Newbie seeking friends to keep me accountable...
 

Hi there,
I have just discovered this site tonight and have fallen in love with it! I am 27 years old and have struggled with my weight most of my life. I have weighed as much as 270 lbs in high school and as little as 175 lbs about 2 years ago. Within the past few years I have met the love of my life and have since steadily gained weight.....mostly stemming from the fact that we are now social butterflies and that I drink more than I used to. Not to mention the fact that I would rather stay at home with my man than go to the gym. Unfortunately, Brian works a very physical job and doesn't have the energy to go to the gym with me. I have yo-yo'd 15 lbs multiple times over the last year or so and am FED UP!!!

I am hoping to find that little extra push here, from all these amazing support groups. It would be great to find a few people that would like to chat regularly and weigh in weekly...to hold me accountable and to have a little extra support.

I am planning on weighing in every Monday morning, starting this Monday, and I hope to have some buddies to do this with.

Talk to you soon,

Melissa :)

Hi Melissa!

Welcome! What kind of diet do you like to follow? We have a good group on the Superfoods forum if that's your thing (it's pretty great... this morning I had an oatmeal muffin with dark chocolate melted on it!).

I completely know the feeling of wanting to stay home with a boyfriend who doesn't go to the gym rather than go myself. That was something I struggled with for a long time. I am now part of an outdoor group that meets at 6 am and that has been the only thing to ever make me wanna actually workout and leave my boyfriend in bed! When I come home afterwards and he's still sleeping I actually think to myself "wow, his loss!" hah. So just find something that excites you so much that you'll take that extra hour away from him for yourself- you deserve it! But make sure you enjoy it! :)

So, tell us more about yourself!

hello!
 

Hi Melissa!
I'm kind of in the same boat. My boyfriend was living in Sweden for a few months at which time I used to go to the gym very regularly and I was eating properly. He came home at Christmas for good and I have since put on 10 pounds thanks to our social eating and drinking! Not to mention that like you, I'd rather be with him than go to the gym. Yikes!!! Not good.
I've been up and down for the past while too and I really want to get things under control. I'm currently at 150 pounds and I'd like to get to around 120. I'm 28 years old and 5'2". I'm an avid rollerderby player and I love doing step and body pump classes at the gym, when I actually get my butt there!
Anyway, welcome, and if you're interested in a buddy to keep you accountable, feel free to message me. :)
Julie

Hi Julie and Michelle,

Thank you for responding to my plea :) It is so nice to hear that I am not a weakling and not the only one who has trouble leaving their man to take care of themselves. I think I really need to start looking at it this way. If I think of going to the gym as caring for myself instead of work, maybe it will be a little easier to head out that front door and get moving. I should want to take care of myself just as much, or more, as I want take care of him.

Julie- It must be nice to have your boyfriend home (despite the 10 lbs) after being gone so long. I'm sure it makes you appreciate him more. What was he doing in Sweden?

And it sounds like you're pretty active....rollerderby looks like such hard work and lots of fun. Is all this activity relatively new, or have you been doing it for awhile? Personally, I get going to the gym consistently for about 2 - 3 weeks and then I get either bored, or tired and miss one day. Then one day turns into two and then three and pretty soon, it's been a week and no gym.
Do you have any tips for how to get out there on a regular basis?

And thank you for your offer of someone to check in with...I'm definitely gonna take you up on that. Are you planning on doing any one specific diet?



Michelle- Thank you for the invite to the Superfoods group. I have in the past used counting calories on fitday.com to lose weight, with pretty good success (when I stick with it). I'm definitely going to check out the group though and see what it's all about. As far as I am concerned, you can't have enough good info when it comes to losing weight. :)

And KUDOS to you for getting out of bed at 6 to get your exercising done. Especially with a nice warm man to leave behind... you are my hero!! Unfortunately, I am nurse and work night shifts, and the thought of getting out of bed at 6 makes me want to cringe. But maybe if I could get out of bed by 8, that would be about the same for me. In the past, I have always loved getting my exercising out of the way early, so that I don't have it hanging over my head the rest of the day.

So it looks like you are doing awesome with your weight loss!! How long have you been doing the superfoods thing, and what is the main concept behind it?

Thanks again ladies for the warm welcome into the group. I really feel good about this and can't wait to get back into my size 10 jeans....okay...maybe I should go that far....let's start with ....I can't wait to get back into my size 14 jeans. One step at a time right? :)

I'll keep you updated on how the next few days go, I'm already starting, but I am officially beginning the weight countdown on Monday....look out world, here I come!! :)

Hi RN,

I know how you feel, every time I wanted to work out in the past, I didn't have the heart--or the guts--or the motivation--and this has been happening to me since I was seven years old, and I was overweight then as well. By nine I was beginning to diet and struggle with several diets, believe it or not, all throughout my childhood, adolescence and adulthood.

On the drinking thing--be very, very careful. Drinks can make you gain weight as well as food, some over 500 calories! I myself am only beginning to be very selective about what I drink, and am now strongly committed to having drinks only on special occasions, limiting myself to one glass and making it last.

I am sharply committed to losing weight now, as my diabetic doctor has warned me I have to, and I'll be glad to help you out with staying motivated. I sincerely and wholeheartedly wish you all the best of luck.

BTW, if you want to keep things simple for a time, just have a walking regimen like I do, walk every day or every other day for 30 minutes, and you'll be guaranteed to see results.

Hi again!
It really is nice to have him back!! He was finishing his degree there. He's a traveller at heart and loves Europe. I've never even been on a plane before so you can see what an obvious couple we make! Haha.

