7 Day Motivational Thread Starting 03/26/12
 

Most of you know that I've been MIA. Sorry for that. I'm starting the thread early so I don't forget to make goals. Mike told me that I had to make goals. In fact, he suggested these....
But all that ain't happening. So I think I'm going to go with a modified version of them.

Health/Fitness
1--no more than 1400 calories
2--workout or walk 4 times.
3--drink water--minimum of 64 oz a day
4--log EVERYTHING!!!!--I haven't logged a damn thing since Tuesday evening
5--post weight daily

Life/Home
1--wash and vacuum car on next day off
2--make an effort on appearance--which means no Longhorns cap, makeup optional, don't live in Ponytail City (even though it's nice there)
3--breathe don't cry
4--breathe don't cry
5--BREATHE DON'T CRY!!!!


I probably won't be around a whole lot, or super chatty. But I will at least try and remember to post goal updates.

Tori, whatever struggles you are going through I am pleased that you still place such an importance on your health that you still post goals. I wish you strength to get through your difficult times. Everyone will no doubt send you love.

Well, well, well look who the (Jazzi) cat drug in. :). Welcome back Tori!

Hi Tori, hope all gets better soon. Hug for you.

I am also in the camp of not-going-to-be-around-too-much-or-super-chatty, for a number of reasons. But I need my goals to be concrete rather than free-floating, and some accountability.

1. Calories no more than 1300.
2. Follow my pie chart rules.
3. Sleep 7 hours a night, melatonin if I have to.
4. Exercise 6 days (hope I can get this; I'm sick right now).
5. Fluids all day long.
6. No white sugar/flour (note to self: this means frozen yogurt)

7. Deal with insurance company provider issues.
8. Reorganize/file in home office.
9. Clean basement (weekend goal).
10. Take the boy shopping (weekend goal).

I'm in, especially after my last few days. DD called and said hi could we have 40 or 50 of the cast members of the high school play over our house in about the next hour or so? So I said sure and got snacks for that many and 30 or so showed up. So guess who ate the leftovers? (OK mostly the pigs in blankets which for some bizarre reason I can't resist.)

I will post goals tomorrow. I am fried after seeing a high school production of Urinetown 4 days in a row and helping the "dramas mamas" raise money selling snacks. The production was FABULOUS BTW.

Welcome back, Torala (my new nickname for you, Tori) I'm not sure why you are tempted to cry, my dear, but big hugs. May it be a better week.

And Cassie Bubbelah, I missed you. So many of us missed you. I think we were about to form a search party and bring you back, you mean much to this thread.

Crazie and Mike howdy!!!!! Mike I am a slacker. I admit it. This week (which is crazy busy) I will pick up that slack.

TTFN

New week, new week, am I right? (and I say that with pigs in blankets lingering on my breath....)

COUNT me in! ;)

Ladies, I made it so you can click the pic below for a song!

http://i266.photobucket.com/albums/i.../countgsxr.jpg

Heath and Fitness:
1) Calorie deficit of 3k
2) Workout 3 times
3) Walk 3 times
4) Drink 3 liters of water
5) 3 serving of fruits/veggies

Other
6) 3 random acts of kindness
7) Write 3 auto policies (or $3333 in premium)

Cassie, we missed you!

Hope, tighten up slacker.

Tori - sorry to hear that you are having some troubles, but great to see you trying to stay on track!

Hope - I know the feeling. Sausage and pastry? Sign me up!

I'm modifying my goals a bit this week, partly because it's time, and partly because I'm unemployed, so why the heck not?

1) 1,650 calories max/day (allow myself 1 guilt free day over 1,650)
2) walk for 1 hour, lift weights for 1/2 hour at least 5 days per week
3) 20% protein minimum
4) 72oz water minimum
5) calorie deficit at least 600

6) finish my resume
7) get a definite plan for the house painting job I'm doing for my friend
8) keep my spending log up to date

Tomorrow's my last day of work and it'll probably also be my guilt free day and my no exercise day, depending on whether the boss is hanging around. Or maybe I'll kill him and get skinny on prison food.

Wishful thinking! It's starchy, greasy, sugary, cheap food and people usually put on weight. So be nice and enjoy your day :).

