Hang in there. One pound is one pound in the right direction!! I lose very slowly with weight, but I feel smaller, so that is good. One day you will wake up and your pants will be loose! I have the same sodium issue you do too. i try to just use the Mrs. Dash (tried 'em all!) but I don't like them. I use sea salt recommended by the center and a DASH of Lawry's. I know it has a tone of sodium, but at least it is still better than I used to do. The low sodium/no sodium taco seasoning and chili seasoning are really good. They are naturally salty tasting. See if that helps.

Congratulations on the loss! I understand being a little disappointed at WI but you are still going in the right direction so keep up the good work. It will come.

I also am a salt-aholic or maybe a reforming one. I loved my salty snacks. I've switched to sea salt which seems to do the trick and even started cutting that out and use it only if absolutely necessary. I think it's helping. I actually ate something the other day that tasted too salty. That is a first for me!

Thanks for the "pocket girlfriend" comment also. As for size 2..UGH! I bet you were probably 13 or 14 and you went from the 7/14 sizes to the "mens" sizes. Or maybe when you were 2 years old and you were in a 2T.

I know what you mean about Goodwill. I've taken so much there (and bought stuff too) and most of it was nice stuff. Too bad it's not stuff you could take in, but it'd be hard to take in 50 lbs worth of sizing.

Thank you Meemo. I thought they did, but seriously never thought I'd need to check! I know I'll have fun searching but after a while it gets old. Once I get to my true goal (probably 115, but not sure yet) I'll be searching for some places to be my "regular" stores again.

They sell that Hoodia @ Sam's in a 2 pack for about $14. I'm not sure what the Target price is (was just there today, yesterday AND Sunday, UGH!). Glad to hear the pharmacist recommended it though b/c I have some and will start taking it regularly now. Did they say what time to take it or to just follow the bottle directions?

Rocki If you're in Central Park...be sure to go to the "Boathouse"...it's beautiful. Pretty pricey...so we try to sit on the patio and have drinks and hors' dourves! It really is a great "memory maker" with the water and the boats floating around. Get there around brunch time so that you don't have to wait!

My WI today was GREAT. Down 2.5 since Thursday. I'm hoping to have the other 2 lbs off by Wednesday b/c I know I'll be cheating in NYC. We already have plans for Chinese Dim Sum for brunch on Friday and Little Italy for lunch later in the day (after I do my purse shopping on Canal street).

Congrats Rocki!!! I'd LOVE to be a size 2 - don't think I ever have been. But, I totally get your frustration about the vanity sizing - I'd rather be an honest size 6 than a vanity 2.



Awesome 2 lb loss over the weekend!

KC - I think the inches might be my favorite part. They measured me for the first time since I started last Friday and I was down 21 inches. I was blown away! The pounds are nice but I think the inches are way cool too!

Great job recovering from your weekend - you obviously made some great choices in there and managed to hold your own.

I totally think it's possible - when I started (the start date on my contract is 9/1, although I'm on Day 16 currently) my center told me I could lose 37.5 lbs. by 12/22. When in December is your birthday? Mine is the 10th. I'd be ecstatic if I lost 30 lbs by my birthday! Want to work together to see if we can both hit that goal before our birthdays?

A pound lost is a step in the right direction! Hang in there!

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To all of you who responded about travel - thanks so much!!! I asked when I went to WI today and they told me on the really long days to have up to 5 HNS to make sure I'm not going too long between meals. I've got mostly concentrate HNS at home (easier to put in a water bottle IMO), so I'll either buy a few powders this week, or check my luggage. And - I'll probably take a few bars with me - just in case I have trouble finding a suitable meal here and there.

Now - news from my WI today. I was down 1.5 - total of 10 so far so got to sign the 10 pound board! Exciting!! (Actually - I wore jeans to WI for the first time and when I got on the scale it was unchanged from Friday. Counselor said "You know, jeans way 1.5 to 2 lbs, want to take them off?" I didn't hesitate for a minute, took those babies right off and jumped back on the scale.

Question for all you guys....

What kind of exercise do you do?

