Turbo - Oh goodness yes, I'm sure that training will definitely help to burn some extra calories. The only thing I would warn is that you might want to start doing some sort of tracking again before you start, lest you begin getting hungrier and eating more to compensate without really noticing it.
I know this is the pot calling the kettle black, but try not to stress that scale too much. You said yourself you had a big meal last night and are a bit backed up so I'm sure that contributed. LOL, dieter's tea, I'm telling ya!

Krampus - I do want to see your salads! LOL I love food blogs and I'm always interested in seeing what other people are eating. I like to make a lot of "one pan/pot" dinners so most of my meals look like big blobs on a plate. I like to cut up my protein and all the other stuff and just toss it together. I even do that with breakfast since I add my egg whites directly to my oatmeal, or pile them on top of toast, or make pancakes where it's all mixed up together of course. I try to make my food look pretty but sometimes (especially with oatmeal mixtures) it just really really doesn't! haha
I've never tried konjac by itself, and I don't intend to! Even mixed up with a bunch of stuff even just one teaspoon of powder can really change the consistency dramatically (which is the point, but a light hand is key I'm learning).
LOL I love the picture! I can't even imagine trying to sample so many beers. If I tried one a day from now until the rest of eternity...
You know what? I'm the same way... sometimes I just congratulate myself for not being a COMPLETE pig, and that's good enough for me. We're maintaining for all intents and purposes... we're allowed!

Ion - You'll have to let us know how the IF works out for you. For those who naturally aren't breakfast people, it seems to be a blessing!

Dottie - Welcome back! If you were able to eat all that fried goodness and not really workout and only gain a fraction of a pound, I think you should be able to hit that goal of 126 lbs, or at least make some good progress toward it. No matter what, you'll look fantastic at that reunion!

Jessica - Welcome to the Feather's Chat... lots of indulging going on in here. Honestly since we're all so close to goal, if not at it already, there is a lot more "living" going on in here! It seems like in general we all have a good way of going out and indulging (sometimes too much) and getting our asses right back in gear. Lots of little ups and downs, but that's life and that's why I love this group of gals and our little chats. It's so REAL! haha lots of talk of TOM and poop and our little NSVs.
I don't think you have any reason to feel guilty for taking a bit of "me" time to go out and train for a race. A healthy mommy is a happy mommy, and a healthy happy mommy is a better mommy and a great example. Besides, they're BOTH of your kids right? You don't see men feeling guilty over that kind of thing, and besides, it might be some good bonding time for them anyway.

Chickie - Get outta here with your cuteness and your bikini and your gorgeous family! haha
I'm glad that your medicine worked and kicked the crap out of that headache... that's awesome! It looks like you had a fantastic day and I hope that you and your hubby have a fun time celebrating your anniversary... bow-chicka-wow-wowww...

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Hmm, nothing super exciting here today. I had a decent workout and my natural extracts that I ordered showed up in the mail today. I immediately opened up each one and smelled them... sooooo good! I got vanilla, chocolate, coffee, caramel, hazelnut and ginger. Since I'm cutting out the artificial stuff I figure I can add these to my protein shakes, pancakes, cottage cheese, greek yogurt, homemade icecream and pudding, etc. to spice things up a bit. I'll be trying the chocolate tomorrow morning with my breakfast quinoa!

Today's experimental dinner doesn't look too crazy, but it was new for me. I've never had veal before and I found some nice looking cutlets at the market the other day so I made those with some asparagus for dinner. I didn't do anything fancy to them so that I could just taste the meat and see how I liked it. Just a bit of salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon over the whole plate.
I just tossed them in a pan and gave them a quick sear, but I think next time I'll make a chunky tomato sauce and cook them a bit slower in the sauce to keep them tender.
Overall, it was pretty good though. Not all that different from beef but definitely not the same.

EDIT: I just realized there is a recipe section here on 3FC. LOL, nice! I found some dressing recipes to try out!

Do you have a brand to help me find it? I haven't found it over here and I'm considering getting some online!!!

Because TMI TMI! those gaz and those days without pooping are killing me! I have those dreadful dreams of this story a girl I know told me once, that she saw on tv a little girl who was forced to go to the kindergarden and was in some kind of anxiety crisis and her protection mecanism was... stopping pooping. When they understood what was going on, she had I don't remember what horrible percentage of her colon filled with poop. Like, EWWWWW! (and poor kid)!

