Hey Ladies,
Hope all is well with you.

As for me, well I am trying to get back to a normal life, after all that has gone on lately. Still looking for a place, but I did start swimming today. I was supposed to start when I got back from vacation, but I forgot that week, and I was rushing home last week to get my swim suit, when I noticed they broke into my home, so today was my first day!
It was fun, and tiring at the same time. I am exhausted.

Lisa, Sounds like your diet is going great, I can't imagine eating all those foods again, although, it sounds good, I don't know if I can eat like that again!

MIki, I am being good today, and getting in a post just for you

Cyan, how is the beetle running????

Talk to you all soon!
Take care,

It was Canada Day yesterday so I wasnt at work..thats why I didnt post.

I did ok food wise..although I have been having regular pop...its so good in the summer time...I had two cans yesterday...so I must cut back on that right away.

I start back up with badminton tomorrow and this morning...I walked to work...I forgot to buy my bus pass for the month of July!

Hey Miki...good to hear that you are back on track!

Reina...The beetle is running just fine..zip zip zip! How was the swimming?

Well ladies, have a great op day and I will talk to you later

Cyan

I am here ladies. I did exercise today, 12 mins on the stepper today and walked at the school about 15 min I am guessing (about 9laps). Eating was ok, nothing big, though to many carbs. I am going to get something cool to eat though (popsicle sounds good). I did drink 2.3L of water today and took my vitamins. I do feel better today. Hopefully I can keep it up.

Chat later.
Deana

Thanks everybody for the posts!( Especially Reina who did it just for me..lol ) It was great coming to find new posts today.

I have done ok foodwise today again. I also walked 2 1/2 miles this morning with my sis before 8 a.m. then we did the half hour Arms tape.

I cant type much right now because I have steaks on the grill and I need to be checking on them already. If time permits, I'll come back again tonite.

Later!

Miki

Hello everyone. I didn't get any e-mail that people had posted so I assumed no one had and I didn't need to check. Glad I finally did.

Well, the kids have been at my parent's house in Oklahoma since Sunday night. Hubby had the week off so we've been having a very relaxed week, even though I've had to go to class every night. Actually class is going quite well and while I'd prefer it wasn't something I had to do during the summer, It's actually quite interesting.

The diet is going great. I went to a Health Food store and bought the Adkins pancake mix and Pancake syrup, so tomorrow, I'm having pancakes. Yummy. Can't wait. Then we're going out to my husband's granddparents's house to fish and relax. Actually, hubby will be fishing, I'll be laying out getting a tan and reading Harry Potter. I'm excited.

What are everyone's plans for the 4th of July. I guess, you won't be celebrating Cyan, but we'll light some extra fireworks just for you. We're going to my parent's house. My mom and I are going to make foods that are allowed on the Adkins plan for the party they have every year.

Well, that's al for now. I'll see you all later!!

Lisa

Hi, everyone! Sorry I haven't posted. I have some problems in my relationship with my mother, and that situation took my time and attention over the last few days. I've missed everyone, without a doubt, and I'm glad to be back.

I am following the Induction phase of the Atkins the best I can. That lasts for 2 weeks. Unfortunately, I don't get to eat all the fun stuff that Lisa is eating yet. I am eating primarily meat of any type, cheese, green vegetables, and natural fats. I picked real butter, cream cheese, mayonnaise, and blue cheese salad dressing. I tried to eat eggs, but I had to give them up because I have a history of getting sick from them, and I did (my poor stomach!). The Induction phase restricts all carbohydrates in order to change the body's metabolism from carb burning to fat burning. I'm drinking lots of water--partly because I'm thirsty, and partly because you're supposed to, to avoid constipation. I have to tell you, while it feels weird to eat things that are fatty and to eat as much meat as I am, I think my body likes it. I find that I am less on edge than I was, and my head is clearer. I feel tired at the end of the day, but it's a different feel--not the foggy, need to collapse, dead type of tired which has been normal for me for years. Also, I think what I eat fills me up more and sticks with me--so I don't want to eat as often. I miss bread and stuff, but after the first couple of days, the idea of eating something sweet actually turned me off, and I am not really craving the bread anymore. And now for the best part--I know I told everyone I wasn't going to weigh for a week, but I just couldn't stand not knowing if anything was happening--they say it starts quickly. And it's been so long since the scale has budged for me that I couldn't believe that I could actually lose on any plan. Here it is--AS OF YESTERDAY, I'VE LOST 2 POUNDS!!!!! Now I know probably most of that is water, but I haven't even lost water in the last few years! Anyway, I am very encouraged, and I am going to keep with it.

