**Losing 100lbs in 2007 Aug 13-19**

[Dreamcometru]

Awww Jennay: Hope you feel better soon. Must be an immune system boost. I will PM you with myspace info.

Thanks Christy for your message. I messaged you back. Glad your clothes are feeling looser. I am still having withdrawals from my fat clothes. I haven't wanted to get rid of them, but when I put them on they look ridiculous. I have probably 12 fabulous wool blazers. I work in an office and at my heaviest weight, didn't feel comfortable in just a blouse or sweater, so I wore the jackets. I hung them upstairs in DD1's room cause I can't bear to part with them. But I sure can't wear them. What is a girl to do! I'm also worried about this winter. But now I think I can pull off a sweater or two without the jacket.

[thewhitehouse]

Dream- have you considered getting them altered? It is a lot cheaper than buying new ones! Unless you want to get all new skinny clothes since there is not going to be anything to cover up!! What an awesome feeling, ay?

Tiffani

[Jennifer]

Tiffani!

Christy - Those cartoons are too cute! Mind if I nab the piggy for my avi?

everyone!

[kbetz0419]

Dream- would you mind elaborating on the high throid thing. My mother, who I dont have contact with, has thyrod issues. I have been looseing my hair and been over weight for a long time. I have had the test run a coupple of years ago, and everything was fine.. In fact, they said I had a very active thryoid and I should actually be skinny. What do they mean. All I heard was your hair is falling out, we dont know why, and you must be a pig because it ant your thyroid, Oink oink! I was little put of by there mannerizim.

jenay- I hope you get feeling better soon, Its a rough time of year to be sick. If I had my choice it would be winter. Theres nothing like wrapping up in a warm blanket on a cold day. Its not much comfort on a hot day.

Cristy- wow you have lost about 26 #s great job!

[kbetz0419]

hello to every one else that I didnt mention anything to. Hey, where is Divine Miss M. I am in the mood to read some weight loss theory and she is the best.

[kbetz0419]

Mycataz, Thanks for the conversation last night about the kids sleep over. I went over this morning to help with breakfast. Boy what a rowdy bunch they were. I brought my 3& 1 Y/O with me. We had 8 kids running around the house eating pancakes and oatmeal. When the kids wern't around we talked some more, and she said it went fine,and that at 10 pm the boys went down stairs and the girls stayed on the main floor. We have decided that there is nothing really wrong with this because it is the same thing as if I had my 3 boys at home and we let our daughter have her daughter over. With the ages it is enevatable. We are just going to have too sleep with our EYES WIDE OPEN! We are setting ground rules now, so there wont be any conflicts latter in the years. I know alot of familys have co-ed sleep overs( class parties) but, I dont know about that. I still think it is diffrent. We had originaly said, no sleep overs till they were 10, and same sex only. With my youngest 2 being in and out of the hospital so much, we have needed over night care for the older kids. I wish kids came with a book. Atleast I feel better this morning knowing that she is takeing it a serous as I am.





Every one- By the way we are taking the oldest 2 kids to cedar point tomarrow afternoon.( I hope I can fit, I am wearing a tight 18 or a regular 20.) On sunday we have a B-day party to go to with the oldest 2 kids. I could not have asked for a better way to end the summer. We dont get much time with the kids when school is in. They will be getting out at 3:50 pm this year. ahhh. When are they going to see the sunlight?

[thewhitehouse]

Hi Kbetz! I hear you about getting a break from the wee ones! It's nice to talk to adults during the day, even if it is online. Especially since we home school, kids are here all the time. But I do love it!! Will love it even more when I get more energy from dropping the poundage!! So you have four also. WOW three girls! That could get expensive...too many cute girl clothes and hair stuff and dolls and... I started walking with my 10 year old. When I get back from Curves in the AM, she and I will take the dog and walk about 1 1/2 miles. Want to start her off on the right foot with exercise apart of her life, know what I mean?

Thanks for making me feel welcomed here.
Tiffani

[Dreamcometru]

Hey Tiffani: Alteration, yes I have considered it. It costs quite a bit, but it might be worth it for the jackets I love the best and are in the best shape. I will check into it.

