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2018 - The Year of " I AM "
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Snoozie, at least you stayed the same at weigh in. After our weekend away with my parents I saw a gain. I'm not going to stress over it though because I saw some relatives that I had not seen in four years and it was wonderful to see them and eat what they made and brought. I wasn't going to turn it down when they went to all that trouble. I'll do better this week.
I enjoyed the article. It's good to be reminded of the things that we can be doing to help ourselves reach our goals. I love the idea of eating our large meal at lunch but, like Vail said, when we're retired it will be easier to do that one. I continue to struggle to eat slower! Sometimes I catch myself and say...wow, what's your hurry?
Vail, maybe if you're chatty then the others will loosen up and jump in. Don't let that discourage you from participating in the chat. Heck...we keep this "chat" going sometimes with only two people! Hahaha!
I'm working hard this week to get the basement cleared out. It's extremely hard and dirty work but it keeps me occupied and away from the snacks! We are going out of town...again...on Sunday for a week. We're going to a state park in Illinois for three days of hiking then heading to Kansas City to see family and meet our brand new little niece. My mother in law fell last week and is in full time care for awhile so we wanted to see her as well. She's almost 91 so we need to take advantage of seeing her while we can. When we get back I'll have almost three months of not much going on so hopefully I can get back to some kind of schedule and going to the gym.0 -
I hope you enjoy the trip, Suzy. It sounds like a good mix of leisure and connecting with family. I'm sorry about your mother-in-law falling ill, but it's great that she is being looked after and you will get to see her. And lovely that you are seeing family at both ends of the age spectrum!
Well done on the basement work. I don't have a basement, but I do have a "garage" (in inverted commas, because it's an old garage that was built for a car, but there is no way a modern car would fit in it, so it has become a mixture of garden shed, storage place, and kind of halfway house for things that I probably don't need any more but don't feel ready to throw away - lol!) which I try to work on every now and then! That's a really good point about it keeping you occupied and away from snacks! Whatever works! I do find distraction is often good.
My weight loss programme is going well. I actually find it very motivating. We have a handbook and a recipe book, but for the first six weeks we get a new article to read every day. I find I'm really looking forward to the next new article! Today's article is about distorted thoughts - don't we all know about those - lol! I love seeing the weight (and sleep and steps) on a graph. And knowing that I can contact my mentor if I have any questions is great. She has been helping people out, mainly with the technology parts (getting their scales and tracker to work). Every day I have to write down three things I'm grateful for, and one positive experience - I love doing this!
The amazing thing is that it's actually working! I lost a few pounds with tonsillitis and was expecting a rebound, but no, I'm continuing to lose at the moment. The diet is really not much different than what I would normally eat, so this is kind of embarrassing - I think the only real difference is that I'm missing out all those occasional indulgences (snacks in the evening - no matter how healthy!) that have been stopping me from losing weight. As we all keep saying, we know what to do! It's just sticking to it. And I think this programme/app has given me that last bit of motivation to stick to it. Mind you, it has only been a few days, so I have to keep this level of enthusiasm up!
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Hi all, Great posts!! Haven't read all of them yet, trying to catch up from vacation and before.
Vacation was awesome, only gained 3 lbs...sounds like a lot, but if you could have seen what all we ate out of the house , not to mention all the great food my friend cooked!! She is a great cook. She made us HOMEMADE Chicken Parmesan the last night....can't say I've ever had homemade. It was so wonderful. I ate the whole plate w spaghetti and French bread and a salad...no shame! LOL
Weather was beautiful , but HOTT!! , no rain to speak of, it waited till the day we left.
Excellent ideas to look into Snoozie. I need to try to put them to practice, so I can get back to Ticker weight. I had moved it before leaving, so I am not moving it for these...they just have to go somewhere else!
My test results from the Rural Home test came back...most stayed the same but some increased to the bad side...so I have some damage control to do....
I had Hubby go with me this year and get a baseline testing done, since he would never have it done at a Dr.. His came back showing PAD (Peripheral artery disease) in one leg if not both... COPD a pack a day or more smoker for 40 years or more...no sign of ever stopping.. Heart disease Markers heavily marked! So he is a ticking time bomb ...not saying I couldn't go before him, but ..... : /
Still trying to make it up to the gym for leg presses for 5 minutes and Stairmaster for 10 minutes....them Cardio Boot camp for 30 minutes...3 or 4 days a week... I can see a difference in my body shape..so I am going to keep it up even if I keep increasing in lbs.
