HLSG: Week of 4-23-01

[lindrusso]

Hi all. Hope everyone had a good weekend.

It's been a few weeks since we've "checked in", anyone have anything to share - good or bad?

Though don't think I've gained any weight or anything like that, I'm in a bit of a funk. Last week I did a beginner run-walk interval and have been having knee problems ever since. At first I thought it was because I tried running on pavement, not on the soft track at the elementary school. However, it has lasted a full week and they still hurt. Now I'm starting to realize that it's probably a recurring joint problem that I have. Don't know what it is, but it makes exercising (actually just walking!) uncomfortable.

Last week I was also very tired, so I only got in one day of exercise. I'm hoping that a week's rest will help put me back on the road to exercise this coming week.

As for eating, I did some post-Lent indulging, but I don't feel too guilty about that - it was fun! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif But, now it's time to stop "partying" and get back to business! I just hope my body cooperates!

[donleyk]

Thanks for the post lindusso. Last week was 50-50. I could have eaten better. I have hit my goal for weight so I am trying to figure out how to maintain. I want to do this thru June then decide if I want to lose anymore. (I can stand to although some of my problem is flab).

Everyone have a nice week!

[Gina O]

I am feeling so much better about life now that I am back to running. Last week was good for me for exercise, I ran 4 times.

On Thursday, my SO, a lifetime member of Weight Watchers, started going again so, I am doing it with him too, which is great because I have really been struggling to lose about 7-10 lbs. He wants to lose about 30.

I have always loved CL, but doing a very strict WW diet will force me to try lots more recipes than I have ever done before. We did great over the weekend, even with having friends over for dinner last night.

This week the plan is to keep exercising (yesterday I ran for 26 of 30 minutes, then biked for about 30 minutes) and keep counting points. It has actually been fun so far since we are both very committed to it... we figure out points and exercise together. And the major rewards for me are thinking about the dress I am wearing for a wedding in a couple weeks, and the bikini I plan to wear in St. Croix in June.

Sorry to ramble, Gina

[Kerri]

Hello all!

Well, things for me have been going pretty good. Food wise I haven't been doing all that great in that I have been eating a lot of leftover easter candy, but things could be worse. I have been very busy house hunting so that has forced us to eat out more than I would like, but I am doing what I can. I have stopped counting calories, but I am glad that I did at one time. I think I can estimate what is a good healthy meal without stressing over meals that I don't have the nutritional information for. Bottom line is that I eat healthy and actually enjoy it.

Excercise has been pretty good. I have been working out around 6 times a week which, when I think about it, is quite a lot, but I am having fun. Again, with house hunting, I have been too busy to go more than 3 times a week, but hopefully things will calm down a bit more.

The really good news is that when I weighed myself a few weeks ago, I lost 2.5 pounds in a month. I am sure there are faster ways to lose weight, but I was so absolutely thrilled with this. I don't know if it was starting running again, eating 5 servings of fruits and veggies, or the complex carbs, but something is working! Yea!

[emilycat]

Glad to hear everyone's doing well! Gina -- everything sounds awesome for you; good going! And Alysha, I can completely relate to your mood -- I hope things get sunnier!

I also hope this week's better for me than last -- it's always hard to get back into my routine after a marathon; I can't run as much at first, which is really frustrating, and there's this period of mental and physical depression from the overwhelming race and the previous buildup , which put me in a huge funk last week. Without my usual mileage, I fret unusually much about what I'm eating and worry unnecessarily about gaining weight, which is highly obnoxious. My legs are feeling much better now, though, and I'm upping my mileage now, so hopefully I'll be in better [mental http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif ] shape this week. Anyway, sorry to whine.

Oh, and I made that white chocolate raspberry cheesecake yesterday -- my boyfriend (?) --hesitate to call him that yet, even though he's referring to me as his girlfriend -- and I will be eating the inaugural slices tonight http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

Hope everyone has a great week!

Kerri, I just read your post -- congrats on your recent successes! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[This message has been edited by emilycat (edited 04-23-2001).]

[BevP]

lindrusso you must have read my mind. I was wondering where HLSG had gone to. I guess you just got tired of starting it all the time.

I've been consistent with exercise since 1 Feb thanks to going to aerobics classes and paying by the month. (I'm so cheap I don't want to waste the money http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif) But, the scale has hardly moved, if any and the jeans are no looser. So I have an appointment for Wednesday morning for a fitness assessment. Haven't had one since October so that will tell me exactly how I'm doing. Aerobic and strenth fitness, weight, body fat, and even blood pressure. So I can compare and, I'm sure, feel better about my progress.

[lindrusso]

Thanks Emilycat!

Things are already looking up this week. Most of the Easter candy is gone http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif and I made my husband take the rest of the cookies I made this weekend to work! Now that I think it's just my recurring joint problem, I am willing to work with the pain - I just didn't want to push the knee issue if it was something else.

funnybone -

I think it takes something different for everyone to motivate themselves. I, too, am very susceptible to being thrown off my routine. I have found that just checking in here each week has been a great help - it keeps me focused and motivated. Last week was the first week that I exercised so little (only one day) in about 6 months! It would be easy to keep sliding this week, but I don't want to lose the progress that I've made. Sometimes I can also "trick" myself into working out by saying "I'll just go for 30 minutes". Once I'm there working out (that's the hardest part for me - getting there), I usually do the whole thing!

Again, what works for one won't work for another - good luck!

Kerri and Gina - Glad to hear things are going so well!

