Starting thread. Be right back.

Hi all.

Welcome to a new week!

Judy - We're having the same heat wave you are. I'm not sure how humid it is because I refused to set foot outside the house yesterday. But I do know that I awoke with stiff and achy knees this morning. I'm praying for a cold front. I'm glad you were able to find the buffalo chicken sauce - it certainly helps cure a crave for spicy. Were you able to get in your walk in the pool this morning? Enjoy the cherries - we picked some up from our farmer's market last week and they were delicious. This week we're working our way through a quart of blueberries.

My weekend was pretty good. I was actually under points on Saturday. Yesterday I used some more flex points - it was a very pointy day. We had grilled bratwurst for lunch and then grilled steak for dinner. Both were delicious and worth every point. I just have a few left and I'm meeting a friend for dinner tonight at a French bistro. I used to go out to dinner with this friend once a month until she moved to Atlanta a few years ago. Now I get to see her once or twice a year which is about how often I get to go to a nice restaurant in the city. I plan on eating a low point breakfast and lunch and then just enjoying my dinner without worrying too much, since it's such a rare treat. I'll be careful to not overdo the bread and I'll probably skip the wine and the dessert, so I should be ok. Depending upon the heat and how my knees feel, I may or may not walk to the restaurant to burn off some calories.

Enjoy your day!

Carla

Carla - sounds like a good strategy for dinner - I hope you enjoy the evening. I like that phrase. "a pointy day." Yes, that is what flex points are for so good for you for enjoying yourself but counting the points. Sorry that your knees were stiff and achy. I do think that all the swelling and achiness has a lot to do with the weather and the fact that I was in it in Philly for 3 days and then here it is here.

The good news is that my hands are just about back to normal and so are my knees. The weather continues to be miserable. It was 98 degrees in the shade in our backyard this afternoon. I spent the morning on some errands (including a Trader Joe's trip and I got the chicken tenders) and then basically stayed indoors. I didn't even make it to the pool - too hot - so I walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes. My back didn't feel great afterwards but I have PT tomorrow (so again no pool) so I'm sure things will get straightened out.

Eating has been good - I've been having a lot of cucumbers and fruit. I got three different salsas at Trader Joe's (and totally ignored the snack aisle) as well as a fat free quesa that's just about zero points. All good for good snacking. Water hasn't been an issue with this heat but I have to work on getting my milks in. I think it's time to wash some of the blueberries we have and mixc them with some ff Fage yogurt - yum!

Have a great one!
Judy

Hi all,

Judy - We had storm last night and it broke the heat wave, thank goodness. It's 79 here right now - far better than the mid-80s. My knees, unfortunately, are still stiff and achy. I'm glad to hear that your hands and knees are better. What is this fat-free quesa you speak of? I'm about ready to do a Trader Joe's run.

I had a delicious dinner yesterday. I've used up my flex points, but managed not to go over. I ordered the roasted chicken, but didn't eat the skin and only ate the breast, which was small. Had a lovely salad and the chicken came with mashed potatoes and some baby vegetables. We share a dessert, which was a tiny chocolate molten cake with a tiny scoop of vanilla ice-cream, neither of which we finished. Had some bread and wine too. All in all lovely. So unless I go crazy today, this will go down as a successful week. Now to keep it up for week two.

Have a great day.

Carla

Carla - ooooh, I'm so jealous! It's 99 degrees in the shade in our backyard - once the sun hits the thermometer, it's anyone's guess what the temp will climb to. I hope it breaks soon. Sorry about your knees still being achy. My fingers and knees are just about back to normal, thank goodess. My mistake on the spelling of the Trader Joe thing. It's a fat free Chili Con Queso. Since it's fat free it's a little, well, goopy is a term I'd use but if you heat it up it's less so and I just like it cold to dip veggies in. Two TB is 20 cal, no fat and 3 grams of fiber - zero points. I like it even spicier than it is, so I added in some of the Lime Habiniero salsa I also picked up - mmmmmmm! It sounds like you did great last night! I hope you gave yourself pats on the back.

