Fera: Well, if it helps, you and I had the same weight loss, the big .2 pounds. Mine is for a whole week. So, now I have to remember all of what I have said to everyone else about being patient and not letting it get you down. And, actually, I'm not really down about it. I just have decided to let the challenges go by the way side. I am sure that they are helpful in a way, with building muscle, but I'm not enjoying it at all. I can't do them in the morning, so there I am after work trying to get it all in. Well, it is using up too much time, I've been too sore, and I am not losing weight. What's the point? For now, I really want to get pounds off. Muscle building/refinement can happen later. I want to get stronger, but I was doing that already with my workouts. So, I'm going back to what was working before for now. There may be no correlation with the challenges and my lack of weight loss, but I don't want to keep going this way.

Uber: I hear you! That's the thing that is hard to keep in mind, but looking toward the future just makes me want to get healthier now. We just have to realize that time is going to pass, no matter what. Let's take this time to keep at it and TRY to stay patient!

SunnyMac: Good NSV! I am glad you had a good vacation and were able to enjoy your time! It's so important!

So, off to another week. Let's keep going!!!!!

Hi Sunny: welcome back! Glad that you had a nice relaxing vacation. Sounds like heaven! It is hard to stay on plan while eating out all the time, but I also think that no plan will work if we don't relax enough to enjoy our vacations. Bit win on the bathing suit! I love swimming!

Diane: If you are really not enjoying all the exercise, you should give it a break for a while. I know that when I exercise a lot I can see the difference in how I look but I don't see it on the scale, and sometimes we just need that scale to move!

As for me, yesterday was a good day! Since I went out to lunch, I ate more calories than normal for lunch, and I had to compensate by eating less for dinner-- which I normally hate, but it was fine.

Tomorrow is "official" weigh in but scale dropped a pound this am-- phew. I'm excited that today is day 21. My first mini-goal is to stick with this for 1 month, so I'm getting there. Since my big regain in early 2012, I've managed to lose 12 or 13 lbs on more than one occasion, but I've never gotten past that hump. Trying to take it one day at a time!

Good afternoon, ladies!

Welcome back Sunny! Glad you had a good vacation and kudos on the NSV! If the scale says you maintained, then you probably dropped a little, since I bet you're retaining some water from all the dinners out.

Diane - Isn't that stupid .2 frustrating? UGH. So ready to see an actual drop! I remember from last time that right around TOM my body just seems to hold on to everything for a week, and then I get some serious drops a few days in a row. The week before, maybe .2 loss, and then the week after, like 5 pounds POOF. So I guess it all evens out, it's just frustrating. And that's why I try not to weigh every day.

Uber - YAY for seeing the scale move! And you will make it to a month, or I will drag you kicking and screaming across the goal line. :P

My husband (who doesn't even like soccer, btw) will be wandering off to watch the World Cup (US vs Ghana) tonight, so the cats and I will be having a girls night. Exciting stuff.

We're also waiting for the phone to ring to schedule that interview with the church council because we really want this thing to happen. The good news is, he's gotten past the toughest part, and the rest should be fairly easy. I've got my fingers crossed and prayers going up, like, every 5 minutes that this is where we should be and things go smoothly. I fell in love with that house as soon as we walked in the front door. I've already got plans for decor, and plans for a garden, and plans to turn the basement into a home gym. :P

Speaking of gym: I've been pretty good about going and getting at least a 2 mile walk in on the treadmill the last few days, even though I've had to climb through some fog to get into the exercise state of mind. It's entirely too hot to walk outside right now. And I've been feeling incredibly lazy. I just want to laze about and read or sleep or play games on the computer. It's starting to come back though, so hopefully soon I'll be back to normal.

Here's hoping for a good weigh in tomorrow!

Hi Fera, wow. I just realized that you live in Columbia, South Carolina. I just "spent the morning" there. (I'm a writer, and I'm working on a chapter set at Fort Jackson during WWII)

So.... let me ask you a question... since I've never been to South Carolina, what does it smell like? Are there any particular scents that you associate particularly with your hometown? Any flowers that are scented and especially prevalent?

Thanks much! Research!

