unfinishedbusiness! Feel free to jump right in. We love to have you here! bring some good snacks, ff pretzels, wheat thins, trail mix, freezer packed albacore tuna, sardines, ff pudding, and protein bars was a good suggestion steph!

If you have to eat a burger...just do some extra hiking, or just watch your portions. Drink water in between beers....dont' get drunk, then you'll give in to the junk later! but most of all...HAVE FUN!

Cookie: I've been going through the same thing. I just can't shake the last twenty pounds. I have been working out harder than ever...but really I haven't been that consistent, and my eating hasn't been all that great either. I had to take a hard look at what I was doing. I know I'm in probably the best shape ever, just not the small shape I want to be. OH well, I wont' give up. I just keep trying new things. Right now I'm cutting portions, and doing more cardio. I did finally lose a pound last week....can't wait to see what the scale says tomm....stay tuned.

Things are finally starting to feel natural with this eating thing. Last night I went to dinner with my dad at Moe's (yummy but dangerous burrito/mexicanish place.. it is a chain, but I don't know where they are around the country...) and instead of getting a huge fatty MONSTER burrito, I tossed my tortilla and chips, got tofu for "meat", no cheese, no sour cream, no guac..(And surprisingly, it was still tasty).
Then, we went to a movie where I wasn't even tempted to have any of the popcorn. This morning my ex and I went to breakfast place, and of course I couldn't really find anything like my normal breakfast. However, after a long discussion with the waitress I ended up with an EggBeaters omlette with spinach and no cheese. I got rid of the hashbrowns and biscuits that came with it too. I feel so proud of myself. Eating out has usually been one of my greatest downfalls because I ALWAYS took the opportunity to overindulge.

ANYWAY! Enough about the food I didn't eat..I'm becoming increasingly more fed up with the male gender in general, including my family. My dad has started dating again (my parents' divorce was finalized a few weeks ago) and for some reason THAT on top of having an almost-bf who doesn't really seem to like me, AND an ex who has slept with every girl in my hometown since we broke up... I'm feeling uhmm... a little disappointed with men in general. I'm trying very hard not to let the stress and hurt lead me to chocolate. So far, so good. I think I'll try to let the stress guide me to the gym instead.

Jenna- Isn't it funny how guys think they are eating healthy even when they are eating junk food? Ah.. to be blissfully ignorant again.

Stephie- Mmm.. homemade spaghetti sauce. I'm pretty broke most of the time, and I've had to keep pasta around too just for economy's sake. Portion control, portion control, portion control. At least tomatoes have a lot of antioxidants.

Candice- yes it does feel good to be a ganster. I need to watch that movie again. And.. staying away from the beer is an accomplishment. I love C2s but it is hard to find them around here for some reason.

Sugarbutt- Wow!! Congrats on the size 7's! Must feel great! And don't be a stranger!

Unfinished- Welcome!! Awesome weightloss!! I agree with everyone else.. be sure to take your own snacks and drinks so you won't have ONLY the bad stuff as an option. If you do decide to indulge, just have one or two things and keep your portion sizes in mind.

Stay strong girls!!

k heres my lil problem i need the motivation to get up and exercise.. me loosing weight so far as been mainly just watching my portion control and eating alil better.. i say a lil cause i sitll eat lots of pizza and now more fast food(i need to cut back on it) luckily in this small town i live in theres only burger kings and subway theres also dairy queen but its way expenisive... and to pizza places i work at one.. well now that i no that if i gget back on the band wagonand start exercising maybe some of this is just wieght will come off easy.. its actually pretty sad my friend bought me 2 dvd for my birthday day one is crunch cardio dance blast and the other is shape cardio and they are still in the plastic they came in and never even opened them and my birthday was back in janruary.. i so wanna start doing them and part of the reason i never got around to it was cause i didnt have a dvd player but now that i have one i think out of respec i should at least put one in the dang thing and try it..

