I'm here! I'm here!

Good going with the intervals, Athome. I still believe that's the best way to lose weight. Not necessarily the easiest, by any means, but what do they say...anything worth having....

I've been pretty good with the workouts and I'm almost back to where I was before I got hurt. I'm actually there with every exercise except bench pressing and squats. And I'm not going back to those heavy weights with those exercises. I'm happy.

I feel like I'm getting what I deserve. I've had my share of cheat meals but I'm working hard in the gym to even it out.

Sue, sounds like a great vacation. When I win Powerball tonight ($250 million), I will retire. Maybe we can workout together. :D

I'm baaaaaaaaaack! :)

Okay, haven't made it to the gym EVERY day this week, but made it three times! So that's something!

Feeling better already. I definitely put a few pounds back on, although I haven't gotten on the scale, I can feel it in my clothes. But I know I'll lose them in no time now! Oh! And I just signed up for the two day Avon Walk for Breast Cancer too! So now, I have to TRAIN for this thing as well! 26 miles on day one and 13 on day two. Man! Training for this alone should help me shed a few (not that that's why I'm doing it of course!!)

Ivette

Ivette, I'm still on the fence about whether I will do that walk. The one near me is in Boston, so not too far away, but my only question is raising the $$ they want you to raise.

A co-worker is signed up to do it but just had to have surgery, so she's not sure she'll be ready. If not, I'm the fill in. She's almost half way to the goal, so I'd have it a little easier. We were supposed to have a fundraiser last night, but a little blizzard got in the way.

Gym was closed today. I was going to do back and cardio. Shoveling should take care of that.

Guess I'm back in the saddle because I'm watching the scale do inappropriate things in response to intervals & salad, & it's getting me all riled up!

Maybe I should try weighing once a week.

Going to gym with friend today, that should help motivate me as she is also losing weight. Nice to know I'm not alone in the fight.

Glad you guys are making it to the gym. This means I can too.

Yes indeed Lori, it is a lot of money to raise. I've raised about 40 percent so far. I'm pretty much only hitting up friends and family at this point, and they have been extremely generous. Everyone recognizes what a good cause it is. But it's not easy, that's for sure.

I can't have a fund raiser because, well, I don't have a house!

Ivette

Just back from gym & reporting in that for the first time in forever I feel like something good is happening at the gym. I've been in such a funk, gym-wise. I go & feel old. Feel like a nap, really... Consider whether reading a book would be a better workout. But today things kicked in doing intervals so I may be about to go around a corner.

Hope so!

How are the rest of you doing?

Yea athome! Glad to hear you had a good workout. I'm still walking with the neighbors, when I don't sleep in, and going to the gym. I am doing cardio at least 45 minutes every day. And, because I have been watching what I'm eating and keeping track of it, I have lost 3 pounds and 1 ince from my waist. FINALLY!!!! I plan on adding weights back in 3 days a week. Then DH and I take off again to see DD, so that will be 2 weeks of no gym, but we do plenty of walking when we're at her house...but we fortify ourselves with plenty of eating and drinking as well. But I feel motivated to be good while I'm gone. We'll see.

Glad to hear your waist is disappearing, Sue. Someday mine will start to disappear too.

Also glad I'm not alone.

Energy good. Actually got up today looking forward to the gym! First time in months I've felt that way.

Lurker posting for a change :P

Since DH surprised me with a bike trip in Tuscany this April for our 25th wedding anniversary, I've lost 11 pounds since Jan. 3rd. The weight loss is due to daily 45 minutes on the eliptical or 1 1/2 hours of biking (weather permitting) and nutrition tracking software -- mostly the nutrition tracking software.

Exercise was always part of my life; but getting a grip on the overeating is hard. The nutrition tracker helps by telling me how many calories per day I'm allowed to eat to get down to 180 lbs. by April 15th. It also keeps track of nutrients, fat/carb/protein ratios, water intake, and calories expended through exercise. It was well worth the $50.

I've also invested in quality measuring cups, a bike computer, cycling videos to work out by, and am looking for a good digital food scale. If Lance Armstrong can weigh & measure everything he eats, so can I, right?