I have been doing derby for about a year now and I've been going to the gym off an on for a few years. I am usually pretty active, until I stop going for a day, like you mentioned. As soon as I decide I'm too tired (aka lazy) and I'd rather watch crappy tv like the Bachelor than to go the gym/derby practice one day, I'm sunk. It turns into two, then three, then a month has gone by and I haven't gone!
A tip I can offer you though, is to find something that you really love doing. I find I can drag my butt out of the house for something if I'm excited about doing it. I love doing step classes and I go to them early on Saturdays and Sundays, which says a lot seeing as they are the only days I could sleep in! If you can find at least one thing that you really love doing, it makes getting exercise soo much easier. What do you usually do at the gym?

I'm not following a specific diet really, just watching calories in VS calories out, cutting sugar, pop *cry! I'm so addicted* and things I know I shouldn't be eating. Do you have a diet plan?

Good luck on your weigh in tomorrow. :) I will do the same! Just remember, one step at a time and remind yourself often that you are a STRONG person and that a strong and healthy body is more than worth the effort! :carrot:

I, too, am new. I been on NUMEROUS diets in my life, and yo-yoed quite a bit. After a week on the South Beach diet, I weighed myself.... 172... YIKES! that is my highest weight, except for when I was nine months pregnant! This morning I weighed myself again, and was at 169. I know that it is probably water weight, but I am still really encouraged. For a long time, I refused to weigh myself. The fact I weighed myself, and did not get hysterically emotional, represents huge progress in terms of being honest with myself. I am 44, have 2 boys, ages 10 and 12, and am married. I am 5'5, and 44 y.o.
I have posted in the 40 something forum also. My goal weight is 135, and I am looking for other fellow travelers on the road to weight loss to keep me accountable.

:welcome3:

Morning!

Well, the official weigh in has started this morning!!! YEAH!! I can't wait for it to go down, down, down! I weighed in this morning at 227.5, which is so frustrating that I let myself get back up there again.....but I have to remind myself that I am here to stay and it will go down, FOR GOOD!

I'm just getting ready to go to the gym and thought I would stop in to say hi.

So, how long have you and your boyfriend been together? Very long? And don't worry about the no plane thing, opposites attract right? I'm sure you guys compliment each other nicely. :)

Thanks for your advice on the gym thing....I think I am going to try to get into some regular classes at the gym. I do LOVE Step, but it has been awhile since I have gone, so maybe I can rekindle the love.

As far as the diet thing goes, I am mostly like you and do calorie counting. I use the website, fitday.com....which I am sure you have probably heard of. If not, you should definitely check it out. It's free and has an amazing database of foods, and lots of charts. I love the charts because I am a very visual person and it helps motivate me. I am also using the "Beck Diet Solution" program for psychological stuff. I figure if I can attack the problem from all sides, I'll have a better chance of making my life changes stick!!

Well...I'm headed out to hit the gym and get this bod into shape!! :)

Hope your day is going well...good luck with the scale...

Talk to you soon,
Melissa

Hi there TRimom,

Congrats on the quick weight loss! Even if it is water weight, it is definitely a motivator and keeps you on the right track. I have never done the South Beach Diet, but I know people who really like it. Personally I have a hard time with the no carb thing, and prefer to count calories. But, I am glad to hear it is working for you.

If you want to check in here, I plan on weighing in every Monday and your welcome to do that if it works for you. It looks like we have close to the same amount of weight to lose and it definitely helps to have to be accountable towards somebody. You're right about the being honest thing, it's so easy to turn a blind eye to the problem instead of dealing with it head on. But, here we are....dealing with it, and I know we can both do it if we put our minds to it....

Good luck on the diet the next few days, and check in regularly if you need some extra motivation. I plan on checking this daily and would love to be of some support!

Have a good one,
Melissa :)

Awesome! I'm excited to get things rolling too!
I weighed in this morning and it appears I have lost four pounds since last week (???). I'm seriously wondering if my scale is broken or if it's just because I've been drinking tons of water and cutting down salt, plus not drinking pop.. so maybe I've de-bloated myself or something. In any case, I'm not complaining and I hope it becomes a trend (although I doubt it, because I usually don't lose more than 2 pounds per week).

I hear you on the frustration part too. I keep thinking about how I used to look and it's so depressing to be here. I'm trying to think to the future though and use my past, healthy self as motivation to get my butt in gear.

I've been with my bf for about seven months. We met each other in college about 9 years ago so we know each other well. We're like two peas in a pod.

Good luck on rekindling the gym love! Hopefully your gym has some interesting classes or something to catch your interest. Mine has just started on a new schedule and they've added a Thursday morning class that I can attend before work. I was so happy to see it I almost did a happy dance. Hehe. Do you live near your gym? Or is it a bit of a trek?

Fitday.com is great! I've used it before. I haven't started using it this time around but like you I'm addicted to all the charts and following my progress. I find it makes me accountable for everything I eat because I know I have to track it. I love the little charts too! I'm a big fan of the calories burned vs eaten chart. Hahah. Makes me feel accomplished most days.
I'm not familiar with the Beck Diet Solution. What is it? Have you seen the new show on TLC.. I Can Make You Thin? I watched a bit last night and it was very interesting. The host was talking about how to fight cravings. He had a lot of different and easy to do techniques. It is on again tonight at 10pm (in my area, at least.. not sure where you are) and it will be about controlling emotional eating (something I am extremely guilty of) so I'm looking forward to watching it. Although it will be on at the same time as my favorite supermega trashy tv show, The Hills. Haha.

Anyway, must run. Hope you had a great gym session and good luck! :)
Julie

Hi BabyRN! My name is Heather,and I to am new to the site. I am assuming you are a nurse. I am in nursing school, please pray for me! :) I am looking for friends to help me along the way as well! Good luck to you!

