Melody Welcome!I can relate to the large flappy arms bit. If I could have any type of surgery I would choose brachioplasty over my gut.

Sandys Hello.

Mnem I had a lovely brunch. I meet a group of 5 friends once per month and we have brunch and gab for about two hours. It is lovely to see them. I only talk to one of them more often then the once per month. We talk on the phone once a week and sometimes get together for a girls chat over coffee or a beer.
It is fun to celebrate holidays. I have not celebrated St. Patty's day for a couple of years. I used to go out and get drunk. lol

Cuter I live in Toronto.

Justwant Your new hair cut looks so good. You look younger with shorter hair.

It has been snowing all day here and we are having more snow on Thursday. I missed the pool today and yesterday. I had a job interview yesterday and today just did not get there. I have also had 3 days of really bad eating. Eating stuff I never usually eat like fried chicken. yuck I am trying to get back on track today with lots of veggies. But still not 100 % happy with food choices.

I had a white bun with pb and J and a banana for breakfast.
coffee with cream

omelette-3 eggs, tsp. sunflower oil, ounce of mozzarella cheese, mushrooms, garlic and tomato

2 ounces chocolate

Hoping to have fish for dinner, in foil in oven with lemon. Kale, tomatos and garlic.

Cup of tea. ????? If I have points I may have a cookie.

I am going to the pool tomorrow night and Friday morning. I can't go Thursday as I have a massage during pool time. I hope things get back to normal next week when my usual classes start up again.

I have an interview tonight. I am on a Board and we are re-interviewing people who were denied membership to our Co-op. I am going to prep for that now.

mnemosyne- I live in the Cincinnati area of Ohio, but the reason I say Ohio is I have literally spent times in all corners of the state. Born in Cleveland, Graduated High School in Columbus area, Lived in Lima, went to school in Athens and now I'm settled in the Cincinnati area.

Radiojane- Congrats to you, I can't even imagine that stage yet. Just know that even though you have a ways to go you are still a massive inspiration that this can be done!

MapleLeaf- Good for you on altering your skirt! Sewing isn't too bad, I do have a little experience, having made a couple of baby quilts/outfits.

To all those dealing with the snow- I wish we had some more down here in SW Ohio! We have had only 1 snow day in 2 years! We recently have had 30 degree swings in a matter of hours, it is driving my sinuses bonkers!


Today was a good day. I am making the commitment to eat something every day for breakfast, which for me is hard, because my stomach just doesn't like to have food in it at 5am. I also do not like getting out of bed, so I have been pre making my grape nuts and milk to stuff in my lunch bag to eat when I get to school.

My colleague today told me she really supports what I am doing, and for every 10 lbs. I lose she will take me out for a beer (or hard cider). Not exactly healthy, but I know I can't give up alcohol totally. (Not that I drink all that much).

Anywho, 5am comes early, and after Aquacise tonight I am beat.

Welcome Sandy and Melody.

Rosebud I love the new cut!

Mnem that is exactly why I am holding off. Today I am wearing a Kenneth Cole t-shirt I bought yesterday at costco... I bought XL and a friend questioned if I shouldn't have bought one of the two I bought in a large. May have to exchange it tomorrow.

Jane congrats on the half way point!

MapleLeaf you will be able to choose something from the menu I am sure... I've actually been scouting menus and finding perfect things on each one. *grin* Found a restaurant downtown Toronto with "healthy" options across the menu and it tastes amazing!

Pear! We need to do coffee, lunch, something!



I... hmmm... I'm in a tail spin of sorts.

I know I should be happy and most times I am happy but my head is truly a tad messed up because even though I am happy to be in smaller sizes I have hit my "happy" place and I am kind of kicking up a fuss inside because I... *looks around* Enjoy being the size I am right now.

I think the hardest part for me is the part where I feel like I am on my own in this. It is a huge part of why I have pulled back not once but twice from the forums when I got to the point I am at now or just above because it is so hard for ME to comprehend that I am happy with where I am at right now that it never occurred to me that others wouldn't want to smack some sense into me.

My end goals have always been on the curvaceous side of the equation. Today's sizing of a 10-14. I am literally only inches away from that in some spots.

My pinkie finger on my left hand is a 3 1/2, my ring finger a 5 1/2 on the same hand.

Maybe I do want my thighs to shrink a bit more, and I am looking forward to a breast reduction... but I am starting to feel "guilty" and "beating myself up" for not wanting to be "SKINNY"/"THIN". I've been to that **** and lived it and I don't know that I really want to go there again.

