pc: yeah, i'm a member, although i don't know if i'd ever have/do anything awesome enough that would warrant submitting a story an article.

I ate the chocolate chip cookie.  Resisted for 3 months worth of departmental lunches and I cracked and ate a cookie.  I am not going to go on some cycle of bad eating now for the best of the day or feel guilty but I just keep thinking, I ate the cookie and it's probably like 500 calories (it's those cookies the size of a mrs. fields, a tad bigger maybe like 1/2 inch all around), and I really did not need to eat that cookie and it's SO not worth 40 minutes on the elliptical.  just checked corner bakery and they do not list how much the chocolate chip cookie is, calories wise. 

i also had a salad for lunch.  it was about 2-3 cups of lettuce, some tomatoes, a tiny bit of feta cheese, a cup of chopped grilled chicken and then 3 teaspoons of balsamic vinigarette dressing (what was SUPPOSED to be my fat for the day but i guess it's my healthy fat).  oh and a cup of the fruit medley (no more than 90 calories there according to their web site).  not sure how to calculate the salad since it was kind of a build your own salad as opposed to any one salad they made.

i think i blew my calories for the day though already :-(  (810 + the above-mentioned cookie, grilled chicken salad and fruit).  it's so much easier to know whether i blew something when i have all the exact calculations and measurements done cuz i have prepared the food myself!

watchme - I feel ya!  I do that all the time at company lunches.  I tell myself that I am not going to eat that and then it's like I hype it up so much that I just can't let go. 

The Brazilian wax story is hilarious.  At least now I'm not scared to go try it! 

good luck punkrockriot! you're welcome on this thread, and you can ask anyone for advice, help, motivation, or support whenever you need it!

Welcome punkrockriot!  This group is very supportive and while it is good to have someone at home to support you this group offers people who are going through the same thing you are and it really helps to see that you aren't the only one in your shoes.  It has been so encouraging for me to see that there are other women who are dealing with the same exact issues that I am.  SO welcome and congrats on 20 pounds down!  That's such a great first step!

Welcome punkrockriot! Glad you found us! :-)

Dalma, that article was fabulous!  I'll have to explore the site some more when I get home from work; it looks really cool!

welcome punk!

watchme:  don't beat yourself up too much.  yesterday i had a maple bar from krispy kreme and i don't feel bad about it at all!  it was SOOOOO yummy and i enjoyed every single bite.  :)  i hope your cookie was just as good!  we all deserve a treat here and there.

i just needed to post a minor (major?) victory real quick. i eat every 3 hours, and it's time for me to eat again. i had the option of eating a 150 calorie mini chocolate/raspberry cake w a tiny sliver of ice cream cake (340 cals) or an apple (100 cals). now, the calorie thing wasn't the real issue; it was the sugar. i've debated with myself for the last 3 hours a/b what i was going to eat, knowing i'd probably just crash right a/f eating the ice cream/cake combo. so when hr 3 arrived, i was still fighting myself, but ran and grabbed the apple b/f i could convince myself to eat that damnable sugar-load. that was hard! but i'm proud of myself! one step at a time, right?

thanks pinkcobra.  i just wish that i felt like my weight was moving.  i'd rather see a 1/2 pound down every 2-3 days than go for like 2 weeks with nothing and then see a 3 lb drop all of a sudden, ya know?  the scale seems to move in 2-3 lb increments for me rather than gradually even when i'm just weighing in once a week.  hence, when i've been doing really great for a week and expect to see a drop and then don't see one, i get so disappointed. 

honestly, i'm trying to ramp my routine up extra hard now.  i've talked to so many people who used to post (in different forums on here) who i talked to back in jan who have already "fell off" the routine now that i am worried i will do the same despite your guys' awesomeness.  it's such a long journey.

watchme, it is a long journey, and it's not easy, otherwise nobody would be fat! so what if other people you knew quit caring about their health and decided it was just easier to stay unhealthy AND unhappy?

you yourself said you don't think you can start some things in your life until you reach a certain weight. using your own goals, do you really want to put off the best things in life forever?

yes, it is hard, we all know that. and we are all trying our hardest to push through it. you have, and you can. what would you gain by giving up, besides the weight you've already lost? just ask yourself that: what's the point of NOT trying to lose this weight? there's definitely a reason to lose it, lots of reasons. but i can't think of one single reason to get off the track of healthy living you've put yourself on.

do you want to develop health problems in the future? do you want to get high blood pressure, heart disease? do you want to die because of your weight? i know it sounds harsh, but that's a very real possibility for all of us who weigh significantly more than is healthy. for me at least, one of my main motivations is to stay alive.

think about it, and hopefully you'll rediscover the strength to keep at it.

eh, for once your kick in the butt did not work.  i think i need the scale to move even just a lb so i can feel motivated.  it's hard to see it move just once every 2-3 weeks. 

yeah, it is. i'm right there with you; my scale likes to taunt me and stay at the same number for at least a couple weeks at a time now. just hang in there. i read somewhere where this woman lost all this weight, and she said the hardest thing to realize is that this is an overall life change, for forever, so what's one or two (or three) weeks of nonmovement here or there? that's what's been keeping me afloat. 'll try a new butt kicker in a few weeks if you need it!

whats up chickas? welcome to all you newbies. wow punks...(i am bad with names). you are tall!! well i haave been keeping up with the jog/walking. yea me!! and btw i got a 92 on my algebra midterm. WOOHOO!!!!! i am finally learning this crap. only took 2 semesters. haha anywho let i forgot that big bro came on tonight, does anybody watch it? and as of righ now we dont have cable either. anybody watch rock of love? i know its horrible, but i am addicted to the show. bret michaels is an idiot!!! but i love it. anybody know who got kicked off of that either? hehehe

Sinus Infection: Put your head over a boiling pot of water with salt in the water and a towel over your head -----or get a netting pot ((not sure how you spell it))) My husband uses them and they are great!

Hello ladies, Busy day for me! I didn't feel like exercising once again but I went! I'm proud of myself because now I feel better. Looks like everyone had a busy productive day--I'm so happy and proud of you all!

And as far as the slow weight loss goes--I think about it this way--It took me a freakin long long time to put on this weight--so why am I in such a rush to take it off and why should I expect it to come off quickly if I'm going to do it the healthy way? So what I have done is set up a 2 year time line to lose all my weight---That's about 4 pounds a month--I do that so that when I only lose 1 pound a week I won't be disappointed because I am already reaching my goal. How do I stay motivated? It's not easy, but somewhere within me, I just know that if I didn't do this instead of losing the weight that I am losing ,I would be gaining it and getting bigger and bigger and I don't want that to happen--so even if I lose a little I am happy with that--and I have to keep reminding myself that this is a lifestyle change--so if I want a cookie I have it and it's ok---because I know that I if I told myself I could never have a cookie again that I would want it like crazy--so I allow myself to have what I want in moderation---What is more of my motivation? It makes me feel better--honestly, I feel better when I eat right and when I exercise and I want to live a long long life and I know I need to do this to do that--or I could end up with heart problems or diabetes and I don't want to live a life like that--I do this for me--and that's what changed it all for me...For years I had tried to lose weight for other people---crap! I wasted so much time..But this time I have been on my "lifestyle change" for 6 months now and this is the longest I have lasted at anything to do with my health--the big change was I said I was going to do it for myself for once--I was going to be selfish and put myself first--and so far that has worked for me--Now I encourage you to find something to keep you motivated and to keep going--I encourage you to do something for yourself--We give so much of ourselves in this life to others--take something for yourself--and this is something you can take---own it--and be damn proud. (((HUG)) I'm proud of you ladies! Keep up the amazing work!

Rrrrrgggh! I guess they were updating the database as I was trying to post this. Good thing I saved it in Office! For your reading pleasure...

Hello, everyone! I'm checking in to say that the posts have been streaming in like crazy!

Ali- Sinus infections are so painful. I feel so bad for you right now! Breathing in steam, like the previous suggestion, ought to lessen the pain a little.

The waxing ones made me blush, but I'm so glad you all are open enough to share stuff like that here. I never in my wildest dreams thought that I could/would do anything of the sort, but now you all have me thinking I ought to try it at least once. At my last female check-up, I brought my ipod, just so that I could tune out what was happening down there. I guess if I can get through that exam, maybe I could do the other too?

I've been stuck at 199 for the past couple of weeks, and it bites the big one!!! I want to be farther away from that 200 lb. mark. There have been a couple of days where I've eaten a bit more in general, extra salt, extra sugar, extra fat, not enough water, though it hasn't been for more than 2 or 3 days. I have been good with exercising and keeping a decent deficient, in spite of the off course eating. I know that my body is just clenching on to whatever it can retain because it wants to maintain, but I'm tired of it already! Thighs, stomach, arms, butt, love handles- I'm talking to you!- CHANGE IS GOOD! LET GO!

On the up-side... I bought 2 pairs of 14's, and they fit well! So now I'm wearing an equal amount of 16's and 14's. I am so thrilled with myself! I know I can't fit into every size 14, but owning and wearing a couple of pairs is way cool! Ali, way to rock out the smaller size too!

To the others who are struggling to get to that next size down, it's going to happen when you least expect it (just like finding a guy I guess)! I really didn't think a 14 would happen, but I went into a store that only went up to 14, so I said, heck, why not try! I did and they worked! The second pair was from Target (never would have tried on a 14 there before buying the first one from AE).

Way to go, Fallon, for keeping up with the exercising! You're doing great :) I hope that the good food choices are easily accessible for you, and that you're choosing them too ;) How's Starbuck's going? I finished my 3rd day of training today and feel pretty confident with everything so far (can even make most of the drinks already!). We can always turn to feddiechick if we have questions, cuz she works there too! I think it's quite a coincidence that there are now 3 of us (that I know of) from this forum who are employed there :)

So tomorrow I have to crank out another day of Couch to 5k. I'm on week 4, day 2. It's pretty killer (3 and 5 minute stretches of jogging), but I jogged outside for the first time yesterday and was able to go 2 block lengths without stopping! It used to be only about 50 feet and I had to call it quits, so this program really works :)

Hope you all have wonderful nights, and I'll stop in to do some reading tomorrow (hopefully a post too, but we'll see).