Ladies,
Update: Weight-down 2 lbs. YAY! Food: Not bad.
Last night we went to dinner with friends-Steak 'N Shake. While everyone ate burgers and fries and 3 had milkshakes, I ate my Apple Walnut Salad with fat-free Rasp. Vin. and water. Not sure what the actual calorie count was, but I'm sure it was well within range and I was proud of myself. Then I woke up this morning and found Mom had made Belgian Waffles (one of my faves), but I bypassed them and made low sugar oatmeal and had a banana.
I looked up Calorie-count.com and it said I should eat 1315 cals. a day, so I'm going to aim for that and see what happens.

Kelly-I think you may be right, but why is it just the 2 of us? It's not fair. Congrats on your January goal. I am sure you will be at your final goal when I see you in July!!! I am shooting for the 190s at that time.

Mindy- I know you're frustrated, but you can do it.

Techno- Welcome, I am new to this, too. (2 weeks) So, we're all in this together.

SCraver- I'm glad you're feeling better.

Susie-Good job on avoiding the comfort eating. I applaud you on that one!

Ward- Thanks for the info on the 80%/20%. I hope the B-day party went well.

Until tomorrow....
Angela

Hi Ladies-So my plan this morning was to get up and get that workout in. I didn't do it in the morning but I just finished it. My hubby did it with me and do you know what he said "You are in better shape than I am", he does not have a weight problem but he does need to get more fit.

I did my WATP dvd and then the Biggest Loser 10 min abs (that is what killed him!) I felt my enegry level come up and I'm feeling good about myself.

Is anyone watching the Grammy's tonight? I can't wait! I'm watching the Red Carpet....so glamorus! It reminds me that I have two summer weddings in June that I am attending and I have a couple of dresses I would like to wear to them...got to work hard now to get there then!

Ward: Upper body looking cut..YOU GO GIRL! Also I love what you said "I don't want to have any regrets in the morning" that is going in my journal and will become my mantra. I hope you don't mind me borrowing it.

Angela: Congrats on the loss!

Mindy, Kelly, SCarver, Techno: I hope you have all enjoyed your Sunday and I'm looking forward to seeing your posts.

Hey! I just came in to see what's poppin'! It looks like everyone is doing great! Keep up the good work!

I wanted to let you all know that I did great this weekend. I'm very proud of myself. -Pats self on back-

I didn't budge an inch, and it was very hard with the boyfriend around, I absolutely love having meals with him.

I even cooked tacos for the household, and broiled my own chicken while doing so. It didn't exactly come out at the same time, but, I still enjoyed sitting with everyone while they ate.

My early birthday party at my dad's was today, and I did great there, too. No one pestered me to eat any of the extras. Not even a piece of cake. It was great.

That's about all, nothing too exciting.

Hi!

I had the day from **** yesterday and I didn't get off work until 7:00 p.m. so I didn't make it to the gym. That will not happen tonight..I have my workout bag with me and I'm leaving at 4:30 to make my 5:30 class!

I'll be watching Biggest Loser tonight..is anyone else. You know how on that show they will tell you to chew gum if you are having an issue with a craving...well..it works..I did this about 10 a.m today and after 15 min the craving went away and I could deal with it.

It's lunch time and I'm eating my healthy lunch (boiled potatoes, green beans, beets, cottage cheese and grapes)--for those of you who don't know it, I'm a vegitarian.

Have a good day everyone!

Techno: I'm proud of you too!

I am kind of depressed about by current weight today. I can't seem to lose anything this week, and I know I am very close to my goal weight, but it is still frustrating! I am the kind that if I don't get immediate results I give up and eat. I, however, did not give in to the temptation of eating everything in sight, because I am determined. I just can't seem to lose unless I eat less than 1200 calories per day, and work out every day. In my life, that just doesn't always work. So, I will press on, doing everything I can when I can.

See you all tomorrow!

I haven't been here in ages it seems. TOM was 5 days late....YIKES!!! It brought about 5 pounds with it...183.8. I am frustrated as **** and don't know what to say. I am still eating 1600 cals/day. I promised to try it for an entire month. All I can think to do now is up workout time. Maybe I need a min. of 45-60 min/day. I just seriously don't know what to do.

