Need to Lose 100 LBS -Robins Thread !

@eeyore -- great job getting to the gym!!!! Yay You!!!
@robin -- stinks that the test didn't show your real/pain-free/properly-medicated aptitude. Can you ask to re-take it once your levels are adjusted? Good luck starting the new volunteer job (sounds great), and have fun shopping for smaller sizes!! :bigsmile: While I agree that you should continue to work to strengthen your arms, you should be able to zip-line now, since the harness really does all the work (as long as you don't bounce off the platform and have to pull yourself back, which typically doesn't happen -- just my good fortune that I managed such a feat, :noway: ). What happened to the breakfast-date gentleman? Has he disappeared? If not, perhaps a zipline or kayak date is in order...
@Helena - great realization! I spent way too many years being miserable, feeling sorry for myself and putting things off, either because I couldn't do them perfectly or because my world was too messed-up/challenging, before I committed to taking life as it comes and enjoying the journey. Now, things definitely aren't perfect (still work two physically and emotionally draining jobs, still trying to write papers to finish degrees, still perpetually poor, recently took in a roommate when I really prefer living alone, still 270+ pounds, still no life-partner, still have sleep issues, knee pain, still huff-and-puff up mountains, etc., etc...) but my attitude is better, I have a lot more fun, and I'm working toward future goals while still living in the present. I sincerely hope you get to a place where you can feel good, and enjoy life, whatever the challenges of the moment.
@Karen, Laurie, Kelley, and anyone else who might want to meet up with us for a Tri relay (participant or on-lookers) in 2014... I hope we do it!!! I'm always financially challenged, so I try to only travel to places where I can get free lodging... fortunately Baltimore is one of those places, or I'd be happy to do Lake Geneva... I could also look at Ohio (which would be more central) -- there's a tri at Cedar Point in September -- it's an awesome amusement park (and a flat course), or Oregon, or Colorado... Lots of options! We could wear lime green shoes and "Team Robin's Thread" tee-shirts :laugh: and make it a great big Robin's Thread Reunion! Imagine all the teams we could enter... plus I think MowMow should do the running portion in his stroller....
@Kelley -- my step count should be up consistently, now that swimming is over. :sad: So if you want to get back on top, better get moving!
@tracy - hobo hot springs is in glenwood springs, Colorado. It is heavenly!!! I will definitely ask about the slide next time I'm headed to Virginia!
@karenleona - you should join our relay teams! we will need more bikers!!!! :flowerforyou:

Looks like I will be within my calorie limit today, for the first time in... forever!!! (well, in several weeks, anyway). one. meal. at. a. time. I can do this again!!!

We should do a tri-relay team(s) and have a reunion. Depending on the time of year I am flexible to travel and I also have family that lives in CO near Denver and Littleton. I love the idea of the team shirts, mow-mow going along with us oh how fun that would be. Karen I did see the Lake Geneva triathlon and thought of you and it sounds like fun. I would love to see the lake, your descriptions are wonderful. I will remember to check back on the Key School triathlon for when they post 2014 dates. Beth- are you familiar with jellyfish? We have them in the water ways around here and they do have a nasty sting.

Karen-So happy that you are doing the walking 5k in a couple of weeks. Say hi to Brian for me. Maybe I will join you next year. Have fun swimming with the sharks.

Today, I ran 1 mile in 12 minutes in prep for Sunday. It was good but I am not sure if it put me in the right frame of mind for the race. It was difficult to go further than the mile mostly be because my head was getting stuffy. I really think it is the gym and the AC units, since I feel fine at school and other places. Luckily, that the goal my trainer had for me today. Then we worked on strength training.
Leg press 145lbs--it took a while to find a challenging weight for me to press . It had to be pressed 3 times and a challenging weight, needless to say I started at 40lbs and went up from there. I did not think I could press that much at one time. Then it was onto the adductor/abductor machine for a repeat this time it was around 100 lbs for the 3 times each way. Ended with doing running arms-with 10 lb weights. The arms were the easiest to do since you hold the dumbells in your hand and move them back and forth like you are running. You can also do sprints with those motion and control how far back you bring your elbow. Great for building arm muscles.

