Member of the Full Tank Club!

Thanks, girls! I need you all so much, and I am not afraid to admit it.

Jules

Levels of Exertion

Are you in the "zone" when working out? When walking? When riding the bike? A good way to tell is the Borg Perceived level of exertion test. Here it is:

6 No exertion at all
7 Extremely light
8
9 Very light - (easy walking slowly at a comfortable pace)
10
11 Light
12
13 Somewhat hard (It is quite an effort; you feel tired but can continue, like when you are late for an appointment)
14
15 Hard (heavy)
16
17 Very hard (very strenuous, and you are very fatigued)
18
19 Extremely hard (You can not continue for long at this pace)
20 Maximal exertion

You should try to keep within the 13-15 zone. Pick a zone that you can maintain for at least 20 minutes. Work up to that zone for 5 minutes and cool down from it for another 5. Perhaps you can creep up to the 16-18 for the final 3 minutes of your 20 minute high level work out.

Here is a more light hearted version that will speak to most of us:

Level 1: I'm watching TV and eating bon bons
Level 2: I'm comfortable and could maintain this pace all day long
Level 3: I'm still comfortable, but am breathing a bit harder
Level 4: I'm sweating a little, but feel good and can carry on a conversation effortlessly
Level 5: I'm just above comfortable, am sweating more and can still talk easily
Level 6: I can still talk, but am slightly breathless
Level 7: I can still talk, but I don't really want to. I'm sweating like a pig
Level 8: I can grunt in response to your questions and can only keep this pace for a short time period.
Level 9: I am probably going to die.
Level 10: I am dead.

I found this cool article. It has lots of good advice that is down to Earth. Did you know that the more fit you are, the quicker you begin to sweat when working out? I thought it was the opposite! Those glistening skinny people are probably working out as hard as you, but they are fit and their bodies are trained to put them into cool off mood as soon as possible. Us unfit people, freak our bodies out when we start our workout. It takes our systems longer to relieve the heat.

I found this interesting...

So what is the problem? And what is the solution? Let us study God's Word for our answer: "20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations-- 21 Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle," 22 which all concern things which perish with the using--according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh" (Colossians 2:20-23).

Notice that "taste not" and "neglecting the body" have no value in restraining indulgence of the flesh. Today diet gurus could use all the big words they want, explain the body's chemical makeup, talk about metabolism rates, and explain "ketosis" in detail, but their counsel can be boiled down to "taste not, touch not." We want no part of that "man made and self imposed" religion (verse 23).
The above passage of Scripture reveals the real problem: indulgence of the flesh! If we think about it, we know this is true. What is it that makes me want to eat the entire gallon of ice cream? What makes me want to have a late night snack that turns into an all-you-can-eat buffet? The answer is, I want to indulge my flesh. My flesh cries out to be gratified and I, lacking self-control, indulge it. That is the problem. Food is not the problem.

So, understanding that the condition of being overweight comes from indulging the flesh, it is foolish to change the kinds of foods with which we indulge the flesh. If I forsake eating of all breads and only indulge with meat, what have I profited? My heart and lifestyle have not changed, and even though I might lose weight for a time it will surely come back on until I learn that the problem is that I have a habit of indulging my flesh, rather than just what kind of food I eat.

A beautiful bouquet for YOU Julie!

I am sorry you are having a rough day....I hope this pretty bouquet of virtual flowers will cheer you up a bit! I am in your corner babe, cheering you on! I am so proud that despite your struggles you have stuck to your eating habits as well as the exercise and water! That is truly taking good care of yourself! See the strides you have made already?! This too shall pass.....
Love,
Tina

Julie... try not to be bummed, 'cause you da bomb!!

Tina's journaling

Ok, here is my day:
Breakfast: cereal w/ milk
Lunch: brown rice, beans, salsa, olives, avocado, oranges
Snack: celery and carrots with hummus dip
Dinner: we went to Buzz Inn....let's see how I did: Chicken fajita salad, I did not have the sour cream or ranch dressing, I dressed it with salsa instead! Ate the measly 10 tortilla chips that came with it. I did GRRRRRRRREAT!
Snack: orange juice w/seltzer, an orange and toast
Did a 30 minute pilates ballet blend workout tape too as well as plenty of lemon water and 3 cups of tea. Ha cha cha!

