200+ Sheddin' the Stuffin

Hi, Im trisha, Im 20 years old 224 pounds and 5'9"
I've been married to my husband for almost 3 weeks now and we have a beauitufl little girl who's 3 and a half months old

Amy, I just had the Spicy Peanut African Stew for lunch! And for lunch yesterday, and for dinner the day before that. Have I mentioned THANK YOU for introducing me to Peas? Also, you are seriously awesome for doing P90X even though you haven't been feeling well. That's great dedication!

Kristina, I'm sorry it's been tough for you lately...I know that it's hard getting back on track, but I have 100% faith in you. If there is anything I can do to help be more supportive to you, just let me know!

Annette, thanks! The hip is better, but it still freaks out a bit when I run on it, so I'm looking to find some new cardio options for awhile. Hopefully this isn't a permanent thing!

Lacey, it's been hard for me to find a calorie intake in which I get a consistent loss too. What I'm doing right now has gotten me losses pretty consistently lately (knock on wood) except for during TOM. I think I posted this already, but I got my intake suggestion from this calculator: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

Megan, my ex used to love fishing and he took me out a couple of times...it's exciting when you actually catch something! I never wanted to take the fish off of the hook though. Poor little guy.

Jessi, interesting about the deer thing. I have a friend who was out trail running in the early morning and a deer actually ran into her! It got scared, ran straight to her, and bumped her off of the trail. How crazy is that?!

Victoria, you're going to kick this challenge's butt!

Katheryne, thanks! I definitely plan on framing a copy of it. I'm thinking it would look nice on my desk here at work! I'm with your hubby on the mushroom thing...I can deal if they are chopped and in something or if there is not too many of them in something, but overall they are not for me...

Nava, I should've added the sodium thing to my list! I struggle with it so much, even when cooking my own food and not eating packaged stuff. I've gotten better, but some days....yeesh. Especially when I go out to eat, which I love to do. I'm glad you had a great weekend!

Kendal, if I can run for 30 minutes at a time then I know you can too! I was always the one dying in gym class in school, never being able to run the mile. I am also the slowest runner in the world and I NEVER thought that I'd actually be able to do 30 minutes. I still can't believe it!

Bobbie, I've been wondering how much Thanksgiving will throw me off too....luckily it's only one day!

Keshia, welcome! You should definitely check out that cookbook; it's my new favorite, thanks to Amy! I've been a vegetarian for about 14 years now, but actually have become a pescatarian in the past year or so....I eat fish or seafood once a week or once every couple of weeks, but usually I still say I'm a vegetarian when people ask me because most people have no idea what a pescatarian is. :laugh: Also, I tried Just Dance 3 this past weekend and then I immediately bought Just Dance. Love it! I lived in northern Virginia (Fairfax County) for my high school years until two years ago when I moved to West Virginia. Norfolk is a fun town! Not far from Williamsburg either, where I used to love to visit when it's all decked out for Christmas!

Kiki, adding 10 minutes to your routine is totally doable, and a great goal. If you're looking for new meals to make, I highly recommend that cookbook that Amy mentioned! Love love love it!!

Kristy, welcome! My starting weight was 232 also, and with the help of these wonderful ladies I've lost 20 pounds since June. I'd like for the weight to come off a little faster, but hey, it's coming off! I did 30 Day Shred too, and am now doing Ripped in 30. I hate to tell you this, but 30DS doesn't get any easier after day 2. :laugh: You can do it though!

Trisha, Julie, Marie, and anyone else I may have missed, welcome! Jump right in!

I totally love the name of the new thread. It cracks me up. Thanks again Nava!

So apparently last challenge I didn't actually make any goals. Say wha?! Yeah I know. It was when work was so crazy busy and I didn't post for I think the first like 10 pages or something awful. So... we'll make some goals for this challenge. I'm taking last challenge as a win, because I saw 15-something on the scale, and I completed my 1/2 marathon. Success!

So, this challenge...

1. Get back to 7 days a week of workouts. Even if one of those days is just X stretch. I think my flexibility has dwindled a bit, and I blame that on less yoga and less X stretch as of late.
2. 156. I'm realising that the days of crazy loss are over, and if I can just lose 4 pounds in the next 6 weeks, with pumpkin carving/food craziness happening this weekend, plus Thanksgiving, I'll be happy.
3. Work on increasing my running speed. I'm basically going to restart my 1/2 marathon training, but just try to be faster.
4. Strength, strength, strength. P90X2 is coming, and I want to be all kinds of ready for it.
5. Food-wise... this may seem silly, but I need to chew less gum. I've become addicted. Like, hardcore. Today already, I think I've chewed like 12 pieces of sugarfree stride. Eek.

For the newbies, my name is Kerry, and I'm pretty sure I joined this group in March or April of 2011. I'm 28 and married to the greatest guy ever, Chris, coming up on 3 years. I started on MFP in January of 2011 at around 240 pounds (I'm 5'8 1/2"), and have busted my butt down to 159. This group of girls is hands down the best thing about MFP for me. They are all such incredible people and have inspired and supported me in ways I didn't even know were possible. I love them.

Kristy, welcome! One of my best friend's name is Kristy, so you'll be easy for me to remember! I like your goals... regular soda is the DEVIL!

