Oh, boy am I excited! In the past month I've only lost 2.6 pounds. Seems pretty crappy. BUT...I've lost 7.5 inches! WooHoo! I am proud of myself. That is a total of 34.5 inches gone for good since I started Back in January. I am now officially sold on the powers of weight training. So, here are my stats comparing a 214 pound me to a 155 pound me:

Arm 14.5 to 11.5
Bust 44 to 39
Waist 38.5 to 32
Stomach 44 to 35.75
Hips 44 to 37.5
Thigh 24 to 21
Calf 18 to 15.75

Congrats, Tricia. GREAT numbers.

Gloria, should the challange be per week? I think for exercise to have a goal each week would be good. Okay with the rest of you?

Gloria my family plays a form of "real or not real" too. You make a circle with each person standing behind an object. It doesn't matter what the object is it's just designates a place. Then one person is in the middle, so there is actually one more person than there is places to stand. The person in the middle, that person is "it", and makes a statement. Like I am a blond. If the other people think the statement is true they stay put but if they think the statement is a lie they have to move to another spot - the goal of the person in the middle is to take a spot from someone who had one.

Anyway, one time my nephew, about 6 at the time says, "I eat my buggers". His Mother says, "you do not", and he says, "oh, yes I do".

We still talk about the game that year!!!!

I just got home from my nephews graduation. His older brother brought his rock band so that was noisy. I can still hear them playing from here. Actually my nephew is a very good drummer so it's fun to watch them play.

Some of my aunts and uncles were there so we got to visit and catch up.

As predicted - I didn't eat much. A piece of cake and not a whole tablespoon of potato salad. So I think I will have some turkey and cheese now.

Do you all go to parades and things on Memorial Day?

Happy Memorial Day everyone. Carl is off today and is still sleeping. If there was such a thing as a professional sleeper, Carl would be a good candidate. Yesterday he took two naps and watched nascar. Yuck! Don't have any plans to do anything special today, but sleeping all day long is not for me.

For those of you interested, I think we should start today logging what exercise we want to do for the hole week. I think i said i wanted to do water aerobics at 6:30 P.M. tonight. Well i forgot about Memorial Day and the pool closes at 3:30 and I'm not sure if there are any classes. Will still go swimming, just a little earlier.
Also, Saturday is a good ending point.

I am so very very tired of being fat and i desperately need all your help in my uphill climb again. Come on ladies, lets get excited over this new challenge. Lets win one for the gipper.

Good for you Tricia. Keep up the good work. I know the rest of us will be right behind you in loosing weight.

Have to start this day and will go for now. Talk to ya'll tonight.
Gloria

ME TOO, Gloria.

My problem right now is I have these defeatist (sp) thoughts. I know that is not good and I know it is just a way to NOT even try.

So, Gloria & Andria, we can help each other while Tricia shows us the way.

I did weigh in this morning and take measurements. I am up 3 lbs but considering I haven't been watching what I eat or exercising in a couple months, I am counting my blessings it isn't more.


I also made a goal list last night, which is a first for me. I will post it later.

HERE WE GO.

Lucky, I don't consider myself a leader by any stretch of the imagination. But, I think I would do a great job of cheering you guys on. Of course, I've still got a long way to go myself so I am still in the ring too!

Maybe we can talk each other thorough our defeatest thoughts. If I had to pick the one thing that I struggle with the most those negative thoughts are it. I think the important thing is that we are aware of them - at least we can identifiy them for what they are when they rear their ugly heads.

We have no big plans for Memorial Day. We are having really yucky weather and are pretty much stuck inside. It is supposed to be like this all week so I think I am going to take the kids to see Madagasgar (sp). Other than that we may entertain ourselves with y'alls real or not real game.

Gotta go get lunch for the kids. Have a great holiday!

Tricia

After my last post I pulled out my Dr. Phil book.

Change your thinking to change your weight. Get rid of self-defeating thought patterns, believe that you will succeed, and you will have mastered the first key necessary to overcome your struggles with your weight. As you begin to think differently, you will succeed and you will maximize your life.

This is SO me. Somehow I have decided I can't do this. It will never happen.

Dr. Phil says we all have something called our "personal truth".

This is whatever you, at the absolute core of your being, believe to be true about yourself.

I have to really think about this. I apparently have never gotten to the "core" of myself on this.

