Report for Friday - Walked for 40 minutes and had toast & juice @ 7:00 am. Have already missed my breakfast goal today as it's already 8:25 but I'm off to take my walk before I eat -- I know I'll eat eventually!! But if I stall on taking my walk, just may not get it done.

Bonnie - So glad to have you back from vacation. I'm digging deep for the determination right now -- seems to be a struggle. I stay within my points, but am eating too many things that really aren't very good for me. So let's both do some "diggin" this week-end and all next week!!!!

Carla - my housekeeping method sounds just like yours. Just pick it up and stash it out of sight!!! I truly detest housework. I think it's a generational thing - my mom is a fussy housekeeper, skipped me and all except one of my sisters, and the granddaughters are all clones of my mom! So I quit worrying about it and figure it's the way things are.

Everyone have a great Saturday -- off to pound the pavement. May be a short one this morning as I have a sore on one of my toes, but we'll see. Bev

Friday & Saturday update :^:


Monday: water & no food afer 7 pm goals met; Aquafit; bed time 11:15 pm
Tuesday: water goal exceeded, no food goal met; counting errands as exercise; up at 4 am or so, bedtime 10:40 pm
Wednesday: water slightly below goal, no food goal met; exercise so-so - went to play badminton but got awful stitches after 10 mins :(; up at 9 am, bedtime 10:20, but not sure if it counts because I couldn't fall asleep (blame the afternoon nap... :( ), got up and went on the computer in the middle of the night...
Thursday: water goal exceeded, food goal met; lots of badminton for exercise; up at 10 am :o , getting ready for bed now (10:10 pm)

Friday: water & food goals met; about 1 hr 40 mins of hard-core cleaning counted as exercise; up at around 9 am, bed around 10:15 pm

Saturday: water goal exceeded, food goal met; it was kind of late when we got to the park today, but we still played badminton for about 20 mins and then I skipped rope for another 10 or 15, until moskitos chased us away; up at 8:10 am, not sure what time I'll be going to bed tonight (more on that tomorrow).

(hope it's ok to post things this way, it's easier for me to keep track)

Mscat, we're missing you. :dizzy: ;)
Bonnie, great to have you back! I actually forgot you were away... I knew someone was "missing" this week, but I couldn't figure out who it was! We all struggle with motivation sometimes, and it often takes a bit of time to re-adjust and be back on track (better to do it in phases I think). I hope the stressful aspects of your life clear out soon.
Bev, 8:25 am isn't too late for breakfast. :)
Carla, I deposit stuff into boxes/folders/containers as well - anything but clutter please. :lol: I probably never look into most of them after that, but my quirk is to have them perfectly organized, I can spot clutter in boxes/drawers/closets/coupboards from the outside. But please don't make me vaccuum, dust, mop and so on. :lol:

Saturday report - Walked 45 minutes but missed my 8:00 breakfast goal by about 2 hours!

MsCat - I know what you mean about having a tough time right now. I just am not "working the program" at all! I have been staying within my points (I never count APs) and rarely use more than a few Flex points per week - but I am just eating junk. I know that in theory a point is a point, but my body can tell the difference between a "veggie/fruit point" and a "junk food point" and it really lets me know it. Read over my journal for the past few days ... pretty scary!

So I am newly committed and am going to change my goals a bit -- still doing the 1/2 hr walk daily and breakfast by 8:00 a.m. But am going to add drinking at least 60 oz of water and being able to say at the end of the day that my points were worth eating. Let's see how determined I really am ..... Bev

Bonnie - PLEASE don't even think of giving up on us! Even when we don't quite live up to our expectations, it's much better than doing nothing at all. Just think how much exercise you'll get next week keeping up with your granddaughter!!! Just keep up the good fight - I really appreciate all your support and we NEED you here. I saw something on another post to the effect "I will be so glad 3 months from now that I stuck with this" and that's my new mantra. My magic date is Oct 28 - just one day and one week at a time.