Hi BabyRN...I'm Shayna and also new to the site. I work with nurses planning educational programs. I wish you all the luck. I'll hold you accountable if you do the same for me....

Hey Julie,
How's it goin? Pretty good considering you dropped 4 BIG LBS THIS WEEK!!! That is soooo great! I can only hope I have that much success my first week. And just think, even if a little of that was bloat weight, it means you lost at least 2 lbs of the other stuff. Most people lose only two with the water weight. You should be stoked! :D I'm so impressed you're cutting out soda, it is truly one of my vices. I LOVE diet Root Beer and diet Pepsi...but I am trying to cut myself down to one a day. I couldn't go completely cold turkey, it's just too much! I have been drinking a lot of water with the "True Lime" and "True Lemon" packets in it. That stuff is soooo great, because it's just crystalized lemon and lime, with no calories and it makes your water taste like it has a squeeze of juice in it. It definitely makes me drink more water and less soda.

Sorry it's been so long since I've checked in. I am an Intensive Care Nursery Nurse and have been working the past 3 nights, and we have been so busy I haven't been able to get on and spend 5 min. to check in. I work 12 hour shifts and commute 1 hour home, so by the time I get home all I have time for is sleeping and back to work again. But I have been sticking with the plan, although I have had some extra stuff going on and didn't make it to the gym one of the days I was planning, but no big deal....I am hitting it again tommorrow. The eating plan has been going pretty good. I have noticed that when I am overly exhausted (like when I get home after working a night shift), I just do not have enough energy to control my eating. I am going to have to come up with a plan for when I get home in the morning, because that is really the only time I have faultered this week.

My gym's is only about 10 min away and pretty easy to get to....which is just one more reason I don't have any excuse not to go :)

So, the Beck Diet Solution is a psychological method to getting your eating under control. And the basic premise behind it is that you have a task to complete every day, and then the next day you add on to it and create a solid psychological foundation for when you are hit with the hard days of your diet. For example, the first day, you write down a list of all the reasons why you want to lose weight and establish times in the day that you will sit down and read the list to help when your will power is weakened. I usually read my list before I go to a party or go out to dinner, or when I feel like snacking when I am not really hungry. Then on day two, you are expected to continue reading your list, but now, you are not allowed to eat anything standing up. And if you actually think about all the little nibbles you take during the day, when you're on the go, it really adds up. So, the goal is to add on day by day and therefore it's never overwhelming and in the end you get good tools for losing weight.

Anyhoo, I have to get back to work now. How are things going for you? Still hanging in there? I hope you are doing well and I am off of work for the next 5 days or so, so I will be here more reliably. Hope the weight is still coming off and life it good

Talk to you soon,
Melissa :)

:welcome:

1st Week Weigh In
 

Well, it's Monday and I have lost 4 lbs!!!! YIPPEE!!!!!:carrot:

I know most of it is probably water weight, but I don't care. It feels good to see that scale go down more than a couple pounds and it makes me even more motivated to watch my eating a little more closely this week in order to make it go down that much more next week. 220 is within reach and then 215 will be within reach and I'll be that much closer to getting my life and confidence back! I only hope that all of you had a successful Monday and a great weekend!

Talk to you soon,
Melissa :cool:

Hi everyone! I am really excited about this thread and holding each other accountable. Julie, Melissa, and LadyB, would you mind if I join your group?

It would be my pleasure Mander.....welcome!

Have you weighed in yet this week? Are you planning on sticking with a specific diet?

Good luck with your weight loss endeavor....I know we can do it, especially if we stick together.

TTUL

Melissa :)

Thanks for welcoming me Melissa! I have weighed this week, I am at 214 pounds - my all time high :(

I am planning on calorie counting, just because that is what I have tried and what has worked before.

To be honest I am struggling with motivation right now, so I haven't started "counting" yet. I need to get in gear soon!

Hey Mander!

Don't worry about that high number, just remind yourself that it only gets better from here on out. When I get down on myself or get frustrated that the LBS aren't coming off fast enough....I just tell myself that it only gets better if I choose to do something about it and that because I'm doing something, today is always going to be better than yesterday. Don't beat yourself up and take it one step at a time, I know you can do it.

I'm also a calorie counter and I have to say that I do my best when I use an online counter. I just recently switched from fitday.com to dailyplate.com. The Daily plate has so many more foods in the database! But they're both great sites. If you haven't checked them out, I would HIGHLY recommend it. :)

As far as the motivation thing, the best advice I can give is, mix in a workout.
When I have a hard time getting my diet on track, I hit the gym. I am less likely to eat a lot when I busted my butt in the gym ......it just seems like a waste of time if I eat badly. Do you belong to a gym?

I wish you the best of luck and hope you have a great day!

Talk to you soon,
Melissa :)

Hi girls!!!
Oh geez, after a huge hiatus, I'm back! I've been crazy sick for the past week and it has been just awful. I think I'm finally out of the woods but I'm so sorry to have been away for so long! :(

Anyway, it sounds like things are going really well Melissa!!! Congrats on the four pounds! Wow!! That's amazing! :cp: :cp: :bravo: :cp: :cp: Way to kick butt!!

I've been staying on track as well, which is great! I weighed in at 144 this week which means I'm down another two pounds. Yay! :) :broc:
I'm a bit worried about this week, since I'm still not well enough to go to the gym.. but I've been really good with my eating (food kind of grosses me out at the moment.. hey.. that's new! haha) so here's hoping it all goes ok.

