Guava's Growth [Archive] - Page 3 - John Stone Fitness Forums

guava

Fri, January 13th, 2006, 12:24 PM

Push on. I respond well to gentle pushing.

My husband would like me to gain weight too, but I can't do it his way - eat more potatoes, pork chops, bread, and ham and keep exercise at about the same or less. But, on the other hand, I can't do it the "right" way either - eat less cake and ice cream, and more tuna, egg whites, and whey, cut back on the cardio and start lifting to failure. So, I'm trying to work on a happy medium - eat more plain yogurt, whole grains, and vegetables and fewer muffins, and lift more often or longer. My body part focus programs work well. When I work on everything all at once, I can't see changes, but it's nice to improve my legs over a month, then get a better back in a month, then attack my abs for a month, rinse and repeat.

Last night I was wandering in places I don't often go, and came across this piece of beauty (http://alexthegirl.com/words/journal/archives/2006/01/post_12.htm). Also nice to read when I'm in the right mood is Kyra's blog (http://kyras.blogspot.com/). I have a lot of trouble finding books that I enjoy as much as some of the blogs that I visit. My favorite authors right now, other than Po Bronson (http://www.pobronson.com/), are actually Andrew Clements (http://andrewclements.com/) and Jerry Spinelli (http://www.jerryspinelli.com/newbery_001.htm). I'm having great fun reading to my daughter every night before bed. Badgolfer, did you get The Magus yet? My copy of Who Moved My Cheese is ready for me to pick up at the library.

My daughter has completed an assessment to be on the local swim team. It's pretty tough. If she chooses, she can spend 45 minutes once a week swimming lengths of the pool, with an instructor barking out commands. It looks awful to me, but she seems to enjoy it. The coordinator insists that I do not start paying until at least after the second session. He wants to be sure that everyone who is there is there because they want to be.

For my younger daughter, there were not enough people in the precompetitive stream to set a class together for four hours a week of gymnastics, so she's back in her 1 hour per week sessions. In September, we'll try again getting her into something more advanced. She's still young enough to become an incredible gymnast if she decides to give it her best shot.

As the conversation between Alice and the Cheshire Cat goes;
'Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?'
'That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,' said the Cat.
'I don't much care where----' said Alice.
'Then it doesn't matter which way you go,' said the Cat.
'----so long as I get somewhere,' Alice added as an explanation.
'Oh, you're sure to do that,' said the Cat, 'if you only walk enough

kateykate

Fri, January 13th, 2006, 07:53 PM

:D yay for Alice in Wonderland quotes. I love Lewis Carroll.

You look really good in your avatar, by the way- so sleek and sporty!

guava

Sat, January 14th, 2006, 03:43 PM

You look really good in your avatar, by the way- so sleek and sporty!
Hey, you learn pretty quick.;) Thanks.

It's difficult to spend any significant amount of time with my daughter and not be delighted. After her hockey practice this morning, we went into a furnishings shop to exchange a gift we got from friends. Within 10 minutes of being in the store, the owner offered her a job (when she turns 12 or 14) and by the time we left, she presented her with a birthday gift (the $40 watch that was on display at the counter), gave her a big hug, and told her to come back and visit whenever she could. :nod: The woman was amazingly untuitive. I was asking her for suggestions on what to do with my living room, and after a few simple questions, she was able to flip through her book and show me the perfect coffee table. I've been in constant search for the last twelve months, and haven't found one that was quite right until that very moment. She gave me some advice on how to rearrange my furniture, and suggested some accent pieces that would help turn it into a warmer cozier space.

We attended a hockey game last night, and even though I didn't get home until after 10:30, and had to leave the next morning by 7:45, I still squeezed in my abs workout with some general upper body work before bed last night.

I feel good. :bb:

Anywhere you go liking everyone, everyone will be likeable. ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic's Notebook

guava

Sun, January 15th, 2006, 06:35 PM

Weird how one day can be absolutely wonderful, and the next day can be a real chore.

I'm not feeling so hot today. Could be because I've been pretty much living on granola and yogurt for about the last week. Or it could be hormonal. (That would at least partly explain why I've been living on granola and yogurt for the last week as well.:p ) Or it could be dread of the upcoming birthdays I'm going to host.

I need to eat some grapefruit today that I bought several days ago, but grapefruit is a little too sour for me. Maybe I can chop it up and mix it in somehow with some raisins.

Last night I had a salad of spinach, strawberries, and almonds with a cranberry balsamic vinaigrette. :eat:

Begin doing what you want to do now. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand - and melting like a snowflake. ~Marie Beyon Ray

badgolfer

Mon, January 16th, 2006, 12:27 AM

Last night I had a salad of spinach, strawberries, and almonds with a cranberry balsamic vinaigrette. :eat:

See now I think thats very strange. In a game of which one does not belong strawberries stand out like a sore thumb. Blech...

guava

Mon, January 16th, 2006, 12:39 AM

What can I say? Sometimes I just eat really weird things.

That one was actually pretty satisfying, so tonight I had a spinach, almond, grapefruit, and raisin salad. For dressing, I mixed the grapefruit juice with strawberry jam. :neener:

Actually, there are plenty of recipes for spinach strawberry salad. Some cooking classes might do you some good. This clickable image describes it as "ever popular"

http://tif.ca/images/recipes/spinach-strawberry.jpg (http://tif.ca/recipes/index.php?recipeID=41)

guava

Mon, January 16th, 2006, 11:12 AM

Ten years ago today, I gave birth to a precious little girl. Today, she's a mature, gorgeous, self-confident, smart, funny creature.

http://www.aximsite.com/boards/images/smilies/celebrate.gif

Two more days of my current daily habits, then on to a bit of a cutting phase. I'm probably eating 1700 to 1900 calories on average right now, and starting on Wednesday, I'm going to bump that down to just below 1500 for a week only. The reason I chose that number is because I plugged in my idea of nutritious, filling, and satisfying meals, and those are the numbers that fitday spit out. I'm not sure if I'll measure and count, or if I'll just try to eat the items I have planned. It would be easier if I allowed myself to eat carrots and sweet potato, but I'm still afraid of the vitamin A. I have three days planned out so far:
Wednesday
Tofu, silken, soft 1 slice 46 2 2 4
Egg, whole, raw 1 large 75 5 1 6
Oats, raw 0.5 cup 156 3 27 6
Flax seeds 0.13 cup 94 6 7 3
Cranberries, dried 0.13 cup 47 0 12 0
Yogurt, fruit, nonfat 0.5 cup 115 0 23 5
Beans, kidney, canned 0.5 cup 109 0 20 7
Barley, pearled, raw 0.25 cup 176 1 39 5
Olive oil 1 tablespoon 119 14 0 0
Yogurt, fruit, nonfat 0.5 cup 115 0 23 5
Orange, raw 1 medium 62 0 15 1
Spinach, raw 0.5 cup 3 0 1 0
Broccoli, cooked, 1 large stalk 78 1 14 8
Chicken, breast, 4 oz, boneless, 105 2 0 20
Tomatoes, raw 1 medium whole (2-3/5" dia) 26 0 6 1
Potatoes, baked, (2" x 4”) 132 0 31 3
Total Calories 1458 35 221 76 Fat:24%Carbs:54%Protein:23% fibre 41 g

Thursday
Raspberries, red, raw 1 cup 60 1 14 1
Yogurt, fruit variety, nonfat 1 cup 230 0 47 11
Granola, low fat 2/3 cup 212 3 44 5
Orange, raw 1 medium 62 0 15 1
Chickpeas, canned 0.5 cup 143 1 27 6
Peanut butter 1 tablespoon 95 8 3 4
Yogurt, plain, nonfat milk 0.25 cup (8 fl oz) 34 0 5 4
Bread, pita, whole wheat, (5-1/4" dia) 120 1 25 4
Tomatoes, raw 1 medium whole 26 0 6 1
Spinach, raw 1 cup 7 0 1 1
Chicken, breast, 4 oz, 105 2 0 20
Brussels sprouts, cooked, 1 cup 61 1 14 4
White rice with tomato sauce 1 cup 251 3 50 5
Total Calories 1405 22 250 67 Fat 15% Carbs 65% protein 20% fibre 32 g

Thursday
Bread, whole wheat, 100% 2 thin slice 113 2 21 4
Peanut butter 1 tablespoon 95 8 3 4
Yogurt, fruit variety, nonfat milk 0.5 cup 115 0 23 5
Banana, raw 1 cup, NFS 138 1 35 2
Soy nuts 0.3 cup 131 7 9 10
Strawberries, raw 12 medium 43 1 10 1
Tuna, canned, water pack 1 can (6.5 oz), drained 194 1 0 43
Pepper, sweet, red, raw 0.5 large 22 0 5 1
Onions, young green, raw 1 small (3" long) 2 0 0 0
Yogurt, plain, nonfat milk 0.25 cup (8 fl oz) 34 0 5 4
Bread, whole wheat, 100% 2 thin slice 113 2 21 4
Chicken, breast, 4 oz, boneless, cooked 170 4 0 32
White rice with tomato sauce 1 cup 251 3 50 5
Beans, snap, green, canned, regular pack, drained solids 1 cup 27 0 6 2
Total Calories 1448 29 190 116 fat 19% carbs 47% protein 34% fibre 25g

Pantera

Tue, January 17th, 2006, 06:25 AM

Ten years ago today, I gave birth to a precious little girl. Today, she's a mature, gorgeous, self-confident, smart, funny creature.

