Prayer and/or good vibe request....My son is going for a job interview tomorrow. It is a better paying and much better (professionally) than his current job at a sub shop. He's excited!

AnnieDrews congratulations on your 29 pounds lost -- that is awesome!! And to think it all got started with a Biggest Loser challenge at work! You have done so well...

Thanks, Heidi, that means alot. I hope I can be as much of an inspiration as you and the other lovely ladies here on 3FC 40-Somethings.

Hi Everybody!

AnnieDrews - prayers for your son, I hope the interview goes well.

Thanks everyone for answering my questions, does make planning my meals a little easier. Today I had planned out my menu & it was 1450 calories, but when I planned it I made choices so that I could have more volume of food because I had planned to have a long run this morning that was being timed so that i could see how well I am on doing on increasing my speed. Run went great, did 4 miles at my fastest speed yet, but I over did it & was dizzy a couple of times after the run. I guess I should check the weather before I do that again, 98 degrees/heat index at 103 degrees & high humidity. I am taking tomorrow off to recover.

Dee

morning ladies. yes i do get up early but only cause the boss makes me. i start at 5 a.m everyday, including saturday....uggg.no rest for the wicked i guess. i guess thats the reason i'm tired all the time.

God morning and happy Friday.

I had a great workout yesterday morning--walked/jogged on treadmill, then did weights. I ate pretty good, too, although I did have a roasted chicken leg and thigh for dinner (but that dark meat is sooo good). I'm good about taking off the skin and fat, so that helps.

Back down a pound. I think my scale is teasing me. I don't care for its sense of humor.

Dee--I meant to respond yesterday about counting calories. Better late than never. I aim for about 1200-1300 calories, and I don't adjust for exercise. What really helps me to achieve my daily goal is eating from a standard menu of choices so I already know what the portion sizes need to be and how I should spread the food out over the day. I like to eat small meals throughout the day--vit/protein drink, breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner. Doing it this way keeps my between-meals hunger down to moderate levels. I also keep dried fruit on hand for those times when I just need something more (like yesterday when my stomach just would not shut up).

Me4life--my employer lets us flex our start time, so I chose a time that lets me hit the gym before work. I like getting up early, partly because I love the quiet, and partly because of traffic.

For a change of pace, I'm going to exercise at home this morning--I'll do some step and maybe some rebounding, too.

Good morning everyone, Happy Friday.

As of today I have been dieting for 20 days & I have lost 10 pounds. I wish the weight loss would continue at this speed but I know it won't.

Have a great day.

Dee

Hi everybody!

After chatting with you so much, I thought I'd let you know my name- It's Caroline. I added my name to my status & changed my goal numbers in my profile.

I have exceeded my original goal of 130. I thought I'd be really excited, but actually I'm serene about the scale number. But I am completely stunned by how different I look. And I'm amazed by how flexible I've become. And I've notice how much easier it is to move around. This is so weird, but wonderful.

But I'm here at 3FC for the long haul. I know it's a daily effort with success and set backs.

Congrats, Dee on your weight loss.

Kitteh - I got to get my exercise in this weekend. Thanks for the motivating me.

Hi, me4life - I can't imagine what the world looks like at 5 am.

Have a good day, everyone.

Motivated Chickie Will you be posting any pictures? Would love to see the new you...

Here I've been spinning now for a couple of weeks. I just went on a quickie bike ride up to my kids' school and the enormous hill that used to wipe me out made me say, "Hill? What hill???" I can't believe what a difference the spinning has made. Which is really encouraging because it is very hilly where I live, which makes getting on the bike a little intimidating. But now with the spinning, I think I'll be less intimidated to get out there and tackle them! Maybe I'll go for a ride this weekend...

Oh, and as for the beet greens: I prepare them by washing them, heating up a little olive oil, adding the greens and a bit more water to the pot, and then basically steam/saute them, stirring occasionally. It's hard to describe the taste -- not like beets, not like spinach, dunno. Just their own wonderful wilted greens.

