Hey there everyone! I be back!!!

AND had a super workout this morning - I'm staying with the same split as last month from CPB - just changed the exercises up a bit.

So what did I do for my b-day yesterday?? Went shopping - bought a bedside lamp which I sorely needed and some new cross-training shoes (I prefer New Balance). If you want to put a bit of life into your workout, I recommend buying some new shoes - mine were well over a year old and had lost their 'spring'.

AND I'm back eating clean. It was so good to have my Pamcake this morning!!! Yeahhhhhh!

Mom sent me this note last week...it's kind of mushy but she is such a sweetheart and tends to get a bit sentimental on our birthdays...I just wanted to share it with y'all!
Gotta make this short but I'll be typing more later...now I have to tie up loose ends from last week's meeting and start planning the NEXT one in January...acck! But first - gotta go to the fridge and get my sweet potato and cottage cheese mix out!

Hey Karen: glad to hear that you had a good birthday!

Ledom: from the other post - ok I see what you mean and I totally agree that the free meals are an alternative way to handle hard times socially.

Me - well it's a lovely Tuesday morning here and I am sitting here with my first cup of coffee for the day. For some reason I feel really peaceful today so I am leisurely easing myself into work. I went for a run last night which was hard but rewarding and had an early night's sleep.

How's everyone doing?

JC

Mrs Jim,
I am glad you had a nice Birthday, and the note your mom gave you was beautiful. Thank you for sharing it with us.
I am thinking of getting a new pair of cross trainers too, so maybe I will check out New Balance. My brother and sister-in-law swear they are the best shoe they have ever had on their feet.
My day was great. Got up this morning, called my friend and off me headed to the gym. She has been sick and not able to get to the gym in a while and has really missed it. So she was very eager to get back at it. I had a great Lower Body workout this morning, and I hit at least one 10 so not too bad.
Rememberance day here so everyone home! We spent a relaxing day together, before a busy week begins.
Hope you all had and are having a nice Monday.

Virginia

Had a GREAT chest and quad workout today, barely walked outta the gym, but I may have to rearrange my split because it's a bit much! I do have to function the rest of the day. Anybody have an interesting 4 day split they like? I'm even considering a 5 day, a dropping to 2 cardio sessions, any ideas?

Eating is a whole nother story- have some potentially scarey health problems that I don't yet have full diagnosis on, and am having real troubles with keeping clean at night. Last meal has variously consisted of nutella and cookies, caramel corn, or 2 glasses of wine. Since these are the first two glasses of anything alcoholic since last summer, they packed a BIG punch! Seems like everytime I think I've crossed the abyss, another bigger one swallows me for a while.

I'll pull myself together soon, I know I'm not going to waste the last year and a half, but right now it's tough.

Today one of the older women (like I'm not-haha) in the gym asked if I was one of the trainers and could I help her with something. I was really flattered, disabused her of that idea, and helped. Felt good.

Welcome back Karen- glad you had a nice b'day and the message from your mom was really sweet! Wish mine had something nice to say once in a while....

mel

Hey everyone,

I am only on week 4 for my first challenge so I am sort of new to this whole BFL but I am doing well. I haven't cheated yet
I am doing pretty well and on my day off i actually miss the clean food. I can't eat much on my day off..sort of feels like my stomach is a different size...i guess that's the cruel irony of having a day off right?

I had an awesome lower workout today! I was really sweating my *** off. I put the leg press up one more weight today..and I did awesome! I finished all of the reps

So tomorrow is cardio...and gawd is it hard..not really looking forward to it...but in a way I am strange eh?


I ate totally clean again today...its been good...i think on my next day off i will eat mostly clean but I might add cheese to one of my meals


one_sweetchick

in to say Hi and that week 7 is off to a good start. When I do my workouts I really think about you guys. How hard are they pushing themselves? Is my effort worthy? I nag myself along to get the best out of myself.

Mel, sounds as if your in an emotional tizzy w/ uncertainly about a health problem? I wish the very best for you as you deal with this.

OSC, I know exactly what you mean about a shrinking stomach. I couldn't believe what a stomach ache I gave myself on free day this week. Definitely not enough room to hold what I thought I could eat. I don't want to feel that way again any time soon. Also, cheese is the thing I miss most during the week. Love that cheese.

