Need to Lose 100 LBS -Robins Thread !

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  • ShrinkRapt451
    ShrinkRapt451 Posts: 447 Member
    Laurie, you don't need great balance for ziplining. Just a taste for adventure. It's amazing fun; have a great time!

    Susan, great news about the clean mammo! :happy:
  • nicholsvj
    nicholsvj Posts: 220 Member
    @shrinkrapt - thanks for the boiled egg tip. I was a microbiologist and then did public health epi prior to med school...therefore I tend to live by the "no more than 4 days in the fridge rule" when it comes to cooked food. I do love the Chobani Champions - can get a case of them at Costco pretty cheap! Other than the size and flavors, I haven't seen much difference between them and the regular chobani cups. My favorite is the Fage fat free plain yogurt.

    Next question out there - anyone use protein powder to bulk up smoothies? I've been toying with adding some to fill me up so I can last longer on the 12 hours days (and on no break surgery days). Which brands do you prefer?
  • ShrinkRapt451
    ShrinkRapt451 Posts: 447 Member
    nicholsvj, I actually add a scoop of the Target brand (chocolate) to a Chobani Champions Very Berry yogurt, with about a tablespoon of water, for a post-workout snack. Tastes like "ice cream soup," choco-berry flavor. Love it. You can totally tweak that for a to-go breakfast. :)

    Oh, and I am now totally going to Costco for my yogurt. I eat at least 1-2 daily.
  • regojess
    regojess Posts: 28 Member
    *aug.....Congrats, any loss is a good loss.
    *akelts...sounds like a pretty crazy time at work. Hope it gets better. Thanks for that quiche tip sounds like a good idea.
    *Cia_clayton...WOW! I can't wait for something like that to happen. Congrats and keep on smiling, you deserve it!
    *sprinkles...good for you! And congrats on conquering one of your food triggers.
    *Laurie K...I commend you on your bravery. I am highly afraid of heights(pun not intended, but it works:laugh: ) I could never do zipline.
    *susan..Yeah, on being cancer free!

    Saturday success- I have been on here for over a week and am still chugging along.

    Have a good one!
  • allyjoy83
    allyjoy83 Posts: 176 Member
    Share time!: I always have problems with the share part of this thread. Technically it is still my Saturday night, and I've been drinking a little bit. :drinker: I'm about to turn 29 and I'm rather excited about the pending anniversary of my birth. I feel like 2012 is all about transition and rebirth, and I think that entering into the last year of my 20s is a most auspicious time. To be honest, I think 30 is going to own, but that's next year, so this is the beginning of the end. My mom always told me the 30s were her best decade, and I expect nothing but the same. I've been very fortunate this year, and I'm looking forward to transitioning into the person I've always wanted to be, both emotionally and physically. I've spent the last two years avoiding who I know I'm meant to be, and, now, I'm reaching the point of making peace with being the best version of myself that I can offer.
  • CelticHippo
    CelticHippo Posts: 117 Member
    Just a quick message before I head to a family dinner...I just wanted to say Thanks to Robin for letting me know about the new thread.
  • tungsten93
    tungsten93 Posts: 76 Member
    @nicholsvj - Good luch with the long shifts. I never work out when I have to work 12 hour shifs but I don't have to wok them 6 days in a row. For protein powder I recently discovered Optimum Nutrition 100% Natural Vanilla powder and it tastes great! I like it because it doen't have an artificial ingredients and has 24 grams of protein and only 130 calories per scoop.

    @tararuex - Chocolate covered bacon? Where can I get some??? (where is the emoticon for drooling?)

    @toots - Sorry to hear about the drama where your mom lives. Hopefully you can get her out of there so she can say safe.

    @Christine - Conrats on walking Belle twice a day for an entire week! That's truly an accomplishment and I'm sure she loved it. I'm really inspired by how hard you push yourself.

    @Cia - New pants in a smaller size (2 sizes smaller, even)! Way to go!

    @Robin - Thanks for bringing all of us together again! :flowerforyou: And as for going to a group or keeping i like it is, I'll be here either way. I'm glad he group was open so that I could join but I also see a need to keep it under control. It's your group so do what's best for you!

