Where have our chats gone?? I've missed everyone. I'm still checking in on other threads but wanted to get this one started again. I look forward to all your updates.

Things for me have not been going well. I've been bingeing because I know I only have a few weeks left and I think I was
a)scared to get back on track and really have to do the work
b)scared to fail

So last night I went for a nice walk and then wrote in my journal for a while in a park with my IPOD. I think I wrapped my head around everything. I've been distracted from my goal with all the stress of moving and planning my trip so I took the time to regroup and now I'm back on track. 3 weeks left before my trip and I'm going to make every choice an opportunity to get close to the goal. As long as I try my hardest, I am proud of my efforts. The number is a little less important.

So that's my mindset now - getting back to the one I had that allowed me to lose that first 6 pounds.

I hope everyone is doing well! Keep posting.

I post on so many other weekly threads that I feel like I am just repeating myself all the time!

Last week was a great week for me. I got back on the wagon and have had tons of motivation, even though I've been having some hip problems and can't exercise more than walking around the neighborhood. I go to Weight Watchers tonight and weigh in.

I've had this weird thing going on lately though where I just DONT seem to be full no matter what I eat. I always try to get a lot of protein and fiber, but nothing seems filling lately. I've been eating every 2-3 hours to keep that in check and have been able to stay in my points for the day (like I said I do WW) but I can't enjoy a bigger meal lately and that has been bugging me. I'm hoping it is just a phase and I get over it!

Good morning! Hope everyone had a great weekend. I've been keeping up with my healthy eating plan and morning workouts, but I'm not going to lie... I know that Mother's Day Buffet is coming up and I ALWAYS overindulge in buffets.

I attempted to buy a bathingsuit this weekend. I found one that was "ok." For me tankinis do not work because they show the one area I am my heaviest (right below my bellybutton) and I really don't want to wear a one piece. I almost both the "ok" suit but then I saw the price and I thought to myself that for this one suit that doesn't even look that great (but as good as a suit can look) I could buy 2 really good looking tops. So what did I do? Ran out of the bathingsuit department with nothing and bought two tops. It's just frustrating to spend so much on something that doesn't even look that great.

Morning!

I hit my halfway point today!!! Well, just over halfway, but since I lost 4 pounds this week, it pushed me over where I had to be. I'm SO HAPPY! I also lost 6" last week, which makes me totally thrilled! 21 pounds gone, 18 to go...

I re-started Phase I of South Beach last week to kick start my motivation. It worked! I also stayed on plan all week, so I get to reward myself with a brand new pair of running shoes. YAY!!

Hope everyone has a fabulous Monday!

My weekend didn't go so well... I got on the scale yesterday morning and I had gained a pound. But that's, ok, we all get off plan every now and then... I gotta just keep reminding myself that there is no way I can be perfect all the time, just as long as I get right back on track right? I really need to get on track with my exercising, this is deffinitly something I struggle with. Right now I'm taking two May term classes. They both last 3 hrs and 15 mins. I'm in class from 8 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. with a lunch break. It is crazy, and soooo tiring, it's amazing how sitting on your butt listening to a boring proffesor all day can be so tiring. However, I WILL EXERCISE TONIGHT! I did do a little better last week, but I want to get back on track and back into the swing of things. I know it will be easier this summer, when I don't have any classes but I can't use my classes as an excuse. Anyway, I'm just rambling! I hope everyone has a great week!

Bikini Dreader: Sometimes it is so refreshing to just sit down and write in your journal and reflect, I have to do that from time to time to remind myself why I'm doing this in the first place.
Modkitten: I'm glad you had such a fabulous week! I hope this one is just as great! And, I also have times when I never feel full especially around my period
CookieMonster: I have the same problem with takinis and I just don't like one pieces. Have you ever tried on a bikini? I tried one on the other day just for kicks, I wasn't even planning on buying it, I just thought I'd use it as motivation. I wound up buying it because it looked way better than a tankini! I was so surprised.. maybe you should just try it, you might also be suprised. Mine is just a simple black halter with simple black board shorts.
Rediculously Addicted: CONGRATS ON YOUR HALFWAY POINT! That is so amazing, I can't imagine what it feels like! Great Job!

Hey ladies! I had my WI at WW last night and was down 1.4!! I'm really happy because I broke 181, and I'd been teetering around that weight since FEBRUARY. It feels so good to have broken it and is so motivating to stay on track this week!

I go tonight to my tat artist to get some more color done on my left sleeve. A 3 hour appointment. I think after this one I will have 3-4 left and then it will be done. I already have the outline and a little bit of color on there. My right sleeve has been done for a few years. After the left sleeve is done, I want to get the tattoo my husband got with our wedding anniversary on it and a tattoo representing my cancer survivorship. Then I'll be done for a while I think!

cookie - I'm the exact opposite. I love tankinis! I haven't bought a bathing suit in ~4 years... time for a new one this year I think!
addicted - CONGRATS!!!!! That must be a great motivator for you to keep moving forward
casey - that's the right attitude Just try to get back into it and stay motivated. How about the small things like parking further away, taking the stairs, etc?

Caseygail21 - Yes I have tried bikinis on... they look better than tankinis but still (YUCK!!!)

Hey all! Our weekly chats have gone by the wayside haven't they? I'm sure it's a busy time for a lot of us early20somethings, what with exams and all. I'm taking a break from studying for my 28 FREAKING PAGE LONG biology exam. Stupid biology.

And I'm cranky and moody today because it's the first day of TOM's visit. All I want to do is curl up in bed and hide from the world. I also talked to a guy friend (the one who I've had a on/off crush on since the second grade!) of mine last night for the first time in forever. And he has a girlfriend now. His first, that he's told me about anyways. He's always been so focused on school, etc. And I'm not jealous, per se, but if I could describe a total physical opposite of me, she'd be it: tall, skinny, athletic (does crew), dark brown hair, brown eyes, tan. Me: short, fat, can't play organized sports to save my life, lighter brown hair, blue eyes, pale and pasty. Gah. She's probably quiet, graceful, demure, plays the cello, doesn't curse, or laugh too loudly at bad puns. She probably doesn't make bad puns or an of herself at all possible oppurtunities. I'm not being down on myself (ok, I kinda am, but cut me some slack here), but I just have the feeling that she's going to be an awesome person and I'm going to be forced to hate her stinkin' guts.

Blah. Ok, get out of your funk, Lisa. Sorry for being a total crazy person today

Modkitten: Eeek! How can you sit there for 3 hours with all that noise and pain? I'm such a weinie, I coudn't even stay in the room when my roomie had her tongue pierced, let alone her boobies!

Casey: I hear ya. Sometimes classes just SUCK THE VERY LIFE right out of you. It's like the professors are vampires and they WANT YOUR SOOOOOOOULLLLLL. (Sorry, I'm feeling really melodramatic today )

Addicted: I love that part of SBD Phase 1; the weight just falls off. I can never stay with it more than 2 weeks, but it's always fun.

Bikini: Good for you for spending time with your thoughts. We all need time to just work stuff out in our heads.

Lisa, you won't hate her; guaranteed she'll be one of those sickeningly sweet genuinely nice people that are impossible to hate, too. Just kidding. I'm sorry you're feeling down on yourself.

Blah. I didn't do well today. Tomorrow evening will the first TOM since I've started Weight Watchers, and I've been worried about how I'll deal. Today was the absolutely lovely time before TOM, so I don't know if I would have been able to stay on plan anyway. I had an egg beater low fat cheese and Healthy Choice ham omlette for breakfast, which I can definitely have, but even when I had regular omlettes, I felt like crap for the rest of the day. That omlette, healthy as it may have been on paper, just isn't healthy for me, brought my whole day down. I'm sticking to my Kashi cereal/cereal bars from now on.

But today was my first bad binging day, and considering I've been doing it for four weeks, I think that is pretty good. Tomorrow is another day, and I'll just have to psych myself up for the rest of the week. Sorry, I just needed to vent.

The tat appointment went good last night. It looks GREAT! I'm so happy with it. The same woman did my right sleeve and I get compliments on it all the time. She does AWESOME work. I had a 3 hour sitting this time (last time was 2 and before that was the outline and that was 4 !) and I made it through ok. She saved the elbow for last haha but it wasn't that bad. The inside of the forearm was MUCH worse and she actually didn't finish everything there tonight that she wanted to do. Its the only part left below my elbow that isn't colored in.

Stayed on plan for the day, except after the tat appointment for some reason I was REALLY nauseous and so I had to eat something. I ate some of my extra points (on Weight Watchers) even though I hate to do that but I needed it and it helped with the nausea.

Lisa - I agree with Shelby, you might end up truly liking her, who knows! And as for the tattoo, yes it is painful, but it is tolerable and in the end SO worth it.

Fooled - was the omlette bad because it didn't fill you up? I didn't see any fiber in there. Maybe that is why the kashi is good for you. TOM can be tough, but just make sure you still get enough water in. You may even want to drink more than normal. For me, I find that it counters the bloating. And the Fiber One chewy bars are GREAT for a chocolate fix, high in fiber, and only 2 points each.

Hang in there Fooled! I had a horrible... 2 months? and Yesterday I finally didnt binge. I got rid of my binge food (by eating it. I dont suggest that) and I think because I ate a little bit more in the day (I was worried about how much I ate thinking it was too much) but then I didnt have the urge to binge when I got home from work. I had a good dinner and then some melon with a bit of cottage cheese for dessert and then I went out for a run! Not bingeing gives you extra energy I guess. I'm going to see if eating a bit more in the day is my ticket to not binge when I get home from work. If that is the case, I'm certain the extra few calories in the day will not be more than the ridiculous binges I've been having.

Lisa: I hope today is better for you. Sometimes when I'm feeling down, I will write myself an inspiring note or write down things I like about myself. It usually makes me feel better even though it's corny.

congrats on your loss Lori!

I will lose a few more pounds before my trip!! I'm starting to appreciate my body more when I look at myself in the mirror. Trying to stay positive. Negativity will get me nowhere.

Hey Lisa want to hear something funny? Many moons ago when I was in high school I lost a lot of weight between my junior and senior year. So much weight that many people actually thought I didn't eat because I was so thin (back then it was a lot easier to lose weight because I obviously never drank and ate out maybe once a week on the weekend with friends). I remember being very jealous of my boyfriends ex-girlfriend because even though I was thinner I was VERY picky what what I ate and I always thought he had more fun going out to dinner with her. She's probably very intimadated of you.

ANYWAYS I found this new product called House's Tofu Noodles (it's supposed to be a healthy substitute for pasta). If each 8oz package has 40 calories and 1 gram of fat, if I were to eat that as my meal can I eat 2 of them???

No, it filled me up, all right. Made me bloated in fact. Whenever I attempted to make omlettes, even when I was using regular eggs and cheese and whatnot, I still felt a bit gross afterwards. Maybe I'm just not a good cook! I had my kashi this morning and I feel loads better, with no binging instincts surfacing yet. I just have to remember that.

I love those chocolate fiber one bars! Not a meal substitute, but definitely an awesome snack. And I've heard that about drinking more water. I've had two and a half bottles today (which works out to a little more than a liter, I think) and it isn't lunch time yet, just because it is warmer out, and I went to the gym this morning.

I'm glad that you're happy with your tattoo, modkittn.

bikini dreader, I think having a positive attitude and the knowledge that you know you can do it is one of the best, if not the best, NSV.

Thanks for all the kind words, ladies. I talked to my bff (who is convinced that this guy and I are going to get married) this morning and she very sweetly massaged and propped up my needy, pathetic ego.
Am I an awful person if I say I totally hope so? She probably is going to be a nice person (and the nice side of me hopes so, for his sake). The thing is, is that I've never really understood our friendship. We've known each other since 2nd grade, but we only became friends in 9th grade when we had 5 classes out of 7 together. He's quiet and reserved and usually avoids loud, extroverted gals like me (we scare him ). So I've never really gotten it and feel insecure about it sometimes. Again, I'm sorry for rambling about my silly, non-existent love life. I totally need to meet someone new (so I can make him jealous... )

Anyways, I think I rocked my bio exam hardcore . I felt so confident in my answers. Hee, so either I did great, or I totally bombed that thing.

And even though it's TOM, I managed to lose 2 lbs this week! And I got my exercise in today. Awesomeness.

Fooled- Your body may just not like eggs/dairy in the morning. Like, I can't have cold cereal in the morning; the milk just makes me feel bloated and nauseous all freakin' day long.

Cookie- I LOVE THOSE NOODLES!!! Sorry, but learning I can have a bowl of actual noodles again has been wonderful! I still love spaghetti squash, but the toful noodles are so amazing. I can't imagine why you couldn't have two, as long as it fits within your calories for the day (and how could they not, there's 40 calories in one!!)

ETA: I got an 95% on the exam and a freakin A in the class!!! *happy dances* Woohoo! And biology is SO not my subject!