yes size 7 does feel great.. you should have seen me... i took this really cute pair of jeans into the dressing room and i was like ill just take a 7 and a 9 try on 7 first just to see how much i have to loss to get in them.. well not even thinking i had them all the way buttoned up... i almost started crying i was so happy.. we were in a busy store so i didnt scream but i was jumping around and all that stuff i looked at a pair of jeans in my house that used to be to small at me and they were 14 with a stretch to them the ones i bought size 7 no stretch.. i still have a pop belly i dunno how to get rid of that one i am trying and i think ill always have to wear a large sshirt cause my boobs are so big.. but its all good... over and out see ya later

hi ladies

well it has been a busy week. mind you i took off two days which was nice. i told my boyfriend the other day I would be quite content not working and putting my energy into working out at the gym and just taking care of the house and stuff. unsurprisingly he commented that he would like that too, but alas, we have to work to live the comfortable lives we want. i am hoping that day comes soon - when we see the fruits of our labour.

anyway. tonight i think we are going to go to the gym for a bit of cardio. i think i am getting addicted to the gym. i like the treadmill (somedays) but am enjoying the cross trainer and the stationary bike alot. i want to try out the rowing machine next - apparently it is a killer. is it sad that we are going to the gym on a friday night?

sunday is the day my new program kicks into action. i am actually looking forward to it

stephie - abstain from the carnival food! you can do it!

sugarbutt - welcome back

unfinishedbusiness - welcome to 3FC!

Hey all, I've been on here for a little while now and just can't ever figure out what to post.. it's probably because I want to seem witty and not say, "Good Job" like everyone else does.. not that there's anything wrong with that... because you're all doing great and it's an awesome awesome thing!!!

Daisy: Visit Concept 2's website about their rowing machines, they'll send you a technique DVD and everything, and you can join a Million Meters club... I joined but because I'm accident prone I've been in and out of the gym because of a sprained ankle (couple weeks ago) and a hematoma caused by a downhill sledding accident in January. The most important thing about rowing machines is to start SLOW and with little resistance until you get the form down. It's a ton of fun though.. one of my fave things to do at the gym!! Good luck!!

As for me, I hardly ever weigh myself... and I don't really count calories or journal what I eat because I know I'll become obsessive. My biggest problem is the number itself anyways. I'm pretty muscular and hate that my weight makes me feel like I have more fat on my body than I really do. I still have a lot of fat, don't get me wrong, but I'm athletic, so I know that some of the weight is muscle.. but I still get discouraged.

I've been working out with my friend Joe a lot, and he's already showing improvements in his body... and I know it's bad to workout with men because they inherently lose weight faster, but I have no girl friends who are willing to commit to anything. *sigh* Any words of encouragement are welcome!!

Have a good one!!!

-kt

Hahaha Oh wastedthermos the number of times I have had "long discussions" with a waitress... Trying to make food healthy is such a struggle. That's why my friends know to let me always choose the restaurant so I can go to a place that I can order something healthy instead of trying to change every aspect about it.

Did not get my mile in, ended up staying the night about 1/2 way in between Denver and home since it got so late. Also did not abstain from eating bad for me food for dinner. Although small victory stayed away from the theme park food.

So talk about motivation...I have a friend who keeps asking to visit. Everytime she wants to come down I am working but I know eventually we will be able to meet up. When I first started working out she was a runner and I was not. We would go to the gym and she would kill me on the treadmill running laps around me. Well she knows I have been training to become a runner and she wants o have a mock 5k....now my foolish pride says I gotta step it up a notch. Don't you just love a little friendly competition!

wasted thermos - I can see where your disdain for the male of the species would come into play. They are not ALL like that but a good majority unfortunately. You are kicking butt food wise...and definitely make that stress lead you to the gym always better that way!

sugarbutt - PUT THOSE VIDEOS TO WORK!

daisy - The cross trainer is my favorite piece of equipment at the gym. A half an hour on Xtrain is like an hour on the eliptical. Have you tried any of the classes yet? I think you would like the class thing. And thanks for the pep talk about the carnival food...I managed to avoid it

ktruley - Welcome to the forum the more the merrier! It is so not fair that men lean up more quickly then women but a buddy is a buddy. Even though you dont journal or count calories do you feel like you are eating healhty enough to be building muscle?

HAPPY FRIDAY-we made it finally, has it been a long week or what?