My weight is showing signs of decreasing but it may be short-lived since TOM has come to visit. The frustrating thing about this is that I will lose multiple pounds the week before and the first couple of days, then as it ends or shortly thereafter the weight returns and stays for a while. It is a very annoying cycle. Hopefully, it will stay away for good this time.

@laurie, beth, & kelley--I would like to stay in the loop about the relay triathlon; however, I'm not sure I'll be able to do one next year. A lot of it will depend on the cost b/c we are spending a fair amount on our Dominican vacation. Timing will also play a part b/c it's hard for me to take off during the school year. Again, I'm not saying "no" but whether I can do it will depend upon a lot of variables.

@laurie--great job on the mile today--it very well could be the air quality in the gym that was affecting your breathing. I hope you have great weather with low humidity on Saturday for your race. I was eying the leg press machine today at the gym--I had worked my way up to 210 lbs for my heaviest set, but then I injured my knee doing squats. Even after going through PT that machine always aggravated the injury (even with lighter weights) so I quit doing it. :ohwell: I'm going to be adding squats back into my routine soon, and if that goes well, maybe I'll try the leg press again. And yes, I will definitely tell Brian you said "hello" when I see him for the 5k in a couple of weeks.

@beth--I love your t-shirt idea and of course would love if mowmow could join us. Gunner would eat mow, so we won't be bringing him along too. :noway: Ohio is more central, but September is one of the worst times of the year for me to travel--I'm just getting into the groove at work and always have a ton of grading due to the students' summer reading assignments. However, maybe kelley could be your runner for that one. Good job staying within your calorie limit! :drinker:

@eeyeore--good girl getting to that gym! :flowerforyou: I also get insomnia--have trouble falling asleep, but once I'm down, a mack truck driving through my bedroom won't awaken me. :laugh: Oh, and as for the running, you can get there if you just keep working toward it. I started out walking gunner everyday, then I moved to the elliptical, and finally started running. Oh, and if you saw all of the bruises and scrapes on my legs, you wouldn't be so jealous of my Zombie run. :laugh:

@helena--great post today--you've got this! :drinker: I wish I could take melatonin, but I'm afraid to take anything that could trigger my sleep paralysis. :ohwell:

@karenleona--I think I'm also a bit on the nocturnal side. Over the summer, when I don't have to wake up on a regular schedule, my circadian rhythm shifts so that I'm most comfortable going to sleep around 2 or 3 am and waking up about 10 am. I try not to let myself go there b/c then it's really hard to get back to a more "normal" schedule when I have to go back to school.

@robin--I agree with beth--you should ask to retest once you get your meds adjusted.

@tracy--yes, I believe nurse sharks are pretty safe. I mean, it's not like they don't have teeth, so I guess there's always a chance they could bite, but they're relatively small and aren't typically aggressive. All of your cleaning made me tired!!

@kelley--glad the migraines are gone--those stink!! I thought about doing one of the zip-lining tours, but they have it in Lake Geneva so I figure the snorkel cruise makes more sense. Because we are already paying for an all-inclusive resort, I want to limit the amount we spend on other excursions.

Monday Check-in:
The theme for today seems to be re-commitment, and I'm in that same boat. I've been talking about committing to lifting heavy for several weeks now. I've made all sorts of excuses to avoid it. Yes, I added in the bench press and some isolation moves a few weeks back, but I just wasn't in full force. Today I added the deadlift to my routine, and also upped my weights for my upright rows and tricep extensions. Next week I will add squats and finally, the following week I will add the overhead press. My plan is to do those four compound moves (benchpress, deadlift, squat, and overhead press) with heavy weights 5x5 three to four days a week. I can then alternate other isolation moves (either with free weights or on machines, but also heavy) throughout the week. I will also continue to do core work--roman sit ups, incline sit ups, hanging crunches--3-4 times a week as well.

