Need to Lose 100 LBS -Robins Thread !

I'm a newbie checking out the scene. I've used MFP before and had success. About a year ago I became sick and fell off the wagon. So now I'm back!

@susan--that quinoa dish sounds delicious! I'm glad you are re-focused and know you will get bad into the 200s in no time. When you are on track, you are quite a force--I saw that first-hand in NY. You were so disciplined even while on vacation. Yes, I'm lucky to work with such great friends. We have so much fun in and outside the workplace.

@armaines--welcome!

@melissa--are you traveling for you R&R? Someplace warm, I hope.

@lori--I'm sorry that your marriage is suffering, but as melissa said, if he's not willing to be a part of this happier, healthier life you've made for yourself, you can't let that hold you back. My DH isn't a fan of exercise himself, but he fully supports and encourages my efforts. And even though he doesn't work out, he definitely eats healthier now as a consequence of making more nutritious foods that fit my calorie allowance. Of course, he's not had the same weight issues as me; however, being out of work is starting to give him some "love handles." Regarding your running, with your fitness level, you should be able to run for a mile straight--I suspect you just need to slow down. When I first started running, I was trying for a 5 mph pace and kept failing to sustain for more than a few minutes. I was getting frustrated, but read an article that said to slow way down--almost to your fastest walking pace. I tried it on my next run and went for 20 minutes straight! Even now, if I go too fast, I have to take a walking break. One of my current running goals is to learn to recover from sprints at a slower running pace versus walking to recover.

@niki--so sorry to hear about your friend.

@kaye--that's great that you make your goal with strength training. I know it's something you'd been wanting to add to your routine for a while.

@erin--our spring sports are all starting this week, and the coaches are going nuts trying to figure out the facilities schedule b/c there's too much snow and ice to use the fields outside. Even if it warms up considerably more than our forecast predicts, it will takes weeks for everything to melt and dry out.

@barb (bap)--6 lbs is a great loss for the month!! Your post about my 8k gave me a chuckle only b/c I had a similar experience. Right after running that PR, one of my FB friends posted about her 10 mile run. Like you, I didn't let it lessen my own sense of accomplishment. I rarely compare myself to other runners or try to compete with them. I find that when I do that, it doesn't have any sort of positive result. We are all different people, and our achievements are worthwhile on their own merit.

@robin--so that flu outbreak in NE is your doing? JK--hope you are feeling 100% soon.

@laurie--congrats on your swimming accomplishments! I know I've told you before, I'm not much of a swimmer, so your ability to swim competitively is quite impressive to me. I can swim recreationally, but never learned the proper breathing form.

@edna--welcome to the thread. As niki said, you are welcome here regardless of the amount you have to lose. When I joined MFP four years ago, I also didn't have 100 lbs to lose. However, there were so many threads of people who just needed to lose 10 or 15 lbs, or of very fit people just trying to make strength gains, that I couldn't relate to at the time. When I saw robin's thread, I knew it was the place for me.

@L2T--great goals! I think I'm going to steal your #1, but I'm going to shoot for 5/7 days under.

AFM--I will come back later to post my Saturday Success and Sunday Share.

March Challenge:
At or under calories 5/7 days every week and at or under as a weekly average.
All-in strength challenge=core work 3 x/week; PT 1-2 x/week; run 3 x/week:
Week 1: x/3 core; PT; x/3 runs
Week 2: x/3 core; PT; x/3 runs
Week 3: x/3 core; PT; x/3 runs
Week 4: x/3 core; PT; x/3 runs
8k at end of month (not sure what day) in 55 minutes (Thanksgiving 8k = 56:49, NYE 8k = 57:47, 1/25 = 55:41; 2/28=55:15)

Grading Goals:
1. 10/64 BNW journal reflections
2. x/64 AP essays

Exercise Goals: (week 4)
Sun--rest day
Mon--walk gunner + gym
Tues--meeting
Wed--walk gunner + gym
Thurs--PT
Fri--rest day
Sat--walk gunner + gym

2015 mantra "Just 15 minutes"

Hi guys! I had a really fun time last night at my friend's party. We hung out at his house playing Cards Against Humanity and flippycup. Then we ubered to a nearby bar that has karaoke and dj on Saturday nights. We participated in some really horrific karaoke, but had fun. We also danced for hours--danced so hard my legs are sore today! Afterwards those of us spending the night went back to the house and continued the dance party there. I think it was almost 4 am when we finally all went up to bed.