I had my surgery knowing I felt this way. I spent months wrapping my head around it and most of the time I am pretty chilled out about it but in truth... I am having more and more of these "but I like the size I am now" moments... Not to mention the "do I adjust my goals because I am under 5 inches from my original goal measurements" moments.

I don't feel I can express this in my support groups I go to for my surgery, or the forum I am on for it. I don't really know any place else I can just say it all like this so... Hopefully no one will want to smack me too hard for not really wanting to be below a certain point.

Shell

sandy - good job with day 2! Hah, I didn't know that you had snow days in places like Maine, it must be a serious snowstorm to keep you guys home. Ooh, well. Good that you have something handsy to do. I DO think that the mental urge can be tamed. It takes, like, 21 days to make a habit, I've read. Good luck with it!

Jane CONGRATS on being half-way there. That is seriously awesome. I hope the birthday dinner went well!

MapleLeaf - so glad you managed to alter the skirt! Maybe you can wear it to your wife's birthday celebration this weekend. I think those sewing skills will continue to come in handy for you.

Good luck at the conference and with the birthday dinner! When I travel I try to bring food for myself too, so that I can weigh options and KNOW that I have raw veggies or... something, for myself.

And to both of you, I feel the same way. Like I was living in a state of denial, but I'm curiously okay with it right now as I have woken up. I had other things going on during those years, and the denial doesn't actually surprise me, as much as the fact that I actually got it under control and have progressed so far.

pluckypear - that sounds like a lovely tradition! Hah, yes. I would celebrate St. Patrick's Day by getting drunk, maybe, except I have to drive home. So one beer with dinner is my limit.

Ooh, good luck with the job interviews, too! I have had those days of bad eating, hopefully you are feeling better about your choices today.

Melody - I live in Huntington, WV, so we are about 3 hours apart! I really love the Athens area and was planning a day-to-weekend trip over Easter to go to some of the places in the Hocking Hills, like Old Man's Cave, et cetera. However, I have to volunteer that Saturday and may not go. WE will see. And I go to Cincinnati at least once or twice a year, usually during the summer, to go to the Cincinnati opera. Always make a point of stopping at Jungle Jim's.

I don't usually eat my breakfast until later in the morning, and even then on work-days I tend to 'graze' it. Awesome that your colleague is taking you out for a beer for every 10 lbs. I enjoy good beer to, and have not given up alcohol entirely, either. It's just, I usually have 1 beer a week, or 1 glass of wine, rather than more.

Cuter - I won't beat you up for your goals. Personally, I have a hard time imagining BEING a size 14, and it would be a real accomplishment for me. I know I'll never be a 2 or a 4 (well, am pretty sure on that point), and my primary goal is to get down so that I am 'merely' overweight rather than obese. It is more about long-term health than about how I look. And I would say you shouldn't worry about size so much as your long-term health. I think you are pretty young? And if you like being on the 'curvy' side of things, I would say maybe look at a 'goal' in the BMI range for overweight rather than obese (not worrying about 'normal') and focus on fitness. Maybe try lifting weights, et cetera, to help you keep your size and firm your shape?

Mnem *big hugs*

I am actually a "mesomorph" (not a commonly used/known term) and build muscle exponentially. Even light weights builds it like mad so I've been focusing on walking, swimming, etc.

I focus on size rather than weight and BMI because I tend to not have weight that is typical of my size.

I was 185lbs. Would buy size 10 pants and have the waist altered to a size 6. I was a 43 inch bust (34 inch ribs) - 25/26 inch waist - 36 inch hips and 26 inch thighs. I wasn't happy at that size. I wasn't happy with the way I was treated, the way I felt, etc. so I started to get into weight training. Built a ton of muscle on top of what I already had. Got sick and put fat on over it... And VOILA! Yet I don't want to be a size 6 waist again.

For the long term health... outside of getting a breast reduction... I am good. It truly is the only health issue I have (who knew bewbs could become a health issue?). The size and weight caused a reduced functional reserve capacity in my lungs. So if I sit wrong, or lay wrong... It literally takes my breath away... And the reduced FRC means that I have 3 1/2 minutes of oxygen if something happens instead of the 4-5 minutes most people have.

I wouldn't mind thinner thighs, and a bust that isn't forcing me to shop for larger sizes. I like the look of me in a 12-14. I could live with a size 10... but I am really getting to the point of being nervous because I am dropping sizes too fast. Well ok... maybe not too fast but faster then I expected and I am not sure I am ok with that.

At the end of the day... with my height and body type I don't even care if I am 250lbs if I am a size 12. I have made jokes about it but it is entirely possible as that happened before.