Emotional bankruptcy

I am feeling a bit bankrupt this morning. I have a sick baby...Didn't get much sleep last night. Have to bribe my mother and mother-in-law for a little time away just to buy groceries(feeling trapped)...Worked out at 9 PM last night(only time I could get away) and the scale said I had gained .8 lbs. When I was expecting progress. And my house looks like 45 mile an hour winds have blown through. I am staying on track with my eating and workouts and water. I just feel like I am in the middle of a pity party that sucks. I have spent 25 days on this program, maybe the stress of the change is hitting me. I am not PMSing either. That is too far away. Help! Someone fill up my love tank.

My husband started doing push ups and sit ups...

I found Willem doing excercises in the morning, and I just thought that was so cute! He said that he started doing them a couple of weeks ago. I've noticed that his tummy has gotten smaller too since I've changed my eating habits. I just think it's cool when you can see that you've influenced other family members in a positive way. It is clear to me that he is feeling better about himself. :) Not that he had a huge amount to lose anyways... but no man wants to walk around with a beer belly.

Woo hoo! Did it! Official day one on CORE! So here is how the day broke down for me:

Breakfast: steel cut oats
Snack: orange slices
Lunch: salad balsamic dressing (no fat) and split pea soup
Dinner: brown rice and not refried beans, diced avocado and black olives on top, salsa mixed into the beans, large side of steamed broccoli
Snack: 3/4 cup cereal
Ok, still hungry, so had 94% ff popcorn and some OJ watered down with sparkling water to make it fizzy and fun! 1pt for little bit of OJ, also lots of water with lemon

Thinking that I have to tell all of you what I ate today really helps me right now. Let's hope this phase doesn't pass, right? So, off to have my second cup of tea for the day and that is it!

The scale is my diet shepard,
I shall not whine (too loudly)
It makes me to lay down on the work-out mat
It reduces my rolls

The mirror is my conscience
I shall not fear
It makes me to laugh or cry
It shows me my successes

Lo, though I walk through the valley of pretzels
I will fear no carbohydrate,
For He is with me,
Mine is the Powah to say NO!

The blog is my helper
Here shall I post
My butter balls and sticks
For you are all with me
And We Will Overcome!

That can't be comfortable

I thought this was good for a laugh. Can you imagine the crazy person who put the thong on the Rhino? I think I'm having way too much fun with this Blog.

On a more serious note, tomorrow I weigh in after my first week on Weight Watchers. My scale at home doesn't seem to be getting the message that I AM EATING RIGHT AND DRINKING LOTS OF WATER. I have also started exercising and have been to the Y 4 times. Would you believe that I have belonged to the Y for about 10 months and only been a few times before last week. There were a number of days that I put on my exercise clothes and spent the day in them but never actually got around to exercising. This year I hope to wear them out.

MIA's Where are you?

For those missing in action...we truly miss you! Please blog soon and tell us how you are doing. Mandi? Amy? Bitbythebug? Debbie? Yoo-Hoo!

Just a reminder !!

Chickadeeva Joins The Divas!

Hi Ladies!

"Many Thanks" to my sweet sisters (new and old) who are embarking on a journey of good health and happy weight. Thank you for welcoming me!

While my scale numbers aren't ideal, weight isn't my main health issue. I have fibromyalgia, which is latin for "radiating murderous pain on a non-stop basis" I think that's the latin ;-)
It can be a struggle to drag my body along with me on my adventures. Sometimes going across the street to get the mail is an event.

To keep moving and off disability, I have been working out - but not the way you brave women do! I can't seem to get myself into a gym to save my life, so I found a physical activity that distracts me so much I don't realize I'm working out - GOING TO THE BARN.

Tanya Fretland, a friend of most of ours said, "I never would have imagined you doing this kind of stuff with horses, being so techie and career-y and stuff." (not a direct quote, but you get the point, eh?) But - abundant life comes in unexpected colors - and I'm quite unexpectedly:

1) Inches smaller
2) Have a set of SICK PYTHONS (it’s a biceps joke)
3) Have more energy
4) Have another interesting thing to talk about

I ride a couple of times a week but my main 'job' is to groom and prepare the horses for their training, then untack and groom them down from it. If you are unfamiliar with grooming, just think "Wax ON. Wax OFF" and you'll get the idea. Its basically like washing and waxing a small car. Twice. For each of the four horses that train. Plus the one I'll ride.

