Well, I feel better now. I tried on my Test Pants again today--and they zip up still (just barely). The good news is: I happened to glance at the tag inside. They aren't 8's--they're 6's! No wonder they're snug! Even with the stretch denim, I wouldn't have expected to squeeze into 6's. With that in mind, I tried on ALL the pants in my closet. I can wear more of them than I thought. And since this was the main goal of my current campaign, I'm pleased.

Donna, I don't know how to conduct any kind of weight management process without keeping track of something--cals, carbs, whatever. It's too easy for me to "forget" what I've eaten, let alone estimate how much. I did some figuring with calories and such using Fitday records. I figure at the current level of consumption and exercise, assuming calories DO count, I might lose the 15 lbs. I'd like to drop in TWO YEARS. That's hardly a conflagration of fat, is it! For now, I regard not gaining--and also getting into those pants--as big victories.

Today I dug out my copy of The Protein Power Life Plan by the Drs. Eades. It has tons of good information in it I'd forgotten--about insulin, supplements, and other things. Of course, they do say explicitly that you have to count calories. What is impossible to figure out, I maintain, is HOW MANY calories my particular body "needs." The only indicator is: am I losing weight or not? This process requires a lot of patience. And faith.

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

What a crappy, horrible, dreary day I'm having. I offered to drive dd to her dr's appointment. It was at 11:45 so I left the office at 11:30. Didn't get back until almost 2!!!! No lunch. I can't believe how dr.'s let you sit in the office and wait and don't care that you might have other things to do. Also, my face is totally burned from worrying about the brat...I look like I stuck it over a steaming kettle. Plus...it's trying to snow. Now how's that for a crappy day? I could be really grumpy by the time I get home. I even snapped at my poor little Sora. Okay Donna....breathe....

__________________
Donna
238.5/173.4/150
I will see my goal weight again

Yes, Donna. Breathe. Breathe. Some things can't be fixed--and you're wonderfully capable of fixing the things that can. Tomorrow is another day. Try to get some sleep. I'm going to go fix myself a nice cup of hot tea in your honor.

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

Deep breathing and meditation.......... that's the yoga way of getting a handle on things. You can do it Donna. What is it they say,.......... you can't control others, you can only control how you react to others. Calm your reactions. you can only do the best that you can do.

Hey, if you would rather have rain than snow, I'll be glad to send you some. We've had 4" in the last two days. More is expected tomorrow. We've had more than enough to share. I'm ready to see some sunshine. It's rained for the last 5 days. I'm going to start plans for an ark.

__________________
Judy
Goal = <135, Current status = RIGHT ON TARGET!
Never give up. Never never never never give up -- Winston Churchill

Judy, we'd love some rain in our area...it's dryer than a popcorn f*art here. lol Just don't want snow. You all know how much I love to drive in that stuff.

A cup of tea sounds good Barb.....Chai spice is my flavour of the month this time....I think I deserve one tonight.

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Donna
238.5/173.4/150
I will see my goal weight again

Well, Donna, somewhere behind all that gray sky the sun is coming up. We got a downpour last night, and more on the way.

Taking my car for an oil change this morning. I hardly put any miles on the darn thing, so I have to remember that it does need attention from time to time.

So that's all the excitement in my world this morning--and I'm happy about that. I'm ready for a little breather before the schedule picks up again. After several months of feeling leisurely and "retired," I now have commitments. That's actually a good thing.

Take care of you.

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

It's raining...and like you Barb, there is more on the way. That's a good thing for us, as long as it doesn't turn into that "S" word.

My boss is back today and he's decided it's time to be the a**hole again. We've argued all morning. No matter what I say...it's wrong. I asked him to turn the heat up (it's a programable thermostat and I haven't learned how to use it). He had a fit. I just don't think working in a room that's 62F is what I need right now when it's damp outside. That cold gets into my bones and I can hardly move. He refused, so I got a driver to come in and figure it out. It's a nice 70F right now...and it's staying that way or I'm going home!

My scale hates me! I'm sure that's the reason it's not kind. I'm back to where I was before I got back on track. Probably due to missing lunch yesterday and having a bigger dinner. Sounds like a good reason to me. I did do the treadmill last night too. *sigh*...I'll keep hanging in there.

Looks like we'll be going into town this weekend to pick out the new flooring for our hallway. We will be ripping up the original carpet that we laid down 24 years ago....can you say "ewww?" It's pretty gross. I was thinking I wanted to continue the laminate from the frontroom/dining room into the hallway, but I've heard from a few people that it's not a good idea to have it that close to the doorway. My ds said his started to lift from wet shoes and boots being on it. I could put a little ceramic tile in the entranceway...but that's a little beyond dh's expertise. lol There are all kinds of new floating floors too that look just like laminate but are actually linoleum. I guess I'll figure it out when I get there.

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Donna
238.5/173.4/150
I will see my goal weight again

Donna, enjoy picking out that new floor. Yes, I bet there are a bazillion choices for all purposes. You can find something that's beautiful AND durable. I always hated the vinyl tile at my front door, but never took the time to improve it beyond throwing a rug over it.

I'm actually cooking today. Smoky Brisket in the oven, and a Mashed Fauxtato casserole ready to pop back in the oven. Plus a fabulous horseradish sauce for the beef made with whipped cream. For once, it's "legal." Tonight is the 25-Year "Clubette" potluck--a substitute for the Hallmark 25 Year Club dinner that had to be cancelled this year because of the economy. (I doubt it will ever be revived.) I've invited "our table" of ten people, and everyone will bring something.