8 more pounds to go 'til April 15th! Then I'll start to work on the next 20 :)

Keep up the good work, y'all! It's inspiring to read this thread.

Wow, awm03, doing great! I used to track every crumb & I'm debating doing that again. I weighed everything & frankly my old scale looks like it's closer to retirement than I am.

I'm thinking of a new scale (food, that is, the other scale is sadly working all too well) so I'll be interested in your search.

What features do you seek?

I heard a great discussion on NPR today on being healthy at any weight (100, 200, 300...). Even though I will continue to lose weight, I found the discussion helpful. The idea that stuck was that eating well (vegies etc) & exercising regularly will help tremendously whether you lose slowly, or not at all. Better to be round but engaged in a healthy lifestyle than round (or anorexic) & eating/exercising inappropriately.

The talk wasn't about "perfect" patterns, but about moving in the right direction. Mostly about the importance of MOVING, I guess!!! And fueling your temple to live.

Hi guys!! Well, as if vanity weren't a good enough reason to exercise, eat well and lose the last 20 pounds, I have just learned I have slightly elevated cholesterol. Siiiigh. Nothing big, and my ratios are good. My triglycerides are "enviable" so that's good too. But overall cholesterol is 202, not good.

Diet and exercise doctor said. Oooooookay. Perhaps the Chinese food diet during the whole house remodel while you live in it, isn't working so good. Clearly, the nurse who drew blood has never remodeled her own home in such a fashion, or I would NEVER have gotten these results! ;)

Well, an early wake up call. I need to start taking better care of myself. I also need a kitchen, so I can cook healthy again!

Ivette

P.S. back in the gym. Training for my walk now though. Doing almost exclusively walking for cardio, but walking at a pretty fast clip. If I'm gonna do the whole 26 miles the first day, I'm going to have to go at a about a 3 to 4 mile an hour clip, and lemme tell you, that's some huffin and puffin if you're me.

Lori: Thanks to the generosity of friends and family (some from this forum I might add) I've raised over $3K already!!!!!!!

athomein1914, I bought a digital scale finally -- a Salter scale at BB&B for $39 (+ $4 for a 9 volt battery). I really like it. It has a small footprint, so it doesn't take up much counter space at all. It has an easy to clean glass weighing surface, and "tares", which means you can put your plate on the scale, tare it back to zero, add a meat portion, tare the scale back to zero, add a vegetable, etc. I can weigh individual portions right on my plate without doing the arithmetic. Last night I was able to weigh out 3 oz. of ground beef for a hamburger, thus could figure out exactly how many calories were in it. Very handy. Wish I'd gotten it earlier, probably would have helped me drop another pound or two.

awm03, sounds great. I need to get serious about this. With our new kitchen I'm cooking in hard-to-measure ways. Not good for weight loss & the people-scale doesn't lie. Neither do pants...

Congratulations!

Which one do you have? I tried googling and found this one which seems more high tech & more pricey than the one you found. I'm not sure I want to put food on a mini-computer...

Here is a link that might be useful: Salter Food Scale

This is the one sold at Bed Bath & Beyond:
{{gwi:1550278}}

There are other models sold there too, but try Googling "kitchen scales" and you'll find all kinds of brands & models.

Yes, new kitchens can lead to weight gain (I just had to try out the proofing mode in my new oven, and well, somebody's got to eat that home-made bread...).

I would have had doubts about a "mini-computer food scale" too, except I'm tracking my diet through a nutrition tracking program, and having a computer figure out the calories in a portion is enormously helpful. Also, if you're trying to work in more or less of certain nutrients, the computers are excellent for tracking that too.

I was just kidding about the food scale that looks like a computer.

But yours looks like a food scale. Does it do more than weigh? Is it easy to clean? How do you track nutrients/calories -- do you use your computer or something else?

I'm baking a lot of bread but luckily I don't care for bread, just like making it. It's my DH who goes crazy for it. Visitors too.

Hi athome again!