As for cardio, today was my first attempt at HIIT. I used the elliptical today and think I did a pretty good job of going all-out for 30 seconds alternated with 1 or 1.5 minutes of rest at a slower pace. I did 5 repetitions of this before cooling down. Plan to do this again on Wed. I now have meetings after work Wed. and Thurs.:grumble: but I will try to keep to my schedule.

Exercise goals:
Mon-walk gunner DONE + gym (lifting and HIIT) DONE
Tues--walk gunner + cardio (at gym or run outside)
Wed--walk gunner
Thurs--walk gunner + gym (lifting and HIIT)
Fri--walk gunner
Sat--walk gunner + gym (lift + run 5k)
Sun--walk gunner + cardio (at gym or run outside)

Grading Goals:
1. 13/73 AP essays

Hi All, Sorry for the absence, but I'm back. Was at my daughters for the past week helping her with her recovery from emergency appendectomy. Took care of her and the grandkids. Unfortunately, my son in law is unable to cope with the kids on his own. He has bipolar disorder and just can't do what needs to be done. He's been known to forget about baths and put the little ones to bed in their daytime clothes. He once forgot to feed the youngest who was 3 at the time. So, I stayed for the week and kept the kids on their routine and made sure my daughter was well taken care of.
She's recovering nicely and should be okay to manage the kids now. I was lucky enough to still have some vacation time to cover the time off last week but I couldn't afford to use any more of it so I'm back to work. I didn't log in the past couple of days. I just couldn't find the time. But, I weighed in this morning and maintained my weight for the week which made me happy. I didn't think I lost any and was sort of afraid I might have gained as I didn't get out walking until the end of the week and didn't keep up with my water intake. But, I must have done enough to at least not gain anything. Now that I'm home, I'll buckle down and get back on track.
Hope all is well with everyone. Charlotte

@Laurie, Beth & Karen~I’m in the same boat next year – two cruises (March and October). Finances will be tight as a result of the cruises, but I may be able to swing it – depends on the timing of the races. Regardless of when we do it, I can’t wait!

@Laurie~Great mile time & I hope your loss sticks around. Leg press is a regular in sessions with my trainer, I’m up to 240# and 400# on the vertical squat machine – never thought I would be able to push that much weight, I have huge leg muscles and I think my trainer takes advantage of them. :laugh:

@Eeyeore~I suffer from insomnia as well. Before I had an rx for my sleep issues, melatonin and Sleepytime Extra tea worked well for me. Recently, I discovered Bedtime tea by Yogi – I like it better than Sleepytime.

@Karen~I worry about meds triggering my sleep paralysis as well. Everyone is different but for me they actually help me cycle through the various sleep stages. I also had to change sleeping positions, my doctor suggested turning into a side sleeper, I seem to have less episodes as a result. You’ve got a great weight lifting routine worked out!

@Tracy~Great day yesterday! Congrats to Jacob for making jazz band!

@Robin~LOL Enjoy your first day, you’re going to do great!

@Charlotte~Glad your daughter is doing well. Great that through the stresses of last week you maintained, great achievement!

AFM~Good day yesterday, even with lunch out at Gordon Biersch. I had a salad (grilled chicken with romaine, grapes, green apples, cranberries, and pecans with an herb dressing), minus the cheese, it was delish and decent in stats. Too bad it was a work lunch, so we couldn’t partake in their huge assortment of in-house beers.

