Just a quickie for Kayley: Certainly weighing on the non-carpeted floor would be more accurate, but sometimes you just have to go with it.

For example: When I was attending WW meetings there were a couple of women that would go into the restroom and change into shorts and a tank top EVERY WEEK, rain or shine, sleet or snow. We even had one girl that changed into one of those very thin cotton shift things (read nighty here ) just for the extra few ounces that she might weigh less. Every week there they were, changing in the bathroom before weighing in.

I, on the other hand, weighed in the first day with my jean leggings and tennis shoes and decided that I didn't care about taking my shoes off every week so I would just always weigh with tennis shoes on. Did I weigh a pound and a half more? Sure I did. But I weighed a pound and a half more, consistently, every week and I knew it.

If it's a pain to move the scale every time you want to weigh, then leave it where it is and ALWAYS weigh that way. Just realize that if you go into the Dr's office to weigh you might be surprised, and it might not be pleasantly. And then, if that's the case, forget it and move on. Don't let it throw you in a tizzy because you know your history on the scale that you weigh on consistantly.

Just my 2 cents.

Good evening,

Catherine: Thanks for the great advice. It does get so overwhelming. I tend to plan things like I will be at such and such a weight by such and such a time then I get so depressed when it doesn't happen. I need to stop doing that and focus on having a good day on my program and exercising one day at a time instead of planning every day for the next month. I'm so glad that you seem so happy. It makes my heart smile to hear you talk about your honey. I remember when I first got married and I felt like a princess. I still do. My husband is wonderful and I hope that you are extremely happy forever with yours.

Christine: I will be praying for you sweetie. I'm so sorry that you have to go through all that. Hang in there. There is bound to be something that will work for you.

2LosinIt: I have never been to DisneyWorld but I have been to Disneyland dozens of times. I have never had a problem with the rides except for the little kiddie ones like Dumbo and the tea cups. I'm sure if you stick with the bigger ones you will be fine. If a ride ends up not fitting just don't look back. You will never see any of those people again. It may be better if you feel comfortable enough to share it with your partner in loosing weight before you go so she knows how you feel and you won't be extra nervous.

Everyone have a blessed night,
Dogpal

That's what I was thinking, Thin...and it is a hassle to keep moving it every time I want to weigh in. I even asked my mom about this, and also Andrew. They both said that to just keep it where it is for right now, and when I hit my goal, to check it, and see how much more I "really" have to go...works for me!

Watched some of the ice dancing tonight on TV. That stuff SURE takes some talent! I can't even ice skate, let alone do ANYTHING that those people are able to! And they sure make it LOOK easy!

whew! I think I finally caught up with the thread...I know I have missed 2 or 3 complete threads back there somewhere. I have been in an ebay frenzy and not stopping by like I was.

Confession: today I ate a large diet turkey sub from quiznos for lunch and a whataburger for dinner, oh, whole grain cheerios with gasp, 2% milk (we were out of skim). I have not been on program for days...most days not as bad as today but still, not on program. I have gotten all mixed up here. I have been looking thru the weight watchers program information and I got a foodmover from Richard Simmons, but I began on South Beach. I tried to do south beach phase II without re-reading the book and I obviously went carb crazy.

Funny thing is, when I went to see the psych today their scale showed a loss. Bizzare, I think their scale is not in sinc with the one I use at the gym. Oh yeah, have not been able to exercise at the gym since last week due to transportational problems and I have been going thru books and movies and bagging them up to go their separate ways, sell some, give some away, drop some off here and there...anyway, no space to even do a WATP. So I feel like junk. I have got to get back on South Beach Phase I and stay there until I feel better. Mom has gone on to Phase II and is still losing, yay for her! Anyway, boohoo for me. Kick me in my drawers and get me going again!

By the way thank you Valerie what you said to me helps.

What all of you say helps! I dont know why I let myself stop checking in here. I think that is one of the major problems I have been having. Not checking in with you all. You all mean so much to me and help keep me focused. Thank you for being here, I will try not to wander away again.