Let's remember to try and stay on track with our eating and exercising this weekend. Just be mindful of it, that way Monday we dont' have to go into how horrible we are, we can talk about how GREAT we did!

and a very big to ktruley! I recently just read how the rowing machine is a good all over machine to use...especially if you only have like ten or fifteen minutes to work out, because you use your entire body. I guess I should actually try it out.

Have a great day and weekend everyone!

Why is it so hard to lose just 1 lb....but so easy to gain 2?!?!?!? I am so motivated right now I have run my stairs and danced my butt off this morning already gonna run tonight, get some serious strength training in. I refuse to weigh in monday and have gone backwards!

I AGREE!!! I work sooo hard and lose maybe like 0.5 pounds a WEEK, but let me tell you I can gain 3 pounds in a weekend (grr)

TIME FOR A VENT: Alright so I skipped my TOM becuz I am visiting my boyfriend this weekend, but with the increased exercise and major turn in diet (really trying to eat healthy) I still got it!!! Has this happened to anyone?

Meanwhile... even if my body is telling me it notices my diet change my jeans are not, they are still just as tight. I WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT!!! I WANT TO WEAR MY THIN CLOTHES!!! I WANT TO FEEL GOOD! I have my sister's wedding in a month and my eating plan is just not working. And I can't exercise anymore cuz I work out an hour a day!

Sorry for the vent... it's vent to you guys or vent to my boyfriend and coworkers (they thank you greatly I'm sure)

Thanks everyone for the welcome!! It's true, a buddy is a buddy, but I wish I had some girls to go to the gym with or something, just to.. complain about girly things with I suppose. I mean my friend Joe really doesn't understand why I complain about my issues with sports bras (I've got a wide rib cage and so to get a band to fit right without binding the cups inherently get bigger.. I think you get the picture.. haha).

Stephie: I do feel I'm eating healthy enough to be building muscle. My diet is high fiber, high protein, low fat, rich in veggies and fruits... mostly because I really don't care for anything deep fried, and I really don't like red meat so it's pretty much chicken, turkey, fish and the occaisonal lean cut of pork.

I "work out" on a regular basis... just by being outside and playing some pick-up sports with a couple friends. It's summer so I really don't like to be inside working out -- to me it's like a form of punishment, I'd rather wear myself out completely in the lake or on the soccer field or tennis courts than on a piece of machinery. I guess I should start keeping track of something, right? I also work a pretty physical job (dishwasher @ a University ... i'm a full-time student and we're working full time during the summer.. this saturday we have a 400 person wedding plus 3 other things to total about 700 dishes and items we'll have to go through and run through the machine)... so I'm always burning calories....

But yes, I'll look into keeping a journal of sorts!!

Did some more stairs...but then again also ate pasta for lunch (whooopsie) just going to have to really really watch my portion tonight and follow through with this day of working out.

cookie - I have heard excercise can regulate that. For instance I used to only get my TOM 3 times a year. Actually had to take birth control from a very young age just to regulate it. However when I started exercising more in my adult life my body was like clockwork every month. Maybe you can try to switch things up a bit. Do something for your workouts that your body just isn't used to.

kt - sounds like your diet is great then. Sports are great and I agree you must get a heck of a workout at your job. Journaling is helpful but you are right it is easy to become obsessed with it. I am one of those girls that loves filling out forms, tracking things, blogging etc...so it kind of comes second nature to me.

spill, i like your post i want to come back on monday and talk about how GREAT i did this weekend instead of how bad!! let's make it happen!

Moe's! Lizzie I LOVE Moe's! How can you go wrong at a place with burritos the size of your head? LOL. I can do serious damage there, but at least the food is healthy for you. I love their pico de gallo. Man, now i'm having a craving. I only lost 1 pound this week, but I finally broke the plateau!

Hey I got back from camping last night. I want to thank everyone for their suggestions! It didnt go as bad as I thought although I did have 1 burger each night. I didn't go overboard...but I'm still not going to expect a huge weight loss this week. But I'm back today to the strict dieting. I'm crazy tired but I hope I can sqeeze in some excercise today! Thanks guys!