Hi everyone!

Just a shorty for me too, hope all is well. Squash was gooooooooood, endorphines are still up high, I had so much more energy yesterday evening to iron (groan).

Silverbirch, I know Splenda is a sort of chemical derivative of sugar, but on the continent it's not in da shop yet. I was opting for Splenda because it's less invasive than e.g. aspartame, and doesn't lose its tase in cooking as far as I can see in recipes etc., and because I need to cut down on sugar (makes me really sluggish). I also use honey, but sparingly, and I can't stand honey in coffee (lucky me I don't drink a lot of coffee anyway).

Thanks for the link, checking it out. Meantime, does anyone know if the stuff is available by e-mail order and if yes where?

Tiki, wish I could do a touch-toe....


Greetings, start the weekend well!

Lieke alias GG

Howdy y'all!!

Thursday is always my CRUNCH DAY...activity wise that is. Here's my yesterday:

3:30 am - wake up, feed cats, dress and at the gym by 4:00 am (Jim was working an early shift this week so had to move up my times a bit this week.)
Did arms, cardio, a bit of abs and stretches - left the gym at 5:30 am.
Showered, made breakfast for both of us, fed cats again, cleaned litter box and out the door and at work by 7:30 am, through 4:40 pm.
5:15 - 6:15 pm - riding lesson at stables, then got in my car and went like a bat outta **** to my Pilates class (and she really worked the crap out of us - my 'powerhouse' was screaming 15 minutes into the session!) which was from 7-8 pm.
Went home, ate a chicken salad, crashed into bed around 9:30 pm.

This morning - woke up at 4:00 am (Jim has today off!), got to gym around 4:30, did shoulders/calves, stretching, 25 minutes light cardio, and the 6 am Spinning class.

Now I'm here at work... :) and I feel great BTW!

On massage therapy - LOVE IT. I get massages every chance I can get - at least once a month. We also have a massage therapist here at work that does 15 minute chair massages on Weds and Thurs. Very popular and a great benefit (of course it isn't FREE - it's $15 for 15 minutes - this ain't the 1990s where all those great freebees were handed on a platter to everyone - most of those companies went POOF after the big dot-com crash...).

On Splenda - I love the stuff :) the store just started selling the big sacks of it. I haven't ever baked with it, but I do add it to my oatmeal prior to nuking it. As the price of Splenda goes down and the exclusive patent runs its course, we'll see the generic versions come out and the price will go down still lower. However - I still prefer Sweet N Low in my iced tea - some weird preference of mine!

Mette - welcome to LWL! :) I'm sure Ilene will pop in with her trademark greeting...

On Sport Horse Nationals - Dakota's owner and I decided to pass on that. It was a matter of childcare (for her) and $$ (for both of us). Doing the show would have cost at least $1500 between the two of us (and that's probably a low estimate). We're looking at doing a small, one-day schooling show in either October or December at this point...however I did let my trainer know that (since I have that week off anyway) I would be willing to come to the show and assist with the horses that ARE going! At the very least (if she doesn't need me) Jim and I are definitely spending at least a day or two out there in Sacramento - this being the first Arabian National event in California, I can't POSSIBLY miss it. I'm sure the shopping will be fabulous also... :devil:

Gotta run and get some work done! Whew!

Hi everyone-
It's been a wild week for me too, and it's not over yet. The gym was DEAD until the beginning of this week, and now it seems most people have come back from the shore or wherever they disappeared. Now it's back to fairly longs days. Good for the paycheck, bad for computer time and ME time :^: My boss asks me every day if I'll please start training clients at 5am, and daily I tell him it would kill me, my marriage, my son would never go to school, etc. I took his early sessions for a week while he was competing, and it near killed me just for the week. I know, I'm a wuss.

Ds is really sick- he's tested positive for strep, but is also showing signs of mono and meningitis. I'm scared to death for him. We'll know by next Tuesday what ails him if it's one of those. Dh has him at the doctor (again) right now. He spent half of June and most of July camping in areas that have high incidence of Lyme Disease and West Nile Virus, so those are also on the possible list. :?: I hope whatever it is clears up THIS month. Luckily (last week I was bemoaning this) school doesn't start here until after Labor Day.

Did back and bi's this morning and was able to go heavier than I have in a while :) I skipped cardio yesterday because I pushed leg day a little too hard and my abs and incision really hurt. Sore legs and butt are good, torn stitches are NOT! Still trying to decide whether to do cardio today. I may give it until tomorrow, then really hit it hard. I'm NOT one of the lucky fast metabolism folks who can get away with no cardio :(

Mette- Welcome to our corner of the world :wave:

Hello to everybody- gotta scoot back to the gym!

Mel

Hello, Hello, Hello everyone!! :wave:

Well I haven't been as busy this week as you guys, but it still has gone by fast! Between driving son to work, working out with him, working out alone, biking, housework, painting the bathroom, driving the little :queen: around... I haven't had much chance to post ... I've also gotten into reading this summer too... I've read 4 books I think... The one I am reading now is Patricia Cornwell's, Hornest's Nest... before that I read Maya Angelou's I know Why the Caged Bird Sings... Oh and Death du Jour by Kathy Reichs, I really enjoyed that one!

Food has been so-so, but workouts have been good...

Karen -- reading your post made me out of breath!! :lol:

Mel -- Sorry to hear about your DS, that certainly is worrisome!

Must not forget ~~ Mette -- WELCOME :dance: WE DOOOO LUV NEWBIES !! :dance:

Sorry can't stay long, Little :queen: needs yet another ride!

TTFN...... :grouphug: to all the rest LUVS yas too!! :D

Hey Jack- It's no fun being the almost 50 year old sister of three younger brothers! Your bike ride sounds fun. We have lots of pieces of "Rails to Trails" pieces but they don't link up to anything or go for more than 5 miles or so. There is one, the Schykill Valley trail, that goes into Philadelphia, but it's not the most scenic of rides.

Ok, the latest diagnosis on ds is that he has strep and Lyme disease. He's on enough antibiotics now to kill any critter in his skinny body. He got weighed at his doctor's office today and is officially 5'10" and 119 pounds :o
Not a lot of muscle there :( or fat. I think I'll let him make a double batch of cookies tomorrow as long as he hides them from me.

Ate clean, so I'm headed to bed before I do any damage. Long cardio tomorrow.

Mel

Oh my, Mel how do you get rid of Lyme disease?

Thanks for the welcome everybody. :wave:

Mel – sorry about your son, hope he gets better once the antibiotics start working.

Tiki – wow! A toe-touch! Whatever kind: I’m impressed! Was it a bending-over (to touch toe), standing up (raising leg), jumping, or what???
MrsJim – getting at the gym at 4:00 is dead impressive too!

I’ve just finished my first week at the gym. Did lower body on Wednesday and upper body on Friday. Today my arms are sore and feel great. The squats (I’m starting off using a 45lbs bar) and the bench press (2 x 22lbs dumbbells) are definitely favorites so far.
I did lower back extensions on the extension bench, and couldn’t even complete my 8x3 program – so lower back is obviously a place I need to work on.
I get such a kick out of this! :D

Have nice weekends everybody.

Just a quickie before starting my day at the gym :)

OMG Mel - Lyme disease?!? I've met a couple of people who had that - NOT fun. Right now, West Nile just popped up here in the Bay Area, so THAT's our big deal at the moment - I've just gotten some mosquito repellent to keep in the tack box at the stables. I definitely DON'T want to get WNV. All our horses have been vaccinated for it - it's especially deadly to equines.

I don't own a bike at the moment but I've heard a LOT about Rails to Trails. Sounds like fun!

Another busy day here...gym, stables, and in the afternoon I have my first Pilates Reformer session which should be interesting :) And hopefully I'll get a chance to clean my fridge, which should have a condemned sign hanging on it! :lol:

Hi everyone! Just a quick update for me. Things are hectic at work I havent been able to read this thread yet...much less post! Anyways, I am completing my 4th week on BFL. As of today I have lost 9 pounds and 6 1/2 inches! PROGRESS!! :D My husband has lost 8 pounds in the last 2 weeks as well.

Mel~ I hope your son gets better soon!

A quick hello to everyone. I am BACK. Back in training as of today and ready to feel the burn!!! All my cooking is done for the week and I'm ready to go. Hope to take some pix soon.