Garnetfairy, I'm glad that you are back! I had thought that maybe you had gone, but I'm very glad that you are still with us, and you're getting back on plan!!! And glad that you didn't let yourself wander TOO far OP before hopping back on!!

I got up this morning, early enough to do a little bit of a workout, but I'm feel so gross, I don't even know if I'm going to go to classes today. I might take something, and just go to bed here in another hour and a half or something.

Morning All,

Tuesday morning and all is well. Just finished my breakfast and my ironing, and now have a guilt free amount of time I can use on the Internet. My throat is still pretty sore and it's making me feel really blah, but even if I can keep my housework up that's better than nothing in the exercise stakes.

Christine - you know you said exactly what I was thinking. I finally stop being in hospital, it's been a 3 week stay for every year Daren and I have been together, and now Daren must be having withdrawal symptoms because he is the one needing to go. Let's hope that this time it won't come true that everything happens in 3s or we will be back there again.

Thanks for asking about Beth, yes we have seen the consultant, he reckons it's just a viral thing and that as it clears up her dizziness will go. She has been much better but still gets the occasional dizzy spell. I used to too at her age, but never thought anything of it.

I am coping ok with going back and fore to the hospital with both her and Daren, but I have to say it's much harder on me watching them both have troubles rather than it being me in the hospital chair/bed. Let's just hope Caleigh will stay well so that we don't have to start going back and fore with her. Actually she is having braces this year, so we have all those orthodontist appts to endure. HELP

Hope everybody is having a good day.

Hugs,

Ammi

Ammi, I'm glad that it's nothing SERIOUSLY wrong with Caleigh...must be a load off your mind! I hope that you guys stay AWAY from the hospital for a few months!

I've been giving it thought since I got up and posted...and I'm going to stay home today. I feel icky, and I need to take something, and lay back down for a while. Just going to wait about another hour before I do so, so that I can call my friend Susan, and let her know that I'm not going, as I was going to pick her up.

I definitely agree that I share more on here with you guys than with anyone face-to-face. I think it has a lot to do with knowing that we're all here for the same purpose and that you've all had such similar experiences to mine. It's quite difficult to talk to my sister about my weight. She is also trying to lose weight, but she's only maybe 200 pounds and about 5'8" whereas I've been over 300 pounds and am only about 5'5"--quite a difference I do have a cousin who is overweight as well, and she and I have some really good discussions sometimes, but she's so far away (in CT) and very busy (a realtor), so we don't get a lot of one-on-one time. I told her about this site, and I know she signed up, but I don't think she's ever posted (maybe she's lurking, though ).

On a semi-related note, I am really glad to see people posting who I'd thought had disappeared or who sounded like they might be disappearing--the only disappearing I want to see around here is that of our fat!

Anyway...back to the topic at hand. I was SO proud of myself yesterday! Jeff came home and said that he had to go to a computer store to get something for work, and I had an absolutely insane headache (I was actualy about to fall asleep on the couch when Jeff came home), so instead of cooking the chicken I had taken out to defrost, we stopped at Burger King for dinner. I had a chicken tender kid's meal of chicken (supposed to be 4-pc tenders, but it was actually 5 smaller nuggets) and small fries and a diet coke. I came home and checked the BK website so I could account for the calories, and that meal only had about 400 calories (I used ketchup, so no high-calorie dipping sauces). Even after the unplanned trip to BK, I had less than 1100 calories total yesterday

Goooooooooooooo Mornnnnnnnnnnnnning roooom,

I see some early birds here,

I am doing well.. having some oatmeal for breakfast,, and MAN is it ever COLD this morning,, 7 degrees,, brrrrr,,,
Kayley~Hope your ickyness is not long lived... get well soon.
Ammi ~` HELLLLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOO

Take Care all..

Jill, glad that BK didn't sabotage you!!!

Thanks, Crock...you're up pretty darn early yourself!

Well, ladies, I'm going to give Susan a call, take some of my cough syrup...ugh...and head back to bed for a few hours. Hopefully I'll feel a bit better by then. Hope you all have an OP morning!

I told you guys that I went for my first mammogram last week. Well, the doctor's office called yesterday and left a message at home for me, which I got, of course, after the office closed.

