Hello All!
 

Hello everyone! Not a whole lot to talk about today, but it's been a really nice, busy board today. I can honestly say I've been happy to just lurk. :p

OK, WI is tonight. It's the last meeting with the a-hole leader!! The lady that I go with to my meetings here said she was going to go to these other meetings with me, but she backed out. So, it looks like it's going to be me and the open road when traveling to the other meetings.

Kirsty--That's too bad about your hole-y shoes! I wonder if gluing them would work?? Never hurts to try, right?

KNV--You sound like me and how I feel about vegetables. Maybe you could list a few vegetables that you DO like and maybe the group could give suggestions. I'm pretty picky about my vegetables, but have found a few ways to sneak them into things. An idea for you on the ice cream cravings--check your area and see if they have Philly Swirl Sorbet cups. A cup is 2 points and they come in really cool flavors (like Cotton Candy) and take so long to eat (because they freeze really hard) that half the time you get tired of trying to eat them before you finish them. :lol: Also, a chocolate graham cracker with FF Cool Whip frozen like a sandwich is only 1 point and helps with the chocolate/ice cream cravings.

Moonbeam--How on earth can you drag yourself out of bed to go running in the morning? I can barely get myself up in time for work, much less exercise. :yawn:

Jayne--Maybe you can help someone who's cooking-impaired. How in the heck do you stir-fry vegetables? I need a step-by-step, including even the things that should seem obvious to me. :) Stir-frying has always been a mystery to me... Can you use frozen vegetables when stir-frying? So many questions!

Kirsty--How do you roast vegetables in the oven? And how do you steam vegetables? (Can you believe I've lived on my own for as long as I have and haven't starved to death? I don't know much about cooking!)

Lisa--Don't you love how Kirsty talks? (Sorry, Kirsty, I'm not talking about you behind your back). It's just the coolest thing--she says things like "rubbish" and "pissing". I always grin when I read things like that! :lol: Maybe it's not such a cool thing to you, but we don't see much of that in Nebraska (the land of cows and corn). :D I totally agree with you about Skinny Cow products--have you had the Fudge Bars? I like them better than the ice cream sandwiches. I'm with you on the Wow Chips, too. I LOVE them and they are such a huge help when having cravings. The only problem I've had was when I ate more than the suggested serving size (a lot more!). Turns out the warning on the back of the bag saying they can cause a laxative effect is true. It's just not pretty. (I could go into more detail, but it's lunchtime for some people.) How did WI go? Hopefully SPECTACULAR!!!

Winter--You'll eat pizza for every meal until it's gone if you order it? How many meals does it last you? If I order pizza, I'll eat the entire pizza in ONE meal. :lol: That's too bad about your work letting people go. I always hate hearing that, it's so unfortunate.

Lori--How are you enjoying Fast Food Nation? I've never heard of that... That's great that you're a doctor--how admirable!!

Belle--It sounds like you have your day planned out perfectly! I hate being around temptation like that all the time--sometimes I just can't say no.

Jen--You're not too far from me, so I'm sure you're having the same heat and humidity as we are. Really, you shouldn't get frustrated when trying to run in this sort of weather. You're doing better than a lot of people (me, included)--just trying to breathe in this weather at all is exhausting for them (me). :lol: That is so sweet about your boy! It sounds like things there are going really well, I'm very happy for you!!

Lucy--Caffeine opinions... Mine is pretty neutral. It was handy stuff this morning at 5 a.m. when I had to make an emergency trip to a 24-hour Walmart (that's half hour away). I'm not addicted, don't drink it daily, but it does come in handy. I try not to drink too much, I don't like getting the shakes. Have you looked at all for garage sales that may have a window AC unit for sale? Sometimes you can find them for cheap at a garage sale. Oh, a kitty? I'm so jealous! I miss having a cat to curl up and sleep with me... My old roommate and I got a fat orange furball from the Humane Society and I miss him terribly. We named him Dexter. He was 3 years old, not many people would adopt that old of a cat, so we just had to take him home. :)

OK, this post is practically a full-length novel. I suppose I'll get back to work now... :)

Oh, Winter, I am SO sorry to hear your sad news. It's rough when someone so young is sick and passes away and it's hard when they've suffered for so long. There's no perfect thing to say to anyone in a situation like this, I don't think, the best thing you can possibly do is just be there to listen and comfort. Again, I'm sorry and am sending a long-distance hug.

Lucy--OP is On-Program...

OK, I really have to work now.

Goodness girls... we are a chatty bunch.

I am DOWN 1.5!!!

Not quite sure why I'm losing lately. I really don't know what is going on.... other than I've been drinking about 14-15 8-oz glasses of water a day. Other than that, I'm on program...with a few lapses now and then (6 drinks Thursday, hence the sailor; and 4 drinks Friday, purchased by the sailor; then Saturday chips and salsa at a mExican resteraunt, followed by a chicken quesadilla). By the way, last night I got home and Mike (the sailor) left a message saying he was glad he met me and he had a nice time in Boston. How sweet.

Winter - I'm really sorry about your cousin's friend. It's really sad; although I'm sure she's not suffering anymore - but that never seems to take away all the hurt.

Lori - I was an egg beater who^e for a while there. I was making omlettes every morning and they were great!

Belle - sounds like you're back on track already... by Friday you'll be flying high I'm sure... good luck with all those tempting foods tonight... i'm sure you'll do fine.

Jen - the heat is awful to run in.... you have to make sure you're well hydrated. Especially while running in that heat. And the boy sounds awesome... how exciting.

Lucy - good luck with weigh in... let us know how it goes... I hate when I don't feel like I've lost... but sometimes you're pleasantly surprised. :) OP means On Program. Funny you asked... because when I first started coming here... I thought everyone went to Wisconsin every week because they kept saying I went to WI last night... or going to WI on Saturday... I was like... wow, why is everyone going to Wisconisn? :)

Tonya - would love to see pictures!! Wow - you're motivated it sounds like... one of my goals was to journal and I just haven't been doing that... but I will starting today.

Jess- good luck with your last @sshole meeting! Hooray!! Have fun! I'm the same way for pizza.... if I order a pizza... i'll eat it until it's gone... and usually the same night. Sad but true!

Okay ladies... back to the daily grind!

Lisa

Ha!
 

Lisa - I was just laughing out loud when I read that you used to wonder why everyone was going to Wisconsin all of the time!!! Congrats on the 1.5 loss!! You are my hero! (really, you are!)

Winter - I'm so sorry to hear about your cousin's friend. You're right, there isn't much you can say but just being there for her will help a ton. I'm sending positive thoughts your way.

What happened?
 

The board was all busy before. Then I posted and now everyone's gone... Is it me? ;)

It's not you! I always feel that way... it's like the Curse of Lisa. I post and then no one comes back! :) That's how it usually goes!

I'm back!

Thanks everyone for your thoughtful words. I know there really isn't much I can do for my cousin but I just hate it when I can't fix her hurts. Sometimes I miss the days when killing the spider in her bedroom or taking the time to re-do her hair fixed everything.

Jess - I used to be able to sit down and eat a pizza in one sitting. Since I lost some weight, I can't eat like that anymore. A blessing really - even when I eat junk I have to eat less 'cuz my stomach will hurt. Good luck with WI tonight.

Lisa - you rock! 1.5 is awesome. I'm glad the sailor called. That's really sweet.

Sorry if I missed responding to someone but I really must get back to work.

Winter

No curses...people are still here. I'm so ticked, I just lost a monster post. Oh well, I'm starting over with the abridged version.

Winter, I'm so sorry about your cousin's friend. It seems totally unnatural to lose someone so young. My sympathy.

Jess, here is a crash course in the cooking of the veggies.

Put a heavy frying pan (a wok is best) over medium high heat and let it heat for a minute or two. Add a teaspoon of canola oil and let that heat up. Add either fresh or frozen veggies of your choice (they sell great mixes in the freezer section, complete with sauce) and, as my hubby calls it, stir fry fluid of your choice (bottled stir fry sauce, teryaki sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, or even just soy sauce). Stir the veggies constantly (hence the name of the technique) and check them every n ow and then with the edge of the spoon (or taste one). They're done when they're tender-crisp. If you want to do meat in it, marinate either chicken or shrimp in the stir-fry fluid for at least half an hour. Cook the meat in a teaspoon of canola oil just like above. Take it out when it's done and cook the veggies, and when the veggies are just aobut done, put the meat back in and let it all heat up together.