Angela - THAT IS AWESOME! I know how hard it is to bypass the "bad" stuff and eat something healthy! And you did it not once, but twice!!

Susie - It sounds like your work outs are going well!

Techno - It sounds like you are doing amazing, too! My mom likes to say that eating with friends and family is about enjoying each others company - and not about over eating. I always feel extra good when I can eat healthfully around friends and family without over-indulging!

Kelly - I have heard it is the last little bit that it hardest to lose (I plan to find out first hand!) How about trying to up your fiber intake? The nutritionist I saw said fiber is great for weight loss. More veggies?

Mindy - I think TOM is the worst. There are times when I feel like I could each and each and never feel full. And even when I do eat right, I think it is nearly impossible to lose weight for those 4 (give or take) days. This, too shall pass (only to come again next month! Lol!)


I am doing good... I lost a few lbs with the stomach bug and managed not to gain all of them back. I am down to 222. I had my fat % measured at the gym yesterday and that is down 1.2% from November. (whoo hoo! It is going in the right direction) and the trainer at the gym has given me new exercises to do for the next six weeks. She gave me 6 this time instead of 8. And wants me to focus on getting in all three sets. I am going to be in my sister's weddig in October and I am hoping to be down to 210 b/f I need to buy my dress. Then, when the time comes, I am hoping to have to have the dress taken in another size! We shall see!!

Eating is on track. I need to focus harder on getting in more veggies. I have been sticking to the right calories - but I have been eating crap like Lean Pockets a little more than a should. I am going to go to Big Y tomorrow and stock up on chicken. It is buy 1 get 2 free. (with bones) then I am going to use the bones to do my own chicken broth and make my own soups! (whoo hoo - no MSG!)

Hey ladies,
I know, I haven't written in a few days. Not much to say, I guess. I've been going up and down a pound or two. I was at 222 this morning. It would be nice to get out of the 220s. I've been having knee pains for a couple of days, which is weird, since I haven't really been working out. I don't know if I should try to work through it or wait until it goes away.
I found a BL Quick Start Program last night and for $5, I had to get it. It came with a journal full of food and exercise info plus lots of workbook pages to fill in, a meal and exercise planner, 30 minute workout mix CD, recipe book, and a measuring tape. I'm anxious to start using it. I found it at Big Lots, so those beginners like me, if you have one nearby, you might want to check for it.
Anyway, everyone keep up the good work and have a great day!
Until tomorrow....
Angela

Hi Ladies,
I had a great workout last night. I walked on the track for 30 min and then I did an hour of yoga with my favorite instructor. I always feel so much better after yoga.

I finally got to watch the end of BL last night. I found it interesting that John wasn't doing well until he found the type of workout that worked for him. It was interesting to me because I thought to myself, how many times have I (and others) pushed ourselfs into a "one size fits all" weight-loss plan. We truly do need to look at this as a journey, one where we keep moving down the road toward or destination and be open to detours and different routes to get there.

I will have to do personals later but I wanted to stop in and give and get a little motivation. You all are the BEST!

YES! Yes! YES! I always found, if I was trying a new "diet" where I had to go out and buy "weird" foods I don't normally eat or do exercises that are torture... it wasn't something I would stick with. Don't get me wrong - trying new foods is good - but you have to eat things that you like, that you are going to cook, that are easy to buy, etc. You have to do exercises that at least make you feel good when you are done with them.

I sat with the trainer at the gym to go over my nutrition one day and she gave me a hard time about my serving of goldfish (yes, I counted out all 55 of them). She said they are sinple carbs and to think of them like candy. Well... I like my 55 goldfish on occassion (along with a string cheese or cottage cheese for protein). And I know I can fit 55 goldfish into my calroies/carbs for the day if I want them and still lose weight...

BUT those 180/190 calorie frosted sugar cookies that BJ's and Stop & Shop carries... I know I CAN'T eat those. I CAN'T easily fit them into my calorie/carb range for the day... And I am OK skipping out on those. (Like I did this past weekend)

I think it is all about trial and error - figuring out what works and what doesn't work for you.

Scraver- I have resumed reading Jillian's book and she says there are certain things we must eliminate from our diets. #1- partially hydrogenated oils. That sucks. It is in everything. Probably your goldfish, my teddy grahams (boo hoo), granola bars, crackers, chips, just about everything. I am going to hunt today while shopping for alternatives without the junk in it.