You'd never see me in a gym doing reps, but I suppose this is just as good! So - here's to finding ways to be stronger and healthier "outside of the box".

Remember: Every little thing adds up! (I'll work on a poem Kris, I will!)

Chickadeeva

I couldn't resist...

I weighed myself again this morning, it has been a week since the last time. I've lost another two pounds, bringing my total up to thirteen now. I'm satisfied with that number for the first three weeks. But more importantly, I FEEL much better in my clothes. Some of them are getting too big, because I've lost inches, as well as pounds. I think I'll have myself measured in another week. I just wish it could all come off at once. But as Kimi had written in an earlier post; it has taken us years to put the weight on, and it isn't going to just come off over night.

Welcome Chickaeeva!

So good to have you here! We look forward to sharing our lives with you and hearing all about your accomplishments in the healthy living pursuit you are on, girl! You will add a creative touch to this blog! How about a weight loss poem? Smile.

I'm gonna start journaling,K?

Things are going well over here! I am going to be posting my food journal for a little while, at least until I feel strong enough to keep going w/o that accountability. Please, feel free to ask questions or point things out to me, or even ask "what were you thinking?????!!!", I am needing a little extra kick in the pants right now. So here goes: (oh and btw I am on a no dairy no meat products for a while due to the fast...I will get back into lighter cuts of meat products soon, oh and also no whites and no sugars until after my blood draw)

Yesterday:
Uncle Sam's cereal w/ oat milk
Whole wheat pasta and spaghetti sauce
2 handfuls of cashews
juiced up carrots, spinach and a beet
2 corn tortillas w/ taco salad made with black beans, herb salad, olives, tomatoes, salsa, onions, avocado
2 slices Ezekiel 4:19 bread w/ organic earth balance butter-type spread

Today:
Barbara's oats w/ oat milk
Split pea soup w/onions, carrots, garlic
Celery sticks dipped in hummus
1 slice Ezekiel bread w/ hummus
2 handfuls of almonds
orange
whole wheat pasta and sauce
I felt snacky tonight...cereal and oat milk...bettter stop eating now. Time for tea!
Good night all! Keep up the good work.

Kind of a cool thing..

As far as I can remember, I have never ever gone to the grocery store just for fruits and veggies alone. I had done the majority of my grocery shopping in the middle of the week last week. And then on Friday, I needed to get some more fresh produce. And would you believe, that was ALL that I picked up?! Even with all of my little ones with me. Now, to many of you that may not be a very big deal. But for a woman that has had a junk food addiction, it is a very big deal. It just stood out to me that I didn't pick up any junk at all, not even for the rest of my family.
Anyhow, here's a few numbers:

Day 18: 1,302 calories, 10 glasses of water, workout

Day 19: 1,214 calories, 11 glasses of water, workout

Day 20: 659 calories, (up until dinner time) We were invited to a formal dinner pary and I honestly don't know how many calories that I consumed. I know that I went over, but I ate with moderation, no 2nd's on anything. And I didn't feel guilty, I did manage to skip the bread. :) And I had 9 glasses of water.

Skinny picture alert!

I found this photo of me at Elicia's 31st bday, in Feb. 2000. I was at my lowest weight here...about 168 lbs. I was also about 6 weeks pregnant with RaeElise.

An Invitation for a Celebration!

To all contributors on this journey together, I wanted to invite you to our Spring Hurrah! This event will be held Saturday, May 20th, at Southcenter Mall Area Applebees! We will meet for lunch to celebrate our victories! Shopping to follow! Bring before and after pics, bring a piece of clothing you used to wear...Bring the hope that following a dream and being faithful gives! Prizes will be awarded (categories highly secretive) and joy will abound! There will be less of us to hug...But that is the point, right? RSVP to me.

I got a new shorter haircut...

After you get your hair cut,is it okay to say that you feel cute? I wanted to do something a little different that represented the new, emerging me. I'm feeling so good about myself. I hope that that doesn't sound too proud. But you know, for the first time in quite a while, I am taking pride in my appearance. And blast it all if I don't continue to take pride in my appearance. I mean, just because I'm a stay at home mom, doesn't mean that I have to live in the frump mom mode. Down with frump, and up with funk!

