Shrinking Yay-Yays

We Can Do It!

2005-11-03T19:24:00.000-08:00

If I can do it, all y'all can. No kidding. According to the doctor's office, I've actually gained weight, but I'm losing inches in all the right places (not counting my eroding derriere) and building muscle. He told me he'd rather see me put on four or five pounds of muscle than simply lose 20 pounds. So, take it from me, Mistress Refuse to Give Up Chocolate or Drink Diet Pop, if I can improve my health, you can too!

Now, I've posted twice (a minor miracle) and it's been almost a month since my last one with no one else posting updates in between. Time for the rest of you to 'fess up or shout out in celebration!

I'll be watching!

Cooler Weather and Cold Weather Exercise Prep

2005-10-13T17:41:00.000-07:00

Now that the weather is cooler, I'm finding it easier than ever to walk. I walk to my workstudy job and back instead of taking the bus. Unless I've forgotten my umbrella and it's pouring. And since I know it's only going to get colder (tis lovely Iowa winter soon upon me), I have been checking into finding ways to walk even when it's crappy out. For starters, trying to kill two birds with one stone (stopping smoking and weight loss), I now make stair laps between classes instead of going out to smoke. I get four ten minute breaks, not counting my lunch break, and I do as many trips up and down the stairs as I can without being late to class between. I've also decided to join the local mall mile club. There's all kinds of cool prizes and free stuff for joining, it's free, they keep track of my progress, it's inside, and it all goes on during times when the stores aren't open so I can't shop. You can even go while it's open for business, so long as one of the Club supervisors goes along to make sure you aren't just shopping. They're available nearly everyday during a variety of hours. Between that and my stair routine at school, I think this is a great winter weather plan. I know many malls offer such clubs free, so it could be worth some of you other Shrinking Yay Yays checking into.

Lets get the party rollin

2005-10-04T11:49:00.000-07:00

I think we should all get hyped up about losing again. I know it's fall, and most people go into a shut down/depression kind of mode. Well...lets not let that happen ladies.

I had been struggling with exercise issues. I have such bad knees and ankles, and problems with my back, and hips. That it hurts to the point of crying to exercise. When I went to Texas we did tons of water aerobics. And that is zero impact, but I could tell I was losing weight. Well...back home there is no water aerobics. So...I've been trying to walk, but haven't been overly successful. I also started doing my mothers exercise for arthritics tape. But that didn't do much of anything for me. So...I dig around in my video tapes, and find my Richard Simmons-Dance your Pants off tape. I used to do this tape every day 5 days a week with a friend before I gained another 100lbs. Anywhoo. I decided that I could do some of the stuff. So...this morning, I put it in, and stand up to do the first routine, trying my best to do all the movements. Than I sat in a chair and continued to march my feet and do all the arm movements to 3 other songs (his songs aren't short people) And boy did I keep my heart rate up, and I was a sweatin fool. I thought if I could do that all week. Then my goal for next week is to stand for two of the songs, and do a total of 5 all together, and up it accordingly. I can tell you that I felt the endorphines moving. I felt down, and "why the hell try" attitude when I started, but boy oh boy was I fired up and feeling good afterwords. Now of course my legs are all like jello and wobbly, But that will only get better with time.

COME ON LADIES WE CAME HERE TO CHEER EACH OTHER ON, AND TO DO OUR BEST. GET BACK ON THE PARTY WAGON AND LETS GOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

Slackerrrrrr!!!

2005-10-04T08:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I have no excuses for myself. It's not that I've been busy, I'm just very negligent (did I spell that right?). Anyway, I started out at 276 and went down to 256. That's 20 pounds people!!! But I don't feel any lighter and my clothes certainly disagree I lost that much. Now for about 2 months, I have maintained my 256 and I've gone up a few pounds and down a few pounds. Never lower than 256... I'm SO ready to hit 249, so cheer me on gals. Today I'm on vitamins (which I believe will help alot since I'm deficient in so many of them) and I have a goal of 5,000 steps a day (which sounds hard, but really I should be doing more than that!) and a goal of drinking 10 glasses of water a day. Do you think I can do it? I've been shopping alot more lately (trying to get in touch with my feminine side) and I realized I LOVE clothes. Just not the ones I can fit into! (Did you notice there's a crap-load of these parentheses in my post today?). And due to that, I'm more determined than ever to work my hardest to fit into those clothes. I'm tired of sacrificing style for what fits.... I think ya'll can relate.

Anyway I'm sorry that I contributed to the slowing of the posts and as of today, I will be posting regularly. C'mon girls, let's get back into this!!!

A Cutting Issue

2005-10-01T20:55:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if this is just for people as large as me, but I'm having issues with the waists of my pants cutting into me. I've lost a few pounds, more inches than weight, but while I feel and notice it in my thighs and hips, my waist is still being dug into by my pants. Part of it is how short torso'd I am. There just isn't that much space between my chest and my waist. But, if I buy petite length pants, they're too short. I generally hunt around for those hip-hugger type pants, simply because they don't cut into my gut so much. I also wonder if there isn't something to it just from being older or from having my hysterectomy a few years ago. I'm just wondering if anyone else has this issue and what solutions you've found? Does it go away somewhat the more weight that comes off?

Curves

2005-09-12T07:36:00.000-07:00

Well, what can get a girl off her butt and exercise more than something FREE! We went to a parish picnic Saturday and I won 2 free months at Curves. I'm going to wait until my week long trip to Chicago is over then start..that will be the first week in October. Has anyone tried Curves before??

Campus Dieting 2

2005-09-10T20:32:00.000-07:00

So, I'm still agonizing almost daily over what to eat on campus, but I've discovered a cute little eatery about two block's walk away, which gives me exercise before and after the meal, and offers really good healthy food. I only allow myself to eat there once a week, though to save $$. But, I'm trying to recreate some of there stuff at home. Things such as cold soups. I'm not sure how I missed these growing up, but I got a mini pita sandwich with grilled chicken, lettuce, radish, and other yummy veggies; a cup of cold cucmber soup; and a mini cup of strawberry soup the other day for like $4 and my drink (green tea) was free with the meal. They even sweetened it with some truly delicious cinnamon honey. I loved it. Now, my only problem is finding recipes and figuring out how to make these cold soups. They have a whole list of them. Some sound gross, but others sound really good. Any ideas? Or does this sound like 'not dieting'? I've lost two pounds since classes started and I'm starting to feel a slight loosening of my clothes. I think I'm off to a great start. What do you guys think? About the soups and all of it.

stall...

2005-09-06T06:37:00.000-07:00

I seem to have stalled in the "diet". We're getting ready to redo the kitchen which will mean eating out for a while..then YAHOO. I'll be all set w/ no excuse to eat right and cook good!

This weekend I did get tons of exercise. That was a good thing.

Still chuggin along

2005-08-30T09:18:00.000-07:00

Hey all, wow, the posts on here have really slowed down. I hope it's cuz your all busy like me, and not cuz anybody is giving up. Come on ladies if I can do it, so can you. hehehehehe

I've still been working hard. It's a little hard finding exercise I can do without being in massive pain. We don't have water aerobics or swimming here. That helped me lots over the winter. Now I try and exercise best I can, but man with how heavy I am, and my health problems. If gravity is involved then it hurts. hehehehe

Wanted to share a recipe I made up and it actually turned out really good. I was watching the food network and they did this using bell pepper, tomato and pineapple. But ever since my gall-bladder got taken out, I can't stomach bell pepper, and I'm not fond of hot tomato, (except in spaghetti) So...anyhow what I did.
I put a sheet of tin foil out on a plate. I then took a boneless/very lean pork chop and set it in the center of foil. I seasoned both sides with season salt and garlic powder (you can use whatever seasoning you like) I put about a 1/2 inch thick slice of onion on top of the pork chop and two pineapple slices/rings. I then drizzled with terriyaki sauce and a little pineapple juice. Wrap the foil all around so it's in a little pouch, and we put it on the grill. I'm sure you can put it in the oven too. Depending on thickness of pork chop to how long you cook it. We let ours grill/steam for about a half hour. We put it on a plate and poured the juice over it. The pork chop came out fork tender. It was awesome. We just served with some more veggies.