Vail, awesome on keeping the lbs off from being sick! Sorry you had to be sick to get that....lol I am reading backwards, so not sure what else is going your way, but big KUDOS!!
Suzy, Enjoy the trip and sorry to hear your MnL is ill, hoping she will recover soon!
Best wishes to all!!
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Welcome back! That homemade chicken parmesan meal sounds like one of those meals which is worth the calories! And of course, it would have been rude to refuse - lol! And at least it was only a three pound gain.
Your hubby's results sound worrying. I know myself that it's easy to be in denial when it comes to health, because you just don't want to know the awful truth, and think it won't happen to you. Maybe this test will be the wakeup call?
Well done on the gym, and the dreaded Stairmaster! That sounds like a lot of exercise, and I agree that it's good regardless of weight.
Meanwhile, today on my programme we are looking at positive thinking. I'm continuing to lose weight - normally I would round pounds down, but these scales give you the weight to 0.1 of a pound, so you get to see minute progress. I have crossed a magical "stone" mark - we tend to think of weight in stones and pounds here in the UK, and so although I've only lost a couple of pounds, it's taken me over into the next stone category which feels like a big jump! I still have a few pounds to go before I hit the lowest I've been in the past few years, but I'm below my previous maintenance weight (just!). I suspect it's going to get a lot harder once I get further below that weight and break into new territory. I do believe in "set points" and I think the next part will be harder.
The course has "rules" for eating, but also has a plan and recipes if you want instead. I'm enjoying trying the recipes - they seem to be mostly easy and tasty. Here's one of the recipes I've enjoyed:
Spinach-stuffed Chicken - 2 servings- 2 boneless chicken breasts
- 4-6 thin slices proscuitto or serrano
- 90g (3-4 tbsp) plain cream cheese
- 1 handful spinach, finely chopped
- 1/2 lime, juiced
- Optional:
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
- 1tbsp butter
- 1 small red chilli, chopped fine
- Preheat oven to 200C
- Optional step:gently heat butter and garlic in a small pan to make garlic butter
- In a bowl mix the cream cheese, chopped spinach, lime juice and a little salt and pepper. Add garlic butter, chilli (if using) and mix well
- With the tip of a sharp knife slice the chicken breast horizontally to create pockets. Stuff with the mix
- Season with pepper and wrap each piece in the cured ham to make an even, consistent layer.
- Place on a baking paper on an oven tray and cook for 20-25 minutes (or until cooked through)
- Remove chicken from the oven to rest for 5 minutes while cooking the vegetables. Serve chicken and vegetables together on warmed plates.
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Mmmmmm, sounds yummy, Vail. I may try it for me this weekend...
For the others I have to cook plain here at home . My guys don't like anything different. One of them doesn't even like chicken!! lol ....can you imagine that?!?! That would be my husband. His family worked in the chicken business. Inspectors at the processing plants, so he said they had chicken every day, and his Mother wasn't that original about how she cooked.... so he would rather eat the leather out of a car seat before chicken...hahaha
Yes, it was worth it, 3 lbs or not. I told her it was far superior to a restaurant meal....most of the time if I get pasta out, it always looks like it has been setting around soaking up all the sauce .. not good.
