hysteria We are all here so go ahead and vent, girl! Your job sounds stressful!

kdrama Hope u have a good weigh in this week. On my weigh in days I don't eat anything before either... I even take my jewelry off! Not taking any chances with that scale.

How often do everyone's coaches measure you? I never get measured unless I ask (which I never seem to remember).

Hysteria that is something to celebrate! Good job!! Time for some retail therapy

You vent all you want.... that's what we're here for Venting helps me avoid eating my feelings! lol

Great Dane: me too! I even got into one of my old bras with the smaller band Though the cups are still a little 'full' lol!

KDL: me too, but it is easy for me because I just WI in my bathroom. When I was seeing a coach I had afternoon appointments, so I'd usually fast for 4 hours to try and clear my systems a little bit...

Another great WI today, and I ran some numbers from my logs last year and, to my surprise, I'm actually losing at a slightly faster rate than I did last year on true IP. Last year was an average of 1.3 lbs per week, and this year so far is 1.5, and that's including my preggo-gain week.

It could be because I'm at a bit higher starting weight (+10 lbs from last year's), but I'll take it as affirmation that I'm doing alternatives right!!

OTOH for the last few days I've been feeling kinda blah about my losses (silly I know), it just seems so small for all the work I've been doing. Although logically 12 lbs in 8 weeks is very good by any dieting standards including my own as I have historically been a slow loser. I think it's just my desire for instant gratification - I feel so great on the inside, why does my outside still look lumpy?! lol

No worries though - I know that those 1.5's add up over time and this time I've set a slightly different goal - and that is to keep eating IP style for 6 months, and then another 6 months, and let the losses be what they may. It's helping me stay focused for sure.

Have a great Wednesday everyone!

I can completely relate to the suck days at work and the need to vent. I had a terrible day just about 2weeks ago. My boss decided it was ok to unload on me at the top of his lungs. I took complete responsibility for a mistake that I made, which didn't appease him, and he continued on about many other thngs that I have no control, responsibility or even input on. Afterwards, all I could think of was food and if there had been any crapfood in my office at all, I would have eaten every last crumb. .... Food addict, likely....but I made it through, sometimes, it's a minute at a time....

Also, I too have those feelings of blah over a pound....and have to be reminded that I am doing better in this program than I ever could on my own.

For me this forum comes back to the support and the comfort in knowing that I am not the only one going through the thoughts and feelings that I have. It makes SUCH a huge difference for me. So, again, I thank each and every one of you!!!!

Destony - that was really crappy of your boss
Thanks 3dogs...yes, the last 12 months have been
Thanks Lucky! - I need to dig into the "I am holding onto these smaller sized clothes, just in case" storage bins I have in the closet to see what treats might be lurking in there I am so not the clothes shopper (that's my hubby!)...I still wear a Northern Reflections sweater that is almost 20 years old
I am also thankful to work for / with a pretty d@mn good team of people - we don't party much & tend to be very professional...not much 'hair-letting-down, which we could us more of every so often as stressful as things get, but we have each others backs. It also means there is very few extra nibbles around - no one keeps candy anymore, we don't celebrate birthdays, and group luncheons are every 18 - 24 months.

Much better head-space today!

Happy IRS takes-your-money-day!!!!

Got my taxes done last night (at 12:30am) and while sad, my dad (who passed 5/7/14) left one other unexpected surprise - a loss on the FMV of his house that we sold last July & we get to take the capitol gains loss! Kept me from having to pay taxes this year!!! Yay

& no official celebration...yet My scale ticked up a couple ounces this morning (was expecting it after eating my super-flavorful, but super-salty rutabaga fries), so I am going to wait a few more days to change any stats, but will say I saw a "1" in the hundreds place yesterday for the first time in 18+ months

hysteriait made me so happy to see your entry today... In the 1s! Congrats! Every time I go to a different set of digits it reinforces that I really can keep doing this. I don't have the stresses that a lot of you have, I'm impressed that destony could put up with that boss! You all seem amazing to me, having so much to do and doing this too...

hysteriathats great news!!! Seeing the 1s must have made you feel like a million bucks!! Congrats !!!!

Thanks Destony & 3dogs - it did feel pretty good, but tonight I'm feeling like a balloon - bloated for some reason Ugh

Think I may need to be careful about the Quest bars - watching that pretty carefully right now. I worked unexpectedly until 7, needed a snack and all I had was a bar. My gross carbs have been over 60 the last 3 days (net between 30 - 40) - but I think I "run" better on 20 - 30 net.

Woot Woot - "She's a hundred girl".

Hang in there and drink that water - I also suffer badly from sodium bloat (which is my numbers bounce all over the place during the week and I have to be good on Sunday/Monday before a Tues WI).

