200+ Haulin' Off The Weight

Thanks Kendal! As for the blog stalker, I have one of those myself, in the form of my fiance (whom I just call Nerd)'s aunt. It got to the point where she was sending him emails about the things I was saying, and telling him what a terrible person I was. What's worse is, I posted some rather graphic pictures of Nerd after that as a deterrent, and she proceeded to not only continue to view it, but to share them with his mother. WTF?

I'm Jessica. Or Jess, or Jessi, or J, or whatever. I'm pretty flexible in that department. I live in Montana, work in a sit-on-your-butt job at a radio station, and am engaged to the sweetest guy ever. We're planning on trying to conceive, but I'm a BIG girl (286 lbs when I stepped on the scale earlier), and in the interest of both being able to get pregnant, and in the interest of working with the nicest midwife I've ever met to have a homebirth when we do get pregnant, I'm trying to eat healthier. She wants me on a modified diet (basically, fruit, veggies, meat, dairy, but no wheat/rice/oats/etc, or refined sugar) and to walk outside for 30 minutes a day. The modified diet thing only works a little until I get paid Friday and can go grocery shopping, but I can at least watch my calorie intake between now than. Ummmm... I love photography, have 5 birds, 3 cats, and a dog (whom I desperately wish I could find a new family for... he was kind of thrust onto me after being terribly neglected, and he tries to eat my cats). And yep. That's me.

Man I SO SO do not want to go to work tomorrow. I want one more day to lounge around at home. I got my walk/run in, lounged around, cleaned, cooked. It was a nicely relaxing day.

Sodium under control today as are calories. Not expecting much on the scale tomorrow but I will weigh inm. My guess is 211ish. SIgh.

I also agree with not wanting to work tomorrow... somehow it feels like this long weekend was shorter than the rest. I don't know why I don't want to go to work at any given point, either, considering I spend most of my day knitting or on the internet. :P

Morning gals!!! TOM cramps and yardwork (filling the wheel barrel with dirt) don't mix well. My tummy aches. Combine that with my run yesterday and I burned 3609 cal!!! I don't feel guilty over the fries I had with dinner. Can someone please make my husband stop watching HGTV? he is getting more yard ideas and I'm the free grunt labor. Sighs - at least the yard is looking nice.

I'm also on the please give me one more day at home (preferably without DH so I can rest). I really don't want to go to work today.

Kendal - jealousy must be the reason she's stalking you.

Welcome Jessi!!!!

Hi Hope - how have you been?

Hosanna - autumn is just starting here. The leaves are starting to change. Yesterdays high was 60. I'm a bit jealous of your spring - I may have to live vicariously through you and summer once winter hits here.

Kerry - yes, I'd like your hybrid P90X info.

To everyone else - love, thinking about you but no time to reply. It's the crappy work thing. It feels like today is Mon not Tues.

Apparently my body is in desperate need of sleep, as I have now overslept for 2 days in a row. I got up in time to squeeze in some 30 day shred, since apparently I function WAY better throughout the day if I workout in the morning. I was worthless yesterday, just kind of dragging all day, until I worked out. How great is that? My body basically needs it at this point in time. Awesome. Anyway, I'm going to get my 5 mile run in after work (its supposed to be like 68 and sunny - could there be better runing weather?!).

Chris and I made grilled shrimp tacos last night with the most amazing salsa - we grilled corn on the cobb, scallions, and poblano peppers, and then shucked the corn, chopped the peppers and the scallions, and added choppoed grape tomatoes, cilantro, avocado, and garlic. A little dash of EVOO and bam - delicious. The salsa was so smokey and awesome from the grilled pieces in it. So good. We also drank our growler of apricot wheat beer we got over the weekend. Its the best fruit beer I have ever had. Not too sweet, just really fresh and wonderful. It was a perfect "end to summer weekends" meal.

Rain, I agree with Amy, your time on the 5k doesn't matter, it just matters that you did it. That is AWESOME! Congrats and keep it up! You have a place that you can just get a pumpkin coffee black?! I've only ever heard of them being in a pumpkin spice latte, which I'm sure are terrible for me. I haven't had one yet, and I'm nervous to even splurge, because it will be like pandora's box and I'll drink them constantly, which probably won't go so well for this whole weight loss thing.