Hello Trisha and congrats on the marriage!

Keshia, hi there! I'm completely with you on not taking on anything extra... Chris and I are a no kids, no pets, no plants kind of household. Its hard enough to take care of just the 2 of us! I'm excited to hear more about your eating habits... I really enjoy fish, but hardly ever cook it.

Amy, I would imagine being sick would make the strength training P90X days somewhat grueling. You are so awesome for powering through! I feel like I have the weakest shoulders in the world. I always feel the burn in them really easily and really quickly.

Hi Julie! Tell us more about you!

Kristina, I am SO happy that you filled us all in on everything that has been going on with you. We all love you so much and are here for you in whatever capacity you need us to be. You'll figure out the work/life balance thing, I promise. Just remember that at the end of the day, its what you eat that matters. Start there. Don't beat yourself up if you can't find the time for running and Insanity and all that madness. Just watch what goes into your mouth to start. Again, glad to at least have some idea of what's going on with you, and hope that it gets less stressful soon!

Annette, I TOTALLY noticed your menu planning goal, and its an AWESOME one. I think one of the easiest ways to stay on track for a day is to plan it out in advance. I also blame this on why my Saturdays are always so ugly.

Kendal, You will totally accomplish running for 30 minutes straight. You are a warrior, after all. The badges are so cute! I tried to add it to my signature, but MFP said I had too much in there already. WTF?

Pam, I'm lovin' your goals. You got this!

Nava, glad you and Joe had such a lovely weekend!

I have to go out to a customer's house in about 15 minutes who is a total douche. Seriously. I'm actually taking someone else with because I'm scared to be alone with the guy. He's THAT creepy. Ick.

Pam...Thanks for being honest about 30DS. I may be stuck in level 1 the entire 30 days. I'm hurting from head to toe at the moment and am afraid I won't be able to get out of bed in the morning. 20 pounds is Awesome! I've decided that I'm going to concentrate more on my goals and habits, which are (were) really bad. Too much focusing on the scale usually sets me up for failure. It's nice to meet you

Amy....Really?! Wichita is where I'm from, born and raised. I now live 140 miles North in the middle of nowhere. I'm 50 miles NW of Manhattan, Kansas. I still go to Wichita quite a bit, since that is where my family and all of my friends live. I also love the hills and trees of Kansas, especially with all of the leaves turning right now. I bet you miss the seasons too Today it's 80 degrees outside and the cool front is moving in right now and it's supposed to be 50 degrees tomorrow.

Kerry...All of us Kristys are pretty special It's nice to meet you.

Hello Everyone,

I am completely new to this..not sure how it all works but I think I could really use a challenge. Can I join in?

I am finding motivation difficult and using no time as an excuse all the time. I am 46, mother of 2 18 yr old girl and 22 yr old son. Grandmother of 10 mo old baby girl and have an amazing man.

I was 298 lbs, got down to 193 with Jenny Craig then was laid of and couldnt afford it. Was rear ended and used my accident as an excuse to not work out (just becasue I couldnt work out the way I had) and the lbs started packing on...funny how quick they come back when the took so long to loose. So now I am 239 again and need to do something now before I hit 300. I know support and accountability and keys to my success...so her I am.

Ready to do this for the rest of my life.

My goals at this time

1) work out 2-3 times a week (actually use the gym membership again that I am paying for).

2) Log Log and Log

3) Watch closely and limit my liquid calories and be honest with them in my logging (girls nights with a bottle of wine needs to be without the bottle)

4) 12/1/11 230 lbs

5) Dont expect to much to fast - take it one day at a time and do not give up!!

Sooo glad to be here..hope I am not to late for this challenge!!

WAY TO GO EVERYONE WHO LOST AND MET GOALS LAST CHALENGE!!

**Final moments of last thread**

Amy - Thanks! My leg is still a bit sore, but going for a walk today will hopefully make it alright again and i can do day 2 later today at the gym! Also, just by the way, if you were in australia i would TOTALLY take Loki for you.

Kendal - Every year?? It was not as awful as i expected, and i'll be fine with getting it every two... but every year?? Mental!! Also - Zombies are MEANT to be slow and stupid. Any zombies who can run or climb steps are stupid zombies. Funniest thing ever, the other night we watched Super 8 (speilberg film) and in it a kid is making a zombie film, and to kill the zombies they're shooting them... i found myself yelling at the screen "You can't shoot a zombie! You have to remove the head or destroy the brain!" You know... because EVERYONE knows that! Sheesh...

**And onto this thread**

Pam - Intention totally counts!!

Nava - FEEDING GIRAFFES??? SO JEALOUS!! Your saturday reminds me of the Lou Reid song "Perfect Day". Do you know it? You should go listen to it if you don't. It's going to be our first dance at the wedding.

Katheryne - Make your own pizza! We use lebanese breads. My favourite is caramelised onion, super-light sour cream, potato and cheese on lebanese bread. I could live on it and a whole pizza is less than 400cal! and HOLY MOTHER OF GOD TWELVE???? Not sure how these things work in your country, but we're only required to get them done every two years from when we first have sex. So really i should have had my first one two years ago...

Amy - I don't like that people with different dietary requirements are forgotten at parties :frown: We're having vegitarian pizzas at my wedding, as well as some gluten free, and our wedding cake is gluten free as well. I like to cater for everyone!

