Usually my house is the biggest disaster going. After working for 8 hours and cooking supper it really isn't hard to find an excuse to say I'll do the dishes tomorrow or the kids won't get out of the living room so I'll clean it tomorrow. Then on the weekends when I really should be house cleaning I need to go shopping or something else I really don't need to do just to get out of it. So this is a really nice change for me. I'm sure when dh is on days again next week my house will be back to it's usual messy self.

Hello all. So glad to see some activity going on with this thread...gives me some catching up to do. (can you tell i dont have much of a life, ha ha) I am having a pretty good week after a rough weekend, except for the elliptical of course. I am really looking forward to the gym though. I have had such stess at work that i took a nerve pill last night so i could sleep and unfortunately it had a wicked half life. It took everything i had to stay awake this morning at work...so needless to say, i didnt do ANY exercising today. i am very disappointed to not do any exercise the day before my weigh in but i was just so tired, all i really wanted to do was nap and never was able to. No more nerve pill. :nono:

I am only .5 up from my ticker weight toninght from last week, so hopefully the fairy fat mother will pay me a visit tonight and i can do a victory dance in the morning.

Sno-It is so good to hear from you. That is terrible that you are still battling :boxing: with that cold of yours...it takes so long to get your energy back. It seems that by the time i get my energy back after a cold like that, my metabolism is shot and i have to kickstart it to get it going again. No fun. Good for you for getting some walking in. And WTG on the pants getting looser...oh, that is the best feeling. I have the same problem with my comforter...it is too big for my washer. My dogs got out in the rain the other day and then came in and of course made a bee line for my bed...now my comforter smells like wet dog. :barf: I took it to the cleaners...paid $40 bucks for them to tell me they cant get the smell out. Have they never heard of baking soda...for crying out loud.

Card- I totally relate to the big fluctuations getting you down...seriously. 1-3 pounds i can easily handle. But those big ones can really throw you...i start having self doubt, hopelessness, the works...i mean it can really make or break my day. The new job should REALLY take a load off my shoulders. :D I will be making less money with it being fewer hours but i will really like what i will be doing...i HATE what i am doing now and then throw an idiot boss in on top of that and i just dread getting out of bed at this point. I am SO excited about having time to go to the gym and still have enough work to get me out of the house once in a while. Now if i can just afford the gym membership, ha ha.

Dollypie-You are so right about the gym. I used to go to the Y all the time when i was a SAHM. Then i started working and kind of lost track of my priorities...that is when i gained ALL my weight back as well. So i am hoping by taking the sacrifice in income by cutting hours and changing jobs i can once again get back to the gym. I miss it. Thanks for the heads up about pricing being negotiable :chin: ...i will definately check into it.

Ok, i am going to try to get some reading in before bed...but as tired as i am i bet i dont last long.

Its strange how things seem to go in cycles. Last week was a tough week for wt and unstable, seemed like some of you were going thru the same thing. Now my wt has steadied out, it was getting depressing seeing the highs I hit.

I am going in the hospital this weekend for tests and then surgery on tuesday. I decided I should go on maintenance sunday-wed. I hate to quit my diet though. :(

I'm glad you're getting better snow. :) When I had a 5 month long sinus infection my dr told me that exercise stimulates the immune system.

stacy I was thinking maybe the elliptical is like a car. Its not how old it is but how many miles you put on it that's making it wear out.

card you're doing great. Moms always amaze me with all you guys do after work. Its like 2 full time jobs.

Good morning ladies! I got home yesterday DH was very serious and told me to sit down he had some important news to tell me. I could only think that his company let him go immediately and wasn't going to let him stay on until December. He then said that he got a new job! I was so excited and happy for him. It is doing something he really likes and they will even pay for him to go back to school like he has been wanting too. So that is a lot of relief for both of us. DH slept like a rock last night, he hasn't been able to sleep since receiving notice about the layoffs. Thanks for all the support you girls gave me!

Sno: Glad to hear you are feeling better. When I had the flu last year I was sick two weeks and then after feeling better for a week I had a relapse and was sick another week. Funny thing about washing sleeping bags in the washing machine, DH tried to do that at home the last time when I wasn't home. The machine started to overflow and he had to put the wet sleeping bag in the back of the truck and head to the laundromat. Poor thing was trying to help, but made a bigger mess.

card: I can totally relate to not wanting to do the house work and I don't even have kids. It seems like the kitchen needs to be swept and mopped every other day...don't dogs belong outside and not in my kitchen? I started the laundry last night, two loads down and four to go....

Stacy: Becareful with those nerve pills. I can't even take Tylenol PM, it knocks me out for at least 10 hours and then I am not myself the next day. I found out the hard way too. If I take half of one and get a good 8 hours I am good though.

nawchem: I hope your surgery goes well.