Victoria, that is a serious, serious burn you had rockin'! Tell DH to calm down already! You should post pics of your yard so we can all see the fruits of your labor. Tonight when I get home I'll put together my P90X hybrid schedule and send it your way. Its sort of a 1/2 marathon training/P90X mash up, which I think you'll like.

Amy, that Alice costume is incredible and you are going to look amazing in it. I love that you guys will all be movie themed. I have friends that throw a big Halloween party every year, but they usually manage to pick the same weekend that we are at my parents house pumpkin carving, so we can't go. If it ever works out and Chris and I can go, we are totally going as Captain America (him) and Thor (me). I know I should be someone like Black Widow or something, but I sort of adore Thor and think it would be funny. Plus I'd get to see how I'd look as a blond (I'm guessing terrible is the answer, btw).

Jessi, welcome! Glad to have you! I agree with Amy, I can't imagine not being able to eat some sort of grain - that will be intense. Good for you for making the committment to improve your health prior to attempting to have a baby. I'm sure it will make the whole process so much easier, plus you'll be so much healthier for your kids! That's awesome.

Megan, I'm also nervous about Friday weigh-in after Labor Day shenanigans. I'm really hoping to bust my butt this week so that I still post a loss. We'll see how that works out.

Bobbie, sodium IS the devil. I kinda hate it. I hate tracking it, I hate how easily it makes my weight fluctuate. I hate it.

Sarah, I agree with both you and your husband. Pumpkin and bacon are two of the greatest things ever created. And syrup. I'm kinda like Buddy from Elf - maple syrup is sort of delicious on anything. I guess I have a really big salty/sweet combo thing - which is why its so hard for me to eat popcorn and not have M&Ms. Having one without the other just feels wrong. Can I also say that you are a superstar when it comes to running?! Seriously, I love that you just casually drop that you ran 10.5 miles. After I finish a long run, I basically go around and tell everyone. People at work are probably so annoyed with me because I'll walk up them and say "guess how far I ran today?" just so I can tell them. Anyway - you are a rockstar and I hope to one day be as cool as you.

Lacey, I forgot to tell you that all the food you are making for the week sounds really delicous. I would like you and Amy to move into my house and just cook for me all the time.

Alright, I suppose that gets me pretty well caught up with you wonderful ladies. Have a splendid day!

Go "away" for a holiday weekend, and not only does the thread flip but there are 4 pages to catch up on? Good lord.

Okay, admittedly I forgot to post weight yesterday because of the holiday. That being said, I am just gaining, gaining, gaining. 230.2. After a holiday weekend of eating lots of crap, I'm not at all surprised. Hell, after a month of eating lots of crap, I'm not at all surprised. I'm tremendously disappointed in myself though. Like, totally disgusted.

I'm waiting for you ladies to kick me out because of a lack of commitment. I seriously contemplated disappearing from here for a bit out of embarrassment. But that's just not cool.

That weigh in was a bit of a wake up call though. I've packed lunch for today, intend to track everything, and I need to start exercising again. So hopefully, I can have a bit of a cleansing week and get back on track.

My my, what a depressing post. :sad: I'll try to read through the thread today and do a long individual post.

Okay... all caught up I think! I read the last page of the last thread and quickly read through this thread!

Kerry, your family's Halloween plans sound AWESOME! My friends generally take care of the Halloween season for me. One friend has a pumpkin carving party. It was originally just him, his now wife, me, and whoever I was dating at the time, but now it's become a big event. Another friend of mine has been hosting a weekend-long "Halloween Film Festival" at his house for going on 12 years now (I've only known him for about 6), so that's always great too. In the past, someone always had a Halloween party too, but my friends are all having kids now so nobody wants to host it. That being said, with Joe in the picture now, one of his good friends has a birthday on the 30th so always has a Halloween/Birthday party. Also, those shrimp tacos sound delicious! My apartment complex's grill has been broken for about a month now, so I miss grilling.

