Morning all!
Yesterday was an OP day food & exercise wise. I started getting that nice carb headache yesterday. Which I deserve after my bad weekend. The scale is down a pound today and I realize that I have only 4 more weeks from today for the Vixen Challenge and I have like 11lbs I want to loss. It's doable, not the healthiest way to do it though. I'm on induction again and gonna try and stick w/this at least until next Friday with Saturday being the only day this week that I may not be on it 150%. I am hosting a party at my house for my home based business and there will be LOTS of food sampling, which it is healthier food that is why I am having the party. But I am gonna do my best.

Brenda~Good Job on the exercise. You sound like such a different person than when I first started coming in here. You are drinking your water, staying OP and exercising. THAT IS GREAT!!! Keep up the good job!! Did the dh workout w/you last night?

Robin~Is it plain green tea or can it be like citrus falvored? I have some of that in my cupboard and that would make a nice treat as ice tea or hot tea I'm thinking. KUDOS on the inches lost. You go girl!! I read that thread, WOW. How moving and thanks for sharing. There was a lot in there I could relate to.

Christine~It's normal to feel guilty, we are mom's. Maybe break down the workout in 5 minutes time slots. This way you can head down after she gets sick or is even resting and workout real quick, check on her again then go back. Good luck w/it, hope she feels better soon and remember, you have to do this so you will be there for her years from now.

Lace~About the boob job, I wouldn't recommended it just because of all the horror stories I have heard. I know someone who has had one and has had no problems, but I just don't know. For me, I wouldn't, but then I've got the Appalachin Mountins right below my chin. LOL

Sherry~KUDOS on your loss!! That is awesome. Keep up the good work!

Well have a great & OP day!

Good Morning

Brenda~ I drink Salada, traditional green tea. I have a box of both regular, and decaf (for the evenings) I also have a box of Zen green tea from starbucks...it has mint and a hint of lemon in it. Its really nice too, and I dont need anything in it. With the other I need a bit of splenda, about a 1/2 a tsp. Make sure when you brew it, you do not pour boiling water on the bag, pour the water in your cup, wait about 2 min, then put the bag in and steep it no more than 3 min. Otherwise, you will get a very bitter tea. As for leg exercises...you can use the weighted balls you have for WATP and do these http://www.thefitmap.co.uk/tools/exe...-exercises.htm I wish I could say the same as you....my body hurts Im not working out very hard, enough to break a sweat, and Im not pushing it too much because I dont want to hurt myself. Im honestly thinking I might need to up my carbs a bit to help heal the muscles. I'll see how Im feeling tomorrow morning.

Im home alone today, so I might actually get some stuff done!!! I'll do some experimenting with the head of cauliflower in the fridge...get some vacuuming done, and my walk in. Thats about all I have planned for my day. Should be busy enough.

Have a good one ladies

Bec~ we must have been posting at the same time Yup, with citrus is fine, just check the carb count. Mine is has lemon verbena and mint tea mixed with it...and its fine. I drink about 4 cups of green tea a day (2 decaf)
I did the calendar check yesterday too for the vixen challenge....you can do it!! Keep your eyes on the prize!

Lady Adnerb,

The barbell for your arms will work for your legs too. You can do squats with the barbell held across your shoulders. You can get a block of wood, put your toes on it, and your heels hanging off and do calf extensions. Essentially all you do with that is to raise up on your toes, and then lower so that your heels are lower than your toes. Repeat 10 times. To make it harder you use weights held in your hands (or on your shoulders). To vary it you can do another 10 with your toes pointed outward, heels in, or vice versa.

You have to be very careful with this exercise though to start with. Most of us aren't used to having our heels lower than out toes, and those calves don't get worked that way very often. Therefore a little goes a LONG way and if you do too many you may find you have trouble walking in a few days when your muscles start to feel it! Glutamine is good for achy muscles, and will make some of that soreness go away faster. But better yet, start slow!

To work the hamstrings, you can do what they call straight legged dead lifts. Put the barbell in front of your feet, and bend from the waist and lift it. Keep it close to your body, close to your knees. Keep legs straight, with maybe just a tiny bit of bend at the knees.

These three exercises will work all the three major muscles in your legs.