FitDay Challenge~ Choose Well-Being
 

http://yoursmiles.org/ssmile/pozitive/s0801.gif"EAT CLEAN" PACT
*Jho82, Mern, nobe, Hope, Ama, Amy, & Luv*
*STARTS anew weekly thru 4/28. Sun MN thru Sat MN.*
"You can set your own clean eating terms--it may mean different things for different people Just be honest with yourselves--there are no food police here." ~ Mern
Please let me know if you want to opt in or out.

__________________My Goals______________
FITDAY Challenge *~* CHOOSE WELL-BEINGhttp://yoursmiles.org/tsmile/sport/t31214.gif
Check-in:
Sun = Cushion Day -> Respite with Reason . . . Daily = x6/wk
"It's easy to say 'no!' when there's a deeper 'yes!' burning inside." -Stephen R. Covey

____FIT___health_____daily
..........FOCUS (1) Mind & Heart.........
1. Thankfulness Journal Entry x6 *~*
..............INTAKE (3) Nutrition...........
---FOOD .'. {5 Grain/Meat/Veg/Oils} & {3 Dairy~1½ Fruit} & {1-2 Extra}
2. Eat Clean (Avoid Junk) ->
3.1600 Calorie Max. ->
4. Water (100 oz) ->
.....................TRAIN (2) Movement........
5. Focused Exercise daily *~*
*** Aerobic (150"):
*** Muscular (Circuit x3 and Pilates x1):
*** Distance - Feet (10 mi):
6. Lifestyle Activity (Min. 1 hr daily) *~*

___DAY____life_____weekly
Stamp "Met" or "Incomplete" @ end of week.
..........DAZZLE (3) Inside Stuff........
1. Kitchen (4 hrs) *~*
2. Cleaning (2 hrs) *~*
3. Clothing (x5) *~*.
..............ADMINISTRATE (1) Think Tank...........
4. Deskwork (30") *~*
....................YOMP (1) Outside Care.........
5. Straighten up Garden Shed *~*

I have a pain in the stomach, but I will stick to my plan and I will not eat bread for a week or even toast.
I prefer to spend a day on fruit and tea.
I hope that this pain will not interfere with the exercise!

Welcome back Tori! It's ok to cry sweetheart - crying is just a stress reliever! Its good to breathe too!

EAT CLEAN PACT IN FULL AFFECT!!!! :o

Health/Fitness
1. Drink min 64oz of WATER!!
2. Wake up early before my monsters wake up! ****** Already screwed this one up grrrrrr damn monday mornings...
3. PM workout Mon/Wed/Fri!!
4. Min 50 crunches/day!
5. Log ALL food - no cheating or snacking on junk!
6. Calories below 1300/day!
7. Don't crash and burn on the weekend! *******

Home
1. Sell it.
2. Sell it.
3. Clean it
4. Sell it.
5. No dishes in sink before bed / counters cleared!

Family
1. Do fun activity/craft with kids min 1 hr/day!
2. Convince Braydon that Veggies are good!
3. Work on Makenna's walking!
4. Encourage hubby to workout!

I am stealing some of your goals since mine do not always work (but I will add some of those too.) First two are Mike's. Third one is Nobe's. Thanks , guys!!!

1) Walk 3 x
2) gym 3 x
3) 1650 per day (plus one cheat)
4) 6 glasses of water
5) meditate
6) write one hour per day
7) return books to library ( surely I can do that? My name is not Shirley - remember from the movie Airplane?)
8) STAY POSITIVE
9) 3 servings of veg minimum
10) be a stretchy mama

I can do this because I am, you got it, BAD TO THE BONE!!! B-B-B-B-B-B-B-BAD. But not apparently as bad as Nobe, who I hope looks good in instituitonal orange. You are too funny, girl!!!!!

Hi Quinn!!!! You definitely are worth investing in and I bet if you ask him nicely, Mike will kick your butt!!!

Tunnrider, I hope your tummy feels better!!!

Good Morning!

All of the big, life-changing events that have been occurring since Christmas are all sorted out, for the most part, and it is well past time for me to take time to invest in my own health, happiness and well-being... in other words, I have to kick my butt into gear and clean up my diet! :)

Woke up to 21 degrees this morning which will make hiking a challenge... grrrrr.