To steam, just cover the bottom of a saucepan with water and put fresh or frozen veggies on top. Put the heat on medium and put a tight-fitting lid on top of the saucepan. Check it after five minutes or so. Again, done when tender-crisp.

To roast, toss fresh veggies of your choice (never tried frozen here) with a little olive oil and seasonings (salt, pepper, and oregano are good for basic Italian roasted veggies). Bake at 400 or 450 until veggies are tender and/or golden.

Good stir frying veggies are broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, pepper, onion, asparagus, green beans, peas, zucchini, just about anything works here

Good steamers include broccoli, cauliflower, corn, peas, beans, anything not too wet.

Good roasters are peppers, potatoes (ok, not really a veggie), asparagus (incredible with garlic salt) green beans, beets, onions, carrots,

Be creative and let me know how it turns out.

Hi to everyone else!

Thanks!
 

First off:

Jayne: THANK YOU!! so much for the instruction for varying ways to cook vegetables! I really, really appreciate it! Stuff like this is what makes this board so great!

Secondly, thanks Lisa for reassuring me that it's not just me who scares everyone away! ;)

Winter--I've noticed that I can't eat as much anymore, but it doesn't mean that I won't try! :o I don't know if I'd be able to annihilate an entire pizza anymore, but I have a feeling I'd sure try. When I do go and get food that sends me way over my points limit, I'll eat what i want and toss it. With pizza, I'd try to eat the entire thing because I'd want to eat as much as I could before throwing it away.

Yay, it's time to go home!

oh jess.... you scared the cr@p out of me.... I thought you meant you'd eat what you want and toss it, meaning throw it up! I was so upset... until I realized you meant throw it in the trash.

Woohoo!
 

Hello all...
Well I survived WI! It was down 0.8 pounds, but I got my first 5 Pound Fan! Yes, I was excited. I also blame my lack of weight loss to my soaked clothes since it was POURING outside and I was drenched getting from the mall to my car, and into the meeting. See Kirsty.. I told you it pours here! Luckily today I was only in a gray tee-shirt.

Congrats Lisa! I never thought such a small number would be so rewarding.
In our meetings (I don't know if this is standard) but we receive a paperclip for every pound lost, so I'm starting a chain! I'm also trying to keep track of my inches, but I think I measured wrong, because apparetly my upper arm and waist are the same size! (Something's fishy bout that)

Okay, so the motivation is pumping when I'm reading about all the running. Right now it's just hard on my body, carrying around all this extra weight. For awhile though I coudl do it great, and almost for a half hour on the tread mill, but 10pounds heavier and it got impossible!
So, Jen, congrats for pushing yourself through the heat. Here it's just so humid, climbing the stairs to my apartment makes me break a sweat.

Well, I'm off to the gym. I love the movitation I get after a meeting. I've decided I'll get a kitten when I hit my first goal weight. It's so hard to resist though! They're sooo cute! I wanted to take them all home today.

Tonight a group of us are going to a club/bar "Fat Tuesdays" (feeling a little ironic at the moment) but I've alreayd decided to not get any alcohol. You girls are right.. it's much more important to lose weight than to get a buzz.

I hope everyone's night, dinner, evening goes well. I"m sure I'll attack some more before bedtime.

Lucy
:cool: :cool:

Me Again....
 

Now I have another question. Everyone on this site looks like they've had some good success.. will you please give me some pointers on how to get in a good exercise routine?

Right now I just seem to throw something in when I have time or motivation. But it's not a permanent schedule, and my weighlifting is spiratic. Advice for a beginner?
I've on and off worked out all the time, so I know what everything is for the most part, but I'm having the worst time starting a routine. Help!

Thanks :?:

On another note.. tonight was the first night in a long time I headed out to the clubs and didn't have a drink. It's a much different atmosphere that way, and not too thrilling actually. Everyone else is being stupid and pushing the crowd, and some of the dancing! But it was nice to get out for awhile. I was just proud of myself, because usually I"m the one to crack and get a drink simply to have something in my hand. Instead, it was a Diet Coke! Well, maybe next week I'll avoid Fat Tuesdays on Tuesday. Just too many people!

Ah, tomorrow is a new morning, another class, and another challenge.