I've been worried all night about what it could be. I hate when they do that and don't tell you what it is!!! My mom had a mass of tumors removed from her breast when she was younger than me so it's stressing me out quite a bit. I even ate last night to compensate.

I am going to go home after work today and record the extra calories from yesterday ~ and not let it stop me. Last night, I even stuffed half of the food I made down the garbage disposal to keep myself from eating it so I guess that's good. Unfortunately, food is what I turn to when I'm upset. (It used to be cigarettes. I gained about 75 pounds after I quit smoking nine years ago.)

I wanted so bad to go get a greasy breakfast sandwich on the way to work this morning, but instead I said a prayer and drove myself in to work, where I will have oatmeal and fruit and a big cup of coffee.

Grrrr.

Christine ~ It sounds like you are going through ****. I have so many issues with food that I know what you are saying. Sometimes I can't eat. Hang in there though. Just hang in there the best you can.

Catherine ~ I have not noticed how dependent my husband has become because it has happened over a period of 10 years, very slowly. I know I'm doing him a disservice too. Your roommate will be better off in the long run and so will my husband. Think about the amount of energy we have both put out on helping other people ~ if we could turn that energy burned into calories burned, we'd be doing pretty good!

MovingandShaking – I can certainly relate to the buying of food to suit visitors. I was SO worried when my FIL came to stay for a while with his new wife. I thought we would end up just having to eat different meals, but they were very happy to eat the healthy stuff we were having. It was such a relief and a lot easier than it could have been. They were both happy with how the healthy food made them feel too. They don’t eat too badly, but we certainly filled them with enough fruit and veg to last them a while. I’m sure your visit with your mother will be a lot better. You can swap ideas.

MsCrocket – Thank you SO much for your support. You are right. I had NO idea that exercising too much would be a problem, so at least I didn’t do something wrong on purpose. Your comments really gave me a much needed boost. You’ve also got me thinking about journaling what I do each day. I’ve kept a food journal now and then, mainly for my dietician friend to check out, but I think I should perhaps look at doing that regularly as well as recording exercise and other daily events. Thanks for the idea.
Good luck on Phase II. It sounds as though you have put a great deal of thought in what you will be doing on this phase, so I can see you having a lot of success. I look forward to reading about your progress. I am impressed with your craving for water. I have to FORCE it down daily to try to get to quota. Then I end up getting rid of it all by going to the bathroom all the time, so I’m not sure how much my body is actually retaining.

Julee – A wedding dress – how exciting!!! I am looking forward to wedding photos already! I hope we hear more about it as the date gets closer.

Brenda – How did the housework go? I am with you on the hating housework thing. I LOVE having a clean house, and always vow to keep it that way after I have gone through doing a thorough clean, but my passion soon wanes and I get back to my old ways. I could just think of a million other things I could be doing instead of housework.

Catherine – I just LOVE reading how happy you are in your new life with your new husband. You are right, with the right person, it truly doesn’t matter where you are, but it certainly helps to be in the best place possible huh? Lack of hurricanes would definitely be a bonus to me. Where we live we rarely get anything like that – sometimes just the tail end of something – touch wood.
Would you be able to put up your recipe for low fat applesauce pancakes please? They sound like something I would absolutely love and hopefully, even with my pathetic cooking skills, I could possibly make them.

Valerie – Thank you for the lovely compliment. I kinda need as many ‘boosts’ as I can get at the moment, and that was certainly one that put a smile on my face.
Your new puppy sounds absolutely adorable. I wouldn’t imagine it took him long to have you all worked out and wrapped around his little paw. He may be your excuse for not exercising at the moment, but I’m sure he’ll have you taking him for long walks in no time.
I love your message: “Focus on the goal, not the obstacles”. I’m going to print that one I think, with you as the author. I have had this obstacle of over-exercising placed in front of me and I am now obsessing about it I think. I need to follow your advice and look at the final goal, which I know I will reach. THANK YOU!!

Brenda – Good for you that you are encouraging your niece and nephew to try new foods. I’m sure that was one of my problems as a kid. We had set, very basic, fruit and veggies and I didn’t really think I LIKED anything else, so I wouldn’t try them. I have recently found a whole new world of healthy food and I am loving it! Your niece and nephew will thank you for it later, even though they may sometimes feel as though their aunt is trying to poison them.

