Good morning, all!

Mandy - Lovely pictures. So glad you're figuring out the system that works for you. Step goals and planners for the win! Side note -- I actually went years without the return of my monthly nemesis. Back-to-back pregnancies and continuous nursing for the win! Right? And I saw the Fried Twinkies! They looked SO nasty. Even the one with the chocolate filling. I'll be interested to hear if you and/or your hubby enjoys them.

Kat - Lovely to have you posting again! The weekends can be a challenge for sure. And it's heartbreaking to get into ketosis and to lose it and have to do it over and over and over again. It sounds like you are dealing with grief, boredom, and something I think so many of us deal with -- being able to determine if you're really hungry. This thing is so not easy! I am seeing a therapist, and I occasionally come here to rant a little. Do you think that might be helpful? I know you're gonna figure this out.

Diane - Those setbacks are SO frustrating. But I love how you owned it, adjusted your ticker, and will soon get the pleasure of moving the ticker down again. That's your brilliance, I think, and what keeps you from the HUGE swings that dominate my existence. Hope the hip pain / stiffness goes away for good.

After a few days of less-than-rigorous exercise, I'm ready to get back at it again. I went to the gym on Friday to do strength-training after I missed Thursday, and ALL of the equipment I needed was being used. It was super frustrating. I should have just run, but I didn't want to. Getting ready to do a run, though, and looking forward to it. I need to get back on track with the running.

Eating was not great, but not awful either. Hosted some people, and we had Little Smokies, cheese & crackers, and popcorn as snacks. I drank two huge mugs of gingerbread herbal tea (probably 40 oz total) while everyone else enjoyed the food. Then, when I was legitimately hungry, ate some of the cheese and Little Smokies. Not the worst decisions. Weighing tomorrow. We'll see what the scale brings.

Kat - You totally Ninja'd me! So sorry about your best friend. What a painful, painful loss. Use Shark Week. Not mine originally, but I find it quite entertaining.

Annnd I'm back.

I had to replace my computer. The old one just died and all I would get when turning it on was a screen that said master hard disk error, and I couldn't even get it to boot from the recovery disks. RIP 6 year old computer. Now I have to figure out Windows 10.

Re: Frozen fried twinkies - They did not suck. They were actually pretty good, if you enjoy funnel cakes. They tasted like a fluffy cream filled funnel cake. Not a horrible calorie bomb either, 220 calories for 1, and hubby says they taste pretty close to what you'd get at the fair at a much better price.

Mandy - RIP computer that was not that old, but kind of old for technology. Glad you're back! I may just continue to believe that the Twinkies are disgusting, though. I need no new bad habits. =)

I weighed myself today. I am maintaining. Or I am failing to lose. But I will accept maintaining, though I have been working on losing, and it can be frustrating to not lose when I want to lose.

Think I might return to tracking. Oh, how I hate tracking.

And my work-outs have kind of been a sham. So, I should step those up.

Also, I need to take a deep breath and chill. Because I can't obsess about the numbers. I need to focus on good choices and celebrating the good things about eating better and exercising more.

Have I mentioned I hate the scale?

Have a great day, everyone!

Laurie - One of the best ways I have learned to cope with the scale not moving... The scale is private, the way your jeans fit is public. Don't worry about the number on the scale as long as your clothes are fitting better! Especially if your exercise is also taking more intense or longer duration to wear you out. Also, I hate tracking which is why I'm trying to do this without it. But sometimes it's a necessary evil to get back on track. Reacquainting yourself with portion sizes can be the refresher you need.

Re: new computer... Everyone was all WINDOWS 10 IS TEH DEBBIL DONT UPGRADE IT SUCKS!!1!!!1!! But now that I have it, I kinda like it and am not having much trouble with it.

I've been doing 3 miles with Leslie daily (well, nightly) for the last several days. I'm pretty happy with that, and will be upping it to 4 every now and then here soon!

Kat: I can imagine how sad that is, to lose a close friend. I'm sure it is hard. Don't apologize for sharing that here. You are more than welcome to talk to us about it!! As for your question on my plan, I just calorie count. I want to be able to eat the same meals as my family, and I want this to be long term, so trying to learn proper portions and better choices.

Mandy: Oh boy, a new computer. We had to get a new one, too... well, we're getting a used one from our computer lady. It always amazes me that technology gets so old so quick! Oh, and I love funnel cakes, so I better stay away from those Twinkies!!

Laurie: Oh, how I love Little Smokies!! Doesn't sound like you did too bad! I'm also trying to get back to full force on the workouts. I took off for about 4 days, so easing back into the running. I went running last night and only did about half of what I usually do. I just didn't want to push.

I did see a good loss this morning. I must have had something over the weekend that caused water retention, because I went back down about 3 pounds. I'm still higher than I want to be, but at least it isn't quite as bad as I thought. I'm not changing my ticker though.

Diane - So glad to hear your "gain" was mostly water weight, and you have shed it again. I haven't mentioned it lately, but I kind of hate the scale. =) Yay for getting back into the routine! It will be so satisfying to change your ticker on your "official" weigh-in day.