Hmmm, the word unworthy just popped in my head. It's a starting point.

Off to exercise YES you heard me!!!!

I'm stopping in to report my challenge progress. I made it to the gym again this morning and did 35 minutes of cardio and weight for about 45. I feel GREAT! Getting up so early is tough but it sure is worth it. I LOVE having a specific time set aside for my exercise instead of having to work it in between everyone else's schedule. I even had time to swing by the grocery store and pick up a few things we needed - didn't take long without three kids on my heels. LOL. I might just find that I am a morning person after all!

I'm off to scrounge up some breakfast. Hope everyone has a successful day!

Tricia

Who likes pizza? We made this for dinner tonight and it is so good and easy. I hadn't made it in a while and had forgotten how much we all like it. Thought you guys might like to try it.

Crust:
1 package (2.25 teaspoons) yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup warm water
2 1/2 cups AP flour (I've used 1/2 wheat flour and it works fine, or bread flour which gives a breadier, chewier crust)
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons olive oil

Dissolve yeast and sugar in water until creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in flour, salt and olive oil. Mix well until a dough forms. Drizzle to coat slightly with olive oil (optional). Cover and let rest for five minutes. Press into pan or pizza stone and cook for 10-15 minutes in a 450 degree oven (you can freeze or refrigerate at this point if you like). Top and bake until cooked to desired doneness.

I let mine rest much longer than five minutes but only because I usually make it ahead of time. This makes a lot of dough - half of it I split between the kids to make 3 personal sized, original-type crusts. The other half is divided between Greg and I - he puts his in a pie pan for a slightly thicker crust, I press mine thinly in a cake pan for a crispy crust. Made with AP flour a quarter of the crust has 378 calories, 8 grams of fat, 64 grams of carbs, and 11 grams of protein.

Sauce:
8 oz can tomato sauce
6 oz can tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried parsely
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4-3/4 teaspoons sugar (I use 1/2 teaspoon)

Mix it all up and that is it. I use this on pizza, as a breadstick dip, and for cheese sticks. The whole batch has only 142 calories and no fat.

If you give them a try let me know how you like them.

Have a great night!

Tricia

Hi there...'member me? Mind if I return to the fold after my self imposed exile? I'm feeling like I'm 'in a better place' (geez, I sound like a mental patient!) now and can contribute here as well as follow some sort of plan for myself.

I quickly skimmed over this current thread...love the pictures, Gloria! I'm up for any challenge, so I hope you don't mind me coming along for the ride.

I have lots more to share, but I have to work tonight, so I need my beauty (hah!) sleep. I will be back tomorrow!

Is it my breath?

WHERE'D EVERYBODY GO?

That is funny, Kat. I figured it must be MY breath! LOL.

I made it to the gym again this morning so I am on track for our challenge this week. It feels great - I wish I had been making myself get up and go in the morning all along. It sure makes my day a lot less hectic.

We did the summer thing tonight - BBQ chicken, sweet corn on the cob, baked beans, etc. I am happy to report that I controlled myself despite REALLY, REALLY, wanted to get second helpings of everything. If I don't do anything else well, I rock on the grill. I knew I wasn't hungry though, so I forced my way from the table. I have to admit it scared me a little bit. There have been times when I WANTED more to eat but I didn't put much consideration into it and it was relatively easy to talk myself out of it. Tonight, though, I almost dug in. I fixed my plate, looked at it and realized that I had more than I needed so I put half of it back. What scared me was not knowing for sure whether I it was just especially good and I was especially hungry or if I was falling off the wagon so to speak. It felt good to maintain control. I'll have to make a point to remember that it felt better to make my own decision about what I put in my mouth than to let the food dictate what to eat.

Gotta run - all three kids need baths and hair washings after eating BBQ!

Hope you all have a chance to check in soon.