Welcome Mander! Nice to have you here! How's your motivation going? I know it can be pretty tricky.. like Melissa said though, going to the gym is amazing for keeping your food on track! All the hard work at the gym really makes you question if what you're eating is really worth the effort to burn it off.

So gals, I'm wondering if we should move our group to a different area or something? So we're not in the newbie zone for good?

All the best for the week.. keep kickin' butt Melissa and best of luck on getting going Mander! You guys can do it!! :cheer:

Welcome back Julie!!

Missed ya! I'm sorry you haven't been feeling good, but hopefully all that bug fighting in your body revved up your metabolism and you'll still have a good loss this week. And congrats on the 2 lbs!!!:bravo: That is really GREAT!!!

This week has been pretty good for me, except for yesterday. My girlfriend just had a baby and she couldn't have carbs during her entire pregnancy. So, yesterday I made her homemade macaroni and cheese and homemade cornbread, but unfortunately there was a lot of tasting going on in that kitchen. Any good tips to keep from tasting EVERYTHING.......ALOT? :?:

But I am back on track today, and hoping that yesterday didn't throw me off too much.

As far as the moving the thread thing.....sounds good to me. I'm still pretty new to this site, so if you want to start something up, I will follow you. Just let me know when and where. :)

I also joined the The Biggest Loser "Beachy" Challenge which starts April 28th. Do you know anything about how it works?

Glad to see ya back and thanks for all the support.....it can truly see that it is helping already. Just checking in here on a daily basis renews my commitment to myself and you guys. :thanks:

Talk to you soon!
-Melissa :cb:

Hey Melissa!
Sounds like you're still doing really well, so congrats. :)
As for the tasting in the kitchen, I know how you feel! It can be sooo difficult not to. I don't have any advice for you on that one. I suppose it would help to make things for other people that you aren't as fond of, but what fun is that really??
Anyway, it was one day, and it seems like you're still very committed. I think we're allowed those days every now and then.. as long as we get back in the game and don't use it as an excuse to keep cheating. Plus I think since you did such a nice thing for your friend your scale karma will be through the roof! :D
I'm really looking forward to getting back to the gym. Have you been lately? How's everything else going?
Do you have the dreaded 'treats table' at work? We have one right outside my office. People bring things in and they sit on the table screaming at me to eat them! Hehe. It's so tempting and is a real willpower tester for me. I wasn't so good at resisting on Friday. Too much chocolate! Aaaah!
I was also looking at the Biggest Loser Beachy Challenge. I thought it looked interesting and thought of joining because I really like the show, but I really have no idea how it works.
Have you set any short term goals for yourself? I'm thinking of setting a couple, just to keep my motivation going.
I'm trying to figure out where we can move this thread. I'll figure something out and let you know.
Well I must get going. Good luck with your weigh in tomorrow!!!
Wishing you superlow scale numbers, ;)
Julie

HI JULIE!!!!

I guess your superlow scale number wishing :) worked! I lost 3 LBS this week :dance:
I am ecstatic!! Especially since I didn't get to the gym as much as I had wanted. I am aiming for 6 days a week, knowing that if I miss 1 extra, that still gives me 5 days at the gym. But this week I had some extra stuff going on and only made it 4 days. But 4 days is better than none and I have to remember that every week and every day won't be perfect, but it's what I do the next day to get back on track, that matters. :)

So, how are you feeling? Are you well yet? I know sometimes when you're sick, it can zap your energy for a long time. I hope you are starting to feel like yourself again and that the gym is in your near future. :ebike:

As far as the dreaded treat table goes.....oh yeah....we definitely have one! But fortunately, I am a nurse and the bedsides are not near it, so I only have to resist it around break time, or any time I walk past the conference room. The bad part is, that patient's families love to bring us lots of yummy treats to thank us for caring for their babies. So there are always yummy things showing up. But I try to not take the first bite and then I can't go back and have another. 'Cause I know myself and know that I can't just take one bite...one bite turns into two, turns into 20. It's a slippery slope. It's kind of a bummer that your coworkers try to get you to eat all the naughty things... I guess sometimes people want to make themselves feel better about their lack of willpower by bringing down someone else's. But as long as it isn't an everyday thing...it doesn't hurt to have some treats now and then.

Where do you work by the way? Are there treats around all the time? At least Easter is over....that was the worst!

I think it's a great idea to set Mini Goals. I think that I am going to aim to get down to 205 by June 1st. That's a little more than 2 lbs a week and I think that is doable. Plus, my boyfriend's grandmother is turning 90 and they are having a big party where I will be meeting a lot of his family for the first time. So it will be great to feel good about myself and feel like he can be proud of me.

What about you? What is your mini goal going to be? And how did you do this week? Any progress in that number? I wish you the best and hope that you have a great day!

Talk to you soon!
Melissa :sunny:

Hi!!
WOW!!!!! Three more! Way to go!!! :cp::cp::cp: You must be so proud of yourself! :) That's amazing!!!!

I have stayed the same this week (144) which is kind of a miracle given that I haven't been working out and I snitched a few things here and there (darn chocolate on Friday!). So I'm happy I stayed the same but a bit disappointed that I haven't lost. Ah well, back in the game this week! :)

I'm feeling much better today. I'm ready to get back to the gym tonight, in fact I'm dying to go, but I have to stick around at work for a special event. Tomorrow will be the day I go back in full force. Way to go on sticking with going to the gym! That's great. Do you find you're noticing a change? Sometimes that is the most rewarding part of the gym.. being able to go faster or harder than you could before.