Tomorrow is that silly lunch I have to go to. I'd like all this trauma over one meal to be about something that I actually cared about doing. I'm hoping I can just nibble on something that works and poke things around on my plate that don't and then go eat my BFL meal. It's not even as if it will be quality food, probably sandwiches made on croissants. Sigh!

Ahhhhhh!!!! I couldn't survive that Ledom - I LOVE croissants!

OCS: did you get a carb hangover at all??

JC

Off on week two, so good so far. I know exactly what you mean about free day blahs! I though you were all , looking for a nice word, can't find on, "full of it", pardon me. But after eating clean all week and then going back to three larger meals I was absolutely stuffed and could not wait for the day to end.
Anyway , did my 20 cardio, hauled my tired butt home and now must shower before work.
Chat later all,
Virginia

Hey everyone,

I had a blowout last night! I was craving carbs so badly that I found myself wandering through the supermarket looking for food. I ended up buying a packet of chips and eating them and although I made a bad decision - I have to admit it took a load off my mind for some reason. But anyway mistake is over and I am 100% clean again today - thank goodness I had my food ready to go this morning. But of course the blowout did include some water retention and swollen feet this morning which I was not impressed about. I am such an idiot sometimes I should have just eaten some fruit instead of something so salty.

I have summer soccer starting tonight which I am so looking forward to! I missed my workout this morning so I told work that I have an appointment this afternoon so that I can get to the gym for my back/bi workout before soccer. The boss is sick anyways so much much to do around here today. Thank goodness as well because I need the break.

I have to think of some new mental thoughts to get me through this session of CPB. The old self-talk isn't cutting it these days so any ideas anyone?

OH I submitted my opinion to a magazine about a diet they were showing in their magazine and I just heard that it is going to get published in the next edition! Wow how cool is that?!

Well I need a refill on the water bottle talk to you all later.

JC

Hey Ledom - is it your birthday soon?

JC

a week from today I will be 49 . What'cha gonna do?

Got to tell you guys about that lunch yesterday. First on the food. I ate about 1/4 of what was on my plate. I decided just to call it my meal and forget about. I didn't eat enough to do great damage. It sure wasn't a great eating day, but it wasn't bad either. BUT a coincidental and neat thing happened, I was seated next to the Strength Coach at lunch. Now wasn't that fortuitous? I am in the art department, and my path never crosses any of the athletics people. I got so excited when he was introduced. Lunch was very high tone chit chat, but when we shoved back our chairs after lunch I pounced! I told him more than he ever wanted to know about what I was doing. It was so cool, he knew exactly what I was talking about and told me he'd answer any questions or help me out any time I wanted. Now I think I would feel comfortable wandering down to the weight room at school and checking things out.

Well, just wanted to tell you guys how it all turned out. Better than I ever expected.

Thats great Ledom,
All that worry over nothing!
As for me , I have been eating clean all week and right on with my weight training. I did upper body this morning and am I sore, oh yeah! But it feels great too. Went to TOPS last night and have lost 2 of the miserable 4 lbs I gained last week. So things are looking up. I can really feel the muscles in my legs and I even noticed the muscles in my arms today. SO cool to start to notice them now, under all that fat.
Yeah!
Virginia

Hey you guys! I had the worst time trying to access the site (server problems - see Suzanne's note at the top of the forum) and I was dog tired last night...so taking a couple of precious minutes here at work to post!

I did legs yesterday...and WOW are my hammies sore today - but it's a GOOD SORE.

JC - I hear ya, chick It can be tough after awhile - those carbs just CALL to you. Actually I haven't been so awesome myself eating wise. If only the eating part came as easily as the workouts to me - then I'd be set! It just seems that all I want to eat right now is Pamcakes. Yesterday I left my 'work food' on the kitchen counter - that was a first for me - which meant I had to go to my fallback position of cottage cheese and grapefruit for Meal #2 and tuna pouch w/salad for Meal #3. Ugghhh...plus my house is a mess right now! Jim wouldn't let me clean house on Sunday, it being my birthday and all - besides I wasn't feeling really up to it - took me the entire weekend to get over the jetlag!

I called my trainer (Dee Dee) earlier this week and scheduled a private lesson for tomorrow night after work - making up for the Saturday lesson which was rained out. She is such a sweetheart - I'm still hoping to be able to swing a lease on Norman starting in the next month or so...and she has ANOTHER horse - an Arabian/Quarter cross - coming into the barn next week. Aack - I always fall in love with 'em!