No, it doesn't do anything but weigh (can convert grams to ounces & vice versa), and so far is very easy to clean.

So glad I got it though. Today for lunch I made a sandwich: put the bread on the scale & tared it to 0 (I already know it's 110 cals a slice). Then I added cold cuts (slice chicken breast) til the scale measured 2 1/2 oz., tared the scale, added 1 scant slice of Swiss cheese and noted the amount ( 5/8 oz.). Then I added lite mayo, lettuce, & the other bread slice. On my computer, I calculated the chicken to be 122 cals., and the cheese came out to be about 66 cals. All total, the sandwich was about 450 cals.

I use a program called Diet Power to keep track of calorie consumption/expenditure & nutrition. The Wall Street Journal's health & nutrition writer, Tara Parker-Pope (she's terrific!) had an article on diet software last January and how it can be helpful if you're the type who doesn't mind diligently entering data every day. She reviewed several brands. Below's a link to the article. I see from a Google search there are dozens of programs on the market. Most have free trials, if you or anybody else wants to give 'em a whirl.

One thing nice thing about using the software is I don't worry about all the weight I need to lose, I just concentrate on meeting my daily calorie allowance. Meeting the daily goals helps my confidence, and after a week, I see another pound disappear :)

Here is a link that might be useful: WSJ article on nutrition tracking with your computer

Thanks, awm03! Pretty cool. Have to decide which tracking system will work best for me right now. Whatever I'm doing now is simply not working.....
;)

Oooh, down to 184 lbs. -- only 4 more pounds to lose by April 15th. Starting to think about Phase 2 now (down to 160 by Sept. 1). Good biking weather today after a very cold three weeks. The elliptical trainer doesn't do much for hill climbing muscles, so I need to get back on the bike. Our route in Tuscany will be *hilly*.

How is everybody else doing? Getting over your winter doldrums yet? Spring is almost here!

Just got back from a getaway with DH -- hiking, massage, mountain snow & desert sun. Lots of hill & rock climbing, awm03! I think it's a good idea to train with a thought to how much more fun the getaway will be, wish my fella was less spontaneous -- I rarely know what I should be getting ready for so I guess I should just be in "training" mode.

Hi athome - here I am at your recommendation. I looked around here a bit but haven't read everything. I did check out the post about tracking what you eat. I tried the free USDA mypyramidtracker.com. I like that thing. I think I will use it for awhile - it tells you all about how much of the good and bad stuff you've eaten - very interesting. I've hardly had anything to eat today - worst thing was an English muffin with a little peanut butter and transfat free margarine. I'm already well over the day's allowance of fat. Boy, you really aren't supposed to have much fat I guess. It's very helpful though in figuring out how "heart unhealthy" my diet is.

Hi athome, hope your trip was refreshing. Rock climbing, wow! Now that's something I'd be too afraid to try but admire the h3ll out of anybody who does it. As much of a mental work out as a physical one.

Hey, gibby. Glad to read about your exercise regimen and how you're feeling much better for it. A big "attagirl" to you!

Oh dear, no rock climbing except maybe in my dreams, don't know if that was a brain glitch or a typo. Lots of rock climbers out here but I'm not one of them. We hiked in Canyonlands so there was a lot of clambering about on rocks, mostly by me and devoid of elegance since I'm height-challenged.

gibby3000, I used to measure every gram of fat, I should again. It's amazing, isn't it? Fat creeps in everywhere, no wonder we're a nation in trouble.

Sorry to disappoint everyone with my lack of "true" rock climbing but it was breathtaking (not my skill, but the views rewarding our hikes), I'll link a peek for anyone who hasn't hiked in Canyonlands, this barely gives you a feel for the strange and rocky beauty there...

Here is a link that might be useful: Canyonlands (gov gallery page)

Thanks for the link to those gorgeous pictures. Fabulous scenery. Reminds me of one of our happiest vacations, originally to the Grand Canyon, but our teen-aged boys were bored stiff looking at scenery. So we left and booked a room on Lake Powell: boating, swimming, rafting on the Colorado River (and you can make reservations 24 hours in advance; impossible at the Grand Canyon). Your trip to Canyonlands sounds like a terrific late winter getaway.

