Need to Lose 100 LBS -Robins Thread !

Saturday- Success Update.

I'm new here so hopefully I'm doing this the right way.

I've been race walking for 16 days straight doing 6kms a day. Yesterday I was able to jog part of it without being winded.

wow...that is amazing!

Thanks all for the great advice on getting back into the groove... and ways to work in the exercise and proper food choices.

Kelley- GREAT advice! Thank you. You know, I'm pretty sure Jim Beam has SOME nutritional value... a few shots here and there (for medicinal purposes) is not terrible. Now if you start carrying a flask to work or making it your go to source of calories, then we should worry. I actually took your note with suggestions and saved it as a document on my computer. It made me think more about planning my days, weeks, etc.

Karen- Thanks. You motivate me, just by being here. A lot of folks do. Every time I read your statistics for the day or week, I am inspired. You will start dropping pounds again, when you are ready. I am confident in this. You should post pictures of Gunner's new "do". My Buddy dog is always happier fresh out of the groomer's talented hands.
Side note: Is it odd that I always double check my grammar and punctuation, when posting to you? (edited to add- My mom says I'm "comma abusive" haha).

Nettie- Proper mindset is everything, isn't it? It is so true- I need to remember that I have been here before and gotten out of the slump. Thank you. You are going to love your Fitbit! On the days when I forget to wear it, I am always cursing myself for the steps that won't get counted. It really does motivate me a bit more. :happy:

Susan- LOVE your "No Excuses Quote of the Day! "Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it." - Maya Angelou" Maya Angelou is brilliant!

Today- I am making quinoa chicken chili in the crockpot. (modified a recipe from http://sweettreatsmore.com/2012/10/slow-cooker-quinoa-chicken-chili/) I am going to freeze it into individual servings to have throughout the week for lunch. I am considering what other crockpot tasty goodness I should make, since I don't want to get sick of the chili. Does anyone have any EASY, healthy crockpot recipes they want to share? Also, any ideas for containers to freeze these nummy meals in would be welcome. I am new to this whole "planning" thing.

Saturday success: I'm here. I'm logging. I'm looking for ways to be a better version of me.

@alupinsk--congrats on passing that half-century mark!! You are dropping the weight at a wonderful rate!

@nicole--I think it's funny you proofread for me, but no worries. I don't really care about perfection if it's not a formal document. It drives me crazy if I see a typo in a published work or the essays my students turn in as "final" drafts. However, I realize not all writing is about grammar and punctuation. When my students write journals, I don't grade for mechanics, and when my friends post on the internet, I don't care either. As far as containers, I don't really freeze much because I'm going to be eating the food within a few days of preparation. I have a set of mugs with rubber lids that I like for storing, transporting, and re-heating soups and chili. I'm not sure if they can go in the freezer. This is the set I have: http://www.worldkitchen.com/corningware-on-the-go/1035985.html#start=1

@susan--sometimes it gets to be a lot and I have to take a break. For instance, tomorrow I plan to grade for a few hours in the morning and then take a break to go work out before finishing the grading in the afternoon. I've done that in the past, and the exercise "break" really does help me get refocused. Congrats on getting that scale moving again!! :drinker: Yes, gunner was quite the stinker this morning. Fortunately, he was good at the salon. Oh, and 6k is about 3.75 miles.

@rita--welcome! :flowerforyou:

@michelle--thanks for sharing your story--as susan said, it's a great reminder to us all about how much our pasts affect our relationship with food. Ditto everything susan said about moving past it--sounds like you've got this!

@tracy--sounds like a busy weekend! Enjoy the party tonight!

@kaye--strictly speaking, I wouldn't call my lack of weight loss a plateau. In my mind, if you are doing everything right (meaning staying consistently in a calorie deficit) and still don't lose weight, that is a plateau. I think my situation is more a struggle to find the right allowance that equals a calorie deficit but still accounts for all of the exercise I do. I'm toying with the idea of lowering my calories back to 1550 to see what happens--I'm thinking it might help me avoid some of the empty calories that are sure to enter the office over the holiday season.