Here's a great website that will show you how to do the various exercises with correct form using barbells, dumbbells or machines. The pictures are animated so if you do them like the pictures are, you can do them with good form and not hurt yourself. : http://www.exrx.net/Lists/Directory.html -

Why Yes Robin, Yes, he was. LOL

Hi everyone. I have to leave now, but I wanted to check in and say a quick hi.

I'll sneak in a couple of personal here...

Brenda, I'm glad your sisters surgery went well. I hope she's feeling better today too.

Christine, I hope your daughter's feeling better soon and hope you can work a little exercise in somewhere.

Gotta run and get ready...Be back later

hi ya girls!! Thanks for the green tea advice, I'm going to look into it!

GUESS WHAT!! I BOUGHT A BATHING SUIT!! For the first time in 12 years! It's a tankini and has bottoms and an optional skirt

It's the brown one here: http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html...sin=B000BWQ6DC

and the best part is that it came from the womens section and I didn't have to buy a plus size mumu dress lookin' one

anyway, haven't got my walking in yet today and I need to DRINK MORE water but overall I'm doing okay.

Looks like you girls are doing awesome!!! Have a great day!!!

Lacey

Then I hope you had a very enjoyable afternoon Sonnet

Bec: Do your best staying OP. Sometimes it's just not possible--so just do the best you can. Thanks for noticing the improvement in my attitude I FEEL like I did when I first started this WOE. Determined and gung-ho!!! And yup, DH exercised with me last night (it's one reason I got 4 miles in!) and wanted the vcr tape ready for him when he got home tonight

Robin: Dang, was hoping the green tea was in pill form. I'm not a fan of hot tea. Guess I'll forego it! Thanks for the information about the tea and the leg exercises. I'll have to print it out and see how I can work that in

Sherry: Thanks for the information you've given me. I've done the exercise you've talked about with the toes and then lifting the heels before--and you're right! They're brutal! I'll definitely have to add that in somehow though

Sonny: have a great day And my sister must have taken the day off today as well (as I got an email from her this morning), so I replied to find out how she was feeling. Thanks for asking

Lacey: WTG on buying the swimsuit! And it's adorable! I love it! I'm a fan of tankini's myself!! Keep up the great work and I bet you look spectacular in it!!


Well, except for the lack of water, I'm getting things right. Definitely need to skip the cappuccino and go straight for water. I think that'd flush all the junk out and with the exercise I've been doing I need the fluids. The walk & kick video I got for Christmas wasn't as hard as I thought it'd be. But it was a blast!!! So will make for a nice change to my other exercises. Maybe I'll do that video and then add the step program into my exercise. I loved doing that as well. Not quite brave enough to try and do the dance tape again. Well, off to go get some water. If I chug fast enough I'll get my required amount in yet today--and spend all night in the bathroom expelling it

Brenda~ you can get green tea in pill form!! I havent looked into it, because I find making and drinking the tea distracts me from wanting goodies. Ive even got a special cup for green tea (cuz it stains my other cups) You do what works right?

Morning!!! Yesterday was OP all the way around again. I'm pretty proud of myself. DD hurt her ankle last night so she isn't gonna be going to school today. Last time she did this it looked fine but when she cam home it was nasty looking. So we are gonna keep in elevated and iced today.

Brenda~If you like ice tea you can do green tea like that, or so I have been told. What do you think about that Robin? I'm a HUGE ice tea person, I do like hot tea in the winter though. Keep up the awesome job you are doing good!! It is so great hearing you talk highly about the exercises you are doing.

Lace~Woo Hoo , a bathing suit. That is great!! I can't wait till I get to that point!!

Robin~Hope you get to feeling better and that your muscles start feeling better!! I hate that sore feeling. It makes it hard to want to exercise.

Sonnet~Hello!!!!!

Sherry~WOW those exercises sound like fun???? LOL Good ideas!!!

Have a great & OP day!

Morning all. Probably won't be able to catch up with everyone till the weekend (boys are with their dad this weekend). I wish I could particpate more often, but the aid/therapists/teacher, etc, etc. coming back to work after the Christmas Break eats up way more of my day than I remembered it doing Pre-Christmas. Seems like someone is always here & I have to play happy hostess all day long. Quite tired of it really & can't wait till summer. Anyhew, looks like everyone is doing great!!