Anyhow, I hope to see more of you posting and coming by again. I've missed reading about all of you.

Have a happy Tuesday everyone.

Campus Diet & Call for Help

2005-08-22T19:07:00.000-07:00

Myth #1) Iowa is flat. Hardly, people! There are hills on this campus that may as well be vertical! Which is good. I huff and puff my way up at least one daily. Not for class, but during my two hour break between. Plus, I'm forcing myself to take the stairs instead of the elevator and parking towards the far end of the lot.

Myth #2) Campus food sucks. Nope. Not even close. I can't speak for the Residence halls (dorms), but there are two restaurants on campus run by the University and both of them have delicious, fattening foods. Thank god they also offer a fruit/veggie buffet and lots of vegetarian goodies. Now, if I can just stay away from the breadbowls and buffalo burgers, I should be fine. Oh and the omelets and the decadent chocolate desserts and the Dutch letters...

Myth #3) Vending machines that offer more fat free and healthy snacks. I know they exist. I've seen them with my own two eyes. However, try to find a machine on campus that offers more than three of these choices. And the choices seem to be animal crackers, beef jerky, and trail mix. The trail mix is occasionally omitted in favor of those little packages of crackers with cheese or pb. Yeah. All I wanted was some damned pretzels! I found them...they were those nasty mustard pretzel ball things three buildings away from my classes. Ish!

As for my call for help, since I do have a two hour break between classes, limited income (duh), and a strong desire to both cut costs and weight, does anyone have any suggestions for a decent sack lunch to carry with me? I have no access to a microwave anywhere on campus, but I do have an insulated Betty Boop lunch bag. I've got fruit, low cal soda, and other than that, I'm out of ideas. I also have access to a fairly reliable thermos for hot stuff. Plenty of areas to munch at, just no munchies. What a world! What a campus!

Few Tips

2005-08-16T10:10:00.000-07:00

I was just sitting here reading everyone, and thought of just a few tips. None of you have to take my advice, but I just thought I would air them. Everyone is talking about salads. God knows I know how fricken boring a salad can get, day after day after day. Jazz it up a little. You can add some lean meat. Some grilled chicken, some fish, little crab meat. Also if you get bored, open up a can of mandarin oranges and add it. Or some sliced strawberries. Or any other berry you like. It add's just a touch of sweet to the dish. I also like to add nuts. I do almonds or my all time favorite is pine nuts. You can cook up two pieces of the extra lean turkey bacon, and have with your salad for protein, or even boil and slice up one egg. Just a few thoughts on how not to get overly bored with your salad.

Oh and for you chocoholics. I am a major major chocolate fanatic. And I don't do much of the "not real chocolate chocolate" cuz it better dam well taste like chocolate for me to like it. Well I have found the Carb Selection box brownie mix, taste just like the "real stuff" also the snack wells sugar free cookies, ROCK and Russel Stovers has an excellent line of sugar free chocolate candies, that I would never know was sugar free if nobody told me. I try to keep just a few of these on hand for those big chocolate cravings.

I have a few AWESOME recipe's but I can't figure out the stupid file thing. So if Kat won't kill me, I might post one every once in a while. They are really short, cuz I'm not into doing the whole, "slave over a hot oven" thing. And lets face it people, we are all in a hurry, and want something easy and cheap. So that's what I got. hehehehe

Happy Tuesday everyone. I need to go do some dishes, laundry and floors. I should work on my Avon too. I need to keep busy so I don't get to depressed. First day of school and all, I didn't want my baby to go back. sniffle. LOL

feeling good

2005-08-16T07:39:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to feel good about the good decisions and not beet myself up over the bad ones. Last night I grilled chicken on the George forman and sliced it up in a salad. Jeremy LOVED it. He said it was nice and light and he didn't feel stuffed. I agreed. I did eat Steak N Shake yesterday for lunch but didn't "supersize" it. I don't really think fast food a couple times a month is going to kill me. I know tonight we're going to the baseball game, chances are I'll have a diet soda and a pretzel or something. It's a baseball game for crying out loud. Can't go to a Cardinal game w/out some sort of ballpark food. That's communist :0)
Jeremy being the sweetie brought me a chocolate bar from 7-11 this weekend. I ate 3 little rectangles..he ate the rest. Felt good about that.
I made a chocolate, banana shake Sunday night. It was yummy. Not going to kill myself over a shake. At least it had fruit in it!
I've been shopping very helthy. Fruits, veggies, lean meats..w/ the occasional bad stuff. ie I got the microwave pulled pork for quick sandwiches tonight. Lunch meat is all low sodium low fat. So this post is basically I fell good about the direction that I'm going. I think it's time for my morning banana! :0)

Crappy weekend

2005-08-15T17:17:00.000-07:00

Well sorta. I really have to get back on track, I thought I had a totally crappy weekend, but now that I look back on it. Maybe it wasn't that bad. Only a couple lapses. I'm sure I will survive and bounce back as long as I don't have that stupid attitude of "oh my god I failed"

I know I haven't posted in a while. I've been trying hard to get back on track since I got home from Texas. Getting things right with the house, the eating, the family, and getting ready for kiddo to go back to school. Not to mention his trip out of town to the dentist. (yeah I ate healthy that day, fricken fast food)

So, anyhow. My weekend breakdown. I went and got my elbow retaped up, and my foot. I ate 9 non fat ritz crackers with fat free peanut butter on them for breakfast/lunch (I woke up really late) We had leftover spaghetti for dinner (I went real light on the pasta, and had no cheese) Saturday, we dinked around, watched some t.v. and went grocery shopping. We went to a friends for dinner and games. She grilled up some pork chops, so not bad, and had a big salad, and bread, and a big potato dish. I had 1 pork chop, a big amount of salad (no dressing cuz it wasn't fat free or light) half a piece of bread, and no potatoes. I got full and satisfied, and think I did okay on that day. But Sunday, aaarrrrrggggghhhhh we were busy busy busy around the house and Gigantor went out and bought everyone a cheeseburger. I thought, "okay I can do this once" and ate slow so if I got full, I could stop eating. We had grilled/lean steaks, asparagus, and fat free muffin for dinner (so not to bad) But today was "meet your teacher day" at school. So we go up to the school for about an hour. Then I realize it's 2:30 and I haven't fed my kid since 7:30 this morning, and I haven't eaten anything at all. Neither had the hubby, so what do we do, we cave and go to McDonalds. aaaarrrrrggggghhhhh So I had a burger two days in a row, and I feel like shit, both physically and emotionally. I did plan a healthy snack, and I'm gonna get back on track. I just gotta remember one slip once in a while doesn't mean I failed. I'm just gonna keep pluggin along.

Okay I'm tired of whining (I hope I didn't do it to bad) I'm gonna go bang my head on the wall, and make a good dinner, and pack my kids backpack for tomorrow (god I don't want him to go back to school)

Lots of lover shrinkers!!!!!!!

How NOT to Diet while at Mom's for Surgery Assistance

2005-08-13T18:52:00.000-07:00

Okay, here are the absolute worst things about trying to diet just after your mother has surgery:

1) Even though this event has been planned for weeks, there was no menu planned of any kind...for her or myself. My own fault. Just habit. You know, go home to visit, eat whatever you like cuz Mom's cupboards are always stocked! What does this mean? Fast food! And not salads. Okay, one salad, the rest was chock full of fat and calories and...

2) Due to stress levels, eat hardly a thing the day of surgery. This is followed by acute bouts of binge-eating of anything chocolate that I can get my grubby little paws on.

3) Having sympathy constipation. Apparently, like the symptoms of pregnancy, loved ones can suffer right along with you. My mother is the one on pain pills that cause constipation and require her to take things such as Milk of Magnesia and stool softners with them daily, along with gallons of water. Who can't poop? Me. She appears perfectly capable.

4) Eating for two. My mother's appetite is decreased since the surgery. Duh. That's a no-brainer. However, whenever she takes one bite, I take at least three to make up for it. And then graze all the time in between.

