January 08, 2006  I made it!  I actually got in here seven days after my last post! YEAH!  This has been a good week. If you look at my weigh ins, you will see that I a down 2 pounds this week!  Ken and I actually went out to breakfast at IHOP this past Monday and I was able to eat a short stack (3 buttermilk pancakes) and a piece of ham along with my coffee that I love so much!  I took my Brummel and Brown margarine along, and asked for sugar free syrup!  I didn't feel cheated at all. Usually I would get their Healthy Grain and Nut combo, which had ham, eggs, hashbrowns AND pancakes.  I looked up the calorie content on that meal and it was OVER 1,000 calories, and that was without extra margarine (which I always asked for) and tons of regular syrup.  No wonder I gained back the weight I lost in 2004! Another thing that helped me gain weight this past year was the Expresso Fudge Brownies at Starbucks.  I checked them out and they have around  430 calories each!  OUCH!  I would get two of them at a time.  They are delicious, but had I looked up their calorie count BEFORE I ordered them, I would like to think that I wouldn't have ordered them.  I guess what I am getting at, is that we need to use the tools around us, mainly the internet to look up what we can and can't eat.  Calorieking.com is a WONDERFUL place to find what you need, especially if you are getting ready to eat out.  Just do a search over there and you would be surprised at how much information you come up with!  A little knowledge is a GOOD thing! 

 

I am getting ready for my college classes to begin once again.  The new semester starts on Jan. 17th and I will be taking Human Growth and Development, Criminal Justice, and Basic Algebra.  The Algebra class will be the only class that I actually take at the college.  The other two classes will be online.  I prefer to take classes online, but Algebra might prove to be a bit of a challenge for me, so I felt that it would be best to take it at the college with a teacher right there to help me if I struggle.  Hopefully I will be able to juggle working, taking care of a home AND going to school once again.  It is getting easier as I go, but I really have to watch my time and discipline myself to stay on task when I am doing my homework, and not get distracted and start surfing around on the computer!! 

 

Okay, enough for today.  I will be back next week with hopefully another loss!!  Have a great week!  I'll see you in seven!   

 

January 15, 2006  WOW!  What a great weigh in I had today!  I got on the scales and couldn't believe the number was 288!  I am down 4 pounds!  Total lost 9 pounds since I got back on track on December 27th!  I knew this G.I. program would work...but I think I sometimes I tend to forget just how good this program works when I work it!  AND...I even went out last week (Sunday) and had IHOP!  I needed to have a program that allows me to eat out every now and then, and I have found one that gives me that luxury! 

 

Classes start this next week!  This will add another level of stress into my life,  juggling home, job, and classes!  I just have to learn to slow myself down, be patient, and work my program!! 

 

I have to tell you an interesting thing that happened in my life this week.  I would like to think of it as Divine intervention....you see what you think.  I go to Starbucks every morning before work to get a venti misto decaf with sugarfree hazelnut syrup, nonfat milk, and cinnamon on top!  This is a favorite in my day and fits into my program (1 cup of skim milk).  I picked it up as I always do and immediately took a sip and thought to myself as I was driving out of the driveway, ''Man, this tastes sweet.''  But I didn't think much more about it and went to work.  At work, I entered the break room to put my lunch in the fridge just like I do every morning, and first put my coffee on the table just like I always do, and that morning, my purse bumped my coffee and knocked it over spilling it all over the table and floor!!  I quickly grabbed the cup but was only able to save one last little sip.  After I cleaned up my mess, I looked at the cup and decided I might as well drink the rest of my coffee!  When I did, that last little sip was unbelievably sweet, just like the first sip I took!  Clearly my coffee was not made right!  Had I drank that, I think it would have put a lot of unwanted sugar in my system!!  I think I had angels looking after me, and that is why the coffee spilled. 

 

Okay....off I go for now.  If my journals are giving you a sense of hope, then go for it!  Figure out a program that works for you, and work it!!  The G.I. diet works great for me...but YOU need to find out what works for you and sometimes you don't do that right off the bat!  I have been on SEVERAL different diets before I found the G.I. diet. Take the time to figure out what works and do it!  YOU are worth getting this extra weight off!  We all are.  BUT...it is up to us to do this.  No one else can do this for us.  Here's to a great week!  I'll see you in seven!! 