Congratulations!! To the mother and of course the little woman! ;)

guava

Tue, January 17th, 2006, 12:04 PM

:cry: :mad: I shall not do two ab-blasting workouts on consecutive days. :nono:

Didn't I say that last week?http://www.aximsite.com/boards/images/smilies/azz.gif

I feel terrible today. I think my mood has a lot more to do with the cycles of the moon than with anything that actually happens in my life.
I couldn't sleep last night because of a huge empty feeling. Well, that plus abdominals that were so completely sore it felt like someone was pushing on me.

From December 28:
Present 53.3 kg (117 pounds?) 17.9% fat (21 pounds of fat?).
Target 53.8 kg (just over 118) 17% fat. (20 pounds of fat).
This morning the scale said 53.4 kg 17.3% body fat. I aparently have a mental block which will not allow me to gain mass. The fruitcake is gone, and I had three tiny pieces of chocolate this week too, so I must have somehow compensated for those calories. I think I'll live with it instead of fight it. I like the idea that my body somehow knows what it's doing.

There's a barley bean salad sitting in my fridge.:eat: I figured out another two days of eating plans. I think I'll print them out and post them on the fridge.

My schedule is filling up so that there's hardly any room left in February to go on vacation. :cry: Things should be clearer when I'm through the birthday parties, but that's cutting it pretty close.

It got cold again.:( I was hoping it was spring.

I asked for strength and
God gave me difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for wisdom and
God gave me problems to solve.

I asked for prosperity and
God gave me brawn and brains to work.

I asked for courage and
God gave me dangers to overcome.

I asked for patience and
God placed me in situations where I was forced to wait.

I asked for love and
God gave me troubled people to help.

I asked for favors and
God gave me opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted
I received everything I needed.

My prayers have all been answered.

guava

Wed, January 18th, 2006, 09:33 AM

Day One of calorie restriction. Breakfast as planned, except I had canned apricots instead of dried cranberries. My yogurt only has 80 calories per half cup. I don't know where fitday gets it stats from.
Tofu, silken, soft 1 slice 46 2 2 4
Egg, whole, raw 1 large 75 5 1 6
Oats, raw 0.5 cup 156 3 27 6
Flax seeds 0.13 cup 94 6 7 3
Cranberries, dried 0.13 cup 47 0 12 0
Yogurt, fruit, nonfat 0.5 cup 115 0 23 5

Lunch (barley bean salad) will be on the road, because my daughter has gymnastics, and I'll be out shopping for party supplies.

I am out of my comfort zone.

I volunteered to help rewrite our school council's constitution. I am so nonpolitical it's not even funny, but I'm really good with words, so this will be a good learning experience.

We have a federal election coming up. My husband will be away on business, but he told me to make sure that I vote. I'd rather just let other people make all the important decisions for me. :rolleyes: He won't tell me who to vote for. :p

A woman phoned from a market research company last night and asked me questions about the election, 7-11, urinary tract infections, Toronto Dominion Bank, Otario Power Generation, and Patti Labelle.:confused:

The librarian has asked me to be part of a reading program. Honestly, I'd have more fun shelving books and printing out documents, but it's important for me to be a part of whatever is most needed, so I start on Tuesday helping four kids in grade one to progress with their reading.

I'm not comfortable interacting with new people, even if they are just kids, but once I get to know them, it just might be fun.

Never be afraid to do something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark; professionals built the titanic. ~ Unknown Author

badgolfer

Wed, January 18th, 2006, 03:52 PM

The librarian has asked me to be part of a reading program. Honestly, I'd have more fun shelving books and printing out documents, but it's important for me to be a part of whatever is most needed, so I start on Tuesday helping four kids in grade one to progress with their reading.

I'm not comfortable interacting with new people, even if they are just kids, but once I get to know them, it just might be fun.

That should be lots of fun once you get comfortable.

What are you doing with those flax seeds? Grinding and putting in the yogurt?

guava

Wed, January 18th, 2006, 08:57 PM

I go in for a classroom observation of my daughter's junior kindergarten class tomorrow. I'm a little nervous that she won't be quite so perfect as I imagine her to be. I wonder if she'll suffer from performance anxiety. I know I would have in that circumstance. She told me she'd have trouble doing gymnastics today because she got a papercut on her finger this morning. She loved it once she got there, but she's always nervous about going and about joining in.

The tofu, egg, oats, and ground flax seeds are all mixed together (sometimes with raisins or cranberries, or chocolate chips when I'm feeling decadent) then fried into a pancake and eaten with a bowl of yogurt.

I heated up a can of beef barley soup (and a strawberry spinach salad :p ) for supper, just before my mad dash to get my older daughter to the pool. I made some sugar free rasberry Jello filled with blueberries, because I KNOW I'm going to have cravings this week, and it's better to be prepared. There's also a wild rice blend in the fridge that I have to somehow work into my lunch or breakfast tomorrow.

I had a large decaf with sweetener and lactose free milk at the mall. I still feel the need for more coffee tonight.

I think this insomnia is being spread through the forums. I've heard three or four members complaining about it today. Is it a seasonal thing? My husband asked me if maybe it's the Accutane that's throwing off my sleep.

I baked two birthday cakes and couldn't stop myself from licking the spoon (twice). However, I did not eat the thin layer of cake I sliced off the top to level it off. I still have to ice one of them tonight for Friday's party. I slipped the other one in the freezer so I can decorate it for next Saturday. It was easier to do them both tonight because I'm renting the pans (a snowflake, and Blue's Clues - I'll be posting the pictures in the private media gallery).

I have to vaccuum the bedrooms, but I don't think it's my job to clean the rooms before I do it. I've been waiting for four days for them to get neat enough. Yes, I'm very stubborn; especially if it allows me to be lazier.

I did an upper body workout last night, so today is supposed to be cardio, but that doesn't sound like all that much fun. I might just go to bed after icing and vacuuming.

Celebrate what you want to see more of. ~ Thomas J. Peters

Butterflyer

Wed, January 18th, 2006, 09:14 PM

Working with kids to help them read better sounds like a good challenge! Have fun with it...:tu:

I like that swimsuit in your avatar, it's very sporty!

guava

Thu, January 19th, 2006, 07:03 PM

A serving of of Alaskan pollack has 70 calories, 0.3 g fat, and 16 g protein. It is cheap, and you can bake it in the oven straight from frozen. I sprinkled mine with cajun seasoning before putting it in the oven. It tastes good, but is not very filling. I ate all three servings (nearly a pound) with broccoli and a tiny bit of brown rice.

Did I mention that I take my daughter to McDonald's for lunch every Thursday? We order the two cheeseburger meal with a side salad instead of fries, and a diet Coke or a juice. She eats both burgers and the iceberg and the carrot from the salad. I usually bring cereal or an oatmeal pancake for myself from home, (today I brought barley bean salad) and I bring fruit from home for dessert. They don't mind because we order from the menu and we don't spend much time there.

I'm hungry, but it's not bothering me much because I know I'm only doing this for a week.

If you do the things you need to do when you need to do them, then someday you can do the things you want to do when you want to do them. ~ Zig Ziglar

doordude42

Thu, January 19th, 2006, 07:06 PM

Hi Guava. How come you don't say hi to me anymore? You hurt my feelings.

badgolfer

Thu, January 19th, 2006, 07:12 PM

Hi Guava. How come you don't say hi to me anymore? You hurt my feelings.

:cry: oooooh boo-hoo

Happy Monster

Thu, January 19th, 2006, 07:22 PM

Is everyone getting emotional around here? :cry:

guava

Thu, January 19th, 2006, 11:18 PM

doordude42

Fri, January 20th, 2006, 12:05 AM

Ahem. Only women suffering from PMS are allowed to cry in this thread. We're allowed to be snippy too, so watch out!

Mr. Post Whore, if you want my attention, you have to earn it. How do you think I felt when you rejected my offer to have tea?

