Back to Basics - May
 

Hm. Looks like I'm the first one here this month! :)

Well chicks, I seem to have found my path again, for the most part. Weekends are harder for me than weekdays, but hopefully now with at least some pathetic little income (which is better than none at all, yes?) I'll be able to afford to have better food around the house.

I'm going to go ahead and post what I put in last month's thread before I realized it was a new month. :o

Chicks - C'mon. You know there are a lot of different body types. You know not everyone can even begin to weigh in at 110-120, even if they're the same height as the more slender counterpart.

Bones have a lot to do with it, muscle mass and how much you are genetically predisposed to have has a lot to do with it... pure genetics plays a huge role in what your body type is. That is why I HATE the stupid number games the "health professionals" play with our minds. As an extreme example, when I was in my 20s and a powerlifter on the University of Alaska team, I weighed in at close to 170. I'm 5'3" tall. I wore a size 9. Last August, I weighed 172, I'm still 5'3", and I wore a size 14. All because yes, I was lifting, but not like an athlete training for competition. I was carrying a HUGE amount of muscle around on me then.

I know, those are extreme examples, but it illustrates why I tend to use the scale only as a barometer, if you will, of what I'm doing. I very loosely set weight goals, because it is something you can actually post. Something tangible people can see. And I have a rough idea of what weight range I think I might need to be in. But the scale and the numbers are not really my goal. The size of my clothes, the fact that I'll be able to run 5 or 10 K, the fact that I can work under horses trimming feet all day long, or beat my son and daughter at arm wrestling... those are my real measurements of success.

Derry - Each day (****, sometimes each minute) we have to define what is more important to us. Eating something yummy without regard to our physical appearance, health, etc. or losing weight and getting fit. There are always going to be times when the eating wins out. You cannot lose weight until you are ready to do so. That is why my sigline is what it is. If you are not mentally prepared to do what you need to do, you simply will not do it. And there are going to be times when you simply do not have the resources to think about losing weight.

One of the big issues with my journey has been trying desperately to condition myself to eat right without thought. I've gotten much better about it, but I still struggle. I get very, very tired of having to measure, weigh, count --- I just want to fix food and eat it. But 40+ years of eating too much of the wrong foods is not an easy thing to change. I'm more likely now to reach for a glass of water when I'm thirsty than eat ice cream. Don't laugh, your brain can trick itself into thinking allllll sorts of things. It took me a long time to realize that when I was craving ice cream, jello, fruit - my body was TRYING to say I'M THIRSTY!!! I'm more likely now to reach for a bowl of grain cereal for breakfast, or eggs, now instead of pancakes. But you know, I still crave chocolate after dinner. And I'm not ready to cut that off yet. Maybe one of these days. For now, I just try really hard to limit it to one serving and budget it into my day.

Ok... I'm sorry, I rambled on. I guess I'm just trying to say that yes. There are many different body types. And just like I tell my daughter - you will never, ever be a skinny little slip of a girl. It's simply not genetically possible. But you can be very proud that you can lift three of those slips over your head if you so desire.

Wow .. looks like I'm the ONLY one here this month! :eek: Where is everyone?

Well week one is done!! I almost talked myself out of doing pilates today, but after we got home from the stables, I did it before showering and cooking dinner. Yay me!

I rode and am starting to get Arashi back in shape, too. He and I are both seriously lacking in the muscle tone department. :D

Tomorrow starts week two! Hope everyone had a grand weekend!

Heh Rave, thanks for starting the new thread. But you have to give us a little jingle! Come on, May madness, something.... although at this point I suppose you can't change the title anyhow. Oh well. . ..
Rave, I will try to type later. Just wanted to say hello so you wouldn't feel too lonely! :sunny:

Hi all. Thanks for starting the new thread, Raven.

