Good morning ladies,  So it feels like forever since I've been in here.  It looks like you guy shave been pretty busy!

  Congrats Allyon reaching the 180's!! I am determined to catch up to you , I weighed myself this morning and I am finally 199.8 so yeah for me I am officially NOT a 200lb person anymore!!! I almost couldn't believe it, I got on and off the scale like4 times and I got 199.6 once and 199.8 3 times so yup that's my new weight.   

I've had a pretty hard week , my brother was diagnosed w/ cancer and hes only 29 so I have felt like complete crap but at the same time (trying to keep that positive "glass half full" outlook" ) it's making me realize that this healthier lifestyle isn't just so I can be skinnier or look better but so I can be good to my body especially since there is such a high incidence of cancers in my family.  

 Oh also my 5k went really well.  I didn't collapse  and my team was able to raise aver $500 for the march of dimes!

Alright well I hope everyone has a great rest of their week, keep up the great work senoritas!!

pink-That is so weird! I was just thinking last night,"I wonder where pink is?". lol. Welcome back!

Congrats to EVERYONE that has lost weight. Hopefully I will be able to post good news next week and perform a happy dance with you guys!

So it is day 3 of the new diet and I love it! It keeps me full and I have a lot more energy! It just might work. And it lets me have a little dark chocolate, so that is good. I can at least get my chocolate fix!

Yesi-I am sorry to hear about your bro. I will keep your family in my prayers.

So, tonight I start on a volleyball team. I played Varsity in HS, but that was 10 years ago! I am so friggin' nervous! And to top it off we have 2 games! The team captain called me last night and it seems like the whole team is really good. They want me to be the setter which is like the GD backbone of the team! I am just going to play and let them know they can be honest with me and if i blow and they don't want me to play they can cut me. Whatev. Wish me luck!

Have a great day, ladies!

Hi! I will be 23 in June and I am also trying to get around 140-150.  I am working out more and obviously cutting my caloric intake.  I would love as much help in motivation as I can get!

bzb, glad the IR diet is working.  are you losing a lot of belly fat too?  that's supposed to be the best thing about it.  you INSTANTLY see the belly fat go down... in the first few days even.  (really noticeable after week 2 though!)  for a chocolate fix, add a tbsp of natural peanut butter (with omega-3) to hershey's dark chocolate sticks (they're selling those 100 calorie portions).

welcome back to pink and suzanne.  :)

dalma, dance class tonight right?  guy update soon, please!

yesi, i'm so sorry about your brother.  will keep you in my prayers.  my mom had ovarian cancer, which was supposedly unbeatable with the statistics against her.  and she's still standing strong 4 years later.  1 more year and the statistics are such that her chance of getting it again are the same as anyone who has never had cancer.  so, keep your chin up.  totally with you on remembering that the focus is not just to look cute and feel better about ourselves but also to make ourselves healthier stronger people who are going to live longer and fuller lives!!!  if not for us, then for our parents, siblings, spouses, children, friends and other loved ones! 

i hope your brother comes through this okay, jessica. i can't even imagine how tough this must be for you and your whole family. nothing but the best from this corner!

watchme, yeah, dance class is tonight. i honestly, really was gonna stop going because last week's class was so hard, and so not fun, but then the instructor sent out an email about what she's teaching this class, and it reads like something i wanna try. and who knows if DG is gonna be there? maybe i scared him off for good! JK! whatever happens, or doesn't happen, i'll update tonight/tomorrow.

thanks suzanne... i'm really thrilled... almost below the 250 marker meaning the closer to 200s than 300s area... and 20 lbs shy of my high school weight when i felt like a "big" girl but not staring-worthy like i was when i was a 320s girl.  what a feeling!  i posted a pic in my gallery taken last friday which shows me at 259... there are a couple of other nasty pics of me at 260 (nasty cuz i had just come back from a kickboxing and pilates class).  those are full body shots of me showing my new, size 20 self :)  i think we'll all totally be disney world ready by next spring!!! :)

dalma, i gave up on certain classes too when the steps got too complicated (then again, taking like 5 different types of dance was just completely unsustainable) but try to stick it out.  steps i thought were too hard ended up being easier when i broke em down and did em slowly on my own at home.  dance is such a fun way of getting some exercise in -- albeit, not as good as straight up cardio.  do keep me posted on the guy.  and btw, START LIFTING AGAIN.  you are my crutch remember.  every time i'm like i don't wannnaaaaa keep going i keep looking at you.  so you can't let me down!!!  no pressure, right?  ;)

right now, i think that's gonna be the biggest hurdle for me.  the point when i'm like okay i'm looking improved but working so hard and dedicating so much of my time to logging calories, checking food labels, exercising, walking, getting in my sleep, taking my vitamins... i mean, i guess i never realized how much TIME it takes to REALLY take care of yourself.... i think being a student for so long in such intense courses meant that i completely let myself go.  which is incredibly unfortunate but at least i'm taking charge NOW at the beginning of my career rather than in my 40s when it'll be even harder to reverse the damage.  