Needless to say, we were tired this morning. Woke up about 9 am and had breakfast, then drove home (in my pj's!). Once at home, I lounged around and did some laundry. Finally got dressed about 3:30 and headed out to starbucks, but got very little accomplished here.

Now I'm off to the grocery store. DH is making a roast beef, and I need to pick up salad fixings to go with it.

Saturday Success:
The new PR on my 8k yesterday is my biggest success. I also believe I burned enough calories dancing last night to make up for a week's worth of bad days. No wonder dancers are to fit!

Sunday Share:
I was thinking about what susan said earlier about how close I am with my work friends, and it made me reflect on how lucky I am to have them. In addition to it being odd that we all have sleepover parties and often travel together, it's also kind of funny that we are all different ages and at different places in our lives. For example, my friend John and his wife are in their late 20s, and my friend Kim, who I'm going to Nashville with, is 26. Another colleagues wife, who's 37, is the one planning the trip. And though that may sound like I'm the old lady of the group at 45, a few others who join us regularly are in their 60s and retired. Also, some of us are married and some are single--sometimes spouses join the fun, but other times they let us go do our own thing. They really are such a fun group--makes the job that much better when you get to spend the day with people you've hung out with in your jammies.

cblue and ereilly- The triathlon I am doing is an introduction event so it is a sprint- Distance is 800 swim, 9 mile bike and a 5k run. The nice thing about this tri is that the swim is in a pool and the run and bike is on a trail that I am familiar with so I can go practice when the weather improves.

Ereilly- Have you thought about doing a bike ride on some of the trails this summer. I am considering doing a Ride the trails event for either 3 days or longer but I am looking for one that involves a bed and breakfast instead of camping. Would you be interested? Send me your email address and I will email you the flier.

Cblue- Karen is right about slowing down when running. When I started running, I went to fast and could not sustain more than a couple of minutes. When I started working with this trainer, she had me go slow which meant that I could only run at the same pace as a fast walk. When I did that I was able to complete 1/8 of a mile and it gradually increased from there. At that point, I could see why people liked running. Otherwise, I saw no benefit to running since I was constantly out of breath. Try slowing down when you run and see if it makes a difference. I am impressed that you are starting with an olympic distance triathlon.


Skinny Karen-I am only been swimming competitively since last April so less than a year. I learned to swim as a kid but never swam for a swim team. I still have a lot to learn when it comes to my stroke and proper form. Luckily, the coach likes to teach the swimming skills and there is another teacher who also coaches her HS swim team and is willing to help me out. Prior to swimming with the Master's, I only swam for fun and recreational purposes. After you run sprints, slow down to a slow job for your recovery- this is almost a fast walk speed. It will help you build the endurance. You can also do running drills with a run recovery in between them. The run would be a jog. It is great that we have co-workers that we want to hang out with after work, it makes the days more enjoyable.

Well, today was a wash for me when it came to exercise. The weather did not cooperate at all today. It started snowing this morning and by 10 it had turned to sleet and by noon it was freezing rain. The rain has continued for several hours and the ice just keeps getting thicker. The temps are still below freezing but it is suppose to warm up tonight. We will see. Some school systems have already delayed for tomorrow, so I hope the call comes in soon for my county. The roads, sidewalks and parking lots are very slick. I wanted to hit the gym but it did not open until 11 am. I am not very good about working out at home so I just stayed home and did some work. Now, I hope we don't lose power due to the icy power lines.

Exercise plans for the week
Sunday- Rest
Monday- Trainer and long workout
Tuesday- Gym? class and maybe dinner with a friend.
Wednesday- Swim
Thursday- Gym
Friday- climbing
Saturday Swim and gym?

@edna thanks for the info about B12. I am in no way thinking of doing the Bernstein diet as I know it is too restrictive and $$$. If the B12 shots really do control hunger I'd be willing to try it, it would be free for me after all.