As for my job.. I work in a professional theatre (live theatre, not movies as everyone usually thinks. Hehe) doing public relations. Basically I try to get lots of media and exposure for the shows we present. Lots of radio and tv stuff so it's a lot of fun. Your job must be so interesting! All kinds of sweet little babies around. Awww! People tend to bring us a lot of treats too.. opening nights are especially bad.. that's when we get tons of things coming in from the actors and directors as thank yous.

June 1 sounds like a good mini goal date. I think I'll set the same date, then we can kick each other's butts if necessary! :) That's about six and a half weeks.. so I think I'll aim for 15 pounds. I usually lose about 2 pounds a week.. so it may be a bit high but good motivation for me. I'm trying to decide what my reward will be (aside from feeling better). I'm thinking new running shoes might be good.

Good idea about your boyfriend's family party. Have you been together long? Meeting 'the family' is always fun. Plus you'll have even more confidence when you meet them with your rockin' bod. :)

I'm really hoping to get down in size in time for summer. It's finally above 0 degrees here and everyone is starting to wear more spring/summery clothes.. so the fear of summer dresses and sleeveless shirts is looming! :) Yikes!

Well I must get to work. Congrats again on your awesome progress. It's a great motivator for me to see how well you're doing. Keep kickin' butt girl!

Julie :hat:

Hey there,

How's is going? Congrats on not gaining this week!! I know it's frustrating, but at least it wasn't a gain. And like you said.....considering you didn't feel well enough to get to the gym, maintaining was still really great!:woohoo:

So, how was getting back to the gym? I think it's a really good sign that you can't wait to get to the gym. Just think about how many times you have dreaded going and avoided it or put it off. You have to be excited that you're actually craving it! :)

As for me, I have actually had the most amazing week so far. I have actually got my butt out of bed twice this week at 5:30 AM:yikes: and made it to the gym! Now, for someone who works night shift....this has to be one of the most amazing feats EVER!!!! But it felt so good to get it done and out of the way. Plus, I was just really proud of myself because if I didn't get up and do it at that time, there would have been no other time in the day to do it. It's been great! I am pretty sure I will be able to make my 6 day gym goal this week:lifter: It is getting a bit easier, and I am super excited about mixing in some running! In the past when I was at my thinnest, I had completed a few olympic distance triathlons and a half marathon and I was running anywhere between 6 and 12 miles a day. I loved the feeling I got when I could run for and hour and half without stopping and still feel good and strong. I am hoping to get back to at least running 5 miles without stopping....but I know that is a long way off. Have you ever trained for an event like those? They're great for motivation and it's nice to have a goal associated with your workouts, besides weight loss.

The other thing I am excited about, is that I am picking up a second job to make some more cash and this week just happens to be a week that I am basically working every night. The greatest part about this is that I can't drink any beer this week :( and I usually eat less and am more disciplined when I work and am on a roll in my diet. So....I am hoping for a good loss this week!!! :goodscale

How has your week been going? Your job sounds like it is really cool and exciting! It must be so much fun to get to go to all the radio and TV stations to promote everything. It sounds like it would never be boring and challenging all at the same time. What city do you live in that the temp is hovering around 0 degrees? HOLY MOLY that's COLD!!! I am in Santa Rosa, CA....which is about an hour north of San Francisco and we start to complain around 40 and 50's....I can't imagine living in 0 degrees!!! That's crazy!! :dizzy: But it certainly does delay the sun dresses a bit.

Your goal for June sounds perfect! I know if we both stick together, we can make it!! It's totally doable!!! I like your idea about the running shoes....what is it about new exercise clothes and shoes that give me more motivation to work out? I love it! Plus, exercise clothes seem to be so expensive, so it's a good way to stretch out the cost a little bit. I think I am going to make my reward a new outfit for Brian's family affair! I have met most of the immediate family (and love them....thank GOD!!!) but this will be a lot of extended family that I haven't met yet. So it would be great to have that little bit of extra confidence.

We have been together about 2 and a half years and have been living together for almost 2 years. We had a very fast progression through dating, but we both knew very early on that things were different than anything we had ever experienced before. What can I say...when you know, you know. I know it is totally cliche....but it's totally true!! I am the happiest I have ever been in my life, and getting my weight under control will be icing on the cake.

Well...I hate to cut this short, but I have to get ready to head off to work. I hope your week has been going good and that you enjoyed your time back at the gym!

Sending good thoughts your way:goodvibes.......Have a great Day!!!

-Melissa :flow2:

hellooo! :)
 

Hi again!!
Well, I'm glad it's Sunday. I'm ready to start a new week and really kick some butt. This past week at work was a killer. I worked four nights in addition to working all day because we had events, and we opened a show which = killer week for me. I barely got to the gym, which is very disappointing. This coming week is pretty clear though, so I'm hoping to get there at least three times between Monday and Friday and to go to classes on both Saturday and Sunday. Yikes, I'm afraid of the scale tomorrow.

Way to go on your awesome week!!!! Yeahhh!! That's great! :) It's awesome that you stuck to your gym schedule, especially when you've been so busy. Did you meet your goal? Amazing that you got up super early too! Wow.. that is NEVER easy! Huge props to you. Especially with your schedule. The running thing sounds so cool! I've always envied long distance runners. It has always seemed like the ultimate test in fitness to me, to keep your body going for that long. Good luck getting back into it!

Congrats on the second job! Good idea to keep yourself busy, plus the added bonus of extra money! :) Are you trying something new? Or does it relate to your job now? New jobs are always great to give your mind a fresh start I hear you on the beer thing.. I'm not a big beer drinker but I do like mixed drinks. I know they're lethal when it comes to losing so I'm really trying to watch. Kind of sucks, but it's all worth it in the long run.