Everyone else - keep up the good work!

[hka]

Dumb question but what does HLSG stand for? http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif TIA

[Emdg]

I was glad to see we are back for this week!I also am suffering from a funk. I was doing so well on my exercise and eating and then it all fell apart http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/frown.gif

I had the same problem as funnybone. We went out of town for Easter, and the week before was really busy, and before I knew it I'd missed two weeks. Now I don't want to start again....must motivate myself.

I was about two months into a routine, although I hadn't lost any weight, I hadn't gained any either! I'm still not looking forward to a bathing suit (ick).

I'm going to try again tomorrow. I hope I'll have better news next week.

Thanks for the posts!

[Mbart]

Hi all, I'm new to this support group and hope it's not too presumptuous to join in! I'm the one who posted last Monday about the total "food overload" Easter I had and was depressed. Well, I got back on track thanks to all the encouragement from you all, had exercised every day, ate right, then WHAM! did it again Saturday night! Man, I have no self-control! We were at a wedding, and the dinner was a buffet. So I overate, and then the wedding cake! I had my one little piece, then a friend passed on hers...there goes piece #2, then at the end of the evening, everyone decides to have a piece of cake, so I (gulp) joined in! Sick and obnoxious I know, but....they were really really good! Yummy moist sponge-type cake, with a custard filling, raspberry filling, and a mocha filling! LOVED IT!

I've determined that my downfall is alcohol. I'm not a big drinker, but even one glass of wine or something, and I lose the ability to eat in moderation. So it's not the overindulgence of drink that's the problem, it's that the drink evolves into the overindulgence of food! Does anyone else have this problem? We will be going to a dinner/charity auction this Saturday night, and I'm thinking I should just stick with diet soda or bottled water during the cocktail hour, and see if this solves the overeating problem. Any thoughts?

[This message has been edited by Mbart (edited 04-23-2001).]

[lindrusso]

hka - HLSG stands for "Healthy Living Support Group".

mbart - Glad you joined in! Sounds like, overall, you had a great week. Alcohol definitely weakens my resolve. Avoiding alcohol not only saves you the alcohol calories themselves, but the overeating that tends to go along with it! Not that I practice what I preach, mind you! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif I belong to a wine-tasting club and on those nights, I don't even really try to be good (unless I'm driving of course!)!

[LGBurns]

Hi, I was just lurking but I wanted to say to Mbart-- I have the same tendency. If you decide not to drink at the charity, you might try "fixing up" your non-alcoholic drink a little to let you feel a little more like you're splurging. When I'm going to a cocktail type event and I don't want to drink, I usually try to have some kind of sparkling juice drink, like cranberry and orange with sparkling water or a "virgin" drink so I don't feel like I'm punishing myself by not drinking.

[funnybone]

This is my first time in the HLSG, so I hope you don't mind me asking a question.

Whenever we go out of town for a few days, I find it so difficult to get back into my exercise routine. Do any of you feel this way as well? I was doing so well with my step aerobics, and then we went to Canada to visit family and friends for Easter. Now, I am in no mood to do it. I know I have to "just do it", but I always figure I will do it "later" or "next hour". How can I psych myself up for it? Any thoughts?

[donleyk]

Mbart,

You aren't alone! Alcohol messes us up too. I agree with just dressing up sparkling water or fruit juices.

You are doing great! You'll get past this.

[Mbart]

Thanks for the idea...mmmm, cranberry and orange with sparkling water sounds fantastic! I think I'm looking more forward to that than an acoholic drink...I have bad sinuses and drinking makes me stuffy!

Thanks again...I'll let you know how it goes!

[GayeC]

This is my first time to jump in on one of these threads; they always sound so positive and encouraging. I have just finished week 1 of my attempt to lose 12 pounds in 8 weeks. I only lost 3/4 of a pound but thought that was pretty good, given that I spent 24 hours in a car this weekend (ugh!) and ate all restaurant meals for 2 days in a row while visiting my mother ("don't you want some dessert, dear"). I am hoping that week 2, with no travel or eating out, will be even better.

[funnybone]

lindrusso, thanks for your response. I really have to psych myself up. I will start again this evening, after my son's soccer game. I find that with all the kids activities, its hard to keep up with my own.

[mandarin2j]

Exercise has been right-on, except for a lay off on hiking for the past 2 weekends after injuring my ankle (just a little sensitive, not sprained or anything, but not taking any chances!) hiking. I think we'll be hiking again beginning next weekend, 'cause my ankle is almost back to normal--except for the lovely shades of purple and yellow still ringing it!

I decided (for what, the 500th time? But must not pick on self!) to go back on WW Points. Today is day #1. I did Points last year and lost 40 pounds (gained it almost all back, but that's still better than my previous experiences, in which I gained back lost weight with interest), but I wasn't exercising, just dieting. It was all about appearance for me, rather than health, so I just kept avoiding exercise. Now, it's about feeling good in my body, and I think I can keep both balls in the air (I look at doing everything "right" at once as a form of juggling) at once.

My goal for this week is to eat my maximum level of Points every day. One thing that made it hard for me to stay on Points last year was that I sabotaged my loss by starving myself. Not this time! I was most successful at losing when I was eating the most. I've started out right, by bringing a ton of healthy snacks to keep at my desk. Anyway, we may be going to Mexico for a week during monsoon season, and the more I reduce the possibility of inner thigh burn-out, the better the trip will be! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

-Amanda