@erin so nice to know I'm not the only one who feels ADD-ish! My daughter was diagnosed 2 yers ago with ADHD at age 22 (I always thought she had it as a child, but it was never brought up, she was always 'distruptive' in school. Many with it have at least one parent with some form of it... so maybe that is me... would make sense.

@NK112 that's a fantastic NSV!! I'm the same way. Also, my BF and I split up last September, it crushed me. I wanted to remain friends, but I quickly realized that it wasn't just to stay friends. I had to cut ties which is the hardest thing I've had to do, but I realized he just wasn't there for me at all after and I was wasting my energy and emotions on him. I even had to delete him from Facebook, I was stalking him that way, and only getting hurt seeing him with his new GF. The less, the better... and time.

@Susan I drooled a bit when I read about your splurge meal.

@Robin oh no... more flu?

AFM... after my lazy 1500 step day yesterday, I went out with friends today for a hike along a frozen river. Burned lots of calories, then went for dinner with more friends. I ordered a penne vegetable dish which had a ton of oil, which I managed to leave in a soup at the bottom of my plate... but NO FAST FOOD!

@cblue315‌ Great job on your weight loss in the past year and all of your accomplishments, that's amazing! With your determination, you will definitely do great in that tri! Sorry to hear about the marriage problems, I know I can't offer much as I've never been married, but the way I look at it, in the end you need to do what's best for you. What will help you to keep succeeding in your new lifestyle, and what will make you happy?
Random question... How long did it take for your plantar fasciitis to go away? I developed it in my right foot this past summer, I don't do all the stretches as I should so partially my own fault, but I am still battling with it. It was feeling much better the last month, but since I started playing basketball again last week, it has been bothering me again.

@skinnyjeanzbound‌ That will be us with figuring out our schedules in three weeks. My school's AD is not very organized either, so it makes things difficult. We still have snow at least 2 feet deep on the fields. The sun was out this weekend so we had some melting, but it is snowing again tonight, another 2-5". The worst part is, once it does all melt, we are still going to be set back because the field will be all mud and still not usable.
Just read your other post about the party and playing flip cup.. one of my favorite games! I so can't wait til the summer because I saw a fun idea of making a slip n slide and at the end is a flip cup table, next person can't come down til you flip your cup! lol I wish I was still in college.

@Lauriek70‌ that tri sounds like the type I would like to do! I love to swim but am kinda terrified of open water since I can't see what is around me lol. The trail rides sound great, I will PM you once I get done with this post.

AFM - I was pretty lazy today. I was exhausted when I woke up despite sleeping in til 10:15. Granted I didn't go to bed til like 2:45ish. But I got up laid on the couch and started watching tv and ended up falling back to sleep til like around noon. I've also been wicked sore today from my rheumatoid arthritis. I'm hoping its just from the weather change, and my once a week med I take Sunday nights so sometimes I s tart to get sore by the weekend. I was also bad again with my eating, but I figured I will get back on track tomorrow when vacation is over, so this was my last day to splurge. Hope you all had a great weekend and start the week off well tomorrow!
Erin

2ledbetter wrote: »

I joined this group a while ago but just figured out how to follow it, Lol. Now I just need to figure out how to copy each persons name in blue.

To tag someone, you @-reply them, like on Twitter. So if I want to tag you, I type @2ledbetter.

@skinnyjeanzbound‌ - I am traveling, but not to someplace warmer! My BFF and I are meeting at Table Rock in the Ozarks for a few days of hanging out, working on some mutual projects, and a little sightseeing. Originally we were staying at an acquaintance's "rustic" cabin for super cheap, but the water pump froze a couple of weeks ago and the plumber hasn't been able to come out to fix it yet. She made arrangements for us to stay at a neighbor's really nice, sleeps-30 lodge right on the lake (her cabin is about 1/2 mile back from the lake) for the same rate if the plumber couldn't get to her place by this weekend. Guess who was visualizing lots of work for the plumber last week?

Totally blew my calories today, you guys. Between IHOP for lunch and fast food for supper, I'm over-full and so is my food diary. Getting sick definitely helped get me over the craving hump quickly, and I don't care for this feeling, but I was worried that I'd slip up this week if I didn't eat it today. Not sure it was worth it physically to be able to talk myself out of fast food during the rest of the week.