Had you offered crumpets along with the tea i'd have gladly accepted your offer. In any event.......i'm truly sorry.

guava

Fri, January 20th, 2006, 12:12 PM

Had you offered crumpets along with the tea i'd have gladly accepted your offer. In any event.......i'm truly sorry.
I thought you ate only clean food. Nuts?

guava

Fri, January 20th, 2006, 12:31 PM

I know why the diets that require you to eat six times a day are more successful than other diets. Because you can always tell yourself "It's okay that I'm hungry, because I get to eat again in another couple of hours." :spaz:

The birthday party is today. It's tough to be counting calories, but that's why I planned for this schedule; to keep me out of the cake! I'm going to try to load up on egg whites and drink a lot of coffee before the party starts (3:30). The pizza and chips won't tempt me, but I could probably eat the whole cantaloupe, the whole honeydew melon, all the strawberries, and all the grapes. I think there might not even be enough cake for me (there will be more than 10 kids here), and that will be a relief to not even have any around to tempt me.

We'd planned about a month ago to go tobogganing for her birthday, but it's turned out to be the hottest day of winter so far. It's 11 Celsius (52 F) and nice and sunny. The day she was born was 38 degrees below zero in Winnipeg. Quite a difference! I think we'll plan to go tobogganing every year to take advantage of the "It never rains when you bring an umbrella" maxim.

Meal #1 7:30
1 granny smith apple, chopped into chunks and microwaved 1 minute, then mixed with 1/2 C oats and 1 C water and microwaved another minute

Meal #2 8:30
1/2 C fat free sugar free vanilla yogurt
1 banana

Meal #3 11:00
1/2 C egg whites, beaten until puffy, then mixed with 1/2 C oats and Splenda and fried like a pancake
1/2 C low fat yogurt mixed with a bit of nonfat sour cream and nonfat cottage cheese, vanilla, cinnamon and Splenda
6 strawberries
Cinnful nut coffee with 1 tsp skim milk powder and Splenda

Meal #4 will be about 2:00 or 3:00 and will probably somehow involve eggs, or maybe soup

guava

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 02:09 PM

Oatmeal worked well for me for the first half of the day, so I stuck with it for the second half as well. I could eat only fruit, oats and yogurt for the rest of my life and die happy. I really don't feel like having much variety today either. There's some ham in the fridge that my husband opened up. It would be a pity to toss it, so I'll have to work some meals around it. Maybe an omelette would work.

I had one cubic inch of birthday cake, because it was left on my daughter's plate.;) The rest of them had pizza for supper, and I made myself a nice mix of broccoli, red pepper, brown and wild rice, and cashews. I was probably a little low on protein for the day, but I don't care enough to put it into fitday to check.

Details of the birthday party and a couple of pics are posted in the private media gallery here (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?p=261875#post261875).

Courage is doing what you're afraid to do. There can be no courage unless you're scared. ~ Eddie Rickenbacker

Devery

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 03:50 PM

1 cubic inch...that's funny.

I was tempted twice this past week with cake, but I was able to just say no somehow.

Your cake looked like a snowflake IMO.

guava

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 06:39 PM

53.2 kg 16.6% body fat. I've been happy with the last four days. Some people were talking about "feeling themselves burn fat". I didn't think I could, but something does feel a little different this week.
Your cake looked like a snowflake IMO.
Good news. That's what it was supposed to be.:p

doordude42

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 06:41 PM

Nice avatar. You look maaavelous!!!!!

guava

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 06:45 PM

Nice avatar. You look maaavelous!!!!!
:)

1FastGTX

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 07:45 PM

I just wanted to stop by and say "great avatar" too! That is a fantastic picture, you look great!!! :tucool:

doordude42

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 08:00 PM

I just wanted to stop by and say "great avatar" too! That is a fantastic picture, you look great!!! :tucool:

Damn Guava, the more I look at your avatar the more I like!!!!!!!! Your shoulders and arms look exceptional.:drool: (drool in a nice way:o )

ABguy

Sat, January 21st, 2006, 08:22 PM

Yes, great avatar. Your arms are fab.

I'll stand by with the fire hose for DD.

guava

Sun, January 22nd, 2006, 11:49 PM

Thank-you for the kind words about the avatar.

Yesterday I registered both the girls to play soccer in the spring. Today we went to my older daughter's hockey game. Tomorrow she has a practice to go to, and Wednesday she swims and my little one does gymnastics. It's funny how it works out. I never would have considered myself to be part of an athletic family, but I guess it would feel weird to me if I didn't encourage them to participate in sports.

My chest felt a little achy last night. I thought maybe I'd done too many pushups a few days ago, but today I'm having a bit of trouble swallowing and my nose is all stuffed up, so it seems I'm coming down with something. My younger one is similarly inflicted, and it looks like the older one might be getting it too. I didn't bother to push myself on the exercise today. It was tough enough to force the 35 minutes on the elliptical yesterday afternoon and the ab work last night. Oatmeal has been taking over my life. I will continue tomorrow, adding in soup as necessary.

Aylmer (http://www.kraftcanada.com/en/ProductsPromotions/A-C/AylmerTomatoes.htm) has come out with a new variety of canned tomatoes. The flavor is called garlic and olive oil, but it has only 30 calories in half a cup (0 g fat). I heaped giant spoonfuls onto french bread today, but it would be great on pasta as well. Heck, it's so tasty I could pretty much eat it straight out of the can. Interestingly, I can really taste the added sugar. Years ago I wouldn't have even noticed.

How does Launchcast (http://ca.music.yahoo.com/launchcast/station.asp?u=1453380665) know what songs to play for me? Sure, I told it all my favorite artists, but when I'm in a sad mood it plays Sheryl Crow, the Corrs, Queen, and Pink Floyd. (Now Nazareth is on. That must mean George Thoroughgood is coming up soon.) When I'm in a happy mood it plays Baha Men, Steve Miller Band, and John Mellencamp, and the rest of the time it plays Tesla, Def Leppard, Aerosmith and similar. :confused:

This music is so perfectly in tune with me that I can't go to bed. :nope: It makes me feel like being creative.

The key that unlocks energy is desire. It's also the key to a long and interesting life. If we expect to create any drive, any real force within ourselves, we have to get excited. ~Earl Nightingale

badgolfer

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 07:38 PM

How do they get those canned tomatoes with olive oil to have no fat? :confused:

guava

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 10:14 PM

How do they get those canned tomatoes with olive oil to have no fat? :confused:
It's a rounding variation. I found another brand today with 1 g of fat in 1/2 C, but it still lists 30 calories. I don't understand that either. This brand has no added sugar, but may have more sodium; I didn't compare. I bought them so that I could compare them with the ones I've already opened.

We still have not figured out our trip to Orlando, and it's starting to drive me nuts. I have a couple of things that I'm trying to work around, and that's making it difficult. I'm trying to optimize this trip for too many different variables, and it's impossible to have it all.

I haven't been at all hungry today. However, I only counted calories that one day, and I'm just winging it from here on. I could be anywhere between 1200 and 1600 calories, but I'm pretty sure it's pretty close to 1400 -1450. I may continue to go on a calorie deficit up until Sunday so that I have an explanation to my husband for why I can't eat any of this second birthday cake.

I might work out legs tonight, or I might just go straight to bed soon.

The things you refuse to meet today always come back at you later on, usually under circumstances twice as difficult as it originally was. ~Eleanor Roosevelt

doordude42

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 10:17 PM

Should I be afraid to say hi?:eek:

badgolfer

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 10:36 PM

Should I be afraid to say hi?:eek:

Yes.

guava

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:08 PM

Should I be afraid to say hi?:eek:
Afraid? No. But at least badgolfer has interesting conversation when he drops in. You have no tomato wisdom?

doordude42

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:12 PM

Afraid? No. But at least badgolfer has interesting conversation when he drops in. You have no tomato wisdom?

No....... but i'm a cornucopia of other non-important information.:D

guava

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:12 PM

doordude42

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:15 PM

Hey, I'm thinking about asking John to change my username.

Guava.
You could still call me guava, but hopefully it would prevent the couple of times a year than I get called quava.
Okay, I've been playing with an alternate avatar. Since I've got your attention dd, and since you made such a fuss about the other one, what do you think?

I like it but truthfully........I like the other one better. It shows off your shoulders and arms quite nicely.......and i'm a sucker for nice shoulders and arms.:o

guava

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:18 PM

I suppose I must have decided that too.

Sometimes I wish I wasn't so vain.

doordude42

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:28 PM

I suppose I must have decided that too.

Sometimes I wish I wasn't so vain.

Vain is good Guava.

guava

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:40 PM

doordude42

Mon, January 23rd, 2006, 11:45 PM

You changed your sig!

I have a feeling this avatar is going to start to make me feel too self- conscious soon, and I'll be changing it back to something a big more modest.

I think about things too much. I should be doing my workout.