I was just thinking on how far I have to go and how many sticks of butter. I guess the alternative would be to just forget about this diet stuff and try a new sport - sumo. Do you think there would be a place for a sumo granny ? Naw ! Guess I'll stick to my diet and leave the sumo to these guys. Does anyone else think they should wear bras?

I know it's bad... but it's funny too

I had a cool thing happen to me this morning. I was the first person to get to Curves, and that has never happenned. I was there a couple of minutes before 6:00. In fact, I was the only one working out the whole time that I was there. In the past,(it's time for some real honesty here), I've enjoyed working out with other women, because I'm very strong and there are a couple of machines that are so tough that most women skip right over them. I never have, because I can do them, because I'm quite a bit stronger than the average woman. And, well, quite frankly, I enjoy that. I'm very competetive, and used to be very athletic. But, as I was working out this morning,(and as there was no one there to see me), I ended up having one of the hardest workouts that I can remember. And it made me think, I really am doing this for MYSELF. I don't have to have other people around me do to my best. And that I'm going to get out of it what I put into it. Just a cool revelation...

new to blogging

Hi all,
Well, here's my story. I've lost about 80lbs and still need to drop another 20-30. It's really hard because I've been working on this for 2 years. Now, I think I'm entering menopause and my hormones are doing .....whatever!!!! I can't figure out how to drop the pounds, but I'm determined to keep going. This week, after weeks of being stalled, I lost almost 3 lbs!! YEA.
Let's see how I do next week,

On my way to my meeting!

I thought I would post before I head off to my Prism meeting. I had a great week and a great day food wise and exercise, etc. But my fuse has been awful short for the members of my family...yikes. I have been in a whirl wind lately, so busy, and we have a dog staying with us for the week. It has been like babysitting a furry 14 mo. old child who chews on shoes. Not easy.

Anyway, here are my latest totals:

Tuesday: 1177 Calories, 8 glasses of water

Wednesday: 1014 Calories, 9 glasses of water, worked out

Thursday: 1204 Calories, 9 glasses of water, worked out

Butter Ball's R Us

Well all you sticks - I'll be working my way up from a butter ball. Can't wait!

I'm learning to love myself again!

I'm learning to love myself again, and it's more than just the weight thing for me. If you were to ask me if I feel better about myself for my recent weight loss, the answer would of course, be yes. I know it's only eleven pounds so far, and I still have a huge amount to lose. But as I've started this journey, now only being on day eighteen, I've come to realize that I am really glad to be me. I've come to realize that I'm stronger than I thought. And every day that passes, in which I avoid the strongest of junk food temptations, it just solidifies to me, the fact that this time I am going to make it. I'm going to make it to my goal, and I'm going to live life to the fullest. Because I love myself, and I love my family.

Anyhow, here's the numbers for the last few days
Day 15: 1,174 calories, 11 glasses of water, workout
Day 16: 1,135 calories, 9 glasses of water
Day 17: 1,194 calories, 10 glasses of water, workout

Jodie, (AKA) Queen Livalot, so glad you've joined us!!

I was so happy to see Jodie, (Julie's mother-in-law) make her first post today! We're glad you're here Jodie, the more the merrier! Here's a thumbs up to you for joining us, as well as Weight Watchers.

It's Never Too Late

To loose weight or learn something new. On the loosing weight - well, maybe a pat of butter. Just started Weight Watchers on Tues and my body still isn't sure what to do with all that water. I applaud you all for your successes. Keep up the good work.

The other something new is this blogging stuff. Still not sure what I am doing. I know I downloaded a bunch of stuff to do photos and am wondering if the whole world now has access to my private life? Julie HELP!!!!!!

An epiphany!

Ok...So I am actually pretty excited about some information that just dawned on me yesterday as I was considering my weight loss journey. It is true that I have lost about 9 lbs. since rejumping my journey this January, but...If you look back at where this journey actually began after I had my 5th baby, well...I have much more to shout about! I weighed in at Weight Watchers 232 lbs. I lost 24 lbs. there in 7 months. Then I took a break, gained a few pounds back (about 10) and joined Curves in November of 2004...I managed to loose the 10 lbs. That way, but then we moved and I got off the program. I gained 7 lbs. since then and just started afresh with Prism. So...If you are still following me...I can really look back and celebrate a total of 26 lbs. lost! That's 104 sticks of butter, baby!