I hoped it would work that way , because I had already diagnosed him with those ailments....told him only thing I couldn't do was to write out the prescription.....lol He says I missed my calling...should have been a doctor. Told him I probably was ...in another life. ; )1 -
Hi guys.. sorry i've been mia; supposed to be on vacation but doing a couple of night shifts (on overtime for the $$) lol tonite is the last one and good thing … today I had my doc apt for the blood test results and I was soooooooo miffed because my friggin A1C was UP!! HONESTLY I was like what the hell doc??????????? I was most ticked because i'd been working hard at the eating and also added the pickleball 2x a week so I was moving more... that one just threw me for a freaken loop... that said it only went up 0.3 but still it went UP!! my poor doc got a rant from me lol.... and my iron is still way low even with the stupid iron supplements.. however, my cholesterol was still "aweseome" and she was very happy with my blood pressure and my weight... so although I fumed all the way home and yes ate a piece of strawberry rhubarb pie when I got home to drown my sorrows lol.... i'm calmer now... tomorrow when I wake up from nites tonite I will give a serious look at whether I wa really doing as well as I thought food wise... give an honest look even tho I really think I was doing very well .. but I will give an honest look and make a plan as I have to go back in 6 weeks for my pre op apt anyway and she's ordered another round of tests then just because of the pre op (for the cataract surgery in sept its mandatory to see the doc 28 days before) so we'll see how those tests go..... but getting angry may help get me back on focusing on the T2 aspect of my health so after a few hours of being miffed, i'll try to see it as a positive!
She also jabbed me with the 2nd shingles vaccine and its intra muscular so my lieft arm hurts like a *kitten*... last one a few months ago it took a week to be able to move the arm and for the ouch to go... so you can see my theme here today.... whine whine whine… anyone got some cheese to go with it?? hahahahah….. ok nuff ranting cause I gotta get ready to go in ..
but... first off Vail I think it's AWESOME you are seeing such positive results from this program you're in... huge congrats!!! and that you are enjoying the receipe aspect as well.... I swear I am gonna try those chicken breasts this weekend they sound sooooo good!! honestly well done my friend and I hope you keep sharing your experience and results because its quite motivating for me hearing how well you are doing.. keep it up and congrats!!
Gail - so glad u had such a good time and ya I totally would have done the home made chicken parm too!! and well done on the continued movement!! Sorry some of your tests came back a little less than favourable - you know I can commiserate!! but as you said info can be used to determine where ya wanna focus... and as for hubby.. well s we've all learned we cant make anyone else change unless they want to.... so fingers crossed hubby may decide to follow your example and start making some small changes!
Suzy have a fab time in Illinois on the hike and how lovely to get to see your brand new niece and hubby's mom.. sorry to hear about her fall btw!! fingers crossed you don't run into any more bears on this hike!!! but if you have time to grab a few pics to share would love to see em!!
ok... time to get my butt in gear... hasta la vista Hatters!2 -
p.s. Suzy - a few of my friends from work posted on FB that they were at a Lady Antebellum concert here the other night... and the first thing I thought of?? I wonder if Suzy's son is there lolol!!2 -
Yes, he was! Ohio tonight and New York tomorrow. I couldn’t do it...makes me tired just thinking about it!2
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Gail, I can imagine that working in chicken processing might be enough chicken for a lifetime - lol! I'm quite lucky in that my son will usually eat what I eat, and doesn't mind me experimenting. There are a couple of things - I like pasta al dente, and he likes it cooked a little longer, for instance, so there's some compromise.
I think it must have been reading about that chicken parmesan - I made chicken parmesan last night from a recipe in my diet book. I don't know if you would normally make it with breaded chicken for added calories - lol! But this one just had flattened seasoned chicken, and a homemade garlic and basil tomato sauce, and mozzarella and parmesan on top. It was rather nice. I have a feeling I'm going to have to be careful with this diet, as these are NOT low calorie recipes! They are probably great for people who are young and tall and have been previously eating fast food, but I think as a post-menopausal short woman, I'm going to have to be very careful about how much I'm eating over the day.
Congratulations on the BP, cholesterol and weight, Snooozie! And commiserations on the A1c and iron. Of course, I wonder with the blood sugar, because mine has gone up too (although still just in the normal range - just!) despite everything, if this is something that happens at our age, and perhaps you have been mitigating it? Maybe it would be a lot higher if you'd done nothing? If so, that's very frustrating - I'm sure you are right to have a good look at your diet, just in case. If you keep having a problem with iron, despite good diet (and eating Vitamin C alongside iron-rich foods) and supplements, then I would want it looked into further. It sounds like you are being well examined though with the surgery coming up! I hope you're having a better day today
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Hi all !! I'm good Vail - I had my mope yesterday lol... and my piece of strawberry rhubarb pie... so today i'm over it and determined to get that sucker down!!
I eat so much chicken sometimes i think im gonna start clucking...
