The return of the prodigal Carla...
Sometimes I think I disappear from time to time just to see if I'm missed. And I was! You like me! You really like me!!! (Brief Sally Field moment there.)
Day 11 completed yesterday for both challenges. (I was tempted to do a chocolate binge, but did the math and realized that if I use more than one more pause day I'll still be on this challenge on Christmas eve, and on Sunday I have a dinner party, so... I'm determined to finish the challenge this time.)
My buzzer just went off, and I'll have to head to the laundry room soon or risk finding my dainties piled gracelessly on a bench. Yes, it's the dark ages here: when the building was put up 30 years ago, they didn't put in a plumbing system that would accommodate ensuite laundry in the units. So although I have an illegal dryer up here, a washer could too easily cause sink backup in the units under me. It's almost enough to make me move. But I won't. (The old ladies who live here - and I mean REALLY old - love the shared laundry so they can chat and have social contact.)
Anyway, I realized the other day I had actually lost one third of the weight I want to get off!
(Hence the chocolate urge - desire to celebrate/sabotage.) It's a little tough right now, as I'm cold all the time, but I can't really say I'm hungry. And that old demon, after-dinner eating, still has me in its sway. At least now I'm munching on fruit and cheese instead of my usual crackers or whatever.
Marble, you're amazing. All banged up and broken, and yet you're still exercising! I'm really glad you're doing well - if I'm not mistaken, you'll need lots of strength for family gatherings in the next few weeks. Have you managed to dig out from under the mountain of accumulated work at the office? As for the weight, if you continue on your virtuous path, you're bound to see a sudden surprise drop one of these days.
Red, dear Red. What a pain to have been sick when you're not even home with your cats and your own "stuff" to comfort you. But you've certainly been posting prolifically, so you're on the mend for sure! I know what you mean about wonderign why we eat all the wrong things when veg is cheaper and often just as easy. Lately I've been buying lots of bagged salad greens (lazy, lazy me!) and I'll just grill some meat or fish (you could use tofu?) and toss it into a big bowl of salad with some crumbled feta and a cut-up apple or pear or some grapes and a few pine nuts and some store-bought caesar lite dressing and it's SO good - and FAST. It has really helped on those nights when I'm hungry but lazy and am on the verge of opting for a big sandwich followed by many bad things. And congrats on those nice tight abs hiding under the winter padding! I'm not ready to start working on the squishy middle yet.
Alt, don't worry about not giving individual messages. I think we all end up writing a message when someone else's post speaks to us, and of course various people find they have a special affinity with other specific posters, and also the longer you hang around the better you know everyone and the more you'll have to say.
Curly, if you'd like, I can give you the short version of the diet I'm following (supposedly 1200 cals, but more, I think) which has helped me move that ticker at last. Maybe it would give you the jump start or metabolism boost you need to see some action? Let me know, and I'll PM you.
Yikes
! My laundry! Gotta run.
so I guess I have a ways to go. i am sore, but need to use the arm.
) Back to salad dressing. Fat-free italian with a splash of lemon/minced garlic and snip some dry (no oil, just dehydrated) sun-dried tomatoes in it a great treat.
But I don't have a lot of trouble in that area, so I don't really know a lot of tricks, apart from increasing bran and hi-fiber-food intake, drinking lots of water, going to Hong Kong and drinking the water like Red 
.