    @jana - Mmmmm. Beer. I woke up around midnight last night and seriously considered having one but I had to get up at 4:30 am for work :drinker:

    @laurie - How was zip lining? I'm terrified of heights so I doubt I'd ever get up the nerve to try it but it looks so fun!

    @Susan - So glad you got your mammogram and that everything's okay. See below.

    Saturday Success - I put a pair of pants on for work and realized they were kind of baggy, especially around the waist so I grabbed a smaller size and wore them instead. It wasn't until I got to work that I realized that they were kind of baggy, too, and there was a slight gap between my waist and the pants.

    Sunday Share - Yesterday after work I attended a Memorial Service for my friend's mom. She passed away at age 57 after a 10+ year battle with breast cancer. While the service was supposed to be a celebration of her life I just found it incredibly sad. My heart breaks for my friend, her brother, her grandmother and the rest of her family. My friend and her husband are now moving back to New York where her father, brother and grandmother live. I know it's best for her to be with her family (she, her mother and her husband were the only 3 in North Carolina) but I'm going to miss her terribly. She was always there for me and I wish I could be there for her now. So to echo what Susan said, if you are over 40 or have a family history, please get a mammogram. I'm going to schedule one soon.
  • linder4866
    linder4866 Posts: 11,411 Member
    @nicholsvj - I have a smoothie every day and add Biochem Vanilla Whey to it. I only use one scoop but I also add 2 Tbsp of PB2. My smoothie is what I have for my evening meal and it keeps me full until morning. (I purchase it on Amazon.) So many things make me ill but this particular product does not. I love it.

    I need to zip outta here soon. I've read all the posts and I celebrate your successes. Today I'm tooting my own horn. Down 3 lbs today. Not a big deal for many people, for me it is monumental. I'm old and lots of other things and the extra baggage comes off slowly. So :glasses: :glasses: yes, I'm off to the store to buy more healthy things.

    Lin
    :drinker: :drinker:
  • RobinsEgg
    RobinsEgg Posts: 3,702 Member
    Laurie - I hope zip lining gives you the thrill of a lifetime! I can just picture you laughing and screaming as you zip along - you have WAY more courage than me........ I sort of picture myself bottoming out if I did that anyway, I don't think I could support my weight yet. You;ve come so far! :love:

    Susan - glad your second call-back at the mammo center proved everything was OK. Yes, everyone save the Ta-Ta's!

    tbrp - 9-1.2 miles is incredible - what state are you in? Must have been an enormous fairground! I love to go see all the small animals in competition, the 4-H displays, the floral competitions, just about everything at the Nebraska and Iowa state fairs.

    walkingqueen - so happy you have a relationship - especially neat that it grew out of a friendship :flowerforyou:

    vidvox - Happy Anniversary!!! Everyone has a little slip up from time to time. Who can prevent free dessert from showing up at their table? That's pretty tempting - kind of like fate!

    Nichols - I agree with you - 4 days in the fridge and then its tossed out - I've eaten food thats older and boy does it result in some unpleasant gastrointestinal surprises!

    regojess - congrats on completing a week! WOOT for you, girl!

    allyjoy - Yes, you should look forward to your 29th birthday. How soon is it? I like your attitude towards your 30's too. Its wonderful that you are determined to tranform yourself physically right now so that you will be in better shape to enjoy that decade of your life. BTW - great job sharing your inner thoughts! :flowerforyou:

    linder - so happy for you - celebrating your 3 lbs loss with you - that is super! Go celebrate, girl!

    A big thank you for everyone who followed me to this thread - I do apologize for the inconvenience. I appreciate everyone's kind words, it just warms my heart and makes my efforts so worthwhile. I care so much for everyone in this thread and want the best outcome for each of you! :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:
  • karenleona
    karenleona Posts: 3,959 Member
    Saturday success - The scale finally moved in the right direction! I got on the scale last Saturday and was shocked by another big gain. I changed my diary, started being more careful about portions, and stopped eating exercise calories and BLAMMO!!! the needle moved on Thursday. Wuhu! I rock!


