Hi All

Well this is it.... my big first entry in the "Lose a Turkey Challenge". I am down .2 this week.

Like Sam a few weeks ago, I am a little disappointed after my losses from the previous three weeks. I must realize tho, this is to be expected, and besides it was Thanksgiving....:eating: ... and I haven't been exercising as regularly as I was.

Hey Lynn, it really sounds like your on track today. I'm sure you must have earned some activity points as a result of all your exercise. :flow: Have you been tracking these. Have you taken your measurments? Sometimes you will see losses there when you may not see them on the scale. How often are you weighing yourself? Do you feel better when you stay OP and exercise..... bet you do!

Julie - congrats on the 2 lb loss. Now take a step forward and lose a "new" pound....

Laura, thanks for the words of encouragement with regard to diabetes. I look forward to hearing your CD. Just love Christmas music. Me..... I'm just the person who sings too loud with the radio and gets everyone annoyed. That's okay I can't dance much either....

Angie - once you get into a routine of going for exercise.... your mind will want to go too.

Sam - I'm proud of you.... into goal pants! Non-scale rewards are so sweet. Remember to treat yourself well.

Well, it is a good morning.

I got up this morning and weighed myself again I know I shouldn't be weighing myself everyday. But I was down 2lbs I needed that after the 7 lb gain. Anyway, I feel good that I am still capable of losing weight I woke up this morning and did 25 minutes of Yoga, I walked my son to the bus stop and I am going grocery shopping and will park way at the end of the parking lot, after that I plan on doing 40 minutes of step again. Well I must get back to work I have so much to do.
I get to change my signature,

Joy, I know you will be ok, try not to get too upset by it. Keep a positive mind. I will keep you in my prayers. And thanks for the words of encouragement. Yes, I do feel better when I exercise, I even sleep better.

Have a great day, I will try to check in later.

Hi everyone it,s midnight here downunder on thursday I can,t sleep I suffer from bouts of insomnia from time to time have done for years it,s the pit,s at time,s hubby is snoring as usual and I,ve just had three ciggies in half an hr , this is when I usually get the munchies big time the house is quiet and I sometimes put on a movie and find my hubbies chips , I refuse to give into temptation so I thought I would anoy you guys instead sometimes its good to just know there is others out there who can identify with what I,m going through at times I guess I,m raving on a bit I,m so tired but just toss and turn which keeps hubby awake and makes him grouchy in the morning anyway thanks for the encouragement Joy and I intend to lose a new lb or 2 this week thats why I am putting down my fuzzy thoughts down here instead of grabbing the bikkie barrel well I,m going to go make myself a nice cup of lite hot chocolate only 25 cals and put on george clooney dusk till dawn I,m a horror nut not the best sort of movies to whatch when you,ve got insomnia but hey if I,ve got to be up I might as well enjoy it well I feel a bit better now cravings have died down so I,m off for that cuppa and I,ll catch you guys later bye for now BLESSED BE JULIE

G,day everyone hope your all well ,just a quick hi from me today , thanks for the encouragement Angela had to really fight that called food but I did it thanks to you guys , before I found out about 3fc I would have scoffed anything I could get my hands on , your right at the end of the day it,s me that I,m doing this for and if I stuff up I only let myself down , thanks for the tip Laura for insomnia I,ll give it ago well thats it for me bye for now stay well BLESSED BE JULIE

Every so often, I will pose a question to the group. Some health and weight loss related, some just for fun to get to know more about each other. They may be a bit off beat at times, but please feel free to share your perspective with the group!


With the Turkey Challenge underway, describe your strategy/plan for approaching weight loss. Are you following a specific diet? How do you incorporate exercise? Is this approach different to things you have tried in the past?

Hmmmm ...

My strategy is to develop a way of eating that will become a life long habit of healthy eating. I am following the Weight Watchers program. I cannot think of this as a diet, because diets have a start and a finish, this is a continuous life plan. I find that I have trouble incorporating my exercise on a regular basis. I seem to have endless excuses not to go, which is really funny because once I'm there, I really enjoy exercising. I would really like to encorporate Oprah's plan for exercise - 30 to 60 minutes daily, perferably in the morning at a level of 8-10. I am a firm believer in interval training and use this technique when using the treadmill, eliptical stepper, water running. I try to weight train 3x week and use the fitball for many of my exercises.