5) Running around after and taking care of a post-op parent does raise the stress level and lack of sleep level, but does not involve enough activity to burn all the calories from #'s 1 thru 4.

My advice? See my blog for further funny info, though not weight-loss related, and plan a bit ahead next time!

Huh??

2005-08-12T07:34:00.000-07:00

Did you read in today's paper about the lady who went on a strictly McDonald's diet (all 3 meals for about 2000 calories a day).. for 90 days & lost 37 lbs!?
Why am I finding that hard to believe? She says she ate cheesburgers & the whole magilla.. hmmmmm. Sounds like the food chain wants to get back at the 'Super Size Me' movie.

I'm off to go camping for the week-end, where I'll actually eat healthier than I do here at home. However, I tend to binge on sunflower seeds while reading in the hammock. I'll have to pump in lots of water & walk a lot to combat that sodium overload.

Hope you ladies have a fabulous wk-end!

Crappy Crappy Breakfast

2005-08-10T09:27:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here with my tummy doing flip flops and I wonder why. I ate a banana, hard boiled egg and slice of cake for breakfast. WHY????

I do want to add that the pants I normally wear (5 pair that I wear to work) are loose in the waiste. That has been mailing cutting out fast food. :0)

My "Before" Pic and other issues

2005-08-08T19:04:00.000-07:00

Okay, here's my 'before' pic. It's awful, but my 8 year old daughter took it for me. Pardon the lack of support garments, but I managed to burn my boobies at the beach today and cannot stand to wear a bra. I can barely stand to wear the pj top, but it's loose and light and doesn't rub too much. I'd run topless, but since I have two teen boys and cannot restrict myself to my own room, that's out. I also weigh (oh lord, so much for the unlisted number) 232 pounds by my bathroom scale. I don't look it to most people, but my ass is getting its own zip code next week, so I need to get on the ball...literally. I'm buying one of those exercise balls and a mini trampoline for indoor exercise when the weather turns shitty. I'm taking daily walks with my daughter and using her jump rope, too. She doesn't mind, she gets to laugh at me trying to jump rope like a master second grader. I'm tired of not being able to run and play with my kids, huffing and puffing when I walk up a slight slope much less up the stairs to my bathroom, and of shopping in the plus sizes. I'm not foolish enough to think I'll ever get back to a sixe 13, but I'm gonna try like hell. My goal at this point is to be below 220 by Christmas. My fat and I have been friends for so long, I think the parting is going to be hard!

I just had to share.

2005-08-08T15:07:00.000-07:00

I took my mother to the doctor today, and while I was there I decided to step on the scale. I mean I should have a base line right? Well, who would have thought it I actually lost 23 lbs. since the last time I weighed, like two years ago. Okay so 23 lbs in two years is not great, but I was fully expecting the scale to inform me that I had gained like 40-50 lbs. It's all about baby steps, right?

Not a bad weekend

2005-08-08T06:25:00.000-07:00

Well we had my stepson this weekend which meant trips to McDonalds..I didn't get anything! I've shopped well and got lots of healthy things. Saturday we had a big birthday party for my father-in-law. I ate everything except for cake. Ribs, pulled pork, potato salad, rye bread dip etc. But that was my major faux pas of the weekend. I'm patting myself on the back for staying away from McDonalds which I love. :0)

Diabetic Dieting

2005-08-05T19:48:00.000-07:00

I'm also finding that since my recycled hubby is diabetic (no insulin yet, thank god) makes a big difference. He is completely unable to cook (don't ask), so it's all up to me and the kiddles. Which is fine, but I'm not used to it yet. However, in the month that he's been here, we've all gotten healthier. The kids are more likely to complain that we're out of fresh fruits and veggies than to bitch that the chips are gone. Diet pop still sucks rocks, but who said it'd be easy?

Any suggestions or tasty recipes? I'd love to get some quick and easy ones. I'm out of new foods!

Glad to be Shrinking...Yay-Yay!

2005-08-04T15:12:00.000-07:00

I'm glad to be a part of this blog also! God knows, any one trying to lose weight or get healthier needs a place to vent and get support. I do not have a picture to post right now, but I'll have one by Monday. It'll be hideous, but it's the 'before' pic, right? It's supposed to be. For right now, I do have two tips that have helped me in the past and I am putting them to good use again:

1) exercise in small bursts throughout the day is as effective as workouts -- my friend Grasshopper and I always seem to accomplish more while we're on the phone together, so during our numerous phone calls each day, we prod the other into some kind of activity whether it's a ten minute call and ten minutes of jumproping or an hour's talk and half of it is spent walking in circles around the house. It may sound silly, but it works!

2) I buy hard candies of different flavors, including chocolate and constantly have one in my mouth. It gives me the flavor and sweet I crave, without all the fat. If I'm out and truly having a chocolate fit, I'll eat a dill pickle...kills the craving right away! True fact.

Good luck to all of you!

fruits and veggies

2005-08-04T13:33:00.000-07:00

Well since I now have to shop for a hypertensive man I found myself buying salad, fruit and vegetables yesterday. Good step in the right directions! I haven't weighed myself but did exercise last night..I cut the front and back yard. I'm a little sore. Good direction. I did eat danish for breakfast. Oh well it's not EVERY day.

oops!

2005-08-04T11:58:00.000-07:00

I have too many damn blogs that I'm posting to! If you happened to see a post on here about Lord of the Rings....yeah, that was s'posed to be on my blog. I'm such a dork! It was written around 2 in the morning....so, it could be I was a little tired.

Diet update....I'm still not working my plan....but, I'm getting so close! I'm actually craving meat. This is a good thing.

So, how are y'all doing? Moving forward? In neutral? Going in reverse? We want to hear about it all!

Trying again..

2005-08-03T09:16:00.000-07:00

Seems like a couple of times a month I try to get on the health-kick wagon. I shouldn't be so hard on myself.. at least I keep climbing back on. I am now 40# up on what I was when I got married 4 yrs ago. I've tried to blame a lot of this stuff on menopause. But I had no trouble losing 50# five yrs ago, so I need to let go of that excuse. Back then I did it w/ a modified Atkins diet. Attempts since then to try the same diet just isn't having the same effect. I think the ole metabolim just says 'whoa..' once in awhile.
So yesterday I made the conscious choice to stop drinking wine during the week. My doc thinks it's great that I drink wine in the evning because she's says it's worked wonders for my cholesterol. (I have way more good than bad) And that while I might die of cirrhosis, it wouldn't be from a heart attack..;o)
But I've found that a couple of glasses of wine take away my inhibitions when it comes to eating. It's hard to say 'no, thanks' when you're just so warm & fuzzy. My husband is of the Euro-mindset that it's uncivilized to eat before 8 or 9.. so big meals then off to bed. Ugh!
And I found myself feeling bloaty & boggy. Time to detox.
Last night I drank iced tea all evening.. oh my, was I wired when bedtime came. Took a melatonin to bring me down. But I did wake up energized & not at all sluggish. So I took a 3 mi walk in 45 minutes..wahoo.
I'm not eating the Atkins stuff, but smaller portions of a regular diet. Today's lunch was House Special Chinese Soup. And I'll switch from tea to water this evening. I might add some flavored carbonated water to jazz it up.
So here's to perching on the wagon again. And if I fall off.. I know my sisters will provide a soft place to land.

Low Protein?

2005-08-02T07:07:00.000-07:00

Well hopefully Jeremy comes home from the hospital today. We talked to the dietician, he is going to be on a low Protien, low sodium diet for life. If he is having to live that way I only think I should for the most part try to live that way as well. I'm wondering though what that will do to my weight? The fruits and vegtables (fresh) and lean meats, poultry should be good. Don't you think? I would think eating that way and watching the portions would work. What do you guys think?

I'm kinda back!

