Posts by merrymousewife

Jamison724, I am sorry to hear about your BF's dad. I will say a prayer for him and you and your BF.

Weekend was okay. The 4th was not too good, but not terrible either. I am in week 3. I do not see any positive change in the scale but I feel the muscles under the marshmallow cream, so I know they are there even if no one else does. It's all good, though, because I will always maintain that muscles under marshmallow cream is better than all marshmallow cream.

Does anyone think the workouts go by really fast most of the time? I get into it and then realise I am almost done!

I just have to agree that the best time to exercise is when you will do it. I have been a morning exerciser for years, getting up at 4:30 to get in the workout before starting work at 7. I was working at home at the time and my commute was zip. Then I started a job outside the house again starting at 7 and I found I was going to have to get up at 3:45 in order to make it to work on time. No way can I do that. Now I start work at 6:00 and still get up at 4:30, but I just cannot get in a workout early enough to get to work on time. So I am learning to like exercising in the afternoon or if I have errands to do, then at night. I am not bothered by exercise jazz that keeps me from sleeping. In fact, I find that a hard work out, whether lifting or cardio, then a shower are just the ticket for a really good, deep sleep. It is rare that I sleep through the night, but on the nights that I have exercised at 8:00, I have slept like a rock and awakened without the feeling that I can't wait to go to bed at the end of the day.

Sorry, did not mean to ramble on like that. The deal is just exercise when it works for your schedule and fits best in your lifestyle.

As for the exercise on an empty stomach, well, I did that for years until someone pointed out that the body works best when it is fueled. Just think of your body like your car. It doesn't run at all when it is out of fuel.

Jamison, have you had a blood test to see if you are anemic, have low red blood cell count? I don't know your background, but anemia can cause exhaustion because the red blood cells carry oxygen to the body and if they are low, it can make you feel really tired and worn out.

You might add some iron-rich foods to your diet - red meat being one of the highest sources of iron, right under liver, which I cannot tolerate in any form. Also, black cherry juice enhances red blood cell building, but red meat is really good. If you don't eat meat, then lots of green leafy vegetables are really good. Remember Popeye and his famous spinach? Unfortunately, it does take quite a bit to get enough.

Iron supplements can be tricky as they can mess with your liver and cause terrible constipation.

Anyway, it is just a thought. You might try adding red meat to your diet a couple more times a week and see how you feel.

Well, yesterday was legs and back and it is my least favorite of the workouts, mostly because I have a knee injury to my right knee and need to baby it a bit. I made it through the first time, but yesterday was really difficult. Not to mention I had a time crunch as we had a surprise party to get to pretty early, so I only made it through 49 minutes of it. Anything I can't do, like side lunges, I just do dead-lift squats. I do okay with front lunges, the lateral movement of the side lunges is not great on my right knee.

Today was Kenpo and I love this work out! I was sweating like a mad woman and loved every minute of it. Once I am though the first round, I am going to do the lean program. I am also thinking, the next time around, about substituting kenpo for yoga. I do not get the meditative quality of yoga. I just find it irritating, but my competition with myself won't let me blow it off, you know?

Protein powder...I have been buying Kroger brand whey and soy protein and it does not taste too bad and mixes pretty well. I have tried both chocolate and vanilla.

Everyone have a great day!

Yay! I made it to the end! I started P90X last week and am finally not feeling too sore, just some tension from the legs and back last Saturday and I have it again tomorrow. I skipped Kenpo on Sunday so I could start Monday with the regular week. I am using bands for the pull-ups, I know that even if I could put one up or have a door to use, I would struggle with them. Anyway, I am so glad to have found you all and read all the posts. I have been wanting to do P90x for years and finally quit my gym membership and bought it.

I would love to lose weight, but since my metabolism is such that I don't lose weight (search for my name and you can read my story), but I feel that even if I have a layer of marshmallow cream covering the muscles, having muscles under marshmallow cream is way better than not having any muscles at all.

I am trying to follow the diet plan but find getting in 1700 cals a day very difficult, especially with the limited fat they want you to stick to. I did find a protein powder I like and mix it with skim milk twice a day and I know this is more dairy than they want one to stick to, but it makes a good nighttime snack and I drink it for breakfast since I have to be at work at 6 am.

So, today was YogaX and I just do not like yoga. I keep thinking I will like it and it just doesn't happen. I have a friend who has been doing yoga for years and loves it. Blech. I made it through 38 mins today and next time I plan on at least that much and some of the balance moves. I love CardioX. It is just the kind of workout that suits me. I am not looking forward to legs and back tomorrow as my calves are still suffering from the last round. It's all good, I will just adjust and do what I feel comfortable with and then add 2 more!

So, I am done rambling for now. Alli, I am so proud to hear of your weight loss. You go, Girl!

Keep bringing it, Ladies!

edited to change the time on the YogaX, it was actually 38 minutes. Someday I will remember that proofreading is a good thing for messages boards just as it was in my past working life.

Thanks, mellie75. I have never heard of Roly Poly Sandwiches, but I will see if we have any here. It would be good for the weekend. The thing with taking lunch to work is that I get two 15-minute breaks that I can combine as my lunch and just be at work for 8 hours and not have to be there longer than that. I love my job and my coworkers but I love my family more and don't want to spend any more time away than necessary. So, eating at my desk and leaving 1/2 hour earlier is a good motivation to bring my lunch. If I leave the building, I have to take my full lunch hour.

