What? We're on a diet? Why didn't anyone tell me?!? hehehe just kidding!

For the one 1/2 weeks on Sonoma I've lost 5 lbs. Today I am tired, but normally I have noticed more energy. I can run up the stairs at work here, at least the one flight. I work on second, but eat lunch on 3rd...and normally we run out of steam by the time we make it to the top, especially from first floor. I ran up them today from 2nd and had plenty of energy to spare. I need to try it from first to see a true improvement though.

My pants seem to fit me better today. I'm still wearing my stretchy 18w jeans, but normally after taking them out of the dryer I have to fight to get them on, today I think they went on fairly smooth. Can't wait until they are too big! I love them because they are the first jeans that I've found that not only fit me, but complement me, but I think I'll love to be able to fit into a size 14 more. Not to mention a 12 hopefully eventually! :-)

Yeah, a little friendly competition could be fun! You can set targets and come up with some really fun prizes ...

Yay!!! Isn't that a great feeling? Stick with eating well and exercising and you'll be in a 14 before you know it.

Gina,

I personally would say move to Wave 2, then if you end up plateauing in Wave 2, you have Wave 1 to move back to, and it just might be the "shock" to the system to get the weight moving down again.

Gina-I considered staying on wave 1 a little longer since I wasn't "perfect" for all 10 days...then I decided to do what DonnaS suggested...go ahead and start wave 2 and then if I'm not totally away from the sweets then go back to wave 1. Well, I think even though I wasn't perfect, I did succeed in breaking the sugar habit. I've got dd birthday cake that I have meant to freeze for later...maybe a little sweet treat for her, but I haven't done it yet and I haven't touched it. Now I just reach for a piece of fruit to satisfy the sweet touth, or a parfait like I made last night from the recipe list.

OKay- I sooo excited today. It looks like I made my Valentine's day goal early! I stepped on the scale last night for a cheat peak...not sure why I do that, I never trust night weighs for me...but it said I had dropped to 214! I thought it was lying! So, I stepped on it again and this time it said 215. Oh well, I'll still take it! But, I thought I'd wait until this morning to share the news with everyone just in case. So this morning I stepped on it and it still said 215! I'm so excited to finally break that 220 mini-plateau I was having! I was beginning to think I was doing something wrong...nope, it's onward and downward from here!

I am just finishing my first official week on the diet, and I've lost 6 pounds! Woohoo! Because I had always gone very low fat when I dieted, I was having a hard time believing I could add oil to my food and still lose weight. Well, I believe it now!

My biggest NSV is more energy. I have some sleep problems, so I still feel sleepy a lot of times, but not so *tired*.....if that makes sense. Another nice thing is just how good it makes me feel psychologically when I know I'm eating food that I enjoy and is good for me. It just changes my outlook on everything.

I also took the plunge last week and ordered a treadmill. It should arrive by Friday, and I'm excited about that. Walking is my favorite form of exercise, but I'm a wimp about weather!

Tammie,

That is awesome!!! Way to go.

I need some motivation, ladies. I've had a BAAAD weekend.

We were due to go to a friend's 30th chinese meal yesterday and I thought it was a buffet. It turned out to be a banquet (where they bring you 6 courses) and although I'd tried to plan for the chinese factor, being presented with courses of high fat, deep fried food meant I ate totally off plan. I had half a bowl of chicken and sweetcorn soup, 5 prawn crackers, 2 ribs, 3 dim sum, 3 peking duck pancakes and by the time the nutritious main courses came I could only eat a few mouthfulls of prawns and stir fried beef (which was what I'd planned for) I then had a square of birthday cake.

Can someone please put me back in perspective- it's only one meal but I ate the empty calories of it, and I'm beating myself up for the fact that I couldn't control it, so it wll went to pot (as my BF said, I didn't need to eat any of the earlier courses if I didn't want to.)

Today is fairly on plan (have been travelling, so not quite fully sonoma but following the principles) and I'm working out on the cross trainer. Please can you give me some of your motivation today as not feeling very positive at all!

Claire...look at it this way. It was one meal out of what? A lifetime? It was a party, and by the sounds of it not one you are likely to be invited to every day of the week, so don't be so down on yourself for enjoying yourself. Today is a new day, get back on the horse and don't worry about last night. We are all bound to indulge every once in awhile (I'm living proof of it..my dd birthday? Chuck E. Cheese?) You put it behind you and go onward from here. It'll all balance out in the end as long as you allow it to!

Exactly. Think about this, before you started Sonoma, would you have thought twice about your buffet choices? I know that I'm much more congnizant of the choices that I am making, even if they aren't the right choices, and if I do fall off the wagon, I move on from that point, decide if it was something that was a one time thing, or if it was something else.

I don't really have anything to add to what Tearjerker and DonnaS wrote except to say that I agree with both of them. Don't beat yourself up, just move on. Who knows, maybe next time it will be easier to say "no" to the less-nutritious earlier courses.

I, too, am struggling at times. I went to a birthday party this afternoon and had a slice of pizza and a small square of birthday cake. But the old Sherry would have had two or three slices of pizza and a big square of cake.

Clareh,

We all have those times. DH is lamenting one as we speak. He is re-doing wave 1 in its entirety because he feels he did not learn enough about portion sizes the first time. Might you consider re-oing wave 1 for a day or 2 just to feel like you are back on track? If anything, it might give you an emotional boost and a little redemption.

I am now venturing from Wave 1, also. I think I will do 1 week with mostly Wave 1 foods and occassionally add in a Wave 2 food, not everyday though. If I don't lose with this then I can back off of the W2 foods and go slower.

Terravita~~I also took the exercise plunge and ordered a Life Fitness elliptival which will arrive Wednesday. Now we have NO excuse not to exercise

Thanks ladies- I'm loads more positive today and have made good food choices.

Off for 90 mins of yoga and I can't eat before that so will be quite tired and need a bath before dinner tonight.

It's great to have this site where you can come and vent rather than feeding your feelings. It's weigh in day tomorrow and fingers crossed I might still have lost something.

Good luck this week!