My goal for this month MUST BE finding my motivation again. Right now I am battling extreme fatigue. This makes me not work out and choose bad foods that I use the excuse will give me an energy jolt, but both those things only serve to make me more tired. A vicious cycle. And, I really feel like I was on the right track last year. Then, I just lost momentum. I keep caring less and less, and seem to be losing my hold on the rope hanging behind the wagon. The weight just keeps coming back on and I can't seem to care to stop it. Why? I need to find some way to care again. To get motivated again. And to get back to the business of taking good care of myself.

HELP!

Still here, Happy May everyone! Wow, hard to believe I was 9 months pregnant this time last year. The little guy is almost one!!
I have been eating OK the last few days. DH is home and I have a harder time controlling myself. Yesterday we celebrated my mother's birthday. I ate fine but I had....beer.....This morning I am down a pound but I think I'm just dehydrated. I'll stick to my 3 day rule. (3 days at weight before declaring an official loss) I shouldn't obsess about the #'s either. It's the way the clothes fit that really make me feel good.(or bad) :dizzy: And being fit. Which I'm not. I'm probably in the worst physical shape in my life. And I'm not really motivated to do anything about it right now. I'll stick to my walking and sit ups for now.
Well, lets make May a great month!!

I guess my riding will do for exercise tonight.

Food ... right on plan.

Water ... needed to drink more.

Oh .. and do unplanned dismounts burn any calories? ;) Arashi jumped a little because my son startled him. My training problem, not my son's or horse's fault. I lost my balance - riding bareback - and did the slo-mo fall. Had PLENTY of time to realize exactly what was happening. *sigh* This was the first time I've fallen that I didn't tuck my head. I think because it was happening so slowly, I'd land softly? HA! I have SUCH a bruise on my butt!

Anyway.. I didn't run this morning. I had no get up and go at all. I had a blast with the horses, and I'll run in the morning.

Aiming for another 2 pound loss this week!!

Hey y'all. I really wonder if I AM coming down with something. My get up and go has got up and went. I am trying to take better care of myself. Just hope I feel better and more energized soon.

here's to a good week for all of us.

Horseback riding is good exercise, isn't it? I used to ride as a kid and I remember if I didn't ride for a while my legs would be sore the next time. And bare back, well you must have to really use your muscles to hang on!!
I hope your butt's OK by the way. ;)
Yesterday I was hungry ALL DAY LONG. I ate to satisfy my hunger, but I ate well. Today I am not so insaitiable. I feel like things are moving along fine. Took a walk today too.
Hope everyone else is fine!
Feel better, Jolly! :)

Hi people. Sorry I haven't been posting. Wish I could give you some motivation Jolly. Apple, glad to hear you're eating good things. Rave, take care, have fun. Watch those dismounts! happy, derry, where are you?

I've been trying to eat better things, which usually involves more than throwing some prepackaged thing in my face. I have made more pasta sauce and salads and been eating a lot of celery. Figure that stuff has to be good. It does take the edge off and I haven't had these insane sugar cravings. I've also been eating fruit, big bowl of strawberries with plain yogurt. The berries are so sweet they offset the sourness of the yogurt.

Well, I'm so busy. See you all around. I usually get to read the posts just so I keep getting the email notifications. Keep going, guys. Jolly, at least try not to backslide. Think of maintaining where you are at least, then you won't feel disgusted with your efforts or lack of them. That's what I've been trying to do. If I can't get out and exercise I just don't allow myself to sit around stuffing food in myself.

Ok, bye all! :wave:

*lol* Thank you apple.. no, my butt is not ok. I have three really nice bruises on it. One with a hard lump right in the middle. Good thing I have lots of padding. I have a sharp pain at the point of my right scapula, and my neck is stiff as heck. But you know what? Who cares!! I love riding my boy. And I think this is the first time I've come off that I just didn't care. Had my daughter toss me back up on him with a leg up and we did great. It wasn't a big deal, I just fell. THAT is a good feeling. Yes, it's good exercise, just the mild walk trot we're doing is giving me a good muscle workout.

I tried to do the treadmill this morning, but .. it hurt. It just hurt way too much. So I think I'll try again tomorrow. No pilates because of course, that's WAY too much for my poor tailbone.

