Lindor really needs to say something here because she is letting the wagon get away from her!

I'm having a bit of a mucked up time just now. Lots of confusion over a few little things.

I don't really know if I am eating enough or if I am eating too much. I know I am not eating the right stuff!!! I am not drinking anything like enough! And I am not exercising.

But I won't accept that I have given up on losing these last few kilos!!

I am away for the week from tomorrow for work. I am not going to have my PC with me so the evenings are going to be very empty. I am going to use some of that time to seriously think things through - probably while I am sitting there eating McDonalds or Pizza!!

I want to work out goals, diet plans, exercise, etc. I want to get into deeper things too...like what I want from my life. I've been feeling a tad lost lately.


And just so this post isn't all me, me, me...

Britt, well done on your one kilo drop! LiteNeasy sounds like the plan for you! Are you going to stick with it all the way? I sometimes wish these plans were available for remote communities! But then, knowing me, I'd talk myself out of it because I would think it was too costly!!!

Gen good luck with quitting smoking! I agree that if you are going to make lifestyle changes you are best to tackle it from all angles!

Kylie! Woohooo! New scales! (I'm still waiting for mine!) At last you officially have a weight! Seriously, it is nice to know where you are at, whether you like it or not, because at least now you know what the task ahead is. Lets watch those figures on the scales drop!!

But I agree with the others Kylie! EAT!!! Reality check here - you are a person, you are not a sparrow!!!

Ani! Hope you are feeling better. Sore throats and ears suck!!! Rest up and drink plenty and look after yourself!

Looking forward to hearing your progress reports on your Biggest Loser challenge! I am sure it is going to motivator for you and the ladies in your team!!

Leeny? How's Uni life going? Are you enjoying it? I'd say anxiety and change may be the main contributing factor to you feeling you need to eat more. It was how we dealt with such issues in the past and I'd say your mind is wanting to go back to that way of thinking for a bit. Don't let it win...but don't be too hard on yourself either.

LittleKiwi...how's the gym going?

Alright, if I have missed anyone or anything I apologise. I need to go pack and tidy this place up a bit for my week away.

Have a good Sunday all.

This is me exactly at the moment. I've just lost a bit of momentum, and now that I have events every single day this week and uni starting next week, I am wondering how I am going to fit everything in. Although I am only at uni three days a week so it could be worse. I have a serious procrastination problem with doing work though, so what happens is I mope around for six hours, realise late at night I havent done any work or exercised, and then chastised myself for not treadmilling when I was trying to avoid doing work. I cant seem to break the cycle. I am thinking I will move exercise to the morning, that way it will be out of the way when I come home and need to do work - and hopefully it will wake me up! It sounds good, now I just need to get up early in the mornings.

Sorry this post is all about me, it is FINALLY that TOM - I've been feeling all crampy and bloated for like the past 5 days but it finally hit today and I'm alternating between feeling like I want to be sick and feeling faint/dizzy. Hopefully I will post tomorrow. Hope everyone has a nice day, and a good weigh in for those doing it tomorrow!

Gday girls

Sorry I haven't been around - I'm not really sure where I went! Days are escaping my grasp a little too easily!

So, I have been eating more. Really! I slept in this morning (a rare luxury), so I didn't eat brekky. I had ham and salad rolls for lunch, and roast kangaroo with sweet potato, peas+carrots, and cauli for dinner. Yum yum! I know roo should not be overcooked, and I was a little paranoid, so after we ate the vegies, I had to put the meat back in the oven, coz it was still bright red in places! Oh well, thats one for the books!

My friend at work has recently lost a lot of weight and now she looks fantastic! (Not that she didn't before). She had used a meal replacement called Iso-Whey. For ten days, you have it for brekky and dinner, and you can only really eat chicken, fish and leafy greens for lunch. Apparently, it makes your body burn fat, not food. She used it until she was down to her goal weight, but I know that wasn't a good idea. It's only meant for the short term. I would be a little more skeptical, but she swore by it, and I had to get it from the chemist, not some dodgy website. (And the lady at the chemist had done it too). I didn't want to tell you all, coz bf doesn't really approve, and I thought you girls might not either. But I'm willing to try it, and it is only for 10 days. I'm starting Monday.

