Good morning everyone and welcome to Week 4 - woo hoo!!!

I am on fire this morning!! Got up at 4:35am when my alarm went off, with a bounce in my step, got dressed and was off to the gym - feeling positive. Did legs and shoulders today and pushed 160kg on the incline leg press, yay for me!! Finished off with 10 mins HIIT on the bike and walked out feeling a little bit on the wobbly side

Last night I cooked up a big batch of chicken meatballs, so I'll be taking those to work for morning and afternoon snacks and for lunch with salad. I don't mind eating the same thing all the time and they are super yummy and easy to transport, plus make sure my protein level is over 120g for the day. I aim for 40% protein and like it around the 120-150g mark per day.

I've sent a message to everyone that joined the group (hope I didn't miss anyone). It took a while as I can't send more than 5 messages in 10 minutes, but I got there. Hopefully we will have renewed energy this week - well, ok - hopefully I will have renewed energy!!!

I really can feel in my clothes (and see in the mirror) that I've put on a bit of flab since before Christmas. Ok, sure I still look alright, but that's not the point. It's all relative and I was hoping to be a lean mean weight lifting machine by Easter. I may not get to where I wanted to be, but if I can get back to my pre-Christmas physique, I'll be happy about that. I'm also lifting a bit heavier, so mabe my little "bulk" has done me some good there.

DonnaM thanks for your message and the hand out to lift me back on the wagon. Those numbers look good for you. I'm going to have a stricter cut this week to get me feeling a little less "ugh" and then back to my 1500-1600 per day average.

Helen, that is great news that people are noticing, and yes, there is no hiding from the masseur!! Social occasions are my un-doing some weeks, and then other weeks I am fine. Good to see you are out and about and enjoying life - it's all about balance!

Jen, I hear you about dinner! I like a big meal at night, and dessert. So I usually keep my daytime meals smaller and I can still do it, but some days things get out of whack. I find I sleep a lot better if I have dinner and dessert (even a protein shake for dessert will do), I need something sweetish to make me feel like I'm not missing out.

I'll try to check in later, but it might not be until after work, depending how today goes. I'll have a lot to do after last week's workload. It's a bit inconvenient to be interrupting my MFP time, but I guess it does pay the bills...

Have a great day everyone!! Remember that this is a marathon, not a sprint

Ah the joys of having some free time at work... Just for a minute, so I'm checking in

Sweetys - I hope you had a lovely birthday!! I'm sure you'll be able to do 1 and 2 of your list and if you don't get around to number 3 then it doesn't matter because you have already been to the gym 4 times. I used to hate getting into my swimming cosie as well, but most people are too self conscious about themselves to worry about anyone else, and once you are actually in the water, it doesn't matter anyway. See how you go.

Hi Pixie - and welcome!! Good to see you That body comp changes pretty quickly without resistance training. I know I feel it from having a month of "relaxing" a bit too much. Just goes to show how the scale isn't the thing that we should be so focussed on - measurements and size mean so much more!! Hopefully being part of this group will help keep you on track for the next 9 weeks. A day off here and there is ok, just get back into your plan sooner rather than later!

Maurice - you are on fire!!!! Going great!

Hi Tansy - sorry to hear that you haven't been well and your wagon hit a bump. Hop onto mine with me and we will get through this together :flowerforyou: Long hours are hard to cope with as well. I do get up early, but that is the only way I can get my exercise done, so I just make a commitment to myself to do it. I always feel better after, but i have to go to bed most nights at 8:30pm. Those girls at work sound typical - trouble is when we get older it doesn't usually work out to be that easy. Stick to your plan and you'll get there.

Allie - Wow, so proud of you!!! You have done amazing things in just a few short weeks and I'm sure you will hit that 80kg goal. I know what it's like to be lonely and eat (food is my friend mentality) so congratulations for NOT doing that! Bloody great effort!! Good luck with the dating sites... Remember: "You accept the love you think you deserve"... and you deserve someone wonderful. As for saggy skin: lift weights. Start with 3 times a week and just walk wherever you can instead of driving. That's a great start.

Dee/Donna - fabulous news about the pump class, it's a great way to get into weights and will change your body for the better! Good news about the PT as well you are going great guns!!

Hi Lorelei - good to see you checking in from the other side of the globe, even though it sounds freezing!! I easily hit my protein goal of 120-150g per day, but I have protein with every meal and protein snacks as well. I don't "complete" my diary at the end of the day, but it's open for reading and will be getting a lot better this week than it has been lately!! Might give you some ideas if needed. I mix vanilla protein powder with my yoghurt and all sorts of weird things!

As for SHARING - that is what it's all about!!

Tom Venuto says that the fifth element of fat loss is community support. I hope that being part of this group helps us all to have accountability, a shoulder to lean on and a kick up the butt (yes, I mean for me) when needed too!!

Day One, Week 4 is looking good so far :happy:

Flyer, that is just awesome. I mean, sure the weight loss is good, but look at the ways that your fitness and energy are affecting other aspects of your life. Physical, mental, it's all good.

Well done and good luck with your training. It's great to have a goal, but if your body says no, might be an idea to give the marathon away... Step goal is really good too!! I did that for a week last year and was exhausted! Besides it takes up a lot of time to do over 20,000 steps a day. I usually do 15,000 on a work day, but sometimes only 3,000 on Sundays *sheepish*.

Anyway, good to hear that you had a fantastic week, hit some PRs and have further to go! All power to you!

Day One, Week Four has been a success!!

I am going to bed early, hard to stay up late when I get up so early, so I'm going to get my bag and clothes out for tomorrow morning gym session and get into bed.

Hope you all had a great day, some great results on everyone's news feeds for weight loss and food diaries - I think we are all going to have a cracker of a week!!

See you tomorrow!