Need to Lose 100 LBS -Robins Thread !

“The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” ~Alan Kay

Tom

LOVE this!!!

Monday Check-In: Good food choices today. I didn't make it to the gym this morning, but I already had a session planned with the trainer tonight so no big deal. I'll plan tomorrow though. I need to get back in my regular morning routines. I'm more apt to keep to my schedule if I do it that way. I’m exhausted by the end of the day so evenings are tough for me.

@ Kelly – Sorry to hear about your trainer. With so many of us with aging parents, I know we understand. It’s still hard though because I know the impact he has had on your life and this will be a change for you too. Perhaps he knows someone or an in-home trainer that he could recommend. He knows your style and what you like/don’t like, but it will be different. My trainer has decided to stay for now. I guess she had someone sign up for 70 sessions right off the bat. She said in her 20+ years that has never happened. I guess this woman wants to lose 140 lbs and was visiting with trainers before making the commitment. I guess she liked her and signed up on the spot. Needless to say, she’ll be around for a little while longer.

@ Tom – I’ve never heard of that bakery, but if I’m in need of a birthday cake or a sweet treat I’ll keep it in mind. We use Great Buns Bakery for the Capriotti’s bread. I’ve been to their bakery on numerous occasions and actually have to go on Thursday. They always send me back with a box of pastries for the office. I smile, say thank you and pass the box along. Sooo hard!!

@ Nicole—Thankfully, I’ve never had an issue with dairy. I think that would be very, very hard for me to let go of. I love it all!! Now that I’m trying to eat a little more Paleo dairy is supposed to be out completely. I still have an occasional cheese and some Greek Yogurt, but that’s it for the most part. Thanks for the chili recipe. I’ve had quinoa only a few times, but wanted to start using it a bit more. I’m definitely going to give it a try. When do you start back to school?

@ Karen – How many snow days do they have worked into your year? Hopefully, it doesn’t have to tag onto the end of the year. Thanks also for the post on muscles, weights, toning, etc. . . I found it very interesting and really didn’t know the differences so I found it helpful. Thanks!!

@ Laurie – As Kelly’s trainer is experiencing and so many of us will very soon, our parents aging and their health. My mom just sent us a text that my Dad basically quit his job. He turns 69 a month from today. He’s been talking about retiring for a while now. They must have done something to really tick him off because that is not my dad whatsoever. I truly thought he was going to work himself to death. He doesn’t stop. I’m hoping my sister has already talked to him to see what’s going on. I think Robin’s advice was right on. Your mom will get so exhausted if she tries to handle this herself. It’s a tough balance. I know we all want to do what we can do for our parents, but caregiving is very exhausting. Hang in there!

@ Nettie – It’s hard to imagine, but I was one of those people for years. I’m around then drop out so quickly. I’ve never stuck with anything before and now that I’ve found MFP and this wonderful group (THANK YOU ROBIN!!!!) I seem to have found my home. I can’t imagine not checking in with everyone and sharing my ups and downs. I think we all just want to get back in our regular routine. Holidays are past us and we’ll focus on the months ahead. You’re on track just a little blip on that stupid machine aka scale.

@ James – Welcome!! Losing 97 lbs is a huge win! Yes, you’ve back tracked a bit, but you are human right? Not a machine. You lost it before and you’re going to do it again. Just take some lessons from it and learn from those lessons. Get back to the basics. Log every day. Get in so many days of exercise. Check back on this thread. We have lots of women, but there’s Morgori (Tom) and Guerilla will be around too. Both GREAT guys and normally around on here too. This is an awesome group fr continual support. You’ve got this!

@ Painisweak – I always look for examples just like that. For the calories in cupcakes, candy bars, ice cream, etc. . . look at the amount of food I could be eating if I made a different choice. I love the idea of having all that protein on hand and ready to grab as a snack. Now don’t get me wrong I still want a “little” sweet treat on occasion. For me I’ll have one Dove Dark Chocolate Promise Square and it’s just enough. 40 calories. I eat it as slow as possible and savor the flavor. If I have those little treats, I don’t feel like I’m depriving myself. You’re doing great!