Tricia

I am so frustrated with doctors, lawyers, and blood sucking insurance people i could just scream! I think i told you about painting one of the bedrooms last month when Carl and i were on vacation in our GA home and my neck started hurting again? Well, after making an appointment to see my doctor, my lower back also started hurting and when i went to see her about my neck, i told her about my back. The doctor said "I can't look at your back because its not included as part of the car accident law suit, but if you want to make another appointment for your back, then i will be able to see you then. Her office is in Palm Harbor and the only way to get there is to take Hwy19. Down here people have bumper stickers that say 'Pray for me, i drive on Hwy19. Yes, it is that bad plus her office is an hour away. So i made an appointment to see my regular doctor here in Spring Hill which was yesterday. He had the nerve to fuss at me because i didn't keep him informed about the operations i had after my accident and how he was not included in the loop. I've seen nine doctors plus physical therapy for about eleven months in the past two years, so i guess that was the loop he was referring to. Sorry, but keeping him informed was NOT top priority on my list. He also had the nerve to tell me to "Stop taking the medication the Palm Harbor doctor prescribed. It won't help you". Then he gave me a different prescription and wants me to do more physical therapy and come back and see him in one month. My car insurance (State Farm) will not pay for anymore medical bills so all of this has to come out of my pocket. I get the feeling that doctors see me coming and see dollar signs.

Sorry to keep harping on the same subject but its just so frustrating.
I will try to make another post tonight when hopefully i am in a better mood.
Gloria

Hey everyone

Summer has hit with a vengeance! What that really means is that my girls have been out of school for a week now, and I've been running non-stop ever since. We have been having fun, though! I've been to the pool twice now, and I am loving the water aerobics set I picked up at Bed Bath & Beyond. (I did tell you guys about that, right?) Tuesday I did 40 minutes of water running and then another 10 of weights and mellowed out with 5 of swimming. It was exhilarating to get through that much and just be pleasantly tired after, instead of aching to the bone and wanting to crawl into bed and die. And even with only having been twice so far, my knee is responding so well! I've been moving up and down stairs so much better than before. I kept asking for the pool when I was going through physical therapy, but they said it was for older patients with more mobility problems. I should have kept pushing, huh!

I've also been having a lot of success in getting all my food and exercise logged onto DietPower. I'm down 8 lbs. since starting that back up! Now, if only I hadn't done so much backsliding... negative thoughts, be banished... No beating myself up over the past. I took a break, and I didn't lose all control. That is something to be grateful for, not to punish myself over.

I'm also really struggling to get my house under control. Tony will be here the end of the month, plus there might be some old friends visiting as they drive through the area. I would hate them to see my place in the shape it is right now. So much clutter! Somehow I need to get the rest of the family on the same sheet of paper with me on this one, but they are all pretty resistant so far.

Kat, it is so good to see you! I was actually planning to buy a card today and send it off to you because I was getting so worried. Thanks for coming back. Please let us know the times you need to be held up, because you do so much of it for the rest of us. (I'm going to try and remember that myself, because I'm guilty of doing the same thing.)

Everyone else, I've got to jet! There is a book club tonight and I need to do some research for an article that is due this next week.

Take care!

Andria

Oh good, I'm glad to see everyone out and posting! No, I'm not paranoid!
Sorry to hear about your doctor woes, Gloria! Working in a hospital all these years has made me e x t r e m e l y skeptical of docotrs and their motives. ($$$) Oh, the abuses of the system I see! Not all, of course, but certainly more than not. I hope that you are feeling better. How is Ol' Blue these days?

Thank you for your kind words, Andria. I know how much support there is to be had here, and I'm sorry that I couldn't turn here for it when it is so freely given. I think that I just get to the point that I'm so tired of NEEDING it, over and over. Hey! At least I keep trying, it's when I stop altogether that all will be lost. Sounds like you are doing well, I'm glad to hear it. My son still has two weeks of school left! I'm just as anxious as he is for it to be over!

Tricia, Still going strong, I see! Good for you! You certainly have the 'diet thing' down pat, now you're even thinking like a thin person! . Powerful stuff there, thanks for sharing!

OH, LUCKY... As usual, I'm right on the same page as you! Maybe I need to get my Dr Phil out too. I was struck by this: You thought "unworthy"...I thought "FAT." Hmmm... I need some work! Wellllll. we both do! I DO know, however that exercise is the one thing that will always make me feel better. Like Andria said, I love that feeling!

It's time for me to get my son off to karate...I hope that you all have a great night!

PS...It's good to be back! I missed you guys!

I have totally failed at the exercise challenge this week.

HOWEVER, I would win the "throwing up" challenge, no problem. I have had the flu for three days - I am at least able to sit up now. The computer is making me naucous (SP)

Glad to see the rest of you succeeding.

I think I will go lay down again now.