On to this week's goals:

1. One hour of "Me Time" every afternoon.
2. Calories at or below 1200.
3. Weigh daily.
4. Water bottle with at all times.
5. No bread, cheese or butter, etc.
6. Take all vitamins and supplements.
7. NO MORE FAST FOOD!!!
8. Hike or walk 3 times this week.

In addition to the Eat Clean Pact this week I'm going to work on reducing my portion sizes somewhat--not drastically--just enough to save some calories, fat, and carbs over the course of the day. Each little bit can add up. To start with this morning, I cut my egg, mushroom, and roasted red pepper sauce breakfast by 25% and didn't miss it. For my lunch wrap I think I'll skip the 1/2 low carb tortilla and double up on the fresh spinach rolled up inside turkey breast and low fat Swiss Cheese--with whole grain mustard instead of horseradish sauce. Haven't decided about how to cut calories or carbs at dinner, but I'll brag that I was going to have 3 oz. pineapple until I pre-logged it and saw it contains more than 1/3 my carb allowance for the entire day--so I'm going to the store to get strawberries instead.

Luv, the hula hoop smiley is so cute. LOL I'm in on the Eat Clean Pact again this week--same as before, no junk except my SF chocolate and pork rinds that keep me from falling off the wagon. I didn't even try to be good Saturday, though, so cheated anyway with carb-loaded baked beans with brown sugar and a snack cake.

Tunnrida, is the stomach pain associated with the lack of bread? Like does the bread help absorb excess stomach acid or something? Feel better soon! If you mentioned it before, I'm sorry I missed it: you converse like an American. If non-Croation, what do you do there?

Tori, Cassie, Quinn, welcome back, even if you don't have time to be super-chatty like some of us. We're just glad to have you sharing the journey to better health with us. :)

Cassie, feel better soon! Big gentle hug to ya!

Quinn, your new nickname for Mike should be BB--BAD to the BONE LOL

Mike, so when are you getting the new bike?

Hope, you are one nice mama to have that many kids over on such short notice! Glad the play went so well.

Nobe, wishing you a calm and satisfying last day of work.

Yeah, I thought about that after I wrote it and then thought, "I'll get skinny because prison food is gross," and then I thought "who am I kidding? I love greasy starchy sugary food," and then I was so tired from all the thinking that I just left it. Oh well, I guess I'll have to get skinny the non-murder way ;)

Good morning! Everyone already have an early start. Awesome!
I end the week with a lot of food. I went to a Vietnamese shopping center that's why. I didn't even log it. Don't know how with all the nick and nack that I ate. I estimated that it was around 1800-2200.
But I am back today and try to be good. Same goal as last week.

No more than 1400 cals
Follow P90X through out
Drink 4-16 oz of glass of water

Mai

http://yoursmiles.org/ssmile/pozitive/s0801.gif"EAT CLEAN" PACT
*Jho82, Mern, Ama, nobe, Hope, Amy, & Luv*
*STARTS anew weekly thru 4/28. Sun MN thru Sat MN.*
"You can set your own clean eating terms--it may mean different things for different people Just be honest with yourselves--there are no food police here." ~ Mern
Please let me know if you want to opt in or out.

---> Jho82, Mern & Luv are in this week for sure. I'll go back & re-read some threads to make sure I didn't miss the others. You can also shout it out at me. :D________________________________

Tori ~ Good to see ya! Thanks for starting the thread. Awwwww. . . .Can't you even cry in secret?

Cassie ~ I missed you. You're a motivator around here.

nobe ~ Good going on you taking advantage of a changed situation! Ha! Ha! I'm thrilled that you're choosing the "non-murder" way to weight-loss.

Hope ~ Get good sleep & then we have a new week full of possibilities! I learn from others around here about goals too. I borrow as well. As long as it suits you, that's all that matters.

crazigerl ~ Are you set for a new week?

Mike ~ If you want, you may look at my end goals of last week. I drank 100 oz daily since the day you challenged me. Thank you. I'm incorporating 100 oz to my goals. I love your goals with it's emphasis on 3 & the song to go with it. Ha! Ha! You always have such fun links.

Tunnrida ~ Please be careful with your nutrition choices! I'm sorry for you stomach pain. Do you think you have the flu?