Amy, let me just say, the crack wraps are a big hit. I made one for me and Joe on Saturday, then my brother came over to hang out and hadn't eaten, so I made him one, then made myself another one yesterday... yeah. I need more hummus. That Halloween costume looks amazing!

Megan, you take back what you said about cream cheese frosting! TAKE IT BACK!

Kendal, it's so cute that Mr. Reunion's kiddo asked if you were part of the family. I probably would have said "ask your dad." haha I was going to say that the ex-wife is probably being particularly nuts about you because Eric is really serious about you and she probably is very intimidated by that, but Amy pretty much captured my thoughts exactly.

Victoria, HGTV is my newest obsession. I cannot even count how many episodes of Househunters or Househunters int'l I've watched lately.

Hosanna, keep letting us know about C25K. I've been thinking about trying it out, but I always get crazy asthmatic and the heartrate goes to the 180s (if the machine is to be believed) when I actually run, so I'm kinda wary about it.

Hallie, I am a bad person and avoided all social networking for the most part this weekend, so happy belated birthday!

Lacey, thanks for letting me know I'm not alone, seriously. I'm feeling tremendously down on myself! Let me know how the Dr. goes. I'm always curious what sort of feedback they give. With my PCOS and thyroid issues, I'm already on pills that are supposed to help with weight loss, but not so much. Also, she prescribed B-12 shots because my bloodwork came back to show I was deficient. That's supposed to help with metabolism as well, but yeah... not seeing much there either. Also, don't get me started on Joe going out till the break of dawn. It usually happens on Wednesdays (they're his Fridays) and all I ask is that he text me to let me know when he gets home ok (when he does it, he just stays at his apartment because he goes out on that side of town) and apparently that's just TOO much to ask and I'm crazy paranoid worry-girl.

Jessi, welcome to the group! I think that having a baby is a great reason to get healthy, and I'd be curious to hear more about the midwife thing. I just watched The Business of Being Born and it's really making me re-think how I'd want to give birth and such in the future.

That's a crazy long post! Just to update what I actually did over the weekend... Took Friday off and Joe and I made tacos for dinner. He burned the meat, burned my taco shells... we were quite pissy at each other but then totally laughed it off. Saturday, made enchilada soup using Lacey's posted recipe and it is CRAZY delicious. I switched a green bell pepper (gross) for a poblano, and it's really great. We spent the rest of the day being bums and playing video games and watching Netflix. Sunday, I went to a wedding with Joe, one of his friends for once, and managed to wear a dress that I bought when I was at my lowest in 2006 and it wasn't uncomfortable and didn't look too tight, despite the recent crap eating. Yesterday, Joe had to work and when he came home he went straight to bed sick, so I watched 9 episodes of True Blood, which was aiiiiiiight, and finished up the latest Dresden novel, which was great.

Now... back to work I go!

Rikki- I have plantar faciitis in my left foot. It sucks. It's why I gave up working out for the past 3 months and am just now getting back to it. It was so bad I could not put any weight on my foot in the mornings after an evening run the previous night. It's been inconvient, but I went to my doctor, and then to a podiatrist to get it better. I got 2 cortisone shots and a pair of custom orthotics made. Not cheap, but when insurance didn't pay for everything, the podiatrist adjusted what I owed so I only ended up paying about $300 out of pocket. The exercise the podiatrist told me to do is wall push ups, but with a 1-2 inch block under the ball of my foot. It helps stretch the calves, which helps the faciitis relax and stretch out (supposed to do 30 push ups twice a day).

And good for you for doing the yard work!! Quit being so down on yourself. Weight loss is totally a mental game and you are doing great! Be proud of your accomplishments!

Lacey: I am normally pumpkin ALL the way but that picture looked like a pumpkin vomited all over dog food or something. Ew.

Rikki: I have plantar fasciitis in my left foot as well. I have really high arches and I originally strained the fascia during a 5K run and then I NEVER let it heal so it just got worse and worse until it created a bone spur in my heel and I just had it removed about a month ago. If you have fasciitis, get it treated or you will just get worse.