Mandy - Yay for being Leslie's walking companion! And thank you for the reminder about the scale. My son came to visit yesterday, and said I had lost "a ton of weight." Then, he told me he was going to do me a "favor" by "cracking my back," and picked me up in the process. You are right - those things are super encouraging.

I am meeting my husband for lunch at a Chinese buffet. Not even going to pretend I can handle it. I will eat my packed lunch after I return and just enjoy his company. I so want to be "normal," and not eating lunch makes me feel abnormal. But I felt so awful yesterday after eating a bag of chips and half a donut that I am accepting that I am not "normal." When I eat well for a long period of time and then choose to eat badly, it makes me physically ill. When I make choices that cause me to gain weight and I can't cross my legs or fit into restaurant booths, I do not feel "normal" then either.

I also felt really weak at the gym last night. I decided to take it easy since I wasn't feeling well, and began with riding the stationary bike. I almost always kick it up to 15 or more resistance immediately because 1 feels like doing nothing. Except I struggled with it on 1. To the point that the machine thought I wasn't riding it when I was. I made an appointment with my doctor for Friday for this and a few other things I need to address. Hopefully, my bout with feeling poorly yesterday was just related to bad food choices. Today, I feel fine. But I need to hydrate consistently and make good food choices today. I am going to try to run this afternoon as well.

Good morning! Just a quick check-in.

Feeling pretty good today. Have a food plan in place for the day. Headed to the gym tonight. Hopefully, I will dominate at the gym. Or at least show consistent gains in strength and endurance.

Super busy day at work, but committed to getting my short walks in today. Have not done so for the last few days, but determined to do it today.

Have a great day, everyone!

Hey all!

I have a little known item on my bucket list of having a photo I've taken hanging in a public place. So, I take a LOT of pictures... I got this one yesterday, and it makes me happy.



Humming bird vs praying mantis on my front porch! Good times.

Anyway. I did 4 miles with Leslie last night. All in one go. I did cardio for a full hour! So proud of myself. Then I took a shower, let my hair dry, and then slept like a rock until the kid woke up this morning. Hoping for a weight drop on Monday's weigh in with the additional exercise, and the forcing myself to not eat after baby bed time. It's tough though. It's the handful of minutes I get to myself in a day and I'd like to relax with a drink or a yummy treat and a book, and just enjoy a few minutes of peace and quiet. However, it's getting to be hot beverage season, so I may just have myself a hot cup of tea in that time period.

And even if my weight doesn't drop yet, well, that's okay too... because doing 45-60 minutes of cardio 5 or 6 days a week is doing really good things for the rest of my system and will help me take it off later.

Have a great day!

Mandy: Nice picture! And, way to go on the walking for an hour. That's great! I'm sure that feels really good to have that accomplishment.

Laurie: I agree. Nothing can be normal again, in my opinion. I think for me, I'll always have to be diligent. Not that I will be trying to lose weight for the rest of my life (at least I hope not!), but I won't be able to just eat whatever. I think I'll have to keep an eye on the scale always, just to make sure that things don't get too far out of hand, even if I get to maintenance. Oh well! It would be nice to be free of it all, but I don't think it was meant to be for me.

I went running last night. It went pretty well. I stopped a little early because I wanted to try the stairmaster. That was interesting. I think it is a pretty tough workout. I've been trying to think of something that could replicate hiking since I won't be able to do that forever. Went to Body Pump this morning, so that's done.

Morning all,

Hope everyone is having a great week. Mandy, love the photo! It's so hard to capture hummingbirds, let alone one "in battle" You are all so right in that we do have to be constantly diligent - it is just much too easy to slip back into old habits without realizing it.

Need some help here. Since January I had been doing Atkins and lost 50 pounds. I got off track in July - was eating whatever I wanted, which apparently wasn’t all that bad as I still lost 1 pound for the month.

At the start of August I decided I needed to get back on track. I tried for 3 weeks, but couldn’t get back into Atkins. So I decided to go back to IP (which I had done before) as I know it works and works well and for me the weighing in to someone every week helps as well as in my head I know I am spending that much money I am not going to just toss it down the drain. I was planning on using it to lose 40 pounds of the remaining 90, and the reevaluating at that time.

My first day back on program was Aug. 22nd. Weighed in that Saturday (8/27) and lost 5 pounds (which was the weight I put on the first 3 weeks of August). In the 3 weigh ins since I have only lost another 1.6 pounds. Now, being honest, 2 of those weeks, the day I weighed in, I over indulged greatly and ate all my restricted in one day. My fault – I get it. I couldn’t keep the carb cravings under control. I decided that I will give IP another 3 – 4 weeks of staying on 100% percent and then make a decision.

So I weighed in this past Saturday and have been on 100% OP down to every detail. I’ve stayed off the scale all week as well. Official weigh in is tomorrow. This morning I wanted to get a sneak preview – thinking I will see at least a pound loss – maybe more. I weigh exactly the same as last Saturday. Exactly the same. So why am I spending $90 a week on food when I am not even losing weight?