Kerry - Sorry to hear you're scared of the guy you have to go see!

Kristina - Hi girl! Thanks for everything you do for the group!

Okie Doke!

Goals for LAST challenge

- lose 13lb. This would take me to my first mini-goal of 207lb - which is the lowest weight i've managed to reach in the last year, inbetween gaining and losing. I want to be there again! - FAIL, but i knew it was very very ambitious. Shoot for the moon, even if you miss you'll land among the stars, hey? I'm stoked with 8lb!

- Go on the Wii fit EVERY DAY. - FAIL

- Find a way to be happy in my job. (i know this is not weight related, but it's super important from a health perspective.) - WIN!

Goals for this challenge

- Lose 5lb. That first minigoal is in sight!!
- c25k. Well, the first six weeks of it!
- Weights training at least 2-3 times a week
- *longer term goal that i just realised is reachable* ONEderland by my wedding! I can totally do it!!

I've learned recently that my work schedule is so packed that i can't really make definite goals as far as how many times a week i do things, but i can try!! I think these are realistic goals, and at least we don't have TG or Halloween here to bugger up my efforts!!

RE-INTRO!
I live in a rural centre in south australia with my Other Half and our silly pups (chihuahua crosses). I love them all so much, and i'd be lost without them. I met the Other Half on the internet nearly two years ago, and after dating for a while, i moved out here to be with him. My parents live in Tasmania, so i don't get to see them very often, so my man and the pups are my family.
I am getting married in January, I am SUPER excited about it, and we're looking to buy a house in the new year. Hopefully this will mean another dog as well - Hopefully something labrador or Golden retrieverish. I need more dogs like some people need more babies. We are content being a dog family, not so keen on the idea of kids, but there's time for us to change our minds.


**Welcome to the newbies!!**
Minor heads up... This group does not believe in "too much information". We revel in sharing the fact that we are involved in "low impact aerobics" and somehow, every challenge i've been in has at some point come to indepth conversations about our LadyBits... And i've just realised that it's usually beacuse of me... It's ok though, i'm a nurse!!

Hey my name is Kelsey and I'm new to MFP and have no idea how to do these challenges, please bare with me!
It looks like I need to say my starting weight and then post some goals? How long is the challenge, 6 weeks?

I am certainly looking forward to this, I've never done anything like this before!!

Kelsey

Crap! I still haven’t caught up with the last six pages of the OLD thread!

Here’s my re-intro:
My name is Tasha, I’m 29, married to a marine, and living in Hawaii (aaah rough life!) I don’t have kids, but work in retail, tutor homeless kids, captain a coed kickball team for charity, and am going to school for my MBA.

Newbies – Welcome! This group is the best!!!

Goals:
I will post those tomorrow!


To the gals who wanted more of my life story in the last thread (Annette, Jessi, Kerry et al):

My husband is a Chief Warrant Officer in the Marine Corps and has been away either deployed or training for a good chunk of our relationship. We’ve lived apart for most of our relationship because he didn’t want me stuck on a base in the middle of the desert in California when he wasn’t even there most of the time when I could be finishing my degree in Tucson and then pursuing my career in San Francisco. He’s been on three tours to Iraq and two to Afghanistan, but when he was home and not training we saw each other about every other weekend because he or I (mostly he) would drive the 6-8 hours to see each other. When we moved to Hawai’i, we got two solid years of living together before he started deploying again, and then in the next two and a half years he was home a little under 6 months total. Despite being gone SO much, he is the best husband in the whole world and I am in bliss when he is home. He is deploying to Afghanistan again in May, so will be gone for a few months off and on in preparation training.

To cope with being apart so much, I stay very, very busy. I used to be an executive with Macy’s and loved my job. I had around 35 employees, every day was different and stressful and exciting, and my peers felt like family. In my last assignment, I was in charge of Sleepwear, Swimwear, Lingerie, and Children’s. (My girls were the ones who rehabilitated customers from horrifying bra fittings; people would buy half a dozen bras at a time from me and my top girls because we made it less scary and way more fun). I had the 15th highest sales volume in the region (out of several hundred), and most of my colleagues were my senior by 10-20 years. I’d put in 60 hour workweeks (and weekends), and then to unwind I would hit the night scene in Honolulu and keep going til 2 or 4 in the morning, 5 or 6 nights a week. We have a vibrant social scene in Honolulu: art shows and independent film fests, fashion shows and yacht parties and hoity toity lux charitable events, and DJs who will keep you dancing in club Vegas style until the sun is ready to come up. I was on every promoter’s VIP list because I’d bring a crowd wherever I went. Even during the day we can party: we have polo matches and beach barbecues and boat parties at the sandbar in the middle of the ocean, and amazing pool parties worthy of Vegas. And the food in Honolulu is great too! There is such a mix of cultures here; of COURSE the food is amazing. I became friends with waaay too many foodies and restaurateurs and sommeliers, and as many of you have said, it is much harder to control your eating when you are drinking. Life was fun but all that partying is hard on the body, as my present plumpness can tell you.