the thing is, when i started in the 320s in fall '06 and a size 28, i was really great about exercising for all of 4 months and dropped 30+ lbs but then was like eh this kind of sucks.  it was SO easy to slip back into my sit at home routine.  i HAD added a little more walking to my routine for that year or so of nothing but that was about it.  i also did eat MUCH better (only had dessert at the weekly lunch -- a cookie) or a special dinner/celebration but not a daily occurrence like it used to be.  i was so good but didn't lose pounds that whole year... a few inches off my hips and waist though (maybe 4 each) but i was also still in size 24s, just more comfortably so.

so then in 2008 i said ok, i'm going to be GREAT now.  i ramped up the exercise again and was quickly able to get back into the groove.  now, again, i'm feeling like eh, this kind of sort of sucks.  i think it's because i don't see the same rate of results as predicted cuz of all my pcos/insulin resistance problems.... i want to see things come off faster but they can't so then i just give up.  i don't know.  whatever the case may be, i'm definitely scared i'm going to eventually screw this up and not have the motivation to keep going.  it stinks but i am one of those people who EASILY gets overwhelmed by how far i have to go still (117 lbs!!!) rather than how far i have come (70 lbs!!!) 

plus, size 28 to size 20 seems like nothing to my skinny girlfriends either...  some of my friends who are "encouraging" will be like yayyyy when i say i am now a size 20 instead of a 28 and all... but, when i say i will be happy with a size 12 or a 14 they look at me like i'm crazy and say yeah that's much better than a 28 and maybe some guys will start going for you but you really should come down to a size 8 at most.  these, of course, are girls who are size 00 at ann taylor's til size 4.  then there are the fake "yeah 14 is good" people like one of my friends who is in MED SCHOOL so she should know better and who is a 4 now has been hitting the gym for the past 3 months working out an insane amount and only eating one meal a day trying to get back down to a 2 but she's like "yeah, you'll look GREAT at a 14!  you can shop at all of the regular stores and guys will totally go for you." 

watchme, we basically have the same history weight-wise!

and i don't think the weight-loss has to take over your life so much. you seem like an extremely high-achieving person who sets her goals and works really, really hard to achieve them. that's not a bad thing by any means; it has helped you get the career and education that you wanted. but you seem to be really, super focused, and so intense, that maybe you're letting it take over a big part of your life. come up for air! let go of some of your set-in-stone deadlines, and just accept the fact that the body will do what it wants to do when it wants to do it. know that i say this with love, not criticism.

and no offense, but some of your friends sound like bitches. i can not, and will not, discuss clothes sizes with my skinny friends. i think i'd punch one of them if they even offered an opinion. and the "guys will totally go for you" comment? tell that twig to take a flying f**k. can you tell that kind of crap gets on my nerves?

and you're right, i do need to get back into the strength training regularly.

yessi i will pray for your brother tonight also. 

welcome all you newbies and long losties

and let me rephrase my cal/exercise question. i tend to word things wrong all the time. what i meant was do i need to eat the calories i burn? i hadnt eaten dinner last night and when i came home from the gym i was starving. i had baked chicken, salad rice and corn. yummy. i  am not worried if i dont hit the 1600 cals right now. right now i am trying to figure out a healthy normal calorie intake for me. i am trying to figure out  if i went over 210 cals or if i was short 390. if i dont eat the cals i burned, i went over 1600 by 210cals. if i do eat the cals i burned i was 390cals under 1600.

i never hit 1600 before when i wasnt exercising. i would get to something like 1450--1620. i think that is okay for me. i am full and i eat plenty. now that i have joined the gym i will be working out and burning more calories. so should my total calorie intake for the day be 1600+what i burned at the gym?does that make more sense? or did i just confuse yall too?

watchme- yeah. I've noticed it a little. I am sure at two weeks it will be way noticeable. at least I hope it will!  And  I  agree w/ Dalma. I don't discuss clothes sizes w/ anyone. It just is a green light for people to say things that may hurt my feelings even though they dont mean to.

Yay for everyone losing weight! We're doing SO awesome, ladies! :-)

Watchme, I think the heart monitor's awesome!  It means that when you have a busy day and can't work out, you'll still burn extra calories by doing all kinds of little things.  Also, you're SO not allowed to give up!  You're so close to being below 250!  And you're doing so well!  You can totally do it!  (btw, I agree with dalma, some of your friends sound like total bitches!)

Jessica, I'm glad your 5K went well!  And way to get under 200!  Keep up the great work!  On a serious note, I'm really sorry about your brother, but I'm sure your positivity will help him a lot

bzb, I'm so jealous!  Volleyball sounds like SO much fun!  I'm sure you'll have a blast (and I bet you won't suck at all)!  Good luck all the same!  Be sure to let us know how it goes for you!

