Morning chickies!

Well, yesterday was ok. Not as good as I had planned, but still fairly decent. I didn't get any any exercise (again) because my lunch lasted until approximately 3:00 and by the time I got home at 6:00 I was starving! I went ahead and had a few tortilla chips and salsa while I was fixing dinner, then some pierogies for our meal, and then I did a few things around the house (sorry, didn't get the Christmas decorations taken down either, though I did get some I boxed up the other day moved to the basement): dishes, laundry, cleaned the frig, vacuumed, cleaned the shower... Then I sat down on the couch for 2 minutes around 8:00 and just completely crashed. Still didn't make it to bed until after 10:00, but that's earlier than I have been going.

Anyway, calories were actually low yesterday, coming in just under 1100, though I assure you I didn't do that intentionally. Today's lunch is the same, but I added a can of tuna to help with both the calorie count and the staying power. Again, don't know what dinner will be. Most likely one of those heat-and-eat stir fry type of meals.

Ugh... I've got to go to a meeting now. I hope you all have a great day!
Elisha

It's official - down TWO LBS!!!!

Did a weigh in this morning. YAY!

Breakfast was okay - pria bar and a peanut butter english muffin with a bottle of apple juice. (Stomach is angry this morning - needed to be nice)

Going to be a very busy day here. Got an eye doctor appt this morning, a full afternoon of meetings and then there's supposed to be a massive snow storm tonight. Seattle and the surrounding areas SUCK when it snows. People here turn stupid and forget how to drive at all, so I'm not looking forward to it. Plus there's a good chance it'll do a flash freeze again tonight, which is icky and bad.

Dinner is up in the air, but I've got a cup of minestrone in the fridge that I'm thinking about. Maybe some pesto penne & my minestrone will work.

Other than that, I'm off to another hectic day. Hope I don't get blown off track by the high winds! Hopefully the dayquil will ground my butt. hehe!

Take care! ~Lucy

Late showing from me today...things were nutso at work, and I popped in, but every time I tried to compose a post, I got otherwise distracted.

Weighed in this morning and had a nice loss. I'm sure some of it is water, and I know when we had company over, we ate like there was no tomorrow, so I was puffy and bloated, and really retaining water. Score one for eating right and getting that exercise in. I tell you, even when I have canned soup, I can tell- the stupid sodium puffs me up.

Food- excellent- breakfast was 2 small cran orange muffins (only 1 left, and I am sooo eyeing it), 1/2 cup of cranberry almond bran cereal, and water. Oh, and the diet coke on the drive. Lunch- leftover chicken, green beans, and brown rice from last night's dinner. Dinner, in a few minutes, is Honey Teriyaki glazed chicken, which will be out of the oven in about 5 minutes. Smells yum. it has chunks of pineapple baked in it, so instead of veggies, I'm going to go with some fresh fruit, and leftover brown rice.

Water- under so far today. Need to make up for it with dinner. 2 of 4 glasses down at work, so need 36 more before I call it a night.

Exercise- did the 1 mile WATP, so right on target. While watching House tonight, I might play with either the resistance bands, or hand weights. Bonus, if I do.

Spankie, Lucy, & Elisha- nice losses!

MsRD- Oh my gosh! I'm so glad that you're ok! I'll send plenty of positive vibes that the insurance company takes care of everything on this.

Julie- I'm glad you're getting into the groove, and that you got up & did your exercise! Way to go, girlfriend!

Patae- Sending you wishes for lost of success with your first day tomorrow. You can do it!

Lucy- I'm jealous- you have snow, and here it was 85 degrees yesterday. Today we were supposed to have a high of 73...and it's supposed to cool off to the "high 60s" tonight. I'll be quiet now before everyone smacks me!

Elisha- pierogies...you just made my mouth water. Yum! I could eat the entire box. Well, :blush: I think in the past I HAVE eaten an entire box, which would explain a lot, huh?

Ok chickies, hope everyone is having a good night!

