Hi everybody.... catch up time.... sorry I've been so busy with housework and homework... but here goes

Calories for Friday were 2582 --- no encores for me... I did exercise for 60 minutes (hilly doggy walk) and water was okay at about 60 oz.

Saturday's eating was better - 1762 calories, but no water to speak of (lots of ) and no exercise... unless you count cleaning and doing laundry.

Jenn... nice to meet you... tell us a little about yourself.

So on the exercise front.... this is my synopsis PLEASE correct me if I'm wrong... I may have missed something somewhere. Just a "wee" reminder that we only have today, tomorrow and the next day to rack up those totals.

Joy 160/210
Elisha 30/120 ??
MsRd 90/180 ??
Julie 60/XXX ???

#2. Reason for wanting to loose weight okay I'm a few days behind... .but here's another one I want to be able breath while I tie my shoes

My biggest vice I'm sure you all KNOW this ... but I can't stop eating in the evening .... I am trying to at least make some healthy choices.... but the 2 bit brownies were too tempting last night. Good thing the rest of the day was okay because I ate eight of them. So if I can't beat it... I'm going to try to manage it.... and go back to planning to have the no-fat pudding and light popcorn as allowable snacks. AND get to bed earlier so the "tired bug" doesn't doesn't have a change to get the binges going.

Well I better get back to my project. Keep up the good work everyone!

Hugs everyone
Joy

Oh, I just about forgot..... try to remember International Womens' Day - March 8th.

Do I have to go back to work tomorrow? These weekends at the new house are just too short! But I did bring more stuff up, including toiletries, so now we can actually clean up and go somewhere! This weekend included trips to several furniture stores to check out family room ideas. Nothing really screamed "buy me!" so we'll continue to look.

Comments first, before I have to rush off & do laundry so I'll have work clothes for the week...

Joy & Julie- love your little symbols there- the tape over the mouth is too cute!

Julie- sorry to hear about your sister- I will be keeping her in my thoughts, as well as you, since I know you'll try to take on all her stress! ((( Julie )))

Elisha- looks like things are coming together at the house. What kind of dog?

MsRD- aches & pains gone in 30 minutes? That just might make me pop in the WATP tape in the morning! I've been sore, and now today, after lifting a lot of boxes, I have a mystery pain that could be a pulled muscle, or any other number of things. I know the movement and using these muscles more will feel better- thank you for the reminder- I know I need that wake up call, for sure. And great results with your bloodwork!

Jenn- welcome! Glad to have you with us! You picked a great group- these ladies are all wonderful, and such amazing support!

Ok, I have to answer the 2 QOTD that I missed.

QOTD #2
How do you think losing weight will improve your life?

So many ways. More energy. Less pressure on the joints. No more aches and pains. Less self-consciousness. More freedom to do the things I want to do. Better health. Hopefully lessen my chances of getting diabeties, and other diseases that our family has shows to be prone to. A longer life. More time to spend with family and friends, and appreciate all of the gifts that I do have, and the wonderful people in my life. Being able to keep up with hubby, and my 1 year old nephew, and 2nd one on the way.

QOTD #3: What’s your biggest dieting vice? Is there something you can’t get away from? What’s your strategy for dealing with this vice?

Mindless eating and boredom. If I am left to my own devices, I will constantly peek into the fridge. If I am watching TV, I'll mindlessly eat something. On the computer? Looking for something to snack on while I play a game, or check email. Bored? Checking the fridge, to see if anything looks appealing. I need to make sure that I don't leave myself open to boredom grazing, and eating for the sake of eating. When I plan my meals out & pack them to take to work, the weekdays go smoothly. Weekends were always hard to begin with, but with the transition between 2 houses, and still being in a position in the old house where there's only a small camping fridge, pre-packaged, junk foods are convenient, and available, and planning & preparing in advance has been a challenge. My strategy: Plan the weeks, and use the weekends to prepare for the upcoming week. Keep my hands busy. Exercise more. Keep water, and crystal light, and Kool Aid with Splenda available at all times, and reach for a drink before looking for munchies. Go outside, and get away from the kitchen, and the siren song of the munchies. And most of all, don't keep things in the house that will make me keep wanting more, like Milano cookies, or potato chips, or jelly beans.