Sunday report - walked 40 minutes and have eaten a good breakfast (tomato juice, 2 toast with peanut butter and an ounce of string cheese) -- it's going to be a good day! Oh, and already drank the 1st glass of water. Bev

Bonnie, don't leave us! Maybe for the new week you could pick goals that you know are achievable. It would give you the feeling of success you need, and you can always ramp it up the week after. It worked for me so far: I thought my goals were pretty easy, but now that I've met them, I'm going to add deliberate exercise, which seems to be my downfall right now, and which I think I'm ready to try. Good luck!

Sushi, the inside of my boxes and folders is totally random and totally messed up. They are created when I'm expecting guests and I swoop thru the house piling everything in sight into containers to hide the chaos. Pens, notepads, grocery coupons, articles clipped from mags, doodads, whatsises, thingamajigs... They are also created when I try to tidy a drawer - they're full of the things I didn't want to turf but couldn't find a place for "right now". On the rare occasions I go thru them, I usually find 98% of the stuff can go straight in the trash... On the plus side, I rarely lose anything: it's in there somewhere!


This week I've maintained my goals (no wine or chocolate bars), and MY TICKER MAY HAVE MOVED!!!! I seem to be down a pound, but my scale is no longer in the same place, so it COULD be that. I'm taking the credit anyway. Only 4 pounds to my Labour Day goal - I might just make it to onederland!

My Dear Weeklies - Please forgive me for being absent. I have been thinking about all of you and just too involved in my own drama to post.
First of all - let me be honest and say I fell off the wagon! :fr: Blew my points on Thursday with a going away party at work. Didn't realize until Friday when I recalculated my points. I was not upset about that because I have had 3 weeks of being OP and I am proud of it. As as I have said on numerous occasions , it's not about what you didn't do - it's about what you do.

Then today, although I said I would not look at the scale until weigh-in day, I took a peak and I had not lost a pound. Went for a 2 mile walk to think about that and came to the conclusion, everything is still okay. I am proud of my accomplishment - Exercising everyday for almost 4 weeks straight, being OP for 3 weeks in a row, and keeping up with posting on this site and my other site. I have lost 7 inches, I feel great, my stomach is flatter, and I know I am buliding muscle which weighs more than fat. I am still here!

carla Friday :cheer: Saturday :cheer: you are hanging tough and :woo: for pounds down! Take credit for your ticker! :thanks: for supporting the group - your advise to Bonnie is right on!
Bev Friday :cheer: Saturday :cheer: and Sunday :cheer: You and I are kindred spirits - I am going to stop using my AP to balance off going over my points. My goal for this week is to stay at or under daily points and without counting AP's! The point system works better when we use it to get plenty of the right food in - so let's take on the challenge of ticking off those fruit and veggie servings too! :thanks: also to you for supporting the group and Bonnie!
Bonnie - We are here for you :grouphug: whether you make your goals or not. Remember this is a Week at a Time Challenge, but we are each reaching for our goals and helping each other make it ONE DAY AT A TIME! Stay with us please - There is no way many of us would be where we are without this thread. The sharing of others helps us know we are not alone in our struggles or our joys. Forget about beating yourself over 3 days of not being OP - rejoice that despite all of that - YOU WENT FOR A 2 MILE WALK TODAY! :cheer: That is an accomplishment!
Sushi Friday :cheer: Saturday :cheer: Post however you can, whenever you can! I appreciate you getting me caught up so I can give you your cudos for each day you make it and at the end of the week! You are doing so great

Thanks for all the notes of concern - I missed you too!
mscat
All we have is Right Now - Yesterday is gone, Tomorrow is not promised, and Someday is not a day of the week!

Time for my end of the week check-in :D

Monday: water & no food afer 7 pm goals met; Aquafit; bed time 11:15 pm
Tuesday: water goal exceeded, no food goal met; counting errands as exercise; up at 4 am or so, bedtime 10:40 pm
Wednesday: water slightly below goal, no food goal met; exercise so-so - went to play badminton but got awful stitches after 10 mins :( ; up at 9 am, bedtime 10:20, but not sure if it counts because I couldn't fall asleep (blame the afternoon nap... :( ), got up and went on the computer in the middle of the night...
Thursday: water goal exceeded, food goal met; lots of badminton for exercise; up at 10 am :o , getting ready for bed now (10:10 pm)
Friday: water & food goals met; about 1 hr 40 mins of hard-core cleaning counted as exercise; up at around 9 am, bed around 10:15 pm
Saturday: water goal exceeded, food goal met; it was kind of late when we got to the park today, but we still played badminton for about 20 mins and then I skipped rope for another 10 or 15, until moskitos chased us away; up at 8:10 am.

Because of the unpleasant adventure I had yesterday, we ended up not going to bed until 3:30 am. I woke up around 1:30-2 pm, but didn't get up until after 3 pm.

Sunday: water goal slightly exceeded; no food after 7 pm goal met; a 20-minute walk outside was the only thing I did today other than sitting at the computer desk or staying in bed, so although it's not really exercise, at least I did move a bit;

Overall, it was a good week.
I drank my water and didn't eat after 7 pm. Both of those goals ended up being a pleasure to meet. I felt great emotionally because of having met them. They also contributed to my physical well-being and progressed my weight loss.
The other day I mentioned that my pants were feeling looser. Yesterday I noticed that a top which had been too small for months also fits better now. It seems like I lost some pounds, or at least some inches. The pounds I can't verify until I visit the gym (no scale at home). My clothes are the measure of inches lost, as I never do tape measurements - don't want end up stressed by the numbers, and don't have a tape anyway.
Exercise acceptable, but I'm going to be even more specific with my future challenges in this area. I did post my get up and bed times, and put genuine effort into fixing my sleep schedule.


I'm very upset with myself and am generally feeling really bad today, :(the "adventure" I mentioned yesterday being the cause. To keep a long story short, I let myself get scammed. The loss of $43 upsets me less than my failure to think logically. :mad:

I'm sorry, but I don't feel up to addressing others tonight, I'm just too upset with myself. I need to do some beating up in a corner. Don't worry - just in my head. And please don't dissuade me - I need it and it should help.

I'll be back tomorrow with my goals for next week, but not sure what time I'll check in (I'm hoping to go on an outing).

Sushi, there's no shame in getting scammed. It usually happens to people who still have trust and are not totally cynical. So go easy on yourself!

It's 1:30 Monday morning, and time to write down this week's goals before sleep. (My before-bed walk got extended quite a bit: we walked about 7 km in all.) This week my goals are: at least 20 min deliberate exercise every day; at least one cleaning or tidying chore per day; and at least 32oz water per day. I'll also continue my no wine/no choc goals.

Since my walk was so long, it overlapped Sunday night and Monday morning, so I've already got today's exercise goal done!

This website - and this thread - are so helpful to me. Reading other members posts, enjoying and offering support, laughter and warmth. And on that sappy note, I'm off to bed. :goodluck: with this week's goals!

Count me out this week. I'll still be exercising and eating well, I just don't want to do a challenge this week. Good luck to you all!!!

My goals:
- continue to work on my sleep schedule and post get up and bed times (goals: get up at regular times, bedtime 10:30 pm)
- continue the "no food after 7 pm" goal, and drink at least 2.25 liters of water everyday
- not to forget to take the stupid iron supplement
- exercise: gym each day (fitness class or workout) OR a home-based workout if I really can’t make it to the gym; try the treadmill at least 2 times (10 min.); skip rope (at least 2 times for 15 min.)
- re-start 21 Day Challenge
- keep my August goals in mind (and work at them) -- they're posted in 20-somethings

New Thread!