Hi everyone!
I was talking to a friend tonight who made me realize the importance of following through and keepin on. I've been thinking about that lately anyway. Ya know...when you just don't feel like doing anything (for whatever reason) and then one day turns into another and you haven't done ANYTHING to improve yourself?. Well, if we have a good day one day (food & exercise) and then the next and then the next day...well pretty soon, the scale and our clothes start to show it, right? I guess I keep waiting for the scale and the clothes to instantly start to show the loss without any effort from me and with every excuse I can come up with! I just have to do it!

Tonight was ANOTHER one of those nights that I didn't feel like doing anything! I actually came home and changed into my workout clothes and then I made dinner, played a game with DD and vegged on the couch! I just didn't have the energy! But Ihave GOT to find it. I know I have it, it's just hidden somewhere (that's what my DD always says). I want to say that I will exercise in the morning. I do want to say that...and I do want to mean it! Darn it! If I could just do a walk around the neighborhood, it would be so much easier for me! The thought of either getting on an exercise bike at 6:30 am or walking briskly to Leslie at that time, just turns my stomach. Which is why I have been doing the toning routine! Just feels so much better to not have all that stimulation going on in my face that early in the morning!

I am also trying hard to stay away from the Sugar Monster. It rears it's ugyly face around 2-3 pm when all the goodies come out of hiding and the residents are snacking! I HATE it!!! I need to say NO to it!!! It's really very difficult for me and is my biggest obstacle right now! So much so that it is starting to depress me...and I do NOT like feeling that way! So instead of fighting with this stupid MONSTER, I am going to allow myself 150 calories to choose to do what I want with each day. If I want a cookie or some chocolate, I can have it! Dang it! I owe that suggestion to Jennifer, thank you! Maybe if I stop fighting with this ugly Monster, I can find some peace and use that energy toward something else! (like working out!)

I did weigh myself today and I am down one pound, so I get to finally change my ticker! Yea!!! I've worked hard for that! Doesn't seem like much, but this weight comes off very slowly for me!

My goal for next week is to be down to 179. I'd love to get back into the 170's again! And I am hoping that by the time we go to Disney in April, I can be down 15 lbs or so!! Maybe more? Who knows?! I'm thinking a size 14 would be a nice thing by then! I can only try!

So, tomorrow is a new day and I will start again...eating right, going to count my calories starting tomorrow (1100-1200) and drink lots of water and get my exercise in!

That's all for tonight! Thanks for letting me vent!

Morning chickies!

Quick post today, as I've got a meeting in a few minutes... surprise, surprise, eh?

Yesterday was ok. Food was fine, calories were around 1700 if I remember correctly, water could have been better but it wasn't nil. Exercise, however, was nil. We got home at 7:00 or so, I don't even remember what I had for dinner (something quick I grabbed out of the frig), I sat down on the couch, blinked, and BAM it was like 9:30. How does that happen?

I haven't been sleeping well at all this week (yeah, I know, another big surprise), and last night I actually woke up about every half hour thinking about the STUPIDEST things... gah! I just want to sleep! This energy thing I hear people talking about sounds really nice...

This morning I get up (late, I might add) and Steve has thrown off my entire morning routine. Oh, and I forgot to put coffee grounds in the coffee pot last night, so I came downstairs to a nice pot of hot water. *sigh*

And snow this morning, everywhere, and ice on the roads. What fun!

Oh yeah, and I forgot half of my lunch today. Uh-huh. I brought a can of Caffeine-free Diet Dr. Pepper, a wedge of Laughing Cow Light cheese, and a pear. I don't think that's going to last me until 6:00pm. *headdesk*

So, in summary, is it Friday yet?

And the BEST thing about my day today (can you feel the sarcasm here?)? At work, I'm working on French translations. I mean, yeah, I speak French, but when I'm obviously not in top form, I don't know if I really should be trying to copyedit a foreign language.

OK, I'll stop now and go to my meeting. Blah.

I hope you're all having a nicer day than I am.
Elisha

It was another one of those kinds of days- I even read, and made notes for what to post. thought I grabbed the right sticky note when I left, and instead, here I am with a user ID & password, and no shorthand note!

I just finished the 1 mile WATP, and it is getting slightly easier. I got to the 14 minute mark, right after the 2nd set of knee lifts with upper body stuff before I felt like I was going to collapse. I think I'm improving. I'm able to lift the knees a little higher. It's progress.