2005-08-02T06:35:00.000-07:00

Well ladies, I'm back sort of I can tolerate sitting at the computer for a little bit at a time.I'm starting over well not really starting over but getting back on track with my dieting I still can't do much exercising yet.But I can start walking. My Doc. has started me on some vitamin's One is a brain stimulator it stop sugar craves restore chemical balance and feeds the brain. the other is shrimp oil. He told me no more coffee, not because of the caffeine but the oils they process the coffee in are really bad for you they clog your limph glads and thats were we process stuff thru. He is also doing a limph drain thing on me. He also said DO NOT EAT 3 HOURS BEFORE GOING TO BED!!!!!Just doing these things will drop weight. So far so good I've lost 8 pounds in a week. Next week he's starting me on a smoothie type drink for breakfast and in the morning when I first get up He wants me to start drinking water with applecider vinegar and lemon juice. I've been derricking a lot of water and I feel pretty good.
Well that enough for me for now Good luck ladies I sure did miss you all!

Discouraging Bastard!

2005-08-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

I have been trying to be good and eat right at work. I have my slim fast snack bars, my raisins, popcorn and my rice cakes. Fair enough right?

Well let me tell you a little bit about my discouraging condescending bastard of a boss.

I was talking to one of my co-workers the other day about dieting and how I am trying to do better, yadda yadda, and he comes up behind us and says to me "Well you a lot of junk" to which I replied "No, I really don't eat a lot of junk but I do like the occasional bag of chips or a cookie" He sighed and walked away.

Today I got to work all happy go lucky with my new bag of rice cakes, the yummy ZERO fat caramel kind and he comes in my office to ask me something and see's my bag of rice cakes sitting next to my desk and says to me "You aren't going to lose any weight by eating those" to which I replied "They are completely fat free and better than a bag of chips" and then he said to me "If you really want to lose weight you should call (insert name here), he is on that... " to which I replied "Yes, I know he is on the Slim for Life diet" to which his come back was "Yeah and he's lost 30+ lbs" to which I replied "That's great for (insert name here) however, I am doing this MY way and on MY terms" and then the bastard walked out of my office.

I am a pretty strong person, very strong minded and very opinionated and if I had a half a fucking brain I would call an attorney and sue the pants off this bastard for his harassment. I have many stories about this man and his egotistical too good for any one ass, but I am the kind of person that believes in Karma and I just KNOW that some day this will all come back to him ten fold and he will regret every rude condescending remark he has ever made to me or any other person for that matter. He is just a very disrespectful mean person and I really don't like him but I love my job. I guess I have a love/hate relationship going on huh?

There is nothing worse than trying to do the right thing and having someone discourage you of it. Not only does it make you feel like total shit but it hurts. I am thankfully strong enough of a person to not let his comments effect me and my goals but to someone who is not strong this could be a major set back.

I just want all my Shrinking Sisters to know that I am here for you and will do whatever it takes to be encouraging and supportive of you and your goals. I hope that none of you have a person in your life that is so full of his/her self that they try to hurt others to justify their own inabilities in life, no matter what they be.

Jeremy update

2005-08-01T06:11:00.000-07:00

I guess I'll just copy and post this to both blogs. Here is my Jeremy update.

What I assumed would be an evening at the ER for him to get fluids and a perscription has ended in a weekend at Missouri Baptist Hospital. The routine bloodwork shows he has damaged kidneys. His blood pressure is now stable and today he is going to have a renal untrasound to show the percentage of damage. We'll just have to go from there to figure out what he needs to do different to make sure additional damage isn't done.

It was a lonly weekend when I was at home, extremely quite. I did get about 10 hours sleep Saturday night.

I'm going to work 1/2 day today, his test is this morning so I hope to catch the doctor and results this afternoon.

People keep asking if I need anything. Can I ask someone to cut my grass? I have little trees growing in the yard.

Thanks to all those who sent good wishes and prayers. Somehow I'm remarkable calm through all this.

Been gone and good

2005-07-31T16:48:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a few days. I've been busy with Gigantor here in Texas, and we have done some stuff. We are packing my sisters Durango as I write this so we can head out of here at 4 in the morning.

I've been pretty good. Still eating right. Also we got some donuts Thursday morning, yes I did eat two. But kiddo ate a couple and hubby ate some. Then 5 donuts have been sitting on a plate next to this computer since then. I notice there are two left, but ladies. I haven't eaten one single one of them, and I'm not tempted to either. I do splurge and eat a donut or piece of cake once in a while, but the sugar is actually starting to make me feel sick. I have been off of it for two months, so if I have a sugar snack, or sugar soda, I don't feel real good.

I have found the delights of Russell Stovers sugar free candies though. I don't eat much of them, but OMG they help a chocolate craving you get once a month. hehehehe

That is my downfall. Sweets---chocolate is the big one. My hubbies is salty snacks. He can down a bag of chips in one sitting. So...he has really cut himself back too. I am starting to get the baked chips, but they are fricken 4 bucks or more a bag. So we don't do that much.

Anyhow, for the trip home, we did get some jerky, baked chips and cheeto's, and low fat cheese it crackers. And we have water. I'm gonna keep on track ladies. I am so determined.

Could you also keep us in your thoughts and prayers, as we do this 18 hours of travel tomorrow?? I appreciate it. Catch up with you all after I'm home and unpacked.

Better Choices

2005-07-31T15:28:00.000-07:00

Today I made a good choice....of course, this good choice took place after eating a piece of chocolate cake for breakfast...but....my bad choice does not invalidate my good choice! I was in a snacking mood earlier....I have lots of "bad" snacks to choose from. I'm not working my plan, yet. I'm swiftly getting to the point where I will be....just not there, yet.

So, what was my good choice? I snacked on sunflower seeds! The kind in the shell...it takes more energy to eat and you don't eat as many as you would the shelled kind.

It's a small step in the right direction. But, as my Mama says, "To eat an elephant you take one bite at a time." That's her version of, "To walk a mile starts with a single step."

I WALKED!

2005-07-30T20:56:00.000-07:00

I not only ate THREE meals today... good ones too (healthy good... not fried good... lol) drank a bottle of water.... (kinda tasted okay!) but I WALKED!!!

Sigh

2005-07-29T21:42:00.000-07:00

I am so sorry I have not posted on this blog cept for the hiya I did a few days back.

I eat when I'm bored.
I eat when I'm lonely.
I forget to eat when I get busy at work.

I looked at supper tonight, and it turned my stomach. I am by no means a vegan, but sometimes the sight of meat really gets to me.

I do not sleep.
I sometimes sleep too much.

I hate water.
I love diet soda.

I will drink tea.

I smoke like a chimney, therefore excersize scares me.

I need to get off my a** and DO IT!!!! Just flippin do it.

I worry about having shaved legs, armpits, perfect hair, beautiful nails, details details details. I some how think that these "outward" things will make my husband happy he came home after a long week at work, 2 hours away.

I sit and look around, bored, lonely, munching. Wouldnt you think I would screw the nails, haircolor, fancy g-strings to LOSE the weight that I desire to lose so much???

I worry about turning in to my mother. Falling in to a depression over my weight, hubby gone during the week, hating/loving my job, 3 teenaged boy....

1- stop cleaning the house
2- spending every waking moment in bed reading
3- ignoring my duties as a wife and mother

I have every single excersize gadget, pill, mat, dvd, cd, vcr tape..... so the means are HERE! For shits sake, I live on a farm. I can WALK my ponie.... run the dogs.... but no. I sit. I crochet, eat, read trashy books....

Although I have NOT gained in a long time... I am no where near to losing either.

I just needed to get this off my chest.

making deals w/ myself

2005-07-29T06:13:00.000-07:00

I find myself negotiating. I did not go to golf last night, that would have been my exercise, in stead I decided to walk to 7-11 instead of drive. Made a little deal w/ myself. I did finally weigh myself, I hadn't in quite a while. Came in about 201. I guess thats good, at least I haven't gone up. My breakfast was spoiled today, I was given a cinnimon raisen biscuit from Hardees..I have a hard time turning away free food. I can never eat just a sandwich for lunch, I'm been eating sugar free pudding cups, they are really yummy. I guess now that I ate the biscuit maybe I'll walk around the outside of the building today. It's a pretty big building and it's only going to get in the 80's today. Maybe I'll do that. NO..I will do that :0) feel better already!

