Healthier Lifestyle Thread January 5 through 12

[steph72276]

Hi, all. Well the gym was fun, I had a great workout. I did 35 mins. on the elliptical and then I did arms and abs. I am going back tomorrow and will do cardio and legs. I''m off to shower and then lunch and then pick up Andrew at preschool...hope everyone is having a great morning!

Merry, sounds like you are doing great! Keep it up! Oh, and you said you wanted to lose 4 stones? Can you tell me what that is in pounds?

Cdn, sorry you are in pain...I''m sure it will get easier!

Sharon, good to see you!

Kimberly, hope your dinner was good...I love eggplant.

Rod, sorry about the bad work day yesterday. I am so excited about the gym...you were my inspiration to go with all your talks about your long productive workouts

Skippy, don''t worry about the cookie. I''ve actually cheated a little bit I suppose b/c I have been having a peppermint after dinner to have something sweet...but they are gone now. I might pick some more up though b/c it really did satisfy that craving.

Marcy, oh no for the long work day. Hope you get some sleep.

Linda, way to go girl!!!

 

[lliang_chi]

Happy Thursday everyone!

I was going to be at home all by my lonesome tonight but I''m going over to a friends house for dinner. It''ll be her and her husband, my sis and her boyfriend and me. So I''ll be the 5th wheel, or as I like to call it, the Steering Wheel Ha ha. Okay cheesy, corny, dorky but whatever. So sis and I are taking a night off yoga, probably going to hit it tomorrow. I''m going to make some Cuban style black beans for dinner tonight. Anyone have some kickin'' recipes to share?

Steph, yay for the gym! I''m glad it worked out so well for you.
Rob, lobster dinner sounds like so much fun. Sucks about your stinky day.
Merry, we''re here to cheer you on and keep you motivated to make this effort a total success.
Skippy, of course your nephew would like to come over to your house! Awesome Aunt Skippy?? No brainer! I hope the weather''s nice for you two
Marcy, get some rest today. Yesterday was a tough day for you.

Linda, 2.5 lbs is AWESOME! What kind of puppy is Mazie? It''s great she likes to run. My pooch is way too lazy. I have to trick her into running with me.

 

[dragonfly411]

Hey everyone! Happy Thursday and GO GATORS! Well last night I got in 100 crunches, 50 squats which I also did presses with 3lb weights at the top of my squats, and some rows with the weights, and some side reaches with weights. This morning I did 10 mins on the treadmill doing 3/4 mile walking and jogging (Still getting my game back with the coughing) then did 40 lunges with weights and some curls with 5lb weights. YAY. I''m eating very healthy and have lost another 3lbs!!! I''m currently at 112 and pretty happy here, just wanting to tone. Today lunch is going to be fruit and veggies...

Lliang - sorry bf was miffed yesterday but I''m glad you are enjoying yoga.
apple- lazy days are fun
steph - yay for gym membership!!
blinggal- almonds are yum!
Rod - sorry you had a rough day
skippy - Thanks my dear, that''s so nice that your nephew enjoys being over!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I''m too far behind! Hope everyone is doing well! Rod, hope you had a happy birthday. I was JUST about to take Tessa on a walk when I noticed the rain drops

I''ll try later!

 

[merrymunky]

CdnBlingGal - Oh, I hate that muscular pain following hard work outs. I too have been drinking a lot more water than usual and I keep having to run out of the room at work to use the toilet.

canuk-gal - I know what you mean. I hardly ever reply to everyone individually but am starting to make the effort to do so. It tales a long time! LOL

Kimberly H - Work, gym, home, hungry used to be my routine last year. I ned to get that back on track!!

Rod - One stone is equal to 14 lbs, so 28 lbs. Not bad eh? If I had kept it up then, I would have been at goal long ago! And thank you for the wishes...I hope I do well too.

Skippy123 - I am good thanks I am feeling really positive at the moment and feel much more energised for eating the right foods in the right quantities again at last. I am drinking lots of water, I feel like it is having an effect already. I am eating much more fresh fruit and vegetables than I have in months. I actually feel hungry at mealtimes rather than just making a meal because it is "that time of day". The tracking is making me so aware of everything. How are you?

marcyc - Oh I agree with you. I am just going to work towards my 10% goal for now. I don''t want to put a timeline on it as such because the first time I did WW, I lost 7.5 lbs in the first week then slowed right down to either 0.5 or 1lb per week. It was agonising. I wasn''t prepared for how long it would take back then I guess. Now I know that "slow and steady wins the race", there will be no stopping me!

