Since there wasn't yet a weekly weigh-in thread for this week, I thought I'd start us out. Hope that's ok!

Ok, so this is my first day on plan after 6 months of chemo and a 25 pound weight gain. Thank you, steroids! But I'm not bitter -- nope, I'm not! I'm back in the saddle again! I've got a whole regimen in the works.....now it's just for the doing, as they say. I was saying to Howie yesterday, "I hope I get my mojo back!" (Those of you who know me from pre-cancer might remember that I was Miss Motivation.

Well, she's back! Now I just need my body to cooperate with me. I'm told that it's very, very common for folks to have a great deal of difficulty losing weight after chemo because the body just holds onto everything. Self-preservation, you think?? My poor old bod has sure been through the ringer! But I'm going to just assume that all my efforts will work -- expect positive things, and positive things will come. And if I DON'T lose weight, at least I'll be eating nutritiously and getting fitter -- and giving my body the nourishing attention it's been sorely lacking during the half a year I was poisoning it with cell-killing chemicals! (I do love them by the way.....whatever it takes, man! )

Anyway, here's my official starting weigh-in: (drumroll please...) I now weigh 231. Up 25 pounds from my low of 206. It could have been a lot worse -- 40-50 pounds is not uncommon! -- so I'm considering myself officially blessed. (In all kinds of ways.)

Anyway, that's me. Hopefully I'll have good news to report next week! (Or sooner? )

Hope to hear good news from you guys too!

Wow Sarah! Welcome back. I am so happy for you...

Well, I'll add my loss to the thread. Down another pound. 33.8 total! It's going sooo slowly.

The good news is that I'm able to work out again. I did 45 mins on the eliptical machine Friday and 50 mins yesterday. Also, since my boss is out today, I'm going to go during lunch today. It's amazing, first of all that I've gotten back so quickly and second that I'm even doing better than I was before my knee. I just have to go a little slower to make sure I don't hurt myself again.


Have a great week everyone.

Ugh I got weighed at the OB/GYN this morning at 314 But my baby weighs 8 pounds 5 oz already Darn little piglet, hopefully I'll be having a good loss soon.

UGH! I am up 4.5 lbs from Friday......I ate whatever I wanted this weekend because I knew I was starting South Beach today (recommended by my doc due to my PCOS/Insulin Resistance.

It's a new day!!

Well I'm going to own up to the fact that my scale was showing 232 lbs this morning but I refuse to change my ticker because I am 100% certain that I am retaining water like crazy. It is TOM and I feel bloated and this humid weather actually makes my feet swell. I know it is the humidity and not a medical condition because it went away when we had those cool days a little while ago. So by this time next week I will be back down and hopefully a couple more lbs with it!!

Sarah. It's good to see you back and fired up. Just think in two pounds you'll be out of a decade and into a new one. We all know you can do this and you'll be back down to 206 and beyond in no time.


I'm down 3.5 pound from last Wednesday. I just wasn't feeling wednesdays so I changed back to Mondays.

Stayed the same this week at 247. hoping to have a great loss next week... have the week off of work, so plenty of time to get active!!!

It's good to have you back Sarah and I know you will find your mojo. You have a wonderful plan in place and you have Lorraine ready to help you this time. Threres nothing you can't do. You have already proved that.

Stayed the same this week. Better than going up. Keep hanging in there.

I am so upset with my weigh in. I was so excited to get up this morning. I have been on plan, doing what I am supposed to and was looking forward to cracking those new numbers (260's). I was absolutely sure I would have dropped a significant amount in the past two weeks with being sick and then with really being on plan. Well, I got the shock of my life. I got new numbers alright - six pound gain - 280. I know I am the first to say "it is not about the number - focus on your health and do good things for yourself. We are more than mere numbers". I always recite that saying because I have an autoimmune disorder and weight loss is just harder (but not impossible!) and I know that I am more than what my scale says. But I am really bummed out by this. So much so that it has even changed my food choices for the day. There were cookies that I normally wouldn't touch and I was feeling so sorry for myself that I thought - oh who gives a crap, may as well eat them it is not like my body is ever going to lose weight anyway. So that is my whining for the day. I changed my signature and it almost did me in to admit to the 280. I have worked so hard for every single solitary pound I have lost and to see them come back with a few friends is just heartbreaking. I have been to fitday each day logging my foods, I have been adding exercise to my life and now I gain 6 lbs. It just feels so discouraging.

I am, however, very excited for those of you who are experiencing success with your efforts. It is inspiring. And for those who stayed the same or gained - I guess the point is to come here and keep trying (and in my case trying and trying and trying and trying. Who knows, perhaps someday it will actually work (or not). I apologize, I am not the most positive person today but thank you for letting me vent. Here is hoping, not all that optimistically, for better days ahead.

Jenaya! Hey now, ho now.....wait just a minute, girl. Let's not get crazy. You said that you'd been eating on plan -- do you honestly believe that you consumed a surplus of 21,000 calories over the last two weeks??? Because at 3500 calories/pound that's what you would have had to have done. You also said that you'd increased your exercise -- I'm not suggesting that you've gained pounds of muscle because it would take you years to do that -- but it is a fact that muscles retain more water when exercise is increased. I'm sure it's water!! Do you watch your sodium intake? How much water do you drink? Maybe if you thought about this as if it had happened to, say, ME, you'd be able to think about it more objectively. By removing the [completely understandable] emotion from it, you might think of more explanations than you simply "gained 6 pounds."

I implore you to find it in yourself to just look at this with a cold, calculating eye -- looking simply for an explanation. I think if you do, you'll feel much more optimistic about your next weigh in 2 weeks from now. And put away the damned cookies. You know better.

I send you hugs, love, and calming vibrations......

Ditto with what Sarah is saying. I'm sure you did not gain fat after staying on plan. Our bodies are funny with what they do. Just keep going you will get there.

Went to my 2nd WW Meeting and in a row (aren't you proud of me)

So, i was very nervous - did a bad thing a few days ago and weighed myself, no change on they day on did that so today i was NERVOUS.

Gave the nice lady my money, stalled as long as i could, then she peer over her glasses at me as if to say, "well, honey, the scale won't guess your weight, can you please step on".........so i took my shoes off (ring, watch, underwear (kidding) etc). and stepped on........(hold onto your seatbelts)

and BAM

1.8 LOSS!



So there you have it!

I do hate that it's a (normally) eating holiday coming up, but we have changed our habits and it will no longer be only about FOOD!

......Thanks for listening!........ and Sarah, you have a great spirit despite what you are going thru - GREAT ROLE MODEL!

....Mara

Jenaya, you out there, sweetie? Hope you're feeling a little better -- if there's any way I can help, just let me know.

Mara, congratulations!! What a fabulous start -- and you GO, building a routine with going to meetings! I'm really happy for you -- and I'm especially glad that you're preparing for the holiday. Set yourself up for success, and if you have any treats, be sure that they're planned and allowed -- with your Ointsies! I know that with this week being my first one back on plan 100%, I'm all ABOUT preparedness. I have a lot of stuff going on this week which will involve numerous meals out -- and I'm doing everything within my power to set myself up. Sorry! Didn't mean to make this about me, me, me -- my gentle reminder to you reminded me to remind myself!

Sarah - FANTASTIC! I'm so happy to see you all pumped up like your motivational ole' self! You are such an inspiration in so many different ways, and i'm super excited to have you back "on plan" with us! Let's share our successes!

To all you losers - congrats! Another week down, some more lb's down... WAY TO GO!