The day-
Food- breakfast was yogurt, and the last of the fat free cranberry orange muffins. Lunch- leftover honey glazed teriyaki chicken, and brown rice. Dinner tonight might be leftovers of that, or BBQ chicken. Not sure, but we'll have to decide in the next half hour or so.

Water- 3 out of 4 glasses gone. Left the 4th glass poured on my desk when I got called into a "quick meeting" at 3:15 and got out at 5 to 4, with enough time to shove things into a drawer and leave.

Exercise- the 1 mile WATP.

ELisha- I think I'd have turned around & gone back to bed. Hope that tomorrow isn't a repeat performance of this crapola. What's with the not sleeping right. too? Hubby says he hasn't slept through the night once in the last 10 days...and I'm waking up at bizarre hours. Up at 3, pee at 4, then at 5, I just want to go back for a few good hours. Bleah.

Julie- toning in the morning and cardio when you get home doesn't sound like a bad tradeoff to me. There's no way that I'm starting my day at 4am to do the WATP, or the bike, and try to get ready to leave here at 6am. No way. And I'm glad you liked the suggestion. This has to be doable, and sustainable. I'm going to be at the losing part for 2 years, give or take. If I say today I'm not having a piece of chocolate for 2 years, or not having a cookie, or scoop of ice cream, ever, I'd go nuts. It's all about the prepping, and planning for it. Make the room, don't go nuts, and it isn't going to be the end of the world. Secondly, your pound- that's 5 whole sticks of butter- think about that! That's no longer in your system.

Ok, running off to get the rest of the water I need to have in...Happy Hump night!

Hello Chickies!

Hi Chickies!

Yowser! When I finally make up my mind, things do happen! I have been doing so great this week! I have been gurgling water, food is OP, and I have 'graduated' to 30-minutes WATP! Hope all this work is reflected in the scale on Saturday!

Jennifer....what is it with the not sleeping craze around here? I went to bed last night, bone tired, and found myself staring at the ceiling at 3am!

Elisha....sounds like you had a challenging day! HOpe it is not repeated tomorrow.....or that you have the strength to deal with it anyway!

Julie.....Down one pound! Great job......and that does sound like a big deal, because I know how hard those pounds come off!

JKitty.....Down two pounds! Outstanding! Did you get your predicted snowstorm? You western states have really been socked with old man winter this year! Thanks to El Nino, we have had an extremely mild winter.....but that could change at any minute too!

Patae....what a good idea to take a little walk at lunchtime!

Spankie....Down two pounds! This group is starting to sound like a bunch of lightweights! Loved those dancing carrots!

Holy ***** I made it home in ONE PIECE!!

We've got about 5" of snow so far, and it's not going to stop anytime soon. I love the snow, but hate the poor idiots who cannot drive in it to save their lives. I, however, was taught my a master mechanic how to drive - or rather, how NOT to drive - in the snow.

My poor hubby, tho, is still about 3 hrs away judging from traffic. My 15-min drive took 1.5 hrs today. YUCK.

Food has been good. No exercise - yet. I may have to walk down our giant hill to rescue my poor hubby, which would be 3-4 miles in a half foot of snow in 28 degree weather. I call that a work-out! *lol*

Water hasn't been good, but I plan to fix that tonight. Mostly I just need to make sure the house & animals are secure from the cold (15 is the low for tonight), and make sure we're okay for firewood & whatnot, which is a workout in itself.

Jennifer - Trust me, you're totally not jealous. My moon roof is covered with 5" of snow right now, so if I open it, my car = filled with wet, rotting leather. EW!

Elisha - Seriously, chickie, today was just messed up all around, wasn't it?! And those meetings, I swear. Always at the worst time. I hope you get some sleep tonight! I know some great 'sleep forcing' tricks if you need 'em.

Julie - Lucky duck!!! I'm proud of you! NICE JOB on the goal for next week! I'm going to have to compete with you now. I want to be back in the 170's by April!!

MsRD - Yep - got that snowstorm and then some! Now if I could just feel my toes again...

Off I go - take care!!