WHY??????
You should NOT change your avatar. You've worked hard for what you've got and you look hot. (in a good way:rolleyes: ) DO NOT be afraid to show it. That would be just plain silly.

guava

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 01:19 AM

ToddB

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 02:18 AM

I take things way too seriously.

I've noticed this about you... but it's not necessarily a bad thing.

But at least I got my workout done. I hope I can get to sleep.

At least you got your work out... and this lamp. You got this workout and this lamp... and this lunchbox... :D

doordude42

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 09:29 AM

:bang:
thread (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=24445&)
thread #2 (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=24596)
I take things way too seriously.

But at least I got my workout done. I hope I can get to sleep.

Nonsense. You can be humble and STILL be proud of your accomplishments and want other people to see them. There's nothing vain about that. Besides, ANYONE who trains for the sole purpose of body augmentation does so at least partially out of vanity. Anybody who tells you different is flat out lying.
I WANT THE OLD AVATAR BACK!!!!!!!!!!! YOU LOOKED HOT!!!!!!!!!!

wh0rume

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 09:41 AM

I take things way too seriously.
:nod:

You just have to forget about it.
This is a make-believe world, only with real people.
When it bothers me, I pretend the people arent real either, and walk away from the computer.

It's that simple.

Reno_1ted

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 09:57 AM

:bang:
thread (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=24445&)
thread #2 (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=24596)
I take things way too seriously.

But at least I got my workout done. I hope I can get to sleep.

The first of those threads, i think was a thread designed to provoke thought, and it did, and i dont think you took it too seriously.

The second thread though, was a joke. I think u probably took it too seriously to be honest. The best thing would be, if it wasnt funny to you, not to post. I think it says something that you felt the need to post the fact that you didnt find it funny.... although what that something is, i have no idea. :p

doordude42

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 10:00 AM

Don't make me start a petition to get the avatar back!!!!!:nono:
Little thrills like that (the avatar) make my day.
PLEASE........

guava

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 03:08 PM

This is better than therapy.:lol: Half a dozen intelligent pieces of advice for zero cost.

ToddB, that's a nice reality check. As usual, I'm lost on the movie quote, but I laughed out loud anyway. It might actually be funnier because I don't know where it's from.

Doordude, your black and white world would be a nice place for me to vacation, but I need the drama of my bewildered everyday life to keep me on my toes.

wh0areume, your insights are so amazingly accurate it's uncanny.

Reno_1ted, I understand what you're saying. I think I even understand what you didn't say, if that's possible.;)

Doordude (again), my avatar will change again when my mood changes. I don't want to feel like I'm doing things to appease other people. I spend more time trying to figure out what I might do to become influencial than actually DOING things that make a difference to others and to myself.

It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation. ~Herman Melville

doordude42

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 03:17 PM

Doordude (again), my avatar will change again when my mood changes. I don't want to feel like I'm doing things to appease other people. I spend more time trying to figure out what I might do to become influencial than actually DOING things that make a difference to others and to myself.

You know somethin' Guava. Do what makes YOU happy. I find it hard to believe that image in the avatar doesn't make you smile. It sure as hell gets me grinning. (in a good way Guava....relax.)
I've said this before and i'll say it again. Vanity is EVERYONE'S underlying motive. Be proud of your accomplishments. That's the REAL world.

Happy Monster

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 03:22 PM

Darn.. After looking at that strawberry crunching avatar I've forgotten all my insightful intelligent comments. :(

Hold on, I've got one! coughs..

You can look good for other people, i.e. either to satisfy/appeal to them (other orientated), or to attract them (self orientated).

However you can also try to look good because you feel their comments and looks give you a confidence boost. So in a way you are looking good for others, so you look good for yourself.

It's a complex thing. Personally I find it gives me more confidence, and I find no shame in that. :)

doordude42

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 06:32 PM

Still waiting.:whistle:

andi

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 06:38 PM

Still waiting.:whistle:

Let it go, man!! :D

doordude42

Tue, January 24th, 2006, 06:39 PM

Let it go, man!! :D

K.:(

guava

Wed, January 25th, 2006, 10:58 PM

1/4 C cracked wheat
1/3 C oats
3/4 C water
1/3 C plain fat free yogurt
1 packet splenda

1/2 C pasta
3/4 C diced tomatoes with olive oil and garlic
1/4 of a leftover quarter pounder
1 granny smith apple

medium coffee with 2 milks and a packet of Sugar Twin

sample of chocolate fudge truffle
sample of pineapple
sample of honey sunflower bread
leftover of daughter's sample of olive bread
sample of pralines and cream ice cream
sample of bittersweet chocolate tart with raspberry sauce
leftover of daughter's sample of bittersweet chocolate tart with raspberry sauce
sample of noodle stir fry with ground pork
sample of salmon with lemon rice

extra large coffee with 2 milks and two packets of Sugar Twin

I wasn't hungry for supper.:confused: :lol: :p

But now I'm snacking on a red pepper, some cauliflower that I nuked for a couple of minutes, and some salmon that my daughter convinced me she would like. She's always refused to try salmon before, but somehow the opening of the new grocery store must have gotten her in an adventurous mood. She really liked the salmon they were sampling, so I'm going to keep trying to replicate it until I can get it right.

The cauliflower tastes really sweet to me and might make a nice substitute for a snack instead of the raw carrots that turn me orange. My taste buds continue to bloom.

Results from my month of toning my abs are posted in the private media gallery (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=18159&). Please ignore doordude's rude comments. :p My scale this morning read 52.2 kg 18.1 % body fat. Target was 53.8 17% body fat. I'll have to formulate a more specific plan in order to get there, but for now, I'm seeking ab definition, so I'm going to stick with calorie restriction for one more week. The good news is, despite not seeing a lot of visual difference, my abs are a lot stronger. I can do an L-seat for a full 10 seconds, and a month ago, I was running about a second and a half.
:claphigh:

I'm high on caffeine. Either that, or just terribly excited that my husband will be home shortly after having been away since Saturday morning. I'm falling apart without him. Forgot to take out the garbage this morning because that's his job.:doh:

It’s a very funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it. ~ William Somerset Maugham

doordude42

Wed, January 25th, 2006, 11:03 PM

Please ignore doordude's rude comments.

]

I'M DONE COMMENTING!!!!:bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: SUIT YOURSELF!!!!

guava

Wed, January 25th, 2006, 11:14 PM

I'M DONE COMMENTING!!!!:bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: SUIT YOURSELF!!!!
Don't bang your head! You make me feel bad.:cry:

guava

Thu, January 26th, 2006, 10:20 AM

Scale this morning said 51.9 kg 18.1% body fat. And it's starting to tell me that I'm underweight. So I'm going to start eating more. (On Sunday.) My abs look great; that's why I'm going to give it a few more days.

For Saturday, I ordered five helium-filled latex balloons, a helium-filled mylar foil balloon, 8 cake plates, and 36 plastic forks for less than what I paid last week for four helium-filled latex balloons and a balloon weight. Next time I'll skip the party store in favor of the dollar store. Nice to have two birthdays in a row like this so I can correct my mistakes.

I got no sleep at all last night.

Tonight is my last day of the six weeks of accutane. My face is cleared up, but there's still spots on my back. I saw the doctor yesterday and got a prescription for six more weeks. I thought he originally said to take a break between doses, but he was in quite a hurry yesterday and didn't get a chance to explain.

The girls missed three days of school this week from being sick. I'm beginning to have second thoughts about dragging them out of school to go to Florida. I spent our vacation money on carpet and coffee table and end table, so we'd have to steal from the kids to be able to go in February. We could go in March when they get a week off school, but then the parks might be busier. Anyone know when Florida kids get a break from school?

So my husband's back from Texas. (He brought salsa mix.) People smoke in the states. That would drive me crazy. I get a sore throat and watery eyes just thinking about it. People smoke in Canada too, but not anywhere I can get a whiff of it. Not in shopping malls, restaurants, or even bars. No public areas other than in some places outdoors. It sure makes events more pleasant.

I feel a little nauseous. I should probably eat something. My eyes are sore too. Must dig out those eye drops.

Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare. ~Japanese proverb

Chameleon

Thu, January 26th, 2006, 01:09 PM

Orange County lists thier spring break from March 13 - 17

Osceola County lists their spring break from March 20-24

Polk County has a very odd calendar.. thier spring break varies for almost every school and the dates range from early to mid March all the way through mid April

Lake County lists their spring break from April 10 - 17

those are the four closest counties to Disney... every county has different dates, the idea being that this way the number of children out of school at any given time is as small as possible.. unfortunatly it makes it hard to determine when the parks will be busy and when they won't... my view is that as soon as it starts to get warmer around here the parks will pick up, but they are the worst in the Summer and near Christmas

badgolfer

Thu, January 26th, 2006, 10:12 PM

I love your new avatar. Puffin fish are awesome. Im going the fish route too.

guava

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 01:31 PM

Chameleon, Good news that the traffic should be spread around a bit. Travel prices have been steadily increasing through January until the third week in February where they peak, and then level off for the next several weeks (or maybe months). So, the sooner the better for us. I'd really like to go February 1st, (the girls have the 2nd off from school) but my husband has to meet with some guys from Hitachi. (I think they're actually visiting from Japan, so it would be pretty rude to blow them off.) I love your new avatar. Puffin fish are awesome. Im going the fish route too.
I liked your fish. But it lived a short life. :cry:

I'm still living on mostly oats and yogurt. I've been not feeling so well since about Monday. Besides having a little sore throat and runny nose, I've been a little tired, but not sleeping well. My hunger has been spotty. 51.8kg 16.6% body fat. My arms are really lean, but I still don't see the definition that I imagined I'd see in my lower abs.

I have to clean the house for a party tomorrow. And decorate, and ice a cake. Just thinking about it makes me tired. Maybe I should read Bluestreak's journal again. That seems to light a fire under me.

People want to see results; nobody gives a hoot about what you can't do. ~Greg Hickman

1FastGTX

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 01:35 PM

I'm still living on mostly oats and yogurt. I've been not feeling so well since about Monday. Besides having a little sore throat and runny nose, I've been a little tired, but not sleeping well. My hunger has been spotty. 51.8kg 16.6% body fat. My arms are really lean, but I still don't see the definition that I imagined I'd see in my lower abs.
Oats. :drool:

Sorry you don't feel well. I hope you get better over the weekend.

16.6 bodyfat? :claphigh:

Your abs look really good to me. I know you're really determined right now to bring them out more, but IMHO they look fantastic in the last set of pics I saw in your other thread. :tucool:

Your arms ARE lean. I was gonna ask for you to post a bigger pic of your previous avatar (showing your arms) in your other thread... That pic was impressive to say the least.

Happy Monster

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 01:46 PM

guava

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 02:06 PM

Guava, it sounds like your system is somewhat weakened by all the social commitments you have going on now. :( I'm sure worrying about your husband, children and this party didn't help either.

Perhaps you need to take it easier for a while?
Good plan, Happy Monster. I'm taking it easy. That's why I'm on the forums instead of cleaning the house, and eating yogurt and oats instead of salmon and brown rice.;)

1FastGTX, here ya go (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?p=267075#post267075).

1FastGTX

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 02:11 PM

1FastGTX, here ya go (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?p=267075#post267075).
:mad: :mad: :mad:

Why am I mad? Because I'm flat out jealous of you!!!!!!! :D

Thanks for posting those. Your arms look INCREDIBLE!

Oh and that last dumbbell curl picture is amazing!

guava

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 02:16 PM

:mad: :mad: :mad:

Why am I mad? Because I'm flat out jealous of you!!!!!!! :D

Thanks for posting those. Your arms look INCREDIBLE!

Oh and that last dumbbell curl picture is amazing!
Don't be mad. I can cut, but I can't bulk. :cry:

Thank-you.

Happy Monster

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 02:18 PM

Sniff.. I can't see those pictures. :(

But I'll take GTX's word for it! :claplow:

1FastGTX

Fri, January 27th, 2006, 02:26 PM

Don't be mad. I can cut, but I can't bulk. :cry:

Thank-you.
You can so bulk. I think you just don't want to, and I don't blame you since you look good as is (IMHO). No need to. But if you wanted to I am confident you would be able to do it.

You're welcome. :)

guava

Sat, January 28th, 2006, 06:14 PM

There was a thread here yesterday that reall made me think. I won't link to the thread because it turned nasty and got locked, but I don't think it's a problem to mention it in my journal.

It was a discussion about people that like to present a certain image. I don't care enough to do more than a couple of minutes of research, but I'd have to say I agree with this statement:

I personally think the whole Hotti experience is awesome - I am in awe of the phenomenon and wanted to create this place to pay homage to all the hawtness and the one and a half million people who have experienced it in one way or another, so far.

I am in awe of the phenomenon. I don't think it's stupid, but I couldn't say it's smart either. It just IS. And it's interesting. Interesting how much people care what other people look like, say and do. And interesting how badly they feel their opinion on this matter needs to be heard.

At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time. ~Friedrich Nietzsche

guava

Mon, January 30th, 2006, 09:06 AM

I have a lot of trouble taking a break. I feel like I'm slacking off when I don't do lift or do cardio on any given day, so it's been a rough couple of days. Saturday, I did a short little workout of two sets of pushups (22 on the first set!), two sets of upright rows, and two sets of bent over rows. I think I might have done some ab work too. Last night, I was going to do something similar with legs, but really didn't feel it in me, but then I felt a little guilty about not pushing harder. Then I remembered that I'm supposed to take a break once in a while. :doh: Of course, the best time to give my body some time to recover would be now, after I'm still hanging onto a bit of a cold after a whole week. Looks like someone's trying to tell me something.

My husband has 62 days of vacation he needs to use up. Because of his workaholic tendencies and busy travel schedule, he's been building up bank days for the last five years. Whenever he asks his boss if he can take vacation, he's told no. Therefore, he must say "I've got my vacation booked. Bye." So, my job today is to book a vacation. Ugh. I'm not looking forward to making the final decision.

Po Bronson is changing my life; one book at a time.
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1400062373.01._SCTHUMBZZZ_.jpg

The greatest risk is the risk of riskless living. ~ Stephen Covey

Happy Monster

Mon, January 30th, 2006, 02:37 PM

Take a break.

Enjoy the Sun, Sea and Flex. :)

guava

Tue, January 31st, 2006, 10:44 AM

Yesterday, I ate a banana, a yogurt, 10 slicesof toast with peanut butter, and half an oatmeal cranberry loaf that I whipped up in the afternoon. :o

According to fitday, it's not too much damage (about 2000 calories, 30% from fat, 55% from carbs, and 15% from protein, with 38 g of fibre). I promise to eat more vegetables today. And some chicken.

My nose is still stuffed up. I'm not lifting weights or going on my elliptical until it clears up. Next exercise focus will be again improving my flexibility, and I should be able to have more opportunities for that than I had for chiselling my abs.

I got the vacation booked. I am so relieved. And we're going to be in Orlando for the cheat meal!:D I am so excited about meeting every one of the JSF members who will be attending. It's too bad there weren't more people able to come.:(

I don't feel right about myself. Still trying to straighten out my priorities and get more significant things done. :( Today I start out with the reading program at the school. It was stalled last week because of my sick girls.

We need others. We need others to love and we need to be loved by them. There is no doubt that without it, we too, like the infant left alone, would cease to grow, cease to develop, choose madness and even death. Dr. Leo Buscaglia

guava

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:07 AM

I think my younger daughter has chicken pox. She was itchy all over last night at bed, and told me that three people in her class have it. I'm not curious enough to wake her up and check.

Her older sister hasn't had chicken pox, so she'll be next if it's in the house. Oh goody.:rolleyes:

I just want to feel well again. :cry: Not just for the physical comfort, but it's messing with my mind now; giving a lazy air to all that I do.

"Expect people to be better than they are; it helps them to become better. But don't be disappointed when they're not; it helps them to keep trying." Merry Browne

guava

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:20 AM

No spots for now, but it may just be a matter of time.

badgolfer

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:40 AM

No spots for now, but it may just be a matter of time.

My kids were both vaccinated for chicken pox. I am surprised yours were not. :confused:

wh0rume

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:43 AM

i still have a scar on my forehead from chicken pox.
not a fan of the pox... not a fan...

guava

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:43 AM

My kids were both vaccinated for chicken pox. I am surprised yours were not. :confused:
My husband is surprised too.:lol:

For some reason, I'm anti-drug. I like to let things take their course. We didn't get the flu vaccine either, even though it's free and my doctor recommended it.

I could be lying on the couch practically dying, and he'll come home and say "Take a Tylenol!!!!!"

badgolfer

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:50 AM

My husband is surprised too.:lol:

For some reason, I'm anti-drug. I like to let things take their course. We didn't get the flu vaccine either, even though it's free and my doctor recommended it.

I could be lying on the couch practically dying, and he'll come home and say "Take a Tylenol!!!!!"

I am the same way with colds and the flu. I went to the doctor last year for a physical and I had a cold. He wanted to prescribe antibiotics but I told him flat I didnt want them. I believe I stupefied him.

I guess we made the decision for my kids that we will do what the doctor ordered. I never second guessed him and just let him poke and prod my kids all he needed to.

wh0rume

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:51 AM

damn you Christian Scientists... :mad:

badgolfer

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 09:53 AM

damn you Christian Scientists... :mad:

Damn you trolls.