I am loving all the fruits and veggies starting to come in now. I just bought local snap peas, zucchini, and strawberries. We'll have the zucchini sliced in half lengthwise (they are pretty small), brushed with olive oil, and grilled. Can't wait!

Whew. Let's see if I can get somewhat caught up with someone besides myself. I'll start from right after my last post:

OMW-nice summer days are great. Congrats on your DS b-day. Dunno how they grow up that fast but it happens. My DD will be 30 next week..yikes!

Petra-Not talking toomuch. I am thrilled for you to have some dating time. Find a guy who can cook diet food that tastes great and you're in there!

Moxie-Agreed with it taking too long, but keep reminding yourself that it took a while to put it on, so it will take a while to take it off. I get discouraged too sometimes, when I see that I have lost 43 lbs, which seems like a LOT...a big size bag of dog food, one kibble at a time...and the I look at the minimum I still have to go...a whopping 50 MORE POUNDS! But when I started in February, thius first 43 would have seemd impossible. It's all about perspective. You can do it, just keep going!

On A Boat-I count calories and try to make each calorie count. I always make sure I have at least 1200 and try to stay under 1800. Most days I'm around 1550-ish. I am really a dinner person and a snacker/grazer, so I figure out what I am fixing for dinner and make sure I have enough calories for that, then work around it. I also have an automatic 244 cals for milk for my coffee ever single day. For the first 3+ months, I never, ever went over my 1800 limit, but the last couple of weeks have been more difficult with all the comings and goings of guests and all those dang cookies in my face all the time! Even so, I've only gone a little over maybe 3 or 4 times. It's so much easier to eat than to not. For me, though, the most important thing is turning out to be WHAT I eat...even though a calorie is a calorie, I do a lot better on good, whole, unprocessed foods. I also NEED exercise in order to keep losing steadily. And even if I exercise more, I don't eat more. I suppose if I was training for something really athletic, I would consider upping the calories, but even on my most active weeks, I probably only do 15-20 miles combined riding and biking for the week, so that isn't enough for ME to need more food. I count EVERYTHING except water and air ;-)

Welcome me4life!!!

Kitteh-sounds like you are doing pretty well. Wii bowling is better than no activity at all. And I know you know, but remember, you are probably at a point where each pound is more difficult for you to lose than someone heavier, so I think it's great. Keep up the good work!

Petra-I hope your guy is a keeper-3 dates is a good sign! And you know I hope your vaca is stupendous! And when you get back, if I can help you redesign your recipes, I hope you know I will. We like the same kinds of foods, so I have a lot of practicing slimming down the couscous!

Moondance-I know you can do it without being too tired. And the longer you keep at it, the more you are likely to keep up the exercise. I am surprised and thrilled at how much I have come to enjoy hiking and cycling and just walking around. Each pound lost makes it that much easier, and I've found ways to enjoy the challenges. I know you can too! And I'm jealous of anyone who can use a treadmill. I think it wouold toss me oveboard even on the lowest setting.

Chickie-gosh...the 120's is amazing! Congrats!

Annie-I hope you have a greeat weekend, lots of fun and not too much food. You're doing an awesome job and it's really nice to see someone who can balance having fun with food included and also losing those extra pounds. You're always an inspiration to me. We need pics of the new haircut. Hope the son's interview was a knockout!

Heidi-no more uphill battles for you, girl! LOL! Sound like the spin calss is agreeing with you. I've never had beet greens and I dont' like beets, but zi might have to try just the greens since I love all kinds of other greens.

Okay, now back to me. I have had spinach and lettuce that i grew from seeds. First time for it and oh, my, it is so nice to eat. So much better than the grocery store. Will see how the other things do...if they do at all. And try to garden more next year. I think we have a farmers market starting in July and I can't wait to see what they offer. Today I finally got in 1/2 a dam hike, but had to turn around and hit the ladies' at walmart...too much coffee before I left, I guess plus Robert now has to be at work at noon, so it cuts our time kinda short int he mornings. Tomorrow is a geocache around town day, but I think we will be walking with Buster, so it will be a lot of mjiles as long as I can hold up. Pumpkin and black bean soup leftovers for dinner, with some spinach and grilled chicken added. So good and so good for me. Tomorrow is mushroom soup, with spinach and chicken added also, no doubt. I have just discovered that the fat free half and half works great in the soups that call for cream.