Another great day, didn't weigh myself because I was on the 7:00 shift again but my jeans were fairly loose so I don't think I did any big gains. I came home from work at 3:00 and slept for 2 hours, I'm always so exhausted when dh is on afternoons, he bounces in the house at 11:15 wanting to talk and bond and I just want to go to bed. Thank goodness it's over.

get n - good luck at the gym!!! I hope you have a blast.

naw - good luck on your surgery!!! I will be thinking of you when the day arrives, and don't worry about going on maintenance, surgery will knock off a few plans and always jump starts a diet.

dolly - congratulations to you and your dh. Glad to hear everything worked out for the best and glad he is sleeping again.

Well it is nice to see the world is looking up for most of us and hopefully the scale will reflect the better week. Well off to tidy up my house (I can't even pretend to clean anymore). DH walked in last night and said he thought he was in the wrong house it was so clean. Talk to you all later.

hi everyone. i just wanted to say i hope you are all doing well. i look forward to getting the email that recaps the days post every day. :D

so, i am wondering when you gain your TOM weight. is it before your period starts or during? this week i haven't really lost anything and i am about a week before it starts. i am really trying to drink more water but diet coke is really getting in the way of that. i sure hope that carbinated water works just as well because that is what is the easiest to replace.

Saturday
 

Hi all:

great to hear from you and receive your sympathy. I am not super happy about eating this week but not as bad as last week so I guess it will all work out. TOM and a cold today and I am just staying in bed. I think walking the other night just made the cold worse for the next day.

Nancy--what kinda surgery? Hope nothing major--keep us posted on how you are doing.

Dolly--so glad to hear things worked out for hubby--that must be a big load off!

Card--congrats about the loose jeans--thats what counts right? If you are getting smaller it doesnt matter what the scale sez.

Bertine--I seem to gain before--up to two weeks before and then lose it after. Drinking a lot of water seems to help but doesnt eliminate the gain totally. I expect to be up this upcoming monday and down the following monday.

hello to all!! you guys have been typing like crazy since i last checked in and i doubt that i will ever get caught up with everyone. i have spent the last week taking care of my mom who had surgery on tuesday. she is back home and staying with my sister so i should be able to get back in the swing of things. needless to say, my eating has been less than perfect but i did manage to loose another pound.
trob

Hi everyone!!!! Can't wait for the weigh in tomorrow, I have weighed in at 203 for 2 mornings running!!! It has been at least 8 months since I have seen that weight. We did thanksgiving dinner yesterday and I was so good. I mostly ate stuffed squash, no potatoes, no gravy, and only a small sliver of dessert. I'm talking so tiny it wasn't even a mouthful. I am so proud of myself and I was so stuffed. I have definately shrunk my stomach.

Bertine - I gain about a week and a half before and then lose it the second or third day of TOM, but every one is different. I get salt cravings for the week and a half before, no cravings during and sugar cravings the week after, so that may have alot to do with it. Drink lots of water and don't get bummed out if you gain a little, or stay the same. It all works out in the end.

Snow - hang in there, it can't last forever, but i'm thinking you might want to see a doctor. there may be something they can do to speed things along maybe.

trob - great to see you back and congrats on the pound. Hope your mom is doing well. and look forward to seeing you around again.

Sunday
 

Hi all:

great to hear from you--been doing a lot of thinking about weight loss etc. I was thinking how motivated I was at the beginning of this challenge and now I have this cold and I have had a hard time hanging on. It is typical for me to get motivated and then lose it. I think the only thing that has kept me even thinking about dieting has been this challenge and feeling some responsibility for getting us all started.

Yesterday was an okay day--again around 2000 cals--so I dont think I will lose any this week and with TOM I will probably be up. It is not my eating plan that is the problem. It is staying motivated when I dont feel well--either emotionally or physically. And maybe it is true that when you are sick you need more calories--but I am not losing for sure.

I can only think that I still have 12 weeks left until the end of the year and if I can get re-motivated--then I can still have some weight loss by the end of the year--whew--I am really struggling with this monster!

It is really motivating to hear everyone's stories--the successes as well as the struggles.

Card--I have been under a lot of stress for the last year and the last time I checked in with my MD on one of these marathon colds she just told me to rest and relax--that stress effects the immune system. I do have a full check-up scheduled next month. I loved hearing about your success with your Thanksgiving dinner--except I was kinda confused--is this instead of in November? Or am I hallucinating the wrong month? PS--You are getting so close to onederland!

Trob--congrats on the pound--you are steadily approaching your goal!

Well finally did a monday weigh in and it was 205. but that's ok, i'm getting used to how my body loses weight. I never kept up a diet long enough before because I get discouraged by the scale, but I've noticed a pattern. I go down a few pounds and then bounce up a few, do a wild bounce around of at least 5 pounds, up and down, then down a few to a 2 or 3 pound up and down and finally lose a few again. So I am getting smaller, it is just taking forever. and the scale is all over the place, before I was bouncing as high as 210 now hopefully I will be bouncing around 205 or 206. Hopefully. Anyway, had a halloween candy melt down. Oh no, thankfully I had 4 children here to eat the rest of them before I had any more. It had been so long since I had chocolate that I didn't beat myself up too bad, but I won't be buying anymore. Kids who come to my door can have plums or bananas instead.