Gotta go...L. Ron Hubbard is calling.

doordude42

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 10:08 AM

I don't think i'm supposed to be here. I'm leaving before the law shows up. Bye.

badgolfer

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 10:13 AM

Looks like a war with Canada is on the horizon.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060201/wl_nm/iraq_shooting_canada_dc

guava

Wed, February 1st, 2006, 10:59 AM

Looks like a war with Canada is on the horizon.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060201/wl_nm/iraq_shooting_canada_dc
Shoot. Perhaps we should pack our bags for South Africa. Could be safer there.

guava

Fri, February 3rd, 2006, 10:48 AM

Yesterday, I had my coffee table and end table delivered. Wednesday, I'll be getting carpet installed. Today, we're going to the pool.

My nose is still a little stuffed up.

I was going to go to bed without working out for what seems like the millionth day in a row, but it didn't feel right, so I started with some ab work. Eventually, I moved around to all the other body parts and some stretching; didn't get to bed until an hour and a half later. I think my lats grew.:confused:

"Any man's life will be filled with constant and unexpected encouragement if he makes up his mind to do his level best each day." ~Booker T. Washington

kateykate

Fri, February 3rd, 2006, 09:37 PM

hey guava, do your kids have chicken pox? Any spots yet?

guava

Sun, February 5th, 2006, 11:21 PM

No chicken pox, thank goodness. Should I get them immunized? Does the immunization need to be repeated in the future? The reason I decided not to get it done is because it's not a big deal for kids to get chicken pox, but if you get them as an adult, it is considerably more serious. I've heard stories of people carting their kids off to houses of infected kids in order to purposely contract the virus. I was looking forward to getting it over with.

The coffee table and end table are settled nicely in their spots. The living room is a warmer cozier place now. Last night I lit a candle, and sat down in the chair with a large glass of water to read a book. I've never felt comfortable enough to do that before in that room.

The rest of the family decided to have KFC for supper. Three pieces of fried chicken each. Probably close to 1000 calories, once you add in the fries and gravy. It did not appeal to me in the slightest bit, but I figured, since we were having a "cheat meal", I might as well have something equally unhealthy. I made a batch of chocolate pudding (2 C 1% milk, 2 T sugar, 2 T Splenda, 2 T corn starch, 4 T cocoa) and ate the whole thing as my supper, maybe 400 or 500 calories. Daily calories amounted to about 1800, which is pretty much my target. As long as my fat intake turns out less than 60 grams, my calories always end up less than 2000. I guess I don't have a very big appetite.

“The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them.” ~ Thomas Merton

TarSeal

Mon, February 6th, 2006, 01:25 AM

Chameleon

Mon, February 6th, 2006, 01:52 AM

My 2 year old son got chicken pox about a month or 2 back. He had lots of spots and all, but my 1 year old never showed a single symptom. I have no idea how this is possible... considering we did nothing to keep them apart or anything, and you know how they are all over each other all the time. I wonder if he got it but it was so mild it didn't show up? :confused:

I vote no on the chicken pox vaccine... it's just chicken pox! :D

it could be that your son has it but that it's dormant right now... it could probably pop up any time... but then again, he may just not have gotten it, but I don't know how... when my two brothers and I got it, it was like a chain reaction... my youngest brother got it, two weeks later, when the first one as over it, my middle brother got it, then two weeks later, I got it... it's no fun, but not anything I'd worry too much about unless your an adult

oh and Guava, once they've had the chicken pox they won't get it again so I wouldn't worry about the vacine, it's useless once they've already gone through having it :nod: ;)

Happy Monster

Mon, February 6th, 2006, 02:11 PM

Guava, how's the cold? I hope you feel better. I stayed in this weekend, got loads of sleep and feel much better now. :)

guava

Mon, February 6th, 2006, 02:42 PM

I don't feel physically ill, but I'm not feeling emotionally up to par.

We had a huge pile of snow dump on us Saturday night, and again last night. The buses could not get through, so there is no school. The kids were playing outside in the snow, then I whipped up some hot chocolate and a batch of playdough to keep them entertained. I painted a door and some trim in the basement, went through some boxes, did some vacuuming, and worked out on the elliptical for about a half hour while watching The Story of Us (http://www.thestoryofus.net/story.html). That's gotta be one of the greatest movies of all time. I can't watch it without bursting into tears and killing myself laughing, usually at the same time. It's a good movie to watch every few years. The longer I've been married, and the more times I watch it, the more I get out of it.

Once you become self-conscious, there is no end to it; once you start to doubt, there is no room for anything else. ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Neurotic's Notebook

badgolfer

Mon, February 6th, 2006, 03:05 PM

If your kids have not had chicken pox yet I would get them the vaccine. Its fine if they get it as kids but like you said it can be dangerous for adults. The odds of them getting it are lower because of everyone else getting the immunization. Since it is less likely for them to contract it now that could spell trouble for them if they do come in contact with it over the next 80 years. Im not a doctor either so asking yours is always the best option.

phillydude

Mon, February 6th, 2006, 03:28 PM

Thanks for the movie tip Guava... I'm bidding on a copy on eBay right now. Sounds like something we would enjoy.

guava

Tue, February 7th, 2006, 06:39 PM

I met a really cool guy today.

He jousts for a living. In fact, he is the world champion of jousting, "the ablest knight of modern times", and a damn good speaker as well. He put on an impressive swordfight with his brother while I wildly applauded his skills. This was my reward for supervising a group of my daughter's classmates at Casa Loma.

At the end of the fight, he told all of the kids how no matter what your dreams are, you can live them. As a little boy, he always dreamed of being a knight, and, amazingly enough, he made it happen.

Shane Adams (http://www.newsreview.com/reno/Content?oid=oid%3A18796)

Adams, 32, is a long-of-mane, cheerful-of-mien, 6-foot-4-inch, 250-pound soul of mad determination tempered by a chivalrous heart as anachronistic as, well, medieval chivalry. His is the mindset of the earnest knight whose word is his bond and honor his code. Add to that a showman's silver tongue, and you've got a guy with a brilliant knack for entertaining the masses and a truly charming vision.

guava

Wed, February 8th, 2006, 11:46 AM

Quick oatmeal pudding
Break one egg into a small saucepan.
Stir in 3/4 C milk.
Cook over medium heat just until it starts to thicken.
Add 1/2 C rolled oats. Cook on low 2 minutes more.

This was my attempt at adding more protein into my oat-heavy diet. I was too lazy to look up a recipe for rice pudding, so I just dumped in what sounded about right. I'm somewhat surprised that it worked.

Watched more of Story of Us while on the elliptical last night. I hope you like it phillydude; it is not a comedy. Most of the movie is actually made up of yelling, but it's sad and entertaining all at the same time.

I also FINALLY picked up my copy of Who Moved My Cheese from the library. Someone else must have had it signed out for a long time.

Never consider the possibility of failure; as long as you persist, you will be successful. ~ Brian Tracy

Happy Monster

Wed, February 8th, 2006, 03:06 PM

I also FINALLY picked up my copy of Who Moved My Cheese from the library. Someone else must have had it signed out for a long time.
Perhaps they just moved it?

guava

Wed, February 8th, 2006, 05:31 PM

Perhaps they just moved it?
Could be. Funny that you mention that. One of the things I do when I volunteer at the school library is deliver overdue notices. One of the teachers has a book out, and under status, it's listed:
From overdue to lost
The title of the book is
Can You Find It?:lol:

guava

Wed, February 8th, 2006, 06:55 PM

:cry: :cry: :cry:
:mad: :mad:

I have gone off the deep end. There is so much screaming and crying going on here, it's frightening.

Someone at school is supplying my daughter with chocolate chip cookies and chips. That's all she eats at school other than the occasional apple or orange.

She does not eat sandwiches. She doesn't like any kind of deli meat.
Spaghetti and meat sauce "gets mushy in my thermos".
She will not touch a leftover if her life depends on it.
I've tried muffins, quiches, pancakes, wraps, casseroles, stir fries, soups, stews, salads, puddings, yogurts; none of it is acceptable.
She likes peanut butter, but it's not allowed.
She likes cereal, but the kids at school laugh at her for bringing it. If she brings anything remotely healthy as a school lunch, she gets ridiculed.

I'm so worried that she's going to get health problems. It's so upsetting that when I look at her, I see an overweight girl. (She wears the same size that I do.) I'm worried about her athletic performance, her concentration, her longevity, the whole thing.

I feel powerless in this ever-continuing cycle.

:mad:

phillydude

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 12:14 AM

Egg Salad? Tuna Fish? Macaroni & Cheese in a thermos? PopTarts?

Ok... I was just kidding about that last one. Just trying to help.

Happy Monster

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 03:58 AM

I think there is a little power struggle going on here Guava. And you need to win it, else the results could be long term.

