Oh yeah, and staying away from Mountain Dew Throwback- or any other sodas! I gave up sodas for Lent, so I didn't have too many issues until Sunday. Sweet and sugary is my weakness!!!

Well... one of my dining out nights is going to be tonight... I have already downloaded nutritional information and input a guesstimate of what I'll be eating- now the hard part will be sticking with it! But, the positive part is that I went down to the work gym to do 2 15 minutes walks today (one in the morning and one this afternoon). They weren't high intensity since I was still in work clothes, but it helped to burn some calories!

How are you doing on your goals for the week?

Well, I can possibly make you feel a little better about dinner last night... It was supposed to be date night at PF Chang's. Instead we got there and there was a 45-60 minute wait. I have a hard time waiting over 5 minutes for the privilege to pay for food when I know there are other places I can go. So, we waited about 20 (to make bf happy), but between the noise and crowd, I finally gave up. It had been a crappy day (friend's daughter lost her battle with cancer) and I just lost all interest and decided to go home. Since I had only eaten about 400 calories all day, and it was 7 PM, I knew I needed to eat something. So, I ended up eating Taco Bell... Yes, you read that right- I wasted one of my dinners out on Taco Bell. But, it was quick, easy and within my limit to I figure it worked.

CONGRATS on your weight moving the right direction! Mine was steady this morning, but I can't be too surprised on that considering yesterday's consumption. Hopefully we'll both have good exercise days today!!

I'm a sucker for Taco Bell as well, but it's definitely not as nice as a sit down dinner with the BF. Ultimately, I was just content to be able to eat Taco Bell without blowing out my calorie goal! Sorry about your evening plans getting rearranged. Darn guys :grumble:

How was your weekend? We managed to get most of the garden planted, and we only ate out once so I was pleased- just disappointed that my weight is creeping back up- ugh! Thankfully, today is a new day and maybe things will turn around!

Egads- I think my first goal is trying to maintain my level of sanity- haha!

Congrats on the good weekend- sometimes it's nice to get the break from worrying about the budget and the weight!!! Of course, when I don't worry about the weight, I end up going WAY over my calories, but I still think it's good for the soul- as long as it's not done all the time... What concert did you see?

Between offsite visits at work and stress about an impending vet visit for my dog (follow-up to his emergency visit Saturday morning), I went BONKERS with my food intake today!! So, goal #1- normalize my eating, goal #2- to avoid eating out between now and Friday afternoon, goal #3- ensure I exercise each day between Monday and Friday, with 2 days totaling at least an hour between cardio and weights and 1 extra day of weights (but doesn't have to be done with full cardio), goal #4- re-evaluate my budget to make sure I make allowances for the (unbudgeted) emergency visit (see if I can float it from other funds I had set aside for travel- leftover from my bonus). They aren't terribly ambitious goals, but I think they're doable (and I can achieve the workouts at home since the dog is on restricted activity). I'm supposed to be heading out of town this weekend, so I'm trying not to set too many parameters around that right now (at least not until I get more details).

GOOD LUCK THIS WEEK! I have no doubt you'll meet your goals!!

Thankfully his follow-up visit went much better than expected! His primary care vet didn't see a need for him to have a consultation with a surgeon (back issues), so I'm thrilled that he thinks it's something we can manage with medication. I've also called an animal chiropractor/acupuncturist to see if that might be something useful for him. I'm willing to go "above and beyond" on his medical care, but a $1,500 MRI isn't in the cards right now (and that's excluding the cost of any potential surgery). I'd rather try to do some preventative care and keep the emergency meds on hand so I can avoid the off-hour, weekend emergency vet visits!!!

Managed to exercise yesterday- even if it was just a biggest loser video for 30 minutes. If I hadn't set the posted goal, I would have blown it off, so thanks for helping me set weekly goals!!!! I'm hoping to get weights in tonight and have tomorrow morning as one of my 1 hour sessions! I'm just hoping I can get the weight moving down- saw where my bf has lost 6 pounds since his last weigh in- lucky dog!!! Granted, I know I can't expect those kinds of results, but I'd like to stop gaining/losing the same pound I've been dealing with for about 2 weeks :noway:

Not to get personal, but how did your weigh in go? You mentioned you didn't really have a good idea where you'd come in after not weighing in over the weekend- everything ok, or at least what you expected?

Hi Joe! CONGRATS to you and Teresa!!!! Sounds like you guys have worked hard and remained dedicated to DR- and one another (35 years is no easy feat) :happy:

I was just having the "I need to get back on the FPU bandwagon" talk with myself earlier today. I've found myself using my debit card a little more than normal lately (still have some bonus money tucked away) and realized today just how much I've spent :blushing: Can't help but laugh b/c the message from DR's Message a Day calendar is "Good debt management is 80% behavior and 20% head knowledge." At least I know what I need to work on, right? Haha

Happy birthday to your BF! Hope y'all had a great day!

I wish I could say I stayed on track, but I'd be lying. I was completely lazy last week, and am not off to a great start this week. I'm going to try to get in 4 workouts (at least 1 run, 2 days of weights and something to fill in the other day- plus probably some combinations of the activities).

For DR, I had a reality check last night so I've now replenished the envelopes I "borrowed" from, and have started re-allocating the funds I have left for previously planned activities. Its looking like I'm going to have to tighten up a little for the next few months, but it will be worth it to actually cash flow some trips AND still have money for the essentials! My goal is to stay on track- and ask my boyfriend/accountability buddy to (kindly) check with me when he sees me pulling out the debit card OR pillaging the other envelopes to pay for stuff. I love the concept of DR's system, but it's definitely NOT easy! It will, however, be worth it when I am able to cash flow Christmas, birthdays, etc. :bigsmile:

How about you, Joe? Any goals for the week?

Yes, both of the goals are difficult, but that's what makes them worth pursuing, right? We'll be better as a result of achieving the goals and we'll REALLY appreciate them when we get there! (At least this is what I keep telling myself...)

Sorry about the weight gain- it's just a temporary setback, but I understand it can be frustrating. I'm still losing/gaining the same weight and hoping I'll eventually break through and start losing... You WILL make it to the 150's- and in time for the summer! :bigsmile:

Ah the budget... Some months it seems so easy and then other months it's nearly impossible to get psyched up for it. Regardless of where you end up on it, you'll feel better knowing you sat down and did it! I don't always like what I see, but I like knowing what my goals/guidelines are. At least it's better than running around willy nilly!

Good luck on your goals this week!

How's your week going?

I'm still struggling with needs vs wants with my budget this week :sad: Some weeks it feels easy, and then there's all the other times.... Oh well, at least I'm limited as to how much I can indulge (no credit cards will do that to a girl!)

Doing ok on the exercise- got my weights in Wednesday morning and will do them again tomorrow. Hopefully tomorrow's run will actually be a run versus the run/walk I had this morning. The humidity was almost unbearable!

Hope you're having a great week!