I think that this time is different because I want to make a life style change because of my many health issues related to being extremely overweight. It is different this time because I have included my husband and am sharing my goals etc. with him and as a result he is being very supportive. Using 3FC forums and journalling as a support system has become an very important part of my overall plan.

Gotta get to work now....



:-J

G,day everyone hope your all well , Hi Angela whats my stratergy well I,m on WW program as well I do,nt think of it as a diet either but a life change for a healthier me I try to exercise at least 30mins a day and my hubby and I go for a walk for 30mins when he gets home from work if he is,nt to tired, or I,m to lazy well thats it for me gotta go do some studying think I,ll make a be good catch up with you all later bye for now BLESSED BE JULIE

SW 172
CW 167
GW 132

Hey everyone - sorry it has been so long since I have posted, my husband is feeling better but is not working until Monday so he is on the computer all of the time. I have had a few minutes everyday to check in on everyone though.

I purchased a Halloween costume from online. I decided I HAVE to get busy because if that gets here and it doesn't fit, I will be PISSED OFF!!! It says it will fit up to a 22, and at my highest I was a 22, but sometimes things run small, so I don't know.

Anyways, I didn't think that I was this tired, but I am exhausted, went out last night and had WAY too much to drink, came home and got sick (ew!) but maybe I got all the bad foods I had eaten out of my system LOL. I do feel better now, but am still tired and probably am going to pop a movie in and go to sleep.

Talk to you all soon!

Hi everyone

Angela: Yeah, its great having someone on your side. Hubby and I don't really work out together - although we do spend a lot of time walking the dogs together. It as kind of fun tho last Sunday when we went to the pool we decided to do lengths together. It's good that your hubby eats what you put in front of him. My Hubby does most of the cooking so it is imperative that he has the same goals as me or I am sunk.

Laura, good to hear your back on track. Your Christmas decorations sound wonderful. You have such an artistic flair with everything you do. A few years ago I made alot of crochet angels and snowflakes for the Christmas tree. I made quite a large angel topper. Not sure but I think I'll get something for the top this year that is lit up. Doesn't look quite the same without lights on top. Did I tell you that we grow Christmas trees on our hobby farm, as well as raise free range turkeys for Thanksgiving and Christmas? We also grow ornamental and hedging cedars and we have a few sheep too (Aunty and the twins) as well as the two dogs, three house cats and six wild cats I feed (which are now all spayed - yeah).

Hubby bought a gigantic angel made of wire and lights to put on top of one of our very tall trees (probably 20') and we're going to string lights down from the bottom of her skirt. Hopefully it will look great. Planning on doing it tomorrow while the weather is still not too bad. We don't get much snow here usually but it does rain alot and the ground out in the field gets really muddy.

Sam, what kind of costume did you buy? I'm sure it will fit.... a few days does not a size make.... How's the gym been going? Have you been to more kick boxing classes or tried anything new?

Lynn: I admire your stamina.... 25 minutes of yoga .... 40 minutes of step. WOW. Okay, you've officially inspired me -- I've got to get back into being on a program at the gym. I find once I start - and start writing it down I get really competitive with myself and really strive to go longer, go harder, burn more calories etc. I'm not flexible enough to do yoga, but they do have an aqua pilates class at the gym on Saturdays that I really enjoy. I've been thinking I would like to try Tai Chi also. Seems like it would be calming like yoga is.

G'day Julie: What WW program are you following - Flex or Core? Hubby and I try to walk together too. But we have about the same strategy as you. Sometimes we're our own worst emenies as far as motivation is concerned.

I've had my first OFF OP day today.

We had to attend a memorial service today for a dear friend, actually she was my aunt (only two years older than me tho - I come from large families on both sides). She had been fighting lymphoma and cancer for many years (10+) going in and out of remission. But she is now in a better place and finally pain free.