    :drinker: :drinker: :drinker: well done Aug!!
  • curtnrod
    curtnrod Posts: 223 Member
    Bump
  • karenleona
    karenleona Posts: 3,959 Member
    sunday share- it seems i have been on this journey all my life but truly have only been successful since finding MFP sept 2010. ya, ya, ya, i should have been at my goal a long time ago but i tend to take 2 steps forward and one step back so it has taken me longer but i am still heading in the right direction....and more importantly i am metabolicly healthier and i love to work out......that in itself is amazing!!!
    i had surgery on my back 1 month ago where they put in some rods to fuse two vertebrae together and for the first time in 2 1/2 years i actually have no back or leg pain and can now walk for an hour!!! the only thing that limits me now is my worn out knees but they are next on the chopping block!!! I am now allowed to exercise 'a bit' more but still not much for 2 more months and NO outside bike riding :sad:
    as long as i keep coming back on MFp i know i will stay on track and work towards my goal
  • tootsanderson
    tootsanderson Posts: 1,636 Member
    sunday share- it seems i have been on this journey all my life but truly have only been successful since finding MFP sept 2010. ya, ya, ya, i should have been at my goal a long time ago but i tend to take 2 steps forward and one step back so it has taken me longer but i am still heading in the right direction.

    this is what i was thinking about myself the other day. then i thought, well, at least at the end i'm still ONE step forward. but yeah, i feel ya.
  • jtconst
    jtconst Posts: 641 Member
    Happy Sunday everyone. I didnt make it on to post yesterday as nothing went quite as I had planned. I ended up making a flying two hour car trip for my husband who called from alaska and asked me to go pick something up for him and then when I got home the neighbors dog had decided to dig around in my front flowerbed so I had to try to salvage it. Then my 18 year old son decided to be nice and help out and brought dinner home for me. From Mcdonalds. So after being tired hot sweaty and cranky by this point I caved and ate it. The one thing good I can say is that didnt finish it all because honestly it just didnt taste as good as it usually did. The fries left my mouth feeling gresy and coated and the burger just felt heavy on my stomach so this one cave should help with any future cravings I might get. I just wanted to say great job to everyone on here there were so many positive posts about a variety of things when I was reading through them. You all are truly an inspiration and I think will help to make all the difference in this weight loss journey.

    Sunday sharing: I sometimes feel sad that it took me so long to get serious about my weight loss. I am turning 40 in a few months which is not all that old but my kids are now all grown and I wonder at how much more I could have done with them if I had been more diligent sooner.
  • Annie219
    Annie219 Posts: 110
    Sunday share: I felt very low yesterday. After a walk, I didn't feel any better. When I thought about how much further I still have to go to get to a healthy weight, I felt discouraged and overwhelmed. But it was just one day. I'm trying to remind myself that it can't all come off in one day or one week or one month.
  • Found you - Thank You Robin!! What the heck is a phalarope anyway?
  • janak2004
    janak2004 Posts: 128 Member
    Sunday share: I felt very low yesterday. After a walk, I didn't feel any better. When I thought about how much further I still have to go to get to a healthy weight, I felt discouraged and overwhelmed. But it was just one day. I'm trying to remind myself that it can't all come off in one day or one week or one month.

    Annie, I can empathize. I'm only 26 and when I started I was in a size 26. I vowed NEVER to get any bigger than that. It has taken 65 days, but I'm into a size 22 comfortably. I have started working out daily and I'm feeling healthier. However, I still have days when I wonder if it's even all worth it. Especially after working out hard all week and not seeing a change on the scale. It's frustrating.

    It's not going to come off over night. Just keep pushing yourself and you will be able to acheive everything you want in life. And when you feel discouraged, remember that there are several of us just like you going through the same thing. We need to be here to lift each other up. I'm here for you.