Exercise Goals:

Monday~Gym, Arc Trainer DONE!
Tuesday~Rest Day
Wednesday~Gym, Training Session
Thursday~Rest Day
Friday~Gym, Elliptical/Row
Saturday~Running Drills at Gym or outside (it it isn’t too hot)
Sunday~Gym, Training Session

Good Morning. It is raining here today. I guess that is the drawback of having walking for my exercise. I'm not sure how I am going to get a walk in. We are supposed to get a break during the day. I will have to watch for that and see if it fits the rest of the day. I have been looking at my long term goals, and realize that reaching my final goal by my birthday in May is probably not realistic. I have only lost 3# in Sept. At that rate it will take till mid-summer to reach my goal weight. I'm okay with that. I just need to remember to be realistic. I find that lately I am eating some of my exercise calories nearly every day. Maybe if I could cut that back, I could go faster, but I don't want to make this too hard.
The triathlon sounds fun. I will be following your progress, but don't have anything to contribute to the race. I'm afraid of water, I don't bike, and I don't run.
Have a great day. Onward and downward. Kaye

Finally, I took a few minutes during lunch to catch up on the posts. Our weekend in Chicago was a blast! We arrived pretty late Friday night and found a 24-hour café open since we hadn't eaten since early afternoon. I opted for French Onion Soup minus the toppings and a nice spinach salad since it was past midnight. Saturday was a ton of fun at Wrigley Field. Unfortunately, the Cubs beat the Braves, but we had a blast. I had to have a few ball park treats (pretzel, cotton candy, etc.. .). Luckily, with all the walking, it pretty much balanced out. Sunday was a double decker bus tour of Chicago and then Navy Pier. Being in Chicago I had to have Garrett's (yummy popcorn) and a Chicago Dog, but logged it and moved on. Again, with all the walking it balanced out for the most part.

I wanted to attach a picture with me and Cyrus, but how do I attach? I was trying to do a simple copy/paste and that's not working. Any of you tech savvy people want to share?

Well, all my reports came back from all the poking and prodding, I'm healthy as can be EXCEPT overweight. I'm extremely thankful for the news because at this size many people battle so many issues and their numbers are not good. Except for a little Vitamin D deficiency I'm really quite healthy. No excuse not to exercise and get my butt moving even more.

A few personals:

@ Robin - How was your first afternoon as a volunteer? I bet you did great! As far as the clothes, you're on the right track with the mix and matching. If you stick with some khaki, navy or black pants, you go throw anything on with those. Like you said throw a scarf and you're good to go. I bet you were AWESOME!!

@ Laurie - You're 5K training seems to be going well. How do you feel its going?

@ Tracy~ Congrats to Jacob for making the jazz band! Cyrus has opted for chorus to start middle school. He seems to like it and actually has a pretty good voice. I was a music major in college YEARS ago with minors in voice and piano. He stays in tune and at his age that doesn't happen often. LOL!!!

@ Laurie, Beth, Karen & Kelly ~ If we plan ahead of time, I would LOVE a Robin's Thread get together and if it was around an event would be even better. I may not be ready to compete in a tri, but enough of us have done 5K's that's for sure or I'm a really good cheerleader too (at least I was back in the day). If I can swing it like Kelly, I'm game too!

@ Eeyeore ~ It's amazing to me how many of us suffer from a lack of sleep. I don't believe I have full blown insomnia, but it was difficult for me to fall asleep without reading first. I still read, but I take melatonin and that seems to keep me rested. I just take it earlier in the night so I have a better chance of falling asleep earlier versus later. I've never tried tea like Kelly, but I may want to consider that as well. Hope you find something that helps you.

@ Charlotte~ I'm sure your daughter was so thankful for your help. I'm sure the stress of the surgery on top of her husband's battle it's hard to keep that balance at home. I'm glad she's doing OK and hopefully you'll find some time to relax this week yourself.

@ Kelly - Your salad at Gordon Biersch sound very good. I went there for the first time a few months ago and had a really good seared ahi tuna salad. Restaurants really are becoming more and more accommodating to making healthier choices. It's just getting past all the "other" stuff that is the challenge, but a very nice win indeed!