I saw this tread & it is sooo me.
I DO NOT know what is wrong with me. I was in a job I HATED! I wanted to find something better, but in this economy...yeah, right! My boss was a total moron, without a clue as to how to manage people or a store. That led to a lot of frustration.
I however was "let go" at Christmas...I think is was in retaliation to me filing a sexual harassment charges against his GF who worked at the store, too. I tried to fight it, to no avail. So there's that stress of no job & having to look for work for the last 6 months.
H(ubby) had a stroke in late Feb. So me being unemployed was actually kind of a blessing, it allowed me to care for him. Take him to appointments & do physical therapy with him.
I crawled back on the horse on May 11th, Mother's Day, after spending the afternoon with Mom. She had this really concerned look on her face. I KNEW it was about me, even though she didn't say anything. I'm sure she's worried that I, too, will have a stroke or worse. And I KNOW that I'm playing unhealthy games with my health. To see it trough Mom's eyes was just too rough to take.
I'm walking nearly every day (4-6x/week) for 30-45 mins. Some times I do this twice a day if it's not too hot out. I've tried to revamp my eating to something more healthy. I've for the most part cut out all sodas..drinking more H2O, unsweetened iced tea.
Menopause also struck me in March. I really, really wish hot flashes (POWER SURGES) burned as many calories as it feels like they do! So my body is doing weird things & not dropping weight like it did 2x before. But I AM NOT GVING UP!!! Black Cohish, cool showers & cool bandanas have been a big help.
Well, I better see about getting something done. H has had an appointment today (physical therapy) & we have to go have blood taken again (anticoagulant level check) & then go pick up some meds. Love busy days.....NOT!!!

BE HEALTHY! TAKE CARE OF YOU! YOU CAN DO THIS!!!

Uber - lots of southern magnolia trees, at least around the campus here. And in Columbia, lots AND LOTS of old churches... many of them rebuilt after being burned down during the Civil war.

The folks here that are doing their religious training so they can do military chaplaincy do a lot of their work over at Ft Jackson. I think that's where they do a majority of the chaplain training.

Hello MrsTryingAgain! I, too, started over again on Mother's Day! Not for the same reason... I realized if I'm ever going to celebrate mother's day as a mother, I'd need to get some of this weight off my bones. My regain was also due to lots of stress including my husband's medical issues (he's got Crohn's and had a pretty bad flare up about a year ago). Welcome to this little corner of the internet, and make yourself at home.

SO, here's a weird NSV for you guys...

I just realized that I can take my rings off without struggling too much with it. When I was at my lowest of 247(ish) they were almost falling off and I could wear them on my middle finger instead of my ring finger. At my highest (330) I couldn't get them off, they'd barely spin. So I must have lost like a thin layer of fat from all over or something. We'll see what the weigh in says tomorrow. I'm less than 4 pounds away from a new book.

Fera: That is a great NSV! You are doing so well!!!!! I've noticed that with my ring, too. I had to get it enlarged a few years ago, but it was pretty snug at 294. Now it is easy to get off and on. I also took a link out of my watch because it was spinning all the time.

MrsTryingAgain: Welcome!! You are close to my age, I think. I turned 50 at my last birthday. To me it makes such a difference to look at it from a health point of view, rather than just wanting to look better. I hate that it is so cliché, but 50 makes you realize that you are so far past 30's and out of your 40's, that there isn't as much time to get it all together anymore. I do not want to be old and fat to the point where I lose all my ability to do things. It just doesn't have to be like that! So, glad you are joining us! We'll support you! BTW, love your avatar!

Uber: So cool that you write! Also glad you saw a loss! Always a good thing.

Not much new here. Went to Body Pump this morning. It was a new workout, so it was challenging. That's always good!

Fera: That is awesome about your ring! Isn't it bizarre that ev
en stuff like jewelry can get too small. I have this really pretty gold medallion that I wore all the time and when I had my big ole regain, I had to stop wearing it because my neck got too fat! Now, if that isn't depressing, I don't know what is...

Diane: Also awesome for you that you had to take a link out of your watch! I have a gold bangle that I can't get on and off right now. Fat wrists are really a bummer! And yep, I'm a writer, but I keep my ubergirl persona and my author name completely separated-- no need for everyone to know exactly how much I eat and what I weigh, LOL.

Mrs. Trying Again: Welcome! It must be very scary to have your husband have a stroke! And starting on Mother's Day really shows how deep your motivation is. Another member of the 50s club here-- I'm 52.