I had a very "pointy" evening last night. I just couldn't seem to satisfy myself with what I chose for snacking (which of course could mean that food is not the answer ;-). I realized as I was reading that what I had been thinking of all day was the Baker's Box cookies in the freezer downstairs (having seen them while I put various chicken/meats purchased in the freezer. So even though I used almost 6 flex points, I had a chococlate chunk cookie. I wrote it down and enjoyed every bite. This morning my sneak peek showed some of the saltier snacks I had last night (like olives) but I'm trying to guzzle the water and wash the sodium out of my system. I had PT this morning (which lasted over 2.5 hours!) and have basically stayed inside since I got home. Tomorrow, Tony and I are driving to an outlet to see if I can find a dress for a wedding we have in August (blech, I hate shopping!) My goal is to not use any flex points for snacking tonight.

Have a great one!
Judy

Okay so as of this morning I lost 1.5 pounds last week. I know we always want to see big numbers.. but I know this is healthy for weightloss, so I am glad. If that weightloss continues.. I would lose a total of more than 30pounds by Thanksgiving. Who can argue with that??

I also know I can do even better. I barely exercised this week with as hot as its been. I'm definitely going to do better.. and also make sure I get my water in.. I was lax in doing that Sunday and Monday.

I told my mom about joining WW.. which she has asked me to do in the past and said she would pay for it (but she got her contract for her company cut in half and I know she won't be able to) At first she seemed excited.. but she is a diet junkie. I won't blame her for all my diet woes at all, but her attitude towards food and dieting while I was growing up definitely affected me. She's always been on a diet as long as I've been aware enough to notice.

Then she calls me last night and I think she was going to try to get me to switch to an online tracking program. My guess is Fitday.com. Now, I've been telling her ab out these programs for over a year. I used something similar last year when I lost 30 pounds. The problem with it is.. there is no "real" accountability there. You can just up and stop using it whenever you get bored of it. And I've found the foods in the databases to be inaccurate many times, so I added my own. That can get tiresome. Anyways, I think she was totally going to talk me into using that instead! Argh! Make up your mind, woman!

I think she wanted me to go to meetings. Personally, its just even more expensive and I don't live in an area where there are choices as far as meetings go. There is one meeting on Wednesdays at times I can't typically go. So I will end up paying all that money to maybe make one meeting a month. $40 for one meeting = not worth it for me.

anyways, not sure what today brings but I'm going to attempt the Cashew Chicken recipe on WW website for dinner unless I go over points and need to pick something lighter. I have to bring my fiancee to get laser surgery today - not the corrective kind.. he had a blood vessel burst in his eye that they are going to prevent happening again.

Hi all,

Judy - Don't be jealous. We're getting the heat wave back today. I'm definitely going to look for the chili con queso when I go to TJs - and the lime habenero salsa as well. I'm glad you enjoyed the cookie - sometimes you just have to spend your flex points on a treat. Good luck finding a dress today. I hate shopping too.

Gina - Welcome and congratulations on your loss. I know your mom means well, but you have to do what you feel will work for you. Tell her that and I'm sure she'll understand.

The scale was down by 6.2 pounds today! Since three of those pounds were gone a day after my weigh-in last week, I'm going to call it a 3.2 pound loss. I didn't do so well yesterday with journaling or eating, although I don't think I went over points. I've gritted my teeth and got right back on track this morning, especially since my poor eating choices showed up when I measured my blood sugar this morning. I think it's going to be a struggle today - for some reason I'm wanting to eat everything that isn't nailed down, but I'm not giving in.

Have a great day everyone.

Carla

It's a quiet week in here. Judy, I hope shopping for the dress didn't do you in!