I've been trying hard to get the 30 minutes 3 x week that they say we need, and I do more when I can but sometimes its tough to make time. I have a Wii Fit and use it some -my only complaint with it is that it takes 45 minutes to get 30 minutes of work out because of all the "trainer" chit chat. I wish that could be skipped! I did box on it the other day and the muscles in my back were sore for days!
I also got the Fluidity bar workout system about a week ago. Has anyone else seen/tried that? I'm really enjoying it - uses a ballet bar and your own body weight. It's deceivingly difficult - especially the exercises that focus on core muscles. (Maybe that's just because after years of little/no activity and 2 c-sections core muscles are something that I'm not sure I have anymore.)

Anyway - I was just curious what kinds of exercise others are doing.

Hi everyone! I just paid for the 17 week program last friday and I am supposed to be in pre-conditioning. The lady told me to weigh in tomorrow to see how I am doing and I'm scared! the rules she gave me for pre-conditioning were to:
1. Increase water to 64oz a day
2. Eliminate caffiene
3. Eat protein at every meal
4. eat more fruits and veggies
5. Take multivitamins, flax seed oil and B12 daily

I've been in pretty bad shape before signing up. I was drinking up to 4 diet cokes a day and ZERO water. Plus I've been eating carbs like they are going out of style. So far I've been taking my vitamins faithfully and I've decreased my diet coke to about 1-2 a day and actually started drinking some water. I've been eating more protein and veggies, but my old habits are still there in full force. I feel like I'm having my "last hoorah" week and not really going overboard, but not really trying to cut back either. I'm sort of waiting for them to start telling me what exactly to eat.....I almost want to weigh in so that it will scare me into just buckling down and being a grown up about this! I refuse to waste another $300-$400 on another diet!

Originally Posted by stuck in grad school View Post
Personal Musing--This has nothing to do with MRC, but I'm really annoyed at the local media. Seems they've decided Hurricane Ike might come rolling through here at the end of the week, and..are you ready for this? The 10 o'clock news just announced that everyone should go fill their cars up with gasoline because the hurricane will cause a gas shortage! I bet they repeat that advice on the 6:30 news tomorrow morning so that everyone who didn't throw off their jammies and rush to the gas station tonight does it first thing in the morning. How irresponsible! Remember the toilet paper shortage Johnny Carson accidentally caused a long time ago? Well, I don't either, but I did learn about it in my history class.

ABSOLUTELY!! I can remember having to drive to Atlanta for a funeral a short time after some hurricane. Couldn't find gas until I got nearly to Montgomery. Same thing has happened a couple times while trying to come home after evacuating from a storm.

During the summer, I never let my gas tank get lower than half.

my b-day is the 28th..my husband's is the 10th (same as yours)...i am turning 40...and i want soooo bad to lose a bunch by then..i just went and weighed today..up 3 pounds...but i had been off for a few weeks...my determination is back now...yeah..we can track each other to lose by our birthdays.

Since so many people on this board are so versed with supplements, I was wondering if anyone has a supplement they highly recommend for inflamed joints. I've been looking at the glucosamine/chondroitin cocktails at Wal-Mart & Target, but there are so many choices, and I'm not that familiar with either supplement. I'm trying to address inflammation in my hips. I've been using ibuprofen all summer with mixed success, and I just started yoga and I'm hoping that will help some, too.

He said just to follow the directions on the bottle/package and then gave me a pep talk on increasing my exercise by adding more steps into my day, eating lean meats and veggies, dealing with portion sizes, etc. He was trying to be helpful and was respectful, so I didn't burst his bubble and tell him that I'd already dropped 50 lbs in the last year, but I sure was thinking it!

Excellent! That's funny about the jeans--the last time I was there (over a month ago!) the consultant was telling me how wild some people could get pulling clothes off for the weigh-in. I can only imagine. Since I only go in when I'm in town, I'm guaranteed a loss, so there's no pressure there, but she did offer to let me take my jeans off, too!

Don't be scared! You should be excited because you are about to take some HUGE steps toward building an awesome wardrobe and awesome self-confidence! I promise!

I know what you mean about the diet soda, but I bet you'll see a huge drop when you cut that out. I remember the week I switched from regular Dr. Pepper to Diet Dr. Pepper...I gained 10 lbs that week. You would think I would have realized that was a bad thing, but it took me a few years to come to terms with my soda addiction. I still fight it every day.

My dad calls with the same advice for every storm that might hit west of New Orleans. We had gas lines for the Rita evacuation, but Exxon Mobil has a terminal outside of town, and while a few Shell stations ran out of regular unleaded for a few days, we didn't have trouble buying gas elsewhere or higher grades at Shell. The bigger problem was that there was no water or bread on the shelves at any of the grocery stores. All the motels were still full of Katrina evacuees AND we had Houston evacuees coming through. We're far enough inland, though, that hurricanes are almost always downgraded to tropical storms by the time they get here, but life sure gets difficult when Houston evacuates.

Karen,
All I can say, is spend some time...actually "a lot" of time...and read the previous threads on this sight! It will be incredibly insightful for you! First of all, the exprerience from these new friends is incredible! And...if you "pay attention"...I mean "really pay attention"...and want to learn, this program is a piece of cake...sorry...not cake...just wonderful. Take notes...the "water" is soooooooo important! And then, there is the water! Ha! You'll really pick up on the insight of others who understand the "water".!!! And then there are those of us who ask questions...me included...where your questions have been answered a million of times...just in different ways...some of us need to hear "it" more than others! Just enjoy the journey! I am presently wearing a cast...due to my stupidity...and believe it or not...enjoying the fact that at least I'm eating right...and having all these "insights" as miracles! Hmmm...have I thanked all of you lately...just for putting your thoughts here?...thanks! Okay...sorry Karen...this is what happens when you ask for help! :0)...we are not here by chance! xo

P.S.

Oops..meant to add this. I have a 60 oz. jug that I got at Target...that has a straw. I fill it with the dreaded "water" and 1 Lipton Tea 2 go (for flavor) twice during the day. My Kindergarteners think I'm nuts...and reallly crazy for the amount of times I run to the potty...so be it! But...it's a little more painless than several glasses of water for me...just a thought!

[QUOTE=stuck in grad school;2354655]Since so many people on this board are so versed with supplements, I was wondering if anyone has a supplement they highly recommend for inflamed joints. I've been looking at the glucosamine/chondroitin cocktails at Wal-Mart & Target, but there are so many choices, and I'm not that familiar with either supplement. I'm trying to address inflammation in my hips. I've been using ibuprofen all summer with mixed success, and I just started yoga and I'm hoping that will help some, too.



Hi Grad,
I'm interested to hear the input on supplements, as I too have use the cocktails with mixed results. But, I do want to say it took 50 years...ugh...hate to admit it...but yep..50 to find Yoga! It has been instrumental in my flexibiltiy! I soooooooo wish I had started it at 30...actually...my biggest motivation is my 4 year old grandson. Go figure...make sense Meemo and GMAof4?...His preschool does Yoga for 30 min....Every Day!!!! Hmmm maybe I should have started at 4. I am starting it with my Kinders! ...Okay...so Grad....let's see what the input is...

[QUOTE=maintainforlife;2354741]MSM is the supplement for joints, I have found it helpful but also the water, water retention tends to make my joints ache.

Here I am asking for advice again!

I have to have an outpatient procedure done next Tues and I am forbidden to take any of my supplements. It is a cyst on my face (ew!) so I think he afraid for infection/bleeding. Anyway, the center has NO idea how this will affect my loss, except to say it will slow it down. Well, 1.5 pounds a week is already pretty slow. Anyway, anyone else know how I should combat this? The center could give me no help. I found that strange since there has surely been a client who has to have a surgical procedure in all of their years of in business!

Haven't been posting lately, but have been reading the blogs. Went back last week and lost 3 of the 8 lbs I had gained while out due to my surgery. Boy, let me tell you, it is really HARD to get back on track after doing MRC, and then being off for a while, and then going back!! But, 3 off the 1st week was a good start, and I believe I should lose another 4 today when I go weigh in, so almost back to where I was before the surgery. Set myself a mini-goal of 15 lbs in 5 weeks just to have something to aspire to. Find that if I set mini-goals it helps to keep me focused. Question for ya'll- the Corti-trim. I just ran out. Is the Corti-slim in the drug stores the same thing, or is there something else ya'll take??
Thanks everyone. Glad to be back on track!