I'm sure it is very hard, but I really think you need to make sure your children know you are in charge and that they have to eat properly.

If they stopped having the sweet foods they will probably like the other options. :(

Good luck!

zenpharaohs

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 09:00 AM

She does not eat sandwiches. She doesn't like any kind of deli meat...

Oy that's a tough one. The one problem is that the kid needs to eat as well as she can. She doesn't know this, and trying to tell a teenager, well, that's not easy.

The other side of the coin is there is a powerful psychology that gets hooked up between you and any food you are forced to eat. I know this because my well meaning parents tried to force me to eat a lot of otherwise healthy things which cause serious reactions for me, since I was about eighteen months old. I ended up essentially not eating at home and living on fast food from the time I was about thirteen. None of the rest of my brothers or sisters had this going on, so it's not really that my parents were the problem, and I'm pretty well adjusted now. It's just a psychological issue that can happen when the parents do not understand what is really going on. It took me thirty years to get over this obstacle to relating to my parents.

I doubt your daughter has the same thing I did (food allergies) but there is probably something going on that causes the eating pattern. Possibly an eating disorder. Or, an eating disorder could result from the raised psychological stakes in some circumstances. Figuring out what is really causing her diet choices would be really helpful in my opinion. Probably not easy though.

The other thing is to look for another approach to the problem. She's overweight, so she's not completely starving - at least not for calories. She's female, so she should have fats in the diet, and chocolate chip cookies have that. The greens and stuff? Well, get a good multivitamin. It's not optimal, but you can live without eating any vegetables whatsoever for decades (I've done pretty well that way - I am completely unable to eat vegetables). Get fruit juice in there. It's not optimal, but from a health point of view you want to keep her going while the clash of cultures runs its course.

I would attack the overweight issue with exercise. Take the food and diet thing off the table so to speak. She can eat those cookies if she burns the calories. Get creative with the activity if you have to. I don't know, but think of a way to up her calorie expenditure - get a "Dance, Dance Revolution" machine, or get her to take up rock climbing (tell her it's a good way to meet boys). Cross country skiing. Get her a summer job as a roofer. Power Yoga. Does she still love horses? Ranch hand (I have two female cousins who did this - they are now in veterinary type jobs). If you can increase her calorie expenditure, then she will probably feel better from the exercise, and that can help take the pressure down on her side of the psychology. And you will see something that reassures you about her health and that will take your psychological stress down a notch.

Reno_1ted

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 09:28 AM

Oy that's a tough one. The one problem is that the kid needs to eat as well as she can. She doesn't know this, and trying to tell a teenager, well, that's not easy.

The other side of the coin is there is a powerful psychology that gets hooked up between you and any food you are forced to eat. I know this because my well meaning parents tried to force me to eat a lot of otherwise healthy things which cause serious reactions for me, since I was about eighteen months old. I ended up essentially not eating at home and living on fast food from the time I was about thirteen. None of the rest of my brothers or sisters had this going on, so it's not really that my parents were the problem, and I'm pretty well adjusted now. It's just a psychological issue that can happen when the parents do not understand what is really going on. It took me thirty years to get over this obstacle to relating to my parents.

I doubt your daughter has the same thing I did (food allergies) but there is probably something going on that causes the eating pattern. Possibly an eating disorder. Or, an eating disorder could result from the raised psychological stakes in some circumstances. Figuring out what is really causing her diet choices would be really helpful in my opinion. Probably not easy though.

The other thing is to look for another approach to the problem. She's overweight, so she's not completely starving - at least not for calories. She's female, so she should have fats in the diet, and chocolate chip cookies have that. The greens and stuff? Well, get a good multivitamin. It's not optimal, but you can live without eating any vegetables whatsoever for decades (I've done pretty well that way - I am completely unable to eat vegetables). Get fruit juice in there. It's not optimal, but from a health point of view you want to keep her going while the clash of cultures runs its course.

I would attack the overweight issue with exercise. Take the food and diet thing off the table so to speak. She can eat those cookies if she burns the calories. Get creative with the activity if you have to. I don't know, but think of a way to up her calorie expenditure - get a "Dance, Dance Revolution" machine, or get her to take up rock climbing (tell her it's a good way to meet boys). Cross country skiing. Get her a summer job as a roofer. Power Yoga. Does she still love horses? Ranch hand (I have two female cousins who did this - they are now in veterinary type jobs). If you can increase her calorie expenditure, then she will probably feel better from the exercise, and that can help take the pressure down on her side of the psychology. And you will see something that reassures you about her health and that will take your psychological stress down a notch.

That is a wholly excellent post. :nod:

When i was at school, i used to throw away packed lunches and go to the canteen and eat chips (fries for you guys) with gravy every day more or less. Then a cake for pudding. Its what kids do. Its hard to control their school diet, but i was ok, coz breakfast and dinner were always healthy at home. If i didnt like something, within reason, i didnt eat. My mother would never hanker to my requests for unhealthy foods, except every now and then. If kids think they can get away without doing something they will.

If you control her eating at home, and then keep the excersize up, she will be fine.

vatechguy

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 09:42 AM

Someone at school is supplying my daughter with chocolate chip cookies and chips. That's all she eats at school other than the occasional apple or orange.

Guava - how old is your daughter?

I don't have an easy answer for you other than to say we struggle with this with our Youngest daughter. She has already had some dental issues because of her love for candy - none of which is given to her from myself or my wife. She's in Pre-K and her teacher flat out enables her to get her hands on anything she wants - and it pisses me off that I have asked the teacher (politely) to back off the sweets with her - they still send her home with junk 3 out of the 5 days she goes to school. Never mind what I probably don't see her eating at school.

On a related note - I have a firm stance in my house for my kids - and while initially there was some wailing and crying over it - it seems to have fallen right where we need it to be now. YOU EAT WHAT I FIX FOR YOU FOR MEALS - OR YOU DON'T EAT. Period. Granted with older kids (Mine are 2,5 and 6) I'm sure they can work around it with their friends and people at school to some degree - but going out of your way to try and accomodate a fussy eater I've always been told by our pediatricians is the wrong way to go - you set yourself up fo failure.

Good luck though. It's frustrating.

Reno_1ted

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 09:48 AM

YOU EAT WHAT I FIX FOR YOU FOR MEALS - OR YOU DON'T EAT. Period. Granted with older kids (Mine are 2,5 and 6) I'm sure they can work around it with their friends and people at school to some degree - but going out of your way to try and accomodate a fussy eater I've always been told by our pediatricians is the wrong way to go - you set yourself up fo failure.

My point exactly. :tu:

Bluestreak

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 10:01 AM

YOU EAT WHAT I FIX FOR YOU FOR MEALS - OR YOU DON'T EAT. Period.
Yeeeeeaaaaargh. I'm having major flashbacks to my childhood reading that statement on the screen. You can't imagine how many times I heard this one... I was, and still am, an extremely picky eater.

I went to a small private Catholic school, so I went through my grade school years with the same exact classmates and there were never more than 25 kids in my grade school classes. My parents would recruit my teacher(s) to make sure I was eating what I was sent to school with. I think it was easier to get the teacher to keep that kind of close eye on the kids with small, intimate classes of that size. Being teased wasn't generally an issue because you had the same classmates, and they were all your friends - kids that didn't fit in socially generally didn't come back to the school the next year.

If you can get the teachers to give a shit (apparently, a problem in the American public school system), I'd say get them in on the act to help police her eating habits. She'll still get around it to some degree (as closely as I was watched, I got away with it quite often) but you will put a serious dent in her ability to get her hands on crap-food.

And I still ended up being one of the chunkier kids until I hit high school and got into some of the athletics programs.

-R

guava

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 11:25 AM

If you can get the teachers to give a shit (apparently, a problem in the American public school system), I'd say get them in on the act to help police her eating habits. She'll still get around it to some degree (as closely as I was watched, I got away with it quite often) but you will put a serious dent in her ability to get her hands on crap-food.
Not likely. They sponsor a pizza day every single Friday. Most kids order 2 slices each time. I told her she can have two slices per month; her choice of whether to split it over the days or eat them both on the same day.

Every month, they have a special assembly, and kids are selected as attentive listeners, helpful friends, etc. They are awarded a certificate for a free small fry from McDonald's. I was so pissed off about it that I wrote a letter to the school, but I never did send it.