Well, I managed to hold on on Wednesday and actually ate under my points. It wasn't easy though. I went to the bakery to order a b-day cake for my mom and ignored the cream-filled doughnut that was trying to get me to eat it. Instead of feeling virtuous and all, I just felt cranky about it. Yesterday I had a meeting in the city and ended up missing my 12:30, so I had lunch at the train station. I ate at Popeye's and enjoyed every last bit of it. I had a light dinner and ended up just using a few flex points. And now off to the dentist to get a permanent crown put on.

Have a great day.

Carla

Hey everyone!
Gina, welcome to our group! Weighing in with us can be just as good as a meeting, with just as much support in my opinion. But I do have friends who tell me that they could never do WW without going to meetings and they don't know how I do it. I just tell them I am paying $40/month for the gym and that's enough!

Judy--I'm glad you are feeling better! THe heat here is so awful. We don't go outside during the day. We try to take a dip in the pool around 4pm but even then it's sweltering and the pool is almost too warm---so I know how you feel!

Carla--I think you Should feel great about ignoring the doughnut! Good job, and the weight is coming off too!!

As for me, I have been having a week of "I'll get back to WW tomorrow"s
But it's Friday, my usual weigh in day, so I am definitely starting over today!
I went to the gym this morning too, and thought I would have a hard time being gone for 3 weeks, but it wasn't too bad! I did my usual 30 min on the elliptical while Ayana was at swim practice.

Today I am paying bills and doing housework. Have to take the girls up to the library too.
Have a great weekend everyone!!

Gina - welcome and congratulations on your loss. That is a very good, healthy amount to lost. I agree with Carla - it's your decision how you want to lose the weight. I think WW is a smart choice and I'm sure your mom will understand.

Carla - congratulations on the fabulous loss!!! It's funny you mention wanting to eat everything that's nailed down. That's what the last two evenings have been for me. I stopped myself from beating myself up about it by journalling my snack attacks - I still have 5 flex points to get through the day (new week tomorrow). Could yours be caused by the PMS monster? I suppose it's possible mine is but TOM is so weird these days that I just never know the timing anymore. Good for you for telling that cream filled doughnut who's boss! Yeah, sometimes I feel virtuous and sometimes I just feel cranky about not eating treats. Sorry the heat is back for you. We're in the 80's, VERY humid and having thunderstorms (some severe). Not the best weather. Yes, I did find an outfit for the wedding. The traffic was terrible getting there but the sale (it was at the Eileen Fisher outlet) was amazing and since I got seperates, I should get a lot of wear out of it. Oh, and even though her sizes are VERY generous, the skirt I got was a small!

Rachel - sorry about having a rough time getting back to program but the important thing is that you are back, starting over and ready to go! WTG on getting to the gym. I hope to get to walk in the pool sometime tomorrow - but I have a feeling with all the thunderstorms, I'll be an indoor girl this weekend too!

My sneak peeks have been up the last 2 days (no surprise) but I am determined to lose some of my gain from two weeks ago. So far, my snacking has been limited to veggies with FF Chili Con Queso and the Lime Habiniero salsa, my new favorite. I got the OK from my PT to try a little gentle yoga this weekend. I didn't get to the pool this morning but walked in the pool at my mom's yesterday, after 2.5 hours of PT. I had a stressful morning (very long story - it involves apartment/cat-sitting) but am trying to relax this afternoon. Time for me to go do my PT stretches. I'll try to get back later - I do better when I come here more often.

Have a great one!
Judy

Rachel - I'm sorry to hear you're struggling to get back on track. I tend to wait until weigh-in day to get back on program when I've had a stretch of being off program. Yay for you for going to the gym.

Judy - I'm glad to hear you found an outfit and how terrific that the skirt is a small. Our weather has been absolutely crazy. Yesterday I got caught in a torrential rain and strong winds. You could see the rain swirling in the wind. I arrived at my meeting completely soaked, depsite my umbrella, because the rain was coming at me from all angles. Today it's still gloomy but blessedly cool. We're supposed to have a cool weekend. I hope so.