Jolly - I'm so sorry you're feeling so crappy. Take care of yourself. Get lots of sleep, drink lots of fluids... eat right.

Red - I love fruit and yogurt. It's a great combination. :) I'm going to try more salads too, especially now that it's summer. I'd forgotten how good they are!!

Well ok... water today was WAY down. Too busy at work to remember. Food was good. Exercise was nada. :D

Sorry I haven't been posting. I had the most wonderful visit with my mum - wanted to spend every free minute with her. Put her on a plane Monday safe and sound with promises to be back soon (end of June). Then... Sunday night I had the most horrid sore throat - kept me up a good part of the night. It has progressed into a full blown cold with all the aches and pains, coughs and sneezes bells and whistles. It is month end at work so I could not take off. Finally got so bad I had DH take me to the clinic tonight for some antibiotics. A nice little Korean doctor took care of me - I guessed his age to be about 11 or 12 years old. ;) OMG it hurts sooo bad to cough and it's just starting to settle into my chest. I should be ok in a day or two after the antibiotics kick in. Take care and will catch up with you then...

AH HAH! :mag: So maybe those were midwest germs I picked up. And here I was blaming the slot machines at the casinos ;)

Here's to motivation and climbing back on the wagon just cuz it's the right thing to do!

Success!!

Very quick

Week 2 Day 1 Couch to 5K Done.

Water good so far.

Food ... hopefully will be good. :)

I ran! Woo! Go me!

Scale this morning was down, but might be due to dehydration as water yesterday was realllllly bad. We shall see.

Good for you Raven! Keep it up!

Hello all. Well, I did make it to the gym for a light workout yesterday and today. That is something anyway. Haven't been able to run - back is still too sore. Didn't make it to the barn last night either. Came home from a late meeting at work, and bundled up on the couch to fight off the chills I had. I am feeling a bit better today, so hopefully it is working it;'s way out. I hope you feel better soon, Happy. Congrats on the victories, Raven. I hope your tailbone is feeling better soon too. Congrats on the better eating, Red. I love berries and yogurt. Yummmmm.

Have a good day all.

Just a short post to celebrate another pound gone. Yup. Proud of myself.
Hope everyone else is having a great day too!!! :hat:

Jolly, hope you're feeling better. What did you think of my "maintaining" idea? You seem so inredibly busy that I think you go too hard on yourself then do a rebound kind of thing because you feel so deprived, no? What about trying to do a real gung-ho day or so followed by a maintaining day, not a gung-ho by a no holds barred? Just an idea that I'm trying to use myself. I've been good but I feel a backlash coming on. Yesterday too, so I didn't force myself to go to the gym and I made spaghetti instead of forcing down another salad. It satisfied me and I didn't feel deprived and yet I know that that was still a ton less than what it could have been. Oh yeah!

Apple, congratulations on the pound off! :cp: Good for you for feeling proud of yourself! I think you should be too! :yes:

I've been afraid to weigh myself. Don't think I'll be below 72.8 like last time I moved the tracker, so I'm waiting so as not to be discouraged. That sure was good to see the lower number. I think I was dehydrated though. But so what?!

Hello to everyone. Chachee, sassy, where r u? Sass, I could have sworn you'd said, "no more lurking." :shrug: Derry, come in and give us an update on things, ok? Rave, you still on a roll? It's OK to fall of your horses but don't fall off the wagon, K?

happy, how are you doing? Hope you're feeling better too. A child docter, eh? :lol: Yeah, Asians always look younger than their age, at least to Westerners. I can guess their age right on the nose. DON'T ask me to guess Westerners any more though... uh-oh! dangerous for me. But now that I know that I just figure what I think they'd be and immediately chop off 10 and if I want to flatter 'em, an additional 5. Speaking of Korea, I was trying to learn the writing once more. I just hate seeing some language and not being able to make heads or tails of it. I may go there in a week or so for a racing conference. Never spent time in Seoul, just only stopovers when I used to fly to NY on Korean Air before there were direct flights. Couple times ago when I was back in the States, in NY, I was so surprised to see out in Queens all this Korean all over the place. Guess there was a big influx of Korean immigrants. Well, just got me thinking.

