I didn't do my weigh in this morning, I will do it tomorrow (TOM came and I had to be at work for 7:00 am). My dr. called and rescheduled my appointment for Oct. 2 so I guess I need to keep up my mini-meal diet for a few more weeks. I'm feeling much better today thank goodness. No more being unreasonable.

It is great to see how much weight everyone has lost! Excellent work nawchem, dolly and snow!!

ch and whirley, keep on trying and it'll come off eventually.

Well gotta clean house now and seriously think about turning on my furnace it is really cold here today. Then again I hate turning it on before October, just hate to think winter is here. Maybe I'll just snuggle up in a quilt, it's so much cozier anyway.

I'm cheating my low weight for the week cause it bounced way up after what I did this weekend.
CH-------will lose 30
Stacy----will lose 32--10 down--22 to go!
card-----will lose 20--4 down--16 to go!
trob ---- will lose 30-3 down--27 to go
Sno------will lose 36--8 down--28 to go! from Santa Barbara.
Nawchem-goal 12lbs ----down 6, up 2! from colorado
lachona---will lose 40--10 down--30 to go!
Chaarli----will lose 20
Dollypie---will lose 30--8 down--22 to go!
Whirleygirl-will lose 25
Bertine----will lose 25--6 down--19 to go!

My friends go to tops. It sounded kind of neat, every week you have to tell if you gained, lost or stayed the same to the group and they have a monthly challenge. This month they put everyones names on a ball that you put in a tree. If you gain wt your ball comes off the tree. The ones left at the end of the month get a prize. My friend and her mom go to the meeting every thurs then they go Applebys and pigout, continue over the weekend then diet really hard mon-thurs. I wonder how many other people do that?

OKay--I was very unmotivated today but ended up doing my core workout dvd and then some stretches and yoga, so I managed to do my 30 minutes of workout today! Eating has been great and drinking lots of water!

Whirley I did the same thing--I started the challenge 2 lbs up from the week before. Then I lost 5 lbs the first week so it all works out! Glad you are here!

Card my condolences--hope you dont have too bad a time with TOM this month!

Nancy--I must confess that I tend to eat more after monday weigh in and have an open day usually on Tuesday or Weds! Then I really buckle down and get even more strict on the weekend. I rationalize it that it keeps my metabolism up by varying how much I eat day by day. Tee hee!

I think i am in a funk. I am just super upset about the scale being up 5 pounds when i did nothing wrong except a dang icecream. It is messing with my whole momentum...like self doubt, makes me think maybe my weight on friday was just a fluke scale malfunction and maybe i didnt lose any this week. I dont know. I am just hoping and praying that tomorrow i will feel better even if the scale doesnt look any better. Its all about the long haul and i need to beat that into my brain.

I always start to slip once i get around this weight...what is that about? I am determined to stay strong this time and make it count.

Sno-WTG on the 3 pounds. Hooray. Good for you for exercising even though you werent motivated. I was the same way today. I got my 30 minutes of cardio in but i hated every second of it. Did okay with food, i feel like i was off plan but i journaled everything and i came out at just under 1500 cals. I keep going over it making sure i added everything up right, cause it just seems like i ate more but i think it is just because my heart wasnt in it today. I am really going to up my water and see if that stablizes my weight any.

Naw-I might have to check into TOPS, you made it sound very motivational.

Whirley-Good for you for getting your workout in early. Hope the rest of your day went well. Dont fret over being up 2 pounds post weekend. I am always up a couple on mondays. This week i am up 5...double yikes.

Dolly-Down a pound! Woohoo. You definately deserve a guiltfree meal once in a while. I can totally relate to what you are saying with slipping up after 3 weeks. My slip up is once i lose around 20-30 pounds, and like you, i dont know if it is bordom, or what. I just know this week is going to be a struggle. Also like you, i am VERY upset about the whole spinach fiasco. I think im going to plant some in my garden along with some winter lettuce.