I'm taking some food with me to the lake this week, and we'll go grocery shopping tomorrow afternoon since neither of us wants to eat out all the time. I'm considering taking this opportunity to try some new recipes and/or prep some items to bring home and put in my freezer. Gotta see what equipment is available in the kitchen first.

@melifornia‌, thank you.

I don't have much to say today, but I am still here.

I know I just logged last night, but I want to stay in a rhythm here so it’s back to morning posts for me. Otherwise my day gets going and before I know it, I’ve missed it.

@Mel…whether at a rustic cabin or the nice lodge, you’ll have fun. My BFF and I take one trip each year and we have such a wonderful time. We did a short trip through part of the Ozarks three years ago. Beautiful!
@Karen…good call and not talking to the “kids” about your MIL – not their fight. My BFF struggles with a MIL being “crazy” like yours but on top of it she has an alcoholic father and a bi-polar mother that is refusing to take her medicine. I hope she goes back to ignoring you soon.
@Susan...I do the same thing. Although last night I shut the light off by 11:00 and this morning was so easy.

AFM…starting my day off with a protein shake and my jug of water full. I will be going to water aerobics tonight and possibly something else at the gym with my sister. My goals for today are:

Water - 75 Oz
Calories - at goal
Gym - water aerobics and maybe something else
Home - Get my checkbook balanced (it's been a while!! ) and my clean clothes put away (yes, that was suppose to get done last night but my book apparently took priority)

Have a super Monday everyone!!

@susan - Steal away! Like you, I'm back to focusing on basics. And the most basic thing is a calorie deficit. Whether you get there with exercise or without doesn't matter. On days I exercise, I eat back half of the calories MFP gives me since I think it calculates high. On no exercise days, I stay at or under my calorie goal. So simple to say, so hard to do. But, we can do it if we never ever give up!!

Monday Check-in ...
1. Meet Calories Goals: 27d/31d with accuracy Current 0/31
No walking yesterday and No housework yesterday beyond normal cooking/dishes.

Since today is check-in for me, I had an unpleasant surprise when I stepped on the scale this morning and found that I was up 3 pounds for the month ... and it was all the past week. I guess that noshing on the Paczki donuts and eating a meal and a half from my Saturday splurge of my favorite Chinese soup and steamed vegetable dumplings are the cause. Hopefully a week of clean eating will see me back where I belong next Monday.

As part of my renewed focus on my nutrition, beyond calories, I'm focusing on the macronutrients because they were off enough for the month of February that my blood glucose readings are higher in the morning than I like them to be. My goals were 40% carbs (45% actual), 30% fat (40% actual), and 30% protein (21% actual). Since I have such a hard time getting in enough protein, I let MFP set my macros for March and will focus on getting 45% carbs, 25% protein and 30% fat, or as close as I can make them.

Follow-through, Niki

Thanks everyone for your well-wishes to my friend with serious health issues. The colon cancer, if it was caught early enough might be recoverable from, but that Alzheimer's diagnosis is a real killer.

@cblue .. Congratulations on that placement in the weight loss challenge last October. That was a really big push to getting to your goal. So sorry that your new self is not fitting in with your hubby very well. I feel bad for both of you.

@armaines420 … hello, hope you like the scenery.

@Susan2396 … I had a bag of Quinoa in my pantry for a long time before I finally cooked some up, and now I love it in moderation because of it’s high carb content. Reading your Monday Check-in reminded me of how much more efficient and productive i was when I worked … and I still had my Sundays free. I guess retirement has made me lazy.

@2ledbetter … welcome back, glad you found us again. The name is blue comes from typing the @ sign before the name. It creates a link to their home page as well as makes a note in the notifications drop down that they were mentioned in a post. I still have a lot of weight to lose, but I have muscular- skeletal issues so walking is a very hard challenge for me. I do find though that if I can get through the burn/pain that comes on soon after starting that I can go for a lot longer. Ease into it, and do more every week.

@Skinnyjeanzbound … congratulations on the 8K. Glad you had fun with your buddies. You know, as I read through your MIL stories it reminded me of a friend of my moms. She was a very enigmatic and charismatic woman who always had tremendous drama in her life. She is the only woman I knew who took her children to court. Hard to keep peace with one such as this.