    Here is something my friend's mom told me one time, "Losing weight is like eating an elephant, you have to take it one bite at a time." So on those days that you feel bad, just focus on how far you've come, not how far you have left to go. :)
  • janak2004
    janak2004 Posts: 128 Member
    Sunday Share:

    I just signed up for my second 5K and my first 10K. (I'm running my first 5K in September) I'm super stoked about it, but nervous too. My friend and I have an agreement that if we complete our 10K's in a good enough time, we are signing up for a half marathon in Disney that is taking place in late February (On my 27th birthday to be exact!) What better way to celebrate a birthday? :)
  • Annie219
    Annie219 Posts: 110
    Sunday share: I felt very low yesterday. After a walk, I didn't feel any better. When I thought about how much further I still have to go to get to a healthy weight, I felt discouraged and overwhelmed. But it was just one day. I'm trying to remind myself that it can't all come off in one day or one week or one month.

    Annie, I can empathize. I'm only 26 and when I started I was in a size 26. I vowed NEVER to get any bigger than that. It has taken 65 days, but I'm into a size 22 comfortably. I have started working out daily and I'm feeling healthier. However, I still have days when I wonder if it's even all worth it. Especially after working out hard all week and not seeing a change on the scale. It's frustrating.

    It's not going to come off over night. Just keep pushing yourself and you will be able to acheive everything you want in life. And when you feel discouraged, remember that there are several of us just like you going through the same thing. We need to be here to lift each other up. I'm here for you.

    Here is something my friend's mom told me one time, "Losing weight is like eating an elephant, you have to take it one bite at a time." So on those days that you feel bad, just focus on how far you've come, not how far you have left to go. :)

    Thanks for the encouragement. Good luck with your races. I have a 5k coming up this Saturday and I've been slacking a bit in my training. My goal is to run the entire thing without stopping.
  • laurej11
    laurej11 Posts: 10 Member
    Bump
  • BohemianCoast
    BohemianCoast Posts: 349 Member
    Sunday Share -- I had a really lazy day yesterday, having come home from holiday and with a bit of a cold. I reasoned that one day without cardio wouldn't hurt. But today I'm feeling much better, but I still haven't done any exercise. I think it probably counts as 'idle' now. I might try to see if I can get off my backside a bit later. I have a tiny excuse that it's really hot in our house today. But really that's just an excuse.
  • DoomCakes
    DoomCakes Posts: 806 Member
    Sunday Sharing: Some days I feel really lazy, and then I think about doing something, but end up not doing it because I spent more energy and time planning it. So most the time, I won't plan anything. lol. Just seems much easier!
  • monarchris
    monarchris Posts: 262 Member
    Hi all, hope you have a great Sunday afternoon and evening.

    Congrats to Hyzaarc, bigaug, regojess, Lin and karenleona for your great losses this week. Karen you are awesome for sticking with despite your health issues.
    Cia_Clayton - totally awesome NSV
    janak - great NSV and goals for the running.
    Mom2Cubs - eating salad while others ate pizza was definately a NSV!!!
    ShrinkRapt - hope your on-call is a quiet one! I'm an LSCSW and worked emergency room on-call for several years for a mental health center. Weekends were always the worst!
    Laurie - great NSV, sorry I misspelled your name in a previous post thanking you for your email.
    Susan - great that your test was neg.
    tbrp - WOW :flowerforyou:
    vidvocx - hang in there!
    allyjoy - what a great attitude about your birthday!
    tungsten - congrats on the baggie pants. It is sad about your friends mom.
    jtconst - good learning experience
    Annie -everyone has one of those days once in a while. This site helps me out of my ants (automatic negative thoughts)!

    You all keep me motivated and excited to be on this journey.

    I went shopping at Aldies today and got 3 heavy bags of fruits and veggies. In the old days it would have been 3 bags of junk food which I would have devoured within hours of bringing it home. Today when I got home I had a few green grapes and a plum and they were delicious! The great thing was every thing was inexpensive and I spent less than $40.00. Fresh green beans, egg plant, portabella mushrooms (sp), zucchini, yellow squash, carrots, nectarines, plums, grapes and 1 dark chocolate almond bar that promptly went in the freezer for emergencies! I'm going to have a great week and I am praying every one here does as well!