@tammy--I agree that there's a lot of illness going around. I've already had students out with mono and pneumonia, not to mention all of the lesser viruses. I'm finally over whatever I had last weekend, but Friday my student teacher was all sniffly and sneezy.

Saturday Success:
Well, I had a fairly productive day even if it wasn't all about the grading. After dropping gunner, I cleaned--did all of the floors, some dusting, laundry, and dishes. The only thing I skipped today was the bathroom (like tammy, I hate that job). Gunner wasn't done until after 2 and I was scheduled to meet garetie at 5, so I went to a starbucks near the shopping center where we were meeting and graded for about an hour and a half. Didn't get through as much as I'd have liked, but better than nothing. Tonight I will try to get through 5 or 6 more.

Tomorrow as I mentioned to susan, I will grade, work out, and then grade some more. It will be nice to get these essays off of my plate.

1. 42/73 AP essays
2. x/55 Junior in-class essays (student teacher will do these)

Exercise goals:
Mon-walk gunner DONE
Tues--walk gunner DONE + gym (lift and HIIT) DONE
Wed--walk gunner DONE + gym (lift and HIIT) NOT DONE
Thurs--walk gunner DONE
Fri--walk gunner NOT DONE but... gym (lift and cardio) DONE
Sat--walk gunner NOT DONE
Sun--walk gunner + gym (5k)

Exercise & Weight:
Bench press = 65
Dead lift = 65
Squat = 70
Overhead press = 50

Upright row = 40 (kettle bell)
Overhead tricep extension = 25 (dumbbell)
Bicep curl = 15 (dumbbell)
Lat pull down = 100
Tricep pull down = 90

Kaye- 160 doughnuts that is impressive. That is wonderful about all the compliments from all the different people. It is funny that your sister didn’t recognize you from the back. That show a wonderful change has taken place.

Nicole- Have you tried preparing the healthy food on the weekends so that way it is ready to go on the weekdays either for lunch or dinner. Getting out of a funk- find something new that you want to do and just do it.

Gertie- Hi, glad to see you are still around on this thread.

Nettie- Yeah on 30 minutes and I hope the weather cooperates with you. I hope the weather holds here as well, since I want to go for bike ride tomorrow. Regarding the bike- funny story and I can remember getting off to a shaky start the first time I rode as well. Keep trying but pump the tires up, it will make a huge difference. I love my bike and can’t wait to go for another ride. I hope you get the staff trained, it is amazing how quickly the kids pick up the “change of expectations/rule” based on who is in the class.

Tlh- 65 pounds on the overhead press is a lot of weight. What weight did you start out lifting for the overhead press?

Marsha- Hope the cold is gone soon.

Michelle- Welcome to the group. Your comments about lack of food as a kid and eating all you can when it is available is a normal response for people who have been in your position. The hard part is re-training your brain to realize that just because it is there you don’t need to eat it. Try to pack healthy snacks, so you will still have the food but it will be better choices. Happy that you were able to stop at 4 pieces of pizza, that shows you can stop yourself.:bigsmile:

Susan- 300 second on planks- wow!! I can handle about 90 seconds. Maybe I should try that for a goal this month. We have an on-line grades website. I am not sure how often it sends updates to parents. Our problem is that not all of our parents have email or internet access, they don’t bother to go to the library to use those computers.

Destiny- Great job on the weight loss. Setting up a plan is really up to you. Key is to mix your exercises so you are not overworking anyone muscle group two days in a row. If you do upper body on weight on Monday then you can do it again on Wednesday, lower body on Tuesday and Thursday etc. You can add cardio in as well. Just try different routines to see what works for you and don’t forget to add a few rest days. How old are your kids? You can also go bike riding with them if they are old enough.

I had a great climb last night and it was challenging but fun. My arms and legs had a great workout. Today, was a pool day with water aerobics and swimming. It felt good to swim and work on strength at the same time. Tomorrow, I hope to go for a bike ride if the weather permits. It was raining tonight so that could impact the trail conditions, praying they will dry overnight and it will be warm enough to ride.

Has anyone heard from Shrinkwrap?