I live in London, Ontario Canada. I probably should have said that before, seeing as 0 degrees here is not exactly the same as 0 degrees there! Haha. It's still very cold here at times though. It got down to -31 this winter. Brr! I'm so happy to see the sunshine and warmer temperatures these days! :) So you're in Santa Rosa? I'm not entirely familiar with that area, but I have always wanted to go to San Fransisco. I'm not sure why, exactly, but it jsut looks so interesting! Maybe I watched too much Full House as a kid or something. Haha. My coworker went there last year and he said that the weather there every day is comparable to our spring/summer here. Sounds ok to me! I take it you don't get much snow/ice in Santa Rosa? ;)

It's so true that new exercise clothes = gym motivation! I suppose any excuse to wear new duds and look good! :) I have found lululemon clothes to be the best for me.. the pants are the most flattering I've found. They are pretty $$$, but anything that makes my butt and thighs look good is well worth the money, i say. Hahah.

Nice idea about the new outfit for the family party. You're going to knock their socks off.

It sounds like you and your boyfriend are very happy together! Hooray for great guys. :D He must be really proud of you for making such positive changes in your life.

So sorry to cut this short, but I should really get a start on my laundry. Why do I always leave it to Sunday night? Oh... because I haaaaate it! Haha.

Best of luck tomorrow on the scale. I know you'll do great! June, here we come!

Keep on rockin' the scale and talk to you soon!!!!
Julie

Quick Weigh In
 

I'm sorry this has to be so quick, but I don't want to miss a weigh in day. I promise I will write a note worthy of your last one, but right now I just have to write a quick one.

So, after all the hype of this week, I stayed the same weight. :( I am a super disappointed, but I am 4 days into my "TOM" and I worked a night shift last night, which generally I retain fluid after those....so I am hoping I still had a loss, but those contributing factors tipped the scales. :) I feel like I am smaller, which makes me feel a little better......but I was really hoping to get under that 220 mark. I know the numbers shouldn't make a difference....but who are we kidding? They do..


Hope your weigh in went better than mine....

I promise a better, more comprehensive email tomorrow......TTUS

Melissa :)

Feeling Better...
 

Good Morning!

I am doing much better than I was yesterday. I hit that scale this morning with a little bit of apprehension, but I was pleasantly surprised when it showed a 218!!!! YIPPEE!!!:dancer: I'm just so happy I am under that 220 mark!! :D Now I feel like all of my efforts last week and 6 days at the gym were actually scale productive.

How'd your weigh in go? It sounds like you had a super crazy week!! Did you find any time to sleep? :) At least you have a less crazy week ahead of you and hopefully will have some fun at the gym. What classes are you planning on going to?

So you're in Canada then huh? I Love Canada.....well, what I have seen of it. We went on a small cruise last year to Victoria, Vancouver and Nanaimo which I believe is on the other side from where you are, but I just loved everything about it. Everyone was sooooooo friendly, and the cities were so clean and cute ...and there were pubs EVERYWHERE....which was our favorite part ;) But really, it was a great trip and you have a beautiful country. So, are you a hockey fan? Brian and I are HUGE Sharks fans..... GO SHARKS!!! Game 7 of the Sharks v Flames is tonight and it's do or die. I'm excited, but a little scared....game 7's are CRAZY, and anything can happen. GO SHARKS!!! :)

I totally understand about the laundry thing. I don't think I mind washing the laundry, but I HATE folding it. I think it's because we have so many clothes and when they all get put away at the same time, our closet is too full!! But that will be changing soon enough. We are right in the middle of buying a bigger house. Which is the reason why I have the second job. We need the extra cash to make eveything work. The second job is still in the Intensive Care Nursery, it's just a little closer to home. I work full time an hour away in San Francisco at a big hospital, we have a 52 bed unit...and my second job is about 10 min away and in a much smaller environment...only 13 bed unit. It's nice though, because at the second job there are a lot healthier babies, which makes it feel more like babysitting for $55/hour....and I can do that anyday :)

Hopefully I will make enough cash to be able to afford some cute exercise clothes along the way. I haven't heard of lululemon clothing before, but I am certainly going to see if I can get my hands on some. I'll take anything that will help me in the butt and thigh category. I think that has to be the most troublesome part of my body. I am 6 feet tall and I have long legs, but I have pretty thick calves and thighs. Plus I have a big pooch in my lower abs. They are definitely getting smaller, but I can always use some help in that region.

Speaking of making them smaller, I gotta head out to the gym. I hope you're having a good day, and that you are enjoying some down time after your crazy week. Talk to you soon!

Melissa :wave:

Hi Melissa!!
Congrats on the under 220 mark!!!!! AWESOME! :carrot: All your hard work is paying off! :)
I hope your weigh in today goes really well! :D
My body seems to be stalling at the moment. I'm still wavering between 142 and 144. I know TOM is lurking though, and I think that has something to do with it. Ah well, I'm just going to keep on track and hopefully my body gets the message soon that I'm not giving up!
I have to apologize for not writing much! Things have been insane lately. I thought since we opened the final show of the season that I would get a bit of a breather.. but the show is going over really well.. so we have decided to hold it over! Which means a lot more media and a busy me. Hehe.
Have you started your new job yet? You must be so excited!! That's really exciting about the new house too! You have a lot of great changes happening in your life right now. :) and $55/hr!?!? WOW!!!!!!!
Oh yes, if you look into lululemon I bet you'd like it. The material is really great because it pulls everything in and yet is still really comfortable. They also have really cute cuts and styles. Very flattering! It sounds like we have similar body types. I'm shorter but I have the lower ab/thigh/butt thing and I have bigger legs. Some of the leg 'bigness' is muscle from roller skating but they are big nonetheless. I've also started noticing that my upper arms are bigger than usual.. I believe some people call them bat wings! :o Can't wait to see those go away! heh.
As a Canadian, I kind of fail in the liking hockey department. Hahaha. My boyfriend more than makes up for it though. He likes to yell at the tv. I try to tell him that the players can't hear him, but no dice!
How is your eating going? Is there anything you're relying on more these days? I'm so glad summer is on the way.. lots of fresh veggies.. :D .. and don't even get me started on corn on the cob.. DROOOOL.. sooo good. Hehe.
Are you a pop drinker? I'm still addicted but I usually drink diet.. but I keep reading all these news bits about how it could be really bad for your diet because it may make your appetite stronger. Here's hoping that's not true!
Well, I must get to work. Again, I feel bad for not replying sooner. Maybe I should pass along my email or facebook. I seem to check on them more often when I'm busy.
Anywho, GOOOOD luck on the scale today!!! :goodscale: Hope it goes great! I'm sure it will :D
Julie