    Christine
  • mnwalkingqueen
    mnwalkingqueen Posts: 1,299 Member
    Happy Sunday Everyone :flowerforyou:

    Sunday Share- My name is Holly been overweight or obese for the last 16 yrs. I am 39yrs old and live in MN. I have tried many times to lose weight mostly for all the wrong reasons. This time it is for me and only me but recently I seemed to lose motivation when it comes to the food I put in my mouth. I am a single mom of 16yr old boy oh ya and recently my partner and I decided to live together so now I have 4 males in my house and 3 kids to look after, I also work for a major company in the HQ offices and go to school part time.
  • Cia_Clayton
    Cia_Clayton Posts: 8 Member
    @Skinnyjeanzbo
    @naceto
    @monarchriss
    @regojess (You'll get there! One day at a time is all we can do!)

    Thanks for the support and encouragement!

    @karenleana gratz on the progress

    And to those of use feeling discouraged today, remember the changes that we are trying to make wont happen overnight. Losing weight isnt a sprint, its a marathon....slow and steady will get us there. And if we falter, or stray its all about correcting the mistake and doing better the next day and the day after that. Change takes time, but we are building good healthy habits. So try not to be tooo hard on yourselves :)

    Sharing Sunday
    At my largest I was too heavy to be weighed on a regular scale anymore...they would have too take me around back and use the wheelchair scale. Lowest day in my life was when I went to the doctor and they couldn't weigh me on that anymore. (That put me at OVER 450 iirc) Super Morbidly obese...I was so disgusted with myself....and completely ashamed.

    I couldn't walk for log periods or distance, I couldn't stand for long periods, I had to use those motorized carts when I shopped for groceries. On top of that I had to lug around an o2 tank....I felt like a complete freak of nature. And avoided leaving the house at all. I ended up ordering my groceries online just to avoid the ordeal.

    The turning point for me was losing my baby aunt to a heart attack. (Baby aunt because she was just 6 years older than me when she passed away.) And she was a tiny little thing, in perfect health I thought. I remember thinking that should be me, not her. I don't take care of myself at all, I don't even try anymore.

    So I started watching what I ate and trying to walk. At first just a tiny sad little circuit around my home, (at that time even a trip to the bathroom was a struggle) but I was moving. Then from my front door to the stop sign and back (less than half a block). Then from one end of the block to the other. Every week I did a little more. And while Im far from being in shape now. Things have changed a great deal for me. No more o2.. Stamina enough to walk, to stand...heck I can even use my stair climber now.

    :) The last time I went to see my Doctor, she greeted me with "Hello Skinny". Made my year!
  • CathEsh
    CathEsh Posts: 135 Member
    Did we lose Skinnyjeans? I haven't seen her post.

    @karenleona ~ I share your disappointment in no bike riding. That is my favorite form of exercise! I am rooting for your recovery so you can get back on the bike!

    @andreabeatty ~ a phalarope is a bird. It breeds in the prairies of North America in western Canada and the western United States. It is migratory, wintering around the central Andes in South America. [Wikipedia]

    @janak2004 ~ love the elephant analogy!

    @BohemianCoast ~ It's hard to exercise with a cold. Exercise when you feel better.

    @monarchris ~ Excellent job making good choices shopping for food! Funny how after being on this weight loss journey for awhile, the cravings for junk food ease quite a bit.

    Sunday share: After being up 2 pounds for the last couple weeks, I got on the scale yesterday and had finally lost those blasted 2 pounds! I was shocked to be 2 pounds down when I stepped on the scale today! :noway: Hooray! \o/ Last week was a busy, busy first week back after having the summer off. I am going into my classroom today to get organized for the week. Hope it doesn't take too long! I usually plan so I don't have to go in on the weekend, but like I said, it has been a busy, busy week!
  • skinnyjeanzbound
    skinnyjeanzbound Posts: 3,932 Member
    Hi everyone! I've been gone most of the weekend, so just skimmed through the 2+ pages of this "new" thread. Thanks Robin and naceto for messaging me about it. :flowerforyou:

    I see a lot of you have gotten the scale moving again, so congratulations! :drinker:

    Saturday Success:
    Mine happened very early Sat. as I was driving home from my Friday night out with friends. I was really hungry and saw a McD's on the horizon. I thought "maybe I'll stop and get something" then I remembered a bowl of quinoa w/ cheese sauce and asparagus sitting in the fridge at home. I decided to skip McD's and jumped on the highway to avoid further fast-food temptations. That quinoa was so good when I got home.