Anyone I missed? It'd be nice to hear from you.... :sunny:

Jolly - Good going on getting to the gym, but really... do take care of yourself. Lots of rest and liquids. Yeah yeah, I know... I'm such a mom.

Red - That's what I've started doing every day. I never diet anymore. I eat pretty much what I want. I limit portions. Every day it's a choice for me - eat too much or lose weight, which do I want? Some days (or minutes) eating wins, but lately losing weight has been the preferred choice. I truly think you cannot do this unless it is something you really want. Not just want, but are willing to choose on a minute by minute, day to day basis. Or at least that's what it is for me. If I force myself to be too rigid, I will finally explode and give up for weeks or months at a time, inevitably gaining back everything. That and my inability to deal with attention are my two worst enemies.

Apple - Congrats!!

Food - Pretty good.
Water - Much better.
Exercise - Yep, did the treadmill yesterday. Supposed to do pilates today, we'll see how my rear end fares. Not sure if I can handle the floor work with the bruises around my lower back/tailbone. However, I did ride again last night! And this time, I stayed on! Woo! Go me! *lol* Working on smoothing out Arashi's trot, learning how to use muscles I don't think I've ever used before to hold myself on my horse - it's truly amazing how many muscles there are between your waist and your knees that you never know exist! :lol: He is coming along beautifully, god I love this horse. V rode Shadow, but she's terrified her leg is going to give out on her again so kept it very very light. Then Machine rode Eve for a few minutes just to get his "horse legs" again. Been a long time since he's ridden, but he did really well, and I was proud of him. He's really starting to begin to understand the training we're doing. He practiced his emergency stop yesterday, and did quite well. Then V rode Eve and of course... made Ian and I look like rank beginners. (ok, so we are, shush ;) ) I think Eve is going to end up being a shared horse, I hope Machine doesn't mind. V wants so badly to do some more demanding riding, and she is just too scared to push Shadow. I don't blame her. It's scary not knowing how far is too far with a horse when they have ligament damage like that. You never know for sure if it's *healed* or if the next workout will cause it to blow again. One day at a time. In any case, thank goodness we have Eve. She's a fantastic, giving, big hearted, beautiful girl. Have I said I really love these horses? :p

Heh Raven, You still online? Check your Yahoo IM.

I'm just back from the gym. Good workout. Doing the couch thing to 5K too but with a touch of variation basically cause I forgot it and then just wanted to up the running so did my own. Now have checked it out again for Week 4 and will start that next week. Feel my stamina getting better. Ah, it feels so good to be getting back in shape.

Just cooked up some hb eggs, great for a snack.
A big bowl of strawberries and yogurt is waiting again! YUM, here I come! :hungry:

I don't use Yahoo hardly at all. If I have anything up, it's usually MSN. I think I ate too much for dinner tonight. I made mexican and it was sooooo good. :o

CSI tonight!!

Pilates was a no go this morning. My butt hurt too much! :lol: Treadmill again tomorrow!

I hope Chachee is ok.

Couch-to-5K Week 2 Day 2: 30 minutes, 1.76 miles. Making progress.

Weight up, I ate too much, and what I ate had a lot of sodium in it. Roll with it.

Water good.

Tonight riding again.

Tomorrow pilates I hope. Rear end should be better.

C'mon chicks!!! Where are our BASIC STEPS???? Just ONE! :drill:

Excellent work, Raven! :cp: You sound like you've found a groove there. Keep it up. :yes:

I've been doing very well myself. Just decided I have to eat less, period, no screwing around with it all, just cut back, way back! But I know to fear the rebound if I cut too far back so I will eat and boy, after getting used to cutting back, it feels almost sinful!

Hi all. Just a real quick check in. Not much to report, except I did make it to the gym today. That's it, that's all.

I will try to post more later, but I am still so very very tired. And I work this weekend.

Hope things are going well for everyoen.

Good morning ladies. Geez I can't remember being this sick in oh so long. Several people at work have variations of it and it's devistating. I am still not up to par and my boss said her mom had it for 3 weeks :yikes: I do not tolerate being sick very well and I will be tying myself in knots if I'm not over this by Monday.

Even as sick as I was, barely eating, not keeping things down the scale has not budged. So wrong. Sometimes it feels like just what dah heck, why bother? I don't have it in me to fight the big fight each and every day, day after day. Big changes to see almost an insignificant loss. For me enthusiasm and stick to it-ness go hand in hand with seeing results.

Maybe it's just the week of dragging around like a slug talking, perhaps if I go and get some things done around the house, I'll find my enthusiam hiding in the corner of a cabinet or something.

Hope you all enjoy your weekend...

Hi all. I hear you, Happy. I was up sick for most of last night. Subsequently, I won't have time to go ride today. I have to finish cleaning, take the dogs for a walk, I will have time for a brief workout (I figure it is better than nothing) then get to my part time job. Sigh. I either need a clone, or more hours in the day.

I just want to find my energy. Maybe it went to the Bahamas with your enthusiasm?? And I think everyone's motivation is at a family reunion in Arruba.

Where is Chachee with Bat when you need him??

Wow! A bunch of sick chicks!!

Happy - I'm so sorry you're feeling so rotten! Please do NOT worry about a number on a scale right now. Just take good care of yourself. This too shall pass.

Jolly - You too. Your body needs rest.

Red - Just be careful you don't cut TOO far back. I'm sure you know the drill. :p

Today I need to run again, but it's hard when the sun is shining and the stables are calling. I'm still really sore across the low back/high up on my rear area, so .. no pilates. That just takes too much rolling across that area, and it HURTS still. Nothing broken, just really severe bruising. Thank goodness it doesn't interfere with running or riding. I'm going to try to get my run in before we go out to ride. I did ride yesterday again... and Friday, too. Have a great time with that. Mostly working on training Arashi - right now it's breaking at the poll and perhaps soon we'll be starting shoulder control. He's already starting to move through the shoulder a little bit with the training we're doing, so .. when I start asking him to do it, he'll 'know how' I just need to teach him to do it when I ask. It's exciting to see him responding to things *I* have taught him, you know?? Pretty soon, sidepassing from the back! We were getting there last fall when he injured his hip and we had to stop riding for so long. It's SO nice to be riding again!

Oh and ... No WONDER the scale went up!! I started my period yesterday. :eek: Where did THAT come from!?!?!

Hi everyone!
Sorry I was an absentee person for a few days.... this was truly my busiest week of the year. I don't even want to "go there" as far as telling you all what I ate, but it was a whirlwind and thankfully today most of all the crazy stuff is over with!
Firstly, just want to share that I came in first place and best of show at the quilt show this weekend that my guild had. I just had to do some celebrating! My daughter was in a play and we were busy with rehearsals and all kinds of things this past week, plus I was getting ready for and helping with the quilt show.
Whew.... I haven't weighed myself, haven't read all your posts, haven't eaten properly, but at least I can tell you all that I am happy.... for now at least.
Linda

Glad to see you checking in, Linda!! Congrats on the quilt! Hope your daughter's play was great fun.

Ok .. I ran! Go me! Second week of Couch-to-5K DONE!

:cb: :cb: :cb: Yay Raven for making 2 weeks on your 5k!

:bravo: :cp: :bravo: :cp: Linda for placing best of show!

Go chicks, go :cheer:

Wow, Linda, congratulations on the quilting prize. :encore: I wish you could show us a picture of it here! :yes: Don't worry about the eating or the weight!! :no: Enjoy yourself. You've needed some laughs and fun times. That's what celebrations are about, letting go and having fun. You can always get on the straight and narrow again soon.

Rave, happy, jolly, a big hello to you all. I'm under the gun again here and feeling awful because.. uh-oh..Raven, what was that about going overboard?!?!... not an expression in my vocabulary...it's ME!... and I had too many beers at the racetrack last night...ugh...oh, God, gotta write a story on the Japanese horses going to Hong Kong for this week's big race....hey, saw the Kentucky Derby on the screen here at Tokyo yesterday...any of you watch it. I love the buildup to it, the fanfare..never been there myself... ok, gotta run... take care all... so glad to see everyone posting regularly...chachee, apple, sassy...come on and say heh! :sunny:

Hi all. Real quick check in,then I need to get my laundry put away and off to bed. Congrats on the quilting prize Derry and the 5k progress Raven.

I am just glad to have found some energy. It was hiding under the couch with the leftover dog hair.

I could probably show a photo of my quilt, not sure how... I know Jolly (think it was her?) put a photo up here, maybe she can tell me how.
I restarted another journal today, for about the millionth time.
Yesterday, I had an "all about me" day, it was mother's day after all. I napped, we went out to dinner (don't want to go "there" to tell you about that, either) and I took it easy. It was a nice day, a nice week and nice weekend.... but time to get in control, yet again, and move on with my personal choices for good health.
Take care everyone!
Linda

photos
 

http://www.kodakgallery.com/PhotoVie...d=288458494203

Here is a link to one of my quilts, a snowy owl.

Here is a link to another, the one that was best of show, you can't see it well as it's what is called a "whole cloth" quilt, just quilting on beige fabric:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/PhotoVie...d=890168494203

If you are interested in the whole show, check out this link:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/BrowsePh...1&sort_order=0

You can click on "slideshow" on the right and see about 60 photos of very beautiful quilts!

Thanks for you interest!
Linda

Hey all. payroll Monday - my favorite. Especially as I can't get into my email and send the reports to my staff. Yeah.

I am feeling better finally. The energy I found under the bed gave a call to it's siblings, and they decided to come home. I actually got a post card from my motivation, and it said the flight was delayed, but should be back soon too.,

I did not, however, make it to the gym this morning. I was bad :( and stopped for fast food on the way home last night from my part time job. It didn't sit right, so I was up sick most of the night. I just have to face it that for some reason fast food, with the exception of subs, taco bell, etc, just doesn't do me any good. I generally feel sick after. Maybe it is the burger, or all the deep fry grease. Who knows? Just need to say no.

That said, have a wonderful day all.

Long Time No Type..
 

Hey girls.

Sorry about being MIA, I just haven't stopped running enough to sit down and type. And this one will just be a quick one.. because I've just about used all my spare time trying to read back at what I've missed. (And that's a lot!)

Lemme see if I can break this down quickly.

Congrats on the quilt winning, Linda! Those are really beautiful. I just finished my first quilting project myself. A baby blanket for my sis-in-law. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed putting it together.

Hope the hinney is feeling better, Raven! This is one instance where more cushion is a good thing! :D

And Jolly, when you checked your mailbox and found your motivation had sent you a postcard, you didn't happen to find a misdirected one addressed to me, did you? Mine has gone AWOL for the last few days/week. *erk*

Happy, I saw that you were feeling sick. How's it going? Better, I hope....

Hey, red! I've done the cutting back thing myself.. and rebound gets me everytime. I don't know why I can't seem to stick things out for the long haul. It's a really vicious cycle. Need to find my happy medium. Still chattin? Haven't seen you online in a while.. or perhaps I've just been missing you.

Hey, anyone know anything about Michael Thurmonds Total Body Makeover? My sister is on it and is pushing it at me hot and heavy. It sound something like SouthBeach with mini-meals? You also really restrict your sodium intake.
I just don't know if I can do anything that strict.