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i tried to post a cute video but alas.. lol didnt work so i had to type something!
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Me, too, Snoozie, but I love chicken! ....and we raised chickens!! Long full houses of them.. Alas it was our income ,so we didn't eat it very much...just the scraggly ones that the catchers left behind every 6 wee4ks or so..
Vail, I haven't actually had it but two or three times, but yes , it was breaded all times. I can see how it could be just as good with the breadless type, if moist... that would be a viable option for me ...have to be careful and use something besides spaghetti noodles...Which I adore, if al dente.....My hubby wants them cooked very long .. I prefer vermicelli and he wants ROPE! lol That 's what I call the regular spaghetti noodles.
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Hello all! We eat a lot of chicken as well. I prefer it to beef and pork. I even used ground chicken instead of hamburger in some recipes. I make a version of chicken parmesan without breading and frying the chicken, just sauté thin chicken breasts first. I also just use a can of diced tomatoes, garlic and Italian seasoning. Then top with some fat free mozzarella and bake a bit. It does the trick when I’m wanting Italian food. I’ve tried spaghetti squash so many time’s but just can’t do it. I do like zucchini noodles though.
Snoozie, did I miss a post? You’re having surgery? I hope everything is okay
We’re on the road to Illinois right now. Just ate a huge lunch. Ugh. I have no self discipline. I’ve decided that my goal for this week is to not eat sweets (cookies, cake, candy, ice cream). I know I’ll probably have pizza and other things but if I can just skip the sweets then I’ll be ahead. Wish me luck!
I’ll try to check in. Have a great week Hatters!2 -
Snoozie, Well, that lets me know I don't need a shingles shot! lol sounds painful!
Best wishes on the cataract surgery. I know you were upset after doing so well with your choices and adding in more exercise...but you know you are doing the right things...just keep doing what you do and you can only get better and it will be down next time. For sure!!
Suzy, I am with you on the over eating , especially while traveling...that is what defines how good the trip was for me...I could care less about eating right when I am gone...hence the 3 lb gain from last week..
" We're going on vacation?..uh??? where are we eating? " lol Your version sounds as good as Vail's of the chicken parm.
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Your chicken parmesan recipe sounds great too, Suzy! I might as well post the one from my diet book, as we're talking about it - it sounds very similar to your one:
Chicken Parmigiana
Serves 2
Ingredients- 2 chicken breasts
- 300ml tomato passata (no added sugar)
- 1 handful basil leaves
- 1garlic clove, minced
- 75g Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 ball of mozzarella (150g), thinly sliced
- Preheat oven to 220C. Lightly butter a small oven-proof baking dish
- In a small frying pan over a low-medium heat very lighly simmer the passata, garlic and basil for 5-10 minutes
- Place the chicken breasts one-at-a-time between 2 pieces of cling-film and use a rolling pin or mallet to gently flatten the chicken to 1cm thick. Season with salt and pepper
- Put the chicken in the baking dish and cook in the oven for 10 minutes
- Remove and top evenly with the passata and mozzarella slices. Finally add the remaining parmesan. Bake for 20-25 minutes in the oven
- Serve on hot plates with vegetables or a salad
Of course it would be better if it was breaded! But this was nice, and I did like the parmesan as well as the mozzarella (what's not to like about more cheese?). I have tried variations on vegetable "pasta" and it's OK, but sometimes I'd rather just have a small portion of actual pasta. We are allowed wholemeal pasta on this diet.
Good luck with your eating, Suzy! I think that's a great plan to just avoid the sweets. It's difficult when you're away from home. I don't think I've ever managed to lose weight when I've been away, even if active. I hope you're having a lovely time on your trip!
I'm trying to stick to my plan. Still feeling quite motivated. Hardly anybody else is chatting in my group, which is a shame - I would really have liked a bit more interaction. Thank goodness for you people here! Our mentor checks in every day, and talks about our lesson for the day (today it's about slipping up). She will ask the group a question, but I'm often the only person who answers the question, so I feel I might be posting too much ... but also feel that I need that interaction to keep me on track. The "diet" alone doesn't work - it's the other stuff that keeps me doing it!
The actual weight loss is slow for me, but it always is, and it's going in the right direction, so I'm feeling positive about it!