So, official weigh in today and down one pound for the week. So idiotic to be disappointed, as I'm down a total of 11 since I started and I know that's kick butt. I feel like getting the first 20 off is really going to be big for me. I've managed to lose this much on 3 or 4 occasions since my big regain in 2012, but i've never powered past that point.

Last time, I remember that once I started dropping clothing sizes it all got so fun-- I started shopping and experimenting with new looks, and best of all-- people started noticing. After that, it got much easier. So for me the trick will be to hold on until then.

Magnolia trees, huh? Thanks! That's perfect. Thanks, Fera!

Uber - Not just magnolia, southern magnolia. There's a more specific name for them, but basically they thrive in the hot and humid weather. The blooms are bright white and bigger than regular magnolia (which I think have a yellow tint to them). Here are a couple pictures I took (one at the zoo, one off my back porch)



So... Mid week weigh in. I was gonna cry if I saw 313.6 again. Shocker, I saw 311.8! So, the scale is actually moving again... and I'm 2 pounds away from getting a new book. Guess I should do some research about which book I want that to be, eh? Oh decisions... If all goes well, I should have it next week.

WOOHOO!!!

Also, apparently I can now add links, and pictures and have a sig.

Postwhoring in celebration.

Fera-- Woohoo to the two pounds, and the siggy! And to book shopping!

I know this might sound crazy, but I often take a shower before lunch and I've noticed that I actually usually weigh in a bit lower at that time than at my morning weigh-in. So I stepped on the scale again before hopping in the shower and in fact I was a pound lighter. I decided that since today is weigh-in day, I'm going to take the lower weight as my "official" weight, so that means I'm actually down 2 lbs for the week and 12 overall!! Hooray!

YAY! I don't eat until past noon most days... So I weigh in right before my first meal... Which is usually a small lunch. I don't get really hungry until dinner time.

Tonight? RAVENOUS. I made spinach pinwheels, which are absolutely delicious, and 73 calories each. I've already had 4 of them. I"ll probably have 3 more before dinner is done. I am glad I've got plans for the gym tonight because I doubt there will be leftovers.

To make, if anyone is interested:

1 tube crescent roll sheet (or just the regular roll, with the seams pinched together)
1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed, and drained/squeezed dry
1 8oz block greek yogurt cream cheese
garlic powder

mix up the cream cheese, spinach and garlic, then spread on the rectangle of the crescent rolls. Roll up from the long side, and cut into ~18 pieces. Bake at 375 for 17-20 minutes until golden. And then try not to eat them all.

Afternoon all!
I'm pretty psyched for all if you! It sounds like everyone is having a good week so far!

FERA-awesome 2lbs! Congrats! I have a magnolia in my yard... It blooms white but is no where as georgeous as this so it must just be a plain old norther magnolia

Uber-11 is awesome! Keep it up and that first 20 will be gone before you know it!

Slash ( Diane?) awesome going to body pump and trying a new workout!

Misstryagain -welcome!!!!

I've had an... Interesting start to the week. Yesterday was perfect...today I'm struggling a bit... Mainly because a dumb woman and a questionably existing x boyfriend who supposedly ran away from the scene decided to crash their car along our property last night. No major damage thankfully... The mailbox didn't make it and she was going fast enough to relocate a 5000 lb slab Of granite slab from our wall 10 feet into my garden so needless to say it was loud enough to wake me up at midnight and dragged on with the authorities until after 3am... And I get up at 430 am on Tuesdays to meet my trainer. Needless to say I'm exhausted a from an hour of sleep, zombied out from an extra long hectic stay late day at work and stiff from an intense weight training workout.

I'm mostly on track for the day but I ate a bit extra. In come the trigger... No sleep = wanting more eats! I'm powering through the best I can. I should be home from work by 830 and think it's straight for bed.cant eat if I'm asleep and man I need to sleep! I'm also on the verge of TOM to add insult to injury. Anyway I'm gonna wait to weigh until Monday after a rest day from training and TOM being gone... That is always my best number day.

Ugh ok train coming to an end and time for the driving portion of my heinous commute. Wish me luck! More tomorrow hopefully without sleep depravation!

Me and my hubby at his graduation. It's part "aww" and part "ugh"

I love this man to pieces. But seeing this pic was one of the big pushes to get me to seriously commit to this after the first couple of weeks and the 'newness' wore off.