Mind if I join your weigh in group?
 

Hi Girls,

My name is Cheryl. I am new to this and I happened upon your thread. I'm hoping you won't mind me joining your group for some weekly weigh ins. I despereately need to be held accountable to someone other than myself! I am a WW veteran (lifetime member and reached goal 2x), but I can't seem to fit the meetings (or motivation!) into my schedule. I need to lose 25 lbs and get my butt in shape. The first time I reached goal was b/f my 1st baby. I was 31 and super fit and I ran all the time. I ran a couple 1/2 marathons and planned on training for amarathon. that has not happened yet, but it is still a goal! the 2nd time I reached goal was after my 2nd baby, but I was not as fit. You can definetely tell the difference. I hope to be fit this time. I am 39 :eek: and I WILL be in shape and at goal when I turn 40!

I have 3 kids (almost 7 girl, 4 1/2 boy & 13 mnth girl). I'd like to blame my weight on them, but they weren't the ones shoving the pizza and icecream in my mouth! I got down to 180 last summer, but I stopped going to meetings and gained 10 back. I only have 2 pairs of shorts that fit, so I must lose weight b/f summer! I am a stay at home mom now and a soon to be nursing student. I am a huge stress eater, so every test I have I pig out, HELP! I also fall asleep trying to read, so I eat to stay awake! Hopefully, if I know I have to report my weigh in, I will control myself a little more.

You girls seem upbeat and motivated, and my goodness, you could spend days searching this site deciding where to begin, so here I am. Melissa, maybe you can give me some pointers about nursing school! I have visited SF years ago and have some good friends from college that live in the area. You're lucky to live in such a beautiful place. Julie, we are practically neighbors! I live in Syracuse, NY, not too far from the border. I have a friend from college who runs a theatre off Broadway, it is so busy and all consuming. You must have such a busy schedule, amazing to find time to lose weight in your day.

I have been trying to work out/run, but it seems that one of the kids is always sick, I have a test, an errand I must do, blah, blah, blah....so I have not managed more than 1 or 2 x/week. Do you have any exercise goals you are trying to reach? If so let me know.

Well, I am sure I have rambled enough! I am committing to work out 2-3 times by next Monday and to not eat myself silly studying for my Anatomy & Physiology Lab Practical next week!

Cheryl

Hi Julie,
I meant to check in on Monday, but this week has started off with a bang and I truly haven't had a chance to sit down and do it. I DID weigh in though and am officially down to 216!!! YEAH!!! 2 MORE LBS!!!! I feel really good and know that it is only going to get better. :belly: I am very motivated to get that number under 215 and even more excited about getting under 210.

For the most part, this start has been pretty smooth for me. I haven't been hungry at all, which is VERY abnormal for me.....but maybe it's due to the level of stress in which I have reached. Usually when I am stressed, I EAT EAT EAT, but I think this time I am soooooo stressed and soooo busy that I don't have time to eat and I am not hungry at all. The biggest challenge in the upcoming weeks will be keeping my gym schedule. My second job is kind of using me as much as possible, which....being new and all, I don't really want to say no too much.....so I am kinda working alot. It's good because it get's me lots of money, and keeps me from drinking beer :) , but bad because some days I actually do need some sleep and we're trying to get the house packed up and ready for renters. But, it's only a month and I know I can do it.....and it will be worth it in the end.

I am glad to hear that your show is doing well! Well, bad for you because it keeps you extra busy, but great for you too! So, what happens at the end of the season? Do you guys have time off, or vacation or anything?

I wanted to ask you about the Lulumon clothing.....does it show cellulite easily? I have a lot of pants that hug so much in my thighs, that I have to wear a sweatshirt tied around my waist to hide it... (hopefully that won't be needed for much longer) but until then, it would be great to have some pants that didn't show EVERY SINGLE dimple!!! If you know what i mean ;)

As far as veggies go....you definitely got my mouth watering with the mention of corn on the cob!! I love anything BBQ. Burgers, Tri-tip, corn on the cob....EVERYTHING!!! It just reminds me of the best part about summer....warm nights, getting friends together, having a few beers, chatting it up and laughing a lot! Life is good in the summer!! Do you guys have pretty warm summers there? Is it pretty humid?

I am sorry that the scale hasn't been moving in your favor lately.....but at least it hasn't been moving against you! Sometimes when life is busy and crazy, the accomplishment you have to be happy with is not gaining and when life settles a bit, you can get back into making the numbers go down...but until then...maintaining is great. So congrats on not gaining :woohoo:

Well, I hope your week settles down a bit....and you're able to back in the rhythm of things. Don't work too hard! :) I'm gonna send you my email address in a PM and maybe we can start communicating that way if it is easier for you.