Kbetz: As long as I had high thyroid, I felt jittery most of the time. My thyroid took a big dump when I started losing the lbs. My dr. kept reducing the strength of my meds until it was adjusted down. Guess what, that's when I STOPPED losing weight. HMMMM. But I guess it's really dangerous to have your thyroid out of whack for very long. I've been on thyroid meds for about 10 years now. When I first got on them I didn't notice any difference in how I felt. When it got too high, however, I was on caffein 24/7.

[Christy514]

Jennifer go right ahead! I stole it from a friend on myspace lol

Tiffani Are yo excerising at all?

[kbetz0419]

Tiffini- I actually have 3 boys and 1 girl. I think it would be cheaper to have the girls. My boys are so hard on clothes. I think that is cool that you home school. I would love to do it but a couple of the kids have learning disabilities and I like our school. ( for the most part) I am considering in the future, if things dont go well to get them in the online program our school has.

Dream- Thanks for the info. I dont know what to think. Maybe the lack of sleep will end soon when the kids start back to school.

Christy- I guess my math is as bad as my spelling. LOL .I actually didn't add wrong I just know that you are getting a woosh soon. ;+)

[Jennifer]

Originally Posted by Christy514

Jennifer go right ahead! I stole it from a friend on myspace lol

I pigs!

[jennaysteele]

well I am checking in really quick and going back to bed, I am just too tired!

Whitehouse- you asked where am I in WA- I live in Marysville and work in Everett...

Thanks everyone for the get well wishes- more drugs and more rest and I'll be good as new.

[kbetz0419]

jennay- I am glade to see youare resting.

Jennifer- I like the avi, it was great idea.

I am trying to get up enough courage to put my pic on here. I dont have poor self esteem. I have no problem with letting people see how I look, after all I have my stats posted. I just worry about people recognizing me. I am a very private, very strong person in real life. On here, I get to be week and blubber like a baby. How silly is that? maybe I wil post a befor pic next to a progress pic some day. I can have a mysterous picture like Divine Miss M. I love her pic. She looks so wise, and confident, with a slight bit of mystery and sas.

PS I had a pair of new balance shoes that I bought at a thrift store ( like new) last spring. They ended up being tight, but I refused to get rid of them. Not sure why back then. Good thing I didnt, they fit now. They are a half size smaller. My little girl said in front of our family friends today" look, my mommy has new shoes" I was never more proud of my self. To think, weight loss in my feet. wow! I wonder where other strange places we might loose? Tounges? Ears? Lips?
Ok, now thats getting a little to weird.

[thewhitehouse]

Hello. Hope everyone had a great day yesterday.

We had Youth Group last night so I was gone for loooong time. We have so much fun there. My son likes to stick around and hang out after. We got home a little after midnight.

Christy- I am exercising. I workout at Curves 6 days a week. I do a lot more than the 30 minutes 3 times a day. I go for about 45-60 minutes a day. My instructor showed me some different ways to use some of the machines. So I get more of a workout. Then I go back to a crunch machine and do it for another minute or so. Finally I take the time at the end to REALLY stretch out (want long and lean not short and buff muscles!!). I try to walk everyday with my ten year old daughter when I get home from Curves. We do about 1 1/2 miles. It has just been so hot lately. BUT that's what I do. And then of course, taking care of 4 kids that are home schooled all year long. Cleaning , shopping, etc. Gives a good day.

Kbetz- oh sorry I read wrong. I thought it was 3g and 1b!! We were going to do the online public school in Ohio but then we moved to South Carolina and they don't offer it. So we went with ACE (Accelerated Christian Education). We love it. It is more independent work for the kids. Each kid works at their level in each subjects. They have a neat diagnostics test (that's free online). But the bet thing about it is that everything is directed back to God. Science is all creation backed. History tells how our nation was founded on God based values. Tells how our forefathers individually trusted and relied on God for freedom. It's really awesome. We have only been home schooling for one year. The last year in public school was the final straw. Teachers cussing at the kids, them getting ridiculed for their faith, weapons, drugs, and my oldest was even on a hit list with about 20 others. And this was a small one stop light town.
They are so active in everything. I don't listen to those who are misinformed about "what about their social skills". I find all the home school kids I know to have OUTSTANDING social skills with both kids and adults. There self esteem seems to be high. It is definately worth looking into!! (wow am I windy this morning)

OK now for some more good news...down 2 more pounds!! That is such an incentive!! I think I will be able to make my first mini goal by next Friday, maybe pass it!! I have never felt so able to do this. This forum really helps. I like to be able to read about others struggles and successes. And being able to chat with everyone about mine. It makes it seem like I am on a team with a reachable winning goal. Of course I am getting all my strength from God. It's the only way this is going to happen. But the support here is AWESOME!!

Thank you to all for your support. I am tired of being tired!! And doing something about it. We can all do this and live a lot happier and healthier and longer!!

Hope everyone has a great day.
Gods blessings to you,
Tiffani

[kbetz0419]

Oh Tiffani, we are going to get along so well. reading your posts are like reading my own at times. I had to laugh with you, (not at at you) when you said you aere tired of being tired. Trust me I get it.

Well every one, we am off to cedar point today at 1pm when DH gets home. (I hope I can fit)

[Christy514]

real quick post..... this morning 265.8 you were right kbetx thanks for the whoosh lol

[Divine Miss M]

Today is a maintain day. I'm not too thrilled that I didn't see a loss, BUT "A Maintain is Always better than a Gain." (Last night, I actually did 1 hr. 15 minutes of disco dancing :kiss: mixed with conditioning exercises - an incredible feat for a person who could not even stand up for a few minutes just 3 months ago without being in total agony, even leaning on my cane - so that might be another reason I maintained today. And that's ok - exercise can do that, but it's a good thing.) Heaven knows I'm certainly sticking with my WOE! Yesterday's menu totals were 1,180 calories, 43 fats, 38 carbs, and 132 proteins.

I already shook up my program this past week, but it was an experiment, and I only lost .6 lb. Now I find I have to keep the WOE as I've been doing it - in that I'm upping cals between 1100-1400 (the highest, which I'll do on exercise days), slighting upping carbs for the day, and adding very small amts. of good fats (1 tsp. butter, 2 tsps. extra virgin coconut oil per day).

Reason: My blood glucose level is too low, even after eating. Calories not only have to be higher, but I need about 35-45 carbs and 40-50 fat grams per day to keep my metabolism stable. One example is yesterday's home blood glucose test (NO, I do NOT have diabetes): 3 hrs. after breakfast, my glucose was 81. The normal level, a few hrs. after eating, should be 120.

To further the health benefits, I'll also add to my exercise routine. In addition to my thrice-weekly Water Workouts, I'm going to add at least 30 minutes of "on the land" conditioning and aerobic exercises, and about 15 walking track time. So that will be 5 exercise days a week, totalling 6 hrs. a week.

By next Thursday, I will weigh-in just once week. That way I will focus only on my health benefits and trimming the inches, because the scale has a way of messing with the psyche. Thank goodness, I am aware of my success in all areas - walking without my cane, strengthening my back muscles, losing inches, standing and walking without my cane, feeling better, having more energy (most days), etc.

Tiffany: Welcome!!! (I'm a homeschooling mom, too!)

Kbetz: I'm still here, hon. It's just that my schedule has really altered...and thanks for all the nice suggestions that you gave about caring for my mom. We all moved about 7 yrs. ago, from the city to the country, and Mom came with us. We've always been a close family, and so - yes - there are times my next youngest sister "kidnaps" Mom, as we put it. Mom has been at my one sister's home for the past 5.5 months - the longest time ever - which happened right after we all went to an out-of-state hospital for my mom's serious health conditions.

The stress of worrying over Mom got to all of us, but both the health of our youngest sister (who is single) and my own (we both have fibro and three of us have lower herniated disks) got worse after that - which is why my one sister insisted on having Mom at her home. Despite her own back problems, she knew I was very ill and couldn't carry on at that time. (She's an angel, because how she was able to physically hold on to my mom, help her shower, etc. is incredible to me).

I felt very guilty about it, but I honestly could not do that sort of thing then. It took me 2 months to recuperate, and then I was feeling just enough improvement to begin focusing on improving my health and trimming down. In the meantime, my sister gave in and went to therapy for her back, improved considerably, and urged me to try the same. Since there is no local therapy place that accepts our insurance, I decided I'd return to working out in the water. (I had done that before, and I recognized how much better I felt when I could do that 3 times a week.)

So now Mom and I are on a very similar WOE...I am trying my best to make sure we check her glucose every 3 hrs, plus make her something low-carb but healthy to eat.

Today, I explained to her that I have to do my Water Workout - it's physical therapy, as far as I'm concerned. Since my older teens are home, I can leave without worrying about Mom.

As for what I'm doing: Doctors have not done much to help me with all of my various conditions, and so I've read and studied for many years, trying different things on my own initiative. The best three-way combo for me: low-carbing, working out in the water, taking varioius natural supplements.

Surprisingly, when I mentioned to my doctor (months ago) that I wanted to work out in the water, he said that's the best thing for my conditions (fibro, arthritis, mild lupus, herniated disks). But never once had he suggested it - it was always a generic recommendation to exercise, and I couldn't do that without extreme pain.

Now the Water Workout has really strengthened me since May, I can walk without a cane, and last night (as I said) I was actually dancing! Yesterday, I just had a normal day that most people take for granted - I could do my own household tasks, I was laughing and joking like I used to, and keeping up with everybody. I haven't been able to do that sort of thing for years; I was too stressed with pain to even manage to smile much anymore..

Then when I put on music and danced, and laughed and smiled even more, my husband couldn't get over that...he was glowing at me and said, "My gosh, just look at you moving like that...I can't believe it. You've been going all day, and now you're dancing, and you're smiling like you used to. I love to see you smile and be happy...and now I feel like I have my wife back."

I didn't know he felt like that...he's always been so good and patient throughout my sickness, and he's been my Rock of Gibraltar.

[thewhitehouse]

kbetz, Do you live in Ohio? We just moved to South Carolina from OH one year ago. We moved from Garrettsville, in Portage County. Close to Akron, Warren and Cleveland. We also use to live in Canal Winchester, a suburb of Columbus. We use to go to Geauga Lake (was once 6 flaggs, also Sea World) often since we were only 20 minutes from there. Been to Cedar Point a few times. You definatley will get your exercise today, ay? Hope you have a great time with family and are able to enjoy every minute of it.

Tiffani

[thewhitehouse]

oh- and Divine Miss M... I lived in MI too. Actually I was born there. In Flint. Also lived in Grand Rapids area and Allendale. Saginaw and Bay City too. We moved a lot. I have lived in 9 different states, some of them more than once and 2 of them 4 times. I have also lived in Canada. Both Ontario and Sask.

Divine Miss M also. I will pray for you. I was diagnosed with Fibro back in March. After about three weeks of meds and 15 pounds later, I decided it was something I did not want to live with. So I rebuked it in Jesus name. Amazing the power of the blood. I occasionally start feeling it again, and I tell it to leave. God is faithful. I also have a herniated disk L4-5. I haven't had too much problem with it since I started going to Curves and strengthening up the back muscles. More inportantly the stomach muscles b/c it supports the back ( I learned that after a couple years of PT) But every time I would try to work on my back, my knee would get real bad and couldn't walk. I had surgery on that and then could work on back and other stuff. Keep up the good work. Sounds like you are determined and on the road to healthier! You are definately full of knowledge and know your body and what you can do. I admire that. I will pray for you and your family. And I am not just saying that. I truly will. I hope you feel His peace and encouragement today.

Tiffani

[Jennifer]

everyone!

Divine - You're getting stronger every day!

[Divine Miss M]

Tiffani: I can't tell you how much I appreciate your promise of prayers. In gratitude, I will also pray for you and your intentions. May God bless you and yours!

How interesting that Curves is strengthening your back muscles! I joined them a few years ago, but my back became progressively worse. (Shoot! But that just me...I've had fibro for many, many years.) It seems that the water workouts are doing for me what working out on the ground couldn't - at least not then. Today I did my usual Water Workout, then started exercising with resistance machines, and some wts., and then managed a 1/2 mile walk (nothing like what our Dream can do, but for me it was a fantastic "1/2" milestone.)

Chrissy: Whooshie, whooshie, babe!

Jennifer: What happened to your beautiful picture? I like seeing your pretty face much more than that naughty little piggy!!!

[Divine Miss M]

Tiffani: I forgot to say - I was born in Detroit, grew up in the suburbs, and now I'm out in the area where you used to live. (How's that for a coincidence?) I have family all over metro-Detroit up to Bay City...at least, those who live in Michigan! My mom hails from PA...so we have family "back" east, too.

[Divine Miss M]

You know how I PLANNED on doing Atkins today? It didn't happen...I started with an Atkins type breakfast (2 eggs, a bit of butter), and had the menu all planned out, but I had a chance to go out to exercise.

I ended up working out for 3.5 hrs. (I have not done anything like that in almost 15 yrs!). It was 1.5 hrs. in the water (stretching, conditioning, water calisthenics), then 1 hr. with the wt. resistance machines, very light lifting of weights (for my arms), and I ended it with a 1/2 mile walk (which was quite a feat for me...for a person who, at the beginning of May, couldn't walk from her van to her front door without a cane plus help from either her dh or one of her sons, it's a real miracle!).

Anyway, I stopped at a fast-food place just before working out, since my sons were claiming hunger...I had a grilled chicken wrapped in a tortilla, sprinkled with a bit of cheddar cheese dribbled with a bit of regular ranch dressing, and 1 SF Rock Star Energy Drink. Drank water the rest of the afternoon as I worked out. Darned if that light lunch, the SF Rock Star, and the water didn't keep me going for the entire afternoon of working out!

Then I went grocery shopping (which I also found astounding that I could manage it, too, though I was tired)...came home late and jumped on the scale out of curiosity...it said I'm down 3.6 lbs. My stars!!! For dinner I had a small salad, again with grilled chicken, and regular ranch dressing, and another SF Rock Star. I feel fine...no shakes, no headaches.

I'm in shock, actually, and hope the scale is telling the truth.

Now I don't know what to do about my low-carb WOE...with the small amts. real fats and low-carbs today, it has an Atkins touch, but with the limited amt. of proteins, it's more like Rapid Fat Loss. However, the only milk product I had today was the half-n-half in my tea. Maybe that fat-free cottage cheese was doing me in?

Today I ended up at about 59 grams of lean proteins, fats were 36, carbs 15, and calories only 661 (that seems way too low). That is definitely more of a Kimkins WOE; even with the butter and the ranch dressing today, fat grams were low. (Another example of shaking it up, I guess!)

[thewhitehouse]

Hello to ALL!! Hope everyone is having a wonderful Sunday. It's a nice family day. Our two year old is now taking a nap and 4 year old trying to. I think I may be next. Good news I have lost one more pound. I am loving this diet. Hope the honeymoon phase doesn't go away.
We had a social after church today and I stayed all low carbs. I didn't even have a piece of chocolate mocha fudge with toffee chips on it (but I did smell it, and that satisfied something in me?!!) Only two more pounds til my first mini goal!!

Divine Miss M- That's cool that you are where we use to be. My mom's family is from PA too. But with my Grandma and Grandpa having 10 kids, she was the youngest and they moved to MI by the time she was born. I forgot where in PA though. Do you happen to know any McLaren, VanEssen, or Crater families? Congrats on your 3.6!! Way to go. It sounds like your body is responding really well to everything you are doing.

BTW what is a whooshie?

God Bless,
Tiffani