It will all work out to where it is suppose to be...

And thank you Mnem. *big hugs*

You have no idea how much your reply helped.

You guys all have awesome goals as far as I'm concerned. If I can get to and maintain 199 pounds, I'll be thrilled, but I'd be willing to bet that my "happy medium" is going to be around 230. I'm BIG. I'm six feet tall, and I can feel my ribs right below my bust already, and I'm measuring 50 inches there right now. I was 215 in high school at 16, and that's the smallest I was.

Right now I can pull off some 2X tops - generally from Penningtons, they size higher, but my bust has got to go before I get any lower, and it's not showing any sign of leaving. Even my band size has stuck for the last couple months. I have a feeling a reduction is in my future; which I have mixed feelings about now (being so heavy for so long they were what I considered my ONLY asset), but I'm sure I'll want them gone when I'm closer to goal.

The birthday dinner was postponed because we had a brown out in our Condo and I couldn't cook it on time, so friends are coming next week and we had a late late dinner yesterday.

Hey everyone

I had a good day yesterday, even started tracking on sparkpeople.com again with my food journal. My blood sugars have been awesome! It was up a little this morning? Not sure why? But when I got home from work today it was 104. So, all is good. Today has been an awesome day food wise too, just a few more hours till bed and I will have day 3 under my belt.

Pluckybear: Hope you had a good day today. Hope the interview went well and the pool time was not only full of nice exercise but relaxing as well.

MelodyMarch: Hope your day went well. Breakfast used to be a challenge for me, and then I went the other extreme and have lived on Dunkin Donuts or McDonalds breakfasts Monday through Friday forever. Just dropping that this week should show a loss. Today my daughter had a 2 hour delay so I had time to cook at home and made myself a 2 small egg omelet with 1 slice of provolone and salsa, no toast or anything. I just have to learn to make time again to cook breakfast at home. When I lost a lot of weight before I used to cook scrambled eggs with veggies and put them in a reusable dish and toss on some shredded cheese and then heat it back up at work when I felt hungry around 9am.

Shell: I think if you think you look good, then that is what is important. You know your body the best. A breast reduction of course will take off more pounds too. I have a family friend and "wow" she had one and once she had it, you could really see how skinny she was under all that boobage. She looks awesome and feels great!

mnemosyne: I work in home health so we have road staff that drive rural areas, we were due for a 12-18" storm...so we don't put anyone in danger. So, we don't have built in snow days, just happy when one comes along. Like today...my daughter had a 2 hour delay due to roads...therefore I got a 2 hour delay which allowed for the roads to be a little clearer when I headed out. Today is day 3 with no real sugar either...figure that urge should be kicking in any day now but gonna try to fight it off with sugar free jello snacks.

Radiojane: Way to go Doing the happy dance with you!!!

Jane... I wish you were closer. I have so many things that would fit your bust measurement. That said... They have a Kenneth Cole Unlimited t-shirt at costco that goes to a 2xl and my bust fits an xl (I can get the rest of me down to a large).

I hear you on best asset... I've just had a while to wrap my head around going for one.

Sandy I am actually looking forward to finding out how much they take off when I get to have it done. *grin*

Good for you having had a good day! That is awesome!

Cuter - I'm glad my reply helped! Personally, I have no idea what my goal really is. It is definitely below 200, but I am quite short and need to get down into the 170s to get from OBESE to OVERWEIGHT by the charts. And I think that might be my ultimate goal. I will wait and see then. I understand how you feel, though.

Jane - I am sure you will see progress in different areas as time goes by. I have found that my bust has gone down, but that the cup sizes go down proportionately too? We are close to the same bust size, though. I believe! And it seemed like mine was the same for a while, but now I'm finding my size 40 bras are a bit loose and my underbust measurement is consistently 39. That means REALLY there are fewer inches to lose there, so we will likely lose more slowly.

sandy - oh, wow. That was a big storm! I hope everything went well and you weren't too hard-hit. I don't really have a problem with sugar myself (and eat it occasionally), but sugar free jello is one of the things I do for it. I mix it with berries for more substance. I'm not sure how berries would impact your blood sugar? But it makes the jello seem better to me.

I was out really late last night and am tired today, but not too tired since I managed to get up and work out. It is persistently cold even down here, though. The thermostat in my office says it is 75 in here, but I am wearing a dress, a jacket, and a shawl and still am cold. Calorie deficit will do that to you, I guess, but SPRING PLEASE SPRING THANKS.

Good morning from chilly Maine, it's 16 this morning. Brrrrr. Hubby has to leave soon to go get our taxes done...hope we make out good.

TGIF at work. Some weeks are harder than others. I am so far behind on annual reviews that I got a bad girl note from our HR department....so that is on my agenda today...get them done and make all the appointments to review them with staff.

The peek at the scale says I am down 6 lbs this morning since Monday. I'll take it! Sugar was 167 this morning? I think it's because I had popcorn before bed...a huge carb....my bad.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Friday....bring on the weekend.

I continue to be amazed at how much joy I get from getting on the scale and seeing it go down. Right now I have a pot load of medical tests and doctors that I will be seeing over the next few weeks to get this a fib under control, but my focus is on keeping on the diet. I'm down 9 pounds this week although a bunch of that was water weight. Actually for the month, I've lost 4 pounds since I had that little slip along the way.

Does anyone else do that? Mentally I think of each month as a new beginning since my goal is to lose 10 pounds a month. So far I've been able to do that, but then I let myself slip because I figure I have 4 weeks to get the next 10 off. I'm going to make it a goal for April to try to lose steadily instead of gain/lose as a pattern!

I do that too Betsey, especially with months like last month and now, if I have a lot of slips, I look forward to the new beginning, but I don't quit and wait for the first of the month anymore. I used to use it as an excuse to cheat a lot.

Work has been **** this week, and I have to work a promotion tomorrow. I'm going out with the other bridesmaids tonight to plan my SIL's staggette, it will be a nice break, they're great girls.

sandy - it is in the 20s here and I am freezing. 16 would probably kill me. I cannot deal with the cold this year. Good luck getting through your reviews and good job getting your taxes done! I actually do taxes as a volunteer for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, but haven't done mine yet. Haha, I need to sort through my itemized deductions. Which, ugh. Need to get that done, soon. It's just I spend every Saturday volunteering! Have my fingers crossed for a good 'official' weigh-in for you, too!

betsy - I haven't been losing quite 10 pounds a month lately, so I don't REALLY do that anymore. I was losing nearly 10 pounds a month for a while, though, so I totally get it. I also am overjoyed (AND ASTONISHED) every time I get on the scale, and I feel such a sense of empowerment when I workout and see good numbers.

Sorry you are going through such a hard time with medical tests, and am so glad you were able to get on the scale and see progress today to encourage you.

Oh, actually though, instead of the first of the month like you and Jane, I look forward to the end of my cycle? It sort of coincides a bit with month's end, but that's when I feel like I'm back to a new low and am starting anew. Hah.

Jane - I hope your weekend is better than your week!

Mnem I understand completely about wanting to be under 200. It is why I set my weight goal as 190...

I think part of my issue is that I am feeling like I do not have "control" over how much, how fast, etc. because I was kidding myself thinking it would go... Slower.

I spilled my guts last night at a support group meeting about how I was feeling, and there was actually someone a number of years out who has chosen to stop at a size 18-20 (she lost half her size) who was nodding in agreement with me as I voiced my issue. I honestly don't know if I could have done that if I had not spoken up here, and got the response you gave Mnem!



Sandy I am with Mnem... Not dealing with cold well. *chuckle* Hope your work day turned out ok and you got caught up a bit.

Betsy I would lose to the point that I fit into the size I wanted and then put myself into "maintenance" mode followed by "do whatever the crapity smack I want" mode. So I didn't think in terms of months but if I was trying to lose at least x amount... I would stop and never reach for further if that makes sense... At the same time I am a "pick myself up and dust myself off after a rough day" kind of girl so I would go off plan for a day or two and then back on it.

Jane sounds like your weekend should be better...

The conference is over! My presentation went well, I received a lot of great feedback, and I survived several days of being surrounded by buffets of food.

Annnd I lost three lbs this week. So I am pretty proud of myself!

I was actually surprised how little the food tempted me. Last year, this same conference was a real struggle. It's held at a fancy resort and the food is excellent. There's just all-you-can-eat spreads of food everywhere- all three meals and then "snacks" throughout the days, which are usually platters of cookies/brownies or cheese and crackers. But I'd prepared my own food in advance and made sure I was eating well on my own and then just supplemented with fresh fruit and veggies from the buffets. I can't believe what a difference it was from last year, when I pretty much stuffed my face non-stop.

And you know what? I really enjoyed myself more this time. I feel like I got a lot more out of the experience now that my focus was off food. I made some great contacts and felt more engaged in everything going on, not like I was just wondering through a food haze. I'm just really happy with how it went.