Wishing everyone an awesome weekend. Cross your fingers that I get extra guests, which means extra $$, and that I can keep my greedy paws off their leftover cookies!

Barb

Cat update: It's a nursing mom and 4, count 'em, FOUR small kittens. Now hidden under my porch. We've seen glimpses of them - I have no idea how old they are; they're only about 5" at the shoulder. I'm happy to report that my county animal shelter agreed to take them in, especially when I offered to also donate a sum that will cover spay/neuter for all 5 animals. I may not have time ... but I can be generous with the $.

We are gaining Mom's trust and feeding her well. She even puts up with being brushed. Catch day will have to wait until Tuesday, since that's when the shelter is open later in the evening. Neighbor is letting me borrow an animal crate. I expect they'll be pretty adoptable. One of the kittens is just "silly-cute" - he's like an orange and black camo pattern.

It's weekend - hurray!! And a long weekend for us too. It did't start off too well though as i got nabbed for speeding yesterday and it's double demerits during long weekends here. That's 8 points and $338. Whoops.

Kittem - my scale has been teasing me this week too. I also don't appreciate it's humour, but at least today it's being kind and i'm back to 122. I need to see it a few more times before the ticker moves though.

I'm impressed that everyone is losing so much, when i just don't seem to be able to do it. I lost 9lb in about a month in April, and since then i've not moved an inch (apart from a couple of up/down fluctuations). I'm sort of happy where i am to some extent, but at the same time a bit alarmed that it's taking this much effort just to stay put.

Hubby still recovering so a quiet weekend for us i think. A few runs/gym visits for me, and a bit of football watching to be done!

Good evening. I don't usually post late in the day, but tomorrow's brunch calls for it.

Yes, brunch tomorrow--and it will be delicious. And high caloried, if I am not careful. Well, lots of calories no matter what, but some choices will be far worse than others. I hate when this happens--I'm on a roll, I'm losing, and then wham! I get into a situation where I'll probably put on several pounds.

Not going isn't an option, so I need to be strong and aim for the high protein stuff and stay away from the oh, so yummy high carb stuff. Mmmmm, french toast with maple syrup. Fresh scones and muffins. Fried potatoes. Pancakes.

I'm skipping my treat today (actually, I forgot about it until just now!) so the brunch can count as my treat, or if I'm really good, I can still get my treat tomorrow. I doubt I'll be that good when the basket of warm, fresh breakfast breads comes around.

Anyway, just needed to vent and plot.

ICU--the camo kitten is about a 1000 times more likely to be a she. Calico and tortoiseshell colorings are strongly s@x-linked. I lurvs calicos and torties. Hope the catching goes well.

Ange--bummer about the ticket. I drive people crazy by driving the speed limit, but I do not want a ticket.

Dee--What a great jump start on achieving your goal!

Caroline--congrats on making your goal. What a wonderful feeling.

Newleaf--I tried a spin class and it nearly killed me! If you can do that regularly (the spin class, not nearly killing me), you're doing great. Congrats on stomping the hill into submission.

Barb--fresh spinach and lettuce out of your garden? I'm jealous.

Okay, I'm calmer (for now) about the brunch tomorrow. 'See' you all later.

Becky I do hear one of those sweet kittens calling out your name... You may not hear it yet, but I do! Allergies and general cat aversions be damned!

Ange82much I hear you re: the general alarm at how much work it takes just to pretty much maintain. But it's a good life lesson for us, I think. I barely lose, too, but I am happy with where I am and where I am going.

Barb yay on your lettuce! I'm envious!