    Sunday Share:
    Yesterday, I drove up to Milwaukee to meet some friends for Irish Fest. Had such a blast, but ate and drank (mostly drank :blushing: ) way too many calories! However, I did so much walking and dancing that I'm gonna call it a wash--not even gonna try to log it. We stayed overnight and I just got home a little while ago. Now I'd better get moving and take my dog for a run. Talk to you later.
  • lizmil79
    lizmil79 Posts: 566 Member
    Hi Everyone,
    Happy Sunday to all. Today they are expecting thunderstorms here in Idaho So Praying for rain to come so needed and no lightening strikes anywhere.

    @ciao Thank you for sharing all of that. It helps me to hear other peoples stories.
    @Lin Congrats on the loss. It should be celebrated.
    @allyjoy Its good to be excited about turning any age. Yeah enjoy it/
    @monarchris-- You are doing really good getting in your walks and now to the mailbox. Plus look at how you are shopping shows such growth. My hat's off to you!

    I share yesterday but not a saturday success thing but will combine that and Sunday share, Yesterday I went to the Y it was yay moment for me. I had been wanting to go thought my daughter was going with me, Than yesterday afternoon she change her mind. It upset me for many reasons and one is I don't like going by myself to the pool. Could not talk her into it, I really want to go but kept thinking I don't feel comfortable going by myself not going maybe I will just go for another walk. I sat here and thought I can't expect anyone to go with me. Just like no one can make me eat the right things its my choice daily its my choice to go to the gym or not, I did go to the Y had a good time. I feel uncomfortable going myself but once there so happy.

    The other thing is I use to dread the idea of turning 50 or going past. I am now 52 for saw it as just decline. I was so obese and could not get around. Now I am embracing my age and my health the next decades will be about growth not ( in weight :) .

    Any way Hello to all love reading everyone's posts. thank you for sharing.

    Take care,
    Liz
  • shygur
    shygur Posts: 171 Member
    Thanks to Naceto and Robin for letting me know about the thread change. I totally missed all the drama but I hate it that people feel they must cause drama if they don't get their way.

    Congrats to all who are losing and have awesome NSV's. I encourage all of you who struggle and I pray for you to stay strong and don't beat yourselves up when you slip and give up. I find that has been my problem, giving up when I slip up and am not "perfect" and who can be perfect? No one so I continually beat myself up so am now on this journey well into my 50's.

    Share:My name is Rebecca and I started at around 457 lbs to the best of my knowledge. I spent years in therapy for a compulsive eating disorder. I had panic attacks when I would try to lose weight and when I was offered surgeries, many decades ago. The therapist and nutritionist felt I was ready to lose my fat protection but I was still afraid. I was afraid to kick on the out of control binge monster, even tho I hadn't binged in years. I was afraid I would kick on my inner rebel that told me "you can't tell me what to do". I downloaded this free app, kicking and screaming, "I'm not gonna do this!". But I set it to lose only one pound a week and told myself I didn't have to do it, only put in foods I was already eating. My early diaries are full of high fat and sweet foods. I found I didn't like going over the set amount if calories do I didn't. After a couple of weeks I weighed, at work I didn't own any scales, and had lost 7 lbs I think.

    After a month or 6 weeks I changed the setting to lose 2 lbs a week. After I lost 30 lbs or do I stalled on weight loss. But I told myself I was eating under calories and this is a lifestyle change not short term to get off of so I kept at it. After I had been doing just calories and changing what I was eating for about 4 months I decided I needed exercise and wasn't doing anything on my own, very lazy and sedentary.

    I joined a gym with a pool. They also offered a initial 3 sessions with a trainer for 99.00 do I went for it as I didn't want to get hurt. I was so limited couldn't even get up on the elliptical and not much better on the treadmill. So I began to walk in the pool for exercise. That didn't hurt me and I bought someone trainer sessions to work on developing strength and lose more. I still work with the trainer and now I swim too.