A couple years ago, I stepped down from my job. I felt like a hit a plateau at work (I couldn’t be promoted any higher while staying in Hawai’i) and I was frustrated with the world because my husband decided to stay in the Marine Corps (he was supposed to get out after four years… then after eight years… now he’s in it til he retires I guess). I was kinda like, FINE, you want my husband to stay in the military, I’m going to stop working and let him support me. I didn’t actually stop working though, I still work 20-30 hours a week - but in a much lower stress merchandising capacity, and my job ends when I’m off the clock, unlike my previous position. Moving to this position was good because I could take a couple weeks off at a time to visit my husband while he was at certain trainings in the Midwest and on the East Coast, whereas I never would have been able to take that much time off as an executive. I was angry at the government for the mess they got us stuck in overseas, and for the mess they made with the financial system at home, and I blamed them for keeping my husband away from me so long.

My anger superseded my inclinations towards superficial partying. Don’t get me wrong, I still like to go out and have a good time, but now it’s more like 2 nights a week instead of 6. I started taking classes at UH and learned what I could about contemporary domestic and international issues affecting us, about the Middle East, and about Hawaii. I went to seminars with academics around town and got into heated discussions about the Arab Spring and US involvement. I wrote letters to government officials; I’ve even gone to meet Vice President Joe Biden with the intentions of talking to him about changes to the military retirement system, but it wasn’t more than a photo op, he was getting hustled back to his plane after pictures. I became hopeless and lost faith in our political system, watching corporate fatcats and their government cronies getting richer while everyone else was getting poorer.

I made a decision that even though I couldn’t change the world, I could make a change by strengthening my own community, helping those who cannot seem to beat the broken system, working on educating and providing hope to the youth. I’ve always given money as generously as I could to charities because I never really had time to give like many of you ladies, but the luxury of working not-so-many hours allows me to do more now. Although the working not-so-many hours means a lot less money to give now, haha. I joined the Junior League, a sorority of (mostly) amazing women who have the common goal of helping the community by empowering women and girls. The event that we just had was to promote breast cancer awareness. Through the Junior League I began working with the Institute of Human Services, a homeless shelter in downtown Honolulu who is doing some really wonderful things. It is frustrating because it seems like some women join the league just for the networking opportunities, and not as much for the charitable works.

I am also going to school for my MBA. My logic is: if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em, and THEN beat ‘em. I am trying to learn what businesses are doing these days, and trying to figure out how to fight corruption from the inside. If I can’t figure it out (unfortunately a highly likely variable), I want to be able to make a ton of money and start my own non-profit to help those affected by corporate/government greed. I’ve been profiling a remarkable company that is profitable but also does amazing work building youth leaders in a disadvantaged community – I’m hoping to take their business model and adapt it to other companies. The MBA program is a lot harder than I expected though, and this month has been tough.

Okay I think that I’ve talked about me long enough, now to catch up on the old thread:

Amy – I’m so sad you have to give Loki up. Did you pick his name before or after you realized he was such a troublemaker? I’m glad you are finally getting over your tummy bug but now you have a cold??? Aww. Your Saturday sounded fun though

Lacey – My username has been the same hehe. It was remnants from a fun night out where I turned into a complete mess at the end of the night because we didn’t stop for pancakes. Thoroughly embarrassing. Of course my husband told the story to all of our friends the next day, so when I showed up (still feelin pretty rough) everyone yelled, “Hey Pancakes!” and the nickname stuck. I DID exercise – burned 400 calories yay! OOOOoooh noooo for pink eye And yaaaay for Princess Leia Buttercup. What a cute name hehe!

Megan – Yay you’re so close to ONEderland!

Kendal – I love the story of this group’s start. Crossing my fingers for your house! I hope your pulled muscles loosen up soon.

Kerry – Ewwww at your friend’s new fiancé! Jerksauce. I hope your work doesn’t get too crazy with half your managing staff gone. Yay for the 150’s and the beer festival sounds awesome! I think that you will be great at Power Yoga – how did you like it? I loved your proposal story and how he kept you guessing Your weekend sounded awesomely fun, even the unhealthy parts

Katheryne – Water Zumba sounds great!

Hailie – I know this info is too late, but if we’re talking about padding papers there is one trick I learned last year that is kind of amazing. Resize your periods to a bigger font. It changes the spacing just a wee bit but it is practically imperceptible. It can give you that one last push to make your page limit if you need it. Katheryne’s trick is great too, and Kendal and Lacey are right as well. It’s easy to add extra lines in by saying, “According to such and such, who did this this and that, the fact is that blah blah blah.” Also, I’m kind of thinking that I should probably read Hunger Games now since everyone here is raving about it And I do have a facebook, it’s facebook.com/tashamajor. Let me know if you have trouble adding me, my FB has a lot of privacy restrictions and I may need to add you instead. I have to admit that I’m a makeup wearer – I love it and I know it makes a difference in the way I look and even though I hate that I can now never go to work without makeup on and people asking if I was “tired”, I felt that I could accomplish a lot more with it on. I don’t necessarily cake on foundation (I just use a light powder) but I do not like to go out without defining my eyebrows and mascara for sure. And the shadows and liners and blushers and bronzers… yay! I don’t wear lipstick though, just gloss. I know that as much as personal appearance shouldn’t matter, when you are trying to make a sale or inspire employees or assure people of your competence… it helps. It’s funny though, because different looks are good for different things. For instance, when I wore my hair down as a bartender, I made way more tips than wearing it up. But when I wore my hair down as a manager, people would assume I was younger and try to push me around more, so I always work it up in a simple bun. My girlfriend could totally rock eyeglasses and people took her more seriously when she wore those instead of contacts, but I would come off as too harsh so I always wore contacts. But I agree with the other girls, it’s all about your comfort level – that’s how much you should dress up or down.