This is so funny - for the past few months, Jim has had a TERRIBLE time sleeping through the night (not usually a problem with me - I know my regular morning workouts have a lot to do with that). I had one last sleeping pill left from the ones my doctor gave me (Ambien) so last night I smushed it up, mixed the powder into a hot apple cider and gave it to Jim (I was going to hide it in his soup, but didn't want to give it to him that early) around 8:00 pm last night. He drank it at about 8:15 (let it cool a bit) and around 8:35 - BAM! He started getting all incoherent and sleepy...so we both toddled off to bed around 8:45. Within 3 minutes of his head hitting the pillow, he started snoring (not loudly, just occasionally). Sparky promptly snuggled up next to his shoulder and purred himself to sleep...and Jim STAYED asleep until 6:40 am this morning - woke up refreshed and we got to work 20 minutes early! I know I can't do that again but felt he needed at least one good nights' sleep for a change! Now if I could just get him to work out...this wouldn't be a problem would it?

Sorry for not being around too much -- I've been fighting off a cold/flu thing, so have been dragging a bit. I highly recommend night-time cough medicine as a substitute for Ambien. I've been suffering from this cough for the past few weeks that seems to kick in the worse when I try to sleep. A dose of cough medicine (it's 10% alcohol, BTW, which I didn't know before), and I'm out like a light.

I've been able to make most of my work-outs (I've missed one), but they're not at the 10-level. More like 8s and 9s. I console myself with the thought that at least I'm still hitting the gym in the a.m.

JC: Are you skipping free days on CPB? The main thing that keeps me clean during the week is the thought that I can have it (whatever it may be) on my free day. Another mental trick I play with myself: I recall a trip I once took that was almost ruined because I was just too out of shape to actually do what I was doing (hiking in mountains). I remember how miserable I felt then, and then think about some up-coming trips I have planned (particularly scuba diving) and tell myself the Twinkies (or whatever) are just not worth the misery of being out of shape at 10,000 feet. This mental game has also really helped me stay on track.

Virginia, Ledom & OSC -- Congrats on eating clean and working out!

I hope everyone is having a great Wednesday. 'Til tomorrow. Mox

P.S. Welcome back and happy belated birthday, Karen. And happy soon-to-be birthday, Ledom.

Ledom: I am not going to do anything! I just wanted to let everyone know so we can wish you a happy birthday. I found out by reading one of the other threads yesterday.
Man I wish that I would meet some people like that - I'm jealous!


Virginia: by the way that's my favourite name! What is TOPS?

MrsJim: I did legs this morning. I back/bis last night so by the end of this morning's workout after my deadlifts my back was really feeling it. I went up a few weights in my squats which was pleasing but the lunges killed me! I nearly fell down the stairs at home after my shower because my legs gave out on me Gotta love a great workout.

As for the carb blowout - it seemed strange to me that I have coped before with this but why did I have such a bad day? I looked over my menus again and would you believe it I left out a carb in my lunch (corn) so my carbs for the day where like 45 gms. Ouch! NO WONDER I wasn't coping. I will be more careful in my cooking next time. This morning I had the apple pie breakfast and it was divine after a low calorie day. I feel much better now! I played soccer last night and I actually scored a goal! Hubby said that I run rings around the other girls now which was sweet.

With Jim and the sleeping although some people may disagree with it - I would have done the same thing. It's hard to watch someone you love go through something so annoying - have you thought about talking to him with regards to it? You are right though if he worked out more he would sleep like a baby. Ray and I sleep right through the night and don't even stir until the alarm goes off.

Mox: I hope that you are feeling better mate. Yes I only get a free meal on Saturday nights with Pam's program and I have been sticking to that. I don't have a problem with it and like I said I was craving carbs not chips specifically and I have now realised it was because I didn't eat all the carbs I was meant too the day. I don't particularly miss free day that much but I kinda miss the freedom of not worrying about when I am eating. It's nice not to have to watch the clock you know? What I have been eating for free meals (2 so far) isn't really that bad either, just larger quantities and normally more carbs. I haven't even touched chocolate in 3 weeks! I am at the point where I had to give up free day and go to free meal to kick start the fatloss again. I seem to have hit my fatloss threshold and breaking through it is becoming very hard.

I hope that everyone else is doing great!

JC