    It is a life journey for me with no end and slip ups cannot be used to beat myself up because real life happens. Just limit treats even on special occasions, when my daughter and had our birthday we went to a museum before going out to eat. We ate better, not at a buffet, and we shared one dessert with her husband. She has lost 86.5 lbs. we are a work in progress.

    Have a great Sunday everyone!!
  • RobinsEgg
    RobinsEgg Posts: 3,702 Member
    Shrink - you're doing great meeting your goals - good for you, considering your stressful hours. Next week does sound hard with company and making home-cooked meals, and a young one's birthday. But I know you can and will do your best - just don't "taste" while you're cooking and you'll do alright! :laugh:

    KarenLeona - glad the scale is moving downward for you again. Thanks for reminding everyone we have to re-assess ourselves from time to time and adjust our activity levels and not eat back all our exercise calories - that's strictly for maintenance level. I'm so glad to hear the surgery was successful and you no longer have back or leg pain - hooray!

    jtconst - 40 is still young! Look at it this way - you'll be in great shape to play with your grandkids, and won't that be a blessing. I also think its great that the McD's food didn't taste as yummy as it once did to you. I've noticed my taste buds have really changed a lot too. Junk food really tastes awful now (except milkshakes - you can't ruin them!) :wink:

    Annie - thanks for sharing your feelings. It takes a big person to admit they have down days. I hope today is better for you. Hugs.

    Andrea - as someone explained, phalarope is a bird. I chose it because I'm a bird lover, and its one word I was SURE hadn't been used ANY WHERE in other threads. I learned it from a book by Alan Paton called TO LATE THE PHALAROPE, which was written in the 60's about apartheid in South Africa. It was written in the midst of apartheid, and boy did it stir my political indignation back then!

    Janak - I admire you so much for your running goals. The half marathon at Disney on your birthday sounds like a tremendous incentive - good for you!

    Christine - your grocery list is to drool over! I am so impressed with how far you've come in such a short span of time. You are going to speed past me so fast, I just know it!

    Cia - what an interesting life story you have - or specifically a weight loss story. You are a tremendous inspiration to me. How you started off not being able to exercise at all and being on oxygen to what you are doing now - its just fantastic! :drinker:

    CathEsh - another teacher in our midst. Sounds like getting a classroom ready is lots of physical work. I can only imagine. Congrats on your weight loss this week. WOOT! What grade (level) do you teach? I hope you have a great year!

    Skinny - Chicago must be Festival Land - I declare you're always going to something! Oh to be young again and to be able to dance for hours! I used to do that - and doggone it, someday I will be able to do it again! But I'm afraid by then I'll be dancing to such "golden oldies" I'll be so out of date I won't know what dances to do! :tongue:

    lizmil - congrats for going swimming by yourself. That took a lot of self-confidence. Good for you. Hope you keep it up, because you love swimming!

    Shygur - your weight loss story is very compelling. Such a good plan you have been following. You've been very disciplined. I understand so well the need to wear a "fat suit" for protection so I can relate to your therapy. I spent a lot of time talking with my therapist about that same issue.

    Sunday Share - as you may have gathered I am a child of the 60's - Flower Power and all the stuff that came with it. Oh and free love, peaceful protests, sex, drugs and rock 'n roll.I even had a suede jacket with fringe on it! But I also juggled the real world responsibilities at the same time. Actually the 60's hit Omaha in the early 70's, :laugh: ! I held down a steady job, buried my mother, helped with the raising of my younger brother, became an LPN. What started putting the weight on was working night shift for 2 years. Night shift really screwed me up. I don't think I ever slept more than 5 hours straight for 2 years. I was an all or nothing type person. I gave my all to a commitment, or I didn't commit. I ate abysmally, and developed bad food habits (fast food!) that kept with me for almost a lifetime. Two years ago, I had a wake-up call, but it wasn't an alarm. It was a nagging little voice that I had been hearing for years. I was watching TV and heard about MFP and I thought - oh boy, an easy way to chart my calories, I could totally do that. I had tried doing it on my own and failed to keep it up. I'm a big fan of computing technology so I thought I'd give it a try. On my first day here, I started this thread, and here we are!