OOPS

2005-07-29T06:05:00.000-07:00

Last week was such a good one, ate right, exercised regularly and lost a few pounds....this week has not been so good. Missed a couple of workouts, which means to me that I should eat more...STUPID I know, should be just the opposite, but my mind does not work in a rational manner when it comes to food. I haven't gained this week but the number didn't go down either. I pledge to do better next week...really I DO!!!!!

Kick in the butt needed!

2005-07-28T17:03:00.000-07:00

Okay guys, I need a kick in the rear. Yesterday I helped a friend with moving and didn't get my exercise thing done. Then after getting home I realized that another friend had left the remains of a box of doughnuts here. I felt somewhat safe because they weren't chocolate ones, but it was the first time I have had any junk food in the house for a long time. Before the night was over, I had eaten all four of those doughnuts. It was not my free day either! Now today, I don't want to exercise. I don't know why, but it seems I always hit a point in my diet roller coaster where I almost self sabotage. I need someone to give me a kick in the rear and get me going again.....so go ahead....be as mean as you have to.

Inspiration!!

2005-07-28T13:38:00.000-07:00

You ladies have truly inspired me. I got up to get something to eat about an hour ago. I got a small bowl of what we refer to as 'bean soup'. Stew meat, pork & beans, brown sugar, ketchup, and onions. ummmm good stuff. Anyway, I also grabbed five cookies, for dessert.
I sat down ate the soup, slowly. Drank some water, and then slowly by breaking off a piece at a time ate two of the cookies.
Guess what? The other three I put back!!

Okay, not much I know, but it makes me feel good. hehehehehe

Hope everyone has had a great day. If you haven't already go over to the Yay Yay's page and get a shot of sunshine I left everyone.

Cutting back

2005-07-28T05:53:00.000-07:00

Well I've been trying to cut portions and exercise more. No excersicing yesterday but I started to slice myself a piece of pecan pie..then made it smaller..then only ate half of that. I felt good about that!

Tonight I have my golf lesson..there is my exercise.

The office is buying lunch today and we're having Chinese. I couldn't turn away free fried rice and crab rangoon. At least I'm exercising tonight.

I still haven't weighed myself. I need to do that, easier to set a goal. I'm wearing an 18 right now on the bottom, I'm a bit smaller on the top. I'd like to get to a 14, ultimatley it would be nice to get out of plus sizes all together. Actually I'm in a regular size 18 plus size 16 usually. My pants are a little tight around my waist but if I go up to a 20 they would be ultra baggy on my booty. It's a very uncomfortable time...

All I have is the banana for breakfast though, I didn't bring backup snacks.
Hope you all do well today...baby steps!

Summer learning

2005-07-27T11:45:00.000-07:00

I can't begin to thank you all enough for you love and support and acceptance when I bared all to you earlier. That is the first time I have told anyone other than close family. So...it was nerve wracking.

Just wanted to tell you all a few things I have learned this summer. I came out here to get a jump start on the weight loss, so I could continue it at home. I have gotten better physically. I can walk and stand longer than I could for the past year. I have also cut my portions way way down. I used to eat a big breakfast then sorta munch almost all morning till lunch, then have a big lunch and a snack in the afternoon and a big dinner. Now I can feel totally full on a small bowl (with fat free milk) of cereal, or a half of a bagel with sugar free peanut butter and sugar free jelly. I don't eat until lunch. I then can get buy on one small sandwich, or a lunchable (I had one of those today, cuz it was easy) and if I need a snack I get some fat free ritz crackers with the peanut butter and sometimes jelly on them. I'm usually good till dinner. I have cut my portions back by more than half for dinner. And sometimes when I would usually get more food, I stop and wait for 15 minutes to a half hour. If I'm not "hungry" then I don't get any more. Yes and sometimes we indulge. We have a donut, or go out for taco's every once in a great while. I also drink around 75 to 90 oz of water a day. That does not include my coffee or the juice or a diet soda I may drink. That is just water alone. Sometimes I feel like I'm floating, but I know it's way way good to have my body hydrated.

I have also learned what kinds of stuff to buy, that I hadn't been buying already. And with some help from different people, I have learned some good vegetable alternatives, and fruits I can enjoy.

I'm on my way ladies. It's gonna be a LONG hard road, but I am determined to take it one step at a time. Sometimes I think about the big goal, and I feel so overwhelmed. So...I don't think that way anymore. Last I weighed I was 385, my goal is to be 350. Once there my goal will be to be 325, then 300. So on and so forth, and as I lose, I know I will feel better and be able to move more. I am so excited.

God Bless all of you ladies for stepping up and realizing what you need to do and doing it. I clap and hug and praise you all.

Happy Wednesday everyone.

Hey There yay-yays

2005-07-27T09:02:00.000-07:00

I had a little accident and injured my back. So I can't sit very long periods of time. I'll start posting again soon. I may be down but I'm not out !!!

the big butt breakfast

2005-07-27T06:03:00.000-07:00

How completely pathetic is this - I'm sitting here reading about how hard Burfica is working to get her weight under control and I'm snarfing down chocolate covered donuts and drinking cherry limeade... Yeah, I need to get my act together and quick. Thanks for helping to inspire me ladies! Hopefully one of these days I'll be able to put the donuts down and back away slowly. =)

Courage or Stupidity

2005-07-26T14:15:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if I'm full of courage now or stupidity. I've been reading the posts, and I'm rather embarrassed. But I am also inspired, and on my way myself. I got the invitation and wasn't wanting to post, because of my humiliation. Let me fill you all in.
I've been a big girl all my life. I'm 5'4" and I've always weighed around 190 to 200, (god what I wouldn't give to be there again) But when I was first married, I went in to emergency surgery. I had a 30lb, (yup 30pounds) 10inch in diameter tumor in my pelvic cavity and it flipped over and ruptured my left ovary. I bleed internally for 3 days before they figured out I needed emergency surgery. Doing that surgery caused all of my lower abdominal muscles to collapse. I also had to go on some major hormone therapy. Then about 4 years after that I went in for another abdominal surgery (gall bladder) and the idiot doctor sliced my artery open. so I have this gigantic scar where he cut me open in a hurry to save my life. Resulting in more abdominal muscles to collapse. With both of these surgeries, I had major complications during and after, so it took a year each time for proper healing. And with hormone therapy, I just kept gaining.

This past fall it got to a point that I couldn't exercise unless I lost weight, but no matter what I did, I couldn't lose weight unless I exercised. I have tons of health issues. I have foot and leg problems. Planter fasceitis, and lower extremity lymphadema. I also have high blood pressure, and I couldn't breath very easy. I made the decision to come out to Texas at my sisters place for the summer. Cuz 1..she has the money to help me get started. 2..they have a gym in her house. 3...they have intense water aerobics here. So...I came out here for the summer.

In January, things got worse for my health..It was agony to just walk from one end of my house to the other, and I couldn't get out of the couch without help. Ladies, here is the embarrassing part. I got weighed on a massive electronic scale the first of Feb. I weighed 431lbs. (please don't spead this around, I haven't even talked about it on my own blog.) I was devastated when I saw that number. I cut soda out completely, and I started watching the carb and sugar intake on the labels on foods. I started buying more sugar free (peanut butter, jelly, syrup, candies) and fat free (milk, cheese, tortillas, any crackers, etc...) I had a procedure done on my toe in May and took the plunge and weighed in again. 385 OMG just that little change took me down 40 lbs!!!!!!!!! Now I was motivated. I came out to Texas, and the 4th day here, I feel and got hurt. Like ride off in an ambulance kind of hurt. I dislocated my elbow, sprained my wrist, thumb, left ankle, and right knee. I almost spun into depression. But I didn't let it stop me. I decided I was here to get a jump start on my weight loss, and by GOD I was gonna do it. I have been pushing myself so very hard every day. I mean pushing to the point that I've been in tears, and hurting so bad every single day. But ladies, I don't have a scale I can weigh on here, but I'm doing some sort of improvement. My new bathing suit (that fit in June) got so baggy my sister had to sew it up (I even got my fat ass in a walmart 3X bathing suit) and my underwear are really baggy now, my pants also. My family says my face and neck look alot thinner also. I can notice just how you reach certain area's to scratch or when your bathing is easier. I also am able to stand up and walk for a good 5 to 10 minutes now (it was tops 1 minute before) I'm making baby steps, but I'm doing it. I now have the means to go home and continue with the eating change, and keep working, walking, and exercising.