Tasha – I had to chuckle about your ‘no spoon’ story. I’m sorry, and I know it must have been frustrating, but I just find it funny that a store would sell something that SHOULD be eaten with a spoon, without a spoon. It reminded me of the day we went to the takeaway chicken store, only to be told that they didn’t have any chickens left. I’m not sure what the options were, but we didn’t stay around to find out.
Well done on sticking with the plan. It can be hard at times, especially when something comes up that makes you want to go “what the heck”. But doesn’t it feel SO good when you overcome that and find another solution?
I hope you find some time for YOU soon, so you can rejuvenate as you fully deserve.
Oh, and I am sending positive thoughts your way that there isn’t anything wrong with your mammogram results. I HATE waiting for things like that.

Ammi – Sorry to hear that you have a cold. I hope you are back to full speed soon. It is great to hear that Daren’s thumb is getting better. Did you get to watch them lancing it? I had to hold hubby’s hand last year while they lanced an abscess. THAT wasn’t fun at all. I just kept wanting to tell them to leave him alone, as he was in enough pain as it was. I am like you – it is easier to be in pain myself than watch hubby in pain.

Christine – Thank you for your concern about the bushfire. I think they finally have it out. It was interesting trying to teach yesterday with helicopters flying over the roof, heading to the oval across the road to refuel or whatever. Kinda kept the kids off-task a little.
Thanks for the info on your feeding tube. Who would’ve believed that a stomach flu could cause this kind of thing. I am SO sorry that you have to endure everything you are going through. It is a good idea to research a few things before seeing your doc. I have heard of people coming up with new breakthroughs that their doctor hadn’t heard of and started looking into after it was mentioned to them. Good luck with that avenue of thought.
I hope you manage to keep up the calorie intake soon. I know it must be difficult for you.

2LosinIt – I agree with what someone else said about telling your friend about your fears. I’m sure she’ll understand and at least if something happens she will know to support you. I’m sure you will be fine though. I could usually get an idea of whether I could fit into something or not, just with a brief glance, so I just managed to avoid those things. I hope you can manage to have a wonderful, worry free, day!

Kayley – I hope you are feeling better soon. I enjoy reading your posts, so you can’t go getting too sick on us. I’m sure the extra sleep will do you wonders.

Jill – Sorry to hear about your headache, but WELL DONE on being able to choose a takeaway that was within your calories for the day. I wish more restaurants had nutritional information on websites. I’ve heard people on hear mention them, but I’m not sure any of ours do that over here. Maybe I just need to look harder.

Well, my day has been pretty good really. I feel much better today, so I think we may have been on the right track about what the problem was. Another day of doing nothing and I will certainly be ready to go back to work. I’ve been beating myself up a little over the over-exercising thing. I can’t believe I actually almost made myself seriously ill without realizing I was doing it. I’m glad I just got REALLY tired at work and nothing more serious happened. If it hadn’t been mostly a planning day, I dread to think what I would have been like. When I think about it, this has been coming on for a while and I should have realized that the problems I have been having weren’t ‘normal’, as I’d originally thought. For a while now, I have had trouble typing, as my fingers just wouldn’t work the way I wanted them to. I often lost my train of thought and would forget what I was saying. I just put it all down to the lack of vitamins (which I was fixing, so didn’t really make sense) or the stress of a new school year. Hopefully I will keep a closer eye on things in the future. I am planning on being very sensible with getting back into exercise this time. I am going to take some well-given advice and keep a journal of what I am doing and how I am feeling. That should help me with monitoring and hopefully will stop me from getting too carried away again.

Thank you all for listening to me as I go through this rather ‘silly’ problem. I know it is extremely minor compared to what some of you are facing, so I am thankful that you put up with me complaining.

Take care all, You truly are a wonderful group of people and I thoroughly enjoy spending time here 'with' you.

Zelma

I heard from the doctor's office. They found something in my right breast so I have to go back for another mammogram with "additional views." (I was remarking to my husband this morning that the right one is bigger than the left one. I kind of knew which one before she told me.)