Jho82 ~ I know that about getting up before the kids. I messed up big time this morning too with that one. I can get so much more done without interruptions AND wake up more quietly.

quinn ~ I really hope that you'll be able to get your "me" time in this week. That's one reason I like to get up before the kids - which didn't happen today. I recharge my battery & prepare myself for the day that way.

Mai ~ I too am thankful for a new week. Weekends are a challenging time for me as well. I think I need to find ways to make sure I'm active.

Mern ~ Yup! I love the smiley too. So this week when I'm tempted, I'll think of the smiley doing its hula hoop. I laughed out loud on last week's thread when you described your "fall" into the baked beans & coming up with the cake. You're too funny! I'm just glad that Monday morning is a new day & start of a new week.

It's a real challenge to get my Health Habits & Home Management Habits to run smoothly. Have you thought about when you change habits, how it takes a lot of time & effort? I think after a while it will settle down.

I also home educate my kids & so need to spend time with them that way. We all have time limitations, and so therein lies the challenge. I'm always trying to find new & better ways to fit it all in, or rather, what to best let go. Right now I'm typing this on one of our little breaks. These days, I'm training my girls to be independent in certain areas, according to their ages so that in the morning they follow through on an independent routine. While they do that, I exercise among other things. Then we have meet-ups. It's paying off with the older one, and she likes being more "adult" like.

Mern ~
 

Goes along with the word "batittude", doesn't it?!

OMG, what a good chuckle that gave me! :D :D :D

What day is it? O_O

Sorry I disappeared last week ladies, life got very, very, very, very hectic. It's still going to be hectic this week but hopefully more manageable if I'm disciplined. I've just had so many job interviews all of a sudden pulling me in 1,000 directions (though I know this is a problem many would kill to have...) on top of my lecturing that it's been very hard to stay focused. I stopped logging after Wednesday last week. I know I didn't go entirely off the rails, but I think I ate a lot of sodium and I'm up to 159.1 this morning. Hopefully, that's just salt, and I can get back down to where I saw 156 for a brief, shining moment in the sun. :o My sister also had a health scare and I was distracted on the phone with family a lot, but she seems to be okay now. Just more meds to add to her daily regiment, which is already scary-big :(

Have had three job interviews on the phone in the past few days. One of them was so-so, one was good, and one went VERY well, to the point where the guy basically told me that they're going to invite me out for a campus interview (His words were "I can't say this for certain because the Dean needs to approve, but it's very likely we'll invite you out" -- which means to me "I am going to recommend you but I have to wait for the Dean to sign it before I can say that" in academia-speak). I'll wait to hear back from the other two. I've also been contacted by a community college that wants to invite me for a campus interview, so things are moving along there. Not sure if a community college is what I want for the long term - it'd have to be right for me - but I'm not putting anything off of the table.

I need to be really focused this week, so my "other" category goals are going to reflect DAILY things I MUST accomplish in order to stay on track. It's likely to be a long list, you don't have to read it all if you don't want to :o There will probably be abbreviations and such not to give too much personal info away, haha. I might update them as the week goes on as well as things pop up

Tori: Hugs for whatever's making you feel like you need to cry, my dear. We're all here for you no matter what.

Cassie: Lovely to see you back. Missed you!

Weekly Goals

Health, Exercise and Lifestyle Goals
1) Calories under 1500 every day. Log and post average.
2) Exercise M, W, F, Sat for at least 45 minutes per session. Extra is awesome
3) Calorie deficit of at least 3,500
4) 80+ oz. of water per day
5) Multivitamin Daily
6) In bed by 11:30 every night. There are no excuses!!!!
7) Weigh in M, W, F and report here. M: 159.1

Other Goals
1) Make an effort on my appearance every day
2) Call grandmother
3) Check up on sister


Daily Other Goals:
Monday
1) Get in application to MM
2) 1/3-1/2 of lecture DONE
3) E-mail DCC/AT about Friday visit
4) Clean kitchen

Tuesday
1) LECTURE DONE
2) At least 3 hours on HPLC
3) Clean living room

Wednesday
1) Review lecture
2) Laundry night/clothes to goodwill

Thursday
1) Clean bedroom

Friday
1) Make sure all follow-ups completed
2) Check plant/refill if necessary

Good one, Luv! LOL

Mike, she means as in BAD attitude, not BEatitude. That's a wee bit different. LOL

It's okay to steal/borrow goals. :) I'll be nice to Quinn. :)

Nice goals there. It's good that everything is getting sorted out.