Snow - keeping motivated is the hardest thing for me as well. This challenge is the one thing that I have really kept up with, even though I am not losing as fast as some, I am getting smaller. I may not meet my goal for this challenge and I may not be as thin as I want for my reunion next year, but the scale is going down, and my clothing is looser. I have shrunk my stomach, and am not eating nearly as much junk food as I used to. Sometimes I mess up and feel like nothing is happening but eventually the weight does come off. Don't give up, even if you are not losing, at least you are not gaining, and we all know that counts for alot. We are all behind you, and know that you can stick with it because it feels so good to go down a few pounds or buy that one size smaller clothing. Keep at it and you will reach your goal!!!! You sound like you're a little blue right now and with the way my life has been lately I can really relate. But keep your chin up and don't sweat the scale too much, just get back on track when you can and the pounds will start coming off again and you will become motivated again. Remember, not going up counts just as much as going down.

By the way we do Thanksgiving in October in Canada. so today is Thanksgiving here. HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!!!!!! Hope you all have a great day.

I just did my October measurements, I'm a little slow this month I usually try to do it on the first, but I have lost 1.75 inches off the 7 measurements that I do (calf, thigh, hips, waist, bra band line (minus bust) upper arms and lower arms). The measurements are about the same as they were December 2004!!!! I have lost 22 months of weight. I am so excited.

Monday Morning
 

Good Morning Chicks,

I think I have become addicted to exercise. I woke up at 4am ready to go to the gym this morning. I went back to bed because the gym doesn't open until 5am. When I got there I was just excited to get on the elliptical and then did 20 minutes of weights. This is so weird for me because last week I felt like my tail was dragging on the elliptical. I guess I just needed a weekend off to be ready to go today. Also I weighed in and lost another two pounds. This is going to be a great week if this morning was great!

Sno: Don't be discouraged. A cold can really bring you down along with the stress in your life. I do think you should go to your doctor to see if he/she can speed your recovery. Do you take a multivitamin everyday? I am convinced that this helps me stay healthy. I have just recently gotten the DH to take one everyday as well. All you can do right now is make healthy food choices even if it does go over your calorie range. More veggies and fruits will help build your immune system as well. Remember you have all the support you need here to continue.

card: Happy Thanksgiving a day late! Way to go on the inches lost!

trob: You should be back on track in no time

Bertine: I honestly did not even notice a weight change during TOM last month, but then again I really wasn't weighing myself everyday. I am going to take better notice this time around.

monday rush
 

Good morning. I am off to a fantastic start for the week. As most of you know, my ellpitical died on me last week. Well i went and checked in to a gym really close to my house and it is only $50 a month for me and my son. So i am loving that. I signed up and had the BEST workout. :lifter: My arms feel so light and like i can feel their every move. I love the feeling a gym gives you. I worked out for a little over an hour and the time just flew by, half weights, half cardio. I really needed this after a not so great weekend...ok, a really bad weekend. Could have been worse, but basically, i like to keep it at around 1700 cals on the weekend and i was more like 2000 both days. So surely i can make up for it by friday. I am trying some calorie cycling though. If i can keep it at 1700 on the weekend and 1400 during the week i will be happy. Then unlimited cals on friday.

Friday was my last day at my old job. No more bimbo...lets do a "no more bimbo" cheer :cheer2:

For my weigh in, i lost a pound at fridays weigh in. So that is good. I think i have 19 pounds left to new years challenge.

Dollypie-Addicted to exercise, yeah, me too. I forgot just how good it makes me feel. Good job on losing 2 pounds. :woohoo: So glad your dh got a new job. I did too and so did my dh too. Lots of change in the air. I dont know why, but fall always brings change in my life.

Card-Good job on the measurements. Just did my measurements too and mine are looking better. I think i am going to try to do measurements once a month, maybe the first of every month. Oh and Happy Thanksgiving to you. :happ3:

Sno-Oh i am SO bad about my motivation dying. I always get off to such a good start then it slowly dwindles. I have to be a brides maid in the spring, hopefully that will at least get me through til spring. I could make a lot of progress between now and then. I just signed a 36 month contract at the gym...YIKES. :yikes: It scares me, i could easily see me losing that desire to get to the gym. That is what i did last time i fell off the bandwagon and gained it all back. At least this time i know what signs within myself to look for.

Trob-Good job on losing another pound. :dancer:

Bertine-I think i gain before and then fluctuate like crazy during TOM, then i usually have a whoosh afterwards and lose like 3 or 4 pounds in one weigh in. I HATE waiting and hoping for that whoosh.

Ok, that is my weekend news. Lets make it a great week. :carrot:

GetnHealthy - glad to hear you joined the gym! It is just a motivation for me to see other people exercising. I think if they can do it I can too!!!!