CH-That kind of weekend makes it tough to stay on track. Good for you for wrapping it up healthy.

Bertine-Good for you for staying steady and on track.

I am beat tonight gals, think i am going to turn in early.

Good Morning everyone! It is going to be a fabulous day because it feels like fall. That normally isn't the case this time of year, but this morning it was cool with a breeze. It just made the whole morning better. I made it to the gym this morning and got on the treadmill. My knee started to hurt (an old skiing injury) so I just did a really fast walk with an incline. It still hurts a little so I hope it goes away some. If I feel better this eveing I will take the dogs out for a walk. I don't like to walk outside in the morning because it is so dark, there are plenty of other people walking and there are street lights. I guess I am just chicken being outside in the dark, plus my dogs are chickens and get scared of passing cars. Last night for dinner my husband want jambalaya so bad, I found a lowfat recipe and added more vegetables and he actually liked it better. It was spicy, but it was good.

Get n heathly: I really don't think the ice cream made you gain 5 pounds. Remember you are in this for the long haul. We all have our ups and downs but look at how much healthier your body is getting as well. Just stick to it and you will feel better. It is only a number. Have your tried measuring yourself as well and checking that every few weeks to see results. If you are doing weights this could be muscle gain also.

Sno: Aren't you glad you did that workout now. When I don't want to get out of bed at 5am I just think how much better I will feel afterward and that is usually good motivation.

nawchem: I don't know about that eating at Applebee's and then pigging out on the weekend. I think I would continue into Monday. It is good to reward yourself every now and then, but I couldn't do it a few days in a row. Plus, I would feel deprived then before the weighin.

card: I couldn't imagine turning on the heater now. Snuggling up with a quilt, a hot cup of tea, and book does sound relaxing though.

Bertine: That's sounds great, forgetting to want candy. I wish I could do that. But I have found when I get a sweet tooth I pop in a sugarfree Werther's orginal and the craving for more is gone or sugarfree gum works the same.

Stacy--I so relate--the first twenty or so pounds are easy to lose then I hit a plateau or just dont do as well and then I give up--or life happens and I get upset about something and then I dont care anymore. In my case I feel that is no longer an option to give up when it gets hard--I just feel it is so hard to be at a high weight that I cannot give up. And I know what happens--i get discouraged or whatever, or have a bad eating day and it turns into a coupla months of binging and then all the weight is gained back plus more.

My weight has a tendency to yo-yo--tho it has been better since I drink a lot of water. This was one reason I didnt like WW--I would go for weigh in and one week I lost 7 lbs and the next I gained 5, then the next I lost 6--etc etc. They would just give me weird looks like thinking I was alternating starving and binging--which I wasnt, I was following the plan--that is just what I do. So I just know I cant let the scale be in charge of whether I continue on plan or not.

Even tho thing are going really well for me right now I know it can go sideways at any moment. So I am going to remind myself of why I am doing this:

It is really hard to be at a high weight--I have knee problems, feet problems. I get scared sometimes lowering myself into the bathtub because it is hard--it is hard to get up from lying down on the floor. I have sprained my ankles three times in the last two years--falling that hard was really painful and scary.

Movie theatre seats, chairs in restaurants can be uncomfortable--I had the whole fiasco in flying where I barely fit the seat. My thighs rub together which I hate. I have a bunch of cool clothes I want to wear that are too tight. I dont really like overeating anyway--the too full feeling is not fun and eating too much rich food is not good for my digestion. I have acid reflux which may be improved by losing weight. I miss feeling light and active, being able to go hiking and skip around from rock to rock.

My friend who lost 90 lbs is now fitting in size 12 pants and has all these cool new outfits--she can shop anywhere. If I want the designer clothes that I like I have to drive at least an hour away--the local store does not have designer clothes in plus sizes. I want to be able to shop at gap and limited and feel comfortable about showing my arms.