Nava- I liked your image of penguins in tiny wool sweaters; thank you for sharing Congrats on the transfer, big changes like that are scary but London will be amazing! Long distance relationships are hard, I’m not gonna lie, but love can get you through it. And naughty phone calls, those help too

Victoria - I love that you were posting about jello shots WHILE you were on your bus trip! Your trip sounded like a blast – glad you didn’t go overboard though Alaska will be so much fun! It’s one of the places I’d like to visit someday. And I have never seen the Northern Lights so I am a little bit jealous.

Jessi/Hosanna – Haha I used to be so addicted to Angry Birds but I had to delete it because I wasn’t getting anything done!

Jessi – I would love to see a picture with the kitten and the bunnies! Your Friday workday sounded stressful, I hope this week will be better for you. Nerd sounds like a great and helpful guy, congrats I hope you feel better soon. Boo on missing out on the treadmill though!

Sarah (WnT) – Your Halloween decorations sound like so much fun! I am so glad you had a nice time with your friend on Friday night The helmet decorations were such a sweet thought! I literally laughed out loud about your bloated/gassy as bikram comment – I’m sure that’s not the first time it’s happened there. You should go back… but maybe reconsider what you eat the night before?

Pam – I LOVE YOUR PICTURES! You are so pretty and BF is so cute! Pretty dress, pretty hair How’s that hip doing? How was the 1950’s housewifing? I used to subscribe to a CSA when my friend would split it with me but then she moved and I don’t know anybody else who likes vegetables enough to do it lol. I miss it though; it was like Christmas every Monday when you’d open the box and think, “What the heck is this and how the heck do I cook it?!?!” Haha. I’m so disappointed that the water zumba wasn’t good for you – but way to go for being so awesome that you could breeze through it

Hosanna – I am so stoked you lost DESPITE your Hens’ weekend – way to go chickadee! Your response to Hailie’s question about SO’s was sooooo sweet I hope you let Isaac read it Happy you’re joining the gym. I think your story about distances is funny. On Oahu there’s a lot of that, “Oh but it’s so far” when it’s only twenty minutes away, and when I lived in the Bay Area I used to commute over an hour to and from work every day. But I catch myself saying stuff like that now too Six days straight is brutal, good luck with work! Buying a house will be soooo exciting – I’m happy and crossing my fingers for you! Congrats on your C25K And on not being preggers! I’ve had paps every year since I was 15 to get my birth control pills (yes I was a little precocious teenager)

Rikki – Woot woot way to go girl! Keep it up! I heart pea coats, the white one will be yours before you know it! I lived almost all my life in warm places and I hardly ever get to wear fall/winter stuff, but I still love the look

Sarah (Rain) – Wow your husband IS quite romantic – such a great story! Your wedding sounded beautiful The Phantom of the Opera was our first Broadway show too Awww your post makes me feel all mushy and gushy hehehe I’m happy for you.

Annette – Going Ape was NOT the kind of party I expected you to talk about– but sounds like a whole lotta fun! Great job on hitting all those challenges head on! I’m sure you burned a ton of calories too

Bobbie – Welcome back! I think your body wanted to keep losing weight even though you wanted a break Awesome! Congrats on your loss!

Crystal – Hi! How’s the not smoking coming? Yay for no preggers

Kristina – Thanks again for tracking us! How was your out of town trip??

Pam/Amy – you guys are cracking me up about spinning and “callouses”. I tried a spin class once too and man I am pretty sure I don’t want to detenderize down there either.

Pregnancy bug – AAAAAH STAY AWAY!

Zombie movies/shows – No thanks. I’m a huge scaredy cat. The Ring has ruined me for scary movies ever since it came out. Ugh I’m getting chicken skin just thinking about that movie. Yikes.

Haha that’s all I can do; gotta get back studying for my econ midterm in 3 hours!!!

Hehe thanks Bobbie!
I love that we start new every 6 weeks!

Good morning! I'm back to posting my calories in/ calories out/ deficit to help keep me honest and maybe get the weight loss going again. So here's my check in for Tuesday: burned 2903 cals/ ate 1835 cals/ 1068 calorie deficit.

Hosanna: Good luck with the house hunting! It's cool that you are thinking about your guests' nutritional needs when planning your menu. Is a gluten-free cake tasty??

Tasha: We picked the name Loki for the dog after we had him a few days so we already knew he was a bit of a trouble maker. You kind of make me want to move to Hawaii.

Bobbie: My Hubbs has got a sweet tooth like whoa. I've gotten used to fielding requests for yummy desserts that I mostly don't want to eat. I'm usually good with just a servings and then letting The Hubbs and The Kid eat the rest of it (or The Hubbs takes it to work to share with the peeps there - although now THOSE people have started requesting the recipes they like the best too).

Kelsey: Welcome! The challenge is 6 weeks long and you make up your own goals for that time period. Jump on in and start posting, we love meeting new people.