Saturday successes

Sunday-Rest day DONE
Monday- Trainer workout high cardio DONE
Tuesday- Rest or gym REST DONE
Wednesday- Gym or swim NOT DONE-worked late
Thursday-rest NOT DONE GYM INSTEAD :bigsmile:
Friday- Climbing DONE
Saturday- Water aerobics and swim DONE

I am starting to turn my focus to a 5K run that I am thinking of running. So the next couple of weeks, I will be adding in long runs with a couple of shorter runs.

Sunday- Bike or gym maybe both depending on time. Will run if I go to the gym 1 mile
Monday- Trainer-weights and running drills
Tuesday-Rest
Wednesday- Log run 2 miles
Thursday- Gym
Friday- Climbing
Saturday- water aerobics and swim

AFM--I got distracted by candy crush (working on level 240) :blushing: and now I'm going to bed. So I guess it's 31 papers tomorrow. :noway:

Level 266 for me... I don't know whether I'm bragging... or a bit ashamed LOL :laugh:

@ Nicole - For years, I've made a WW Chicken Brunswick Stew. It makes a pretty big batch and I normally freeze half of it. I don't know if you've ever had it, but when I lived in the south it was a stable with BBQ. I like the WW's recipe because it try's to keep the sodium down. If you're interested, let me know and I'll shoot you the recipe. There's a bit of prep work, but it does make a pretty big batch. I use my weekends to prep for the upcoming week. It makes my crazy week days so much easier to manage and I make better food choices too. Great job logging and planning ahead!!

@ Karen & Nicole - In the 200's on Crush, I'm only 51 and the game drives me nuts! I just get stuck and when I see people at those higher levels I think I'm about to poke my eye out before I even come close. Step away!!! LOL!!!

@ Robin - Hope you're finally feeling better.

Well the pink fitbit flex arrived on Friday and yesterday was the first day. Managed to get the syncing with MFP working - not really difficult if I stop worrying about it. Anyways yesterday I reached 8503 steps and I was shocked. Did not think that it was a very active day and was prepared for disappointment. So now to try to be more active and reach 10,000 steps. Always room for improvement.

Going to the IGGY reunion today. Have made 5 jammies (one more to go before I leave) so will take 6 with me. Also made 2 jammies for a Chinese crested boy in rescue privately with a friend of mine. Weight loss is very slow but at least it is still going in the right direction. Read on this sight of a person who lost 50 lbs in 100 days or 1/2 lb per day. Unbelievable. Have to stop comparing myself to others and fight my own fight. Will stop at the German deli on the way to the reunion to pock up stuff for a co-worker. Also will treat myself to sausage goulash for lunch Love it. Need to find a recipe for the crock pot and make it at home. This one has lots of veggies and they are always crisp and not soggy. Hate soggy veggies.

Went to the farmers market yesterday and bought a couple of spaghetti squash. Cheaper than the grocery store and much healthier looking also. So that will make 4 meals for this week and I am set as I am not working on Friday or Monday so long weekend to look forward to. Hurrah. Much easier to keep on track if I plan what I am going to eat in advance.

Wishing all a successful week.

Linda

@Michelle Thank you

Has anyone here tried CrossFit? I feel like I'm not improving enough fitness wise (Muscles are getting bigger, but not necessarily feeling like I am stronger) Debating on this, but it looks like it's pretty steep as far as rates go!

Good Morning.

Sunday Share: Here is some random stuff about me. I am 40 and married to a wonderful man, Brian, for 5 years. We do not have any children at the moment but hope to change that. We do have a few fur and non-fur babies. We have 2 cats (Harvest Moon & Misti), a bird (Tyr) and a turtle (T-burger). I obviously love animals. I am a vegetarian and have been one since my mid 20's. I love to garden and cook. I also love nature and being outdoors. I am quite artistic and have been drawing since I was old enough to hold a crayon. I recently finished my masters in Infant/Toddler development and special education. I am a special education teacher and work 2 part-time jobs teaching children with autism. Christmas is my favorite holiday and I love to decorate for it

Skinny - What kind of dog is Gunner? Sorry to hear he/she was not very cooperative for you. My cats often run and hide when they see their carriers come out because they associate it with going to the vet. It becomes quite an ordeal. LOL For the record, I hate cleaning the bathrooms too. I am going to tackle cleaning the house today. I have to mop the floors and dust.

jtconst - That is great that you are breaking up your work out into smaller increments until you build up stamina. I am so proud of you!

