...eating to live and not living to eat.

Hello Everyone:)
Just started my journey on Sept 1/15. So I'm heading into day 4 tomorrow quite excited. I'm not new to SBD but the fall is always a good time for me to start something new and get re-grounded. Not sure what my goal weight for this month would be but I do know I want some weight to come off and that's good for me for right now. Good luck to everyone for this month!
Cheers, FR

livinlrg - :cheer: Congrats on reaching the 160s - a new decade!!
I got to the 160s (finally!) last week, and I don't know why, but that change in number just feels so good :D

foxyroxy7226 - Welcome, hope your first week is going well, be sure to drop by and let us know. We've all been where you are, and we're rooting for you!


This weekend here is going to be warm and sunny, a perfect end to summer :) ...though I hope there are still a lot of nice days left in September.
Have a great holiday wk/end everyone!

:welcome2: Sounds like you have an awesome mindset - keep posting here and here: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/idea...2015-a-12.html
I would never have made it this far without the support of everyone here

lrg - :bravo: So happy for you!!!! Moving from 17X to 16X was HUGE for me - I didn't have quite the exultation getting into the 15X's - although seeing the scale bump back UP into the 16X's this morning didn't make me feel too good

So, getting ready for our last summer trip - camping on DH's uncles farm for his 80th birthday party. It will be fun to take the new truck on a road trip.
Need to go home and prep tonight - veggies and a couple IP-friendly goodies.
I also made a 2 pans of of my 'famous' deviled eggs last night, which, yes, I will be indulging in Saturday ;) But not the brownies!

Ugh - I was / am SO bloated, head achy and icky this morning...& yes, I've been getting my water, salt and potassium...
So I returned to P1 calories levels Sunday (800 - 1,000), am walking 2 miles a day again, and just about everyday the scale has been ticking up...I am now +3.0 from my lowest (157.4) on return from vacation.
I am also not enjoying the constant, nagging hunger that I was not experiencing on vacation eating at P2(ish) calorie levels.
*sigh* I wish there was some way our bodies could tell us exactly why they behave the way they do and what we needed to do to correct issues ;)

I am aware that this mornings weight is probably a culmination of factors - salty foods (the zoodle spaghetti I made Wednesday had a ridiculous amount of sodium...my rings have been tight for 2 days!), heat & humidity, exercising again, and maybe not enough water (I've been getting up every night with exploding bladder though??)

BUT - and it's a BIG but - could it really, really be that my body is trying to tell me it needs the extra 200(ish) calories it was getting? Is 2 miles of (15 minute miles) walking depleting the resources THAT much??? I went back and put my steps into my fitness / weight spreadsheet and I was averaging about 2.5 miles of walking every day on vacation - its not a Fitbit so those averages don't include all the time spent in the ocean / building sand castles, swimming in the pool, etc...

I felt so good too - even when TOM started that first Saturday.

Yes - babbling again folks ;)

Happy Labor Day weekend to all!

I am typing this on the road to DH's uncle - LOVE this new truck with all the bells and whistles - including built in internet :D

Back down on the scale this morning - what was I worrying about ;) :p

So, while I am grateful for my job and my health, I am now heading into uncharted territory at work:
My right-hand co-worker...my "work husband"...handed in his resignation yesterday :( His last day is the 18th
He's been there almost 16 years - and this new opportunity is AMAZING for him and his family and I am happy for him...but boy, what a change for us - and the additional work its going to mean for me until (& IF) we hire someone to take his place...and even at that, we are losing 16 years of knowledge
Done a good bit of crying - lots of self pity I guess...we weren't "friends" outside of work, but my heart still hurts - he was my sports buddy, our kids were the same age, etc...
Sadly, had I had the same opportunity, I would be out the door without too many second thoughts for my co-workers though...
Change (like this) sucks regardless :(

Well, that's that and I am going to try and enjoy my weekend. Might be on here quite a bit...had a bit of a food-panic attack yesterday and ate lunch early - I am a stress eater, as opposed to others who stress and don't eat...I wish
Planning to enjoy a burger with cheese and a deviled egg or two :) We'll see what the scale does come Monday morning

Congrats on the downward movement!! I know lady, what WERE you worried about?? You rock this thing!!
So glad that the new truck is awesome, especially after all of the stress involved in getting it- speaking of stress, I too wish that I was a stress "non-eater" The ONLY time I recall stress doing that to me was at the very end of my divorce 10 years ago where I found that the only things I ate were Cheez-its and Tab. I did eat a salad with a small piece of chicken for supper-though only because I was living with my parents (yes, that's such a great deal of fun when you are 41....) and everyone was concerned because I wasn't eating and dropping weight very quickly...
I'm so sorry to hear about your work husband. :hug:That's devastating on so many levels. I hope that they do replace him (I remember though that you said there are big changes at your company) and if they don't I hope the burden of his workload is spread out amongst many, and not heaped upon you. Self-pity my foot- I think you have to grieve for it. It's the end of something -don't be too hard on yourself for it.
Enjoy the burgers and cheese (mmmmmm cheese....) and deviled eggs. I kind of kick myself for not having one last week at D/e-H's (haha) house after the wedding when I had a "license" to cheat.
Have a great weekend!!!!!!!! :D

What do you all do about eating OP when you're sick?

