WOOT!  Nice job, Mel!

Now that I have a scale I can join in on weekly weigh ins!!

Start weight: 357
Last week: 305
This week: 302

Good Monday morning, everyone.  Here's the weekly weigh-in thread for those of you who want to have someplace to be accountable. 

Not such a good week for me in terms of weight; I am up again, but within the range that I bounce.    Seems like I just go back and forth in this range, and I guess I'm comfortable with that. 

Starting weight:  298.4
Last week: 140.4
This week: 141.1
Gain of  0.7 lbs this week

Good week for my running--I am finally back over 20 miles, I ran 21.9 miles last week.  No biking at all, though, and just one day on the elliptical.  I have 6 weeks to my next half-marathon, so I will be starting to add up the miles--better get on your bike, Paul (the pedal one, not the motorized one, LOL.)

If you are working out outside, please remember to drink, drink, drink!!  I lost about 3 lbs of sweat yesterday during my run, and I was drinking the whole time.  It's brutal, and nobody needs heat exhaustion.

The average caregiver in the U.S. is a woman in her late 40s. Many are "sandwichers," looking after both children and aging parents. With little time or opportunity for adequate self-care, they're prone to "caregiving stress syndrome," a condition linked to a medical chart full of health woes, including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, dementia, and back strain. More than 70 percent of family caregivers show signs of depression.

Men care for loved ones, too, of course. But women tend to have more negative experiences as caregivers than men, who focus more on problem-solving and less on emotional nuances, says I-Fen Lin, a sociologist at Bowling Green State University. Wives caring for husbands report the highest stress load, her research shows.

Oops: Caregivers are twice as likely to manage stress by smoking, according to the American Psychological Foundation's 2012 Stress in America report. And they're 25 times more likely to binge drink. Emotional eating is another common coping strategy that backfires on health.

Silver lining: When stress is managed with good self-care and time off, many caregivers report a deeply enriching experience. Some caregivers even show improved longevity, better memory, and better physical strength, as well as a sense of meaning and purpose, say Boston University researchers.

Sure explains a lot of my stress... kids, mother, husband... Yes, I've been smoking. Not heavily, but I need to stop leaning on cigarettes whenever something unpleasant happens. No, I don't drink often, but sometimes when I do, it goes too far. I don't think I've been stress eating (thus, the smoking), but I could certainly be making some better choices.

I'm 15# up from my lowest, but I've been hanging in at this weight (withing about 5 pounds) for 3 years. I suppose that's called maintaining. But I need to get a handle on the stress factors in my life.

Of course, doing so would make me selfish, right? ugh...

 I would be interested in joining one too. I'm in Mpls but all I hear sbout is this one south of the river.  Is there any others?