Linda W - Well done on the 2.5 lbs. Great news. Even if it is water weight, it is progress!

steph - One stone is equal to 14 lbs. So 4 stone is 56lbs. Sounds like an awful lot. A long way off but definitely acheiveable by the end of ''09 with hard effort and determination I think! I''m glad you enjoyed the gym. I enjoy it a lot more than I ever thought I would. I need to get back into my gym regime soon.

lliang-chi - Thank you. I am sure that with the support of you all here, it WILL be a total success.

dragonfly411 - Woah, you have been working out hardcore! Well done for the 3 lbs loss.

Tacori - Good to see you here though. I fell behind for the latter part of December. It happens. We''re all here waiting for you!

Well, for me today has been a case of Karma at its finest...

You know I have been having the 15 minute brisk walk to meet my morning lift to work this week? Well this week I got my FI to drive me down to meet her as he was leaving at the same time as me. So I missed out on that little activity to add to my tracker. Well one of the kiddies in the youngest class had me jogging round the playground with him ALL breaktime this morning. He thought it was hilarious, dragging me round cackling the whole time, even when I had to have intervals to actually catch my breath and let the burn wear off from my heavy legs! I don''t know why he chose today to do that, but it was as if someone knew I needed toget my activity in! Oh, the class had their dance lesson this afternoon too which I always join in with!

 

[panda08]

Hi everyone!

UGH! Every time I have the best intentions, I get crushed with work. So needless to say, I''ve been working well into the night and haven''t had time to get to the gym

The saving grace is that I''m eating healthy.

Sorry for the quick flyby. I''m thinking of you guys and hoping that everyone''s doing well!

 

[Dee*Jay]

Happy Thursday kids!

Did an hour with the PT this morning. Loved it! We''re working on my buns in a big big way!

No time to catch up right now but will try tomorrow.

Hi all!

 

[CdnBlingGal]

Well, I am feeling better today. I am not in so much pain. I''ve just got to do a little stretching. I worked out this morning on the TM and did some yoga on the Wii. I don''t feel I had a real good workout so I might pull out my step and do a step workout. We will see.

The eating healthy is going good as well. I''ve been making a lot of meals with lots of different veggies. We''re juicing as well for Marty''s sake - he''s a non eating veggie type person. He''s okay with broccoli and little tiny bits of carrots and mushrooms. But that is IT!! So i figure if I juice, he will at least get his daily intake of fruits and veggies in a juice. Anyone else have difficulties trying to get their significant other to eat vegetables as a whole?

steph72276: Awesome for going to the gym and working out for the first time!

dragonfly411: Congrats on your 3lbs lost. That''s excellent!

merrymunky: Aww, kiddies are so innocent and cute! They have no care in the world but to play. They do give a person a workout whether you want to or not. Good for you for keeping up!

Hello to the everyone else! Hope you all had a good day!

Lily

 

[Skippy123]

Hi friends; we went to the park so we both had a nice long walk. Off to make dinner! Hugs to all!

 

[somethingshiny]

Thanks for all the well-wishes. Still sick, though. Blech. I believe it''s now bronchitis. (I won''t give you the details...).

Skippy~ I don''t know if the Wii Fit has boxing, it''s on our Wii sports that came with the system. We''ve had it for almost a year, and I just got around to trying the sports. There are also some fun tennis games that give you a workout. I want the Fit, but before I spend the money, I decided to see how long I would stick with video games.

I*''m trying to do the color thing for my meals, but I seem to be even hungrier. I don''t know if having a rainbow makes it more appetizing, or if my body simply wants the potatoes, any ideas??

 

[KimberlyH]

Hi All.

I''ve still up in weight but...I RAN THE HILL TODAY!! All the flippin'' way to the top. I''ve been trying to get to the top once a week for about 5 weeks now. It was a slow run, hell it was more like a jog/walk, but I did it and I am so proud of myself. I just told John and then ran down our hallway singing the theme from Rocky with my arms in the air.

We''re having sea bass for dinner with some sort of salad and veggies.

Steph, we had eggplant parm, it was good.

CDN, I''m sorry you were hurting. Glad you''re feeling better. I like feeling muscle strain, but not muscle pain.

Merry, you''re getting back on track!

Skip, don''t beat yourself up over a cookie.

Have a great night all.

 

[appletini]

I exercised after work with my co-worker. We had a great workout! Tomorrow I will do my walk/jog routine around the neighborhood when I get home from work.

 

[Rod]

Hey........It was a typical ''uber'' Thursday. At least it wasn''t a bad day at work. I decided to leave work at a reasonable hour (translation, before 6, but just barely) and made it on the gym floor by 6:30. FOr some odd reason, it wasn''t crowded tonight. I''m not sure where all the "Resolutionists" (my term for the new people who joined because they made a New Years resolution) were not there tonight. Just the usual crowd (which is still fairly sizable) was there. So, I was able to get through my workout in just under 3 hours, which was a good thing. Tomorrrow''s Friday......YAYAYAY. We''re having our usual Friday night sushi, but two friends are joining us, which should be fun.

I wish I had the time to say hey to everyone individually, but I''m afraid I have things I have to take of before heading to bed. I did want to congratulate Kimberly on making it up the hill ALL THE WAY!! WOO HOO. And Steph, I''m glad you really enjoyed your gym workout and I''m honored to know I was in any way an inspiration for you joining the gym! You get a big WOO HOO too!

Since so many here are trying to lose weight, I found this little article on MSN and thought it was interesting and worth reading. It''s particularly interesting to read about plateauing and why our bodies resist losing weight...........

Fast Path to Ideal Weight
How quickly can I lose 30 pounds?
By Martica Heaner, M.A., M.Ed., for MSN Health & Fitness

Q: I lost 15 pounds and have kept it off for three months. I''m 5 feet 7 inches and now weigh 167 pounds, but my ideal weight is 135 pounds. Is it realistic to try to lose five pounds a month? And what exercise can help keep me from getting flabby?

A: Be careful of getting attached to a specific number when it comes to your "ideal" weight. So many individual factors play a role in determining what your optimal body weight is that''s it''s hard to say exactly what the best weight is for you. And keep in mind that for many women, their ideal weight from a health standpoint may be more than their ideal weight from an aesthetic standpoint. (Women often think skinnier is better, but just as overweight people have higher risks of disease, so do underweight people.)

Although 135 pounds for someone who''s 5 feet 7 inches is not technically underweight, 135 may be too low for you if you are big-boned and muscular. It''s better to shoot for a range, and remember that scale weight alone doesn''t give you an indication of your body composition, or the amount of muscle mass versus body fat that you have. A person can be muscular and have low body fat, but weigh on the heavier end of an "ideal" range, but look great because he or she is lean and firm.

In any case, 30 pounds is a lot to lose, and while it can be done, it requires a commitment and long-term lifestyle changes. You''re right to aim for a slow rate of weight loss, and one or two pounds a week is considered to be a healthy pace. To keep yourself motivated, rather than focusing on the 30 pounds, aim for something smaller, like four or five pounds. Once you''ve reached that first, more easily achieved goal, set a new goal until eventually you reach your target weight.

Keep in mind that a few things may impede your progress. First, the closer you get to your optimum weight, the harder it may be to lose. This is especially true if your body considers your "optimum" weight to be one that''s five or 10 pounds more than the weight you desire.

Also, the fact that you''ve lost a considerable amount of weight already will affect your weight loss now and going forward. You''ve lost fat from fat cells, but the fat cells still remain in your body. These fat cells are programmed to be filled, since fat is the body''s energy supply. So when weight is lost, energy-preservation mechanisms kick in to attempt to restore the lost body fat.

It''s unclear how much weight loss triggers this phenomenon, but it appears that when weight loss starts to plateau, often after about six months of weight loss, some biological triggers try to reverse the loss. Biochemicals are released in your brain and body that may affect your tendency to regain weight in a variety of ways: You may feel less full after eating, you may crave snacks more often, you may crave more fattening foods, and/or you may get hungrier sooner.

This doesn''t mean that you will definitely gain the weight back, but it does mean that you have to continue with the smart eating choices and regular exercise to counteract these influences. The National Weight Control Registry, an ongoing research investigation that monitors people who have lost weight and successfully kept it off, shows that it can be done. And there are some weight-management strategies that most of these successful losers use to stay on the healthy end of the scale. On average, 90 percent of these success stories exercise about one hour per day (mostly walking), 78 percent eat breakfast every day, and 62 percent watch less than 10 hours of TV a week (that clearly gives them more time to be active).

To kick-start your weight loss, evaluate your diet and exercise program. Find ways to eat more healthfully, consuming fewer calories, and find ways to increase the amount of daily activity that you get, aiming to ramp up the amount of vigorous exercise that you do too (try inserting jogging sprints into a walk, or intervals of higher-resistance climbing on a cardio machine). Also incorporate resistance exercises with weights, which will keep you from getting flabby. Look for specific moves that you can do at home on the MSN Fit Zone.

 

[steph72276]

Rod, great article. Thanks for posting!

 

[marcy]

 

[marcy]

Good morning. I am delighted to report I am now 1/2 pound lower than my pre Christmas weight. Woo hoo!

 

[steph72276]

Date: 1/9/2009 8:50:15 AM
Author: marcyc
Good morning. I am delighted to report I am now 1/2 pound lower than my pre Christmas weight. Woo hoo!

Woohoo!!!! Go Marcy, Go Marcy

 

[dragonfly411]

Goodmorning and Go Gators!!!! Well last night I got no work out in, BUT We went downtown after the game to celebrate so got about four miles of brisk walking and yelling in lol. I count that as exercise. Not to mention all the jumping around. Today had class so didn''t get any morning stuff in. I have to get myself on a schedule for class mornings. Breakfast was some goldfish (bad I know) because I ran out of time. I''m going to get some yogurt to keep at work since I have granola here. I can eat that on my class mornings.

merrymunky - are you a teacher?
Panda - It''s living a healthy lifestyle that matters so gj for that!
DeeJay - share some of those PT exercises will ya? Lol
CDN - I LOVE yoga, and TY
Skippy - How fun!
SomethingShiny - I''m so very scared I might be progressing to bronchitis. This cough won''t go away
Kim - WOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOO For your HILL!!!
Marcy - YOU GO GIRL

 

[steph72276]

Well, this morning I had another great workout at the gym. I did 45 mins on the elliptical and did legs and abs. I am really sore in my shoulders from yesterday, so I think tomorrow I will just do a full hour of cardio and let my muscles rest. Hope everyone has a great day!

 

[Lauren8211]

Ok, I'm back!

I joined this thread, and then I kind of gave up. I don't think my heart OR head were in it, but now I'm back with a vengeance!!

I started up this week (Monday) by starting a 12-1550 calorie diet, by following the SparkPeople.com system. No soda, and 8 glasses of water a day. So I'm doing 3 days of cardio and strength training. I started with "30 Day Shred" on Monday and it kicked my BUTT! Day off on Tues, Treadmill Weds, and the Shred yesterday. It's already getting easier!

Question: I find that in trying to keep with my calorie limitations, psychologically.. that 1200 is a limit as opposed to a range. Like.. when my calories hit 1000 for the day, I feel like I want to keep it under 1200, and it's really hard for me to eat anymore to meet my goals. I feel like I'm giving in at the end of the night, and forcing those last 200 calories, and it makes me feel guilty. Which is weird, because 3 weeks ago I didn't think twice about having 2500+ calories a day.

However, now i'm eating under 1200, and I know that's not healthy.

I know it's just mental -- just wondering if anyone else ever felt that way?

Good Luck on your health and fitness goals, everyone! I have to try and back track and catch up on this thread!!

 

[Miscka]

quick flyby---

Like I said, work is nuts...working a million hours between here and the end of the month.

I picked up some good snacks (yogurt, little cheese slices, apples and pears) and SO many meals! No excuse not to eat at home!

I am rejoining The Daily Plate, and that has been good. Also, next week we work 8-8 and then we get taken out to amazing dinners. I am just going to eat as well as I can throughout the day and try to make good choices at dinner but not stress about it too much. It is only 4 days.

Hope everyone is doing well!!!!

 

[Lorelei]

Cooee Elle!

Hi all!

Weather has warmed up, so I have managed to get a workout in finally - yippee!

 

[IluvEmeralds]

Greetings everyone!!

I''ve caught up on reading the thread from this week and it looks like everyone has been doing GREAT while I''ve been gone. I wish I could comment on everyone.....but here''s a few...I promise to be more dilligent next week.

DeeJay - would you mind sharing some of those exercises? I the PT''s @ my gym can''t work with my crazy schedule so I''d be really grateful!!

Tacori- glad to see you popping back in!

Merrymunky- glad the WW thing is working for ya. How do you find you track during the day at school while you teach? That''s a challenge for me (since I teach too and I''m always going so fast!!)

Marcy- GO GO GO Marcy go! Way to go on the pre xmas weight loss

Steph- are you liking the gym so far?

We are back from Miami and MAN OH MAN did we have a FABULOUS time!! I can''t even describe to you how fabulous it was!! Totally worth all the driving and the choas. It absolutely looked like a Gator home game. My FI was about the happiest I''ve seen him in a while which really made me smile. He was so sweet too...he knows I''m working on my weight loss so he grilled chicken for me to eat..and brought me veggies and other healthy snacks to eat. PLUS I only had 2 drinks the whole time and the rest of the time I had water and diet coke. I was very proud of myself!!

That and I found I had a much better time at the game than some of our friends since I could actually REMEMBER it!! I also stuck to my workout plan, I ran Wed before I left, and Thursday morning before we left the hotel, and I probably walked about 1-2 miles around Dolphin stadium taking in all the fan stuff.

Anyways, I haven''t weighed myself yet, but I''m hoping for at least very little to no change. Even if I gain a little, I''ve decided it was TOTALLY worth it...that was hands down the best game I''ve been to so far in my life

GO GATORS!! Happy Friday everyone!!
ILE

 

[Tacori E-ring]

merry, thank you! This thread moves fast. It''s hard to keep up.

kimberly! Yeah for running up the hill. I bet it felt great (when you were done)

Rod, great article!

marcy, yeah for getting off that stubborn holiday weight and then some! Can''t wait to see your pics.

Dragon, 3 lbs is AWESOME!

Linda, yeah on 2.5 lbs!!!

Elle, you can do it!

Apple & Steph, sounds like you both are doing great.

Mischa, I think that is the best attitude. Try not to stress, make the right decisions, but don''t forget to enjoy life a bit. You are blessed with being tall and I think you look great!

Lor, yeah for getting warmer! I hate the cold!

Sorry if I missed someone. Tessa and I took a very long walk today. Felt good to be active again!

 

[ChargerGrrl]

ugh, i finally weighed myself today and i'm up 2 lbs since my last weigh-in on 12/30. i lost weight during xmas week, but gained during new years week.

seeing those results gave me extra motivation at the gym this morning. i did a solid 40 minutes on the treadmill and killed quite a bit of calories. all in all, i was able to get to the gym 3 times this workweek. i'm doubtful that i'll be able to go this weekend as we have tons to do with the bathroom remodeling wrapping up- it's time to clean house! there's fine tile dust EVERYWHERE. at least i'll be keeping active with our mega-cleaning project.

my goals next week are to make it all 5 days to the gym and have kick-butt workouts. it's my last week on my own, as bootcamp begins on the 20th.

steph- great work at the gym!
dragonfly- wow, that's quite a workout you had yesterday! yahoo for 3lbs lost.
merry- slow and steady wins the race. sounds like you're off to a great start!
tacori- WOO HOO on your walk!
dee- here's to working out the buns! mine need a MAJOR lift
somethingshiny- feel better!
kimberly- congrats on conquering that hill
rod- thanks for sharing the MSN article
marcy- yay for losing Xmas weight!
miscka- i DIG the daily plate- it's a great resource
elle- i hear ya on the calorie "guilt". i think it's because we're EXTRA aware of what we're consuming. when i'm close to hitting my limit, i reach for an apple. i can't feel THAT guilty eating an apple, ya know?

hiya- skippy, lliang, cdn, panda & luvemeralds

 

[Skippy123]

Hi Gang, back from a good walk; it got cold but I kept going.

I got a good walk yesterday too and had to carry my nephew (40 lbs) for 1/4th of the way because he got tired. Next time I will tell his momma to bring his jogger. Nothing too exciting here; just grocery shopping and house cleaning today. My mom wanted to watch my nephew today so she did. All I have to say is moms have a hard/rewarding job for sure!!!!

Tonight hubby and I are going to watch the season primer of Monk on USA and House. Have a great evening everyone

MARCY, woo hooo for your weight loss, and I went to TJ's today and they have those ginger cookies year round, I asked. hehe

TACORI, yay for your long walk with Tessa!

PANDA, hi friend!! You are busy, flybys are find; it is good to see you then not. hugs!

LLIANG, yum your cuban black beans sounded good! I posted some recipes in the Healthy Cooking thread Mara started. Ah, you are so sweet about my nephew!! You are too cute!

DRAGON, great to see you and woo hooo for your awesome workout!!! Wow, 112 is tiny!!! Thanks for your sweet words!

MERRY, yay for all your great healthy eating and water drinking!!! You know what when I upped my fresh fruits and veggies I started losing weight and they helped fill me up; I like that WW encourages that! You are armed and doing awesome!!! Oh no to TTOM, I get the same way, hang in there!

DEEJAY, yay, I love looking at this thread and seeing that you did your uber workout; it is very inspiring to me!!!

CDNBLINGAL, love your avatar; it is so cute!!! Yay for yoga! Yay for feeling better!

SOMETHINGSHINY, hope you feel better soon, sorry about the bronchitis, sweetie; we miss you so hope you feel better soon!

KIMI, wooo hooo for the run up the hill, that is awesome!!!

APPLE, woo for your workouts!

ROD, thanks for the great info; 10 years ago I took a nutrition class and over the semester they touched on all those topics, thanks for that really good article!!! You have us armed w/such great info so we can beat the odds! Yay for sushi night; hope it is a wonderful evening!

STEPH, hi friend!!! Yay for your gym membership, that is awesome!!!

ELLEDIZZY, great to see you back! Woo for counting calories and 30 day shred! I would eat what I am suppose to there are articles about not eating enough and how it works against you (your body thinks it is being starved so it hangs on to weight, etc).

MISCKA, oh wow, what a beautiful avatar! Yay for healthy snacks, that is what I did today too; I bought apricots, apples, salad, carrots and cucumbers. I love the daily plate for calorie info too. Yay for you honey!


ILUVEMERALDS, Yay glad you had a FAB time in Miami; sounds like you did well, that is awesome, huge kudos and yay for your walks around the stadium!!!

 

[marcy]

 

[Rod]

Hey........It''s well after 11 PM, so this has to be a quick fly-by. It was a productive, but long day at work for a Friday. I didn''t leave till nearly 6:30 PM and I got in before 8 AM this morning. Then I met Charlie and our friends for sushi, which was a lot of fun. We hadn''t seen these friends for at least 4 months, so it was nice to get caught up. We stopped off at Sbucks for coffee afterwards, and we just enjoyed our visit very much. Charlie is off the whole weekend, WOO HOO. Tomorrow, we''ll have a gym day, then tomorrow night''s my lobster dinner at The Palm!

Sorry, I can''t say hey to everyone individually again. It''s just so late and I''m really tired. I did want to say congrats to Marcy on being at or below your pre-holiday weight. Of course we all knew it would take you just a couple days!!

Hey to everyone else. I''ll check in tomorrrow night after dinner at The Palm.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

ILuv, we were poting at the same time. Glad you had fun in Miami.

CG, you are doing great! Don''t get discouraged!

Marcy & Skippy, thanks! I didn''t want to take a walk but felt good that I did. It is getting cold here.

 

[KimberlyH]

Hi All,

So my weight isn''t budging, whatever. J and I went for a 40 minute walk yesterday afternoon. We had a CL casserole for dinner last night.

I''m going to exercise today, this afternoon/evening we''re going for dinner and a movie.

Have a good one and thanks for all of the encouragement regarding the hill. I''m no longer working at the school so my run route is either going to disappear or have to change depending on when/where i''m working.