Kay - I don't pay too much attention to what it tells me I will weigh in 5 weeks just because I know every day is different. I always wondered though how realistic that number is that they estimate for us. Personally, I am not putting any pressure on myself to be a certain weight by a certain time. I am more concerned with becoming healthier and eventually reaching my goal no matter how long it takes.

Michelle - I am sorry to hear that food was scarce when you were growing up. I am glad to hear that you stopped before reaching for that next slice of pizza and realized what you were doing. It is so easy to over eat when you are in social situations and the food is just so yummy. I am happy that you had a Saturday success and are moving forward. That is terrific!

RitaCarriere - Welcome. Congrats on 16 days of race walking. That's wonderful!

Susan - I am so happy for you that you are seeing the scale moving again. What a terrific feeling. 25 lbs is a excellent loss. Keep up the wonderful work.


naceto - I think the power of a healthy attitude makes a huge difference with so many things in life. I wore my fitbit all day yesterday and put on the sleep tracker last night. I synced my fitbit to my digifit app on my phone when my husband and I went for our walk. Digifit used the gps in my phone and did a satellite map view of our route. Both devices came in with the same estimated calories burned. I earned my first badge yesterday on fitbit. hehehe For some reason last night I was extra energetic. My husband turned on a movie last night. Normally I would sit and watch with him. 5 minutes in I became bored, got up and cleaned the kitchen then folded laundry and put it all away. I suppose I can count that as a NSV, I usually do not have that much energy in the evenings.

Alupinsk - Congrats on the 51 lb loss. That is a great accomplishment!!!

Laurie - The weather was gorgeous yesterday. My husband and I went for a 45 minute walk at the park. The park has a rec center and they offer fitness classes. (Zumba, yoga, and Koga) I was looking at their schedule to see if the classes would fit into my schedule. I think maybe in a few weeks I may sign up for some classes, depending on how my fitness goals are going. Today is a bit chilly out and cloudy but no rain. I want to get another walk in today but think I will stuff my pockets with tissues. LOL My husband and I were talking about the bike fiasco yesterday on our walk. He brought it up and asked what I thought the damage would have been if I fell like that in the street! <rolls eyes> I don't even want to think about that. I am going to hold off on bike riding for a bit. I would like to get my tush a little smaller first as the seat, even with a gel cushion, isn't comfortable for my size. I definitely will pump up those tires before I attempt to ride again though, I am sure that added to my problem. I hope I get my staff trained too. My students deserve good staff. Thankfully my boss is wonderful and is working with me on this issue.

Kookyk9s - My fitbit arrived Friday as well. I really used it for the first time yesterday too. What exactly does the sync with MFP do? I synced mine. It says it is synced but I really don't see it doing anything.

@Tammy~I think there is a lot of illness in general going around, I know here that temps and weather have been fluctuating like crazy and allergens are at an all-time high. I hope your household is well soon. Good job with the bike!

@Kaye~How did you do with the Papa Murphy pizza? I get their thin crust veggie on occasion, not bad calorie wise. I don't read into much on the "suggested" weight in 5 weeks when I save my tracker, its nice to think about seeing that weight in 5 weeks but it never happens.

@Nicole~I am the queen of the slow cooker! I am so busy most of the time that I just don't want to think about spending 2 hours in the kitchen cooking/cleaning during the week, so I use it a lot - esp in the winter. I find a lot of recipes from www.allrecipes.com and www.sparkrecipes.com, I also have several healthy cookbooks with great recipes. Today I'm making salsa chicken from the spark site - one of the best! Hot yoga is actually a lot easier on the joints, they offer those hot yoga classes at my gym but the room is 98.6 degrees with 60% humidity. You will sweat, but its manageable unless you are overly sensitive to heat/humidity.

@alupinsk~Awesome making that half-century mark! Congrats! From what I understand those Crossfit classes are really intense, think Insanity or P90X on steroids!