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Vail - what is tomato passata? i've never heard of it.. I suppose I could google it... but the recipe sounds fab .. I may make that up tomorrow nite as im back to work Saturday and it would be great for dinner and more important, for leftovers the next day!! I don't do well with cooking on dayshift... lol
I played my last few rounds of pickleball for a while; the program is over sunday but I wont be able to go; they put together 2 tournaments for us as our reward lol.. played one tues and one this morning.. made it to the finals tues .. just us and another team and we lost lol.. but technically we got "silver" so i'll take it... today we lost every single game hahahaha... but my partner who was selected randomly was a right cow.. that's the only word I can use she was just a miserable human being ..I have never seen her before so I dunno if she just showed up to play and found out it was a tourney... but she was just a drag … so it kinda took some of the fun out of it but by the 2nd game (we played 5) I just kinda ignored her and joked around with our opponents - and every time they made a great shot we missed, I made sure to tell em "great shot!!" cause for most of us its all about fun play and sportsmanship cause we all kinda suck lol.... so once I tuned my partner out it was fun!! ha
So the cataract surgery isn't til the end of September.. BUT.. this time is different from the last because I have to take the contact out ONE MONTH before the measurements for the lens implant are taken.. and the measurements are done 3 weeks before the actual surgery... I wear one contact in my "bad" (surgery) eye.... but without the contact I can't see out of it.. only shapes so I wont be able to drive or work for like 2 months.. I am gonna lose my mind stuck at home doing nothing..... so i've been stress eating about telling them at work and about sitting here with nothing to do .. its not like I wont be able to function at home; I live in a condo so no stairs and I have sight in the eye its just all blurry and unfocused so my depth perception will be off tooo.... anyway it is what it is and i'm lucky enuf that I will be able to use my sick time I have banked... altho no doubt our medical bureau will be on my butt the whole freaken time .. but it is what it is.. i'm not messing around with my sight!!! So I'm gonna sign up for Uber for all my appointments and stuff … but my biggest challenge is going to be NOT eating out of boredom or depression lol.... i've already gained a few lbs from just getting my head around everything... but on the plus side since I wont be able to drive if I don't have the crap in the house, I wont eat it lol...
Suzy too funny your son was here lol. .and he's the first one I thought of when I heard about the concert!! I hope you're enjoying your trip and having a wonderful time! Gail - hope all is well in your world too!!
ok.. i have to keep moving cause after 3 hrs of pickleball i am starting to stiffen up sitting here lol.... have a great day everyone!
p.s. I googled tomato passata.. I think its the same thing as what we call tomato paste here !!1 -
ok.. I mentioned the passata stuff to a friend in an email who told me that we do indeed have that here and it isn't tomato paste lol.. she sent me a pic of hers and says she uses it all the time.. but it's sold with the tomato JUICE section, not in the tinned tomatos/tomato paste section... which would explain why i've never seen it since i'm never in the juice aisle LOLOL0 -
It's so funny how some foods are ubiquitous in some areas and unheard of in others! It's strange that you have it in the juice section as it's not juice consistency at all - but I suppose I can see the reasoning! It comes in cartons here (or you can make it, but I don't know anybody who does!). We also have tomato puree which is probably the same as tomato paste. It comes in a tube and is much more concentrated.
I'm laughing at your story of having an awful partner at the tournament! But so great ... it doesn't seem that long ago that you discovered pickleball, and now you've made it to the finals! It does sound fun ... I looked it up and it has come to the UK, but sadly not in my city. I would love to give it a go. It's a shame that you won't be able to play for a while.
That sounds very difficult having to do without the contact. Will you be able to walk or use public transport, or is that going to be too difficult? I love hearing about your lake walks and it will be such a shame if you have to give up for a while. It's good that you're planning for it and realising that it's going to be stressful and a danger time for eating - I'm wondering if there's some sort of hobby you could take up that doesn't involve vision too much (or driving). I'd be tempted to treat myself to some audiobooks, but they are expensive I know. Maybe download some interesting podcasts? Exercise apps? Anything for a distraction from eating! I treated myself to a download of some meditations for runners. I am not a runner, but have been trying to do Couch to 5K and prefer listening to that rather than music. Maybe something like that, even in the house? There are meditation on youtube that I listen to when I can't sleep too ... I bet there are some to avoid eating as well (I just had a look and there are ... I'm going to try this myself!). I hope it goes OK for you - I had no idea that the preparation would be so involved.