I had eaten lunch before we went.... planning not to endulge, but when we got there Hubby fixed a plate of croissants, cheesecake squares and chocolates for both of us and said that Cheryl would have wanted us to celebrate the day. So I ate, and ate a few more Hubby didn't know about.

After we came home we had a normal OP dinner, hamburgers made with spouted wheat bagels (pickle, thin slide of cheese and raw onion) and a cob of corn. Was very good. We got a late start with our corn this year so it is just ready now. We had popcorn and bran bars too.... But I don't really feel guilty (don't know if I should or not) but I do know I'll get back on track now.

I'm disappointed a little in myself because I was really going to try to eliminate sugar with this diabetes thing popping up now. I'm wondering how I will deal with this for my life time if I can't do it for a week.

I have made a personal commitment to myself to get at least 20 minutes of exercise every day. I have only missed once, Friday, since starting on Wednesday.

I think it might help all of us if we identified just one thing we would make a commitment to do for one week. Anyone game? Sort of like baby steps. Try to make a new positive habit each week. What do you guys think?

Anyways I should tear myself away from here and get back to my studying. I have a mid term on Thursday, worth 20% of my final mark.


:-J

G, day everyone hope your all well , hope your costume fits Sam and hope you pulled up OK from your night out, good luck with your chrissy decorations Laura they sound great you really are a talented lady, well nothing much to report for me today feeling a bit yuk today got hayfever the only thing I hate about spring, Hey Laura the milk and turkey worked I got at least 4hrs sleep last night and believe me thats good I usually toss and turn and get if I,m lucky half an hr here and there so thats it for me catch you all later bye for now BLESSED BE JULIE

SW 172
CW 166

GW 132

Good Morning Ladies!!!

click here to see the costume I bought for Halloween:
http://www.buycostumes.com/ProductDe...adultpluswomen

I am really excited about it.

Joy - I try to go to the gym at least three times a week. There are different classes each day, so whatever day I go, I just go to that class:
Mondays- Step I
Tuesdays, Thursdays - Kickbox Conditioning
Wednesdays - Members Choice (I have only been to this one once and it was alot of step with different aerobic moves)
Fridays - Step N Flex (which is half step and half lifting weights)

I am going to try to go all five days this week. My goal is to go three times a week, but last week I only went twice, was in a funk, but I want to make up for it this week by going 5 times.

Laura - you remind me alot of myself, I also consider myself to be very crafty. I don't bother putting up a Christmas tree, though, because my cat knocks down the decorations EVERY DAY, and EVERY DAY I have to redecorate the stupid tree. For Christmas this year, I bought a bunch of those little (about 3 inch X 3 inch) cross stitch decorations that go on a little hanger and will make those the name tags for the Christmas gifts. I am proud of myself because I am getting them done early, have already done three. The reason I bought them was because I eat when I am bored, so I needed something to do at work (there is alot of down-time there).

Julie - I noticed a post that you wrote, talking about smoking, I am also a smoker. I considered quitting, but have heard so many people talking about how when you quit you gain weight, and am scared to do so now...any thoughts on that?

Angela - my goals to lose the "turkey" are just to eat right and excersize alot. I try to do baby steps throughout the day: park further away from the entrance of the store, run up my steps at home (I live on the third floor of an apartment - no elevators, and I used to have a hard time just WALKING up the stairs) walk around the building while at work, and basically just trying to walk FASTER when I have a short distance to walk (like to the bathroom) just so I can burn more calories w/o really making big changes. I also am trying to go to the gym AT LEAST three times a week, for an hour each time. When I go to the grocery store, I don't buy ANYTHING that can be fried, but I also don't buy anything that I won't LIKE, because if I don't LIKE it, then I won't eat it, therefore am wasting my money. I realize that I shouldn't ELIMINATE anything from my diet, because that will just make me want it more, instead, just eat things in moderation. However, I have still gotten fried foods and cokes out of my diet. I have cheated a few times on both items, but I figure eating 2 fried items a month, and drinking one coke is better than eating fried foods and cokes for every meal (like before)


WELL GOOD NEWS EVERYONE:
I weighed myself this morning, and check out my new signature!!!