I picked up some kind of virus, I guess. For the last two days I've had a fever, chills, body aches, and a raging headache. Tylenol and Aleve have kept me functional - barely. I haven't felt like eating anything, and I don't have the energy to cook my daily "real" food. Yesterday I just ate protein oatmeal, a Quest bar, and a hard boiled egg w/ salt before bed, thinking maybe I was low on sodium. (I did take all my supplements and 68 oz of water.) I'm sure I need to eat more because I'm dizzy when I stand up. But just can't bear the thought of eating. Suggestions?

HIS - so sorry to hear your sick. :(
It doesn't sound like you're nauseous, so that's good at least. For me, when I'm sick I like soup.
I don't know if you have any pureed veg available, if you do, mix with some chicken stock, season, and you've got soup. If not, you can easily make some (on baking sheet, in oven 30-40 min, then puree). Cauliflower, broccoli. asparagus are all good.
If you can handle the IP drinks, making a spinach shake is easy and gets your veggies in.
Boiled eggs sound like a good plan for getting your protein, make a bunch of them and keep on hand for when you feel like eating one.
If you can't handle any other "real" food, at least try to have the packets, oatmeal or drinks or puddings or bars, even extras if you can.

Hope the bug doesn't last long. Feel better soon :)

blueskiesahead, thanks for the soup idea. I had thought about trying some chicken broth but didn't think to add veggies. I did have a spinach shake at noon and it went down okay. I also took some high-powered cold and flu medicine and that helped a lot.

I have an appointment this afternoon to go get fitted for running shoes, and then go wedding dress shopping with my daughter-in-law to be. I'd rather be home in bed, but I have to do this. I'm going to take a shake, water, and some cucumber slices to have while I'm out.

Beth I totally hear you on wishing our bodies could just TELL us what we're doing to "upset" things LOL It sounds like you had a great vacation on the beach with all the activities. I wonder about not eating enough calories sometimes. For that reason I haven't been exercising - well that and the fact that I hurt my hip doing pilates and it's still bothering me after 2 months :-( I do worry about not firming up while I'm losing but I feel like I don't eat enough calories for much exercise - I really don't want to lose the little amount of lean mass I do have so just not sure about the exercise. I'm sure you DO feel great walking every day!
Hope you enjoy the camping trip! What veggies do you take and how do you prep before you go? I'm still struggling with veggies - never been a fan so keep asking people what they are eating haha
Built in internet in a truck? WOW how awesome!!
So sorry about the co-worker :-( Hopefully you are able to work through those feelings - more crying if needed - and know going off plan will make it even worse. HUGS to you!!

Welcome FoxyRoxy! I have to ask, what is SBD? I'm still trying to figure out acronyms :-(

HereIStand if you have the energy for it, what I did esp. when I wasn’t well was boil a soup of 32 oz chicken breast (I just threw it in whole to cook it) a lot of water, and 8 cups veggies, and whatever spices I felt like. That made 4 servings of soup. Once it was cooked I put it in the blender and pureed it. It was easy for me to get that down.

If I didn’t have the energy I put cups spinach in the blender and mixed into a soup packet and that was also easy.

Well, I have to move to Plan B while I'm sick. I had the shake/spinach today, followed later by 1 cup of plain chicken broth, followed later by a hamburger patty and 1/2 c broccoli. Thirty minutes later, my gut decided it really wasn't happy. I think I'm pretty much cleaned out now!

I guess I will stick to water and broth for another day and see how I feel. I realized that the BRAT diet, for diarrhea, is 100% off limits! (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast)

Sort of ... how about the IP or alt banana pudding, with "riced" cauli, chayote "apple" sauce and crispy cereal bread?

I know, not the same, but it made me giggle thinking about alternatives. :)

Scale choice
 

OK my friends, I need advice. As i realize now that I really need to get my schizzle together and prepare for the inevitable within probably the next 2 months..(leaving phase 1). Obviously I nned to educate myself on the next steps so that I really know what I can and cannot do food wise, what exercise I should do, (not just my half baked squats and lunges and plank challenges in the morning) my question for you all is what kind of scale do you own I have a good old fashioned one, but it's not accurate, even when I adjust it and honestly, I would like a good scale that will keep me on track. So...that, today is my question for you all. Thanks ladies and keep up the excellent work!! We are all doing amazing things here!!!;)

Okay, the upside of being sick is .... weight loss! LOL. I lost a full pound after yesterday's events.

Destony, I have one of those old fashioned scales that you used to see in doctors' offices. The kind that's all-metal, tall, heavy, and with a bar across the top where you move the slider across until the bar balances. It's very accurate. But it takes up a pretty big footprint and not everyone wants something that big in their bathroom.