I'm very much hoping a blog like this will help us all, but I'm also very scared. This is the first time I've told anyone other than close family about my weight and struggles. So...there it is, I layed it all out there. Now I will wait in the corner to see if I'm accepted. hehehehe

And Kat, thanks for removing that "foot" out of my ass, you don't know how much that helped.

A note from the semi-dead

2005-07-26T12:18:00.000-07:00

Please don't think I am ignorning ya'll by not making comments today but I think my face is getting ready to explode. Keep up all the good work ladies and I hope to be back to my happy dieting self in a couple days!

Pill-Poppin' Momma

2005-07-26T09:23:00.000-07:00

Does any of the shrinking Yay-yays take supplement diet pills? I ask because on my blog I regularly pimp out Phenolox , and it's been good to me, even though it's a tad expensive. It's one of those pills that kills your appetite just the right amount, and it kick-starts your RESTING metabolism, so even if you can't make it to the gym that day it's still working. Actually, I think I've taken them all at some point, but I like the Phenolox best. And, not to sound like a TOTAL company whore or anything, but somehow they read my blog and sent me a coupon for a free bottle for pimping them out! Who knew?
Anyway, I was thinking, while sipping my GIGANTIC JAR O' WATER here, that maybe I should do a comparison post for all the yay-yays interested here. From a personal point of view. And I was wondering if the supplements out there have worked for anyone else?
Yall have a great day, and THINK THINNER with me!

greetings from a fellow fatty

2005-07-26T07:15:00.000-07:00

Morning all! =) I figured since one of my big goals right now is to lose weight that this would be a great way to help me keep to that goal. I'm currently 5'6" and at my last weigh in I was 269. My goal is to lose at least 75lbs, but more would obviously be better. I've been fairly big since I hit puberty, but about two years ago had managed to get within spitting distance of 200 lbs. I had been diagnosed with a liver disease and the treatment was either pills or a complete change in diet. I opted for the diet route and cut my fat intake back to under 30gms per day. Amazing what that will do for a body. But once I got my disease under control I went back to my old ways of eating and pounds just poured back on.

I have joined a local gym - Curves - and am trying to do that at least 3 times a week. I really like the atmosphere there and the philosophy behind it is very appealing. I just need to get off my lazy ass and go like I'm supposed to. =)

Anyway, thanks for having me here. I think it's great that we're all here supporting each other like this. It may very well make the difference for us and hopefully we'll all finally be successful.

On the Wagon

2005-07-26T05:19:00.000-07:00

I've been dieting for two weeks now and trying to decide what's right for me. I haven't actually devoted myself to dieting in a long time. I used to "pretend" to diet, which would be about 3 days of me doing what I think works, and then I'd go back to my old eating habits.

As you may have seen in my comment to Sandi, I started at 273 amd am down to 262 now. I am still a size 24-26 and at the largest I have ever been. I've been heavy since the 4th grade. I did Jenny Craig once and lost about 30 pounds, but the Slurpees from 7-11 sabotaged me. So here I am again, doing Weight Watchers for now. I'm not in the program, but friends and family have done it before with results, so I'm following their lead. So far 11 pounds down. Can't complain!

I think I would do best on a low carb, high protein diet. I was prepared to do "Lean for Life" which yields great results and is not unhealthy. But Jabe wants to lose some weight too, and it was too restricting for him. He doesn't have much to lose, so when he's done, I'll probably make the switch (unless this diet just blows me away).

I am very happy to say, for the first time I am excited about dieting and not angry or tired of it. I knew this feeling would come before any diet would work. You have to wake up one day and suddenly your whole outlook is different and you just "know" you're ready. I know it's only 2 weeks, but I can feel my attitude changing. I don't have to eat enough for 4 people, and better yet, even my stomach is feeling it! I can't eat as much as I used to without feeling incredibly full. I guess the stomach gets used to those smaller portions!

I'm not an expert, but I know two things that have made a big difference. Eating frequent, small meals or snacks... and WATER! We all know about the benefits of water, but we still choose to ignore it. Trust me, that's the trick! It's already recommended that you drink 8 glasses (64 oz) a day, but did you know it's really recommended to take half your weight, and that's how many ounces you should drink? That makes mine 130 oz. a day! Anyway, I'm rambling, so I'll let you go back to your regularly scheduled programs! Have a great day!

Holla all.

2005-07-25T16:52:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to say that I am here, I have been reading all the posts, and just lurking around since this site got up and running. I have no idea where to begin, I think from what I have read I am the fattest one here, and I have absolutely no idea where to start.
Four years ago I was a size 8, healthy, rode my bike about 30 miles every other day. That was not a usual state for my body, but I had made it mine. Then I became a care giver for my mother, got depressed and the rest is history. Today I am 5'5" and about 260 lbs. maybe more, I don't know, I don't have a scale that can weigh my fat ass.
Joining this group is like my cry for help. I would be happy to get down to 150-180 range. Yes that is still heavy, but I have a very large frame, so to thin just looks bad on me. I have started to get more exercise since I got the camera. Yes it takes energy to take pictures. LOL However, I need to get a whole lot more exercise, and stop eating junk.

Oh, well, that is me.

Back In The Saddle Again

2005-07-25T16:37:00.000-07:00

I've been "back in the saddle" so to speak for one week today, Weighed myself and I've lost 6pounds...I know that I can't expect that every week, it always slows down....way way down..but boy was I excited to see that number on the scale. I've been working out 3 mornings a week for months but now I've also added a 2 mile walk in the evening 3-4 times. I feel great. Please let it last this time.....

MY Scale finally went down today!!!

2005-07-25T14:42:00.000-07:00

Hey,
I am sorry, but I had to share the fact that my scale went down. I am soooo happy. I am one of those folks that can stick to a diet and exercise for weeks before my scale moves-only to see it move a pound or so. It has been weeks since it really moved, but today I was under 150!!!! I am so happy, because I had gotten to the point where I didn't think that it was ever going to move again. I started body for life in May and in the third week hurt my back and just about cut my toe off....so had to take some time of and started again July 4. That means that I am three weeks into the challenge again and for some reason the three week point is always where you start to see progress. I will admit now that I have never made it through a whole 12 week challenge, but this time I am determined to do it! I am hoping that being here with you guys and being accountable to you and in my blog will help me stick with it. I actually took the pictures of the before me this time and I think that will help me stick. I think it is really time to do another set of pics so maybe I can stay motivated. If that before pic I took wasn't enough to motivate me, nothing will.

How pathetic am I.....

2005-07-25T13:39:00.000-07:00

I put the weight loss ticker up to motivate me and all it has caused me to do is rebel against it. I should have known better.....I always rebel against authority! LOL!

Anyway, back on the wagon today, and I actually am writing my points down. Including the beer! LOL!

Hopefully, we will see the meter move down every week from now on, or I'm not going to have any pants to wear in the fall.

*Cross posted to Nickle Annie *

tough time w this

2005-07-25T13:28:00.000-07:00

I guess it doesn't help that I was not thinking about this "weight loss" deal when I packed my lunch. Cause instead of a healthy afternoon snack I'm having fudge covered ghram crackers. I don't think that is a good healthy positive choice... :0( Maybe one would have been OK but I've had 4. :0( They were yummy in my tummy.

Breakfast alternatives

2005-07-25T08:44:00.000-07:00

I need a great breakfast alternative. I wake up at 6am. I shower, get dressed then have a cup of coffee. I leave the house at 7am. I am hungery around 8:30am. I've always been like that, I need to be up a while before i eat.

