Ammi- Sadly yes, I probably would have eaten that soup had I not found ham in it. But things worked out so it encouraged me to make the right choice.

Wyllenn- No I haven't joined that thread but I think it is about time I do. I did go out and walk for about an hour tonight and it felt so good. So my goal is to go out and do it again tomorrow. Once I get going, it will be second nature to me again!

Man, talk about being fried! This morning I woke up and hit the scale... and I had GAINED FIVE POUNDS!! How on earth is that possible? And I am still "up" tonight. What a bum deal! Oh well... I am hoping it doesn't stay long... it HAS to be some kind of fluke!!

Wow that FFM sure dumped on me!!

Hello all!

It's been a long, long, long and unpleasant weekend. DH and I spent the night and day Sunday in St. Louis at a hospital intensive care waiting room. Seems his oldest nephew - 19 or 20 years old - made himself a homemade bomb out of fireworks and basically blew himself up. Apparently it's not uncommon these days for guys around where he lives (in the country-not city) to use fireworks to see how big of a bang they can get and just blow stuff up. IDIOTS!

Anway, he blew off one hand and whether they'll save the other is up in the air. He had horrible bruising of his lungs that wasn't caused by impact, it was caused by the concussion! It is truely a miracle that the boy is alive. We went up Sat. nght and stayed until Sun. and he's stll on a respirator. DH went back up there so I'm home alone with DS.

Obviously, food was pretty bad. I did well at the hospital, but not the way home when we stopped at a truck stop. I ate like a total pig then.

I am sorry I haven't been able to go back thru the posts. I hope to be able to catch up with everyone later. Right now I'm just beat and ready for a relaxing night!

Ammi--Good to hear your doc gave you the "all clear" and that you dont have to go back to the hospital again. That must be such a relief.

GOOD JOB on the -2!! You are on FIRE girl!! Yeah! And that is awesome about your new t-shirts in TWO whole sizes smaller! Yeah!! Glad to hear you were able to get into those jeans. It wont be long and they will be falling off you!

Melissa--I, too, LOVE Halloween!! Are you making a costume or do you usually buy one from the store? I do like your new ticker--it looks great!

on all your excercising efforts! Yay!

Annie--What is the Curves plan like? I was going to join the weight loss class that just started at my Curves here but I decided to join WW online instead. I just wondered if its like a low carb or low cal or..? I'm glad to hear it works for you.

Brenda--Oh man, I was hoping you would know how we fix it!! Yay, I am happy for you that you made a good decision for dinner. It can be so hard at the end of the day sometimes. I find that is the hardest time of day for me because during the day I am at work and have scheduled times when I can eat. And I can only eat what I bring with me. But when I come home there are probably 900 fast food places on the drive home, and then not to mention all the food in my house! Its all good stuff, but it can still be overdone.

Misti--Sorry to hear about your gain! Yeah, there must be something wrong with the scale or you must just be retaining major water or something. That is crazy!! I will be thinking good thoughts for you for your next weigh in.

Lilion--My mouth literally dropped open when I read about your DH's nephew! That is terrible. I will keep him in my thoughts. I'm sorry you had such a crazy, stressful weekend. I hope you will be able to relax tonight.

Well, I went to Curves tonight after work and weighed myself (AFTER my workout, of course ). I've gained 1 lb. Makes my tracker look pretty measley, eh? I am trying to take it in stride, really I am, but its just a reminder of how far I really have to go on this journey. I look at all of you that have lost substantial amounts (I consider 30 lbs+ substantial ) and I just think to myself "Am I ever really going to be able to get there?" Or even 1/2 way there?

I dont know, its not like I'm really that depressed about it or anything, but I'm just kind of down. I know I just need to take it 1 day at a time and just keep going. Success is made up of 2 steps: #1 Get Started and #2 Don't Quit. I just need to keep reminding myself of that.

I stopped at the grocery store and got some baby carrots after work. My routine is to eat about a cup of baby carrots on the drive after work to Curves so I dont get so hungry during/after my workout. And veggies are 0 points on WW.

Tonight I came home and had a good dinner. I had 2 chicken burritos (grilled chix w/a little light cheese and salsa in a tortilla) and salad w/about 1 tbsp light ranch. With all that protein I am really full!! But I think I needed it. I hadnt eaten any meat all day. That's one thing I probably need to work on. Some days I will go all day without eating any meat. But I always get my 2 dairy servings so I suppose I'm getting enough protein. I was vegan for 8 mos last year and never had any problems with protein/iron deficiency (I would always laugh when all the meat eaters that would lecture me on how unhealthy my diet was would go to give blood and get turned down for low iron and I was always ok )

Anyway, I'm doing laundry now and about to watch the rest of a movie, "Drowning Mona", that I started last night. Everyone have a good evening.