I'll peek in later~

Heh Derry, the quilts are beautiful. I had posted last night but now see my post didn't take. You have a lot of talent! Thanks for sharing those photos.
Jolly, Tanzie, hi there! Everybody, sorry, no time, no time.... doing the white hare thing again here....

:wave:

Linda - Those quilts are gorgeous!!! I have NO talent or patience for that, and I am slightly jealous of those who do. ;) Very nice indeed.

Hey Tanzie - I haven't heard about that one... is there anything on it elsewhere on the board?

Jolly - I'm so glad you're feeling a little better!

Happy - *waving at the flyby* ;)

Red - Heh.. the white hare. Cute. ;) It's amazing you even find time to eat at all, let alone too much!

Well chicks, I'm taking today OFF. My legs are trashed. After I ran I went riding, and my legs were so worn out even before I started that I had one **** of a time getting on my pony. No stirrups... it doesn't LOOK that high up off the ground. *sigh* Anyway, with much scrambling and clawing, I made it up. And in the meantime praised myself effusively for the well done job of training my horse to not move while mounting. I think he was starting to fall asleep, actually... :p

So .. yeah. No workout at all today. Nothing. Tomorrow I'll try pilates again. Amazing that there are still some nice bruises back there. It's been a week! :eek: Then Wednesday start Couch-to-5K Week 3. Rah!

Food - Pretty good.
Water - Pretty good.
Exercise - Day off.

Hey all. Just my usual fly by posting. Tanzie, I think the Motivation Family Reunion is almost over, so all the family members should be coming home soon. Raven, hope your butt is better :) I am off to bed. Oh wait, laundry, then bed. I need to put some away if I want a place to sleep.

ttfn

:lol: Jolly - You and I have the same laundry routine? Out of the dryer onto the bed.

Hi chickies,

Tanzie, I did Micheal Thurmond's 6WBMO 2 years ago. I did lose weight on it, I did learn that sugar / carbs are bad very bad for my body type. It is strict. You have to eat 5 to 6 times a day with mini meals. It is hard to keep up with. When my routine changed, I couldn't keep up with it and fell off the wagon. He makes a mighty enticing infomercial. It must be playing again as I've seen various people chatting about it on the boards. There are 2 versions - the 6 week program which I could never do which is supposed to whittle the weight down fast and his regular program. I can't tell you that it's like South Beach because what you eat depends alot on your body type. For my body type - ecto blimp - fat all over - yes, carbs are not my friend and it's like South Beach except I got to eat white rice. I am tired of defending the program - some here bash it all to heck and back, it worked for me when others including WW did not. But it is hard to stick with tho it does teach you foods that are good fuel vs things that don't work well for your metabolism. And... it is low fat, low carb, low salt and basically you give up processed foods. I can do very well with fresh raw or steamed veggies, grilled fish, chicken, lean pork or beef and low sugar fruits - all summer long. But look out when the winter comes. If your sister has the program, take a peek and see what you think but if you can't stay with a strict program, don't waste the over $100 the materials cost. And since everything is fresh food, it's kinda expensive too.

Raven, it's good to hear that you are back in the drill sargent push mode again, tho wisely taking a rest when needed. Keep it up girl!

Enjoyed your "family reunion" story Jolly. If I can ever figure out the lure of why I keep eating foods I know make me sick, I'll let you know. But don't hold your breath waiting - I think it happens to us all.

Red, I waved at you as you zoomed by :wave: Thanks for the cool breeze!

Lovely quilts Linda! Thanks for posting pictures. How long have you been quilting?

On another note, it was a very sad day for me at work. One of my teammates - a truly wonderful young guy in his mid 20's was shot and killed in his house on Saturday. They don't know all the details, they think perhaps he startled an intruder or burglar. He leaves behind a wife and 2 very young children. It's so hard to believe, here we were laughing on Friday, playing tricks on one of our other co-workers. I have email from him, he's on instant messenger tho not logged on right now - how can he be gone? And did I say that he was just a heckova nice guy - that I really enjoyed working with even tho I didn't know him for very long. I'm stunned...