This photo was taken 9-11-03, that is me at 232 lbs.

So, is it weird to watch the Food channel while on a juice fast? Hee hee! Ok, things are still going well, although tonight was a bit harder, especially when my family had dinner. During the day I can go and distract myself while the kids eat, but at dinner it is a bit harder. Tomorrow is my last day on the fast and then Friday I will be gently reintroducing food. And by that I mean, eating light meals and going vegan for the next few days. I am planning on fruits for breakfast, soups for lunch and possibly some brown rice with steamed veggies for dinner. I will also continue juicing, but less than I am currently doing now. This has been a good experience so far and I am thinking I would not mind doing a cleansing fast like this on a quarterly basis. I think it is good for my system. Well, I will check back in tomorrow.
Good night.

Virtual Tail Kicking

With the virtual tail kicking I received (thanks) from my friends here, I have gotten back on track today. OK, it has only been for two meals, but isn't that where I start? One meal at a time. (sound like a 12-step program)

Last night while Honey and the twins were at Karate, Toddler and I went to the store and I bought the makings for my favorite low-points meal. I love Vietnamese/Thai style stir fry. I bought rice noodles, onions, scallops, mushrooms, cilantro, spring onions, cucumber, garlic, fresh ginger and last night and today at lunch I have had a BIG bowl of yummy veggies, with a little protein and starch. It comes to 7.5 points and boy is it filling. I used 4 points for breakfast so I am on the right track for today. I am also writing it all down which is how it works best for me.

Now comes the hard part, afternoon and evening. ONE MEAL AT A TIME. I am going to have a snack and try to eat a little before we go to church so I am not starving when we get home and eat the first thing that looks good or fast food as we are prone to do on church nights.

Wish me luck and a prayer...here we go....the journey has begun!!!!!!!!!

Well, truth be told, it how God sees us !(that's most important) And we need to keep in mind when Satan comes to tear us down, remind us of how we have failed, or even how awful we look..., that God does not see us that way!! So when you hear that little voice telling you that you are less than perfect......don't accept it! That is not what God thinks of you !! The Bible tells us to think on what is good, what is lovely. Keeping ourselves positive and keeping our eyes on the goal ! This is a huge struggle for me.....so I have decided to claim heath and a renewed mind as I pray every morning and I am praying the same for all of you !! Keep it up girls !!

Isn't this the truth?!

been awhile

Hey ladies,

my computer hasn't been letting me log on to the site, but i've been totally enjoying the progress y'all have been sharing, so great! I have been doing good with my portion sizes and the amount of food I choose to eat during the day. I need to work more on sticking to the actual program I'm on which is basically very limited carbs. One step at a time I guess. I'm really trying to get to the issues of why I eat when I do and curb the cravings and treat myself with other nice things. Last night I was really craving icecream but I took a hot bath instead, which was good. I felt like I had a huge victory. I had light popcorn and an apple for my evening snack and was proud of myself for not running across the street to the store which I've been known to do when I have cravings. So, that is where I'm at. I'm not nearly as strong as some of you in sticking to the strictness, but I'm so proud of each of you for what you have accomplished so far.

Mandi

I sniffed the peanut butter

Yup, you got it, I took a long whiff of the peanut butter. My kids wanted a spoonful of peanut butter, we needed to open a new jar, of course when you do, it smells the best, so I sniffed it. Not just a weenie sniff either....a serious one that just about had calories in it. I am working on this fasting, it is really going pretty good. You drink a LOT of juice while doing this. I have washed my juicer 6 times today already. Tonight will be my hardest hurdle, but I am determined to make it. I really feel like this could be a time of reprogramming, shrinking my stomach and clearing out my system so my cravings might subside a bit. It was funny, a few times today I caught myself wanting to just grab something to eat without really thinking about it, very strange. I wonder how often I have been doing that one lately, no wonder my jeans are all getting tight! Well, I will report in tomorrow, let you all know how it went. I am feeling tired early today, so I am going to and relax a bit. Oh, I did get in my workout, kept it light with a walk around the neighborhood in the beautiful sunshine. Keep up the good work ladies, I am rooting for all of you! (Oh by the way, don't you love the name of that peanut butter in the picture? "Heavenly Spread peanut butter" couldn't have been better!)