My injured leg is healing, thankfully, but I miss my daily walk. I've NOT been doing any toning exercises. I've been wrapping the leg because it seems to like support. The pain is down, and most of what I feel is stiffness. I'm walking better and can actually stand on it for extended periods with little discomfort. I will probably go out a little on Saturday--walk slowly and not far, just to move it a little. I think I can kiss my summer walking goal goodbye. I think it's going to be a while before I am back to full throttle. I don't want to reinjure myself.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a great 4th. I'm glad you have Canada Day, Cyan, so you don't miss the summer celebration, even if it's different than ours. We don't do fireworks--my husband gave them up when we got married and had a baby who screamed in fear at the noise. Also, this baby, who is now 12 and has allergies and asthma, is bothered by the smoke they make. I really don't like them myself, except for public displays, and they tend to be very crowded. Actually in Illinois, fireworks are illegal, but since in Indiana they are legal, people smuggle them over the state line like crazy, and the police just look the other way. My job (I work in Indiana) is in a building shared by a fireworks salesman, and the last few days there, it has been absolutely insane. So what are we doing? I'm just thrilled for a three-day weekend, first of all. I'll do a lot of home projects that need attention. My guess is that there will be some outdoor grilling involved. And then in the evening hubby is taking the girls to see "Finding Nemo". I am going to bask in glorious solitude at home and comfort our cat in the midst of the fireworks the neighbors do. There were a few pops last night, and our poor tabby Nikki jumped a mile at every one.

Well, did I make up for my lack of posts since the beginning of the week? I will talk to everyone soon. Take care.

Tonight I play badminton....time to sweat again! I have been doing ok food wise ... I have been cutting back on carbs not I am not following the adkins diet...not sure if I could handle all the meat ... we will see.

Hey Lisa...good to hear that you are off for some rest and relaxation. Good to hear that you are enjoying your classes too.

hey Miki...man with all that walking..you can walk on over to Montreal! Hope your steaks turn out well.

Taiwan...did you enjoy your popsicle?

Well as usual, I have work so I best get back to it. Later ladies

Cyan

Cyan, I sure did enjoy it:-) shouldn't have had 2 of them, yup 2 of them!!!! oh well, such is life.

I walked 21 min. today. Don't know how many laps I did, but I ran one lap. Maybe I can slowly add laps in. I need to get back to toning, but first just need to exercise. Will get my water in. Eating is still bad, but gotta eat right? hahaha!! It's hot and humid and the a/c doesn't do much good in our house when you cook.

Ok, I can't concentrate to type. There is a Buddhist or Taoist funeral down at the corner and I think they have hired mourners. Let's just say it is 9:30pm and they are playing loud music, screaming and crying for their father. This usually happens when the family hasn't been really nice to the person and they feel if they cry loud enough, the "ghost/spirit" will be nice to them.

Sounds like those with adkins are doing well. I live in carbohydrate capital of the world!!!!! I don't think I could do it. I do need to figure out something though. Count calories? count fat? count carbs? who on earth knows? go by blood type? so many things out there. Though I was thinking today as I have been having discussions with a friend of mine. She is about 5'6" 126lbs and wants to get to 120lbs. NOW, she is going to go back to using dexatrim. You know, at 188lbs, I must be really disgusting to people. Her dh prefers her thin, well, she is below weight!!!I am losing weight for me, my health. My dh just says as long as I am healthy he doesn't care how big I am:-) family is more important than a weight issue.