Forgive me if I goof up, I'm new to this, but thought you guys had the right idea. It's not what you weigh but how you feel!

My "issues" are overweighing myself, at least 10 times a day -- so I think it's time to stop that - in the past I've actually had to throw my scales away to stop this.

I exercise at least 4 to 5 days a week at the gym, so I think that's a good thing I can keep up.

The snacking/binging on crap! My goal is to get out of that habit. Everyone on here seems so positive and I hope to have a lot of that rub off on me! I see a nutritionist and want to stick with her.

I wish you all the best of luck, it's a new year, even if you've already fallen off the wagon -- every hour is a new start!! Good luck to everyone -- we can do this (we have mastered so many other things in our lives, weight is just another challenge we can overcome!!)

I'm here! This is a fly by...I'm running late! Will check in tonight when I get home. Promise!

Yesterday, food was good. Water was ok...need to up it a bit! And exercise was ok...Julie's Yoga routine in the morning!

Today so far off to a good start! Hugs to all!

Good Morning, chickies. Happy Thursday. The weekend is almost here. Yippie.

Pretty decent morning so far...with the exception of 1 pain in the butt client who is going to be the death of me.

Dinner last night was a piece of the leftover honey teriyaki chicken. Only 1 left, which is part of lunch today. I was soooo full from lunch yesterday that there was no way I was going to be able to get 2 more cups of veggies down. I opted for 3 small slices (like playing card sized) of whole grain bread, toasted, with just a little butter.

Plan for today- already underway.
Food- Breakfast was 1 apple & cinnamon cottage double, and 2/3 cup of the whole grain cranberry almond cereal. Lunch is honey teryiaki chicken, 1 cup of baby carrots with sesame ginger dressing, and 1 braeburn apple. Dinner is a TBD, so I'll post that with my evening exercise.

Water- 2nd 18oz glass down, and 2 more to go.

Exercise- 1 mile WATP

Other- fold whites that are in the dryer, and clean off desk, write out bills.

MsRD- Wow! Great news & great focus there. I am sure that you are going to see the results of your hard work. The sleep thing- could our bodies actually be trying to expend energy it thinks we have, now that we're eating right, and moving? I can't explain it...I'm exhausted when I get into bed, and then in the wee hours, there's the pee break, and then there's always some bizarre hour that my body wants to be awake. Grr. Hubby slept through the night because of the cold last night- I had the windows open, and he was in his cocoon of blankets. Probably just couldn't get out of the bed to get up.

Lucy- did you end up having to rescue your hubby? 5"...ok, that's more than I'd want here, but I'd take a light dusting. Just enough to play in. Here in FL, people can't drive in the rain, so I could only imagine the chaos that would ensue when 97 year olds driving Buick Skylarks hit a snowy patch at 8 miles an hour.

Shelby- to the group! Make yourself right at home. This is a great, supportive group that I know I couldn't do this without. Hopefully we all rub off on each other. Glad to have you aboard with us.

Julie- Hello! Whizz- that was quite the fly by! Awesome getting your yoga in this morning. Kick butt, girl.

Off to finish up the mound of paper on my desk...here's to a hopefully FAST day ahead, and some free time tonight to just veg out.

It's just comforting seeing so many people are in the same boat. I went to my nutritionist this morning, I had lost 6 pounds when I checked in the day after Christmas but managed to gain 3 over the past two weeks. That's okay -- I have to remember I at least still stuck to the gym and my water during this time, so it could have been worse. It's better to start over than to give up, right? I hope everyone is having an amazingly good day today!!

That is the theme here today!

I'm so proud of all of us! I just read a quote today by Joe Namath. It goes:
If you aren't going to go all the way, why go at all?"

If that doesn't pertain to our journey and us being here (still after so long), I don't know what does? WE are going to go all the way, that's for sure! RIGHT????

OK...Today was good. Here's my HELP:

H=H2O (or Water)... ARound 60 oz. (sometimes it's hard to keep track because I take drinks from these little 4 oz cups at work and I had several today along with a big 20 oz water glass at work and some on the way to and from work along with the glass I am drinking right now plus the one I drank earlier...WOW, that was a big explanation to say that I drank enough water today!!!)