KIM, No, you certainly don’t have to get your weight down to 146 to ride. Actually, my ultimate goal is 146, my riding goal is 249, and both those numbers are a bit arbitrary. I’m even getting on a horse a bit lately, and my new horse is a big bruiser, but he’s young and just a little silly. When I have this much bulk to control and balance, it’s hard. I remember riding like a banshee when I was younger – jumping and tearing around with no saddle. My muscles still remember their jobs and try instinctively to do them, but it tears me up. My lower back gets sore, and OMG! My inner thighs, in spite of the exercises I do, will just kill me afterwards if the horse does any sideways movement. I’d just like a set goal to shoot for before I even THINK about getting on my silly new powerhouse. Breaking bones coming off him in my current condition doesn’t appeal to me, and for breaking the 250 lb mark for the first time in 13-14 years, riding him seems like a good reward. Of course, I MAY postpone it from there depending on how he’s doing and whether I feel strong & balanced enough to be safe. Oops- I’m blabbering.

Good to see you back, TRIXIEPIXIE! OK, It’s Monday. I hope you took that first step tonight, but if not – TOMORROW, RIGHT?

DOGPAL, You’re such a peach! Thanks so much for your kind words! And consider the boys all kissed for you. Shmooze your own pups for me, k? Good luck on your 6-week program. We’ll have to keep each other honest and DO THIS THING! Sounds like you’re off to an excellent start. I was 100% OP myself today. YEAH, US!!!

AMY, it sounds like the wedding was wonderful!! Not to worry – you’ll have those silly 2 pounds back off with a few glasses of water. Onward! I'm glad you got your workout in. Don't worry about making a "substantial" loss. You ARE going to make it! If EYE can do it, EWE can do it!!!!!!

NANCY, I understand. I may be in a different cabin, but I’m on the same boat. Bailing the water out while someone else is drilling another hole in the bottom gets So Old. I wish I could say or do something to help, but please accept my Is there any chance he would see the light if he knew you were serious enough to be shopping for an apartment, or would that only be a temporary change if he changed at all?

LUAN – What self control! Great NSV!!!

Everybody! Stand back!! BRENDA’s on the warpath! Go Brenda! Tell that ol’ landlord that if the oven isn’t fixed, we’re gonna light his hinnie on fire and cook on THAT! O.K., maybe that’s not the fire we wanna cook food on come to think of it. Bummer that you’ve already lost 2 vac days. I'd certainly be rrrreally upset too, and you know you can feel free to vent here anytime!

JEN – I think you should have counted the whole hike! Even if it’s flat, if you kept moving and were really pulling part of the time, it’s not like you sat down and took a nap. Sounds like a great hike, and your ‘Inner Hiker’ must be pleased!

MICHELLE, Keep up the great work with all that wonderful walking! My lower back gets sore too sometimes. It does get better with consistent exercise, and of course as the weight comes off. Hang in there!

WOO-HOO, AMMI! WTG on those NSV’s!! I’m especially glad to hear there’ll be no more hospital for you!!! Today I tried on some of the new things I just bought, and they didn’t QUITE make it closed over the hooters, and the old skirt I wanted to wear for my interview didn’t QUITE fit nicely over my ample rump, but I’m SO close that I’m not even worried about it. I’m just looking forward to an NSV like yours! Bravo!! Not just on doing such a great job, but on so CONSISTANTLY doing such a great job!!!

MELISSA, I love the Halloween ticker! The way you’re going, you’ll certainly make that goal! You’ve been doing great on your exercise goal this month, too!

MISTI, Bummer on the scale jump – very rude of it I think! Did you get enough sleep? I know that plays a huge role for me. If I’ve had a short night of sleep, the scale always goes up. You know it’s a dirty LIE, right?

LILION, How absolutely horrible! I’m so sorry. That’s an incredible price to pay for a dumb mistake. I deeply hope that they can save his other hand and heal his lungs. *** As far as the “stopped at a truck stop, ate like a pig” – well, I hear ya sister! Believe me, I hear ya.

My interview went great today! I think I’d really like working there, and I had the feeling they liked me too. They’re supposed to get back to me tomorrow.

I tried on some of the new and old business clothes I have, and much of it was just a bit too small still, but nothing like it used to be, and so close to fitting that I was actually encouraged instead of discouraged. I’m fired up!