Well, tomorrow starts week 2 of the month, and I'm ready. We'll actually be going back up to the house tomorrow night, if the breakfast nook/dining set actually gets delivered as planned tomorrow. That'll also bring us one step closer to being there full time, and at least being able to sit somewhere other than the plastic patio furniture outside, or on the bed. The first rule we made in the house was no food of any kind in the carpeted areas, so we can only have water, or clear beverages in the bedroom- that should keep me from mindless munching at night, too. Once in the bedroom, water only.

I'll take pics of the set to share. Time to deal with the laundry, and then prepare for the day. Have a great night, ladies!

Just a quick check in before I get ready for my day.

Yesterday was busy so I didn't have time to post. We went to church in the morning and then headed about 2 hours east for Lion King Broadway production! It was awesome but we didn't get home until 11:30 last night. My day was good...I resisted sugar about a gazillion times but caved in on the ride home and had a couple of spoonfuls of DD's frosty! Ahhhh! This is so much harder than it seems! I feel like I'm losing weight, though...that may sound wierd, but my clothes seem to be fitting "not as tight"! I'll know on Thursday when I weigh in.

I worked out on Saturday as discussed on my last post! That felt good. I did some Tai Chi yesterday morning for a warm up. I may have time to something today, but we shall see. My plan to start my 1/2 days at work on Mondays today has been foiled because my assistant at work has to work in another department! We'll see how the day pans out...

Water wasn't as good yesterday being on the road and 10oz bottles at the show were $2.00...OUTRAGEOUS! I'll be chugging away today!

Jennifer...So glad you have been able to spend more time at the new house! I'm sure that feels good! And furniture shopping! How fun!

MsRD...I'm proud of you on your exercise! I think I need a couple more days to get to 120! I'll try...

Joy...Every once in a while we have to splurge...but get back to it now!!! Remember, you have calories in the bank!

Elisha...Looks like "moving out" has been good for you! The scale reflects it!

Sorry...I don't have time for any more comments! But know that you all are in my thoughts as we start our 2nd week of this challenge! HUGS to all of you!

Morning chicks!

Well, this was a productive, activity-filled weekend for me. We shampooed the carpet in 2 bedrooms, the main bath, and the upstairs hallway, plus vacuumed the rest of the house. Patched the drywall in the kitchen, which will have to be sanded and painted today perhaps, or tomorrow. Did about half the laundry, doing the rest tonight and tomorrow. Cleaned out the dining room, which had been our catch-all room while we were moving. We got some curtains and put them up, and Steve bought me a pretty pink table cloth (he complains because it’s *really* pink, but I picked it up and sat it back down, then he picked it up and threw it in the cart). I’m sure there’s other stuff I did too, as it felt (and still feels) like I was moving constantly all weekend.

And we got our dog on Saturday evening. She’s a full-blooded golden retriever, about 18 months old. Our bowling partners gave her to us because she’s too energetic for their kids (their kids are 1-3 years old) and because they don’t have a lot of time to spend with her. She’s a very good dog, well behaved, she listens well, but she is very energetic. Steve and I took her for a walk around the neighborhood yesterday morning, and that calmed her down a lot. At least for the afternoon. By bedtime she was all riled up again. She woke me up about 7 times last night. We’re definitely going for a walk when I get home from work, and possibly around the block a time or two later in the evening. Her name is Ella, and I’ll post some pictures of her in a little while (Steve is supposed to email them to me when he gets home).

So I didn’t get any formal exercise this weekend, except for the walking of the dog, but I’m counting 30 minutes each day because I honestly was cleaning and putting things away and moving furniture and wrestling with Ella constantly. I’m so tired right now I feel like I didn’t even get a weekend. So I’ve got in my 120 minutes, but I’ll be walking tonight, so that will be even more minutes for me this week.

Food was ok this weekend, but not great. My giving up of chocolate didn’t make it through the weekend though. Steve’s dad brought us girl scout cookies. I didn’t do too bad with them though, but they were chocolate. Oh, and at the grocery store on Saturday, we found pints of dessert-flavored ice cream on sale 4 for $1!!! So we had to get a couple. I had a few bites of the Bananas Foster-flavored one last night, then put it away.