Walked outside in the rain this afternoon. The umbrella kept my head dry, but my pants were wet to the knees. Just did the short walk. The thunder and lightning never stopped so it was an interesting 30 min.
Kaye

Hi

I want to joint this thread. I need to lose 100 (well actually 90 pounds as of today) so this is a perfect group for me. I am new to MFP.

Tuesday - Goals: I want to see the scale hit 220 during the month of September. I want to eat clean while not obessing of calories and I want to continue with my 6/days a week workouts until it becomes habit. Easy breezy...NOT!!:laugh:

just a quick stop in - didn't eat too well today - going to have to make up for it tomorrow.
thanks for all the tips on insomina - going to get some of the tea and take melatonin with it!! :drinker:
first day back at work tomorrow - got to get some shut eye
Plus daugher wants to take her Driver's test @ DMV tomorrow as well
Insurance stated about a $90 increase in our Auto insurance a MONTH---is that normal???
I thought that was kinda high.

P.S. I find that I wanna eat more in the afternoon and evenings too - trying to figure out what will work for me.

Well, my sweet puppy dog is very sick. He is older (we don't know how old, since he's a rescue), and has several allergies and so trouble with his skin. Saturday, he started looking bad, but then Sunday night he was in just terrible shape (fever with chills, welts and some type of lesions on his skin, a lot of crying). We got him to the vet, who gave him antibiotics and ran a bunch of tests. Last night, he went from bad to worse. I thought for sure we were losing him... my heart just broke every time he cried out in pain. From the blood tests, they said he has high thyroid levels and he has some type of bad infection so they added more antibiotics and pain meds. He is resting better now... not whimpering as often, and my son was able to hand feed him one piece of food at a time.

I know this is a diet / health site- but I also know a lot of you have fur babies... I've never been through this with a pet. I've always loved little Buddy, but never realized just how important he is to me.

I am trying to eat - but I'm not really hungry. So it's snacks and comfort food for me. I am still under my calories- just not the greatest nutrition levels.

Thanks for listening- sorry to be such a downer.

**hugs**
Hope your fur baby is better soon...

@Nicole~Our furbabies are such a big part of our families, it’s hard when they’re sick. I hope the vet is able to bring him some relief and that he makes a full & speedy recovery. :flowerforyou:

@Laurie~I have met with my trainer the day after a race, I think mostly because we forget. If I had my choice though, I would allow myself to recover and wait until a couple of days after to see your trainer.

@Marca~Sorry for daughter’s diabetes diagnosis, 25 is rather young especially for adult onset – I’m sure the PCOS played a huge role in that. With diet and exercise (and you on her back), she should be able to manage it well.

@Susan~Sounds like you had a fabulous time in Chicago! I almost had that ahi tuna salad at Gordon Biersch, I couldn’t decide! :laugh:

Wednesday Wish~That today goes smoothly. This could be an eating disaster today if I let it, catered lunch (BBQ) and lots of goodies for our annual employee celebration. I will make the best choices that I can, but it just one day and I plan to enjoy myself – if I have one too many goodies, tonight’s workout should help to compensate for the extra calories.

Exercise Goals:

Monday~Gym, arc trainer DONE!
Tuesday~Rest day (although I clocked nearly 5 miles on my Fitbit) DONE!
Wednesday~Gym, training session (will be done)
Thursday~Rest Day
Friday~Gym, ellip/row
Saturday~Running drills at gym or outside

Everyone have a terrific day, it’s going to be a crazy day so I will try to check back tonight.

Thanks to Robin and NeuroticVirgo's GREAT explanation I think I've got the pictures downloaded correctly. Here's just a few shots of me and my little man, Cyrus.

Me & Cyrus this summer at Toccoa Falls, Toccoa, GA. This is actually on the campus where I went to college. Very, small non-denominational college, but I loved it there YEARS ago.




Me & Cyrus at Navy Pier in Chicago this weekend. Great time!!!!