#2 on her list- High fructose corn syrup. Again... it's in everything. I think I am going to takle #1 first, then when I get "stronger", try #2. It means really giving up some things we really love. And those cookies....around here they are called lofthouse, sugar cookies with icing. LOVE THEM!!! They are definetely a once in a while treat.

Went to a work party last night. I didn't eat dinner so I had room to munch. Didn't eat that much actually. I made up for it with drinks and shots. It was fun. Scale went from 183.6 to 181.2. HHMM!!! Should I do that more often? Probably not. It is just the TOM 5 pounds leaving my body.

Hello--I have been out of commison for a few days. I caught that stomach bug....started feeling badly on Saturday morning and by 5:00 p.m. I was in the ER. I had been getting sick about every 30 minutes and couldn't keep anything down.

I felt better yesterday but slept a lot--I am staying home from work today to give myself one more day to recover. I really haven't eaten much of anything yet and smells are very strong to me. Also, my husband woke up around 4 this morning and it looks like he has the same thing! As sick as I was I know I wouldn't have wanted to be home alone and so I'm stayning home to be with him as well.

Just wanted to pop in and see what all was going on.

Mindy: You amaze me at how you keep looking and working for your solution to get you to your goals...never give up...you will get there!

SCraver: I think the gold fish are a GREAT choice over those sugar cookies!

Mindy - yup... I have been trying to cut out the partially hydrogenated oils (along with the hydrogenated oils... also known as trans fats). It is suprising how much stuff has them in it.
I have also been working on getting the HFCS out of my diet. (stonyfield and chobani yogarts are best for yogart) It's in everything from sodas to soups.

I have just started on MSG and trying to get that out of my diet... I made my own chicken stock this weekend... Lol! It was my first attempt. Next time I will either use double the chicken parts or half the water. It came out pretty lame. (At least there's no MSG!) I am hoping once I use it to make soup and add veggies, etc. it will be fine? I guess I am used to the sodium over load from the canned stuff.

Susie: that REALLY stinks about the stomach bug. There is nothing I hate more than being naseous.

Saturday night I decided to replace my lunch and dinner with Spring time Oreos and Cheddar Pretzel Combos. It was a tasty dinner and I didn't feel guilty at all. I just needed a bit of a break to be bad, but now I am back to being "good". I cooked a bunch of chicken yesterday and I will divide it up and freeze it in meals to grab when I don't have time to cook. (Making my own frozen dinners!) Better than Lean pockets, Lean Cuisines and frozen pizzas!!

Yesterday, I went to a friends house for the SuperBowl. We had Steak, Sweet Potatoes and Broccolli for dinner and a small portion of dessert. Healthiest SuperBowl EVER. It was great!

Hey Ladies,
Sorry I haven't been on in a few days. It's been a little crazy. My brother has been in town, so we've been eating out and having big family dinners. Friday was Red Robin (Gourmet Burgers) for dinner, Saturday was the local Seafood Festival, Sunday, Super Bowl Party, and tonight is his last meal at home-a big turkey dinner. I have been a little lax on keeping track of everything, because some were just too hard to figure out, but I've been pretty good about portion control and my weight hasn't changed much, luckily. It just goes back and forth between 220 and 222. I was afraid I would gain everything back. That didn't happen, so I can't complain. Just have to get back on the wagon tomorrow.
As for everyone else, I don't see a lot of posts this week, so maybe everyone's in the same boat? Well, good luck to everyone and I'll "talk" to you soon.
Angela

I don't think it is every going to stop snowing! I'm tired of winter...but complaining about it won't change it.

I went to work today. It was a very quiet day. Most people were out because we had 8 inches of snow overnight (on top of 8 inches that happened on Friday) we are to get another 4-5 tonight.

I shoveled snow for an hour when I came home. DH usually shovels it but he is just getting over from being sick. I don't plan on shoveling again. It sent me into an IC (Intersistial Cysitis) flare! I'm in a lot of pain right now and trying to get it calmed down. It will be gentle walks for me the rest of the week.

My food is light--don't feel like eating much of anything right now except jello and soup.

Angela: Yes, get back on the wagon right now! Don't wait one more day!
SCarver: I'm impressed with your Super Bowl party menu! Great job!
Where is everyone?