I'm reminding myself that when I first moved into my place as a single person, I promised to have a dinner party at least once a month. I haven't lived up to that--but this winter is a good time to get started again. I love to entertain.

At the crack o' dawn, I took my dad to the VA for blood tests in advance of his check-up later this month. 7 am is a good time to get to the VA--not crowded. Then I went to the Wal-Mart--also not crowded. All in all, a very productive morning. Time to take a walk.

Friday's on the way!

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

Good morning. The clouds have disappeared and the sky is a gorgeous blue. This is the way I love to see Fall. And to make it better...my boss will be gone for the day. Wonderful! lol

Last night I was drained. Physically, emotionally....just worn out. Even dh commented on it. I think I'm going to have to have a talk to myself and do something about how I'm feeling about dd. Plus, it's time to set my boss straight on a few things too. I can keep on letting people walk on me and treat me like crap. Sounds good on paper...we'll see if I can do it in person. lol

The scale dipped a tiny bit today. That's fine...baby steps. I'm still doing the treadmill. I've been trying to up my distance a little bit each night and so far it's working. What I don't want is aching knees and hips again. If I start to see that I'll have to cut back a little. This getting older is terrible.

I'm off to get some work done and then who knows...maybe I'll play on Facebook for awhile.

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Donna
238.5/173.4/150
I will see my goal weight again

Donna, we had all the flooring in our house replaced this year. The hard surface floorings are both high end vinyls. In my kitchen, dining area, laundry and entry the product is a vinyl plank. It has a texture like hand scraped hardwood and all the great characteristics of what it actually is, vinyl. It actually comes in strips like wood flooring. In our bathrooms, we have 16" vinyl tiles that look like ceramic tiles. They are made so that the seams are hidden in grout lines. Both products were professionally installed. If your DH is handy, he might be able to install it. We didn't even want to consider doing it ourselves. It was worth the money to have someone else do it.

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Judy
Goal = <135, Current status = RIGHT ON TARGET!
Never give up. Never never never never give up -- Winston Churchill

Good morning, my friends. Trying to get an early start for a busy day.

The potluck last night was a great success. We had a lot of different foods--and just enough. It was a good thing I decided to cook a second brisket though. I have leftovers (legal!) but I would have been seriously short without the extra. I minded my carbs, but not my calories. Still, I was amazed to find the scales precisely the same this morning. I wonder what my body does (or doesn't do) with food??

Later today, I have my first actual Docent tour with third-graders at the museum. My friend who did a first tour yesterday says the place is a zoo--kids everywhere, and very hard to find the nice spaces we are used to for having the discussions with the guests. They told us to "be flexible" and that's the truth.

Catch ya later!

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

From my journal:

The vet finally called back this morning. The tests were all normal. So, that leaves epilipsy. He says he feels in his heart that there is one thing that is causing everything...the weight gain, the skin problems, the eye problems and they thyroid problem...but he can't figure it out. He's done a lot of reading but nothing is coming to him. Bless him for that. Right now he doesn't want to put her on meds. I have to call him everytime Sora has a seizure...he will track them and let me know when it's time to put her on phenobarbitol. One of the side effects of this drug is that they are always hungry, and can start to eat things like socks, underwear, anything they can find. Great! That sounds like fun.

Upped my time on the treamill last night and my knees are kind of achy this morning...but then it could be the weather. It's been raining all day and my fingers are sore and swollen as are my elbows.

I really don't want to be at work today. I'm tired and I'd love to be at home relaxing with a cup of tea and my book. *sigh* Not going to happen...2 1/2 more hours to go.

Thanks for the info Judy. Dh thinks he can do this...who am I to argue. I'm going to buy some earplugs though so I don't have to listen to him whine and swear when he tries to put it down. Maybe it's a good thing that my hallway is dark and no one will see his mistakes? lol

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Donna
238.5/173.4/150
I will see my goal weight again

Donna, not knowing what's the trouble with little Sora is certainly difficult. Our furkids can't tell us anything--but, as we know, even people medicine is far from perfect. Hide the socks.

I'm happy to report that my tour this morning went extremely well. The third-graders were well-prepared for their visit (thanks, good teacher!) and very well behaved, to the limit of their ability to stay focused. I was pleased with my first event as a "real" docent.

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

Yea for the teacher, and yea for getting that first tour under your belt. You're ready for anything, now.

__________________
Judy
Goal = <135, Current status = RIGHT ON TARGET!
Never give up. Never never never never give up -- Winston Churchill

This morning I watched participants in the KC Marathon running past my window on Brookside Blvd. (My place is at Mile 18 1/2). A little later, I went for my usual walk and cheered for the runners along the way. It is truly amazing how many different shapes and sizes the human body can assume. And as for running styles? My goodness--the mechanics of running are remarkably different from person to person. You wonder how some of these knock-kneed, pigeon-toed, or wildly inefficient runners can actually get from A to B. But they do!

It made me think of how we try to outsmart our metabolisms. Bet they are as different as the outsides of our bodies. When it comes to dietary choices, we try to do the right things--and even to give each other good advice. But what it really comes down to is: try something, be patient, then try something else. Right now, I'm in the "be patient" stage.

Enjoy a restful Sunday if you can.

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal