Need to Lose 100 LBS -Robins Thread !

@karenleona - yes, it's been a brutal winter here on the east coast. We still have so much snow, and ice. I have resorted to walking at the local indoor track - which is fine when it's a few miles... but as our training walks get longer, and the laps we have to count get up into the 40's, 50's, 60's, etc... well, you start to feel a bit like a hamster on a wheel. I will be very glad to see the sidewalks and walking trails again but at this rate it will be a couple of months.

Hello everyone. I swear I am having what my mom alwasy called a "DAY" today. First I wake up and my mouth is killing me but I dont like to take pain pills except at night as they make me very tired so that meant suck it up and suffer when the ibuprofen didnt work. Then I remembered the time wrong and was an hour early for my hubbys doctors appointment. Well his bright idea is to go grab some breakfast while we wait so I am slurping tiny baby sized bites of food off my fork:grumble: At least it tasted good. The appointment well and my husband is starting welbutrin to try and quit smoking Then we are at walmart forever waiting for his prescription and all I want is to go home and enjoy some peace and quiet in the backyard with the gorgeous weather we are having. Finally we get home and I grab the dogs leashes to take them for a walk before I sit down and talk myself out of it and forget to change my shoes. Only got three laps in because at that point my poor feet were crying. Then to cap the day I get home with the dogs and my husband and son let me know that the truck has broke down and it is one of two things. The cost to fix these things ranges from 600-2000 dollars. At that point I said I quit. Today is officially over and I will try again tomorrow. Well that was a nice long rant sorry about that. I hope everyone else had a better day and I will cya all tomorrow.

Todays Workout:
47 min
834 cals/claimed 534
1.98 miles
5380 steps

Wednesday Wish: to see the scale do more than inch along!

I’ve fallen behind with personals, sorry guys and gals!

@Helena – GREAT NEWS about your mom!! Having been there, done that; I know what it’s like when things get worse before they get better. I’ve been through chemo twice and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy!

@Tanya – Glad you figured out how to squelch your hunger pangs. I am still trying to figure out what works for me too. I don’t have hunger pangs that often, what I am struggling with is my calorie intake. What worked for me the last time I lost 70 lbs is not working for me now.

@Rain – I’ve been reading your posts and seeing your apprehension about going to the gym on campus. Let me share something with you that a few have touched based on. My son is on the football team at Tennessee State, so needless to say he is in the gym all the time. He is also majoring in Human Performance and Sports Sciences. Just one of the careers you can get into with that degree is, you guessed it, PERSONAL TRAINER! You could be lining yourself up with FREE training with one of the guys (or girls) that you would run into at the gym. I understand you feeling awkward, but think about the potential benefits and maybe it will help you put the awkwardness behind you!

@Susan – You need to pull yourself up by the boot straps and get it together! I find that I struggle sometimes with sweets too, but I allow for it. Nearly every day, I allow for it! I have fudgesicles in my freezer for dessert every night. At 80 to 100 calories (depending on brand) it’s never a deal breaker. I also keep 100 Calories Snack Packs around too for those sweet cravings. YOU CAN DO THIS!!!

@Eileen – Welcome aboard!

@Laurie – Glad to hear you found swimsuits. The days are counting down!

@Hayley – It may not be ideal, but searching a restaurants website for the nutrition facts of their menu is a HUGE plus! I have some bookmarked so that I can reference quickly. I think it was Alumpsk who said she knows the 'have and have notes' at many places.

@hansea – GREAT JOB going to the gym instead of out to dinner with your friend! That’s will power right there!

@Skinny – By reading your post, I assume that “zig-zag cycle” is allowing your calories for fluctuate up and down from day to day? How do you decide your high end and low end?

@Kelley – I am taking a page from your book. Although I am not working out nowhere near as vigorously as you, I have been working out daily. I am going to try an every other day approach and see what that does for me.

@littleshadow – Welcome!!

@Nettie – SO glad that things are starting to turn the corner for you! Now the fun part: redecorating!

Sorry if I missed anyone, my workday is over so I am off to walk with Leslie!!

Until next time; peace, love and weight loss!!

Edited for bad grammar and nonsense rambling. :blushing:

Hi guys!

I just caught up on posts--didn't get onto the thread until tonight to catch up!

@doug--Welcome back!!! :flowerforyou: :drinker: I was getting worried about you. Usually I delete pals who haven't logged on in over a month, but I kept the faith that you would return!! So glad I was right. :happy:

@robinB--I used a calculator at freedieting.com. It takes all of your stats (age, weight, height, bmr [i chose the formula that includes BF% since my scale gives me mine]), then you enter how many days you exercise/week and it gives you an average/day. If you click another tab, it breaks it down into 7 days. I suppose you could do all of the math yourself, but I hate math. I did rearrange some of the days so that I'm eating more on the days I will be at the gym--otherwise, I followed the plan.

@p1xy--I love that you are having your son complete the assignment regardless of whether he will receive any credit. That will go a long way in teaching him that the work is valuable for what it will teach him, not just for the points he will earn. I know our students' grades are also online for parents to access, and I rarely contact parents to alert them to a missing assignment. Of course, I have 17 and 18 year olds, so not quite the same situation. However, my guess is that the teacher assumed you could see that the assignment was missing. As far as contacting the teacher--there are pros and cons. Having the teacher email you if an assignment is missing will give you a good heads-up; however, it will also take responsibility away from your son at a point where you probably want to be teaching him the opposite. Could you instead have him check his grades online with you a couple times a week? That way he starts to learn the importance of keeping track of his own grades, but you will also see if anything is missing. If that doesn't work, you could always move to the next step of emailing his teacher once a week or so to get an update. I also agree with you that the "going through the backpack ritual" is the wrong way to go. Again, it puts the responsibility on you instead of him. Good luck! :flowerforyou:

Welcome to the newlings!! :flowerforyou:

I'm sorry I'm not doing full personals tonight, but it's already late, so I will try to catch up tomorrow.

Wed. Wish:
My wish is that I can keep up this momentum. I did really well today with my calories. Not only did I stick to my calorie goal, but I hit my 30% protein goal perfectly. :bigsmile: Tomorrow I get 1854 calories--should be pretty doable. Friday will be a bigger challenge b/c I have 1669--not too low except I am going out for cocktails with friends after work. I will have to do some meticulous planning to meet my calorie goal. I also wish that those of you doing well maintain your momentum and those struggling find a good groove.

I got some of my AP journals done, but not as many as I'd like. Tomorrow I will have to get serious about them b/c I want to hand them back on Friday and collect the remaining 21 to grade over the weekend.

Groundhog Day Challenge:
23/28 days at 100g or more of protein

Grading goals:
1. re-read Great Gatsby DID MORE
2. 10?/50 AP journals

Exercise goals:
Mon--walk gunner DONE
Tues--walk gunner NOT DONE + gym (cardio) DONE
Wed--walk gunner NOT DONE TOO COLD!!!
Thurs--walk gunner + gym (circuit training + HIIT)
Fri--rest day
Sat--walk gunner + gym (circuit training + HIIT)
Sun--walk gunner + gym (cardio)

@susan2396 - sounds like a very busy week and weekend! Good luck staying on track and getting everything done.

@skinnyjeanz - are you the one I saw who is trying to get back to losing by going up and down with the calorie amounts daily? I'm curious to know more about this approach.

@laurie - I'm with you on the spring thing!

@robin - thanks for the welcome.

Whew, personals can be overwhelming, you'll have to excuse me if I'm slow getting going.

As expected, I didn't lose this week and in fact am up 1 lb-ish. I was really hoping to hit 25 lbs this week. I am set at a 1000 cal deficit, giving me 1610/day. I don't eat back my exercise calories. I am doing low-ish carb, high protein, watching my sodium and drinking tonnes of water. I log faithfully and plan my day ahead of time, weigh my food, and always have calories left at the end of the day. I don't know what else to do! I have a trip to the bahamas in 3 weeks and have a number in mind for that, so it's especially discouraging to be stalled right now.