Yesterday, I made pasta, mix-ins, and the jicama salad (black beans, jicama, green onions with orange juice, lime juice and a bit of olive oil) so all I will have to do is put them together every night before work.

Oh, that's a good idea. I will have to make some and bring it to work.

There is a black bean salad that is easy and has jicama and cilantro with a orange juice and honey dressing that I think I will make for this coming week. I will also make the pasta salad, too. I think I will save dressing it until I am at work.

Thanks for the pasta salad idea; it triggered the black bean salad too.

This is great! I am open to hearing more creative ideas.

Meldash, thank you for your reply. I agree that muscle is more dense than fat and so takes less to weigh the same. I have good muscle tone, not bulky by any means, and unfortunately, covered with this obnoxious layer of marshmallow cream. I don't think I am gaining any more muscle weight for two reasons: One is that to gain muscle one has to be in a calorie credit not deficit and I don't eat enough to reach that. The second reason is that my clothes are good and then do not fit, but not in a good way.

I just don't know what to do anymore. I have asked a few nutritionists about my predicament and I keep hearing the "Eat 5-6 small meals a day, eat protein with every meal, keep the calories around 1200-1500 a day and exercise more." There is just no way I can get in any more exercise, and I don't think that is the answer anyway, for me at least.

Thank you all for your replies. I think I really need to back off the exercise for a bit and start over. The contestants on The Biggest Loser lose large numbers in the first week because they are shocking their bodies by doing something totally different than they have done in years, if ever. So I think, if I can stand it, I need to rest and feed my body as best as possible for a few weeks and then start back into exercise. I think I will save my gym dollars and buy P90X. I have P90 and like the program, so I think I would like P90X.

Thank you, sybil878, for your reply. No, I have not been tested for insulin resistance, but I have been tested for hypoglycemia and diabetes, both were normal.

I had to go off Adkins after 12 weeks because it caused heart palpitations and dysrhythmias. On Adkins, I lost about 10 pounds, which was great but I just could not keep up the stringent low carb plan. On SB, I did not lose any weight at all. On Weight Watchers, I gained 1.5 pounds in 16 weeks.

I do eat protein with every meal.

As far as the exercise goes, I love doing it, feel great, but as soon as I increase a weight or length of weight training and reduce cardio, I gain 3-5 pounds. Everyone says it is water, except that it never goes away. Also, according to the burn meter here and other calorie calculators on the web, if I work out 60 minutes or so a day, I should be eating about 2000 calories. I am really working at it to get to 1500 a day. Usually this leaves me with a very high calorie deficit.

I don't mean to throw up roadblocks, it's just that I have tried so many things, except letting go of the exercise and feeding my body my 1500 cals a day and see what happens then. I give everything a good long try before trying something else, 16 weeks or more.

It's probably the hormones they often inject the cows to produce more milk that people are saying is bad. If possible, buy organic milk products. I think milk from grass-fed cows is the most delicious.

As for body types, if a celebrity, or anyone for that matter, has boobs and a booty, then they are considered fat, or more politically correct, curvasceous. I would not consider Beyonce fat, or Jennifer Lopez. Both of these women have healthy, well proportioned bodies and dress in ways to accentuate their assets. I think we need more images of curves to show that all body types are out there and all are beautiful.

Hard boiled egg whites are terrific for fat free protein. Yogurt with fruit, cottage cheese with frut, nut butters with a banana or an apple, fruit smoothie with wheat germ. If you don't have access to any of these, a South Beach bar might be a good choice for you.

Dried fruits, nuts, chocolate in a trail mix is a good source of energy food. That's why they call it trail mix, lol. Instant oatmeal for breakfast is good, but you will probably need more than one packet. Beef jerky is a terrific idea for some protein.

Good luck on your hike.

You also should not work the same muscle group on consecutive days. If you are dong lunges and squats every day, you are overtraining those muscles and they have no chance to recover. Switch it up so that you are not working your quads and glutes every day but every other day. If it is circuit training, then only do the circuit every other day. For quite some time I did Power 90 and with that routine, you alternate circuit training and cardio with one rest day a week.

You should not push through this pain. This does not sound like muscle activity pain from working the muscle. This sounds like shin splint pain but at the lower quad. Can you rest for a couple of days to give it time to heal? Then see how it does after that.

I like to use lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, or some other type of acid to replace salt on vegetables. Unfortunately, I cannot use this on eggs. On the other hand, a good, natural fresh salsa on eggs is really good. The jarred salsa tends to have tons of sodium.

For grilled meats, you might try some of the Mrs. Dash spice mixtures. Just have a prudent hand as these can be really strong if you use too much.

Have you done a basal metabolic rate calculation? The first thing you need to know is how many calories you consume just by being alive. The BMR is what you burn just opening your eyes but not getting out of bed. Here is a terrific website that really helped me: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/  

Once you have established your BMR, you need to calculate your Harris Benedict Equation to see how many calories you burn because of your activity level. You can use this website http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/  for this equation.

Then use the food log here to keep track of what you are eating. I completely understand the obsession with "I ate this many calories, so now I need to burn this many in exercise." The thing is to not have too beg a deficit or go over your calorie needs. The activity log and the food log are great tools in helping keep track of where you are and where you want to go.

Hope that helps.