Okay, sorry for that, I never really mind talking about poop, but people not always like it as much as I do :P

turbo & joss - it seems to be going well so far, thanks for asking! i do get hungry after i start the fast at 7, but i hope i'll get used to it. it has only been a couple of days after all. i've noticed in the past that many mornings i'm not hungry at all, but on some (after i started reducing my calories, i think) i get really hungry. i wish my body would just get used to fewer calories!

Hi all!

Just wanted to check in quick and let you know that I made it up (and back down) 2 of the high peaks of the Adirondacks. We hit both Cascade and Porter Mountains. It was a great time!

I was shocked at how easy it was for me to climb. I barely got out of breath. Here we are on the top of Cascade



I hit 118 on Saturday, but am up to 120 this morning - what is it about camping that makes me SO DANG HUNGRY???

I'll catch up with everyone's posts later! Hope you are all doing well!

Jen

JessicaB - I think you can definitely get into shape for a 5k in 8 weeks. You don't have to go super fast - just be able to finish it. That in itself is an accomplishment. Don't feel guilty about shirking your 'parental duties'. I try to get to my 90 minute yoga class (so a little over 2 hrs out of the house) 4x a week. it's hard when I see my husband struggling or my son yelling for me not to leave, but you have to take time for yourself. If for nothing else it's a mental escape. We are parents, but that isn't all we are, you know? My husband notices if I haven't gone to yoga in a few days because I get crabby! So, another reason to let me go I hear ya on the slow weight loss, but it's the best way I think.

ChickieChicks - I love days like that! You look wonderful. I hear ya on the tummy but seriously you look great in those photos! I'm trying a lot of oblique exercises now. I'll tell ya how that goes in a month or so.

JossFit - you're making me want to share all my meals on here! Last night I made this salad. It's one of my go-to quickie meals because I can just open a can of artichokes & chickpeas, and voila, dinner! http://www.thecookingphotographer.co...oke-salad.html

TurboMammoth - Quick thought, because I know you've been dealing with, um, blockage for a bit. Do you take multi-vitamins or supplements? Sometimes too much iron can block you up. Good luck, I know I feel 10 pounds heavier when I don't go. I also have issues going when I'm away from home. lol.

ion - I feel like it took me a good 3 weeks to get used to less calories. And the first week was awful. I remember coming to the forum whenever I wanted to eat and just typing that. Lol. Gave me something to do besides eat something.

CherryPie99 - That looks amazing! I just bought a new larger tent for us as they're going on sale. I can't wait to go camping/hiking in a few weeks! Congrats on not feeling winded! Hiking can be grueling!

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Went to yoga last night and was down to 129.2. I first weighed in with my bathrobe on and my husband walked by and said 'you know that bathrobe probably weighs 3 pounds! He was right, it was bulky. I weighed naked instead - and was 2.5 lbs lighter. I know I'll likely be up to 130 tomorrow. Yoga last night was hot! I just finished reading Chuck Palahniuk's 'Damned' while on vacation. It was funny, but there was a part where they talk about how when you're destined to **** you work as a telemarketer who are programmed to call your house the moment you sit down to dinner. Well, last night I thought "no, he got it wrong. When you go to **** you come back as a Bikram yoga instructor who won't turn the fan on, even when people are so hot they can't do the poses anymore." haha. Anyway, I still felt great after class. Just gotta drink more water before.

http://eatthis.womenshealthmag.com/s...Additives-body

More examples of why I'm trying to cut out as much processed food as I can...

Pretty standard Tuesday around here... had a nice long cardio workout this morning and got a lot accomplished at work already today. Now I get to hang out on 3FC and look at recipes and food blogs online for inspiration.

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Turbo - I use the Laci Lebeau's Dieter's tea. Just one brewed bag before bed should be perfect to help you do what you gotta do in the morning. I'm sure you can find it on Amazon, and here in the states I've seen it at most grocery stores in the health food section or tea section.

Ion - I don't think your body is really supposed to "get used to" fewer calories... that's a big old metabolic slowdown happening! Dealing with hunger by eating more and moving more to compensate is generally a smarter way to go.
Keep us posted though!

Cherry - Congrats on the hike! It looks like it was gorgeous out. I'm hoping the weather is good so that my hubby and I can hike the Incline out in Manitou Springs when I go to visit him in a couple of weeks. It's where he proposed.
Are you sure the scale fluctuations are from overeating? The elevation and the exercise could have caused some water retention along with natural fluctuations.

Dottie - Is that a new low weight for you? Even if not, it's awesome! Your yoga class sounds challenging. I have done a class or two but it's just not my thing. I need a somewhat more dynamic workout to keep me entertained and engaged. Even when doing cardio I have to do intervals and stuff to keep myself from getting bored.
That salad does look good, and I haven't had artichoke hearts in a while... next time I hit the store I'll have to add those and chickpeas to my shopping list! Thanks for the reminder... sometimes I get into a routine and forget about awesome foods. It's hard though because I plan all my meals and I have to consider expiration dates and how much I can actually eat each week. If I open a can of chickpeas for example, I need to make sure I plan several meals using them each week.

Turbo- I live in a world of poop...kids and dogs! Ha ha. It's taking over... I used to nanny for a boy who held his poop from anxiety, too. It was so sad, because he would have to take laxatives, and then it would be so huge that it would really hurt him coming out. That, of course, made him scared to poop even more! I'm in the same boat right now. Very irregular, and I hate it. Feeling bloated and just uncomfortable! I usually go every morning...thanks, coffee!

Krampus- love that pic! You're such a lush! J/k it's been hard for me to get on the ball with cooking lately. It goes n such spurts.

Joss- love your new foods! My hubs would go gaga for the shrimp quinoa and veal! Yum! I love how colorful fresh food can be. It just looks so healthy and nutritious, and well, it is! Bonus!

I just got home from the grocery store. The power went out on the whole street, so no groceries. I had already filled the cart! Ugh! Not in a great mood.

I had ice cream for dinner last night and was rewarded with a -2.2 lb weigh-in from yesterday. I am pleased I managed to get up and hit the gym this morning - I always feel better when I do and I think it helps to control my appetite.

Tentative plans to meet with my eating buddy later. Not sure if I'll make that happen or not, I kind of want to buy a new dress for a wedding I'm going to on Friday even though I have three options:


Red dress - maybe too LOOK AT ME and I know the bride's family is conservative


Blue dress - same issue


Black dress - short sleeves, very "safe" option

HALP

JossFit Yikes, you really aren't going to look back now are you?! Your veal photo is drool-inducing. I actually have a blog with tons of photos of food I've eaten here: http://lunchcommittee.tumblr.com - based on something my friends and I used to do to break up the slow work days in Japan! What new dressings are you trying?

DottieMae Bikram yoga is doing good things for you! I laughed pretty hard at your comparison of inconvenient telemarketers to totally sadistic Bikram yoga instructors! 126 is so close!

CherryPie99 Isn't it wonderful to be able to DO STUFF without getting tired and worrying that you "can't" complete a hike? Cascades and Porter eh, I'm gonna try and hike the Adirondacks this weekend too. Last time I hiked there was the Tongue Mountain Loop, lots of careful maneuvering over rocks and stuff but not so much incline.

ion Nooooo don't get used to too few calories! Maybe fasting isn't for you, but you may get used to it! Good luck, either way.

TurboMammoth Some folks swear by Smooth Move "for fast, effective relief" (Dumb and Dumber...) - good luck!

ChickieChicks You look fabulous - and way skinny! I'm starting to think I'm like 50% body fat because I'm still so much thicker than a lot of women who are my weight but much shorter. Also, I have the same shorts as Cole

JessicaB Give yourself a few trial runs to gear up for 5K. Have you run distance before at all? Your progress will probably be exponential, with longer running and shorter walking breaks needed each time. I feel your pain about indulging/compensating - I guess this is maintaining, huh?

philana Stomachs totally do stretch out. I always feel EMPTY in the morning after eating a lot the day before.

Hi everyone! Wow...busy as usual. I feel so behind.

JossFit- all your food pictures are amazing! I love how healthy eating can taste so great. I made a quinoa and veggie salad last night and thought of you. You asked awhile ago if my BF is at Buckley and he is.

Dottie- Hot yoga-or any yoga- is hard. I usually feel exhausted and not rested after I leave.

Cherry- awesome picture. Looks like a great trip and that's impressive you weren't even tired after climbing uphill. Camping makes you hungry because of all the hiking!

Krampus- all your dresses are so cute. Stay safe and maybe the black one?

OK so I went on my mini-weekend trip and gained 1.5 lbs. BUT I'm now in the back to work mode (I'm a teacher) so for the next few weeks I don't really eat or sleep. I know not the best for my health but it is just that way. I am constantly running around and stressed out about a million things. This morning I am the lowest I have been in almost six months because yesterday I was like food-oh yeah should probably eat something.

So I'll try to pop in every couple of days. I am a little (major) distracted by all the amazing teacher blogs out there. However, I will still be doing my daily weigh in update- that really helps me. Have a great day everyone!

CherryPie : it looks amazing from up there! I heard wonderful things of the 2 mountains. Hope you had a great time

DottieMae : I do take supplements, like 1 every 2-3 days (I tend to forget to take them a lot...) But because I forget to take the so much, I'm not sure they might be the cause to the issue, but I will have to check if I see a correlation between the days I take them or not!! Thanx for the input!

Joss : I'm looking for that tea tonight at the grocery, and if it's not there, I'm ordering some right away! Are they really fruity to the taste? I tend to enjoy some very black tea, and I was not sure of what flavor to pick!

Chickie : oh that sucks for your grocery! I would have been so mad! You had to leave everything there!?

krampus : I love the 3 dresses, and the blue is soooo pretty! but yeah, if her family is super duper conservative, maybe the blue one isn't the best for the event. The red one isn't too much, though? Or they can really freack out on that much cleavage!? lol

***

Still at 141 this morning, but yeah. What the h*ll! I went out and ran my 6k and it felt much butter than last week.

Last night, we were watching a cooking tv show while we were eating. They have 2 chefs, one guy who enjoy the real, good, HEARTY food (read with fat and everything) and a woman who is a vegan is cooks really REALLY healthy. My boyfriend was completly :O because she was preparing a goulash and left out meat from it (how can you call it a goulash if there is no meat, etc etc) and ended up saying ''hey look, she's even more freak than you are for cooking healthy!'' I probably made a 'WTH!?'' face because he quickly added ''but I love you just the way you are'' (yeah, way to go using some kind of bruno mars to save you). I never thought I was maybe a bit ''too much'' (and I still honestly don't think I am)

It was a Meatless Monday night though for us last night, maybe it was too much from the universe triggering him on meat :P After your veggies/feta enchiladas and corn on the cob from last night, I'm giving the guy some meat tonight in a merguez couscous. Here, get some meat!

Turbo: Along with what Chickie said about the boy withholding his bowel movements... my daughter withheld hers for AGES. From like the time she was 18 months until 2.5. It was torture on us, because of course the withholding only made her constipated. And it was very hard to reason with her, since she was so young. She's always eaten a lot of fruit and really was only constipated because of the withholding. It took probably at least 6 months on laxatives to get her going normally again, and then a very slow weaning process. Even when she was off completely, she struggled a bit with constipation here and there, but her body seems to have finally adjusted now (she'll be 3 next month).

Krampus: I haven't run in ages, but I used to run long distance way WAY back in elementary school. My dad actually used to do long distance running, and took some of us to races when we were much younger. It's part of the reason I want to do the 5k, actually... because he mentioned he was running again, I thought of asking him to do it with me. We aren't very close (a by-product of growing up in a family with 9 kids), so I like the idea of doing the race to help with our relationship a bit (I'll be seeing him this weekend, so will be asking him about that then).

I love the red dress, and I'd assume that you wouldn't stand out too much, unless everyone else going knows that the family is conservative, and they are all going to dress to cater towards that.

Dottie: Well I guess you've all convinced me that the 5k is a good idea. I'm going to talk to my husband tonight about having him to bedtime 3 days a week so I can run. I hope he's supportive about it, because he's not on the healthy bandwagon with me, and seems to think I need to allow myself more breaks in my exercise regime (usually on weekends, when he wants to be spending time with me).

Joss: The veal looks good. I don't think I've had veal since I was growing up, and I think I might keep my eye out for some for a bit of a change of pace.

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My Saturday binge weight has been dropping rather quickly. As of today, I'm only up a pound, so that's not too bad, and I might be back to my low weight by the weekend... which is just on time for camping. Hoping to keep things in check for the camping, except I plan on having some marshmallows, and maybe smores. I will also probably be drinking, so who knows if I'll actually make any progress this week.

Chickie - I'm such a food geek, I just wish that my pictures did the food justice. I could never be one of those cool food bloggers because mine look like crap... haha. I didn't bother taking one of dinner tonight because it was pretty ugly and I was too hungry. It was delicious though; fresh tilapia with mixed turnip and collard greens with lots of lemon, garlic, hot sauce and red pepper flake. Nom nom nom.

Krampus - For whatever it's worth, I like the red one.
I found some recipes for a creamy cilantro dressing and a buttermilk dressing, so I think I'll whip up the cilantro one this weekend and try that. Right now I'm using up a caesar one I made last week. Since they are fresh they only last a week or two in the fridge so I pretty much have to make one and use it until it's gone.
For some CRAZY reason I'm suddenly wishing that I had ice cream for dinner though... haha

Fresh15again - It's a small world... I may know your BF... lots of people in my career field out there!
I hope your stress doesn't get to be too unmanageable and that you are able to relax and take care of yourself. I'm sure that little 1.5 gain will be gone in no time.

Turbo - They have an "original" flavor, which is just plain black tea tasting, and then they also have a lemon and a cinnamon flavor. They pretty much all taste the same to me. I would actually recommend brewing a bag up with another tea you like the taste of since it does taste a bit medicinal. It works though!
LOL your BF surely didn't mean anything by it. Sometimes my husband (who is very blunt in his choice of words) says things that bother me without even intending to mean anything negative by it. In describing my renewed enthusiasm for cooking and meal planning lately he said I was "already batshit over it" or "out of control". It sounds extreme, but he doesn't use words the same way a lot of people do... it's hard to explain his colorful language sometimes.
Either way, dinner sounds good! I'm sure he'll enjoy it.

Jessica - The veal was definitely an impulse buy. Since I've cut out a lot of the little extras I was eating I'm now looking at fruits, veggies, and proteins that I haven't used before or used in a while. I'm obviously having a lot of fun with it!
I'm glad the "binge" weight is coming off. I think thats one of the nice things about being a featherweight; that initial water weight/bloat is so dramatic and noticable for us that it forces us back on plan and minimizes the damage a bit. If we were all still heavier (or just heavier for those who may have never been before) it wouldn't be as noticable. I definitely used to be able to be "naughty" for a lot longer before I would notice a gain. Now a huge meal usually leans me out if it's just one (pulls extra water into my muscles and dehydrates me at the same time... I just end up looking pumped and vascular) but any more than that, like if it's a weekend off plan... yikes. I feel like a cow and I can see a huge difference in my definition. It's not something I can ignore, so I cut the crap!

Yeah, if you are drinking and eating s'mores (which is TOTALLY okay) you may not make any progress this week... but that's okay too! I know we all say that you have to enjoy life and pick your indulgences, and it's true. As long as you don't use that reasoning for every little cupcake celebration in the office or every weekend night at the bars you'll be just fine.

DottieMae - haha, good idea. i'd heard it'd take 3-4 weeks to stop being so hungry all the time. i just get really impatient with it.

JossFit and krampus - what?! all this time i've been under the impression that all this hunger will go away--not just for IF, but for calorie reduction in general. that's not supposed to happen? thank you for the support/tips and i will keep you posted!

Just popping in again! I am doing better with the calories. I am still hungry a lot and it's not because I eat too little calories or nutrients, after a year of on and off caloriecounting I know the drill. LOL. It's just really getting throught his feeling again I think.

My 60mile bikeride did jumpstart a drop in weight though it took a few days to show itsself on the scale. I went below 60kg finally!!!! 59.8kg. (131.8) Never will I go over 60kg again. Which means I need to stick to a tight routine for a bit till I have some margin. I ate well yesterday and did a 19mile ride in 59.20minutes, a personal record. I was so thrilled.

Talk to you gals later!

JossFit - such awful stuff! I read an article this morning about how Johnson & Johnson are cutting awful cancer-causing ingredients from their products - but not until 2015! http://www.newser.com/article/da0ln9...s-by-2015.html

krampus - all of those dresses are super cute, but if the family is conservative I'd say opt for the black one (or excuse for a new dress!) A friend of mine who is very Catholic will never wear bare shouldered dresses to church. Well, she will but she wears a cardigan or jacket. So if you do the other two you might want a pashmina/wrap or something like that for the church.

ChickieChicks - ugh, we were without power for half a week earlier this year. I had to throw everything away. Hope the power came back on quickly!

fresh15again - Good luck with Back to School time! Kids here don't go back until after labor day, but I know some started this week! Either way I'm sure teachers are busy! Good luck!

TurboMammoth - aww, sounds like you guys are balancing it out. Tell him to go out an eat with his friends once a week. Chow down on a steak or buffalo wings. lol.

JessicaB - Congrats on dropping the weight. Good luck with the impending camping trip. For weekends like that my goal is to maintain. Indulge a little, but not too much.

philana - Awesome work being under 60kg and your amazing bikeride. I'm going on a 30 mile ride this weekend and hope I do ok - I haven't been riding much at all.

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Not much going on, gotta focus on work now. Up a little but expected as I always bounce up a day after having done yoga. Eating light today and did well yesterday - with the exception of a 1/2 cup indulgence in some hot & spicy chex mix. So good, yet so bad. I'm sure there's some awful preservatives in there. And 'coloring'. Cheese is not orange. Can't wait for dinner tonight - one of my fav salads: http://ohsheglows.com/2011/06/17/wee...ow-kale-salad/

It's not super light in calories, as it does have tahini, nuts and olive oil, but it's so, so good. And as far as ingredients go, so good on that front.