<p>Here’s to Ema, and wishing her health and well being after the wedding, too!</p>
<p>I am generally avoiding junk food and continue to run 3x a week (lots of socialization, very slow running). The bounce is back in my step and my physical therapy exercises continue. Tonight I added a few sprints all out, which apparently is good for hormone balance and fat loss. </p>
<p>Wow, Ema looks so gorgeous in the photos she posted! So happy to read that her wedding plans materialized wonderfully. 
Hope that she is enjoying sunshine and warm sand as we speak. </p>
<p>Good job, everyone! I see Fed Up has been mentioned upthread. I watched it last weekend and highly recommend watching it even if you think you know everything about sugar. </p>
<p>Got back on the WiiFit this morning. Good news is that I dropped a pound since April, much to my shock… Bad news is I gained four pounds in April (no thanks to Passover and travel). Onward and downward!</p>
<p>I’m down a couple of pounds - all time low (well since in my 20s). No idea what I might be doing right!</p>
<p>congrats, ema.</p>
<p>I won’t delete the photos, but please don’t post any more. From the TOS:</p>
<p><<Links to Forums, Blogs, Social Network Pages, Photos, Videos, and Personal Sites. Please do not post links to other discussion forums, blogs, personal sites, or other non-authoritative sources."</p>
<p>In a nutshell, only links to authoritative websites are allowed.</p>
<p>Thanks, ML. We are all so delighted for Ema. :)</p>
<p>Sorry, I thought links were bad but photos were okay. I won’t post anymore. Sorry to go off topic.</p>
<p>Back on to topic, I think I have gained 10lbs on our honeymoon and am looking forward to getting back to routine. It is nice to have the pressure off, I will go back to normal healthy eating and exercise and lose this weight when I lose it. It will probably not take too terribly long… by the sounds of it we are nowhere near swimsuit weather in Michigan, so maybe by the time it’s actually “summer” at home I’ll be back to normal! It just feels so, so good for “normal” to mean “healthy,” I went from eating like crap as a kid and getting away with it to eating like crap and not getting away with it, so this is really the first time I’ve had the opportunity to feel this good and healthy. Of course, right now I feel like complete hell-- but a week at an all-inclusive will do that to you I guess! If I weren’t so worn out and dehydrated all the time from being in the sun all day I’d hit the gym at the resort but that just has NOT worked out for me… too tired… we will be home soon and then I will have plenty of time to elliptical to my heart’s content. </p>
<p>It is also nice to know that I am most definitely up, but to not care about the number and not feel the need to obsess over how far set back I am from my goal. Before if I gained 5lbs it was “OH NO now I have to re-lose those 5lbs plus the 15lbs I still wanted to lose and at the rate I am going that will take me X months and stresstresstress.” So, so much pressure is relieved to be at (or near, now) my goal weight. It is worth it! Once you are here, you can have these momentarily lapses, enjoy them, and then go back to normal and no harm done. Such a better way to live than being overweight, or obsessively dieting. And, I think my honeymoon is just about the only occasion worth going this far off plan… I don’t plan to eat like this again any time in the next decade at least! I have been uncomfortably full all week. I can’t believe I used to eat like this every day. It’s no wonder I was so sick for so long.</p>
<p>Congrats Ema!!! You look gorgeous!</p>
<p>I have avoiding all of you!!! My pants are tight and I am unhappy. This has been an extremely stressful year of teaching with very, very long hours. I have a 14 year old dog at home who can’t be left alone for the entire day so I have to rush home after I get my work done at school. Point being, it is really hard to get to the gym and when I do get there I just feel unmotivated.<br>
I have thought about going in the morning but I am so doggone tired. Summer is coming though.
Have any of you tried or thought about trying Get Fit For Women? We have a new one in my town and a lot of my friends are joining. It sounds like what I need to get motivated because you make appointments for your workouts and get weighed in weekly. They figure out a diet plan and help you with nutrition. It all sounds great except for the price! 1300 for three months!</p>
<p>$1300 for three months to lose a few pounds? How about each of us on this forum call you while we are walking “together” and we’ll ask you about your healthy food options and encourage you to move and avoid not-as-healthy choices? </p>
<p>Gee, for that much money you could go on a nice clothes shopping spree. </p>
<p>I know. You’re right, But the people I know who are doing it are getting great results. I know that they won’t tell me anything that I don’t already know but I need accountability. Maybe I will make a resolution to check in here nightly to report.</p>
<p>EPTR, what happens after 3 months? Do you have to sign up for another 3 months/$1300??? Cause 3 months is pretty quick to be done and fall back into old habits. And considering that any changes - be it diet, exercise, portion, types of food eaten, etc. - have to be lifestyle changes FOR GOOD - not for just 3 months! </p>
<p>EPTR, definitely check in here often, but also consider scheduling planned activities with people that you like, for example, two days a week, schedule in a long walk with friend. If you have a pre-determined meeting place and time, and they are depending on you, then both of your are likely to keep the appointment. On the weekend, plan at least one social exercise day, like a walk, run, or bike. Eventually you will find people that are in the same boat as you, and want to stay healthy, so they will look forward to this group exercise as much as you.</p>
<p>On the other days you can do your own thing … yoga in the basement, planks while watching TV, working in the garden or major spring cleaning (yep, that is exercise).</p>
<p>On the food front, step one is to get rid of all processed foods from your house. If you cannot have just one treat, like a piece of dark chocolate, then also get rid of all treats, too. I find that if I don’t have those items in the house, then they don’t have a chance of getting to my hips. When you go out, tell yourself ahead of time what to look for on the menu and give yourself a pat on the back if you stick to it. </p>
<p>But, if money is not a huge issue, and you think this will get you on a roll, then go for it, but still go on a clothes splurge once you meet a particular goal. If there are no required food purchases and they are going to teach you a new way of living, this is the kind of plan that is not a diet, but a lifestyle change for the better, and I am all for that.</p>
<p>I gained 4 pounds this weekend! But I think it’s just salt from too many restaurant meals, I’m not really worried about it. </p>
<p>The good news is that on Friday I got out my box of summer clothes and the things I wore last summer that were a little too big are just falling off. I really can’t wear them at all anymore. I don’t think I have any shorts I can wear at all, and most of my capris are no better.</p>
<p>^^^woohoo!!!</p>
<p>Nice, mathmom! No scale needed for you to know that real fat is gone from your body. </p>
<p>That’s awesome, Mathmom!<br>
I have thought about your comments about Get Fit for Women and I decided that I don’t need to give someone thousands of dollars to tell me what I already know.<br>
My D is graduating on Thursday and after that celebration, I am getting back on the wagon. (even during it I am resolved to be conscious of my eating and drinking).
I am planning to check in nightly so prepare to be sick of me!</p>
<p>Good job, Mathmom. I recommend that you take those clothes over to Goodwill. I find that not having something that fits comfortably can be a good reminder/ motivator when I gain weight back.</p>
<p>I pay about $250 a month for my Y membership and a personal trainer twice a week (through the Y). It has been worth every penny for me. My trainer has actually become my trainer/ therapist/ friend in the last year. She’s also been battling ovarian cancer and underwent a brutal chemo regimen last year. She didn’t miss a single session unless she was at ther out-of-town chemo appointment. There is no way I could not show up.</p>
<p>Well, I am checking in! I did okay today with eating. No snacking other than a banana, a tiny square of chocolate and a snack sized sugar free pudding cup. Salad for lunch and a bowl of soup for dinner.<br>
I’m trying to wean off the carbs. Fortunately I am going away for three days and missing Teacher appreciation week at my school where the parents shower us with goodies.</p>
<p>EPTR … Great start! That’s the way to do it!</p>