Hiya,

How is everyone doing?
I bought a scale tonight and its the best. It calculates my bmi and has a memory of my height, age and that I'm a female. It weighs me the same as WW.
My mom said that if I stay with WW she will pay the weekly fee. I just purchased a good supply of shakes and bars...so I will combine the two. SF will cost me 14 points and that leaves me with 12 points for the rest of the day. That is good considering that I don't eat after 7pm and struggle with getting in all my points anyway. Do you get any free days or is that just with the pre payment plan? I missed this past Monday and didn't know if I have to pay for two weeks this Monday.

tlc: I haven't been able to make it go away in a specific area earlier. What I have found is that I usually end up toning up my legs first, then arms, and finally my stomach. But I believe that's because of my body type. I do suggest getting in a good aerobic workout and weight training in the area you want to focus on. That way, you are building muscle which will help to burn even more fat in that area.

I'll definitely keep you guys updated on how it works out for me w/the abs book.
Good news, I started back at the gym this morning to do an abs workout and aerobic class (which was cancelled. ) and ended up working out on my own. Though I was looking forward to getting help with doing a crunch the right way (because I don't know what the heck I end up doing on my own... lol My shoulders barely come off of the ground. It's so pitiful )
Anywho, I did 10 min warm up on the elliptical and didn't get dizzy!!! That's a real accomplishment for me since I got nauseous the first few times. I just worked through it and I actually enjoyed it. I then did a little bit of weights and got back on the elliptical for 30 mins as my cardio. I ended up burning 500 cals! Now THAT'S what I'm talkin about!!!! LOL

The elliptical is now my machine of choice for aerobic activity unless I plan on running. I also got on the scale and I think it's broke. According to the scale, I've lost 13lbs??? I know I walked a couple of days at lunch time this week and went to the gym today but goodness... that was a true shock since I haven't been in true work out mode in atleast 3 weeks. Well, needless to say, I am happy. My jeans are a little looser (mainly in the leg sections lol) and I am motivated.

I forgot to mention my goal for the upcoming week.
Go to the gym at least 3 days, and continue to walk 3 days this week at lunch time. I'll let you know how it goes. By the way, does anyone know how I can get the scale thingamajig to appear at the bottom of my msgs?

I think if you click on the "User CP" link up above at the far left side of that blue bar and then, once there, click on Edit signature, you will see a link that will take you to a place where you can choose from various versions of the countdown scale. Because I lose weight sooooo very slowly and have been plateauing for much of the past 6 months, I haven't bothered with it, but if I can get myself back to losing as is my goal in 2005, I'll be looking into one myself!

I have tried most of the cardio machines at my gym and the elliptical definitely gives you the most calorie burning of any I have tried. Good going!

WOOHOO! You go girl! That's awesome! Keep it up.

For the record, for anyone who may not already know it, weight training is REALLY important for weight loss cuz muscle burns fat! So the more muscle mass you have, the higher your metabolism and the better you can burn off the fat. Hooya!

Yay! That's great, Christina! That should give you motivation to stick with it.

I hate to be dingy here, but what's SF? Maybe it's a WW thing and I'm not very familiar with WW products.

Is that the dude who plays Charlie on Lost that you have as your avatar? He looks so cute in that pic! I love Lost!

Sheriva- Yes, that is the guy that plays charlie Unfortunatley I always work when Lost is on so I can only hear about it from someone who has watched it.
SF is Slim Fast and not related to Weight Watchers but by doing both I can stay safe on WW and still use all my SF products.

Hello All-

Thanks for the exercise advice! Sassi congrats. on your exercise/weight loss accomplishments....I too have recently learned to "love" the eliptical, after the first 10 minutes or so, its easy to get into a zone and before you know it you've done at least 30 min.!

I am a big Lost fan also. I've had belly dancing class the last few weeks but have been taping it...the website gives pretty good descriptives of each episode (google "lost") if you want to keep updated. There are also tons of message boards with everybody giving their opinions about what is really going on. From your picture it looks like Charlie cleans up real well!!

I hope everyone has a great Valentine's Day (or anti-Valentine's Day, whichever you prefer!!)

Peace-
Toni

hi singles! this is the 1st chance i've had to check in. sat i had my dad's services and relatives visiting all weekend. today my mom and i had to get some paperwork changed. i get the rest of the week to relax by the pool i hope. the weather is suppose to be nice. i don't miss the snow at all. i guess maybe in a few years i might consider moving here. my mom says as she got older she liked the cold less and less.

i'm glad to hear everyone is doing so great on their exercise. i have been walking and it feels soooo good to be moving again. i didn't realize how much i've missed exercising with all my injuries going on. i'm definitely staying on the exercise track and with all the motivation from here i should have no problem.

well, have a good tuesday and i will try to check in again soon!
kathy

Good to hear from you, Kathy! I'm sorry that you're there for such a sad occasion but happy that you are getting away from the winter weather. It was so crappy here in DC yesterday...started out as the dreaded "wintry mix" in the morning and then was raining ALL day long but just above freezing. YUCK! I was out in it doing errands and going to the gym and I just wanted to go home and wrap up in a blankie! hehe

Take care and try to get some R&R while you're there.

Hi Gang,
How is everyone doing?
I am so glad that V-Day is over. I worked all weekend in a grocery store that was covered with flowers and balloons. My moms cancer test went well. Doc said there are no traces of cancer cells and the side effects will eventually work themselves out of their system.

I am so excited..I bought a nre pair of jeans today that is 2 sizes smaller..WooHoo!
It felt so good trying on pants that are too big.
I think there needs to be some kind of hand me down system with clothes and I don't mean Thrift Stores...like if someone can't afford to by clothes while losing weight they can just get the size they need from a clothes bank...ok, maybe I'm being silly but that could be just what people need.

I'll check back later

Awesome! So glad to hear the good news.

Congrats! Doesn't that feel fantastic?

You're not being silly at all! In fact, that's kinda what I've been doing with a member of another board I'm on. She and her family are living pretty tight on funds and she's about the size now that I was before I lost weight so, as I clean out my drawers and closet of clothes that are now way too big for me, I box them up and send them to her. She benefits by getting clothes that she needs for no cost and I benefit by being able to help her! I MUCH prefer to know that my clothes are going to someone I know rather than just hanging in some thrift store and being bought by a stranger.

Good to see you again, Chica. Congrats on getting back to the gym! That's a toughie, I know! I work out 5 X week at home but I just went back to the gym on Monday for the first time in ages and whew, it was tiring. I tend to work out much harder (and longer) at the gym than I do at home...which is why I really need to get back to going regularly so I can get this weight loss going again!!!!!!

Hi all,

Christsalyn: Congrats on your progress!
Chica: You are definitely making progress since going to the gym is the hardest part for most people. Keep up the good work.