Eliana - poor you!! Can you get some ice on that ankle ASAP? 20min on, 20 off? You painted a very funny image of the diseased sunburn thing - I hope it's not too uncomfortable though.

ninepaw - your scale sounds kind of eccentric That kind of variability would make me nuts - good for you for figuring out what works and congrats on the nice low number

Rochester - I follow a super similar approach - shopping and meal planning for the week - I don't always follow it to a T (unexpected meals out or last minute changes of plan for whatever reason) but I find it really helpful. I could use some new dinner ideas - is there anything you're especially loving right now? I'm getting pretty bored of rotisserie chicken, yummy though it is.

I'm looking forward to a cooler weekend here and getting some serious yard work done. What's everyone else up to?

Eliana - Ooooh goodness, what a day you had! Hope the ankle and the sunburn get better soon!

Well, I am officially not at home near my usual scale... I did find the one here, because I'm a little obsessive like that... But my plan was thwarted! Either the scale has some weird weight limit on it, or the batteries are dead. I got an error, either way, so I will definitely not be able to weigh until Tuesday morning! So not going to be fun for me! But I'll survive, I'm sure of it.

Am I too late to join?

It's never too late! At least I dont think so!

Ma, I'm going to go out on a limb and say "Of course not!" Jump right in!

Dancer you made me think of a question for all:

What's your go-to healthy meal (or two)? (A meal you always have ingredients on hand for and it's easy)

My old one: spaghetti
My new one: Stir-fry (Chicken and whatever vegetables I have on hand.) It's never the same twice. Lately I've been sauteing garlic and pine nuts before adding the vegetables. I like seasonings like cumin, curry powder, chipotle chili powder. I throw in the tomatoes at the end. Yummy!

ma - welcome!! what's your diet and exercise plan?

ninepaw - you are too funny - love it that you already hunted around and found the scale Good luck with a few days of unweighedness!

eliana - great idea! Love your stir fry idea - do you pound the chicken before stirfrying or just cut it into chunks? I just bought some szechuan stir-fry sauce at the grocery store to keep me from missing take-out chinese so I will give your stirfry idea a try very soon! My go-tos are frozen tortilla crusted tillapia filets from Costco - ready in 10min in my toaster oven, spicy and a little crunchy and pretty lo-cal. Another would be chicken breasts baked in the salsa of your choice topped with nonfat sour cream. Very curious to hear what others have to say....

1. Well about me. I LOVE LOVE LOVE salty cheesy junk. Sweets are relatively easy for me to leave alone, but I love pizza, doritos, nachos......Scarily I have actually counted calories and I have had days I eat excess of 3000 calories. After actually figuring it out after an especially pigish day, I feel lucky that I have gained only 30 pounds in the last four years. But that's over 10 pounds a year, and while I am only a few pounds BMI overweight catagory, I think I have embarked upon a slippery slope. And I hope to get off!

2. My plan started last saturday. I am hoping for "Eat to live" type lifestyle. I embarked upon the six week program form the book on June 5th, but have had a couple days I didn't stay on plan. I am ok with that. I forgive myself. And while they werent perfect days, they were FAR from 3000 calorie bing days. I try to eat fruit for breakfast. And ALOT of fruit for breakfast. Then lots of veggies and some beans or a little whole grain for lunch. And something similiar for dinner. Thats the plan. Like I said had some snafoos, but I am striving to do better.

3. I am going with 184.6 for the weight today. I will likely be an everyday weigher. I like to see how the scale reacts to my choices or cycles. But to ensure my trying to eat healthier is not derailed while I am trying to establish it as habit, I am not weighing for two weeks from June 5th. Sometime the lack of a scale reactioon to what I feel has been on plan behavior can lead me to give up, especially in the stages when your trying to establish habits. So not until a week from saturday do I get to see if my efforts have paid off (I think secretly the waiting two weeks is more about seeing a big scale jump. I hope it does anyways). My goal is to lose 12 pounds by september 1st. It's just under 12 weeks away, so that just over a pound a week.

Thanks for letting me jump into this forum. I'm excited to keep up with everyone, and here's to meeting our goals ladies!

Dancer, I just cut the chicken into chunks. Easy!

Another thing I've started doing is butterflying my chicken. It's easy to do if the chicken is partially frozen. This way it looks like you're getting the whole breast, but you're really only getting 3-4 ounces, a serving size.

And you reminded me...my other go-to meal:
Salsa chicken over fried cabbage- Sprinkle taco seasoning over chicken, cover with salsa and simmer for two hours. Once cooked, it pulls apart easily to shred. Serve over shredded cabbage fried in a couple tablespoons of canola oil.

@Diana - You don't get along very well with scales, do you?

@Eliana - Mercy goodness, that was a bad day, wasn't it? Hope your ankle and sunburn are feeling better!

@Ma - Welcome to the insanity! I totally get you about loving "salty cheesy junk"! My bad days always included far more of that than sweets.

@Eliana - Your chicken/cabbage dish sounds intriguing.