Sunday Share~Since we have several newlings. I'm Kelley, I'll be 45 on Wednesday, an accountant in the healthcare industry and live in suburb of Dallas with my sweet Maine Coon Zoe. I've been on this weight loss journey for a while, lost 75# on WW and then joined MFP. Shortly after joining MFP I found this thread and haven't looked back, they are a great support system. I started working out with a trainer over a year ago, he has been great for keeping me interested and motivated - I love to exercise, but love to challenge myself more which he does constantly. I also love to travel, cruising mostly - next cruise is in 4 months and 12 days (not that I'm counting :laugh: ) to the Panama Canal.

Lots on the agenda today, pretty typical for a Sunday. Have a great day!

Hi All,
I'm new to this site. It looks like just what I need right now. Weight has been a struggle for a while, but the past few years it has been difficult just to maintain. I have been feeling pretty crappy for quite some time. I've been blaming it on menopause. I hate going to the DR but finally went. He found that I have Hypothyroid. Wow that certainly explains a lot of my issues. So I started the drugs for that this past week. I swear I feel like I am coming out of a very dark place. I'm actually beginning to feel a little better already. So, I'm ready to move forward and try to be healthier. I was so discouraged before because it didn't seem like anything I did made a difference and I have just been soooo exhausted. My motivation just went away. My poor dogs who I used to really enjoy walking have been trying their darnest to get me out for a walk with no success. So today I'm going to get out there and start walking again. I can't wait to really start feeling like my old self again. I'm going to drop these pounds. I've decided that I'm going to put $5 away for every pound I lose on a weekly basis and buy myself a nice new piece of clothing every time I have earned enough. It has been a while since I have wanted to do that! So this week my goal is to walk my dogs at least once a day on our long route through the hood which is about 2 miles. Also to track what I eat. Plus split the pile of wood that has been chainsawed in the backyard.
How do I get one of those kool weight gauges to show up? Or does it show up automatically?

We got a chicken delite at Papa Murphy's. I ate 2 small pieces and ignored the higher calorie choices so that was a success. I made my sandwich at lunch on a sandwich thin. I'm really learning to enjoy them. I did indulge too much in chips and cookies, but today is a new day. Although, it isn't going to be great either as it is a DIL's birthday. I am making the dinner rolls and we are driving over there for dinner.
Its so good to see old friends returning, and so many new friends joining us. By way of sharing, at 69 I am the old lady of the group. I live as far west in ID as you can get near the Snake River with my husband of 48 years. We have 7 children with spouses, and 14 grandchildren with #15 due in January. You'll find lots of references in my posts about family because my life pretty much revolves around them. I joined MFP in Sept, 2012, found this group a few weeks later, and have just kept trucking along. I really appreciate the support I get here. My method is simple. I track what I eat every day and walk about 2.5 or 3 miles a day. I've stuck pretty close to 1200 calories. I haven't eliminated anything from my diet, just learning to control portions. I'm not willing to cook a separate meal for myself, so I eat what the family eats, just less of it. I can't afford a gym membership or any of the fancy tools that others use, but I think that I have proven that they aren't necessary for success. I agree with so many that the mental attitude is key to success.
Have a great Sunday. Onward and downward. Kaye

Hi everyone. I am having a pretty good day. I am on little sleep but still seem to be getting a nice amount done. I got the house picked up and then when I took the dogs out back the puppy kept trying to attack the rake so I grabbed it and started flinging leaves at him and ended up raking up the whole back yard while playing with the dogs. I am now having alunch of one of the marketside chopped salads they are pretty good and easy low cal lunch all ina bag. Well I gtg since my son is taking me to the movies have a great day guys.:drinker: :flowerforyou:

@nicole & other CCS players--I've discovered the key to success when you get stuck is to stay away for a few days or even weeks. When you come back, the game knows you've been gone and to lure you back in it will give you an easy win. I even had one time that the parameters to win the level actually changed to something easier--the "orders" I had to collect were much easier combinations of candies.

Oh, this is good to know and I think I've noticed that too. I don't play as much as I used to but have been trying to work through the same level for a while now - level 140 I think. I just don't see how you can collect all those orders in so few moves! :laugh: