152.8 this morning. I'm making really good progress right now and I'm kind of afraid that the end of the progress is coming soon. My 14 day free trial with Noom is coming to a close but based on my progress so far I think I'm going to go ahead and pay them for the 4 month plan they offered (basically when you sign up you say where you want to end up, and they give you some options like a general monthly cost, or a cost/month for a time period that they think will allow you to reach your goal -- in my case, 4 months).

Today's tip from Noom was to figure out how to combine things you want to do with things you need to do to lose weight. For example, getting an audiobook and only allowing yourself to listen to it when you're working out. It's a good idea but I'll have to think about how I can do that, when the things I want to do are usually "eat yummy food." Like it's all well and good to know that a baked potato is healthier than fries when looking at a restaurant menu, but why would I go to a restaurant just to get a baked potato? If I'm going to bother going out to eat I want to eat something yummy that I wouldn't make myself at home. (I realize this is why I'm 20lbs more than what I want to be...)

I saw Mark Rylance on Broadway in "Jerusalem" in 2010 and have now checked in with him again in "Farinelli and the King." He's quite funny, with a brilliant dry wit, and very different from Cromwell in "Wolf Hall," which I also loved. His character in the two plays was very different as well, but he was distinctly himself, with the same outsized presence.

The other thing about "Farinelli" is that I got to hear a really fine counter-tenor singing Handel arias at intervals with traditional accompaniment. The setting was also gorgeous, very much a Spanish baroque palace with candlelit chandeliers and dark mirrors.

Jessica, I would almost always rather have a baked potato out than try to deal with it at home.

In my case it's not the choice between fries and baked... it's choosing potato, period!

I don't think I've ever made fries at home from fresh potatoes. I've heated up the frozen ones on cookie sheets and I've made fresh oven baked wedges but never fries.

Dagmar

I've made my own fries before. And shaved, fried chips. I try not to make them now.

I'm staying with my grandmother for a couple of days while my grandfather is in the hospital, she can't be left alone and y mom is staying at the hospital. It is going to make my steps lower than normal. And my stress higher than normal.

Take care of yourself, Shannon! I hope your grandfather is doing ok. It's cool that you still have grandparents! I haven't had any since I was 19...

I only ever met one of mine - my mother's mother. I didn't even know the names of my dad's parents 'til after he died and I never saw any photos of them. Same with my dad's 3 siblings.

Dagmar

I am very lucky with my grandparents. My paternal grandmother died when I was 25, came to my first wedding. Paternal grandfather when I was 33, officiated at that first wedding. These are my mother's parents - she is 84 and he just turned 86. My great grandmother on this side died the year after I graduated from college. I have no memory of life without a grandparent in it, and these two pretty much raised me my first few years. Mom and dad were young parents and worked a lot of hours, so I spent 0-3 with the grandparents as much as them. My grandmother has dementia, so it has been a tough few days.

Prepping for back to work on Monday. SIGH.

Dagmar

Thursday morning at 161.1.

I left work around 6 PM last night, and instead of going online after I got home, I read a book in bed for a while. Maybe that helped me this morning, as I woke up feeling less stressed than usual. Oh, who am I kidding? It's because a confrontational meeting that I'd expected to present at got canceled until next week. It was back-to-back with the kickoff of a pilot program where I have to present, so it now seems like a much easier day.

I'm like you, Dagmar. I knew my grandmother and she died when I was 19. She had a husband (her 3rd) that I considered Grandpa but he died when I was 12. Both of my dad's parents died before I was born.

Shannon--- your parents must have been young. I'm sorry you are dealing with your grandparents declining health. That is hard. My only living relative is my uncle (my mom's younger brother). He just turned 87 and is in miserable health-- physically and mentally but keeps kicking. I called him on his birthday and he said he never thought he'd live this long. He sounded so sad. I hope that I can stay healthy and happy (at least relatively) at his age. He has a much younger wife who is having to care for him and that is taxing for both of them.

152.8 again today, third day in a row. I'm past the free trial and into week three with Noom. Going well so far though I can tell my motivation is waning some. Last night I was feeling like I wanted a snack so instead I went upstairs early to avoid temptation and I think it worked pretty well. It's frustrating sometimes to know that now that I'm older, I need to eat 1200 cals or less every day to lose weight whereas when I was at this same weight at age 21 I could lose weight on 1600, with the same amount of exercise.

The other day it was nice and warm outside. It was raining at lunch, so I did the stationary bike, but then it cleared up later so I went and walked a mile, then when I got home from work it was still nice so we went for a walk with the kids (DD2 happily said, "family walk!!!" which I think means we need to do more family walks). Then of course the next morning I woke up with my plantar fasciitis freaking out. Sigh. Did some stretches, stationary bike again today, and hopefully it'll stop hurting in another day or two and I can start walking or running more again. I guess my feet are just not used to that much walking, which shows how much of a slacker I've been the past six months or so.

I'm using the "combine something you have to do with something you want to do" to play video games on my phone while I'm on the stationary bike. It ends up being less intense of a workout, but I think I'm more likely to actually do it.

Shannon, sorry your grandparents are in rough shape. I'm also in the group of no more surviving grandparents -- one grandfather passed when I was 4, the other when I was in high school, one grandmother when I was in college, and the last one when I was about 26 (and she was 96 years old).

Do any of you repeatedly have to sign in to the forum? I didn't but now something has changed. I ticked the "remember me" box but that didn't work.

Dagmar

No, I don't but I think I saw a comment about it the other day. Yes, under Announcements, it's entitled 'Question'.

Michele You asked the mods about the repeated sign ins? Could you please LMK what they say and how to resolve it? Thanks!

Dagmar