Ok, I need to go to another room, the screaming (using a microphone!!) is getting on my nerves.

Deana

Hi all Glad to see so many posts again.

Lisa I hate that you have to attend classes even in the summer, but at least it's interesting. That helps for sure. I'm anxious to hear your Friday weigh-in report. Your excitement for your new diet is contagious I think. Makes me want to do better myself. I know the quick weightloss definitely makes me envious. I've been reading about it lately and was thinking of trying it but I've come to the decision that altho mine hasnt been fast, slowly but surely I'm losing so I'm going to stick to what I've always done. At least for now. I dont even have a certain plan, I just try to control portions keeping calories at a moderate level and learn to eat only if I'm truly hungry. I still just cant get to the point that I can honestly say I'd ever make certain foods totally off limits. I've lost 42 lbs since Oct but I do get discouraged when the scales seem to stick at times. Realistically tho, I know myself and there's no way I could ever agree to giving up my carbs...I dont have that much willpower. I figure if I'm losing without giving them up, I'll stick to that. Now I do admit, there may come a time when I am totally frustrated with the slow rate I'm going and ya never know...I may decide I need to try it. At least if and when I do, I can see from your experience that it's a plan that works! Keep up the great work. Your success is amazing! Is your mom doing it with you also? Losing all that weight plus working on the tan...hubby's not gonna know that new woman in his life!

Newie, 2 lbs in a day...Wow! That's got to be great motivation for you. Sorry to hear your injury has messed up your walking goal but it's really important to let it heal before you do too much on it. I hope you are able to work things out with your mom. We did miss you but we understand some things are more important than coming here and family probs are one of them. I hope you enjoy your night to yourself. Sounds great to me.

Cyan, I should have kept up with the miles I've walked since October. I could be halfway there by now.. I didnt walk any today..it is just tooo hot! Even early in the morning. I did do the Abs tape tho which is good except that afterwards, we went and had Chinese buffet which is a definite no-no for me. I never know when to stop when it's buffet.

Deana, everytime I hear about one of those funerals going on near you, I cant help but laugh. It's sad that they lost a loved one or a relative if not a loved one, but I've never understood about those mourners! I've seen documentaries where they really did get professional mourners to come wail and cry. That is just too weird! You have me wanting a popcicle now...it is just so hot and humid here and I bet that would just hit the spot. I'll have to get some soon. They're not bad calorie-wise. I hope you dont think badly of me, but I dont feel sorry for your huge 126 lb friend. Even 126 is plenty thin for someone 5'6, probably too thin even. I'm like you, people like that must think I'm totally disgusting.

Well, I better run. I think tonite Dateline is the one about all those people who all went on a different weightloss plans for the last several months to see which one worked the best and the results will be announced tonite. Should be interesting, I think.

Everyone have a safe 4th of July!

Miki

Hi, everyone! Happy 4th! It's hot and humid, and the air is so thick you could cut it with a knife. It's starting to rain, so I don't know how the holiday in Chicago is going to be for the outdoors types. Maybe it will get better for tonight. I slept in today--till 7:38--that's late for me. It was so nice to have a day off!!

Thanks, Miki, for wishing me well with my mom. I don't know how things will be. My mother has had trouble getting along with all five of her children for years. I don't know why. I don't have trouble getting along with any of my siblings. I've been trying to keep things smooth between her and myself, but lately it's not been so good. I think my mom has some problems that none of us can fix. It makes me sad because she's getting up in years, and this should be a time when we're all close to her. Oh, well, I don't want to make myself sad today, so I'll just stop at that point.