For a few laughs...

I promise not to make this a blog where I am always posting photos of my kids. I just thought this was too funny not to share with the other women that aren't familiar with my other blog. Hey, laughing burns calories, doesn't it? This picture is of my youngest son, taken by my eldest son...

Weigh in!

I weighed in at the Y yesterday! I am down a full 9 lbs, now! Yippee! That's a lot of butter, baby! Oh, yah. Feeling good about myself!

Monday: 1213 Calories, 10 glasses of water, excersized!

Something we can all relate to at times...

Alrighty then. I am back again...sorry it has been a while. I too am hitting a spiritual wall here..having a hard time keeping up the diet. I also believe that our eating habits should be with the mindset of caring for this temple that our Lord has given us and that His Spirit inhabits. This being said, I am making a drastic change for the next few days to see if it will give me the kick in the pants I am currently needing. I am going to go on a juice fast for the next three days and work on detoxifying my body. Today I ate light to begin with, lots of fruit and veggies, salmon and brown rice for dinner and tomorrow I will be only drinking juices that I am juicing with my juicer. (hee hee that was funny) I bought a couple of books on juicing while detoxing and so I am following the plan outlined in there. I have been drinking detox tea for about 5 days now and have noticed some small changes. I will also be drinking tea during the detox. After that I will break the fast on Friday with a light meal like I started with and then I will, HOPEFULLY, continue to make great food choices from then on out. I have several good reasons to work hard here, well, actually I have bunches, but some immediate ones are: I have to go in to the doc and have a blood draw, I am borderline to being diabetic and if I don't get this weight off, I could end up being diagnosed with it, which of course I don't want. And I also have to go in for a mammogram, my dr. found a cyst and wants to make sure there is nothing else in there so I have that scheduled for the 7th of Feb. I am hoping that this detox might clear up the cyst and that all will be well. But it has made me a little stressed as well as some other fun family stuff, and like many of you, when stressed I turn to food. BUT, I am working on getting a new attitude and I am really hoping I will start feeling so good after this detox program that things will brighten up for me. Oh yeah, I also ordered the new Winsor Pilates workout with the ring. I really enjoy her workout videos and do notice a huge difference when using them regularly. I'll let give you all a review when I try them out. Thanks for sharing all your stories, it really helps to not feel so alone at not meeting your goals and it also feels very encouraging to hear people making it and having all those wonderful feelings of success!
I will post soon.
Tina

This is for you, Kristina, Pretzel Denied!

Confessions for my friends

Thank you Julie for checking in on me. Things in the minivan have been yucky. We have had everyone with the croup and just as Toddler was getting over it he came down with Rotavirus. I don't do well with stress. Today I stepped on the scale and OH MY, I think it is broken. How can I have gained back my progress? This is the pits. I just don't do well with stress. (did I already say that?) It seems that when the kids are sick they just get more demanding.

Enough of the excuses. What this is is a spiritual issue. When I am stressed I turn to food instead of turning to the true source of my strength. Today, we ate ham and mac and cheese. It is what they wanted and since I didn't feel like making two lunches, I just ate it too. The difference today is that I ate ONE serving. The food we eat is not bad, I just eat too much of it.

Now I am off to fill my mug with cold water and get to drinking. Maybe in a few days, the bambinos will all be well and we can get back to normal and get the rest of the Christmas decorations put up. (but that is another story)

Body Makeover Link

Kristina took this test and it tells what body type you are and what kind of eating you should be doing. I am going to take it, too. Information is power, freedom, and leads to wise choices.

Kimiko, are you still sick? Do you need us to nurse you back to health?

We just miss seeing you post. I hope you are well. We love you sister.

Today was the day, and today I am celebrating!