Honestly, I don't think it matters which scale you use, as long as you use the same one consistently and it doesn't give wildly different weights from day to day.

HIS - sorry to read about the tummy issues! Yuk :( my thought would be sticking mostly to RTD's / puddings until it's past - easy protein and shouldn't tear you up...take care of yourself though. The one time I got sick on IP it seemed to take longer to recover

Roxy- thanks - we did have a nice vacation :) the next 2 weeks are going to be tough but I think the worst of the shock has passed.
veggies: the go-to staple is celery sticks - DH and I both eat them (he dips in peanut butter). I have also started cutting up colored peppers for a quick snack. Because of my thyroid I avoid raw broccoli and cauliflower- also easy and yummy but goitrous

Linda - so the menu changed & we had pork...lots of wonderful smoked / grilled pork. I indulged in a little BBQ yesterday too :) it was a great day and DH's uncle was very happy - he is an awesome man and great example of where I'd like to be at age 80!
Unfortunately I really really don't know what the company is going to do. My boss has promised an inquiry for a temp is going going out next week but ours isn't a job you can just pick up and do in 2/3 days :(

So yesterday was fun and while I overate the meat, and had 3 deviled eggs :o I think overall I did ok :D I also walked the equivalent of 5 miles all over his farm and climbed 2 mountains. We are going back today - another hike and hanging with DH's cousins

:yikes: :yikes: :yikes: ... and here I thought I was doing pretty good this morning because I walked over to the coffee shop instead of driving over :lol:

HIS - Hang in there, eat what you can manage, you've been doing great so far, and this will just be a small bump in the road.

Linda, I just got a new scale. My old one died last week (I've had it for years and I don't think it was very accurate). I know a lot of people here have mentioned Aria but it's $$$ and I don't need all the fancy features.
What I ended up getting was EatSmart scale - on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004L6NTHU/...at+smart+scale

Just got it yesterday...I Love it so far. Weighed myself this morning and it shows I'm down over 4lb since my WI on Thursday :yikes: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
Of course that's just nonsense, all scales are different. But it'll be interesting to see how different it is from my coach's scale :D
Seriously though, it was easy to set up, gives BF% etc.

Thanks for the well wishes from everyone. My tummy seems to have settled down. I'm still pretty achy but I walked my 3 miles today; just took it easy and made sure I had plenty of water. I didn't quite get all my protein in today but I think tomorrow I'll be back OP.

NSV: my 20 yo son came over after my walk. I was standing in my kitchen in my spandex shorts and a tank top and running shoes. My son walked in and saw me from the back and said he didn't know who I was!!

Home!
What a great weekend - and DH's uncle loved the gift we got him - it their last name spelled out with various horse-themed pictures (he has a horse farm) - ie, the "S" is 2 sideways horse shoes. He teared up - it was very touching and I am so glad we made it down.

Did a little better with eating today - combined lunch and dinner so enjoyed another heaping helping of the fresh pork - but only with veggies today, no other extras.

Hiked the mountain again too ;)

Sounds like you're having such a wonderful time,Beth. I know you are feeling so good!

I've dusted off my recumbent bike and am riding 5 miles a day roight now, easing up to 10 then 20...i need my legs in shape for some mountain hiking of my own come the end of December. We go to Big Bend National Park and spend the week between Christmas and New Years there. We've always stuck to the lowland, desert hikes. And althought when you look out across the landscape and it looks flat, I can assure you: that desert is not near as flat as it looks! Arroyos, creeks beds up and down...it has always been challenging especially when there is nowhere to sit and take a breather. You might find a large enough boulder to rest your backside on but often there isn't much more than cacti and yucca! But this trip I am determined to go UP instead of stay down.

By the end of December, I bet you'll be very close to your goal weight! You will ROCK the hiking!

:broc: NICE Frawnie! What an awesome goal to have! That sounds like a beautiful vacation. I love hiking too and its nice to know I have the stamina now - knees and ankles are not hurting like they were 70 pounds ago.

Back to work today :( Hope you guys don't mind me coming and lamenting - but boy, it is going to be a LONG 2 weeks. Soon to be ex-co worker is also on jury duty today - insult to injury...one less day of training.

I also just sent my PCP a note - my TOM seems to have started AGAIN- wtf! (and wouldn't you know I am wearing WHITE pants). :fr::tired::yikes:
Last month I thought I was starting like normal (25 - 27 days) then ended up 10 days late...now this one appears to be back on the regular schedule (but only 16 days).
I am almost 39 with a Mirena IUD (hormonal)...prior to IP, I was barely having a TOM and now it seems to never stop.
My yearly was scheduled for November but I asked about bumping it up if anything becomes available. I am fairly sure this is a side effect of IP / releasing estrogen, but also thought after 8 months it would have settled down and would feel better getting a clean bill of health.