 

January 22, 2006  Here it is seven days later and I am back with you once again.  I am happy to tell you that I am down another pound this week!  This makes 10 pounds lost since I started back on my program on December 27th.  YEAH!!  It is all going to add up, and I still plan on being below 200 by the end of the year.  I really do believe that the mind is a powerful thing, and if you believe something, you can achieve it!  And I believe that I can be under 200 by the end of the year!  I just need to make it happen! 

 

I had one meal where I didn't eat G.I. during the middle of the week.  I made the mistake of making goulash for Ken and it just about did me in!  Goulash is a MAJOR comfort food for me, and YES, I knew better....but ate it anyway.  I did count it in my points for the day...but knew the carbs would kick me in the butt....and sure enough within an hour of eating this, I was asleep on the couch!  Live and learn!!  I am happy to say that I got right back on track from that meal and was able to do G.I. the rest of the week.  I think that is the trick to any weight loss program.  If you have an off meal, it doesn't mean that the whole day is wasted...you can put it back together and move on. 

 

Sadly, my mom's good friend Lilian, who lived at the nursing home with her is very sick and probably will not survive the weekend.  She had gotten pneumonia, and was so bad that they admitted her into the Hospice House to keep her comfortable.  I took mom to see her on Friday and say goodbye.  What a sad thing that was.  These two ladies went into the nursing home on the same day, and became fast friends.  They ate together, talked about people together, and helped each other.  Mom is just lost with the thought of Lilian not being with her.  Hopefully, mom will make some new friends that will help with the loss of Lilian.

 

I also started back to school this past week!  I have 2 classes online and one at the college.  So far...so good!  I will keep you posted.

Okay...off I go to start my day!  I hope you are having a good weekend.  See you in seven!

 

January 29, 2006  This morning when I got on the scales I saw a three pound GAIN!  Of course I hate to see a gain, but I know that I am ovulating and I just have to stay on track and not worry about it.  2 weeks ago when I was down 4 pounds, I was on my period, and unlike some people I seem to notice a gain when I am ovulating, instead of when I am on my period. 

Edited to add:  Not sure why, but I didn't finish this entry.  I was probably too busy eating sweets.  What ever the case was, it would take me 2 months to get back on track!! 

 

March 27, 2006   Goodness!  Off track indeed.  I have spent the last 2 months eating just about everything in sight.  It is a wonder I didn't gain more weight than I have.  Sadly, I find myself back at 297.  I started falling off track when I heard that my job might be cut out of the budget!  I seem to go through this every year, but in the past I managed to slide by and not get cut.  This year, they don't have a lot left to cut, so my job could be on the line.  The whole thought of not being able to make a set amount of money stresses me out big time.  So, sadly, I turned to my old friend food to get me by.  It started out slow, but soon I was stopping by the convenience store after work picking up Hershey candy bars, and donuts to soothe my troubled mind.  And it worked.  Unfortunately, the weight was creeping back up and I was not happy.  Not sure what made me decide that enough was enough, but I decided when I was at the store last night picking up a king size Hershey bar and a couple of donuts that this was going to be the last binge I had.  Today, I am determined to get back on track and get this weight off.  So here I am....I will be back on Sunday and let you know one way or the other if I was able to make it through the week on plan. One way or another......I'll see you in seven.

 

April 02, 2006  It has been a long day.  The nursing home called this morning and said they were taking mom to the emergency room.  They weren't sure what was going on, but turns out she has pneumonia in one of her lungs.  They also said that they thought she was having some mini strokes (T.I.A.).  They changed her medicine a little and hopefully she will start to feeling better! 

I am happy to report that I am down 3 pounds this week!  It feels so good to get back on track.  I know that if I just keep this up, I can get this weight off!  Slowly but surely. 

Here's to another good week!!  I'll see you in seven!!