Sunday, Funday April 10th

125.8 - better then the 126.6 the first time I stepped on the scale (do you that too?; not like the # so you step on the scale again to see if it is true? Thankfully it wasn't for me this morning!). Not liking the continued upward trend even though I am still well within my range. Like Linda and Shel and Diane O and probably most of you, I prefer to hang out in the lower part of my range. I am now in the middle!

Good exercise day yesterday - 45 minutes of step aerobics and 45 minutes of yoga. I'm going to hit the treadmill this morning.

Church late morning and then son #1's Young Men's Choir concert this afternoon and then out for Chinese after the show. I'll get almond chicken - no rice and only eat 1/3-1/2 of it. I made Thai chicken with red curry sauce for dinner last night and will have those leftovers for lunch. It's going to be an Asian food day I guess! No complaints from me - I love it!

I like having the "junk" designation in MFP now. Thanks (Linda?) for suggesting it. Yesterday I had 230 calories and (45 grams of carbs!) in that category. It is an eye opener for sure!

Hope you all have a wonderful day! Extra hugs to Lorna - missing you!

Happy Sunday! (sounds much more positive than Very Sad Last Day of Spring Break!) 

I step on the scale again when I am having a visceral WTF moment.  Sometimes the second number is even higher which is a double WTF.

122.3  Down quite a bit (2 lbs?) from yesterday but likely explainable by dehydration and a downward swing in my usual fluid retention.  I will bask in its grace for 24 hours tho I doubt it is a lasting number.  Sleep was 8 hours last night (woohoo).  I will slow flow yoga this morning and get Buster out for a walk up nike hill.  Yesterday's walk on the flat did nothing for my heart rate.  Lordy, I need to get taxes done. 

Cookbook review:  Part of me hates to bring this up because, well, it may not come from the healthiest part of my mind.  But, my rationalization is that I have a 15 year that wants to cook and I want her to develop cooking skills.  I would also like her to develop skills that allow her to cook/bake without over production and over eating.  

So, here is a possible compromise: Baking for Two from America's Test Kitchen.  90 foolproof recipes designed for two.  Look for it in magazine racks til June 13th.  There are 3 in my family so the other two would have to share a bit with me but that's aok. Full disclosure, some of the bar/cookie recipes make 8 or 12 bars/cookies but that is still loads better than the usual recipes.  

I was surprised at all the modifications that ATK made to recipes for things that I thought would more easily convert down like cakes and tarts.  I am glad that I never had DD try to make a smaller cake because I think it just would have tasted like crap and she/we would have eaten it anyway.  They also give smaller baking pan rec's. 

Have a terrific day, even if it is your last day of spring break.  

Shel

Good morning all

i look here every so often but really can't focus on it  my mind just keeps wandering off  

I did weigh myself about 10 days ago and I had dropped 13 lbs  I was not eating though so to be expected I have not weighed myself again and won't be for some time  right now I'm focusing on self care and just getting through this without coming unglued.  

I stared back to work on Thursday and am lucky to have great support and a lot of loving people around  Friday I must have cried for the first three hours I was there  just moving through the process and it will get easier I'm sure .  This Thur I go to BC for 10 days to visit family  when I come home in the 24th it will be the first time I'm in my house alone and will be another thing to work through  there will be many firsts for me in the next years to come  I have never been alone before in my life  always had room mates and then got married.  I have set up for grief councilling when I get back and will attend grief workshops.  I have lots of good friends I can talk to  it is just the sudden shock of it.  He was never in the hospital a day in his life and then like a light switch he is gone  I still can't believe it  

anyway take care everyone and I am thinking of you all and wishing you well  remember to hold your loved ones and tell them you love them .  Make the extra effort!  It can all change in one heart beat.

Hugs Lorna

Happy to see you posting Lorna. So wish I could take some of your pain away. It sounds like you have a great support system and I am sure you will find benefit in the counseling as well.