I did fairly well with water this weekend too, a lot better than I usually do. I’ll have to go back and check, but I may have even gotten in my 100 oz per day. Calories weren’t that great though, 1800-1950 per day, I think. And today isn’t off to a very good start either. The scale said 217.4 this morning. That’s down 0.8 pounds this week. Not as much as I was hoping, but better than nothing.

I’m starting to feel it though. My pants are feeling snug. I don’t want this anymore.

In other news, the date of our wedding has been changed, moved up one week to October 7. The reason: Oct. 14th is WVU homecoming. That may not seem like a good reason to change our date, but the fact is that hotels are *already* booked for miles around, and if the team does well this year, you won’t be able to get a room anywhere in the tri-state area. Besides that, Steve and quite a few other people will want to go to the game. In the midst of a finance-induced mini-breakdown yesterday I told Steve that we could just rent a big screen and serve hot dogs and potato chips for our reception, because I’m not going to be able to afford anything else anyway. *sigh* Too bad I’m not as much of a fanatic as he is.

Anyway, time to wrap this up and get to work. Have a good one, chicks.
~Elisha

Oops, almost forgot...

What is the easiest part of dieting for you? Drinking lots of water? Exercise?

Question of the Day

What is the easiest part of dieting for you? Drinking lots of water? Exercise?

For me it's definitely the water. I chug water all day at work. If I don't get enough water, I get nasty headaches, so I try to stay on top of it.
The food part comes and goes, but I must say it's the hardest.
Exercise... eh. Sometimes, when I get into the swing of it, it's easy, like it's just something I do. And then sometimes, when I slack off, it's so hard to make myself do it. Like right now. I know if I just do it for a week, I'll be okay. But that first week is tough.

Ok, my goal for the week is to keep a food journal of everything I eat. EVERYTHING!!! So, good luck ladies and keep on losin'!

This is Ella!

Ella1.jpg Ella2.jpg Ella3.jpg


I attached the second one just so you could see my pretty pink table cloth!

I hope this works... I've been having problems trying to upload these pics for an hour!

~Elisha

Ooo, cute dog!

Changes in my plan:
1. 1750 calories per day instead of 1550.
2. Weigh once a month.

Mmm.

Knee somewhat out of whack... did I ever post about that? Anyway, exercise has been slacking of late. Have missed my darling jujitsu for two weeks. Today I'm going to go swimming. Wednesday I'm going back to jujitsu... miss it too much. Might skip rolls and falls.

1. Why do you want to lose weight? Is it something you're hoping to gain, or hoping to avoid? Is there something that happened in your past that spurred you to this journey? What sparked the decision?

I was determined to lose weight when I was two pounds shy of obesity. Couldn't believe I'd gained fifty pounds. Like Jenn said, gaining all that weight is one of my biggest regrets.

2. How do you think losing weight will improve your life?

I like wearing nice clothes, being strong, and staying healthy. Also, there's that jujitsu handstand... Two more ladies joined the dojo. The thin one is catching on to rolls and falls; the thick one can't do them. Co-ink-y-dink? Methinks not.

3. What’s your biggest dieting vice? Night-time eating? Sugary morning lattes? Is there something you can’t get away from? What’s your strategy for dealing with this vice?

Eating to avoid doing unpleasant tasks. (Studying for the bar... .) Strategy: Well, I'm not doing so well, so I wish someone would give me a strategy!

4. What is the easiest part of dieting for you? Drinking lots of water? Exercise?

Coming up with really small lifestyle changes and making them permanent. Except for the recent two weeks of cramming for the bar, I'd been sticking to my one-pop rule and 4 fruits/veggies rule for a long time.

Comments next time.

[QUOTE=miss_elisha]This is Ella!

Oooooooh! She's so darned cute! I think this is your answer, Elisha...lots of energy, HAVING to exercise (instead of having a choice), someone to play with and give you all the attention you want...YUP! This is what you've needed...a puppy!

for me!!!

Another day I can add a to my signature!!!