@susan - Will power is fleeting and, in my opinion, overrated. I would have quit a long time ago if I was relying on my will power. I found what works for me.... a combination of pre-logging and weighing myself ever day. I pre-log so I don't make decisions while hungry or when standing in front of the fridge. I weigh myself every day as a constant reminder of where I am and where I need to go. For me, accountability is greater than will power. Find what works for you and you'll be golden.

@eileenm - Welcome to the group! Yes, it is hard having a DH who brings home junk (and eats it in front of you). My DH is known for this and I've had to just learn to deal with it. Temptation is all around us and the earlier you learn to deal with it the better. I would be unfair for me to dictate his choices based on my needs. I typically make myself scarce when he's enjoying dessert and find something else to occupy my time. Perhaps it's a good time to take a walk or read to your kids?

@hansea - Good choice on the gym vs. Olive Garden. Isn't it great when we feel good about our choices instead of bad.

@skinnyjeanz - Zig zagging calories sounds interesting and something I may need to try. I'll check out the tracker you mentioned.

jnettie - Yay for the insurance adjuster! So glad to hear they are going to cover the damage. I know that's a big relief.

@ushkii - Turning down cookies and cupcakes? Way to go!!

@littleshadow - welcome to the group! You've found the best thread for support and encouragement.

AFM - It's been a busy week work wise. And since I'm on vacation next week, I have a ton of things to accomplish. We leave on Monday morning for Cabo and I'm sad to say I will not be below 200 lbs. (crying). My scale is stuck on 202. So very frustrating, but I've been here before and I know it will go down.... eventually. And I guess I can let go of my plan to be at 195 (100 lb loss) at the 9 month mark (3/14/14) unless a miracle occurs. I still have so very far to go and it's a bit disheartening to realize that the rest it is going to be a fight for every last stinking pound. But, I will get there. I'm too stubborn and hard headed to ever quit or admit defeat. Wow.... after 55 years I've finally found the upside to my stubbornness!

Exercise Goals:

Monday- Rest Day DONE
Tuesday - Yoga DONEI couldn't
Wednesday - Cardio/Weights/Stretch DONE
Thursday - Pilates
Friday - Cardio/Weights/Stretch
Saturday - 3 mile minimum walk
Sunday - Rest Day

Thursday Truth -
I have been feeling a little blech lately about my life/ work. Mostly because I am 41, have my Master's and am still working 2 part time jobs. The plumbing disaster was a wake up slap in the face for me. We are doing fine on my husband's salary. My salary pays for little things around the house while his pays for the majority of bills. The rest of my salary is put towards my school loans. When the uncertainty of the plumbing issues/ insurance hit I couldn't stop thinking that if I had more money coming in it would have not been a problem. Last week I searched for FT teaching jobs. There just isn't anything out there at the moment that I am qualified for. NY is very difficult for teachers starting out to obtain jobs. Moving out of state is not an option as our families are here and we are not willing to relocate. Last week, I felt a little bit hopeless and began rethinking my career choices. It was depressing.
Yesterday at work my student's daytime teacher approached me and asked my plans for summer. We chatted for a while and she shared her story with me of how she got to where I am. Mind you I never shared how I was feeling with her, she brought this up on her own. Her story sounded very similar to mine. She went back to school later in life and got her degree. She didn't get her undergrad until mid 40's. She advised me on things I should do to make myself known. I am going to take her suggestions. She gave me a heads up that I am well liked in my program and that the administers seem to be pleased with my work. She also told me I am lucky to have my boss on my side because she is a very influential person and I should use that to my advantage. Remember: My boss is actually my boss for both my jobs. I have been with her at my agency job for over 10 years. She pushed for me to get this district job and work with her. Speaking to her made me feel so much better. I came home from work last night very hopeful that eventually I would land a FT job in district. Maybe 2014-2015 will be my year.

Thanks everyone for the encouragement and cheering about redecorating. I am actually looking forward to it.

Newbies - Welcome!

MNWalking - I am not really sure what advice to give you as far as training the puppy with the flowers. I grew up with dogs and we never had that problem because my mother trained them. I am not 100% sure how she trained them. I want to guess it was the same way she trained them to stay on the property. Have them on a leash and walk them around the perimeter, when they attempt to step in a restricted area give them a firm "No." and tug the leash back. This combined with using treats to reinforce them walking in non restricted areas.