Down to 182. Two more pounds to go for goal #1. But what shall I do in Tuscany? How do you watch your diet on a vacation like that? I want to enjoy the food, and I don't want to undereat if we're biking 40 miles/day, but I'm terrified I'll gain 5 pounds after working so hard to lose weight. Any tips would be appreciated.

awm3, I don't think you have to worry too much about gaining weight on a bike trip in Italy. I have lost weight in Europe just because I have walked so much...and I eat pretty much what I want to because the food is sooooooo good!
They are much healthier in their eating anyway, and portions are smaller than here. Take your time and enjoy every bite. And then report back and tell us about all the wonderful food and wine :) Oh and gelato.

awm03, Lake Powell vs Glen Canyon remains a controversy here due to ecological and archeological concerns. Maybe you know all about this from your visit, maybe not, thought you might be curious. Huge uproar a few years back about flooding Glen Canyon, now more a grumbling and slow movement to restore. Linking some great photos from the the Glen Canyon Institute. Gorgeous area.

As for Italy, please let me join sue7972 in urging you to eat your way through the fine cuisine of the area!!! You will more than burn it off, but beyond that, food is an enormous part of the travel experience. How can you know Tuscany without knowing the food and wine?! One of the great things about Italy (besides the gelato!) is the salad experience. You'll have great salads, and this will help you stay healthy on your trip. There's so much more to Italy than cheese, but don't skip any of it. Eat what appeals to you at the moment, drink the rest in with your eyes.

I hope you don't let diet lessen your grand experience. You're going to be healthier at the end of this trip for so many reasons.

Here is a link that might be useful: Glen Canyon Institute photos

Ummmm, I guess we're the advanced diet/exercise thread now? :)

Thanks sue & athome for the encouragement. It's good to know the portions are not what Americans are accustomed to.

Reached goal #1 this weekend: 180 pounds, a 20 pound weight loss since Jan. 3. Moving on to goal #2, 155-160 pounds by Sept. 1. Will start after returning from Italy. Can't believe I'm losing weight after years of failure. Got a little bit of diet fatigue, but am terrified to go over my daily calorie allotment set by the diet tracker -- not a bad thing. Spring & summer produce will bring some welcome changes in the diet, too.

athomein1914, thanks for that link! Yes, I was aware of the dam controversies. Still, I'd love to go back and swim in Lake Powell again.

Funny anecdote: I was getting dressed for work and DH commented on how much thinner I looked, but lamented that my boobs now smaller. He said, wiping away a mock tear, "And we didn't even have a going away party for them."

Holy cow, it's been WEEKS since I've posted here. I'd like to say it's because of all those hours of cardio each day, but truthfully, I've just been SO busy with work/family (though I've been watchin' y'all! ;)

Some may remember I hurt my neck last fall, and it took a looong time to recover from it. Months of chiropractor appointments didn't help. Rest didn't really help like it should have. Two massages and I felt SO much better. I'm pretty much back to 100%, though I take it much easier than I used to.

Glad to hear about the food scale. Isn't that the best? It's true what they say about weighing your food. You don't realize how much you really eat if you don't. Same with writing it down. It's a good habit to get into.

Awm, congratulations on all your progress. I know you're working hard. I'm so excited to know it's paying off for you. Doesn't it just feel great to know that? WoooHooo!!! Keep it up!!!!

Sorry to hear about your other "loss." Look at it this way: At least you had some to start with ;) I hope you have since had that going away party! LOL

Summer is coming...anybody ready to kick it up a notch? I'm on a mission....

Glad to hear your neck is finally healing Lori. You're probably smart to start out slow. You'll feel good to get back on the exercise track though.

Started Phase 2 today: 155-160 by Sept. 1. Perseverance will be key.