Sounds like you have your meal plan figured out. I'm not bad to the bone, that bike is bad to the bone. I guess I will have to be bad to the bone to tame that beast! If I can increase my auto premiums by $100k in 6 months, I'll reward myself with the bike. I'm think around the end of the 3rd qtr.

Nice job on the water!!! I knew you could do it. :)

Terri, so sorry to hear about your sister's bad health scare. I hope everything continues to go OK from here on out. Glad to hear your interviews are showing some promise. Ahhhh, maybe your dream job is on the horizon. :) Best wishes on your new goals. Sometimes I don't put all mine down because of them being something I don't want to share at this time, although putting down initials and letting the curious drive themselves nuts trying to guess sounds rather entertaining. LOL

Happy Monday everyone! Last week there was a lot too much red in my goals list, but I am looking forward to starting clean and having a green week! My Hubby is back to work (whew!) so the eating out will be much less, and his home-style Southern fried cooking will be replaced with my California cuisine. Indeed last week was very tasty, but the scale hardly budged (but it did not go up at least :)). I tried on swimsuits at Kohl’s Saturday and still need to get about 8lbs off before I buy. I think I can do that by May if I keep a good momentum!

Nose to the grindstone starting today through this week! :D

Health/Nutrition
1- Daily calories <1500.
2- Water 70oz minimum.
3- Gym – 2x this week.
4- Exercise at home – nightly for 15 minutes (except gym nights).
5- Cook healthy meals.
6- No food after dinner.
7- Follow Stay Clean Pact!

Family/Work
1- Busy week at work – don’t stress!
2- Do a little housework each day so it does not pile up.
3- Take extra time each night to teach ABCs to DS.
4- Tell Hubby he is awesome!

----------------------------------------
Ama
For fellow space junkies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalthea_(moon) )

Age 39, Height 5’6”
Short term goal: Fit into my favorite old Levis 515’s – and still be able to breathe. (3-5 lbs to go)
Short term goal #2: Be able to wear a swim suit this summer and not feel like I need to suck in my stomach all the time. (8lbs to go + a miracle suit)
Long term goal: Live a healthy lifestyle; physically, mentally and spiritually.

the week is not off to a very good start. I've already screwed at least 3 of my goals for the day. where's that hole when I wanna crawl into it???

Thanks Mern :) She's okay, so I'm just going to tell myself that she'll keep being okay and worry only if I need to. She's a big girl and can take care of herself - I think I'm mostly upset because she'd been sick for a few days before anyone in my family deigned to tell me. I know they didn't want to worry me, but it still rankles.

I just HAVE to put down the big ones because that way it's staring me in the face, lol, or I'll just keep putting it off. I'm a terrible procrastinator. Best to you this week!!

Tori - I've got red in mine already too! Don't get discouraged:

- take a deep breath and try to focus on the positive. Do whatever you need to do to take some stress off your shoulders

- CRY if you need to. It helps (I know from experience!)

- Meditate - light a candle and focus on the flame and nothing else - clear your mind for a few minutes!

- Play some Enya, lay on the floor, close your eyes and focus on every tense muscle trying to relax each one.

- Splurge on a massage!

- Call someone and vent!

- Yell at Mike

- Write in a journal - Try to make the negatives into positives

I'm just making stuff up now.... what does everybody else do to relieve stress????

To destress I grab a good mystery novel and a glass of wine. My brain does not shut-off with meditation, yoga, or massage, so distraction and diversion are my go-to options. Also drawing/painting are good distractions. If I can get into that right-brain mode reality ceases to exist for a period of time. But not a good idea if DS is around (hence the black marking pen all over my couch incident while I was not paying attention...).

Tori - I hope you feel better soon.
Jho- Thanks for the ideas!

Ama

woops! Ha! Ha! I spelled my own word wrong.:p I meant: "badittude".

ETA:
AMA ~ I'm "coloring" you in for the week for the EAT CLEAN Pact.
Looks like you have great goals.

TORI ~ Please don't hide. Keep swimming!

Exercise, on days I'm behaving. Call a friend and go out for a (healthy) lunch. Try to focus on what I'm thankful for. Remind myself it's only temporary.