@Dancer - I'm glad to hear that someone else is obsessively organized. My dinner plans are usually "do something to meat" and "steam some veggies." Some ideas:

• Taco salad - Mixed greens (leaf lettuce, romaine, spinach), spicy chicken, black beans, tomatoes, avocados, salsa, and sour cream
• Potato-crusted tilapia - Dredge tilapia in egg white, then flour, then instant potato flakes (plain or flavored) and fry in olive oil
• Chicken parm - Grill a chicken breast and top with sauteed mushrooms, tomato sauce mixed with some garlic & Italian seasoning, and Parmesan cheese
• Blue cheese pork chop - Grill a boneless pork chop. Make a béchamel (basic white sauce) and stir in 1 ounce blue cheese. Pour sauce over pork chop.
• Salad w/chicken, strawberries, and feta - Mixed greens (leaf lettuce, romaine, spinach), grilled chicken, sliced strawberries, feta, and Balsamic vinaigrette
• Garlic shrimp - Melt butter with a bunch of fresh garlic, add frozen shrimp, and cook until shrimp is done.
• Greek burger - Shape lean hamburger meat into patty and grill. Place cooked burger on bed of lettuce and tomato. Top burger with feta and Kalamata olive tapenade. Combine plain Greek yogurt, chopped cucumber, and fresh dill in food processor until blended and smooth; drizzle sauce over burger.

By the way, when I say "grill" I mean I cook it on the stove top in a grill pan.

I'd love to hear everyone else's food ideas!

I'm running away and spending the weekend at a SCA event (a medieval group). Camping, swimming, feasting, shopping, and watching crazy people fight with swords! Fun fun fun! (And I'll totally be able to stay on plan with lots of walking and swimming for exercise, and the meals are always grilled-dead-animal and lots of veggies & fruit!)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Hi everyone! This week I did great on the exercise. I got to Curves 3X, did an walking video, and took a walk outside. I'm feeling a lot better about the choices I'm making. I'm hoping that this will be the start of a great summer.

rochester - do you have an awesome costume to wear to this event? that would be my favorite part I think Do you have any in-costume pics to share? *hint, hint* Thanks for the great meal ideas - I love the potato crusted one - will have to put that on the list!

fc - woohoo for a good workout week!

eliana - I can't quite picture what fried cabbage would be like - you are one creative cook!

ma - I'll be curious to hear what you think of Eat to Live - sounds like an interesting program. What are you up to this weekend?

Quick post, just had to SHOUT!!

170's this morning!! 179.2!!!

WAHOO!!!

Eliana Yeah a new decade. Your hard work is paying off! Sorry to hear about the ankle. Is it better today? How is the sunburn? My husband had a similar experience although he just did not realize how the spray worked. He ended up all polka dotted after a day at the beach. Of course the rest of the family felt bad about his sunburn, but otherwise the results were pretty funny. It is part of the family lore now.

fc-way to go with staying on plan with your exercise and food plan. It is going to be a great summer for losing!

Ma-

Rochester-Have fun with the medievals. Watch out for the turkey legs!

ninepaw-Did u try journaling what you eat? I know that is very helpful for me.

Dancer-Wish I had a great recipe to share. My tried an true is grilled chicken with bbq sauce with a side of steamed veggies. The veggies usually include at least some potatoes. My other is t&t is a hamburger. Neither one of those are exactly low cal but I get hunnnnggrry. So far, so good. Right now my main thing is to steer away from sweets, alcohol, bread and butter. I dread having to eat less than I am eating now. I miss all my goodies.

I am in Tallahassee today with my daughter for an FSU thing. She is not ready to drive here by herself yet. She drove a bunch this trip though so she will get there. (Just like us and losing weight). Anyway I am in a motel room so I don't have a scale. I miss it! Every morning I get on the scale and see a number that makes me happy. I am addicted! Thank goodness I am heading home today so I can weigh myself tomorrow morning. How silly but true. I am really in a crazy to lose place. I am going to visit my family around the 4th so that is part of it but mostly I am just tired of my big tummy. Now that I am making some progress, I want to just get rid of it or at least a bunch of it. I don't have a waist right now and I want one! While my daughter is in her meeting, I am going shopping at Kohl's with my 30% off coupon for new pajamas! Mine are really old. Fun.

So much happens in here so quickly! So happy to hear everyone is doing well!

I'm finding myself coming to the conclusion that C25K, W2 may have to wait until Monday evening when I can be back at home. I keep finding reasons and whatever to not get it done here where I'm house sitting... One of the biggest ones being that I'm not as familliar with the layout of this neighboorhood I'm in. And there's hills. I don't really have those out at my house! I'll probably try to get out for at least another walk with the dog or something, but I'm feeling that this weekend is a bit of a bust.

A bit of a quiet day here today. Maybe it's the heat. It is blazing hot here. I went grocery shopping early to avoid the worst of it. I loaded up on fruits and vegetables at the store today. Everything looked so beautiful on the the conveyor at the check out! Tonight's dinner was sirloin steak (terrible for calories so I kept my portion small) and a huge salad with tomatoes, pepper, carrots and cucumbers. I made my own salad dressing too. I had a Lo Boy ice cream sandwich for dessert. Yum. I hope the number on the scale is okay tomorrow.

I have not been to the Y all weekend due to the trip with my daughter. I intended to clean the house today but I think being sick made me LAZY.
The day is not over yet though so maybe I will get something done while it is still daylight out.

Hope you all had a happy and healthy weekend!