E=Exercise...Got in my Yoga this morning plus all the running around at work I did. I'm happy with what I did, but I do feel I NEED to do more starting next week

L=Lovin' Spoonfuls...Right on target today! Only a little extra sweetness with my fruit at lunch (some whip cream) and 2 Lattes (SF)!!! YEA ME!!!

P=Plan or Part of me (Affirmations)...My plan is to think about what I am eating on a more conscious level each day! I weighed myself (after lunch and before I peed) and I am down another 1/2 pound which I will take!!! Another pound and I will be in the 170's again!! I also put on a pair of pants that I wear often and they actually felt like they weren't so tight today! So that's a bonus! They are kind of stretchy (polyester) so it's hard to really tell, but there was a time when they didn't stretch at all at the waist. I'm looking forward to that day as well as the day I can no longer wear them because they will be TOO BIG for me!!

I have been envisioning myself thinner and trimmer and more fit. It's hard to do but every once in a while, I get really excited that *just maybe* I really can be in a size 14 by Spring Break and feel good about sitting around the pool at Disney in April! I haven't been in a size 14 in 20 years! Now that would be something to celebrate! I can do it, though! It would only be a matter of 20 lbs. Seems reasonable! I would SAY I would be happy just 10 lbs down by then, but really I would be MUCH happier 20 lbs down by then! It's 11 weeks away...that would really be pushing it with my metabolism, but maybe I can actually do it!!! About 2 lbs a week...that's a LOT! But then, this IS "The Biggest WINNER's" Challenge!!! If those people can lose 20 lbs in a month, I certainly can do it in 3 months!!! I'm feeling very motivated at the moment and hope that when 6am tomorrow rolls around, I will still be feeling this motivated!

OK...sorry for that rant, but thank you for listening!

Shelby...so glad you are here with us. Please feel free to post anytime you want and vent whenever you feel! And yes! You did awesome to continue to work out and drink your water through the holidays. I did a lot of drinking, but not the right kind!

Jennifer...Hope you enjoyed your vegging out time! I know I sure need that every night! Around here, a meal without interruptions would be nice....it's either the dog I am yelling at to lay down (the monster puppy) or Kaleigh is trying to climb into my lap or something! Ahhhhh! You are doing awesome...and I noticed that ticker !!!! GREAT JOB, Jennifer!!!!!

Lucy...How about that snow? ARe you snowed in? We are *supposed* to get a heavy snow fall (we have just a light dusting currently on the ground, but it's raining, so that will be gone by morning) on Sunday and then cold temps with Lake Effect snow all week. I am hoping to see a white ground when I wake up Monday MOrning!!! I miss the white stuff...It's Michigan for crying out loud...a Winter Wonderland! There are snow dances going on all over the state right now (strange) but I might join in! DD wants to hook up the puppy to a sled or learn to ski or go sledding...she LOVES winter!

MsRD...Hope that weigh in goes well on Saturday! You deserve it! 30 minutes! I'm so proud of you! You are kicking butt this week! Way to go!!!

OK...I've babbled long enough. Night all!

Morning chickies!

Sorry I went MIA yesterday... you know how it goes. Today's will be another speedy post, I'm afraid.

Shelby! We're glad to have you with us!

H20: Decent. Not quite where I'd like it to be, but still not bad. Will work on it more.

Exercise: Still nada. I've been lazy this week. Well, no, not really. I've just been doing other things, like taking down Christmas decorations and laundry and cleaning and so forth.

L... whatever: Not bad. I haven't been eating the greatest food (last night was pizza for dinner, and we're going out to lunch today), but I have been watching my portions. I've kept calories in the 1700-1800 range, so that's good for me at the moment. I still feel hungry a lot, so I think I just need to work my intake back down a bit rather than just going "cold turkey" and dropping to something like 1300 calories.

Plan: Next week I'm going to start lifting weights a few times a week, and once I get into that habit, I'll add cardio. I feel like I'm wussing out about that, but when I try to change too many things at once I get overwhelmed and nothing works, so I'm taking this step by step.

OK, so that about sums up my week, and now I really need to get going. Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
Elisha