Terri, I knew they would be banging down your door soon for employment. I'm glad to hear you have some prospects in the works.

Are you counting one goal twice??:p

:eek:

I hit my auto goal today, as far as premium. :) I ended up writing a home a auto from a referral that I wrote last week. Yay me.

I'm waddling back in. Again. :( Up my normal 3-4lbs after TOTM again. So this week will be about taking that back off. I know I dropped off over the weekend (again) but I didn't go all crazy and eat everything in sight or anything. I was on my feet from 4am-2:30pm Saturday. Then from about 9am-3:30pm Sunday. That is what doing housework, running the carpet scrubber, folding laundry (standing) and cleaning out the inside of a camper will do to ya! I felt entitled to eat a little bit of junk last night even though I knew I didn't need it, I was starving hungry. Probably from all the activity of the two days. So on to my goals...

Health / Fitness ...
1. 100 oz water daily
2. Shred 5 days this week (weekend will probably be off) M: Yes,
3. No Diet Coke (lent)
4. No salt added to my plate
5. Walk on lunch - 10miles again this week would be awesome M: 36min - 2miles,
6. Carbs under 50%
7. Watch Level 3 of 30 Day Shred so I know what I'm in for.
8. Weigh and post it daily M: 263.4lbs, Weight change so far this week:

Life Goals ...
1. Read something for 1/2 hr a day not on the internet (I am going to get this!)
2. Take dogs for a walk at least once (gotta get them ready for camping this summer and Chloe is a tornado on a leash)
3. Scrub the insides of the camper canvases
4. Put curtains back up in camper
5. Rug scrubber family room (weekend)
6. Laundry every day
7. If I am tired, go to sleep instead of bobbing my head while trying to stay awake

A customer made a wonderful comment today. It went like this:
Her: "Did you do something different with your hair? A new cut or color?"
Me: "Nope"
Her: "Your face looks different. Have you lost weight?"
Me: "Yes"
Her: "I knew it was something! You look so pretty! You are absolutely glowing!"

I was just happy that the glow wasn't meaning she was going to ask if I was pregnant!!! LOL :p

Tori ... I am so glad that you are back. Don't worry about a little red in your report. It's very hard to stay strict with yourself when you are going through something. Please don't feel that you can't cry. I'm sure there are more appropriate times, but crying is a wonderful stress reliever.

Cassie ... I hope you are okay this week. You mentioned that you are sick.

Hope ... I love that your DD had the cast all over for a party. That is huge! ... You have great goals this week.

Mike ... Three acts of kindness? That's quite a bit!

Nobe ... I hope you don't kill your soon to be ex-boss today! Orange isn't a very flattering color!

Luv ... I love that hula-hooper!

Tunnrida ... I hope your stomache ache clears up. I'm wondering the same thing, is it acid from not eating bread?

Jho82 ... It's hard to wake early when everyone else is still asleep. I was up at 5:30 this morning to do my DVD before getting ready for work and waking everyone else up. I much prefer getting up at 4 and making hubby's lunch, sending him to work at 5 and then working out. It's easier knowing someone else is awake and suffering with me!! LOL

Quinn ... You are definitely worth it! Time for some 'you' time!

Mern ... I need to work on portion sizes too. ... I have recently fell in love with strawberries. I had a serious issue walking away from some at the grocery store the other night because they weren't in my budget. They were so plump and red and I bet they were juicy too. I'm getting them Wednesday though to make my oldest son's birthday cake. He wants angel food cake with cool whip & strawberries. Yum! I'm debating if I want to try to go sugar free on the cake or not. Other people will have to eat it too.

Mai ... How is your P90X going? I'm almost ready for level three of the 30 day shred with jillian. Two more days of level two.

Terri ... I hope your sister adjusts to her new meds. ... Wow! That is a lot of interviews. I hope that whichever one is the best fit for you is the one to offer you a position.

Ama ... I love you awesome hubby goal! They all need to hear that sometimes!

Hi All!

First off thank you mike for the PM checking on me :)

I have been super busy and felt like i wasn't really contributing but just taking in the good from all of you and felt bad so I stopped checking in. But I am hoping to get a little bit of balance back in my life this week.