Tina: Welcome!

Pam: You must make the pumpkin cornbread and eat it with chili - you MUST!!!!

Kristy: We have all the seasons here in Germany so I'm not missing them.

Kerry: Does chewing all that sugar free gum give you any kind of stomach problems? Some people complain of gas and other issues with the artificial sweeteners in gum.

Lacey: Traveling really is a double-edged sword. It's cool to go to new places but then eating right and exercising becomes a bit of a pain. Also, I got a taste of what you people do for dinner on work trips (that French restaurant with your client was really the HIGHLIGHT of our Paris trip, it was really cool) and that yummy food and booze is definitely detrimental to the weight loss.

I'm dragging a bit today, I think my head cold is making for my chest as I've developed a bit of a cough (although my sinuses are clear now). I walked on the treadmill this morning (I'm afraid to run so early as my treadmill is right next to the wall I share with my neighbors and they don't even leave for work until after 9am so I'm not sure they want to hear me thumping around at 7am) while listening to a new audio book that I am completely enchanted with. The Night Circus - anybody here read it yet? It's lovely. I'll do my P90X later on with The Hubbs, hopefully it won't be as hard to get through tonight as it was last night.

Okay catchup time for new thread

Old Halloween goals:
1. Be a Halloween Hottie at 210 lbs – NOT MET, but technically I’m got til the 31st for that and I’m SO close!
2. Work out at least 4x/week - FAIL
3. Keep up my water consumption to fend off the cravings – MET! (For the most part; I still succumbed to SOME cravings but always got my 64oz in)
4. Keep up with my schoolwork! – MET! (Except for the midterm I probably just failed 4 hours ago, eww)
5. Get 6 hours of sleep at least 5 nights a week. MET! (For the most part; there was one week that I was right on the line with…)

NEW GOALS:
1. Lose some of that stuffing and get down to 205 lbs
2. Work out at least 3 times per week (excluding the week of my trip back home)
3. Everyday 64 oz of water to fend off cravings and make me hotter
4. LOG food at least 5 full days per week
5. Get 6 hours of sleep at least 5 nights a week

Kristina – I’m glad you’re back sister! Hopefully new guidelines mean less work and more chatting for you I hope you can find your balance with new job/Emma/fitness soon!

Pam – I totally think you can count intention – way to go on your goals! I’m so excited there are so many of us SO close to ONEderland – we’ll hit it by the New Year for sure yay! You are doing so great – thanks for being an inspiration!

Dino – Welcome! I’m sorry to hear about your family sadness, hope we can help!

Amy – I know you’ll make your goals this round – it was hard to focus when Paris was right in the middle of your challenge and you had all those things going on with Loki and sickness We have a new determination – let’s get it done before the holidays yay! Today was the first time I looked at that PeasandThankYou site – it’s so cute! Your Halloween party spread sounds scrumptious – I love Halloween parties! You SHOULD TOTALLY MOVE TO HAWAII it’s the best! Hawai’i no ka oi! When are you guys done in Germany? How is your cold? I hope it goes away quick! Way to go for pushing through the workout with it!

Marie – Welcome! Congrats on your loss so far! You and your family are doing great things – can’t wait to hear more about you and your life

Keshia – Welcome! Grad school has been super hard for me so you’ve got my sympathy there! What are you studying? Where are you from? Oops nevermind you just answered that in your next post haha. You’re going to love this group – this is the chattiest, most supportive group of lovelies I’ve never met! I think that your plant comment is funny; my husband kept a couple pots of herbs on our lanai (patio/balcony) but when he left, he was nervous I was going to forget about them and always reminded me to water them. He was like, “You have to think of these plants as kids, you wouldn’t forget to feed your kids would you? Because then we can’t have any kids if I think you’re going to starve them!” I was like ppppppbbbblttt at the thought of having kids, but I didn’t really want to kill the plants so I tried to remember to water them. But then we were having some renovations done in the master bathroom and the contractors left their equipment stacked up on the lanai in such a way that I couldn’t get to the plants for a few days (maybe a week and a half). Anyway, by the time I got to them, the poor things were covered in some kind of plaster and oh so dead. I tried to wash them off and kept watering hoping they would revive, buuuuut they wouldn’t. So now my husband says that I killed our kids. But in a funny way. Oooh I hope that wasn’t offensive. It was really funny. I DO want kids someday maybe… but I’d almost rather get a couple polo ponies instead. Husband says we can either buy a horse or have kids once I finish grad school. Honestly… I’m on the fence…

Bobbie – Way to go winner! Awesome job at meeting your goals and already hitting your 6 month goal! Your new goals are great, don’t forget to copy paste them to your sticky notes on your desktop Your story about fruits and desserts was cute; I wish I had less of a sweet tooth. I love EVERYTHING, fruit mixed in or not

Rikki – Awesome job lady!

Kendal – Muahahaha low impact aerobics. Rawr! Although… okay this is probably going to scare some of the newbies…. ***********TMI ALERT**********But I was insaaaaanely curious to see how much it would burn so I wore my chest strap heart rate monitor during a low impact aerobics sesh…. YEAH I wasn’t impressed with the burn. Am I doing it wrong? Lol I mean I KNOW I’m NOT doing it wrong but sheesh I think you have to really do some moves to get a decent burn. ********TMI OVER********
Anyway, I think that you did good on your goals last round and you’re going to kill it this round. Let’s break that 210 together!!!

