I think I vaguely remember Meg saying she might not be around, so here is the weekly chat thread! Did everyone have a good weekend?

I should update my ticker. This morning the scale was at 140 again. I wish there was some way to tell how much of that weight is from bad choices, how much is water, and how much is thyroid. I just can't believe that I gained five pounds in three weeks all by bad choices. I'm going back to the doctor Wednesday.

We had our cooking club meetup at our house last night. It went really well! Carter was a very good dog and other than barking when people arrived, he was perfectly behaved. The food was really good too, and mostly healthy except I will admit I took two servings of dessert. Probably had more to drink than I should have too!

So you guys already know that I've had knee problems for a while. Lately they are completely weird. Usually, for the past few years, I have just had achy knees on and off throughout the day. This past weekend, my knees stopped aching (good), but instead, they started having sharp pains when I walk (bad)! Like this morning, I felt totally fine, until I walked down the stairs and my right knee freaked out on every step. Once I was down the stairs, I was fine again. So weird!

I went out of town for a few days, birthday celebrating, ate birthday cake and ice cream, too. I am happy to say that I didn't gain any weight! I did try to watch portions, though so I could celebrate.

I had a good weekend (no gains!) but I did go out and drank too much on Friday night and followed that up with a 2am Denny's run (blech!)....poor decisions always get made when I drink! Oh well....I kept it clean for the rest of the weekend and everything is back to normal! Saturday I went to the pool and Sunday the beach. It was just nice. I relaxed and didn't do a whole lot besides a few loads of laundry.

I took the weekend off from exercise because I am trying to increase my running distance....so I know I can't run every day and still increase my distance....so it was difficult, but I managed! I did get to the gym on Saturday and lifted, so that was a good thing!

Today I'm off to my classroom to work on some lesson plans and some final setting up....I'd much rather be out in the sun at the pool or the beach, but I imagine I'll survive.

Michele~my daughter will be living in the dorms, but her school is mainly a commuter school so there is no cafeteria. They have a food court instead (mostly poor choices there). Her dorm is apartment style and has a full kitchen, so she'll have to do some cooking.

Freda~thanks, I am feeling a little better. I'm sure this cold has affected my ear a bit as I keep getting dizzy, but at least my nose isn't as runny. We did take pictures (over 300!) and I'll try to upload them this evening. I'll put a few on my photobucket and give you all a link if you'd like.

Today is day 2 of better choices. Saturday didn't count as I went to the golf tournament banquet (and had too much wine). Yesterday's lunch wasn't the best, but the rest of the day was 100% OP. I still have .5 pounds of vacation weight to lose (and about 15 beyond that).

Jessica~I hope your knee pain goes away. And don't feel bad about the scale--we all go through that! Your party sounds great!

DS has finally gotten himself to sleep this morning! We are doing great on night-time sleeping but he is starting to fight his naps during the day, so he can get in his share of ceiling fan staring, smiling and wiggling for mommy, and of course, tummy time. It seems like it is getting harder instead of easier!

My weight hit a new postpartum low this morning, in a good way. I'm on an astonishing 1 lb a week track, but it is something. My knee is feeling better, so I'm doing more walking and took DD on a special mother/daughter trip the Desert Museum yesterday. Another couple of days with no issues and I'll try running again. Now I need to make a resolution to do some more ab work. I have a big bike ride planned for Aug 15, so I'm excited about getting back into that!

Jessica, sorry to hear about your new knee issues. Hope it gets straightened up soon!

Bargoo, sounds like you did OK controlling birthday portions, and enjoyed yourself some with no real damage.

gatoramanda, I make horrible choices when I drink, so I don't drink much. Good job on the running!

allison, are you still running too?

Anne

Jessica, sorry to hear of all the pain with your knees. Also hope they get your thyroid problem under control.

bargoo, WTG on being able to have your cake and still control your portions so that you didn't gain.

Allison, we'd love to see your pictures.

Anne, I had to smile about the baby watching the ceiling fan. Our little grandkids have always been fascinated watching the fan too. WTG on getting to your new post-partum low.

My weekend was just OK. Had a great workout on Saturday and just an OK workout on Sunday (besides 6 hrs. mall shopping for school clothes for the girls). I ate a few fried mushrooms last night (totally off-plan) but the rest of my food all weekend was OP.

My weigh-ins are still fairly satisfactory at 1-2 lbs. loss per week. But, that is with a ton of exercise.

It is 107 degrees here today and if I hadn't already been to the gym, I probably wouldn't have made it today. My plans now are to stay in the air conditioning and get a ton of laundry done.

Morning, just a quick run ba as I have a meeting (no surprise there!) in 1/2 and hour.

Had a decent weekend. We didn't do much, and consequently there were few food temptations. I did get my new Cooking Light and made 2 recipes from there (posted them both in the recipe thread). First was a spicy peanut chicken that sounded very good and is touted to freeze well. It did taste good, but I ran out of time Sunday, so it's in the fridge instead of appearing on the dinner table! We'll have it tomorrow I think. I cut in approximately in thirds as the original made 12 serviings! The second was a German Apple Pancake, which was a big hit with DH! Only change I made to it was to use 2 apples instead of one.

Whoever complained about apples being $1.77/lb (Freda?) should come here. Unless there's a sale, apples are usually $2.29 (and up) per pound. Bananas range from $.79 to $.99/lb. Peaches have been on sale for $1.98, but have been over $3. Likewise cherries - on sale for $2.88/lb this week. You just have to bite the bullet if you want something specific. I try to go with what's on sale. Fortunately we have our own strawberries right now. The raspberries are not looking too good. It's been so rainy that the flying insects/wasps that pollinate them have not been out much.

Whoops, gotta run. The meeting is in another building, so I need to gether my stuff and go... ..

Hi everyone,

I had a kind of bad weekend - nothing bad happened, I was just bored and ended up snacking from boredom a lot.

Warning: Rant about peer pressure ahead: When I'm being strict with my food intake the easiest thing for me to drop is alcohol, instead of, say, all sweets. But the peer pressure is awful. I've considered how my friends act, and they're not alcoholics or generally negative people. But even though they saw me lose weight, I've never been able to make them understand that I have to work to even stay where I am, and why can't I just have a few drinks on someone's birthday, or on a Saturday night, or whenever. Unless directly asked, at this point, I don't talk about my food or workouts. I've resorted to pointedly ordering my "drink" alone, and asking the bartender to put a diet soda in a cocktail glass to fake drinking alcohol (this is a very effective fake-out once you get the bartenders on your side). Saturday my BF wanted to have a drink, and I said I didn't want one (I was all for going out and socializing, mind you). He told me he just wanted me to "relax and have fun, [he] understands I've been trying to stick to my diet, but [he] just wants me to relax". I started crying b/c I interpreted that as "I'm just not fun", which he tried to assure me that wasn't what he meant, but still... and frankly on Saturday, I didn't want to drink b/c I had been overeating on snacks all afternoon and I knew I'd already way overdone it on calories. But I didn't want to admit to my BF that I'd eaten on 3 granola bars and a bunch of peanut butter that afternoon - I was embarrassed!

I don't mind being sober when I go out with a group of people, I really don't. But when people start bringing attention to my lack of drinking, that puts me in a bad mood. I have enough food/diet issues to deal with without having drinks shoved down my throat too. Gah!

Flash of insight: I can totally fool BF into thinking I'm drinking alcohol too, if I make my own drinks and just use diet soda... but we have a totally honest relationship, and I've never lied to him about anything! Is it ok to lie about this little thing?

Ok, thank you, rant over. Alcohol really didn't have anything to do with my snacking over the weekend.

Jessica, had you started to take your new medication before the knee problems started? Sorry to hear you're still having so much trouble.

Anne, glad to hear you weight loss is on track. Aww, sounds like a fun mother-daughter outing to the museum!

Amanda, yeah, when I do drink I make terrible food choices too, another reason I try not to do it often. I have a very hard time giving myself an exercise rest, too, but it's good for our bodies, right?

Lily, I'm glad to hear your hard work at the gym is paying off.

Bargoo, great job enjoying your celebrations without going overboard! That's always something to be proud of.

Hi Pat, Michele, Allison, everyone else!

Megan-- I totally understand your alcohol rant! I am older and married and I still get pressure from my family to drink. Dh says I'm no fun anymore. We celebrated our anniversary out Friday night and though he is used to my not ordering alcohol, he still always asks if I want something and acts put out when I don't. Then, Saturday, he cooked for our anniversary and bought a bottle of champagne. I didn't really have a choice when he poured the glasses did I?! Grumble, grumble.... I just don't want to waste my calories on alcohol and I tend to overeat and get a headache if I drink anything....I do like your lying ideas with the bartender and BF though-- I'll have to remember them!

WaterRat-- everything is super expensive here too. I don't eat apples so I can't comment on those, but I know my fruits and veggies tend to be very expensive unless they are on sale. I get a fair amount from Costco and their prices are usually much less-- I buy asparagus, mushrooms, berries, etc.

Lily-- you are doing fantastic losing that much! Keep up the good work! Wow it is hot there. I am from Texas but freezing here in N. California. Right now I'm under the covers because I was cold in my house!

Anne-- glad the little one is sleeping well. Sounds like you are doing fantastic taking off the pregnancy weight!

Hello to everyone else! I hope everyone has a fantastic week!!

I am (hopefully) back to 100% on plan again. I feel like I keep saying that and things keep coming up and getting in my way (like my dh!). We celebrated our wedding anniversary on Friday and Saturday which didn't help my weight even though I was mostly on plan. I can't deviate the slightest without gaining... We had steak Saturday night and I know we are having leftovers tonight so I'm going to have to make sure I watch my portions carefully. I've planned the rest of the week's meals so I have better control over those.

I am off to the dentist shortly for my cleaning. Anyone else hate going to the dentist as much as me? I just despise it....

Anne~unfortunately I have not done any running since April. First it was the vein surgery and then all of DD's graduation stuff going on and I just gave up. Now that it's hotter than beans (you know what I'm talking about!!!) and the monsoonal flow has caused so much humidity, I just can't talk myself into getting up to run. As soon as it cools off, I'll start up again (my dog needs it as much as I do). In the mean time, I am joining the gym this afternoon!!!

As for my dog...when we went on vacation, I left the dogs at home and had my neighbor feed them. She went the extra mile (picked up poop, watered my plants, stayed for an hour or so a day to play with the dogs, etc.) but she was a little TOO nice and decided that Chico (black lab) "looked" hungry so she decided to double his food and give him 5-6 milkbones per day. Goodness, I give him maybe one milkbone every OTHER day. Anyway, we got home and not only did he LOOK fat, he had gas and threw up on Saturday. I feel so bad for him--he's gotten used to that extra food and I've cut him back to his usual amount. Poor guy! But, it just means that he's dieting with the rest of the family!

I have caught up today on reading here. No time to post as I have to cook dinner tonight. Angie has a conference in San Diego all week. She will be home for just a bit before yoga and she needs to eat because she won't be back home until 8.

However I JUST HAD TO POST A REPLY TO THIS...I found it quite FASCINATING!



MY REPLY....

sure she will ALLISON.....sure

Good Morning, again! Just had the computer eat my post. I got all my exercise in yesterday, thanks to the GK's. 2 long bike rides. Ate pretty good too.

the alcohol issue. Alcohol, besides being wasted calories, lowers your inhibitions, and that just makes you open to bad decisions. I do drink occasionally, a glass of wine maybe or a beer. But I make a concious decision and save my calories for it, make sure I'm not going to decide that it's ok to eat anaything I want now. Everyone knows their limits, when they can safely have 1 drink, or if 1 drink just turns into a bad night. Don't let anyone pressure you.

Bargoo, Thanks for reminding us that you can still celebrate and enjoy yourself and still make good choices and not wory about weight gain!

Anne, reading your post brought back pleasant memories of when the kids were little. I so miss that. Take advantage and enjoy.

Lili, 1-2 lb. a week is wonderful. We do have to fight for every pounds though, don't we? But, you with all that exercise you're getting so toned and healthy too. I just read an article about the thin unfit.

Someone else brought up the price of apples, but I did say that i'mnot going to buy anymore untill they come into season. I know the ones I'm getting her just don't taste right. I'm not going to give that price for something I can't eat. I did keep buying them for awhile thinking it was just that one bunch, but it's been pretty consistant. In the mean time, I'm loading up on cherries (my favorite) and peaches and nectarines. Cherries are 2.99 a pound but they aren't in long so I take advantage. Peaches and nectarines are wonderful and are .99 cents a pound here. Along with the watermellon and cantalope, i'm ok with waiting for the "good" apples.

Make it a good day. Freda

Good morning everyone! I had an amazing run last night and ran 5 miles for the first time ever - clocking in at 53:30. I'm very very excited for this! My goal for August was to just be able to run 5 miles by the end of it (I normally run 3.25)....now I'll just have the month to work on besting my time. I'll be taking it slow and not running as often as I have been (5 nights/week) or at least decreasing distance on the days that I'm not doing 5 miles....

Lost another pound this week (probably due to the running!) and it feels good...hope to be in the 140's by the end of the month...of course school starts up on the 18th...so we'll probably have to make some adjustments there....

Have a good one!
~A

Bargoo - good job not gaining despite the cake!

Allison - welcome back!

Anne - congrats on your postpartum low!

Lily - 6 hours of mall shopping sounds like a workout to me...

Pat - that german apple pancake looked really good, I'll have to try it!

Megan - it sucks that your friends are putting pressure on you. They probably just want to feel better about themselves - maybe since you aren't drinking they feel like they shouldn't be either.

Michele - congrats on your anniversary!

Hi Gary, Freda, Gator, and anyone I missed!

Food, exercise, and weight are not going too well over here. My weight has gone up steadily every day for the past week and was at 141 today. Meanwhile I'm constantly hungry, and if I ignore it and try to not eat I start shaking (Sunday involved an emergency bagel pit stop). Yesterday I got a horrible neck ache that stopped me from getting any exercise, and I'm hoping I can avoid having it get that bad today by doing constant neck stretches all day. My knees and wrists feel okay for now though, so at least that's something good.

I'm going to see the doctor tomorrow morning. I sure hope they can adjust my med dosages so that I can feel normal again (and lose weight again).