Hope to talk to you soon!
Melissa :flow1:

Hi Cheryl!!

Welcome!! :welcome2: I'm glad and flattered that you chose our thread to jump in on. This website is WONDERFUL, but can be a little overwhelming. I know Julie has been super busy lately and I don't want to speak for her, but I would love having you as an extra person to answer to. I think I do a lot better when I have people to keep me honest. ;) I absolutely would LOVE to answer any questions you might have about nursing school. I worked very hard during school, but I am such an advocate of getting into the nursing field. It has served me well, I LOVE my job, and I make a lot of money that has opened many doors for us in the long run. Soooooo, I am super excited that you have chosen nursing and I know you will love it. It's a lot of work, for sure. But the other side of it is sooooooooo worth it in the end!!

You sound like your life is very busy with your kids and all, and I am very impressed that you even find time to go to the gym. I have a hard enough time and I don't have 3 little rug rats running around, so you are AWESOME!!!!:queen:
I will do my best to keep you motivated and always give you props on getting the gym in during your busy schedule.

I too have run a half marathon and have done quite a few triathlons, but that marathon goal has eluded me for some time. It is the one thing in my life that I vow to accomplish. I hope that when I get closer to goal weight, and more in shape, I will schedule a marathon. Maybe if we both are ready around the same time...we can train for something together....something to think about.

Anyhoo....I have to go spend some time with my cute man......since our time together has been cut in half lately. :( But I hope you have a great week and that you are able to make your goal at the gym.

Weigh ins are on monday...so I hope to hear from you before then, but if you're too busy, I understand too.

Talk to ya later,

Melissa :)

helloooo again! :)
 

Hi again!

Oh my gosh!!! You're losing like crazy! That's great!! You're really kickin' butt!!! :cheer2::cheer3::cheer2: Yeah!!

Sorry to hear you're stressed, but it seems like keeping busy is helping, so hooray for that! :) You're right in that it will all be worth it in the end. It's a good thing to remind ourselves every once and a while.

Thanks for the scale support. I blame TOM! You're right though, it's better to be maintaining the same weight rather than gaining. I'm sure it will all turn around soon. I'm just going to keep at it until my body can't resist losing. Heheh.

Moving can definitely be a lot of work, but I've found it's not so bad if you start early and just do a wee bit at a time. Not to mention the work out! Lots of lifting and moving things around! Bonus!! Good luck keeping on the gym schedule. I'm sure it will all fall into place. :)

When the season ends at work we pretty much just prepare for the next one. We get two weeks off in July, so I'm really looking forward to that. I love summer!! That said, I'm really dreading bathing suit season, but I'm trying to use that as motivation. I seriously hate bathing suits. A few friends were getting together last Sunday for a bbq/hot tub night and I was completely dreading it. It really sucked, because I realized I was letting my body image get in the way of just wanting to have fun. Have you ever felt that way? Anyway, the party was canceled at the last minute so no bathing suit for me.. but summer is just around the corner so helloooo gym!

Ooh lululemon is great for cellulite! That's why I love them! :) They are also great for a little butt lift! :D The pants are a bit expensive.. I paid $90 for a pair.. but that was about a year and a half ago and they are still in perfect condition. Their site is lululemon.com if you're interested. I hear you on the every single dimple thing. Haha. Oh the joys of being a girl. ;)

Life IS good in the summer! I find the sunshine really helps me get motivated to move around. It gets fairly warm here in the summer.. the highest we usually see is around 30 degrees Celsius with fairly high humidity. Usually it's around 25 or so, which is nice. :) It also means the drive-in movie theatre is open! One of my favorite things to do in the summer for sure. What is it like there? Is it pretty warm all year?

How is your eating going? I'm assuming very well since you're losing quite nicely. :) This week I made an effort to take my breakfast and lunch to work every day, and cook dinner every night. It went really well aside from today when we all went out for lunch because my coworker is leaving. It was a great week because I found I ate much better meals! :) I also got Duncan (my bf) on the same path and he denied eating Wendy's with his coworkers yesterday at work. Amazing! Have you found any great meal ideas?

Thanks for your email address! I'll try to stay more regular on here, but if things get a bit crazy again I'll send you an email instead. I'll send you mine too.

Anyway, I should get back to work. Hope everything is going well and that you have an awesome weekend!! :D

Keep kickin' butt girly! :carrot:
Julie

Hi Cheryl,
Welcome!! I definitely don't mind if you join us! :) The more the merrier, I always say.
As Melissa said, I have been really busy lately. I'm hoping to check in here more often though! I don't want to let you gals down in terms of support. :)
Have you ever been up this way? I don't think I've ever been to Syracuse. Not that I can remember anyway! I'm waving! Can you see me?? Heheh. :D

I know how you feel about the stressed eating. I'm definitely an emotional eater! I hope your studying goes well and that you can resist. :D You can do it!

Congrats on taking charge of your health! Yeah!! :carrot: I have a similar weight goal. I'm hoping to lose around 20 lbs. We can all do it together! I'm so glad you two are here. It's nice to have people to talk to that understand. FYI, Melissa is awesommmmeeee!!! :D

My gosh.. you runner girls! I'm so envious. :) I like to go to the classes at my gym, mostly BodyPump (muscle class) and BodyStep (step aerobics). I also play roller derby so I skate a lot. Aside from running, is there anything else you like to do for exercise? Is there anything new you're hoping to try?

Well, I said I was going to get back to work about 10 mins ago, so I suppose I should do that. :D

Thanks for joining us and keep up the awesome attitude! :)
Julie