Maile- that recipe tip is a mix of my two favorite things- zucchini & WF apple butter- I can hardly wait to try it! Thank you so much for mentioning it!
pxlkitty- glad to hear that you are feeling better!
bcgirl- sweet before & after shots! I think it's a brilliant idea to do it in your swimsuit because your absolutely right when you say you can't hide in one
2ride- thankfully by the time I left the roads were pretty clear.
woolberger- I always found Hawaii to cater to the health conscious in it's grocery stores... not sure whether you're in a hotel or a condo though... food storage is a bit more difficult in a hotel...

I spent the day on a field trip with my daughter's grade one class to the farm fair. And I'm having a Phase 1 day because my weight was still up from the weekend. By 3pm I was veeeerrrry thankful to pull up in the school's parking lot. Something about having a Phase 1 day makes me really appreciate Phase 4 (hmmm could be that it is soooo much more limited). But if I think of it like money, you have a set budget for the month (Phase 4), you want to pay for a holiday (Free Day) so you knock a couple hundred bucks out of the budget (Phase 1). But boy when you get that couple hundred bucks back in the budget, even though you could live without it, you sure do appreciate it more If that makes any sense??
Had a nice weekend away- it was great to see everyone but it sure is hectic when all of your family wants to see you and you only have 2 days!

Maile are you kanoesunset on fatsecret? And BCgirl & sunnymae are you joining the challenge this go? C'mon the more the 'merrier'

So Cap...

We are staying in a condo with my husband's parents. We also are with a couple from Colorado who we are friends with. It's not that I couldn't pick up my own food. It's that I have lost the drive. We are cooking and eating together almost every night with people making their special dishes. It's an interesting personality mix and I just don't have the energy to make something different for myself. I did bring WF dsg which I take to restaurants when we go out and I have been good about getting salads when out but we eat in more often than not. I'm just going to have to deal with it when I get home and I think I will be able to. I had a little buffer before I left home. I am like you though. Once I see a lower number, I hate for it to go up.

Lynn

woolberger- you made me giggle! Can't fault you for not wanting to give up the lower number but I'm sure you'll see it again when you get home! Enjoy the rest of your holiday!

Yes, I am Kanoesunset on the challenge. I am ready except that I will have not started Phase 4 yet.
I had tried an zuccini apple recipe before but was not impressed. However, add ing the lemon juice to to apples and baking it with the apple butter, really made the squash taste like apples!
I like your budget analogy. You certainly appreciate staying within your budget!

Pixlkitty: I am KanoeSunset. I did say yes and signed up. Thanks.

Pauley: Peppermint mocha sounds delicious also. Lattes really feel like a treat.

Woolberger: I have always wanted to go over there for the Kona Coffee festival. I love that coffee. Enjoy yourself. There is always Phase 1!

Sitting in my office after my 6am pilates class today. She really tried to kill us all! Oh well, I may not be strong, but I am stronger now than I was at 6am today. If I keep this up, I will be able to stand upside down on one finger. Not really, but sometimes it feels that way.

I agree with you re: the budget. I was very good on my penance day this week, and saw my weight go back to what it was the morning of the cheat day by Monday. I like that! Glad you had a good weekend, and hoping that your weight returns to its baseline soon.

Yay. I see you on there now.

Ladies. At the top of 3 fat chicks is a blog by a girl who has kept her weight off for 3 years. She deals a lot with exercise . I thought her comments about the some of the feelings heading into maintenance were valuable. I was telling my husband last night, that after the pressure of losing all these months, I feel a great sense of release. This girl described it as a speeding car.




Maintenance - the tricky side of transition
The dictionary definition of the word maintenance is 'administered to maintain a desired condition'.

When we set ourselves weight loss goals, no matter how much or how little we have to lose, we have to become fiercely focused on those goals. Losing weight is about lifestyle change, not simply addressing one aspect such as diet and hoping that will work. You have to change your whole thinking about food,, exercise and the commitment to make the changes that will carry you through life a healthier person. It is something palpable to concentrate on and we strive to achieve that ultimate aim, watching those numbers tumble on the scale. Each pound that goes is a mini victory, how often have you felt that delicious sensation of gratification and achievement when you have had a good week and your mass diminishes further?

Maintaining

So what happens when you get there, that thing we refer to as goal. After all that hard work; calorie counting, exercise regimes, tears, self deprication at being fat in the first place. It stops. It's as if you have been in a speeding car for hundreds of miles and you apply the brakes, grinding to a halt. The target has been reached. For some, this can be daunting as you have to review how your are managing the process. There are no more visual targets, of course it is wise to keep an eye on your weight as you start maintenance ( and there on in) but those little kicks and wins you had are no more. Of course you have conceded a trouncing from the silent enemy that is obesity, you have reached a healthy weight and are no longer suffering the mental and physical tortures being fat presents. That is massive reward in itself.

It becomes about weight preservation rather than weight loss per se.

And so the journey begins

Thank you Maile, that was great to read. I just finished part of my first breakfast on phase 3 and toast and peanut butter, in a few minutes I will have my yogurt but am already full. I also forgot my cereal so had 2 pieces of toast instead with pb... I missed that. stomach hasn't been to settled for the last couple of days, am hoping I am not getting the flu everyone here is getting... that was what I liked to read this morning the NOW what do I do... I am lucky that I am not at my goal yet so I still have something to focus on but am going to phase out properly and see if eating and exercised will tone me up and get me down to where I want to be. I am happy where I am for now, and look so forward to looking back on the beginning of this journey as wheew got that done, check now to get this done, check.

Have a great day all.

May I join the challenge? My screenname is LeanLegan

Yesss!!!!! I totally missed the invite. I saw I had a message but dumbo here couldn't find the. Inbox ...duh. What're we doin'?..I'll go to fatsecret on my computer and join up.you guys are simply the best!!

I don't think it will let you join since it's already started. The site is weird that way... Sorry... That's an annoying feature.

You can still do the challenge with us! Just track your food on whatever site you use and report you success back to us on this thread.

I will probably migrate this to a spreadsheet at some point.

Your post made me think about my first phase 3 breakfast- Toast with peanut butter, a plain greek yogurt and a cup of fresh blueberries- It had been 9 months since having any of those foods, and I expected confetti to fall from the sky or a marching band to come through the door but no, I ate it and life went on. You have done so great and I personally think you have probably hit a weight that is just right for you. WAT TO GO- ENJOY THOSE BREAKFASTS!