Nava: Yay for crack wraps and YAY for True Blood. I was so happy that Marni bought it and then she freaking possessed Lafayette and I was so bummed - that last episode was pretty intense!! BTW, you can't just quit us - not possible. We'd hunt you down. Don't make us prove it!

Kerry: If you are tired, you should sleep and not feel guilty. You've been pounding your body pretty hard for MONTHS, you probably need a bit of a break. Don't feel bad about it.

Rain: A pumpkin coffee is worth the calories in my book.

Victoria: Feel better - TOM sucks!!!

So I just finished with my initial parent-teacher conference with Gabe's new teacher for the year. (He's home schooled but through a program that assigns teachers so I'm not all on my own doing this) According to his test scores, he reads and does math at a 5th grade level. I think my brain checked out of math somewhere around 6th grade, so that means he will very quickly pass my mathematical abilities.

Anvy0503 - Watching calories at the moment, until grocery shopping Friday. SO impatient to start. At least attempting to be reasonably cautious in what I'm eating, but I definitely had a Nutty Bar for breakfast. :P And, thank you for the welcome. I, too, love Halloween, and am super-excited though I don't know what I'm going to do. :P Fall in general gets me excited.

pinbotchick - Thanks! I'm jealous you have a yard to go do work in!!!

Rain - I'm not a coffee drinker at all, but pumpkin coffee sounds intriguing. I just discovered the deliciousness that is a Pumpkin/Graham Slam milkshake last week, only to not be able to have it anymore. I think once a month, I'll cheat if I've done good.

Kerri -OMGCAPTAINAMERICANDTHOR!!!! You may just be my hero. I am such a comic nerd.

Kristina - what day is the normal weigh-in day?

Nava - What would you like to know about the midwife thing? I'd be glad to share whatever I know. The Business of Being Born was an excellent movie; I also recommend Pregnant In America (which is on Netflix). I've had 2 hospital births and would never, ever, ever do that again - I'd give birth unassisted before I'd go back to a hospital, I'm so adamant about it.

Rikki - Why the high heel hate? :O I'm short, so I LOVE like 4"+ heels... but I walk to work, and heels on gravel in the alleys along the way is pretty dangerous, considering my balance SUCKS :P

Lacey - Pumpkin smoothies sounds incredible, and I bet I can have those. O.O You're amazing.

I should probably mention ahead of time, if I sometimes say something that sounds awkward or even potentially rude (generally, it's just the questions I ask, not realizing it's not "socially acceptable"), please forgive me. I have Asperger's Syndrome, and don't always realize that I'm being that way.

Thank you everyone for the happy birthday's!!!!!!!!!!! I stayed out of trouble (for the most part) I went to the casino and won $870...not a bad 18th birthday if you ask me. Oh, and I ate crap and was merry. heck yes.

Bobbie: Hiya! hhahaha, what is my energy like?

Hosanna: I love your profile picture!

Pam: At least you tried behaving on the tour of foods, right!? Psssh, it is a holiday weekend so it is all good.

Lacey: I the dress from JCPenny!

Amy: I have had wine before (a few sips with my mama's knowledge), the only thing that stops me from drinking it is I'm not legal and it has a BUTT LOAD of calories. It sounds like you had fun at the friend's house!

Kerry: I hate the White Sox! Is going to a Tigers game fun? Ahhhhhh, that is on my bucket list when I get to college!

Rain: Ohhhhh my goodnessss! You're on W5D1 of C25K!? You're my hero! I am on W2D2 but I don't do it on a regular basis. Any tips on how to keep going/sticking with it? Do you know how many calories you usually burn after it? I can't figure out how many calories I usually burn. Grrrr...so I just put 150 calories because I am lame like that.

Jessi: Welcome! These ladies rock my world, for realllll! :flowerforyou:

Kendal: The blog story made me giggle, especially the "low impact workouts" part about possibly posting it. Grrrr, I can't wait until it's my turn for the fun.

Yuckkkyyy, I am the only one with a major gain this week. You ladies are my inspiration!!!!!!!!!! :flowerforyou:

Nava: Thank you! Sometimes I advoid social networking all together for long periods of time, we both bad people! :laugh:

*************TMI ALERT*********************

Last night I had BM issues, and everything decided to come out.
Therefore, this morning when I weighed my self I went down 3.1 pounds. Sweet. Right after weekend weekly weigh-in.

**************TMI DONE**********************

Sigh. Is it summer yet? I won't be able to get an anymore because the water park is closed now for good! BOO!

Ummmmm, I feel pretty. I like feeling pretty. Someone called me beautiful and said they could notice that I am slimming down. :blushing:

Thank you ladies. I would be happy with a small loss....I'm not greedy!

Jess, I hate heels because they hate my feet. I have wide flinstone feet and just like to wear some Dr. SCholls comfort shoes! Sexy I know.

This is a Public Service Announcement: Wearing clean socks on a freshly waxed floor while carrying an 'almost' 2 year old will result in a very bruised tailbone, a sore shoulder, and an excited toddler who wants to do it all again. Use caution.

**beeeeeeeeeeeep**

Amy - I might get hold of some ankle strapping. It's a good idea. I also LOVE that the Kid is going as Harry Potter - I am a MAJOR HP nerd!

Victoria - Trust me, i'll be living vicariously through you lot when we've got heat waves of 110+F for two weeks straight in summer... seriously, there is nothing like an australian summer. Brutal!

Kerry - That's awesome that your body is accustomed to the exercise now!!

Kristina - I did post my weight!! 220.9. But it's ok that's not on the list... being up a few lb and all :grumble:

Nava - don't even THINK about leaving! We're here to support you and kick your butt to stay on track! sounds like you had a lovely weekend.

Jess - YAY for jumping right in! You'll be one of us before you know it! Also, don't worry about sounding rude, or even being 'socially acceptable'... we've had super long conversations about "lady-grooming" "low impact aerobics" and anything else "socially unacceptable" sounds like you'll fit right in! I'm also super envious of anyone who can wear heels... I'm about 5'10", and other half is a little shorter... bye bye heels... also, i wear a size 13 so finding shows to fit is a NIGHTMARE!!

Hailie - thanks :ohwell: glad you had an awesome birthday!

WiggleSarah - Sorry to hear about your health issues sweetness! Good for you not letting it get you down! Oooh, and ouchies on the stack!! :frown:




As for me, i'm SO sore after yesterday's attempt at running... which i think is a good thing? I think i might take a rest day from exercise today... we'll see... i'll probably end up going for a walk this afternoon, but it's meant to rain so we'll see.

Also, do any of you ladies take any supplements for energy? I take a multivitamin, fish oil and calcium supplement every day, and i am just SO tired ALL the time! It really upsets me. I know it's nothing to do with being unwell or anything, because i went to the doc about it earlier in the year, and got a full range of blood-work done and everything came back normal... so i dunno!!
Just wondering if any of you lot can reccommend anything!

I'm off to Teags' place for coffee soon. Looking forward to it! Haven't been over for coffee in ages!!

ALSO! This is my new favourite thing in the WORLD!

http://www.easiyo.com/easiyo-product-details/yogurt-maker-silver.html

We bought one the other day because some of the girls at work were raving about them. We go through yoghurt at a rate of knots...Isaac is a yoghurt feind. THis is so awesome because you can buy the packets in bulk, and when you run out of yoghurt, just put more on to "cook"! It's so freakin easy!!! And convenient! LOVE it!!

omg babyworms is an awesome name. I'm jealous of tall people - I'm only 5'5 1/2", and I'm a climber so I can even reach things in the top cupboards! I'm too stubborn to let someone get things for me most of the time, too. I know about the big feet issue though - I wear an 11ish, and I have wide feet, so finding cute shoes that fit is SO hard. Not sure how old your little one is, but if you're making yogurt at home, maybe making cheese isn't a far step? I'd be glad to share the how-to with you, it's SO much fun!