Doug - Welcome back!

p1xyn1xy - That is very interesting with the bread. Congrats on the 8 lb loss.
The first thing I would do is sit down with your son and find out his reasoning for not completing or finishing assignments. Is he forgetting about them? Are the assignments too difficult and frustrating for him? Does he understand the assignment and what he is supposed to do? Is he in the classroom when the homework is assigned or out of the room due to music lessons or some other service that he is entitled to? How is he recording the homework assignments, does he write them down in a planner?
The next thing I would do is speak with his teacher and discuss the situation with her. Express your concerns and work with her on a solution. Each teacher is different with how much and what they are willing to do. I know in 2nd and 3rd grade the children are expected to take more responsibility over their own assignments and materials. Ask her about her homework policy and procedures. Find out exactly what is expected of the students when it comes to writing down their homework assignments. There may be something she is able to do on her end. For example, she may be able to and willing to initial your son's planner after he correctly writes down all the assignments. This way at home you see her initials and know every assignment is written and correct. This way there is no question about assignments on your end. You can also ask her to email you as soon as he misses an assignment.
There are a few things you can try at home as well. Assuming your son writes down his assignments in a planner, have him get into a routine of showing you or your husband the assignments after he completes them. Once he gets the approval from you or your husband he can check it or cross it off in his planner. Have him seek you out rather than you seek him out. This will put the responsibility on him rather then having him rely on you. You can also invest in an inexpensive dry erase calendar for home that you can display in his designated homework area. This can be used for him to write down assignments that are assigned and not due to a later date. Teach him to use a visual schedule to help him appropriately plan out his time. Sometimes students need visual reminders to help them organize their time and assignments.
Best of luck to you. I hope it all works out for you and your son.

Ushkii - I am so jealous. I cannot do any tilling yet due to still having snow. What will you be planting this year?

Jtconst - Sorry to hear you are having a "day" and you are in pain. Hopefully today is a better one.

Skinny - You can do it!

Thursday Truth: I kind of like the way onions make your eyes water. It's sort of miraculous how just slicing into an innocent looking bulb can cause your whole face to lose control. Plus, it's a relief on days when I'm feeling kind of stuffy and congested. :bigsmile:

@Nettie- What a wonderful coincidence that the daytime teacher started giving you advice without you having to even bring it up! I hope the advice from her and the help from your boss go a long way to getting you the job you want!

@Doug- I think most of us have yo-yo'd up and down over our lifetimes. We just have to keep learning from our mistakes and moving forward. Get busy and no excuses! You can do this!

@L2T- Argh! So close to your goal and yet so far! You will get there, even if it's not on your original timeline. Way to use your stubbornness to your advantage!

@Kammy- Welcome! :flowerforyou: Keep checking in on this thread, the people here are very positive and encouraging.

@Shadow- Maybe you need to be eating back some of your exercise calories? If you're eating 1610, but then exercise 500, you're only netting 1110. I tried following the TDEE and all that last year when I started, and that worked well. Someone else may have the link? I try to eat back some (usually not all since I tend not to measure or weigh things) of my exercise calories so that I end up netting near my goal.

@Susan- Don't let the busy-ness get you down. Hope the bread problem has an easy solution and all your travels are safe!

@Skinny- Ride that momentum right into spring and summer! You're on a roll!

@Laurie- It's freezing here again, too. It's remarkable how relative the temperatures can be though. After being soooo cold for sooo long, I don't feel like the below zero is quite as bad as it was in the beginning of winter. It's still way cold, but more tolerable, I guess? When we hit 20's again, it will be paradise. Bundle up and hang in there. This can't last forever, right?! :happy:

@RobinB- I love the big drops in weight too. I just have to remind myself that when I'm inching along that inches piled together equal feet! Hope you get your wish, anyway.

@JT- Hope your "day" ends with yesterday and today is better!

@Tanya- Yay for improved fitness! Don't you love it when you notice these things? It's like a little pat on the back.

@Tom- Sounds like you're feeling better since you're back at work. Good job on your GHDC! We're almost to the end of February!