And for my long-term health, my doctor showed me a chart that indicated the amount of risk I was putting myself into by being overweight and the benefits of losing weight. I want to have a long and healthy life--I dont want to be in a wheelchair or a walker, have heart problems or diabetes--all of which are possible if I continue at a high weight.

I am sure I can think of other reasons!

Morning!! I'm starting day 3 of the Fat Smash diet. Yesterday was okay. I made a homemade veggie chilli with black beans that was pretty good. I'll be posting the recipe in the Fat Smash recipe thread later. I had plenty to eat - even though I thought my calories were kind of low for the day (around 1500 - 1600).

I am feeling pretty bad today - I have a very sore throat and feel like I'm getting sick. I'm eating extra citrus today, hopefully that and all the good food I'm eating will kick this cold out of my system.

Tomorrow I will have to find a way to add some more calories because I don't like being below 1600.

Food for today:

6:30am banana, 1c pear green tea
8:00am 4 egg whites, 2/3c instant oatmeal, grapfruit, 1c vanilla nut herbal tea
10:00am 6oz FF plain yogurt, 2 apples
12:30pm Veggie Chilli, apple
3:30pm 3/4c sugar snap peas, 6oz FF plain yogurt
7:00pm 1/2c brown rice, 1/2c black beans, 1/2c mushrooms, 1 carrot, 1/2 large cucumber

Calories: 1436
F: 10g
C: 286g
P: 70g

Thanks Sno. I it SO comforting to know other people fluctuate by 5 or more pounds. I have the EXACT same problem at WW. When i lost my 100 pounds last time it was crazy some weeks. Just like you said, up 5 down 7 back up 3. I mean i guess overall, looking back at it i had more losses than gains but boy those gains will really throw you, especially when you get those looks and YOU KNOW you have been on program. I am just going to stick with it and keep plugging away and slowly but surely the weight will come off. I am doing well today...drinking LOTS of water. Unfortunately there is an office birthday party with pizza. I am going to eat my one peice of pizza and NO cookie cake. I dont really like cookie cake anyway. But before i started this i would have ate it anyway, just because it is there and it is sweet. But this time around i ask myself, is the taste worth the calories....for a cookie cake...that would be no.

We have a lot of the same reasons for wanting to lose this weight. Some of mine are:
Setting a good example for my children and instilling health and exercise as a very important part of life.
Being healthy enough to watch my children grow up.
Theater seats, airplane seats, etc.
My knees and feet
I HATE being the largest woman at the office. It seems like where ever i go i am the largest or almost the largest person there. I know it bothers me, but i wonder if it bothers my children, for their mother to be the fattest mother there. I think as a child it would have bothered me.

ANyway, thank you so much sno for helping me put it in perspective. You gotta take the bad weeks with the good weeks and continue on and in the end, you wind up with more good weeks than bad weeks. So i, like you, am going to continue onward. The only other option is to quit and the only place that would get me is back to weighing more than when i started and get back in that vicious cycle. So i will press forward.

After eating unhealthy junk sat and sun I had a hard time getting back to it yesterday. Yesterday I was about 50% overeating/ 50% on plan. Writing that made me laugh who I am I kidding with my 50% on plan?

The tops meeting I went to was not for me. Part of the reason I'm going is to meet people in this area and I was the only one there. I'm going to try going to one at the bigger town near me.

I decided to try 2 small cheat meals a week instead of weekend long binge. Thursday I'll have a cheeseburger and a chocolate protein bar and sunday I'll have protein something and ice cream.

Ch4 your food looks good! I was looking at my Martha Steward cookbook last night, she has some pretty good sounding vege recipes.

Stacy measuring myself helps assure me that I have not gained real fat. Its kept me from quitting a few times.

My reasons to lose
1. I have a heart murmur and the wt puts extra stress on my heart and can make it get worse.

2. I have sleep apnea, they say its so mild it may go away if I got my wt down.

3. Energy- hoping I'll get some, for walking around these hill.

4. I'm very short and with big clothes I have to cut a lot off the hems and sleeves, then the clothes don't lay right.

5. I have a sense that people judge me and think I'm inadequate or less capable because I can't manage my wt. Discrimination!

sno, does drinking water really help that much? to tell you the truth i tend to only drink a glass of water a day and then the rest is diet coke and tea. did you see a difference when you changed?

Get n healthy, about the cookie cake, i would do the same thing, i would eat things just because it was there not because i really liked it. i have been trying not to do that (or eat past the point where i am full).

nawchem, i have a cheat meal on thursdays (chipotle day, i know it isn't great for me but i love it so much) but i figure if i just have a really light dinner it wouldn't be that terrible for me. most sundays my sister and i go shopping/a movie/something and tend to get a piece of pie too. i guess if i know when i will be getting a treat it makes it easier to pass up temptations.

my reasons to loose weight are:
1. i can't even think about seeing 200 on the scale
2. i carry a lot of my weight in my stomach and i know that is a horrible heart risk.
3. i hate my tummy
4. i want to go to the beach this winter and look good in a swimsuit. well as good as a pasty white MN girl in the middle of winter can.

Amanda's Reasons for Losing Weight

1. Gain more self-confidence

2. Life to be 100 years old

3. Run a 5k

4. Not have realtive say, "Amanda has always been a big boned", when they don't think I hear them.

Hi all!

I love all your reasons--and agree with them.. Some of the best ones are the ones about hurt feelings--and everyone had one--

Stacy--ideas about being the largest woman
Nancy--feeling judged
Bertine--hate tummy
dolly--being described as big-boned
Sno--humiliation of seats being too small

I really apreciate your courage in sharing this with us--it really hurts to be overweight!

Bertine--

for me what I drink is crucial--I didnt know it until recently. See above posts about how much water I can hold--I can get really bloated and my weight really yo-yos. This has not happened since I have upped my water intake to 128 oz--four 32 oz water bottles a day. I drink one before breakfast, one in the morning and two in the afternoon. I want to give myself plenty of time to get it out of my system before I go to bed!

What I have found that at first I was running to the bathroom all the time, but now my body is used to it. Also if I dont drink it I feel thirsty--today I had only 64 oz by 4 and I was really thirsty. I had also had a large decaf coffee with breakfast and a large diet coke at lunch. Other fluids dont do if for me like water. In addition if I am hungry and want to wait to eat if I slug back one of my 32 oz waters and I can wait quite a while.

I read somewhere that drinking 96 oz of water a day raises the metabolism. I note that I am eating more than I usually can and lose weight.

some of all this could be that I drink diet soda--at least one a day--and it is really high sodium so it could make me retain water.

But I think there is something to having all that water flush me out.

You can drink too much water--I dont think I would drink more than I am drinking now--but remember I usually drink tea and soda as well.

Well I weighed in at 210, now I'm depressed!!!! Totally sympahtize get n healthy. This is such a bummer.

The reasons I want to lose weight are health, fatigue and blood pressure, and I HATE getting dressed to go anywhere, everything looks awful.

Well I'm getting off now cause I am just too bummed about that scale, perhaps next week will be better.

card don't even be depressed, the challenge is only 2 weeks old. More then 3 months until christmas. I think any wt loss is a right step in the direction of your goals. Its taken me a year and a half just to lose 29lbs. Its gone so slow that my body doesn't have that fast off/ fast back feeling. I was eating about 3000 calories a day for several months and didn't gain. So I think there are some positives for slow wt loss.

Since I lose so slow and I take breaks cause stuff happens I decided to take 3 years to lose this weight. I started this year at 176.5, hopefully I'll get to 151.5 (25lbs) no longer obese. Next year I'll get to the 125 mark -no longer overweight. The last 15 the year after-perfection! I only have to lose a half a pound a week. If I lose faster great, but its not a stressful pace so far.