kittybenn Member

@AnnPT77 - I always learn something useful from your posts. Thanks for being here!

Just discovered those. They are very active and have tons of useful info, challenges, etc. There's also a 1500isplenty sub R.

I was a WW member on and off for years, but around 2016 I (finally) realized that trying to find someone or something external to myself to make weight loss happen is a waste of time, energy and money. There is no magic involved and it can be a slog, but it's up to us, not WW or anybody else to do it. The most annoying…

I’m 69 and haven’t been a gym member for years. I walked and lifted weights at home. But this year my Medicare Advantage plan offered free gym memberships for the first time. I couldn’t wait til Jan. 1 to join and have been going, most,y to Silver Sneakers, ever since. I love it - great cardio and tons of strength…

I ate and drank wayyyy too much this weekend. Gained three pounds - crazy! Going to the gym this a.m. was hell, but needed to be done. I'm pretty unhappy with myself except for the part about getting out of bed at 6 a.m. to go to the gym. I wear a Fitbit and am fascinated/alarmed with the way my resting heart rate goes up…

Me too. Had exactly the same experience. Drank Friday and last night and will go to Super Bowl party today and undoubtedly drink some more. I am NOT loving the headaches. We went out to our fancy and very expensive dinner last night to celebrate the end of Dry Jan. Went through two bottles of wine (for four people) and our…

"Celebrated" the end of Dry January last night with 3+ glasses of wine. Felt awful in the middle of the night. We're going out to dinner tonight and I'm going to try to hold it to one. I was reminded this a.m. of why drinking ain't all that great.

Seeing a lot of success here - congrats to all! I was thrilled and proud of myself to wake up this morning and realize I'd made it through the month. I'm not even dying for a glass of wine. @Lilylady3k - thanks for great ideas. We are on the same wavelength. I'm planning on my first glasses of wine tonight. Have them…

@Lilylady3k - congrats on your success! Looks like we're on same path. After last year's DJ I did four AF days per week. I like the idea of stretching that a bit. I guess if I were gonna do that I'd add Sunday, so I'd be AF Sun-Thurs. Still pondering. Right now, I'm just excited about having a glass or two of wine…

Day 31 AF for me begins. This morning's email from the Dry January people had a link to an interesting page with tips on "what's next." It gives a number of options, such as "I want to stay dry beyond January" and "I want to drink less but not stop completely." I'm going to go back to drinking wine starting tomorrow, but…

@MonkeyMel21 - wow, fantastic weight loss! Congrats!

@Lilylady3k - love that quote. So true. Kind of boring, actually, but that's where it all starts. A bunch of days pretty soon starts adding up to a bunch of months. Day 29 AF for me begins. Going all the way!

@Fitness327wk - "I thought to myself how great I have been feeling." Yes, I completely get it. I think when we've been off alcohol for an extended period (I'm on day 28) you start taking for granted how good you feel and look. When I look in the mirror these days I'm often surprised by how clear my eyes look and how…

I think we've all been there - tried a million different things and then realized it's going to be a bunch of hard work and it's all up to us. Nobody else can fix it for us. It's simple but not easy, as they say. This is one of my favorite quotes: "Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand…

@Womona - way to go - that can't have been easy! Day 27 begins for me. Have had much better control over my sugar intake this week, which has been almost harder than giving up alcohol, LOL.

This is SO inspirational - thanks v much for sharing!

Changing lifelong patterns and then sticking to those changes is really, really tough. I kind of look at my journey (have lost 70, but need to lose 50 more) as running from a burning building, although I realize that's a bit dramatic. The only way out is to run through the flames. Going back is for sure gonna kill you.…

I love the Budget Bytes black bean soup. You can throw everything, including dry black beans, into a slow cooker. Everything's adjustable according to your taste. I occasionally add sausage and more veggies. https://www.budgetbytes.com/slow-cooker-black-bean-soup/

@MonkeyMel21 - you've done so well. This is no big deal. Hop back on the horse and keep on going. And congrats on your weight loss - that is fantastic!

Day 25 begins! A little encouragement from the Dry January folks in my email this a.m.: It’s no surprise that two-thirds of participants are drinking less riskily even six months after the campaign. And 8% don’t even bother going back to the booze at all. If you haven’t already been mulling over what you want to do in…

Yes, definitely second the Dry January app. You have to translate pounds to $ but no big deal.

@cathipa - right there with you too and it feels great. It gives you the feeling that if you can do this you can do other stuff. I joined a gym Jan. 1 and have been going 4-5 times a week. Think I've finally broken the sweets habit. Snowballing, but uphill. Dry January app telling me I've saved nearly 5,000 calories and…

@Lilylady3k - Congrats on your success. I love your idea of deciding that you'll only have one glass of wine and then stop. I've struggled to do that. It seems like one is never enough and always leads to more. Maybe the key is deciding way ahead of time.

@MissMay - yes, I think I'm prob a binge drinker (and eater) too. Not all the time, but I can really get out of control with both sometimes. So, just not sure about Feb, although I've become familiar with the idea of not scheduling drinking days and only drinking on occasions. I think that might work for me. BTW, I just…

@NovusDies - can so relate to this: "Somehow this kept my inner child from rebelling and the adult in me was able to make mindful and responsible choices." This is so smart, and thanks for sharing. I like your idea about how unsatisfying it is to have very little (wine, for me) because it's so hard to fit into your calorie…

Dry January day 21 begins for me. Wanted to share this inspiration from the morning email the app sent me today. I hadn't heard of mindful drinking. Welcome to the end of your third week. This is a big milestone because, for many people, it takes just three weeks to break a habit. This means that from now on your future…

@BuffMom84 - that is fantastic about your husband. Sounds like he's starting to come over to your way of thinking, which is awesome. I'm starting day 20 of Dry January and feel like it will be pretty straightforward for me to go all the way. I am looking for a chocoholics anonymous group, though. I binged on it last night…

@NovusDies - yes, habits are really weird and fascinating things. I think about them a lot. Yep, made it through yesterday, and today I'm on day 19. We went to a big pig roast our friends have every year. They brew their own beer for the event and my husband offered me a sip just to taste it because he thought it was…

@NovusDies - Wow, your story was just the inspiration I needed this a.m. Thanks for sharing and congrats on the amazing life changes you've made. 17 days dry for me and 14 to go in January. I like your plan of drinking very occasionally instead of planning to drink on X days of the week, which is what I did after last…

@Womona - can totally relate to your insights. Making one glass of wine last throughout the meal means microsips for sure, LOL. And I know if I were still drinking and my husband stopped I would feel uncomfortable/uneasy. Not sure why. I guess threatened in some way? Hard to know exactly. Middle of Day 17 for me. We're…