@ Tammy – Good job getting in your walk. Do you normally eat your exercise calories or just when needed? I’m always curious to hear if people do or do not. I don’t, but I know the extra calories are there if I need them. When does your hubby go out again? I’m a huge seafood lover and until Deadliest Catch came on I had no idea the danger it took to catch those little creatures. I have a much better appreciation that’s for sure so please thank him for me. LOL!!!

amazing....stay on track with food....drink LOTS of water...and i lose 5 pounds :laugh: Need to keep it up tho. Probably not have my heart valve replacement for 4-5 months so that gives me a bit of time to seriously get some weight off. I always work better with a firm deadline

Did someone mention cheesecake? One of my favorites, as well as one of the few items I can bake from scratch. Haven't done so in years and won't be doing so anytime soon. :laugh:

@anna--yes, I heard most of the roads are closed in Indiana as well. We are still in for dangerously cold temps tomorrow, so schools are closed again. However, we will be back Wed. for sure. Stay warm and safe!

@tracy--I love the link you shared--it's one of the stories I read this summer when I was looking into lifting as well. I had no idea that was your sister! Sadly, she removed all of the "after" images. :ohwell:

@susan--we have 5 emergency days on our calendar, and yes, we do have to make them up in June. I have no idea what would happen if we needed to miss more than the 5. Hopefully, it will never be an issue. After looking into the heavy lifting myself, I know how much time it can take to weed through all of the into. I figured I would sum up what I gleaned from the threads. It's certainly just a very boiled down summary, but glad I could help.

AFM--went to the gym and started running--wow, was it hard! I was so looking forward to a nice easy 3 miles. Two minutes in I was dying! I ended up alternating walking and running b/c it was so tough. After about 20 minutes, I switched to the arc trainer which was much more doable.

Upon reflection, I realized that I haven't run in awhile. This past week, I used shoveling as my only real form of exercise, and the week before my knee was hurting so I did the bike and elliptical instead. When I got home I looked in my exercise diary and I haven't run since December 21st! :noway: Couple that with a serious bout of insomnia over the past few nights and I now realize why my run wasn't "great." :ohwell: At least I did it, and it will be easier next time (provided I don't wait another 2 weeks).

Grading goals:
1. 1/72 AP essays
2. 19/26 Scarlet Letter essays
3. x/52 Scarlet Letter annotations

Exercise goals:
Mon--gym (cardio) DONE
Tues--gym (lift and HIIT)
Wed--walk gunner
Thurs--walk gunner + gym (lift and HIIT)
Fri--walk gunner
Sat--walk gunner + gym (cardio)
Sun--walk gunner + gym (lift and HIIT)

Exercise & Weight:
Bench press = 85
Dead lift = 90
Squat = 90
Overhead press = 55
Upright row = 60

Overhead tricep extension = 25 (dumbbell)
Bicep curl = 15 (dumbbell)
Lat pull down = 100
Tricep pull down = 90

Good evening!

Well, I'm becoming convinced that I'm just not meant to ever make it to the kickboxing class I've been talking about :explode:
I left work in what I thought would be time enough to get there, got home to change and it was chaos. My daughter was being difficult, and so was my husband. We got out of the door, but not in enough time to make it. When I got to the gym I checked on the class and they were already in the thick of it and everyone had their stations set up. I didn't want to disrupt the class, so I sent a longing glance toward the classroom as I hopped on the elliptical. Got 3 miles in and worked up a good sweat. Tomorrow we have our circuit class, which thankfully is scheduled later in the evening, so we don't struggle so much to get out the door. I have tentative plans to try the spin class right before, but we shall see. It's probably best not to get my hopes too high :grumble:


Monday - Lost another 2 lbs since my last weigh in, yay! I also bought a pair of pants a while back that were a bit tight and was able to wear them comfortably today, I it!

My daughter's school was cancelled again tomorrow due to the cold temps, hopefully this crazy weather will let up soon. Can it be spring yet?? :flowerforyou:

Can we stop talking about cheesecake now? I'm dying!