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Vail - apparently she meant it was in the tomato SAUCE section... not the juice section LOLOL.. which would make far more sense... the pic she sent me of hers comes in a jar so I may actually pick up some just to try as i've only ever used canned tomatos, tomato sauce and/or paste before..
as for the pickbleball… hang in there it may come your way as it gets more popular... this program over the summer the PB assoc ran at a local arena which is owned by the city.. they were trying to get the city to realize how many people play it because there are very few places that offer drop in play here.. most of the courts are given to the tennis/basketball players and the city hasn't felt there is much interest in pb... anyway apparently they figured maybe 10-12 people would show up to try it over the summer program... over 400 total came out over the 2 months to try it LOLOL... including a fair number of young uns (under 30 lol) so hopefully their goal to get the city to build more outdoor courts and the rec centres to open up more time slots for PB will work... but as you know.. getting the govt to do anything anywhere takes forever lol..
as for the tournament... it was a "mock" one they put together for us - not a real one LOL.. sort of our reward for coming out over the past 2 months to learn how to play.. they set it up like a real one so we would get a taste of what one is like.. not that any of us plan to ever play competitively lol.. but it was a hoot and they had a registration desk and little gift bags of stuff for us lol.. so technically my "silver" medal standing at the end of the first one was in name only HA... but i'm just happy i've found something i can do over the winter that will keep me moving and is close to home so i wont need a snowplow to get there!
I will be able to use public transit and i'm gonna sign up for Uber for some of the medical appointements as a bus would take forever...i'll just have to be careful walking with the depth perception and fuzzy being off.. i have a gym downstairs so i'll have to use the treadmill most days; probaby not a good idea for me to head to the lake in case i take a header lol... plus being off sick i will kinda have to stick close to home; can't be out gallivanting around as such .. and yes i actually did think about audio books!! there is a library just a block away from me and i use an online thing for it now to borrow books for my kobo... so i'll look into whether i can get audio books on my puter and thats a great idea about looking for something to keep me from eatnig.... boredom and stress are both triggers for me as it already evident while i have just been preppign to get everythign in... sigh....
im sorry your chat group isnt more active but i LOVE hearing about how the program is working for you.. i think the daily lesson as such is a great idea nd glad that your mentor or coach is on there at least every day.. so anytime you need to use us as your group support you know we're here for you!!
I had to save my post as my battery light came on so i'm gonna grab a quick photo of the recipe for the chicken parm and pick up the stuff on the way home from the lake.. sun is just coming up and a big storm last nite so air is lovely and cool... have a good one hatters!0 -
Hello Hatters! We're back from our trip and have no travel plans for about 11 weeks! Whoo Hoo! I can't believe that I'm happy about NOT going anywhere! I was not able to stick to my "no eating sweets" plan. I have no will power.
I managed to gain a little bit even with the first part of the week being filled with day hikes. Oh well....I have 11 weeks to get serious and back on track before we go on our hiking trip in October.
Snoozie, I'm blown away by the whole cataract procedure! My dad had his done earlier in the year and it wasn't much of a big deal. I'm so sorry that you're going to have to go through all that. Uber sounds like a great approach, as well as the audio books. You can also concentrate on stretching instead of aerobic type movement. It sounds like you had a trying but overall fun experience with the tournament. I'm so happy that you found something you enjoy doing.
Vail, keep on chatting in your group whether they participate or not! Maybe they'll follow your lead eventually and speak up. I'm glad you're enjoying the program and that you're seeing some positive progress. We have our health insurance through my husband's employer and they're offering a new online program as well. It's centered more around improving and eliminating knee and back pain but, seeing as how our weight directly affects knee pain, they also address nutrition. I just signed up for it tonight and was accepted into the program. I start August 13. They send you a tablet and wearable trackers so that you can access the application. They supposedly tailor an exercise program for you and you have a coach for support. It reminded me of the program you're doing. I'll try anything at this point! And it's free so all I've got to lose is some weight!1