Bec: Sorry to hear about DD's ankle. Hope it gets better soon. WTG on staying OP!!! I've been drinking some Lipton Diet Green Tea. It's not bad. I'm hoping it's "flushing" whatever it's supposed to

Stacie: Don't worry about doing personals. Just keep checking in and letting us know how you're doing

Well, I'm SUPER tired today. I don't think I'll get any exercise in. I'm going to finish my 1st glass of water (haven't drank ANY cappuccino today. And I'm thinking of getting rid of it totally on Saturday. Friday is bowling night and I really don't want the caffeine headache now AND on Saturday again. So I'll make sure it's all gone by then ) then take a quick nap. Then get the stuff I need done. Hopefully I get some energy because I hate skipping days of exercise. But maybe my body's saying "hey, slow down a bit" and of course I'll listen today. Jump right back on tomorrow again

Good Morning

Have I mentioned I hate buffalo in the winter?

Bec~ yup, I make green tea iced tea in the summer all the time. I add the juice on a whole lemon to the jug too with 1/3 cup splenda for the whole thing. Makes me miss summer!!!

Brenda~ must be something in the air....Im sitting here yawning like crazy.

Stacie~ sounds like you're very busy, but if you manage to pop in daily and say hi, thats good enough I find checking in here every day helps my weight loss efforts.

Im still quite sore today, I took it easy yesterday, just walking for exercise. I'll see for today, Im suppose to do a lower body workout.

Not much planned for the day.....have a good one ladies

Yesterday I had a "ketosis headache" almost all day. I'm not sure what level of ketosis I'm at, probably a dark purple the way I've been feeling, and I know I should up the water to dilute it somewhat.

I prefer to drink most of my water midday though so that when I weigh in the morning I can see whether I've lost or not. With water fluxuations happening too much it is hard to tell.

Anyway I was pleased this morning to get on the scale and find that even very early in the morning (before the time I would usually weigh), my scale read my lowest figure for yesterday. Than an hour or two later it weighed a pound less! YAY! Nine pounds to go for the Valentine's day challenge to be met, and 2 more to meet my 3rd January goal. I've been setting a modest goal for the month and then when I reach it I set a new one. If I reach it by the end of the month I'll be satisfied, but it is a thrill to reach it early and have a chance to set a next one. I'm already on my 3rd goal for the month and very close to that point so I'm excited!

I agree those exercises I mentioned are "brutal". Especially the calf raises. Easy to do, but watch out for the pain a day or two later!

One thing that is really wonderful for any sort of muscle soreness caused by exercise is glutamine. It is an amino acid (which they say are the "building blocks of protein") so it is healthy and good to take. It is the "most abundant" amino acid in the body. Using it in pill or powder form helps those muscles to heal faster, helps the lactic acid (which is where the "burn" comes from when you workout) go away.

Has anyone here done Body for Life? Or are you now? That is some intense exercise! I did it back about 3 years ago now. It is a 12 week program of working out 6 days a week. 20 minute aerobics 3 days a week, and alternating upper and lower body workouts the other there days (with one between them for the areobics part). I didn't lose any weight because I couldn't stick to Atkins during that time and I didn't want to do their diet. But I did build some nice muscle during that time and lost some fat.

It is an intense program for anyone interested.

Yes Ive heard of it....its the exercise program I am doing now. I lost about 8lbs on it, but dropped an entire size! It's an intense workout, but very easy to do, and you dont have to spend all day in a gym to get the stuff done. I can handle 20 min of cardio! Even if it is all out suckin' wind cardio. Then you're done for the day

Another note about green tea.....I was out and about last night, and checked some of the vitamin places for it. I also did some checking online. From what I have learned, if you're going to take it in supplement form, take it in the liquid green tea extract form. Each dose equals approx 4 cups of tea. Pretty good, but I havent been able to find caffine free in the stores, only online.

Im having one of those days I want to cuddle up wiht a big chocolate bar, and a box of hoho's!!!!! Im glad I told dh how I was feeling....he reminded me how I feel when I eat that crap. Doesnt stop me from wanting them, but it helped a little. Just one of those days I should have stayed in bed.

Im workin' up the gumpshin to go workout....dont want to do that either