Also, back to uni tomorrow. Busy busy - I have to pick up a textbook before I go to my first class. Blerk - as if I can afford that!

*sigh* - bf is usually the 2IC of the Nightfill dept at work, but for the last six weeks, he's been the fulltime manager. This ended yesterday, which means he is back to the overnight shift on Sundays (ie now). So he left for work at 11pm, and will be home sometime tomorrow morning. Then he has to go to TAFE. He works really hard, I don't know if I could do what he does.

Anyway, phew - thats it for today. I will also weigh in on Mondays, so I'll see you all tomorrow!!

Kylie

So I received a massive early morning slap in the face today!!

Weigh-in....85kg!!!!

I am UP 1.5kg!!!

I have to make this a good thing though! This has woken me up to what I am doing! I am letting things slip and I really need to put a stop to that!

So, I am going to get into my head this week. I am going to fight hard! I am not going to see another gain on my scales!!!

And I am out on the highway today - the one all the roadtrains use!!! And I am seriously considering taking my scales with me!!!

Have a good week ladies...I gotta run!

Good luck with your weigh-ins

Lindor you don't need to pack your scales - just your determination and that good old stubborn streak of yours. Yes it's a gain, and yes it's disappointing - but if it's the smack you need to get you back on the wagon, it isn't all bad. I know you can do this! Good luck with your week away, and take care of yourself

Nothing new to report here - unless anyone thinks the loss of 0.1kg is worth celebrating. It isn't. But I know I ate a little too much - I still write down everything I eat, and I averaged 1825 calories/day. Just a touch too high - so this week I am going to drop it a little bit and be more disciplined with my food choices.

It's Day One of our Biggest Loser competition today, and as captain of the Purple Team I feel like I need to lead from the front. I spent a few hours yesterday with my most challenging couple - and set them some realistic goals, and I really hope they do well over the next five months.

For me, if I can lose another 10kg during the course of the competition I'll be thrilled. As most of you know, I'm of the 'slow and steady' variety and am really pleased if I can average 0.5kg/week.

This week I am going to increase the intensity of my exercise a little bit - I'm going to add 10 minutes to my walking, and do 30 minutes of exercise in the evenings. My arms are really flabby (and they'll only get worse as this weight comes off), so I'm going to do as much toning exercise as I can over the next year and see if it makes a difference.

Gen, good luck with quitting the ciggies. I take my hat off to you - being a fellow smoker I'm not sure I could manage to tackle both food and cigarettes at once… and I think it's awesome that you're able to do it!

How did everyone else go with your weigh-ins and your weekends?


Ani

Ok, the weigh in... I'm blaming natural body fluctuations for this, but I'm only 92.3kg, down 1.5kg from Thursday????

Ani, good luck with the Biggest Loser stuff - I don't watch it, so what do you have to do?

Kylie

Good morning all

I've had a crap weekend with overeating meat (got a bad pain in solar plexus area) and we had a BBQ y/day so I had a beer and a softdrink. BUT I jumped on scales this morning and I've lost just over 1kg. So now I feel a little better. Was pretty slack with my exercise last week so getting back into the swing of things this week for sure.

I've reached a 5kg mini goal so providing Wednesday scales say same, I am going to give myself a reward - perhaps a new hairdo or a pedicure.

Hey Kylie. Cause I work late on Thursday nights, it's too late to eat dinner so I have something light before I go to work and I have a powdered supplement (medical vita-diet) on my 10min break. They taste pasty lol . But I wouldn't make a habit of it. Maybe if you just had one replacement a day to see? And vary when you have it. They are good if you are on the run. But I'd prob make sure not for breakfast as they say its the most important meal of the day.

Have a great week Lindor. though by the time I post this you would be well and truly on the road. Drive safe.

Ani 100g is 100g. Thats a packet of chips Good luck with your biggest loser work challenge. I can just picture you up there with your teammates You go girl!