I stayed totally OP today, right down to water and vitamins. I’m determined to do this again for the next 41 days in a row. When Shannon (employee @ Curves) told me she’s seen people lose from 5 to 19 pounds on the 6 week program, she didn’t know it, but she was drawing the line in the sand for me. I’m not a sore loser, but I’m fiercely competitive. She said “19”, so I’m aiming for 20. When I started this on SBD, I told myself I could do ANYTHING for 14 days. I’ve proven to myself that that’s true. Now I’m telling myself that I can do anything for 42 days – 6 weeks. Did I mention that I’m fired up!? Even better, I’m PREPARED to succeed!

Support system? CHECK!
Right food available? CHECK!
Exercise plan in place? CHECK!
Water cups filled & ready? CHECK!
Alternative plans available? Flexible-CHECK!
Long term goal? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’ll get to that when the time comes.

I think I hear the trumpet announcing the post parade, so I’M OFF!
C-YA ladies!!!

Thanks everyone for the kind words. I didn't avoid the subject, but walked in the house and immediately started voicing my concerns. Ok - voicing is a bit of an understatement. I screamed, I yelled, I made it VERY clear that I could not take any more. He really wants to work with me. I am partly feeling like it is too late, but I will give him one more chance. We have been together for 5 years and so far our money isn't mingled. If he doesn't shape up in the next 6 months then it doesn't effect me long term.

Oh, and part of his argument was that he was only bouncing the idea around about it. I told him that to me he sounded very serious and that he needs to be much clearer if he is only toying with an idea or is actually planning on something. We shall see. I am definitely very proud of myself for not dodging the confrontation but getting it out in the open.

Lilion – WOWSA!! That’s awful!! I don’t even know what to say!

Valerie – You are just crankin’ it!!!!!!! Look at all your exercise! You sound supercharged! I got my fingers crossed for your interview!

Ammi -- -2 on the scales and some kickin’ nsvs!!!! WoOOOOOO!

Misti – Up 5 pounds! That stinks! FFM shortchanged me too. Sunday I was down to 186, but today, official weighin day and it’s back up to 188. I’ll see what it says tomorrow. I’m not above fudging weigh-ins. This isn’t my taxes after all… Either way, I’m doing what I need to, so it will all be fine in the end. I just have to be patient.

Trixiepixie – WTG on the exercise… Join us on the thread! It really helps (me, at least! I can’t speak for the others…)

Nancy – Direct communication is soooo important! Good luck!

I feel so happy. I did all my house work today and I have been riding my bike at home 1 mile a day trying to get into the swing of it. It hurts my inner thighs sooooo much but I haven't stopped. Today my hubby wants to have a virtual bike race with me to my parents house about 480 miles away from here. He said that I can keep the miles I have for this week so far which is 4 so far and subtract them from the race miles. He is so sweet. Any way, once he said that tonight I rode it two miles I feel so excited and I hope it keeps up. A great op day and I did extra on the bike. I did my weights too. Tomorrow is a Curves day in addition to the bike.

Misti: So sorry you are up 5. That happened to me last week after a great op week. I don't know what went wrong except maybe because of TOM. Hopefully it will be gone for you next time you weigh.

Lilion So sorry to hear about your newphew. My prayers are with him. How awful for someone so young to loose body parts. I mean any age is awful but with your whole life ahead of you. Yikes.

Amy: Curves is low Carb and watch your calories. I love it for me. I also love your hair in the photo. What a great beautiful photo!

Val: Yea on staying op. I know you will do well. I lost 29 pounds in the 6 week coarse so I know you can do it. Good going.

Well all, off to read the bible with hubby before bed. Blessings to you all,
Annie/Dogpal

Just a quick hello and note that I was terrible this weekend! Pizza and laziness have gotten the best of me.

Need some willpower to get things back on track tomorrow!!

Just a quick one before I go and have a nap. I think this 'not eating' idea is making me a little tired. I can't wait to see how I am tomorrow after being up all night going to the toilet, and STILL not eating. I don't think I can explain the cravings I am currently having for carrot sticks and apples. I am going to get Neil to bring some of them with him when he picks me up tomorrow. I've heard they give you sandwiches when you come out of the stupor, but I am going to want more than that I think. My dietitian friend (who has had this done) said that I should eat bananas to put salt (or something like that) back into my body. That is great because I love bananas, even if we are currently paying around $2.50 per banana.

Amy - I LOVE the pictures of you! You truly look beautiful. The hair looks great, the face looks great, the smile looks great. Now I just want to see a pic of you and Nat. He must have been SO proud of you. I would also love to see a full length shot of the dress. It is a beautiful colour.
Your family look wonderful, cheap hired help and all. Your younger brother looks like a very doting uncle.

Catch you all soon.

Zelma

ammi - have you gone back and looked through your pictures? you are doing an AMAZING job!!!

STOP DO NOT POST HERE, JOIN US ON THREAD #217
xxxxxsharon