Oh well. I guess I have to stay cool until my appointment on March 2. (Hard to do.)

Zelma ~ I agree with you ~ if they didn't have chicken at the chicken place, then what else is left? LOL. Please keep sending those positive thoughts my way.

Thanks all.

Hey there all

Just checking in....home sick again today. Thats 2 days now and I don't even know if I am going to be ready to go back tomorrow. Of course my doctor is gone away so I have to go to the walkin clinic tonight. I think I will just take some drugs and lay on the couch. I hate head colds.

Zed ~ glad that you r feeling better. Who would have known huh?

Tasha ~ We will cross our fingers for you. My hubby's aunt gets her results from her biopsy this week. I have them crossed for her too!!! Hopefully things will work out! Try to remain positive

Kayley~ crappy that you are sick too!!!! wanna share my kleenex box? *L*

Hi to everyone else. Must go now and refill my soup

Brenda

Christineu-wow, I hadn’t thought of going to a sewing club. I may try that. My sewing machine made the trip, but I haven’t opened the case yet. I don’t know if that is because I’m afraid to look inside, or if I just have been too busy. It is a 30 year old Bernina 807 portable, so it can be hard to find someone competent to work on it, and my old mechanic is 3500 miles away in Tampa. On the other hand, it is made like a big Swiss watch, and doesn’t have any computerization, so if the case survived in one piece, it probably is fine. I expected to be single for the rest of life. I always thought that the internet was a bizarre way to meet someone, but it has one benefit that I have always needed, even when I was skinny-I have never made a good first impression. The internet gave my husband and I the chance to get to know each other without the burden of automatic rejection. Once he fell in love with me, I could have had two heads. I have cried many tears while writing on this message board. I have had trouble eating, and almost have to force myself sometimes, but it keeps me from more trouble later, and I don’t have the health problems that you suffer with. I’ll cross my fingers for you.

2losinit-You can talk to us because you know we understand. As for the rollercoasters, I remember trying to get on a ferris wheel with a guy and having the carny tell me that we’d have to go in separate seats because of my size. At Disney, go early before there are big crowds, find a ride that you can fit on, and just ride it all day. You can also get in line where you see other large people. Regulars know which one’s they can ride. I understand that the ones that you ride suspended (I shudder even thinking about them) can accommodate larger people.

Dogpal-When I think back to where I started, I try to focus on the amazement of how far I have come rather than depression that I allowed myself to get that large. Most people who go on a diet are looking at months before being “finished.” You and I are looking at years and years. I actually looked at myself naked in front of a full length mirror this morning, and survived. I was doing a month breast exam, and had been used to doing it with the small bathroom mirror back in Florida. He doesn’t have a mirror in the bathroom (yet, I’m working hard getting this frat house into shape), but has mirrored doors on the bedroom closets. I look like a shar-pai or basset hound dog. I may always look like one, but that is better than looking like a Macy’s parade balloon.

Tasha-you are right. If I had been able to convert all the nervous energy I wasted all those years into calories burned, I’d be ready for a marathon. I am so sorry to hear about your medical situation. When I tell doctors that my mother, aunt, and both great aunts have had breast cancer, they just freak. I am lucky that they all had the late in life, slow growing, survivable kind. They were all over 70 when getting it. My mom was 80, and she is still kicking. At least you had the test. So many large women avoid the doctor until it is too late. I will be praying for you.

Zed-Applesauce can be substituted in any recipe for the oil. Just use the no sugar added applesauce in a packaged low fat cake mix or low fat pancake mix, and you’d be amazed. I put out low-cal no sugar syrup, and fat free butter, and no one noticed a difference. With my pancakes I also use a lot of cinnamon, and fresh grated nutmeg. If you’ve never had freshly grated nutmeg on top of something, wow it will bring your nose alive. I’ve also made the same thing with pumpkin instead of applesauce. Pumpkin is one of the foods that can keep your skin more elastic as you lose weight, so I try to have it once a week. Right out of the can, it has few calories; it is only when we put it in pies that it gets naughty.