Think the real "going away party" will be in Italy in 2 weeks, LOL! I bought a pretty dress & some cycling skorts for the biking trip, which DH will like very much. BTW, he's lost 10 pounds himself. Even my college-age sons are getting more nutrition conscious -- they opted for the veggie pizza I made for DH & me Wednesday instead of the plain lotsa Mozzarella I made for them. The oldest is reading nutrition labels now.

Wow, Lori, massage helped more than the other things? Amazing. I'm trying to convince my DH he should try this himself, don't know why he's resistant.

Italy. 2 weeks, that's around the corner. Sounds great, and how wonderful to take off with this jumpstart, awm03.

The stuff we lose isn't nearly as wonderful as the stuff we gain -- like muscle, stamina, life. The aging prcess itself takes a toll, my mom's visiting and commenting on this now. If we're not moving now, we sure won't be later. I'd love to shrink all over, just to shrink tight. It does seem to fall off from top to bottom though, anyoone else notice this, or am I imagining it???!! Not that I'm shrinking at the moment, but I will be again soon. It's a rocky path over here. Doing too much again.

athome, you sound a little stressed, or am I misreading? Now I'm worried about you! Hope you enjoy your mom's visit, and that you can fit in time for some walks now that warmer weather is approaching.

Same to you Lori, hope you can squeeze in some exercise time. When my kids were younger and I was hauling them all over God's planet to activities (plus the whole PTA thing) I always put myself on the back burner. But no regrets (Edith Piaf warbling in the background). The best kids I know have/had very involved parents. Weight loss & exercise are really tough to do when you don't have the luxury of focusing on yourself.

Hi everyone. I have a question for anyone who is close to 50 and exercises regularly. Do you have a lot of aches and pains - I'm not talking so much about muscle soreness but more joint aches and pains?

I am really noticing this since I started exercising 5-6 times a week a couple months ago - riding my exercise bike and doing a stability ball routine. I wouldn't think an exericse bike would be all that hard on the joints. It is an Airdyne so it is arm and leg motion but I do use only my one real leg when riding it.

At first I thought it was mostly my knee but really it's also my angkle, hip and back, shoulders, etc. So I'm thinking this is maybe just normal when you're 49. It's not really bothersome but I don' want to be damaging something. I wouldn't think I'm damaging something since it's basically my entire body not just one part.

However since I only have one knee I don't really want to be doing anything to bring on a premature knee replacement surgery. In fact I'm hoping I never have to have one of those.

Thanks for any insights.

Hi gibby. I get some knee tenderness that I never used to get. But I can't swear that it isn't from being overweight. As for other joints, my feet don't like walking, and my elbow will complain sometimes after tennis. But these are occasional aches, not whole body aches on a regular basis like what you're experiencing. Might be worth having a doctor check you out just to make sure.

Holy cow...this was on page two!!! LOL

Awm, I see that you're home from Italy. I thought of you on Easter morning when I was watching the services on TV from the Vatican. Beautiful. I hope you had tons of fun. Again, happy anniversary!!!

Don't forget that you probably worked those legs pretty good with all that biking. I'm sure some of that gain was muscle...right? Even if it wasn't - so what - everybody needs a vacation now and then. You earned it. I know you're motivated and will get back on track. I'd be in food heaven if I ever went to Italy.

Gibby, yes, aches and pains - all the time. Just try to read what is normal muscle soreness and when you should take a break. But I think in general, as we get older and older, it's just plain harder to recover. I'm still sore from Monday's workout - but a good sore, and I love that!

For me, I am very particular about exercising both sides of my body the same, even though I'm left-handed and seem to be stronger on that side. For instance, if I hurt my right hip, I might limp a bit, which eventually screws up my back, which leads to sciatica...and so on. How do you get around that? You truly, truly amaze me. I wish I had half of your motivation!