@Blessed- Welcome! :flowerforyou:

Plan on getting a bunch of laundry and housework done today since I will be gone all day Saturday. I'm going to be hiking out to the Apostles Islands Ice Caves on Lake Superior. It's gotten a lot of press this winter, since it's rare to be able to walk out to the sea caves and have the lake as frozen as it is. My aunt went a couple weeks ago and posted some gorgeous pics on facebook. My friend and I are making a girls' day out of it, while my husband stays home and takes the kids to their soccer. An adventure for us all!

Only missed one day so far of checking in on the thread for my GHDC. Plan on finishing strong tomorrow! Any ideas out there for a March Challenge?

MONDAY NIGHT: 8 hours
TUESDAY NIGHT: 6 hours
WEDNESDY NIGHT: 7 hours

Welcome to all our beautiful newlings!!

JNetti and Ushkii - I'm jealous of you BOTH. I live in an apartment without even a balcony. My work has a community garden that people can use, but i'm a contract employee so I'm not able to use it. It would be perfect since I'm here all day anyway AND it's only a mile from my house for weekend use.

Our town does have 2 community gardens but both are a 20 minute drive (in different directions) and I don't want to use my SUV that much, it's SUCH a gas guzzler. I was thinking of advertising on craiglist for garden space. I'd be willing to pay a small fee for them to till it for me each year and then I'll do the rest... I'm just afraid it'll end up being some weirdo and I'll be gardening in fear for my life or something...:laugh:

Thankfully we have a great Saturday Morning Farmer's Market here.... but still... to be able to can my tomato sauce, make my own pickles, etc... without paying for crates of produce would be so nice..

Ok, I have a game plan (I think). I need baby steps. I've been trying to jump all the way on the wagon the way I did before but the circumstances aren't the same as they were before. I was pretty sick so all the changes were able to take place at once. I'm not able to do it this time. This time it's triage.

First - Control my sodium. That needs to come back down to below 1500 a day again. My BP is climbing higher and higher even on my meds. That's the most important thing in my diet right now. That will also insure Im eating healthy stuff (the garbage has too much sodium). For now I'm going to TRY and stay under my MFP calories, but as long as I'm below my maintenance I'm not going to stress about it.

Second - Control calories. Next I'll beat the extra calories into submission and fit into my MFP numbers.

Carbs - ..with leeway. Since I'm off meat I need to be able to eat pasta (there are just too few vegetables that I enjoy to eat ONLY veggies)... as long as my carbs aren't grossly out of proportion and it isn't from refined sugar I should be OK.

Exercise ... yeah.... have to think more on that. Too cold and rainy here to walk yet and at the moment Im too sore anyway. My body is NOT appreciating this weight gain. I'm feeling it way more this time than I did before (or remember feeling before)

Thursday truth: I've been reading and keeping up but not posting much. I get so excited about all of your successes and then forget what I wanted to say. Do I get a pass because I am so old? I feel younger than I have felt in years. Yesterday I was out walking wearing my size 12 bootcut mid-rise jeans and my new hoody. It felt so good.
My grandson has had some real challenges adjusting to kindergarten. Yesterday DD took him to a developmental psychiatrist. She diagnosed him with ADHD and autism. I was really surprised by the autism. She said there is some overlap between the two, but there are enough autism markers to justify the diagnosis. That gets him speech therapy which he really needs and occupational therapy for small muscle coordination. The ADHD diagnosis doesn't qualify him for those things. She said it may change later.
Because we didn't have the kids in the afternoon, we took off for a nice afternoon and evening together. I was able to eat out and stay below calories.
Doug, welcome back. You can do it.
L2T, congratulations for getting this figured out in your 50's. You are 20 years ahead of me.
Susan, you have lots of challenges but I know you can do this. I have to say that I agree. Accountability is far more powerful for me than will power. I think that is why all of you here are so vital to my success.
Okay, so the name escapes me, but to our Newby is worried about a week without a loss. Fluctuations in weight are very normal. You probably don't need to change a thing. Just keep doing what you are doing. Next week you may have a big loss to make up for this week.
Karen, I hope that your zigzagging breaks the plateau for you.
Have a great day. Onward and downward. Kaye