Gen - "I got my fandangled scales, hopped on and got the weight, then couldn't work out how to get the body fat/hydration info. Checked the manuals, turns out I was getting an error message - BF too high!!!" Want a funny story about scales? At work on Saturday a lady returned her set of digital scales she got for Xmas. Starting weight on them was 43.3kg She said she got such a fright because she didn't look at them before she got on. We both laugned about it though and I said it'd be alright if they started at minus 43.3kg. We exchanged them for her and the new ones are fine.

Do you guys check they're weighing correctly? I measure out 5kg on my kitchen digital scales then put same food onto bathroom scales once a month, cause humidity and the like can affect them.

Ok gotta run mop floors. Double mopping nearly everyday now - heavy traffic through house and don't want bub getting grubby.

C ya all after
VONNI

Hello ladies, haven't been here much as I'm temporarily obsessed and in love with calorieking.com.au. Anyone not sure if they're eating enough/too much/the right things, go sign up!!!! It's FREE, and has an up to date food diary, also works out all your carbs/protein/fats as well as fibre, sodium etc and tells you what you should be eating.

Thanks for the funny scales story Vonni - I'd die if mine did that. I'll just use mine as plain scales until my BF is <45%! Keen to get there, as they also have hydration % so I can monitor my fluid intake.

Lost 700g this week, down to 94.6 (total loss 11kg). Glad to have finally got over the 10% lost barrier!

Did PT this morning - still getting sore shoulder from tricep dips, so have had him modify that one. Really didn't want to get out of bed this morning, but knowing everyone would be there waiting made me do it.

Did week5, session 2 of the C25K last night - now the last one of the week is a 20 minute continuous run.. argghhh, not sure I'm ready for that, but let's see if I can surprise myself!

Adding chromium (thanks for the tip Britt) and protein shakes when my online orders arrive. Also got snazzy food scales so weighing things willy nilly.

Hi all

Spent most of Friday with a friend as they've just found out that the cancer her mum had last year is back. She had a masectomy last year and they knew that it had spread to her lungs and would be just a matter of time before it came back. They've also found 4 brain tumors and they think it's in her bones too so the prognosis is not good. Heartbreaking to see as she's only in her 50's and she looks so healthy. Sadly, my friend and her sisters don't seem to be accepting how bad this is either.

So with all of that, I used it as an excuse to eat. McDonalds on Friday for lunch, pizza for dinner, about 4 ice cream bars over the weekend and then way too much roast pork (even crackling!) at mum's for dinner last night.

Back on track today though and I'll be heading to the gym after work and now that there are no ice creams left in the house I won't be overindulging there.

Little Kiwi I'm sorry about your friend's mum - that's awful!

I had a rather unpleasant day. The real estate agent rang to tell me the owners have put this house on the market - so I need to find a new home for me, my business and the menagerie. Perth's rental market is a joke at the moment - every house that goes on the market seems to have a dozen potential tenants lined up to rent it. Because of that, people can charge what they like, and the average price for a house is $300/week here now.

So I may have to look at sharing with someone, and I'm not altogether happy about that. But if I don't, I won't be able to afford to live.

One bloody powerball!!!

But the challenge for me here is to see how I react to such a stressful situation (in terms of my weight loss). This afternoon I was in a shocking mood - mostly worried and feeling a bit overwhelmed - and I really wanted to eat something. So instead I drove to the local shopping centre and walked around it for an hour… walked so fast I had to do three laps of a big shopping complex before I felt I had burned off my frustration.

But this will test the things I have learned over the last six months about emotional eating. I need to remember that no matter how bad things get around me, I deserve to be treated with respect and care - which means eat well and exercise.

Or something like that!

:-)
Ani

Ugh, what stink news about having to move Ani. I know what you mean about rental prices ...... here in NZ the property market is just ridiculous at the moment and rental prices are following suit. Best of luck, you seem to be pretty good at keeping things under control.

Went to the gym last night - god only knows how I managed that because it was stiflingly hot yesterday. Good though as there were not many people there which is always nice.

Seeing my trainer tonight so will be in pain after that no doubt!

How is everyone else going? You ladies were all on fire last week, hope you're all still going strong!