Hysteria- 1 is always better than 2 when it comes to one's weight!! Congratulations, I look forward to seeing your stats. I understand about your job stress. I also work a very stressful job and some days I want to punch people!!

Lucky- 1.5 is awesome!! 2 weeks it's 3 pounds so on and so one. You got this!!

Hey 3bigdogs!!

I had a great week. I'm down 4 pounds this week. So I know it sounds crazy but I have bigger losses when my caloric intake is more. I eat 8 ounce of lean protein every night. When I was eating 6oz my weight stalled. I don't know maybe it's just a coincidence.

I have a question? Anyone else having a problem with dry skin? Seriously my hands are so dry regardless of how much moisturizer I use. My lips so dry they hurt.

Good Morning All of my friends!!!! I wish you all an amazing day!!
kdlI'm not having a dry skin problem diet related, but this winter has been brutal here on Cape Cod- I put a coating of good old fashioned vaseline on my lips in the morning after my shower, and at night before I go to bed- it helped a lot this year- the corners of my mouth were cracking, it was weird- not like anything I experienced before- (I attribute everything now to being 50-lol) and for the skin, we discovered this awesome product called Savlon. We have to order it through Amazon, but it works wonders. my boyfriend who is a welder, he uses it every day and his hands have been better in the past year than they have every been.Hope this helps!!
4 pounds!!!! You go!! That's great!!!!

AWESOME KDL!!!! & thanks

I agree with you about eating - Amanda & others post great scientific reasoning behind why we need every calorie, every ounce of protein, etc on IP. I wasn't purposefully trying to 'game' anything, but a few weeks ago, posted about not always being hungry & not eating whatever my equivalent of a 3rd daily packet would be - but since being more aware and eating all my allotted food, am seeing larger losses - including during TOM!

Dry skin - for me, that comes with the hypothyroid...like Destony, I generally use pure Vaseline for my lips and hands but am so bad about being consistent. I also began using Jojoba oil (available at GNC) - it had helped my hair a lot! When I do my hands now, I mix a couple drops of the oil in with the Vaseline. No miracles, but again, I am horrible at consistency lol

Nothing official again today - actually ticked up 2 more pounds & I was bloated as heck this morning (my rings wouldn't budge) & knew I shouldn't have weighed, but did...and I am being rational as I drank a *bathtub* of water last night lol I also upped the amount of Natural Calm from 1/8t to 1/4t last night...got the train moving so expecting better things tomorrow!

Also, got my Nashua shipment last night so I am bringing some packets to work to have lower carb options if I get stuck like I did yesterday.

Just noting...really thinking Quest bars may need to be a semi-super restricted item in my diet - ie, 2/3 times per week...will continue to monitor. Also need to be much more cognizant of drinking my water during the day.

Morning all!

It sounds like you're getting things figured out Hysteria (with quest bars, etc). Hopefully you'll see the 1 again soon!!

I'm doing good today. I think I may have finally gotten through the mental block I've been having lately. No cheating (at all) the last couple of days, and I'm feeling better and already seeing bigger losses on the scale. That's definitely a motivator. That and I am down to about one pair of work pants that I can actually wear to work without them falling off! I think it's about time to go shopping!

Hey Legal! Good to see you. Glad to hear the nibbles are under control. I always worry about that being my undoing...I am an 'all or nothing' kind of person, so huge KUDOS to you for reigning it in and getting back into a good head-space.

Yes - retail-therapy sounds like just the thing I found a smaller pair of black slacks that will work for right now but may hit the thrift store soon

You know what's odd? I'm down 30 pounds but when I look in the mirror I still see the same me. I mean 30 pounds is a lot but I feel strangely fatter than ever. I was considering stopping end of this month but know I don't think that's going to be enough. I was originally aiming for a certain pant size and I'm there now. I'm still not happy. I never thought myself to lack confidence but I was wrong. I don't know what i look like anymore.

I had the same issue until my husband pulled me aside one day when I was complaining.

He picked up the tape measure and put it around my widest part (hips). Jotted down the measurement. Then he asked me what my starting measurement was and let the tape measure out to that point. I was absolutely flabbergasted to see how much size I had lost.

To really top it off, he stood close in behind me and wrapped the measure around both of us. We were just 2 inches more on the hip than my own former hip measurement.

This is the thing about diets. When we lose we do not change our basic shape. The body has a unique pattern of where it will store fat for every one of us. So, you will not develop a supermodel's dimensions, you will be a smaller version of the shape that you started with. Yes, over time and with exercise you can make adjustments by toning up the underlying muscle but the eyes tend to perceive no change because the shape hasn't altered either.

Be patient with your mind, because it is a lot of change for it to get used to. Focus on measurements and body fat percentage rather than the scale number, because that is a real measure of how much your body is changing - almost invisibly.