Today I had a Special K bar. But it didn't fill me up. At 9:30 my tummy was still growling. So I ate a pack of peanut butter crackers...not good (but tummy not growling)

We have a fridge and microwave at work. Any good suggestions of something that I can eat at my desk but still fill me up?

Quote of the Day

2005-07-25T07:43:00.000-07:00

Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there
- Will Rogers

Today is the day!!!!

2005-07-25T06:26:00.000-07:00

Today is day 1 .My goals today are...
1. Do the sweatin' to the oldies video.
2. Drink 8 bottles of water.
3. only 1 cup of coffee.
4.Eat smaller portoins for my meals.
5.Write down everything I eat today and post it here tonight.
6.Look at the picture I posted here and visualize myself getting smaller and sexier.
Wish me strength my sisters I'll be doing the same.

MP's Weight issues

2005-07-25T06:12:00.000-07:00

OK, here is my deal. I KNOW I can loose weight I just don't do it. I am a HUGE procrastinator and tend to be lazy.

I'm not quite 5'4 and weigh around 200 lbs. Most people would never believe that because I really do hide my weight pretty well. I mean it's obvious I'm over weight but I don't think anyone would believe I'm at 200 lbs.

1. I need to loose weight due to heath reasons. Nothing the doctor has told me but common sense. I see how my mom struffles w/ her weight at near 80 years old and I know I don't want that. I am starting to really feel it, I get tired easily and get winded going up and down the stairs. I shake my head when I see myself naked, it's just not a pretty site.

2. What I am doing is drinking lots of water and not alot of alcohol. That is a good thing.

Now here is what I am NOT doing that I need to do.

3. Exercise. I will take Chris walk challenge. I think I may start there then move to something more later. I really want to take an aqua arerobics class but I'm a little tight on funds to go to the Y. I have light weights at home and a mat, maybe I'll need to get a half hour of that in while I watch tv. I'm going to start w/ the walking tomorrow.

4. Proportions. I know I ate 3 portions of my pasta I made last night. I think I should have been able to get buy on less than that.

5. Eating RIGHT and eating SMART...which means eat fruit, vegetables, cut back on fried foods and overloads of desserts.

I initially started a blog regarding what was "going in" and was going to keep a daily journal of what I ate. When it's on "paper" I think we tend to freak a little and NOT eat so poorly. What do we think?? First one with a meal under their belt starts a post about what they are eating...good or bad...and we just post what we're actually eating..what I mean is in comments..not 50 different posts that state "water, cottage cheese, fruit"..you know what I mean?

I don't have a picture...hmmm I'll look but that is great. ps you guys are the only ones that know that I hit 200 on the scale. Not even mom knows.

Bawk - Bawk

2005-07-24T18:51:00.000-07:00

Yep, that's me. I am a big chicken! I will state for the record that my weight is right about 195 and I will keep everyone posted on my progress and what is working for me but there aint no way in hell that I will be posting any pics of my fat ass up here! LOL.

Now that I have that off my chest, I would just like to say that I have been a good girl today. And in anticipation of tomorrow and it being Monday and all I went ahead and got my work day meal prepared in advance because I am terrible about.. "Oops, I forgot to make my lunch AGAIN I will be right back, gotta go grab something".. So I figure if I prepare for my work day the night before, after my walk of course, I wont forget to. In doing this I can plan a "healthy" meal instead of having some crap from the nearest fast food joint and when you work in Down Town Denver there are plenty of those around. For breakfast I have a banana and a piece of lightly buttered raisin bread (that I made from scratch) and for lunch I cooked some thin spaghetti noodles and mixed them with some fat free Italian dressing threw in some tomatoes, mushrooms, a sliced pickle and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and for snacks I have a banana and a nectarine. I think that should keep me happy throughout the day. Oh and I will keep some popcorn in my drawer for those "I need something sweet" moments. I know that popcorn isn't sweet but it will kill the craving for that oh so yummy cookie from across the street!

Lord give me strength!

Body for life diet

2005-07-24T15:34:00.000-07:00

I had a couple of questions on the body for life diet plan, so I will cover it a bit here. Basically body for life is a diet and exercise plan. You have three or four exercises you do each day and you do aerobics twice a week for twenty minutes. He is VERY specific about how you go about doing these exercises and it is really important to follow his advice about how to do them to the letter.
The meal portion of the plan involves eating six times a day from sensible foods. You basically have to have a protein serving and a carb serving at each meal. The purpose is to keep your blood sugar even and to feed all those muscles that you are building. I do the plan as a convenience thing, so I have a lean cuisine for dinner, a protein shake with fruit for breakfast, a salad with meat for lunch and some protein fortified fruit/yoghurt/cottage cheese/sugar free pudding or something for the in between meals. After the first few days, I basically have quit being hungry so on most days it is hard to get all the meals in. If I have a really busy day I will have a high protein bar for one of the meals.
My suggestion is to go to the library, check out the body for life book and look at the pictures on the front. These are people who won the twelve week challenge and it is amazing the results that they get in twelve weeks. I do it all at home with some dumb bells so I don't have to drag to the gym. So far so good. I started this in may, but started eating that way most of the time at the first of the year. I started out at 178 and am currently at 151. I think it would be less but I have built quite a bit of muscle that weighs more. It looks like more as I am working on getting buff. I will share before and during pics as I go along if I can get up the nerve. If you have questions let me know.

Dr. Phil's Advice

2005-07-24T12:43:00.000-07:00

I never buy magazines but yesterday the August edition of Good Housekeeping caught my eye, so I bought it. The cover title story was "Dr. Phil's simple plan to make you thin" on the cover page there are pictures of two different women, one who lost 110 lbs and the other 63lbs. Under their pictures was the caption "LOSE BIG!" I thought to myself, Hey, I wanna "LOSE BIG!" so I read their "secrets" and found out that we should be doing several things according to Dr. Phil. I will list them here or you can go check out his website.

Have a Specific Goal - be specific as to how many pounds you want to lose and visualize yourself after you've reached your goal and use that image to help you stay strong and committed.
Get a Plan - To lose weight and keep it off, your strategy must include diet AND exercise. Get rid of your expandable clothes, stay away from fast food, and stock healthy food at home.
Identify Small, Measurable Steps - Implement steps that will fit your lifestyle, not somebody else's. Be sure to move toward a positive goal, not just away from being fat. (nice choice of words huh?)
Create Meaningful Monitoring - If you have to, report your progress to someone, you'll be more likely to stick with your plan.
Create a Healthy, Realistic Timeline - Where do you want to be in a year? Fit your goals to your calendar, and don't expect to see results overnight. If you change your lifestyle, you'll change your weight.

I have never been a big fan of Dr. Phil but I think these are some pretty great ideas.

The Wonders of Water

2005-07-24T12:30:00.000-07:00

Holy crap, those diet people were NOT kidding when they said water is the best for losing weight! The hub-unit and and I are big soda drinkers, but when we run out I hit back on the old H20. Amazingly enough, once we had more soda in the fridge, I noticed a difference! Seriously, after two sodas I felt all bloated and weird, and I immediately went back to the water. WalMart sells these HUGE cups that hold exactly 64 oz of water (what yer S'POSED to drink in a day, I guess), and at four bucks it was a steal and an awesome way to carry around JUST what I needed! MUCH easier to carry around ALL the water I'm supposed to have in a day if I'm not running to the fridge every time I need more, and I always end up drinking two mugs full.
Skinny and svelte, here I COME, BABY!
I need to come up with a water-drinking mantra...any suggestions?

2005-07-24T10:44:00.000-07:00

OK ladies this isn't easy for me to do.I am bearing it all .7-23-05 weighting in at 200pds.I know it's 20 pounds of boobs but that leaves 180 pounds of everything else .My goal is to loose 40 pounds.I personally feel good at 160 look great at 150 .But I'll be happy with 160.I'm size 18 - 20 and would like to get into a 14.

2005-07-24T06:32:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's time to get serious here.. I gained 5# yesterday & don't feel like I did a thing differently. Feels like my whole metabolism is in flux. Maybe I need some sort of detox for the chips & dips that are in me..;o)
I know one thing is the wine I have in the evening.. gotta cut back.
But at least I took 2 walks on the beach yesterday.. that was something positive!