Oh gosh Ani thats bad about having to move . We have probs here because there is so many of us and landlords think "kids = mess = ferals" which is definately NOT the case. Do they bid for houses there? I know in QLD there is a rental crisis and its a problem with so many people applying that they start to offer more rental money just to get the house. Doesn't seem fair does it? We just had our lease renewed for another year thank goodness, but the rent went up. We're in a 5 bedroom house, with 3 bay garage, 2 bathrooms, office and rumpus. So its pretty big, and good value for what we pay, though still not enough room for all the critters lol.

I don't know what sort of business you run therefore what accom you need, but is it possible to get a unit or flat? Or are they rare as hens teeth?

Get some "good" snacks in the house for when you need to eat. Remeber that some houses are on the market a long time. Are you on a lease? If so, the real estate has to find you a similar style of accommodation. (well thats the case here) Hope all goes well

LittleKiwi sorry to hear about your friends mum. But remember never give up hope. On saying that, if she does get defeated and tired of all the treatment and stuff, know that sometimes, no matter how hard, it could be time to let go. Just let your friend know that she and her mum have your support.

LittleKiwi sorry to hear about your friend's mum That's terribly sad.

Ani, sucks about having to move! Eek they say moving house is one of the most stressful things you can do, and having done it several times last year, I agree! Wish the rental market was more like that in Melbourne - I am a landlord and I might be able to get more rent (I like my tenant, so I haven't put it up for 2 years as I'd rather keep her than have the hassle of finding someone else).

Don't forget to put the word out with everyone you know that you're looking - often things turn up through a friend of a friend (although always make sure you have a decent lease). Or else go and talk to an agent who can let you know early when places come available. Handy people to know!

Yeah, the rental situation is as bad here - so much so that it is a regular 'news' item. It's not uncommon, when a house is up for rent, to have a dozen people bidding - and people even offering an extra $50/week just to be the chosen ones.

I couldn't live in a unit. I grew up on a farm, and the few times I have tried to live in a flat I've felt like a caged tiger. Don't want to do that to my soul. Also my business takes up a full room in a house - and if I lived in a flat there wouldn't be enough room for it … or for the cats.

I put the word out to friends and acquaintances yesterday, and got a call from a friend of a friend who has a house near Fremantle. It's $300/week and I am going to look at it this afternoon. Of course that means I will need to find someone to share the house if I take it. But the market is desperate, and if I can (as Gen suggested) bypass the agents and do it privately - then I'll snap this place up this afternoon.

I agree Gen that moving is stressful. I've moved over 40 times in my life, and it's lucky that I have something of the old gypsy in me because it doesn't faze me too much. Don't get me wrong - I despise the packing, unpacking, re-settling and all of that … but Fremantle is a completey different cultural life to Perth, and it could be just what I need.

Another advantage of this place I'll be looking at is that it is very near the Swan River - and some awesome river-walking tracks. New places to explore for my morning walks - woo hoo!

Vonni - good idea about the snacks too. I'll get some in. Mind you, with having to spend all my money on rent/bond/moving/cleaning and spend hours packing boxes and tidying the garden here, and the stress of it all - you'd hope I might shed another calorie or two

Sorry this post is all about me - just trying to clear my head and get myself into a positive frame of mind about this rather unexpected and abrupt life change! But will it derail me from my weight loss journey? Not a bloody chance!!!


Ani

Hey ladies

Ani, hope you got on well looking at the place in Fremantle. I'd love to get over to WA some time. Like most Kiwi's, I've been to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Cairns but haven't yet gotten over to the west. Might have to see if I can get on an educational with work!

I'm a travel agent and boy have the last few days been hectic. Thank goodness this morning I can take a deep breath because one particular booking has all come together at last. Now I just need to get all the documents up to Auckland for the flight tomorrow! Luckily a workmate is going up there tomorrow so she will do the drop for me

I managed a killer session at the gym last night. 20 minutes of 2 minute walk/2 minute run intervals and then 25 minutes of pain and suffering with my trainer. He's got me supersetting 7 weights exercises and then my rest in between is 2 minutes on the bike so it's damn hard work. I'm feeling good though and will go as planned for some cardio by myself tonight.

How is everyone else going? Keep it up guys!!