I do know, Cyan and Miki, what you mean about giving up the carbs and eating a lot of meat. It seems very weird to me too. I've always been a bread, potatoes, crackers, cookies person--since forever. But before I decided to give this Atkins thing a try, I thought about a few things. One of them is that twice in my life I have lost fairly large amounts of weight--30 pounds each time--once when I was 17, and the other time when I was 30. And each time, I restricted carbs. Not as drastically as with Atkins, but I did it. And in the nearly 14 years I've been married, I have been less disciplined about carbs than ever before in my life--kind of hard with a big, teddy bear hubby around who likes his carbs too. The other thing is that I don't see a fat girl in the mirror or in my mind, even at my weight. I still see the girl I was at age 30 after my last weight loss. I know that is a really good thing because it means I feel good about myself on the inside. But then I go out to buy clothes or see a photo of myself and realize what the reality is, and it makes me feel really discouraged. I have been trying to accept that 170 is okay with me for sometime, as everyone has read since I joined the thread. But the last shopping trip with my daughter helped me realize that it isn't. I want the reality to coincide with what is in my mind. The last time I lost weight, it was through Overeaters Anonymous. Though I don't want to do the meeting thing, the restricted carb/food addict philosophy that is part of their program really fits for me. And it also fits with how I've been trying to develop a proper relationship with food. I think I have physical and emotional addiction issues with carbohydrates and sugar that I really need to address. And I think the Atkins diet may help me to address them. The part of the program I am at now allows no flour and few dairy carbs. I am eating a few more low carb veggies than they recommend because the amount they recommended was too hard for me, and I knew I'd quit. But in a week I will start adding in other fruits and veggies, grains and dairy in measured stages, to see what I can still eat and keep losing. It really is to some degree similar to what I did in OA, though Atkins is imposing the structure on me, since I didn't want to come up with my own plan. And I know those first few pounds are water, but I feel good to be making any progress at all. It's been so long since the scale has gone anywhere but up for me. And you're both right to keep the plan you like. Each person has to work the plan that is right for her. Otherwise the plan won't work. Did I just say something philosophical?

Thanks, Lisa, for sharing your experience with Atkins. So far I feel good about what is happening with me. I could probably go on and on with little changes I've seen in myself in the last week, but you all probably would turn off your computers in boredom. I know how hard summer classes must be. First you're studying while it's nice weather, and second, summer session is so concentrated, so you have to study more for each class. I did part of my Master's degree during summer school, and it's easy to miss a lot of summer fun with all the studying involved.

Taiwan--how do you stand the wailing of those funerals? I've never heard of that sort of thing, but I am not very informed on Eastern culture. The noise must drive you absolutely wild.

One more thing--my leg is really improving. Yesterday I spent some time on my feet at work--about 3 hours, and though it was sore, I haven't had any ill effects, and each morning, including today, it has been better. Now mostly it's stiff. But you're right, Miki, it is really important to heal before getting back into the walking. I could do some serious damage otherwise. I am going to try to take a little easy walk in my neighborhood today. The muscles in that leg seem to want to stretch.

Well, it's about time I get something done. Have a great holiday, everyone. And yes, I am looking forward to my quiet evening at home--except I think I will have to babysit our cat through all the fireworks. I hear animals don't like that sort of thing. People I have talked to with dogs say they have to tranquilize them, and my co-worker says her cat hides under the bed till it's over. I'll let you all know what it's like. Talk to you all soon.

Newie, you're exactly right about everyone needing a plan that's right for them. That spill I gave in my last post was actually for myself. I have to quit trying to switch to someone else's plan everytime I feel they're succeeding faster than me. I've found what works for me yet I still want to rush it. Hope the post didnt come across wrong. I'm thrilled at how well Lisa has done the last several weeks and also for your 2 lbs you've lost. I'm glad you've found the plan that works for you.

Well, off to the inlaws for grilled burgers. Have a great 4th!