Keep up the good work everyone! I love reading your posts, I'm hoping to get more time for personals here soon

Lauren

Hello & happy Monday everyone!
trying to be better about checking in to the list (will get better with personals soon). Today wasn't too bad -- the new QRM director is a hoot - should be an interesting ride coming up. Lots of things going on, so I will keep up when I can....

@laurie--I know the buses are a big factor in determining if we have school. I hope you get your extra day off. I love doing hanging crunches! My new gym doesn't have arm straps, so I do them on the Power Tower, but pretty much the same thing. I agree that there are benefits to both types of weight lifting--I still do some endurance work, but have seen the most visible changes to my arms from lifting heavy. I'm sure the endurance lifting allows me to make more progress with the heavier weights though, so I guess it all works together.

@vickie--is the new QRM director a replacement for the horrible boss who was making your job miserable? I don't remember the details, but I know you were really unhappy with your job a while back due to personnel. I hope this is good news for you--you deserve a break from the constant stress! :flowerforyou:

@kaye--glad your weather isn't so bad and you were able to get your walk in. :drinker:

@lauren--sorry you missed the class--that's stinky. :grumble: At least you still got to work out though. Congrats on the SV and NSV!! :drinker:

@charlotte--there are so many great shows in Vegas--I'm sure you and your sister will find something worth seeing!

AFM--I decided to clean the fish tank tonight. Got all set up and found I'm out of filters. I still cleaned the gravel and did a water change, but the actual filter system will have to wait for another day.

Someone earlier had asked about whether folks eat back exercise calories. I typically eat back all or most of mine--in my mind calories are fuel, and I don't want to shortchange my body. I've found that if I don't eat them back, I end up being really hungry the next day. Sometimes I zig-zag--especially if I burn a really large amount one day and just am not hungry enough to eat them all back the same day.

That being said, I know others who are successful not eating back any or all, so people have to find what works for them. I think it also depends on how meticulous you are about intake and output in general. I have friends who don't want to weigh/measure food which typically results in eating more calories than intended, so to compensate they only eat back half of their exercise calories.

Monday check in- Well, Saturday I tried doing calf raises. Holy moly. My calves have never hurt quite so bad. This is day 2 and I feel like I look like an infant learning to walk. Yesterday was a cheating day...had chicken with broccoli and this DELICIOUSLY dangerous chocolate cherry cheesecake dessert. So tasty. The weather is TERRIBLE here. We are supposed to dip into the negative digits today. When did Alaska start being warmer than here? lol

So...I'm wanting to tone my legs more. So do I do more reps with average weights, or less reps with max weight? I've been told to do both, so I'm a bit confused now.

do more reps with less weight.

So today was the first day in a long time that I went over my food allowance but I'm ok with that. Unfortunately I had to drive to work in this ridiculous cold weather then come to find out that I was to work from home today but no one called me.:noway: : The company decided to buy us pizza for lunch for the folks that actually made an attempt to come to work instead of calling off. I believe that's why put me over my calorie count for today. It was worth :blushing: At least for the next two days I get to work from home. The cold winds are so bad that when i was outside for like ten minutes and my face feels like its windburned.

We have record breaking cold here this morning thanks to the "Polar Vortex". What a crazy weather term that is! Fortunately our temps will return to normal by tomorrow and the highs will be in the 50s by the weekend.

@Lauren - Hope you get to spin class tonight. Your commitment to working out is one I need to channel.

@Kaye - Sounds like you're back on track and ready to take on 2014.

@Kelley - Sorry to hear you trainer may be moving, but don't forget that your success is due to YOU and I hope you can find someone else you enjoy working with to help you on your journey.

@Laurie - My mom was the same way with my dad and insisted at doing it all herself. After 6 months we had to intervene and have a very tough conversation about her health and the impact being his sole caregiver was taking. She reluctantly agreed to getting some help and to my relief, it made a world of difference. Hope your mom comes to realize there's no reason not to ask for help when you need it.

@Alison - Your 2014 goal is completely achievable and you have a great attitude. I agree that your Zumba instructor is quite unfair. If I want to skulk in the rear of the room, I should be allowed to do so. You'd think fitness instructors would be a bit more aware of the body issues many are dealing with. When I feel comfortable in the front of the class, I darn well can get myself there.