Lorna I'm so glad you checked in.  We love you dearly and wish we could help in some small way. All we can do is pray and send you our combined strength as you make your way through this incredibly difficult time.  

Lorna it is good to see you!  So glad you are mindfully thinking about self care even tho it must be very difficult.  Hugs to you for the difficult days ahead.  It sounds like you have a good support system in real life --- let them help.    Shel

Lorna, I'm so very happy to see you. Thank you for checking in. You are right the next year will hold a lot of firsts for you. Muddle through as best you can. Remember, you are much loved here and have all of our support. 

193.9 

So I'm guessing that the 193/194 number is real. Hallelujah! I am now only 5.1 pounds away from my initial goal of 188.8 (that is the white jean and wife beater tee picture weight and also a solid -40 from my staring point last August). My next two goals shall be 189.9 and then 188.8. Perhaps silly in some eyes, but the two weights are significant to me: the first being a "new decade" weight and the second being my initial goal weight on this second post WLS journey down to goal. 

Paula, my WW digital scale sometimes gets stuck - seriously, it'll read the same weight morning, night and then morning again. To unstick it I have to jack up the weight by picking up something heavy (usually the ottoman in the bedroom) or if my slippers and robe are at hand those will work, too. I keep toying with the idea of getting the scale Frisco uses, but I just can't spend the bucks. It's over $200. So, yes, I also hop on and off the scale to make sure the number is right - especially if it just seems "off". 

The emotion behind weight fluctuation in maintenance is worth consideration. One of the things that is very difficult for us is the idea of fluctuations up. However, those are very normal, as are fluctuations down. As obese people we have trained ourselves that any movement upward on the scale is a red flag, a warning, but most of all a failure. Not so.

Depending on your size and physical state weight fluctuations may be minor or quite large. Those with lymphadema (did I spell that right?) should expect much wider swings during flare ups. Lower water intake, hot days, muscle exertion, change in exercise routines, exhaustion, and some food choices will influence daily fluctuations. We must begin to look at the number around which we fluctuate to gauge what is happening. Log your weight everyday for a week or two. A calm and peaceful reflection about the data  over the span of that week or two will supply you with the information you need to make adjustments, if any. 

I am beginning to be a very strong proponent of the 4-5 pound goal range. My plan for now is that once I hit my desired weight, whatever it will be, I will make that my mid range weight. I'll make the lower range 2 pounds below that number and the upper range limit 2-3 pounds above the number I choose as goal weight. I think working within that narrow range will work best for me. 

Shel, I love ATK and Cook's Country. I made the most awesome muffin tin doughnuts from the Cook's Country recipe book for Christmas morning! I would very much like to get that ATK recipe book for two, as that is the number in our household. That would be great. Is it something I can oder, or do I need to find it on the rack? I think supporting your daughter learning how to make high quality foods and enjoy them and appreciate them is awesome. I wish an adult in my life had shown me how to enjoy food without shame when I was a teen. It might have saved me from a lifetime of battling obesity. 

Well, darn it! It is the last day of Spring Break! The weather is dreary and cool. Booooooooooo! BUT yesterday I finished taxes and sent them in, got some clerical chores done that have been piling up, so at least I was productive during the rainy weather. 

Happy Sunday, all! 

I adore my scale, which is the cheapest one I've ever owned and is the most accurate of all I've tried. I've had it more than three years. I'd bet I could stand on it 10 times in a row and I'd get the same number 9 times. And if I added my pjs it would reflect a .6 increase the next 9 of 10 times. The brand is Homedics.  I think it was about $30. Bought my daughter one and she says the same.  

Afterthought - it's weird and wrong to say you adore your scale, isn't it!

Um, nothing wrong with loving a scale. I had one I HATED. It was a spring scale and was off by about 5 pounds. I'd go to the doctor and be 5 pounds heavier on his scale. I know it's "only 5 pounds" but it killed me.