By the way, that is down 7 lbs from when I went up 2 lbs!!!! ( I KNEW my period had SOMETHING to do w/ it!)

Well, this weekend hasn't been all bad. We ate out more..and drank way too much beer, but I also got some exercise in and we went dancing last night. My weight has remained the same as last weekend...yet I actually went up about 5 early in the week, and got back down to just maintaining. This coming week, I hope to make more decreases.

Sam..way to go one your big loss!! You will easily be at 250 by the end of the month and be well ahead of your Tday goal. Your costume looks fun, and I'm sure it will fit.

Well, I am off to take my bro to the airport, then I plan on working out. Hope y'all are having a great weekend...catch everyone tomorrow!

GOOD MONING EVERYONE, hope your all well CONGRATS on your great weight loss Sam you sure are an encouragement in yourself for me SMOKING yeah I,m lucky when it comes to that my body does,nt get addicted to nicotine I don,t have that thing in my brain that triggers addiction off but there not much else up there anyway , I can smoke like a chimney and then just stop and not tuch a ciggie for yrs , I feel for people who try to quit my hubby is one of those I watch him struggle then give in I guess its willpwer like anything else you have to really want to give it up , I wish you luck for you if you decide to give it ago well thats it for me I,m off for then exercise bye for now BLESSED BE JLIE

Every so often, I will pose a question to the group. Some health and weight loss related, some just for fun to get to know more about each other. They may be a bit off beat at times, but please feel free to share your perspective with the group!


With Halloween a couple weeks away, think back to when you were a kid. What was one of your favorite costumes? What was you favorite 'treat' to receive? What do you plan on handing out to the kiddos this year? (and it better not be your favorite treat...just cuz it's halloween, doesn't mean we should give ourselves permission to buy or indulge in empty calories!!)

Good Morning to you all

I am sorry that I have not logged in for a few days. Boy alot has gone on here. I do not have time to respond to everyone individually, please forgive me. But I will try to generalize.

With the Turkey Challenge underway, describe your strategy/plan for approaching weight loss. Are you following a specific diet? How do you incorporate exercise? Is this approach different to things you have tried in the past?

Well, I sam trying to follow the WW points, (trying not to use the flex points, just the daily)

Exercise has been tough, I can do good for a few days, then not for a few more. I am trying to do yoga, step and walking 5 -6X a week. I eventually want to get back into resistance tubes 3X a week, but know I need to get motivated with my exercise, before I will stick with the tubes.

This approach is not different than for the past 5 years. I have been battling this for awhile, unsuccessfully. Wait, I have started meeting with a Psy, Dr. and we have been working on emotional eating.... I do not feel, my feelings, I eat or get mad. I have done great with not getting mad. But I'm still eating. I am working on accepting my feelings and honoring them, actually just feeling them. Also, I log in here. Thanks everyone.

I noticed the other day in the car driving home from Maine (apple picking, long, long ride). My son and nephew kept asking for donut holes. So I got a coffee and them some donut holes, well I at a few and after a bout 20 minutes, my son and I were yelling at each other. We cannot do sugar. We had a great day, but both became so nasty after the sugar. I am going to try to stay away from sugar myself. I monitor my son's sugar intake, he gets one sugary snack, ex: a few cookies, couple ssmall pieces of candy, etc. I need to do the same form myself.

Laura: You are extremely crafty. I love crafts. every year a run craft classes. This year I am making a bunch of frames, ornaments and other little thinks with polymer clay to sell at a craft fair. When I was married, I had a basket business, only for one year, it took off so well, that I could not keep up. I would bake, cookies, cakes, and make candies, truffles and make little crafty items. I still make my baskets, but not for sale. I give them for gifts for the grandparents and for anyone who helped me out, such as watching or caring for my son. I also make small baskets, for my brothers They love my candies. I taught a few classes on making candy. It went well. Your items sound great, have fun with it.

Well I have to get back to work. Have a great day everyone, great job on the weight loss and exercise. Great to see everyone getting back on track. Hang in there.

Angie, thanks for the questions, and getting everyone to log in again.