Miki

Miki, your post didn't come off wrong at all. I understood completely what you were saying, and I think your dedication to your program is very inspiring. I also understand how hearing about others' progress can make any of us wonder if we should change what we're doing. Actually I think it wouldn't be healthy if each of us hopped on the latest bandwagon without doing some serious evaluation. It sounds to me like you did that wondering thing, evaluated yourself, and decided you are already doing what is right for you. That sounds like a VERY healthy thing. What I did before I started the plan was to buy the Atkins book and read as much as I could about to see if it was healthy, effective, workable, etc. The more I read, the more it seemed like it really might help me and my dependency relationship with carbs, and I thought I couldn't lose (no pun intended) by trying. You know, I think that's one of the ways these forums can be really helpful to all of us. When we read about what others are doing and receive their messages, we not only get support and different points of view, but others' ideas prompt us to look at ourselves more closely and am more honest about where we are, and whether or not we should be doing anything differently.

I have to say this--in my situation, it's so early. I've never done a program created by someone else--always made up my own--so I don't know if things will continue going as well for me as they have so far. I do know that it's the first time in six years that I've really felt enthusiastic about weight loss, and that's a blessing in itself.

Well, it's time for me to go. I hope everyone has had a good 4th. I had my solitude in the early evening, and now everyone is back home. The neighborhood fireworks festivities are in full swing. My oldest went outside and watched till her nose stuffed up. The younger one got scared by them. Now they are both watching through the front door. The cat is nervous but not freaking out. Talk to everyone later.

Hi everybody!

I hope you all had a fun and safe 4th of July! Mine was nice. Had grilled burgers and sugarfree strawberry pie at the in-laws then last nite went into town to watch the fireworks display. We thought they were going to be rained out but altho they started 30 min later than schedule, we still were able to watch without getting too wet. I did my "Buns" tape before we went to the cookout.

Had to work today and it has rained all day long. Yucky day. Did my stretch tape today which is more relaxing than anything and tomorrow will be my 'rest' day because I have to take Josh to basketball camp. Monday back to the tough stuff.

Cyan glad I got to chat with you a few min last nite.

Looking forward to some posts!

Miki

Hi, everyone! Well, it's back to the grind here! My weekend was exactly what I needed--actually I could use two or three more just like it--lots of relaxation, yet caught up on some stuff at home. I'm not back to walking yet because of my leg, but I worked in my garden for 1 1/2 hours each Saturday and Sunday to get some exercise. It didn't seem to bother it, but I think walking is what aggravates things. I'll see how I am at work today when I spend more time on my feet. I really want to get back to it. I miss it horribly.

So far, I've lost 3 pounds on Atkins--and 3 inches. I think at this point it's probably mostly water, but I'm going to keep at it. I haven't given up regular coffee (which they say you should) or aspartame (giving that up too is recommended, but I only allow myself 1 can of diet soda per day) because that would be too painful for me, and I allow one serving more of salad than they say during this phase of the program. The hardest part of the program for me has been at night. I have for years had a high carb snack before going to bed--cereal, bread, animal crackers--stuff like that--because sugar has a tranquilizing effect on me, and it helped me fall asleep. Well, I'm eating a different kind of snack--a piece of cheese or lunch meat--and I'm not getting the sugar drug, so sometimes I have trouble falling asleep. Hopefully I'll get past that problem without too much trouble.

How was everyone else's weekend? Has anyone had any stormy weather? Here in Chicago we had little or no rain for weeks, and now it's nothing but storms and of course the humidity that follows. Looking forward to hearing from everyone--happy Monday!

The weekend is over...I think I may be living for the weekends which means I need a vacation!

Hey Newie..good going on the 3 pounds lost. Are you finding atkins hard to do? What do you miss most and are you hungry?

Miki you exercise queen...have you lost any weight lately? Let us know

I was thinking maybe we should put together a challenge of sorts...like for the rest of summer..kinda a pick us upper...remotivate and refocus.

Taiwan LOL on the funeral story...although sad that there was a funeral...I hope you get what I mean...the crying harder bit. LOL
How are you doing with weightloss.

I have to admit...I have failed horrible with weight loss...I am stuck stuck stuck...So I am seriously considering Atkins just to see if it will start me losing again..i havent gained just maintained and I am ready to move on....humph!

Alright Ladies..gotta get back to work..Have a great day everyone

Cyan