Welcome swidick! :-)

Dalma, if DG's there, I expect you to come back with all kinds of good news!  Go for it, chica! No wussing out! :-)  Also, you totally had me dying laughing about your friends!  Lmao!  My boss actually came and peeked into my office 'cuz she wondered what was going on! 

Suzanne, thanks for the advice; I'll totally check out a yoga class first and see how that treats me before I jump into Pilates.  I think the only reason I haven't done yoga before is that I'm sort of afraid I'll fall asleep if I'm laying on the floor on a mat just breathing for a while!  Maybe I'll drink a cup of coffee before I go just in case... :-)  How are you doing, Suzanne? 

Fallon, I use exercise to increase my deficit.  So if I normally burn 2000 calories in a day, and I eat 1400 then my normal deficit is 600 calories a day, which put me on track to lose about 1.2lbs a week (1lb is 3500 calories).  To increase my deficit, I work out a few times a week.  If I burn 400 calories or under, then I leave my calories at 1400 for the day.  If I burn over 400 (which I usually do unless I'm feeling lazy!), then I try to eat the number of calories over what I burn.  Like if I burned 750 cals working out, that puts me at a total 1350 calorie deficit for the day which is a lot.  I try not to go over 1000 calorie deficit for any given day.  So I'll eat an extra 350 calories that day.  Does that make sense?  I would eat enough extra calories so your deficit is around 1000, but you don't have to eat all the calories you burned, and actually it's helpful not to in terms of weight loss.  Anyway, I hope I helped....

you confused me, fallon! 

i'm not really sure how to explain it, but what i do is figure out the number of calories i burn per day, including exercise, then subtract 1000 cals from that to get my deficit so i can (theoretically) lose 2 lbs a week.

i am being so redundant. i have a vague memory of this convo before. i swear i am so forgetful. so my deficit is 670 and if i work out and burn 600 cals. i should eat like some fruit  or a bowl of cereal.

dalma, i'm going to post my response on my friends-only journal cuz what i wrote is WAY more then i want the whole world wide web to know about the twisted way my mind works :)

jld, i was out with GF, and she noticed i'd lost some weight, so i say yeah, i'm tryna lose weight, and left it at that. so we go out to lunch, and the place we choose is so not healthy. so she goes, "you want me to order 1 dish and we'll share it?" so we shared, and i only had half the cals, saving my day!

i heart her so much!

awesome. you guys helped me figure it out. yesterday my deficit was 1070 and rigt now it is 1247 so i should eat like 200 cals before i go night night. sweet. cuz i am so having orange cravings. hehe and i got a 100 cal hershey bar. woop woop!! 

you know what rocks? how working out gets you high on natural endorphines. hehe. been dancing and singing more than normal today. dude ppl already think i have a.d.d. my mama goes, "oh god. if you lose weight, you are gonna have more energy. i can barely deal with you now. you guys are gonna kill me!!!" haha my aunt and i have the same personality. she is just a little more hyper. than again she is 130lbs now. she joined jenny craig and has lost 15 and wants to lose 5-10 more. even her 15lb weight loss has madeher more hyper. i forget how much fun it is to take care of yourself.

i am feeling so good today, i even bought me a scratch off. another woop woop for me!!! won me a dollar. well it only cost a dollar, but hey i broke even.  hahaha. tomorrow is the friends and family night at my store. than we open on friday. what a weird day  to open, but whatev. its so nice. so many windows and this awesome green sofa i want for my apt. and double yay!! i dont have to work the friends and family so i get to get free stuff with my buds. and get to leave in order to be home in time to watch greys anatomy. or csi finale. idk yet. its roarks last episode. you know, i am not really attracted to black dudes, but i think he is extremely good looking. than he has to go and be a crackhead. i tell ya.

is roark the dude with the green eyes and dreads? yeah, he's kinda cute. fallon you're nuts!

hey watchme, a quick dance update: class was cool, but GF ditched. so did DG. MGF (aka mr. keep your hands outta my back pockets) was there. and he's gettin' way too familiar. tonight i'm at the bar getting a water, and he comes up behind me and puts his junk on my ass! he tries to play it like he's asking me a question, gettin' all close and talking in my ear, but i don't play that crap! he's quickly becoming a pervert and he is SO about to get his ass kicked.

meanwhile, i was getting tired of going to this class and not seeing the only person i wanted to see, so i texted GF and got DG's phone number. i just, like 5 seconds ago, sent him a text message. basically i said something like, "you disappeared from class! everything ok?" i didn't wanna be too pushy or obvious, you know?

yea the black dude with green eyes. its his last episode cuz he fell asleep in his car.  the popos knocked on the window and woke him.  think he had passed out drunk behind the whell. not sure dont feel like going to reread the article. anywho, searched his car and found pills, coke and i think weed. idiot. some ppl are so stupid. i was stupid for a few months once, but than i grew up. yea me again!!! woop woop!!! hehehe

can't wait to hear about the text message flirting!!!!!