My challenge this weekend will be dinner at my mom's house on Sunday. We're celebrating her birthday. She insisted on doing the cooking, though. I think she enjoys cooking for people and she doesn't get to do it that often. We're having roast beef, roasted potatoes, sauteed green beans and mushrooms, bread, and of course cake. I'll eat light for breakfast and lunch and will make sure I have a lot of flex points left, but dinner shouldn't be too hard to handle.

Have a terrific weekend.

Carla

Hello Ladies,
Well I managed to get through the day and stick to my points---didn't even use any flexpoints!! It's nice to have an OP day to start off the week.
This afternoon I took the girls shopping for school supplies (groan, hate it). Then this evening it wasn't too humid outstide so I weeded the flower beds for about an hour. The weather was nice.
Carla---I can imagine you getting all drenched!! You poor thing! I think your mom's dinner will be okay---just remember the portions! That always gets me.
Tonight for dinner I made a buffalo chicken salad with leftover grilled chicken breast, salad greens, green onions, tomatoes, and Ken's light blue cheese dressing with Frank's sauce mixed in it. It was so good!! I only needed one tablespoon of the blue cheese. I love Ken's dressings--the light ones taste terrific!

Judy---small skirt, 'nuff said

I'll check in tomorrow!

Rachel - One OP day down, many more to come. Good start, good for you! The salad sounds good. I've got to try to find the Ken's dressing - I've read good things about it. I can't believe you have such an early start to school there. School supplies are out in the stores already here, though, and I have Ana's list, so I suspect we'll be doing some shopping soon.

I lessened considerably the amount of flex points I'll have available on Sunday by going out for a burger and beer last night. I had such a taste for them that when John got home late and I managed to lock Ana and me out of the house for about 20 minutes before he got home, going out for dinner seemed just the thing to do. I was mighty tempted just to blow off counting points for the day (I also got a bit snacky in the afternoon), but nope - I'm headed over to my on-line tracker now to get it all down. That's the only way I'm going to be successful once and for all at this - write it all down all the time.

Enjoy your Saturday.

Carla

Rachel - way to go on your OP day. It is a nice way to start the week! That salad does sound delicious. I love Ken's lite Caesar drssing but I don't know if I've seen their blue cheese. I'll have to take a look in the supermarket tomorrow!

Carla - I'm sending you OP vibes right now for the dinner at your mom's. Rachel is right - portions are so key. My drenching was today. I had to pick up a pair of lenses (I was out) before my appt on Monday and even though I brought an unbrella with me, I was pretty soaked by the time I got back to the car. Of course, I wasn't going to a meeting, just going home! GOOD FOR YOU for journalling your points - you are absolutely right - that IS what is going to make you successful once and for all. I really believe that the difference for me recently is that I have learned from my previous experience. I KNOW that if I don't count my snack attacks/binges/whatever I will continue to get what I've gotten in the past - no/stalled weight loss. I also continue to journal even if I've blown all my flex points and still end up using some (not that you will today). The other key thing is what my leader said today, "Guilt is the most fattening thing you can have." It sounds like you did that wit the burger and beer - hey, if we couldn't have something like that once in a while, we'd never stick with it, lose the weight and keep it off (which is what we are all going to be successful doing!)

I had a good weigh in today. I went to my early meeting - it's funny how I am so NOT used to getting up around 6:30 this summer. I lost what I had gained a few weeks ago (1.4) plus another 0.4 for a total of 1.8 pounds. I am SO close to my 10% (I need to lose another 0.2) I can taste it (sorry ;-) My challenge this week is that we are going out to dinner with friends not only on Tuesday but on Friday too - 2 dinners out and one of them the night before my weigh in. I am trying to save as many flex points as possible and will see about having fish of some kind both nights. Tony and I managed to squeeze in a walk in the pool this morning before some thunderstorms. We'll be getting more again this evening - I can't wait until we break this weather pattern!

Have a great one!
Judy