If this was your experience what would you do? Would you go back to Atkins, knowing you had success with it, never felt hungry and didn’t have any cravings; or stay on IP where you have to not get any restricted items (as I can’t stay away from them) and am always a little hungry and am struggling to lose weight.

For me exercise is very limited due to RA and Fibromyalgia, but I do a lot of stretching and am trying to increase daily steps.

Mandy - That picture is AWESOME! I have no talent as an artist, but I have to admit that I didn't notice the preying mantis at all until you pointed it out. I wonder what it would look like cropped? Of course, I think the light behind the feeder is gorgeous, too. What do I know? I also totally empathize with your desire for some quiet time, and I love, love, love to read a book while enjoying a treat. But I also love to read a book while enjoying herbal tea, so I think your tea option is fantastic. Great work on the hour of cardio! You're right -- the fitness is its own reward, and will do great things for your body. I love it when people are fit not being thin. It defies really stupid stereotypes.

Diane - Woot for a good run followed by some brutal time on the stairmaster. I rarely have done the stairmaster cuz it bugs my knee, but I totally respect those who do. I wish neither of us had to live outside of "normal," but I suppose there is some comfort in knowing that I am not the only one who struggles in this way.

I went to the gym last night. I am still a lot weaker than I used to be, but I had a decent work-out. I was able to push myself. I plan on going running today and seeing if I can do better at that. I may reverse a week on the C25K, but I feel like it's important that I complete a full run.

Ironically, I found yesterday to be pretty easy in terms of eating well and exercising. I got my full 10K steps in as well as my lifting session. Could it be that I am finding my way back on track? I am also seeing the doctor today, so I will be weighed. As much as I hate to admit it, given that I know the doctor's scale is not my scale and that I am weighing late morning instead of early morning as typical so the information won't be particularly useful, I am interested to see the number.

Hope today is a great day for everyone! And that we all rock the weekend. Have a great time or relax or do a weekend warrior thing or get projects done or whatever. And that we all stay on our chosen path.

Kat - You Ninja'd me! And with an interesting question too.

It is so hard to make these decisions! And the scale can be such an inaccurate measure of the progress we are making. I know you know this, but as a reminder -- you are subject to scale variations if you weighed on your scale versus whoever weighs you for IP. Time of day matters. Bowel status matters. Water weight matters. Hormone variations impact water weight, which matter. So you may be making progress.

I'd be more concerned about your inclination to follow the plan. The reason why we all have different plans is that we are different. Our bodies react differently to different plans, and perhaps more importantly, my lifestyle and mental state make me more inclined to follow certain types of plans than others.

So, here's my advice. Please take it only as the underinformed suggestion that it is, and use it for however much or little it's worth in forming your final decision. Give IP another week with superhuman effort to achieve full compliance. Take the time to look at and consider other plans. IP transitioning to Atkins may be perfect for you. Maybe a more forgiving program, such as Weight Watchers, might be a good fit. IDK. But I would suggest that you don't make a rash decision based on a single, likely inaccurate, weigh-in. I think the bigger concern is your lack of adherence to the protocol. We all have to find something that we can stick to and get results from. This may be it for you, despite your setbacks in previous weeks. But it might not.

Good luck with your decision!

Kat: First of all, I'm sorry you are going through this. Never a good time, and it is so frustrating. I do think that Laurie had good suggestions on maybe sticking with it another week. I would just see where you are with the official weigh in. But, if you truly haven't lost anything, I think that personally, I would be inclined to change course. Now, I am a firm believer in tailoring my plan to fit as a lifestyle, so I don't go with a specified "plan" for food, I just count calories. And, there are the times when I'm not seeing results as I would like. So, for me, I just try to be patient during those times and keep working the plan, knowing that it might be more of a problem with how my body is reacting at that moment. Typically, I can get my weight to start going down, given enough time. So, to me, I think that going to Atkins would be a good choice. It sounds like it is something you are comfortable doing, and fits for you. And I also think that your weight still might not drop like you want, but you'll need to just stick to it and keep on track. It will happen, just probably not to our expectations! Hopefully that makes sense. (It made sense in my head, but ...)

Laurie: You're so smart! Love reading your replies today! I hope you have a great run. I had planned to go hiking last night, but then my son couldn't go and it was windy. So, didn't go. I think we're going to try for a longer hike this weekend, maybe 5 miles. Should be interesting. To me, at least the workouts, running, and hiking are going well. Food... always a challenge, but staying fit makes me happy, so I like to do it.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Hey all!

Skipped exercise yesterday because I was feeling a bit sore from the night before. I woke up this morning feeling great, so I guess I needed it!

I'm still fighting with the scale being stubborn bouncing around in the same pound, so I flipped it the bird this morning and promised myself I'd do 4 miles again tonight.

Laurie - That photo is scaled down, the original is actually much bigger, so I could probably crop it closer to the bird feeder. It's one of several I took, that caught the humming bird and the mantis fighting, that's just the one where they were the closest together.

This is another one I got that makes me happy.



I hope you all have a lovely weekend!