I went into Curves this morning and did the deed. And low and behold, I have lost eleven pounds!!! I was SOOO happy to see that number! When I weighed myself two weeks ago, I was overwhelmed, with it being my heaviest weight ever. But, I have stayed the course, and I have proven to myself that I can do it! It's just going to take time, and lots of hard work. I also had her take my measurements, because I know that the pounds will most likely be slowing down as I build more muscle. So I wanted to be able to look at the inches as well. When I had initially started Curves, fifteen months ago, I was 249.2 pounds, just 5.6 pounds lighter than my heaviest weight two weeks ago. BUT, I have lost a total of 20.5 inches around my body since my very first workout fifteen months ago. And you know, as long as I can keep going down in my clothes sizes, I am one happy lady! I wore a new pair of pants for the first time yesterday. My little sister had given them to me last August, but I wasn't able to wear them comfortably. But I wore them all day yesterday, and I felt so good in them! Another cool thing that I did yesterday was stay away from the junk food at our neighbors house. We went over there with a few others to watch the Seahawks game. And let me tell you, I wanted those over sized salty pretzel sticks SO BAD!!! I just kept eye balling them, as I drank more and more water. Well, when it was all said and done, I did not sucumb to the pretzel sticks, but I did drink a whopping 14 glasses of water to help me abstain. (14 for the day, not just during the game, for those of you who think maybe I'm a bit crazy).
Anyhow, it's Monday, I've worked out, and I'm feeling good. Here's my stats for the last few days:
Day 12: 1,275 calories, 10 glasses of water, workout

Day 13: 1,265 calories, 10 glasses of water

Day 14: 1,255 calories, 14 glasses of water

Today so far, just a cup of cheerios, and a cup of coffee. Yeah for me!

Updates from Julie

It is late and I am headed off to bed. Someone who loves me is waiting for me upstairs, if you catch my drift! Anyways, blush, blush....Here are my totals for the past few days.

Thursday: 1212 Calories, worked out, 8 glasses of water.

Friday: 1307 Calories, 9 glasses of water.

Saturday: 1183 Calories, 8 glasses of water.

Sunday: 1221 Calories, 10 glasses of water. Go Hawks!

Love you all. Post, post, post! Kristina, are you weighing in tomorrow?

Butter

I have added a feature at the sidebar, if you haven't noticed. I will keep track of butter loss (each 1/4 lb.) It is rather encouraging to see it this way! You can either go into the template part of the blog and add your own number (see my line for an example), or just tell me your pounds lost and I will kindly do it for you, if you are uncomfortable about messing with the template.

Or maybe this look could work... minus the head band, of course.

I want to FEEL like Wonder Woman. Super strong, and super confident!

No, I don't think they would like that look, maybe this one would work better for them!

Even I couldn't keep my eyes off her in this dress. I want to feel that beautiful, if not look it.

So, if our husbands look like THAT, do WE have to look like this?!

I just couldn't resist Jules. I mean, I'm all for definition, but do ya think this gal has taken it just a tad too far? I think that she may even intimidate Arnold!

Maybe our husbands should start working out!

Ready to start a new day!

Hello, girls! I am ready to start a new day! I had kind of a quirky one yesterday...I ate a great breakfast, then went to the mall with the whole family, we had a great time and got a lot of little tasks done. But we didn't sit down to eat until about 2:15 and we were all grumpy and starved. I ordered very good food at PF Changs(chicken with broccoli, lettuce cups), even had brown rice. The problem was, I ate more than I would have at home. One because I was starved, and two, because it was so delicious, sitting in front of me in very large portions, and I was surrounded by six other people who were scarfing down food like it was their very first and very last meal ever! As a consequence, I was uncomfortably full and I only allowed myself a tiny dinner at 7 PM that night. It felt weird to be so out of order. I didn't like it. So, I am ready for a new day! I woke up this morning and said to Blake, "I have 1200 calories deposited into my account."

Multi-tasking

Well, here I am on day twelve. I'm doing well, but there were a couple of days that were rather tough for me this week, being on my cycle and all. But, I have stuck to the plan. I've worked out three times this week, and plan to go tonight if Willem gets home in time. It's cool to already see my clothes fitting me better. I was in a slump where I just kept wearing the same couple of outfits over and over... the one's that I felt less fat in. Now I'm actually wearing some of my other things again, and it feels wonderful.
Anyhow, here's a re-cap from the last few days:
Day 9: 1,184 calories, 10 glasses of water
Day 10: 1,180 calories, 10 glasses of water, workout
Day 11: 1,085 calories, 10 glasses of water, workout

Hope you are all having a good week!

Do you ever feel this way????