My tubby butt is here!

2005-07-23T16:57:00.000-07:00

Just thought Id announce my tubbiness.... lol Where do I start?? LOL

Dinner for ONE

2005-07-23T15:47:00.000-07:00

As I boasted about my being alone this weekend previously I realized something... I have to eat alone! I cannot remember the last time I ate a meal alone, other than a quick burger or something. I went to Wal-Mart SuperCenter on my quest for a meal for one. I was hungry so that is never good but I have to say that I am rather proud of my selection for my dinner for one. I decided that I was going to have me a nice Chicken Caesar Salad with a Garlic-Cheddar biscuit and for dessert I bought a package of low calorie (smart ones) eclairs. I am patiently awaiting the buzzer to go off and tell me that my biscuits are done, my salad is sitting upstairs waiting for me to dive in and then after our evening walk (me and the pooches) we will come back, watch a move and eat low fat eclairs! (I am so proud of me!lol)

Another New Recipe

2005-07-23T11:19:00.000-07:00

I put up a recipe for Peppered Chicken and Shrimp. Hope you all like it...it is very yummy!

Chris' Challenge

2005-07-23T10:05:00.000-07:00

Because Kat yelled at me, lol, Im posting my comment here now...

I would like to make a small challenge to all my Shrinking Sister-Friends... My challenge is simple but will require a commitment from each and every one of us... So, here is my challengeI challenge everyone to take a brief walk every day. It can be in the morning, night, daytime, I dont care. It can be with your kids, spouse or dogs. Lets get ourselves out of our chair and away from our computers for an hour a day!

Eh? What do ya'll say? I am on a damn roll this morning.. LOL.

I told my dog that we are gonna start walking every evening and she ran and got her leash, ffs it was only 9:30 am and she was already ready, she is going to be on pins & needles all day awaiting our evening walk.

New Recipe

2005-07-23T09:39:00.000-07:00

To test out our "system" I wrote up my favorite recipe for a low carb Orange Julius type drink. It worked fine!

My Recipes....

2005-07-23T09:28:00.000-07:00

I have tons of WW recipes but I don't have low carb. Most of the WW recipes have the carb counts in the values though so I can post those.

Anyway, I have a question. I am ready to post a recipe but I'm not sure which kind you would like. Fancy, easy, whatever. So post what you kinda want to see and I'll get on it. ;o)

Yay-Yay!

Recipes

2005-07-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

I LOVE recipes! I'm thinking about how best to organize the recipes we share with each other...here's my thought:

We post all recipes in a file on the Yay-Yay Yahoo Group. The reason I suggest this is that it will be a pain in the patookus to go through a zillion posts to find that one recipe we saw a couple of weeks ago. On here we can alert everyone that there's a new recipe in the file and a brief description of what the recipe is for. It's really easy to create a text file and add it to the Recipe folder. I'm going to create a folder: Shrinking Yay-Yays' Recipes.....it's easy to find and easy to use. I'll work on getting a link to the folder in our sidebar.

Happy Saturday!

2005-07-23T09:00:00.000-07:00

I have a confession. I am a procrastinator! I will procrastinate anything and everything. I am terrible at making commitment. But I know what I need to do to get myself back into shape.

I had major abdominal surgery last August and I have to admit that prior to the surgery I was looking pretty damn good (pats back). But after my surgery that went all to hell. My surgery was a complete abdominal hysterectomy. My recovery from my surgery was long and painful. During my surgery I lost almost half my bodies blood and everything the poor doctor touched inside me would bleed. He told me when he came to visit me in recovery that I was pretty much a mess inside. That I had so many scars and adhesions that it was like a huge spider web inside me. Literally everything bled. Which caused me even more pain because everything that he touched also bruised, etc. So, I was on some good drugs and spent the next 6 weeks recovering. They tell you there will be side effects from this surgery. And we all know that when you are having ALL of your female innards yanked that there is now nothing in there to produce your hormones so you get to start taking HRTs (Hormone Replacement Therapy). I am on my second type as the first one didn't work so great. One of the other side effects is weight gain. And Sisters let me tell you, I have gained! I have gained 25-30 lbs in less than a year!!! I feel huge, gross, unattractive, disgusted with myself, you name it. I am not happy with what I am anymore! I have completely lost my sex drive, which I think is due to all of the above. (My poor hubby, thank god he has hands).

I am so happy to be a part of this Sister-Friends offspring and hope I can give as much support to you all that I know you all will give to me.. Yay-Yay!

Chris' Comment

2005-07-23T08:58:00.000-07:00

I think we should have a daily dose of low fat - low carb recipes. What does everyone think? We could each post a recipe a week that we cooked that was low in fat, carbs or whatever. Eh Eh?? And since Nickle opened her mouth first.. I nominate her to start it.. hehehe! If ya'll think this is a bad idea then tell me... Hey Chris, shut the fuck up ... if ya'll like the idea then tell me.. Hey Chris, dont shut the fuck up... or if ya dont curse you can improvise. hehehe

THANKS

2005-07-23T04:26:00.000-07:00

I need all the support I can get...I am a CAREER dieter! I've tried every 'fad' diet out there for the past 30 years. Now I follow Weight Watchers, when I'm doing well. Thank you again for including me.

3 day old dessert

2005-07-22T19:12:00.000-07:00

Does this mean I cant eat the Apple Dumping that I bought 3 days ago?? I have been saving it for the weekend, that counts for something right??? Someone? Please? HELP ME! lol

Hi

2005-07-22T18:29:00.000-07:00

Hi,
I am new here and am a fairly new Yay-Yay. I didn't realize until this morning that everyone was a new Yay-Yay. :) I am from Illinois and am a single mother/grandmother empy nester. I am currently doing the body for life exercise and diet plan. I started it and did it for three weeks and then hurt my back. I am now several weeks into it again. I started again on July fourth. My biggest struggle at this point is fitting in all six of the mini meals I am supposed to eat and drinking enough water. I know that realizing that this isn't going to happen overnight is also an issue for me. This needs to be a way of life, rather than a diet that I go off and on. This is one that I think I can actually stick to as I can eat just about anything and I get one free day a week to eat whatever I want. Anyway, I am looking forward to discussing our fluffy issues.

Katkins

2005-07-22T15:23:00.000-07:00

My diet is my own version of Atkins. Being hypoglycemic my body is at its absolute happiest when I'm sticking to Katkins. There is a long list of positives when I'm working the plan....no afternoon droopies, never (I really do mean NEVER) hungry, healthier self-esteem from using self-discipline, I feel more in control of my life...food is no longer controlling me. I need to keep going on this list in my journal...I'm getting so motivated to get back on track!

I've created a cookbook's worth of low carb super yummy recipes.....I'll be sharing those, once I'm on the plan and actually using them!

I lost over 100 lbs on this diet a few years ago.....I left my ex and my diet was completely derailed. I've gained back the 100 plus close to another 100!! I'm dreading my first weigh-in.....I'm going to do it, I'm just dreading the hell out of it. I need to keep myself from focusing on all the pounds I've gained and simply focus on the first 5 pounds I have to lose. Successful thoughts = success I could lose the war before I even started....keeping my thoughts in check will guarantee success.

Thanks!

2005-07-22T15:02:00.000-07:00

Hey, I'm feeling thinner already.. but maybe that's just my wallet, after going grocery shopping..
I look forward to reading your tips/hints/subtle-threats/tales of joy or falling off the wagon. It's all part of the human process, right?
I am 57 yrs old (egads it hurt to type that), mother of 6 adults. My adult weight has fluctuated from 105# (way too thin for my 5'8") to 164# ( I swear 150 of it was on my hips). I'm getting close to that high # again.. nothing fits/I hate exercise/hubby cooks gourmet. So I'm motivated.
I think our bodies adapt to certain diets.. like the Atkins simply doesn't work for me anymore. My brain scoffs & says, 'Try again'.. But lo-fat still does to some extent. So let's explore together & report the 'true skinny' on what WORKS!
Good luck to all the curvy-ones..