Well, for those of you that have read my ongoing minor health dramas, the newest annoyance is a questionable pap, so I had to have a biopsy two weeks ago, and I'll get the results Tuesday. I'm sure everything is fine or they would have called by now. I'm not the least bit worried (third time it's happened). Just an inconvience. I took 10 days off from the gym (doctor's orders), but now I'm on a push to get in shape for the summer. I WILL do it. (I'll betchya a Resees ;) )

Athome, Sue, everybody else...How's things going?

awm03, the stress is insane lately but as of today will ease a bit.

gibby3000, also 49 here though my days are dwindling as we approach the festivities. I don't think you're "supposed" to have aches & pains! Makes me wonder if your warmups & stretches are appropriate or, as awm03 suggests, if you should chat up your doc. For me, the aches & pains are directly related to a mattress that is approaching retirement. Slept a few nights on my daughter's new latex mattress & slept all night every night sooooooo supported. My husband is paving the way for me and tells me the real fun starts now (colonoscopies & such). His aches & pains are more about old sports injuries (a lifetime of basketball etc) but are all improving with circuit training and swimming. I'm gardening a lot now so I'm stretching in different ways, & feeling it. I think you can tell the difference between good aches, and odd ones.

One thing I've noticed that's different is that I get aches as though I've bumped something or pulled something, but I can't remember what I did. What's interesting is I'm not sure if this is an "aches & pains" problem, or more one of failing memory!

Lori, glad to hear you're taking care of yourself. Don't forget to check in when you get the clear on that test!

How's everyone else?

Anyone besides me gardening? Any ideas for making gardening a better experience physically? (better ways to bend & stoop & pull etc) My mom visited recently & it was great fun to try her workout -- my 14 yr old & my mom & me stretching and lunging all over the house, it was pretty comical esp with my mom's running commentary. My DD demo-ed her soccer training versions of some and we found those pretty entertaining as well. Sorry, no photos!! My mom's tip is to suck in your tummy with every exercise, and soon it starts to stay there! I used to do this and I used to have a 23" waist, hmmmmm. Of course I used to be a meer 23 yrs young.....! Any other tips?!

Thanks everyone for the input on the aches and pains. I'll definitely ask my internist about it when I go back. I have to do that shortly since she has now prescribed medication for HBP and they have to monitor side effects of the medication with some blood tests. Interestingly the baseline lab work showed slight calcium elevation - results were mailed to me and I haven't seen the doc again yet. Of course I went off researching that and found hyperparathyroidism can cause high calcium, high blood pressure, bone pain and a few other symptoms I've noticed. So she will be rechecking the calcium and I'll mention the aches and pains.

As my kitchen research obsession originally led me here, similar obsession has already resulted in determining surgery is the treatment of choice for hyperparathyroidism and who is the leading expert in non-invasive parathyroidectomy.

I should get a life huh - or maybe more exercise and less internet research.....

Hey Lori, hope everything is ok. I'm still plodding along. We go to the gym most days and I do 45 minutes on the treadmill. I am finally starting to lose some weight. I started the Sonoma Diet, which is actually just healthy eating, so it is easy to follow. No weighing or measuring your food, you follow a diagram for food amounts, 25% protein, 25% grains, 25% veggies, 25% fruit on a 9 inch plate for dinner. We have also started using only brown rice and whole wheat pasta. We already were doing the whole grain thing with cereal and bread. Sometimes I stray and have more than the allowed 1 glass of wine with dinner, but then I try to get myself back on track. I'm really not ever starving, and if I am I just have a healthy snack. I haven't had any cravings for sweets either.

Great job, Sue!

That 9 inch dinner plate...are there height limitations? You know me, I can find a technicality in anything! ;) You shoulda seen what I just ate! LOL

Lori, I'm sure the height doesn't matter, just the proportion, okay whadja eat??!!!

Great going, Sue! This sounds like a lifestyle change more than a "diet."

I haven't been feeling well lately & it hit me that it was a number of subtle changes at once:
less/no exercise
white rice after decades of brown only
fewer raw vegies
wine with dinner after decades of water only
you get the picture

I'm attacking all fronts and feel better today. Will check in here for fortification!

I'm checking in & there's an echo in here!

LOL, Athome!

I'm here, and I know others are too, just not posting.

Making great progress and thrilled with the results.

My biggest problem is still dealing with PMS cravings, but I stared down a peanut butter cup on my desk Friday and I won.