Nava – What makeup line are you using now? I heart black eyeliner too for going out, rawr! So the last time I remember you posted about penguins in sweaters, and now you post about feeding baby giraffes, yay! I love your posts!! My brother actually got konked in the head by a mother giraffe once when we were doing a feeding thing from a platform. It was really funny but he was scared… he was probably like 7 or 8 then poor kid. Every once in awhile I’ll torment him with pictures of giraffes or stuffed animal giraffes hehehe. I’m horrible. We did get free passes, and it was a really cool zoo.

Katheryne – Sorry to hear the mushrooms didn’t work out, my husband hates them too. I used to, but am coming around now. I’m trying to coax him into trying more by feeding him deliciousness with truffled mac n cheese or other dishes with truffle oil and then working down (yes sooo not good for the diet or the wallet) and it kiiiinda works. He used to hate beans and tomatoes too but I got that out of him I’m such a good husband trainer hehehe.

Victoria – Yeah for meeting all those goals!!!

Jessi – The deer thing is curious, why are you terrified of them? Great job on meeting your goals btw, and crossing my fingers for your preggo test

Megan – Have fun trout fishing! I’ve never been so you’ll have to give us all the details!

Kiki – Hi girly good luck with midterms! You’ve still been logging so that’s great, catch up when you can Happy Birthday! What a great weekend for a birthday – I hope you love costumes Don’t sweat the 210. A slow, consistent loss is way better than the quick yo yoing down and up again. You are so good about logging, and you eat really clean, and you get your exercise in. You’ll hit it soon!

Jenn – I am so impressed that you’re still hanging in there on the no sweets thing. Way to go! I hope you can find a way to prioritize getting active; I know it’s super difficult trying to find that balance.

Annette – Yay for making your goals! Yaaaaay for all that cm loss!!!! You’ll get back on track with your 100 day challenge Just hop back on the wagon and keep going!

Julie – Welcome! Your goals sound great! Have you done a 5k before or is this your first? I think one of our members is doing the C25k now; it’s a 9 week program but maybe you two could keep each other accountable

Trisha – Welcome! Congrats on the new hubby and new baby!

Kristy – Welcome! You will love this group! I laughed at your description of rural America (Population 4).

Kerry – Those are great goals and you are an inspiration as always!!! How did the creepy customer visit go?

Lacey – Yay/boo for more work travel

Trina – Welcome!

Hosanna – Your homemade pizza sounds tasty! 8 lbs in 6 weeks is great girly – keep it up! And yaaaaay ONEderful Wedding! But am I reading this right, there is no Halloween in Australia? This is unacceptable, you should make it a tradition. I heart Halloween and costume parties and fun-ness! Maybe I just love dressing up. Well I just googled it and it says that you DO have Halloween there! Get on it girl! Ooops unless you are against it for religious/personal reasons, then forget I said anything I don’t mean to offend. Anyway… I think that it is fabulous to be so mushily in love like you and Isaac are. Yay new house- crossing fingers for you! Paps – yeah I think we have to keep getting them because people like to sue doctors so much, so they’re just covering their behinds. Heck, sometimes the military clinic makes me take a pregnancy test before they give me my new scrips. So silly. I laughed at your Ring story but still got chicken skin thinking about it. Uuuugh.

Kelsey – Welcome! Yep, the challenge is 6 weeks! Post your starting weight and goals for yourself, these should be achievable ones to encourage you to keep it up

Tasha: You are too funny! I don't think you are an over-sharer, though - I like reading your posts. We are scheduled to leave Germany in Spring 2013 but The Hubbs is already working on getting his next assignment. He's trying to finagle an embassy position in Santiago, Chile. We'll see what happens. I'd be down with going to Hawaii but as he is a Spanish linguist, the chances are slim to none that he'll get orders to Hawaii. I was a Vietnamese linguist when I was active duty and I was the only person from my Vietnamese class who ended up in DC rather than in Hawaii (at the time I thought it was a great injustice but I really enjoyed my time in DC so I can't really complain). If they force him back into his career field (he's out of it on a special duty right now), we'll probably end up back in San Antonio, TX. It's too soon to tell yet, though. My cold is hanging on for dear life despite all my efforts and I have now developed a cough - which sucks. But thanks for asking.

Annette: Congrats on the lost cm's!!!

Oh girls...

I haven't posted since last week.

I've done my best to skim posts, but life has been so beyond hectic. I'm in a rut, and a bad mood to top it off. I missed weigh-in last week and didn't make the last chart. I suck at life. This morning I weighed in at 232. I can't seem to get past 232. Its really irritating. But at the same time, I know I haven't been getting to the gym (certainly not from a lack of motivation). I also know my diet has been wishy washy. I'm officially disgusted. Starting today, I'm back to hardcore logging and crazy dieting. I had a Clif Bar for breakfast and I have a banana ready for my mid-morning snack. I have left over tortellini and mushrooms for lunch and am hoping to have an early dinner at the vegan cafe near my school before class. I need to make good choices there, though. Last time I went there I had a skinny Elvis. It was PB, choc. chips and banana panini style. Freakin' delicious.