@Lives2Travel … How did you ever manage to keep it secret from your DD that her BF was going to propose? So happy for her, and really like the respect he showed you and your husband.

@Lauriek70 … My weather yesterday kept me indoors also. Of course, I could have driven over to the gym and walked there … but currently my car is on a spare tire for one of the wheels and I don’t want to be driving around until it’s replaced.

@hansea47 … laptops and desktops and hand-helds. they are items we hardly can function without any longer. Glad your DH was able to get it fixed.

@Tanya949 … yep, sometimes past lovers just cannot remain as current friends. No matter how one or both may want it to be that way.

@iowaoly … Hi, glad you stumbled upon us. We’ll be here if you decide to pop back in.

@ereilly311 … I just love lazy Sunday’s. They are in my regular schedule … my day of rest.

@tlh0407 … Oh, I can relate to your Sunday Share about body image. When I was young and thin I thought I was fat, when I became old and fat, I was always surprised to see myself in a store window. Oh, I had a shake this morning also .. mine was made in my Magic Bullet and had lots of spinach in it.

@melfornia … Table Rock in the Ozarks is nearby to where my son and his family lives. Beautiful part of the country. Get’s too hot and muggy in the Spring-Summer-Autumn for me so I stay in WNY where it’s cooler. They, like most of the country, are having weird weather patterns, hope it’ll be sunny and warm for your trip.

@grandmakay44 … thanks for the words of encouragement to everyone. “Let’s make it happen.”

@mountmary84 … Glad you are still here. I usually don’t have much to say either, but every once in a while i try to let everyone know that I’m glad they are here with us.

@mnwalkingqueen … for me, cleaning house and doing laundry IS exercise. Good going on your neutral tone with your WW friend. I have nephews who behave pretty much the same as what your describe from your son. What are parents to do? Kick them out on the street before they learn?

AFM ... I don't know when I'll be back in posting as there are a lot of apppointments in my calendar this week. But I will be logging my food and walks, and keeping up on the reading. Have a great first week of March everyone.

Follow-through, Niki

No fast food today. This is probably how I'm going to start each post... I need it front and center to be accountable so I keep it out of my life. I did have Subway for lunch and it's my one for this week.

I took my car in to the shop because the heat fan does not turn on sometimes... it's very sporadic but once it finally comes on, it stays on as long as my car is running. <-- Which is important because I use my car for work about 4 hours a day delivering a mail route. I usually turn my car off each time I stop, but now that the fan is being finicky, as long as the fan is on and I have heat, the car stays on. So the mechanic turned the car on and of course the fan started right away. It ran first thing this morning too, but when I left for the shop, it did not run at all. His guess is it's the blower motor giving out, and the replacement is $400 plus a few hours labour, its in a bad spot. I decided that I would have to live with it for another month or 2, then there will be at least 6 months that I won't need it (I can live without A/C). My car has 265,000 km on it, and with me putting about 60,000 km per year on it, it's not going to last too much longer anyway. Constant heat is something I will just have to sacrifice, and I will have to dress warmer for outside work... there are much worse things in life, right?

@ereilly Plantar faschiitis is awful isn't it? I've had it off and on (both feet at some point) for 20 years. I was finally given 2 cortisone shots, the first lasted a few months, the second lasted a few days. So that wasn't for me. Then I found shoe inserts from heelthatpain.com specifically for PF, and they worked wonders, far better than any other over the counter insert/shoe cushion etc. I used them for a few years, they last up to 6 months. It was a cheap alternative for me to orthotics at the time because I could not afford them and I didn't have coverage. Now that I am covered I have custom orthotics and have never had PF since, and I am on my feet and more active now than I ever have been before and completely pain free.

@skinny your MIL sure does sound like a nightmare! I understand why you would need to vent so feel free, that's what we're here for.

Just a quick check in.

March goals:

1. At or under calories 6/7 days every week and at or under as a weekly average. 2/2

2. Walk at least 6 times per week, at least 3 miles each walk. 1/2

3. Note daily calories and miles in calendar and weight on Thursday morning. 2/2

4. Check in here every day if only to read the posts and keep current on the thread. 2/2

2015 Mantras:

Live like someone left the gate open (Live Joyously)
Persevere