Workouts have been great and I thought my body fat would be down more than it is right now (though not bad), but patience is not my strong point.

How's everybody else doing out there?

I've been over in the Mojo thread. Anybody else want to come over there?

um, okay, I started this thread. Shall I end it with my hypothyroid woes? Off to doc for meds tomorrow.

SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGH!!
Ivette

Oh Ivette...I'm so sorry. How frustrating that must be for you. Hope the medication & your doctor's guidance sets things straight for you.

Ivette,

That's not sounding good. I hope things work out for you. I know somebody who had the same problems, went on the meds and saw a complete turnaround almost immediately. Hang in there. Are you still walking this weekend? Or is your walk a different weekend than ours?

I'll do whatever the rest of the gang wants to do as far as the thread. I haven't been checking in much because I didn't know if you guys are sick of hearing from me about my gym antics (worried I'm being a thread killer). I believe I have decided on the fitness competition I'm planning on entering (next August). I'll definitely need inspiration and help from you guys.

So just tell me where to go. Ha! LOL

Thanks guys:

Lori: Our walk was at the end of april and I DID it!! Of course, I got a stress fracture, shin splint, hematoma and banged up my two big toes doing it, but...... (and we won't even discuss the blisters!).

But I walked all 39 miles and it was great!

I'll let you know how it goes with the meds. Good luck on the walk!

Ivette

Wow, Ivette, sounds great! Yes, I see you banged up your hardworking body, but you'll heal, and YOU DID IT!!!

I'm interested in the meds, starting at the beginning, did I miss something???

Lori, please report on gym antics, and the planned event next August. I like to hear about a great goal, and the plan to get there, even if the goal is dramatically different than my own.

I'm "enjoying" interrupted sleep here, which is not helping anything. But I'm adding a lot of gardening to my own erratic gym antics (which I suspect bear little resemblance to Lori's at this point!). Relaxing, & gives me greater incentive to tighten up. I get up before the sun to sneak out in the garden, if only I felt that way about the gym. Actually, I used to, & I think I will again someday.

Any other gardeners lurking???

Okay, maybe it's the lack of sleep, but I found what I missed, catching up with your thyroid issues on the other thread, Ivette. How wonderful to know this so you can do something about it!

I should check this myself as I have symptoms as well. I never have because I feel sheepish about the weight issue, but also because I've never had a doc suggest it -- in spite of a few obvious symptoms. I also thought that since I CAN lose weight (just with difficulty), that can't be me.

Guess everyone else has reached a comfortable fitness level and moved on!

I'm using a nutrition tracker now & have to say it's making a huge difference! Such an easy way to track every bite, and quite a revelation as well. Made me decide to resume a vitamin/mineral supplement which I thought was just something you take when you're remodeling the kitchen.....

My fats are lower than I thought but my salt is higher. And where's my calcium?!

Anyone else tracking nutrition?

I'm still using DietPower. Love it! What kind did you get, athome?

awm03, actually I'm using a free online tracker -- "sparkpeople." A friend emailed the link to me and it works well.

I'm pretty scrupulous when I track & if I don't want to read it on my chart I won't put it in my mouth.

It's painless to use the tracker, & I learn so much. I've always known my fruits were low from previous tracking (I much prefer vegies) but I'm surprised by a few things I've never tracked before. And I'll be changing a few habits. For one thing, I'm going back to making my own broth again (for recipes, to sub for fats). The fat-free organic broth in a box I've been buying isn't good for my sodium column, though it does eliminate fats from recipes.

I'm definitely back to taking a vitamin/mineral supplement. I thought that was just a "remodeling" supplement (all those odd take-outs & goofy meals), but lowering my calories overall lowers my vit/min intake.

Another surprise is that I thought I drank more water than I do, haven't tracked it in a long time. This is hard for me to track so I might get a big premeasured bottle & use that for greater accuracy.

I'm not as regular at the gym as I want to be (and as I was, and as I surely will be again!) but I'm sure clocking some hours in the garden. Not the same, but quite relaxing and satisfying.