I also need to drink MORE WATER. I fail at this every stinking challenge.

Speaking of failing, last challenge was an epic fail. So, I've decided to reassess my goals. Perhaps I was too ambitious and unrealistic before. Here are my goals this time:

1. Get to 225 (That's 7 pounds, I'm going to work very hard to meet this goal!)
2. Finish c25k (I'm on week 7, I should have plenty of time to do this.)
3. Drink at least 4 glasses of straight water a day (I know it should be 8, but I really struggle, and maybe I should just work my up to it and get myself into the habit of gradually increasing my water intake.)

Just to make myself feel better I will note that while I didn't lose much last challenge, I still lost. I also have gone from using tons of cream and sugar in my morning to coffee to just non-fat powdered creamer.

Speaking of food, though...

Kerry: I had the Spiced Pumpkin Pie Clif Bar for breakfast. Seriously delicious. Have you tried it? My store just got the seasonal flavors in. Spiced Pumpkin Pie, Iced Gingerbread and Peppermint Stick. I bought the pumpkin and the peppermint stick. Not sure if I would like the gingerbread. I haven't tried the Peppermint Stick yet, but I will let you know how it is.

To the rest of you girls, I'm sorry I've been missing. I hope things get better from here on out. Love to you all!

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii Laaaaaaaaaaaddddddddddddddddiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeessssssssssssssss!!

Goals Checkin' from the last challenge (eeeek!):

1.)C25K is starting to get more challenging but stick with it. Mind over matter. I know everyone will support me even if I have to go back to an easier week or modifiy things. Check! Kind of...the last time I did c25k was on September 21st

---

>W3D3 was where I last finished.
2.)Water, water, water! CHECK! DOUBLE CHECK! I MY NALGENE WATER BOTTLE!
3.)Stay active with school continuing! CHECK!
4.)Don't let negative nay-sayers put me down, move on. Depends on this day, kind of. It depends on the day.
5.)Burn 300 calories (no stupid wrist calorie burner watch calories) 4x's/week. Heck yes! I averaged about 400 calories for 4x's/week.
6.)Post here a lot, don't disappear! Eh, I was on the struggle bus on this one.
7.)Start thinking about getting new clothes or trying out new clothing options. I've started thinking about this....so check!

Goals for this challenge...................

1.)Try completing week four on c25k.....no matter what I know you ladies will support me no matter how many times I have to do it.
2.)One day during the week stay within my calories WITHOUT using my wristband.
3.)Water, water, water!
4.)Don't disappear.....even saying "hi" counts as not disappearing.
5.)Go one day without my "usual" suspects.
6.)Schoolllllllll get my butt in gear because finals will be here before I know it!

Updates.................

Kendal: I love you, hahahhahahahahhaha the low impact aerobics counting as gym exercise my morning. Thank you for making the badge!

Bobbie: Did you copy and paste your goals onto the sticky notes on your desktop? :flowerforyou:

Nava: Maybe it is an age thing too, I use to HATE carrying a purse and now I kind of love it....hopefully makeup will grow on me. I hate makeup though because I have a skin tag under my eye because of it. :sad:

Jenn: Hahahaha, you might enjoy this. My high school calculus teacher would always run in place while teaching. It was hilarious and we would run up and down the halls and relate it somehow to math.

Kristina: We still love you! I am glad you decided to post on the thread what is going on because it very understandable. I am on the struggle bus a lot for time management too.

Amy: Enjoy the Halloween party!

Lacey: What do you do you travel so much? I know you told me once but I am super forgetful. Geesh, it must have it's pros and cons traveling.

Nava: Will you please ship me a baby giraffe?

Tasha: I found you on Facebook but with your privacy settings I can't add you....search Hailie Lee Kallembach and you'll find me....my profile picture is me with really curly hair and "hailie lee" on the photo. I love your padding the paper trick! AAAAAHHHHHH!! Thanks for the advice on dressing up/make-up situation.

Group question:

How do you ladies log? Do you log online on the computer? On a phone app? Ipod app? How do you log?

As for me...................

I had to buy news suits (urgh) because there are holes in my a s s and the colors are all fadded. Plus, I can't where my suits from high school swimming because there are knots in not the most appropriate places! :blushing:

I need this suit to stretch......



When I get home I'm posting a series of three suits and you ladies will see why.

The suit I am wearing in the above pic is a 40. (blah.) I did order two 38's which I can fit into so obviously I just need to wear the suits to get the "new suit" feeling out of them.

NSV: I was getting a massage at work (yeah, co-worker seeing me naked...hahahahha.) and the masseur said she could tell I was "firming" up in my back.

Bobbie: I refill a water a bottle that holds 2 cups. Truthfully though, most days I don't even finish half of one bottle. Once I go home, I don't drink much more than that. Water is the only thing I drink with the exception of one cup of coffee in the morning and occasionally I have hot tea at night. I just don't drink much of anything. I know how bad this is. I get dizzy a lot and I get headaches. My husband is constantly forcing me to drink. I don't know what my deal is. Even when I go to the gym and run, I don't drink. Some days, I know I'm struggling to get through my run because I haven't had enough to drink. Ugh. This is seriously one of my biggest obstacles.