Saef, I'm glad to hear you're making progress on getting out of your current job.

Alice and Allison, sorry about your cats. My sister recently had to put down her cat, and now has a new (much friendlier ) cat she's very happy with.

I made sub-optimal food choices this weekend and am at 150 this morning. Back on track today, with my week's worth of meals planned out. This weather is really hurting my motivation -- it's snowing again today. I'm off to the gym for a stationary bike ride now, but I'm nowhere near as motivated to do that as I am to get outside. (I thought about going out despite the weather, but it's supposed to change from snow to rain over the next hour and that is not conducive to a good walk.)

Yes, my sympathies to Alice and Allison both on their kitty losses. Alice, I know you did your absolute best for Pepper - I get the feeling that when an animal lands on your doorstep, it's that animal's luckiest day ever.

So, funny (?) thing: I've been very on plan lately and exercising like crazy. I actually saw a bit of scale motion at home. Then this morning, I had a doctor's appointment at a new place for me. I stepped on the scale - ugh. 5 lbs heavier than our home scale; this despite my skipping breakfast. My mind flashed back to DH saying our scale at home weighs too light. I had been feeling quite good about myself and this instantly sent me back to body frustration (I won't say hatred; I'm never going back to those days).

It's ridiculous that this type of thing can still get to me. But now with age and wisdom, I can bounce back within a few hours and say "it doesn't matter what my "real" weight is, as long as I'm not going the wrong direction." I wouldn't mind going the RIGHT direction, at some point.

ETA: but I refuse to update my ticker. I'm not THAT mature.

Dagmar-- I see weight gain with NSAIDS too-- hope it comes off quickly for you.

Jessica-- UGH! Snow! Yuck! I don't know if it'd work for you with your girls to do workouts at home, but I love my morning workouts. They get me going for the day. I did one this morning called Turbo Fire and it was great!! First time doing it-- combination of HIIT, boxing, cardio....

JZJ-- I'm a little older (or maybe a lot) than you and I'm just now coming to the point that I'm not letting the scale define my worth. So liberating! In the past, I would have come home after a trip, told myself not to weigh, but done it anyway and lament my weight gain. NOT this time. I came home from Vancouver on Wednesday and I have no idea if I gained or lost. So much happier.....

My grandfather died yesterday afternoon. We had to take him back to the hospital on Saturday - bilateral pneumonia, bedsores from sitting in his chair, fluid around his heart. Basically, when my aunt died in October and he had to go back to the hospital in February he pretty much just gave up.

MIL is feeling a little better today, after an ER trip with her and having to trade off staying with her 24/7 all weekend - I was there during the day Saturday, overnight, all day Sunday. Possibly because I lost it a little and told her she needed to start taking care of herself and not give up like granddaddy did.

I'm tired today. It has been a loooong year, and an exceptionally long last few days.

I'm so very sorry to hear this, Shannon. Please accept my sincere condolences.

A long few days.

Shannon I'm so sorry.

Dagmar

Shannon, I'm so sorry. You must be emotionally drained and exhausted.

Sending supportive thoughts, Shannon, for a big loss.

I'm sorry, Shannon. What an endurance test! I'm sorry that your grandfather is gone.

Dying is not necessarily a failure of self-care. We will all die, no matter what we do. Yes, your grandfather probably could have taken better care of himself, but he also may have needed help that he was unwilling to receive. Of course I don't know the details. I'm just saying that it does get harder to make an effort when one is older and unwell. It's not simply a failure of will.

I hope you'll be kind to yourself, Shannon. You are wonderful to have done so much. You will never regret the kindness that you have shown others, and you've given your loved ones a lot.

Shannon, I'm so sorry about your grandfather.

Michele, I'm not good at doing workout videos. I've gone through phases where they work for me, but they're too easy to skip. I prefer actually getting outside, even though walking, running, and biking don't really build up the muscle strength I ought to be working on. My thought is that if the weather is finally warming up I can get outside for a run or a bike ride in the early morning before work, then maybe use my lunch break a couple times a week for some strength training (or pilates or yoga which is also strength building). The group classes they offer at my office are either at inconvenient times or are uninteresting to me, and I haven't been able to find anywhere that has a conveniently-timed early morning group class that I would like.

But in the past I've done well with outdoor workouts in the morning, and I prefer the morning to any other time of day. It's just a matter of getting myself out of bed early enough and the weather cooperating. The bonus of morning workouts is that I actually get my lunch break back!

148.8 second day in a row for me today. Hopefully this means I've gotten my indulgences back under control and will start to see some loss again.

"It's just a matter of getting myself out of bed early enough and the weather cooperating." You're right, Jessica. I got out of bed early enough but there was thick mist today.

I guess it depends on what you are doing. Biking or running in the mist is probably not safe. I take Trixie out in everything because I have the right gear due to my job and because we are walking in an urban setting but not near major traffic. Brisk walking can be a good workout if the weather isn't co-operating for anything else and if you can do it where you will be seen by approaching vehicles.

Dagmar

Shannon,
Lots of hugs, prayers and supportive thoughts to you and your family!!

Jessica-- glad your weight came back down! I was never one to work out at home, EVER, but I've made a big switch the past several months and am loving it! I get up at 4:45 and do a quick 30 minute workout-- it gets my body, brain and mood in the right place for the day. It's made such a difference with my mood and energy that I've stuck with it. I do a variety of workouts so I don't get bored-- this morning was a combination of HIIT and kick boxing. I stream them to my TV and have so many to choose from with different instructors-- so I just see what I'm in the mood for when I wake up!

Shannon, I'm so sorry to hear about your grandfather. It seems like many older couples die within a year of each other.

I could never get myself up earlier for exercise. The only thing that keeps me on track is working with trainers. I have an online appt twice a week for a 30 minute workout. Trainer is in Kentucky and I'm in California, but it works. We do simple exercises with resistance bands, dumbbells and just bodyweight. Just having the appointment makes me do it. I think it's fun to chat with someone while working out, plus I don't have to think about what to do because he plans the program. I also go to the gym once a week for a one hour workout. Some days it's hard to get my 15K steps in because of weather (starting to get too warm). I've been thinking of a treadmill or elliptical again.

Pepper is still with us. DH came home from 4 days of golf and declared that Pepper looked a lot better. The vet's office is closed all next week, so I hope he doesn't go downhill significantly during that time. He's DH's favorite, so I don't want to insist about the euthanasia.

Finally nice weather!! Except I went to bed too late, got woken up in the middle of the night by kid's nightmare, and then slept in. Oops. At least I got outside for a couple walks the last two days and hopefully I'll go outside for lunch today. It's supposed to be freezing again Monday, but after that it looks pretty good. Maybe a trip to the nursery is in order to buy some plants this weekend. We had to remove two large shrubs from our yard to repair a problem with the sump pump drainage and now there's a big empty space there that needs to be filled.