Wow...I feel like I'm at the end of a marathon with the work stuff and all the holiday stuff. I've had 10 days straight of 18 hours of nonstop and I am ready to pull it back a notch and enjoy the holidays. I did not do a great job taking care of myself during crunch time so I need to get back on that.

1. Sleep at least 7 hours a night No No
2. Drink 2-3 big blue water bottles daily Yes No
3. Complete paperwork and submit license renewal Did Step 1 Did Step 2
4. Account for all the treats in the food log Yes Yes
5. In case of slip-ups, get back on track that day instead of the next. Yes N/A

I did have a slip yesterday but I'll put it in a separate post.

Okay, so my slip was related, in a way, to what Kittensniffles brought up.

I took a 2-hour break yesterday and did some quick shopping and dinner with a friend. My friend is 5'4", 115 pounds, and has always made negative comments about her weight, body parts, flab, etc. I usually just don't engage. Anyway, she was entreating me to eat junk food, "not eat healthy for once," etc., etc. It was an awkward situation. I ended up with enchilada soup and salad but shared the chips and salsa, and I also had a margarita. However, I should say that I ate what I ate because I wanted it, not because of "peer pressure." Identifying that before I ordered was helpful in making sure that I was making the choice for myself, not anyone else.

Kittensniffles, I have the same problem when I go home. I call my mom's house The House of Schizophrenic Food. She lives with my oldest sister and her family. My mom is 78 and a junk food fanatic. My sister has lost boodles of weight on Weight Watchers, works out, and is very health conscious. So, there are very good options there and very bad ones. Having the good ones helps me stay away from the bad ones. I would scope out the good choices and plan my day ahead of time and log the food in first thing in the AM and try not to deviate from it. I also kept up my exercise routine, maybe even cranked it up a notch, because in my mind, I wouldn't want a piece of coffee cake or a handful of Oreos to undo everything I had just sweated for. I also spent a lot of time on FitDay and read online articles on nutrition, health, fitness, etc. to keep myself motivated.

The food pushing issue is annoying, isn't it? My mom didn't "push" food per se, but she has in the past made comments along the lines of "You're too thin," etc. At the very first hint of that, I made it a point to let her know that I was focused on being healthy, not thin. I told her I was working toward being strong, not fragile. And to prove that, I picked up my 14-year-old (who is 5 pounds heavier than me) and carried him up a split-level's half flight of stairs. I ate well while I was there. I am in maintenance now, so that was easier than if I were dieting, but it's hard to complain that someone's not eating when they see you eat, and eat good food. Regarding quantity, you could always point out that many people prefer to eat several small meals instead of three large ones.

Offer to grocery shop, or help? Offer to cook, or help? "I found this new recipe and I'd really like to try it out on you guys?" When I go to my mom's I often take my own snacks. Yah, I usually have them in the car (it's an 11-hour drive), but once I'm there, I have my almonds, my fiber cereal, and so on.

I totally hear you on things becoming a big issue. Sometimes you just gotta nod, smile, agree...and then do your own thing.

I hope you keep checking in. Even just coming on and typing out a list of what you're trying not to eat can be helpful!!

Report for Monday:

1. Eat 1500 calories Mon-Wed; Thursday-Saturday-Enjoy the food but not over stuff!!, NO
2. Drink 128 oz water EVERY DAY!!!, Yes
3. Exercise at least 30 minutes daily, Yes
4. Most important: DO NOT GAIN ANY WEIGHT, So far, so good

I started the day really great yesterday and then fell at lunch. Our employee lunch was yesterday and they catered BBQ, Fried Chicken, slaw, potato salad and banana pudding!!! Yes I enjoyed but then I went a little light on dinner. I think I ended up around 1800 calories.

So far so good today. If I can just make it through this week without gaining weight I think I will have accomplished alot. I have really got to buckle down next week though. I started my healthy weight loss journey a little over 12 weeks ago. I have only lost 20 lbs. I am very happy about that but I would like to keep it at an average of 2 per week so I think I am about 4lbs shy of that. So with everyone's support and great knowledge 2011 is going to me my year!!

1. Limit calories to 1600 (except for Christmas day)almost - 1635yes
2. Take multivitamin dailyyesyes
3. exercise 4 days/45 minutes each.noyes
4. Drink at least 72 oz. wateryesyes
5. Do something for someone else every day.yesyes
6. Continue to log everything.yesyes
7. 5 fruits.veg's per day.yesyes

Perfect day yesterday. Taking the train to the city today, so am planning some treats. Started the day with a good workout shoveling! And the Bears won last night! Life is good.

Look at you, 7 for 7! Congrats on a strong day!

This week I will:
1) exercise 3x this week minimum: yes/yes and I worked hard!!!
2) drink 64 oz water daily minimum: 56/96 yow!
3) meditate: yes/yes
4) write: yes/yes but not enough
5) do my trope chanting: yes/yes
6) try to eat under 1500 calories (with one day off):1795/1439

Cassie, great advice to Kittensniffles. It sounds like your friend was doing some version of the food pushing thing herself. Why can't people jsut leave us make our own choices?

Glenda 1800 was not bad, considering the food. You got to enjoy yourself and you didn't go too overboard and you made up for it later. 2011 will be your year!!!

Nottango you did so well!!! And I'm glad you had such a great day!!! I could use one myself.

1. Food log every day!!!!Yes!Yes!
2. Be more vigilant about what I'm eating here (too many holiday treats around)YesYes
3. Try and use Mom's guest passes for her gym everyday, or atleast get on the exercise bike in the basement.No[/color]Yes
4. Keep at the 72 ounces of H2O.Not Quite.Yes


Stats:
Height 5'9"
Starting weight: 168.8
last weigh in: 166.8
current weight: not sure! no scale where I'm visiting! ugh.
goal weight: 130

Cassie,

Thanks for all the great advice. After being pretty discouraged the first couple days I'm doing a lot better. I have been making at least one healthy side dish every night we make dinner and I try to stick to eating that and whatever protein is available. Went to the grocery store with my mom and got some greek yogurt singles that I've been having for breakfast. I know the hardest portions are still to come, we're starting our cookie baking tonight, and I'm sure christmas dinner will be tough (even though I've convinced my mom to make our swedish meatballs with lean ground turkey instead of beef, yay!). Luckily I head home (or rather, back to Colorado, we'll probably be at boyfriend's grandma's until new years). They are super heath conscience people though, and I'll be back to my 5 month old puppy, which means a ton of exercise for me since he's so energetic. Thanks for the support! It's so helpful to hear from someone who has successfully reached their goal!!

You are doing an awesome job this week!!!! Were you floating yesterday. I have finished 92 oz of water so far today and still have 36 more. It is harder some days than others.

Thanks for the support, Glenda! Actually I wasn't floating (LOL) yesterday; it was actually easier than I thought. Today not so much. As you say, some days are easier than others. 48 oz so far and counting. I can only aspire to 128 for now!!!!