YES! So far, so good! No sugar or sugary treats today! I was super busy at work to even think about it and I didn't have ANY activities involving food! Yipee! I even cleaned out the freezer at work and found a half container (one of those big plastic pails) of Choc. Chip Mint icecream...even looked inside, dumped out the ice crystals...and put it back! Smelled good! I am so darned proud of myself!

Here's the layout of the food today:

B-fast: Latte (SF Vanilla)
Lunch: Leftover stirfry (chicken & veggies with a sweet & sour sauce...ok there was a bit of brown sugar in that...do I have to count that???) and brown rice!
Supper: Leftover ricearoni (spicy) with chicken and some cooked turnip greens with a tablespoon of parmesan cheese!

To drink: Water...lots and lots of water! Was dehydrated from yesterday! So I'm at 60 oz. right now but will probably be closer to 80 oz before I go to bed! Phew!

QOTD: What is the easiest part of dieting for you? Drinking lots of water? Exercise?
Easiest? Nothing about this change of lifestyle (because I think of a diet as something I would eventually STOP!!!) is easy for me!!!! I will say that I do drink plenty of water and am quenched by that. I started that habit a few years ago and have found that it helps me not to be hungry all the time! I could drink just water (well, with the exception of a glass of wine on occassion...) all the time and be fine with that!
The rest is very difficult for me...planning, thinking about what I shouldn't put in my mouth, what I should eat, when I should eat, how much of it I should eat, planning and implementing exercise (the latter being the hardest), following through with all the parts that go into this lifestyle on a consistent basis...that's tough! Other than all of that...it's a piece of cake!

Hope you all had a successful day!

Hugs to all!

Thanks for the exercise ticker idea, Healthnut123!!! I didn't know that existed, but I figured it out and now have one. I deleted my long term goal because that's just too many tickers on one post!!!

Evening, ladies. Busy day here, and still going at 10:13

Work- hectic. One of the cleaning people threw out my 32oz plastic water cup! OMG, was I horked this morning when I went to fill it up! I settled for these tiny little 4oz cups that they have near the water bottle, and of course, the busier I got, the fewer times I could get up to fill it.

Pedometer came in at 923- I seriously didn't leave the desk for more than 20-30 steps- fax machine & back, repeat until desk is slightly clearer.

Water- lacking. Food- had an early "brunch" of chicken breast & black beans & rice with 1 small piece of cuban bread. Dinner tonight was grabbed on the run, and was a BK Tendercrisp sandwich. Not the best choice, but could have been worse.

The dining room set was delivered today, and when we opened to inspect, the glass top, it was damaged. Broken into little pieces, even though the outside of that box doesn't look damaged at all. We called the furniture place, & they are going to send someone out to inspect the package. And so, we did not go up to the new house to set that up. Sigh.

Two cool things, and I am hoping that this brings some amazing insight that I can share with everyone here. On March 29th, I'll be going to a seminar locally here, with Colin Powell, Rudy Guiliani, Zig Ziglar, Don Schula- some of the best of the best, for a motivational seminar. And in May, I have a 4 day Anthony Robbins seminar that work is paying for. With that, day 4 is all about nutrition, so I'm hoping that I have lots of good stuff to share, and so much mojo pumping that I can't help but jump out of bed with a spring in my step. (Ok, more realisticly, I'm hoping that something sparks a little fire, because my wood has been pretty wet lately!)

Ok, gotta help hubby finish with his phone....catch everyone in the am!

Hey Jennifer...I went to the same seminar in Grand Rapids last summer. Unfortunately they oversold tickets and me and the person I went with (work paid for it) had to watch the first half of it on telecast in another building (they were shuttling people, but it was a nice day, so we walked the 8 blocks). We were able to see the 2nd half live after lunch. Rudy Guiliani was great. Zig Ziglar spoke first. I enjoyed him most of all! Get there EARLY (if they tell you get there at 6am, don't hesitate!) so you can get a good seat! Colin Powell was not at ours, but there were some great speakers.

Anyway...sorry about the table, too! There must be a reason for all these "setbacks"! Goodness! You certainly have an optimistic view about it all. I'm so proud of you! and what a great day you had yesterday despite all of it!

What are your 3 (or more) favorite things about your body? Love your blue eyes? Blond hair? Pinky toe? Fingernails?