The last week was a disaster as far as goals. I not only fell off the wagon but I think it ran me over. lol. I was helping teach a deep diving class so my schedule was tossed out the window. Food was a lot of restaurants and bad stuff. But It's a new week, so I'm going to keep it simple:

1) Calories 1600
2) 2-3 hours cardio
3) lift 3-4 x week
4) Water lots and lots of water 80oz+
5) Meditation...at least once. This is new for me but hoping it will help settle some nerves.

A quick update on me. I am doing good. We did a couple of practice dives the past two weeks. The last was to 410 feet where we completed an emergency drill. It was soooo cold. Colder that the water in florida is supposed to be :eek: We are still moving forward for the big dive in May. More and more people are finding out about it and talking to me about it. Which is making it become more real. And a little stressful at the same time.

I will try to rad and catch up with everyone tonight. Gotta hit the gym now before i find an excuse not to go.

We all have been run over by the wagon, it hurts when its loaded down with everyone that is in it. 410' is DEEP, and new pics or videos? Good mindset on the workout!

April - I think I stopped breathing when you said you like to get up at 5am! WHAT!? I'm battling to get up by 8 - even though my alarm goes off at 630 and again at 640.... :o I think I'm going to have a big reality check when I go back to work! Isn't it amazing how much cleaning you do when you are motivated (as I'm sure you are eager to get out camping!)!

No RAK's today Mike?! Monday is almost over!

After I drank herbal tea I was so much better that the rest of the day I normally consumed food :D

Ama - I do that too!! I can't believe it wasn't on my list! I had hubby put in a deep soaker tub for me in the master bath - I'm sure gonna miss that when we move! I'm into the romance novels right - I like to really get into a series with reoccurring characters!

Mai, well you can put the Vitnamese food behind you and start fresh. :)

Luv, I didn't notice you spelled your word differently from how you wanted to. I read it to mean "bad attitude"--looked OK to me. LOL I surely do welcome the new week--gotta launder the baked beans out of my shirt, though. (just kidding) It certainly does take a lot of time and effort to change habits. But it's all worth it. Wow, it's wonderful the way you mome educate your kids. You certainly do give it your all! Great that your older DD enjoys being more adult-like. :)

Mike, we all know you're one of the good guys. I hope you can reward yourself with the bike soon. I SORT of have my meal plan figured out and SORT of not. I baked some chicken thighs ahead for snacks and lunches, but couldn't figure out what to have for dinner tonight and I feel lazy, so may just eat a thigh and a salad. DH can eat chicken and some leftover spaghetti and a salad. Hey, congrats on reaching your auto policy goal!

Ama, that's great that you only have 8 lbs. to go to a great new swimsuit! We're all cheering you on!

Tori, you can do it. Just start fresh again with this post if you haven't restarted already. It's hard sometimes--you're not alone. Big hug to ya!

Terri, I'm sure it was frustrating when you found you'd been kept out of the loop with your sister's illness. Glad you know your family just didn't want to worry you. Did you tell them, then, that you prefer to know in the future and did they agree to keep you posted? Best to you on all your goals this week, too.

Jho, wow, those were great ideas on stress relief that you posted to Tori! Mine is not very original--I fix myself a nice hot cup of tea and play Scrabble on the computer or if I'm upset with family I go for a drive alone.

April, why were you up and working at 4AM???? With all that heavy work you did, I'll bet that bit of junk food did you no harm. Nice goals! And what a nice compliment. You and I think alike--when I read the word "glowing" I thought the same thing. LOL OMG, my mouth was watering over reading about the angel food cake, strawberries, and Cool Whip. Mike suggested that to me last year and I did find a sugar free angel food cake at Meijer. And it tasted as if it were made with regular sugar.

KIM! You are welcome here any time whether you have time to participate in group discussions or not. I'm glad Mike went to find you! Aw, we all fall off the wagon from time to time--it's getting back on each time that counts. Thanks for updating us on your dive practice. Ooh, must be awful being in water so cold. Any way to compensate for that? Golly, always put your exercise ahead of catching up--it's darned near impossible to keep up with this group's yackiness! LOL

I do not know of which I am hurt, but after tea I was better :)
So I'm still eating normal :D
Croatian is my native language but I try to use English / American spoken more possible, because I am a lot on international websites.

I didn't understand this part of the question "what do you do there?"