The other side of the coin is there is a powerful psychology that gets hooked up between you and any food you are forced to eat. an eating disorder could result from the raised psychological stakes in some circumstances. Figuring out what is really causing her diet choices would be really helpful in my opinion. Probably not easy though.
I'm conscious of this all the time, and that why I need my husband's help in this. My expectation for her nutrition is miles above any other parents expectation, and it must feel overwhelming to her. She has been packing her own lunch for this entire school year, so she is never forced to eat what she doesn't like or what doesn't agree with her. For the last several months, she's been packing Vector cereal, a yogurt, an apple, and a few crackers, or a pudding, or a cookie. Usually the yogurt goes uneaten. At one point, I thought the lunch meat rebellion was some sort of preteen vegetarianism, but based on her other food choices, it doesn't seem to be.
The other thing is to look for another approach to the problem. She's overweight, so she's not completely starving - at least not for calories. She's female, so she should have fats in the diet, and chocolate chip cookies have that. The greens and stuff? Well, get a good multivitamin. It's not optimal, but you can live without eating any vegetables whatsoever for decades. Get fruit juice in there. It's not optimal, but from a health point of view you want to keep her going while the clash of cultures runs its course.
Here's the other problem. She's not officially overweight. Not according to her doctor. When I look at her, I see an overweight girl. It's not necessarily reality, but it stresses me out. She's ten years old. She's about the height of an average 10 year old, and about the weight of an average 12 year old. She's the same size I was when I was 11 years old and had to wear girls plus size clothing, and felt fat for all of the next 13 years. This is why I need my husband's help, because I'm too emotionally connected to the whole thing.

I would attack the overweight issue with exercise. Take the food and diet thing off the table so to speak. She can eat those cookies if she burns the calories. Get creative with the activity if you have to. I don't know, but think of a way to up her calorie expenditure - get a "Dance, Dance Revolution" machine, or get her to take up rock climbing (tell her it's a good way to meet boys).
She would love rock climbing. She's on a hockey team, and in the swim club, so I'm covered there. She would also like to do a martial art, but we're too busy to add in any more. When hockey's over, she'll start soccer.

I go through this every couple of months and it helps just to know that other people understand how frustrating it is.

There are two issues, of course. The first one is "What will she eat?" and the second one is "What will she eat at school?"

She will occasionally eat muffins, and will pack them sometimes for lunch.
She will occasionally eat chicken noodle soup and will sometimes ask for it for lunch.
She will eat pizza, and sometimes will take it to school.
She will eat carrot sticks and cucumber occasionally.
She will eat Caesar salad, but only if it has a lot of dressing.
She will eat cereal, either at home, or at school, but she gets bored of it, and prefers the high sugar varieties.
She will eat apples, at home or at school.
She will eat bananas, at home only.
She will eat spaghetti and meat sauce, but will not take it for lunch.
She will eat breaded pork chops and oven baked potato wedges, but will not take them for lunch.
She will eat steak and barbecued potatoes, but will not take it for lunch.
She will eat hamburgers, but will not take them for lunch.
She will eat stir fry, but will not take it for lunch.
She will eat soft tacos and quesadillas, but will not take them for lunch.
She will eat Kraft Dinner, but will not take it for lunch.
She will eat blueberry bagels, but will not take them for lunch.
She will eat eggs or pancakes occasionally, but only if I serve them with bacon.
She will eat chicken nuggets, but not the homemade ones.
She used to eat roast chicken and mashed potatoes, but she's been refusing it lately.
She used to eat ham, pastrami, and corned beef, but I can't figure out why she won't any more.
She used to eat yogurt, but she's been refusing it lately.
She used to eat tapioca pudding, but she's been refusing it lately.
She will eat chocolate pudding occasionally, but the store-bought one made with vegetable oil and lots of sugar is preferable to her. :rolleyes:
She will eat cheese and crackers, but I will only give her snack sized portions, not meal-sized containers like her friends get.
She will eat granola bars, but not the homemade ones.

Allowing more fruit juice, granola bars, cheese, and crackers as lunch options would make things a lot easier, but I'm not sure if I'm comfortable with that. She might just eat bologna, but I haven't been letting her choose that as an option. She has agreed to pack muffins more often, and that should improve things.

michael2938

Thu, February 9th, 2006, 11:49 AM

I don't have kids, so I can't relate to any of this in the same way, but I do have some opinions I'll share for the heck of it. But I just wanted to add that disclaimer in first so you know that I probably don't know what I'm talking about! :tu:

Not likely. They sponsor a pizza day every single Friday. Most kids order 2 slices each time. I told her she can have two slices per month; her choice of whether to split it over the days or eat them both on the same day. I can't believe a school does this kind of thing. I can see once a month or on a holiday or something, but not every week. Do all the kids eat pizza except her? This may be a good opportunity to let her have a reward. She eats healthy at home all week long, let her have the pizza every week at school. She'll feel like she fits in better with her friends and won't be self-conscious of the healthy food.

Here's the other problem. She's not officially overweight. Not according to her doctor. When I look at her, I see an overweight girl. It's not necessarily reality, but it stresses me out. She's ten years old. She's about the height of an average 10 year old, and about the weight of an average 12 year old. She's the same size I was when I was 11 years old and had to wear girls plus size clothing, and felt fat for all of the next 13 years. What does she think? Does she think she is fat? Or does she think you think she is fat?

She would love rock climbing. She's on a hockey team, and in the swim club, so I'm covered there. She would also like to do a martial art, but we're too busy to add in any more. When hockey's over, she'll start soccer. She seems very active. That's good. It sounds like as long as you make sure she eats healthy at home, you can worry less about what she is eating in school.

-Mike

guava

Sat, February 11th, 2006, 12:37 AM

Mike, she doesn't think she's fat. She was telling her friend (a boy) this morning that to fit into the girls' clothing that's in style now, you have to be "a stick". So she's thinking about body image, but she's not frustrated about her own.

I'm trying to iron out our schedule for Orlando. We were going to do 3 or 4 days at a Disney Park, and 1 day at Universal Islands of Adventure, but after searching a bit online, I discovered that the four of us can go to Universal for 5 days for less than $300. That's the same as what it costs to go to a Disney Park for 1 day. Of course, one day at Universal is the same price as going for 5 days.:rolleyes: So I think we'll buy a two-day pass for the Disney parks and take the Universal tickets to use as many days as we like. Not sure yet on what's the best way to buy the Disney passes. It's too late to have them mailed to us.

I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day. ~Elwyn Brooks White

TheLemonSong

Sat, February 11th, 2006, 01:16 AM

Guava,
Why not just feed her *less* at home and tell her that she's eating poorly at school (however is best to say this kind of thing I don't really know) and that that is the reason...tell her that if she wants to eat more for breakfast and for dinner then she'll have to eat better at lunch. I don't have kids or anything, so who knows if this is way off base..but it seems that while you might not be able to control her actions at school you *can* control her actions at home...maybe it would be good to *encourage* her to be vegetarian? That might lead to her making the mistakes of eating McDonalds and that kind of thing...it seems like she's rebelling by being pseudo-veggie already, so maybe if you encourage it she'd even decide to eat meat again and then you could pack her a sandwich...
Maybe that will help???

badgolfer

Sat, February 11th, 2006, 12:22 PM

Hey Guava. I missed all this the last few days. Im just going to tell you what I do. My kids are a little younger so it might not be pertinant at all. I do give my kids what they want for the most part. A lot of chicken nuggets, pizza, french fries get eaten around here. I would rather have them eat that than nothing at all.

William(4) wanted waffles for breakfast so I made waffles for everyone. Fortunately he likes the whole wheat belgium waffles. Just a short time ago he asked for a snack. I offered him two healthy options. He fefused so I asked him what he wanted and he said fruit snacks. I gave him about ten and told him that they are not healthy for him. I do this every time he eats something downright unhealthy.

I am hoping that by educating him he will at least learn to make his own healthy choices. He wont eat chocolate anything because it is not healthy.

I of course dont let him choose to eat cake and cookies all day but I cant force hin to eat healthy all the time either. I dont want him to end up resenting healthy food because I forced it down his throat.

Im sure a lot of this has been said already but you got a lot of replies I did not read through. Sorry for repeating if thats the case.

guava

Sat, February 11th, 2006, 12:59 PM

Why not just feed her *less* at home and tell her that she's eating poorly at school and that that is the reason...tell her that if she wants to eat more for breakfast and for dinner then she'll have to eat better at lunch. There's no need for her to eat less. I believe in nutrition that will satisfy her hunger and keep her energy levels up....maybe it would be good to *encourage* her to be vegetarian? That might lead to her making the mistakes of eating McDonalds and that kind of thing...it seems like she's rebelling by being pseudo-veggie already, so maybe if you encourage it she'd even decide to eat meat again and then you could pack her a sandwich...Yeah, I've been talking about the foundations of a vegetarian lifestyle with her. I said as soon as she starts eating kidney beans and tofu, she can be a vegetarian. That's not going to happen any time soon.:lol:

I do give my kids what they want for the most part. A lot of chicken nuggets, pizza, french fries get eaten around here. I would rather have them eat that than nothing at all.
It's tricky for me. In a way, yes, I'd rather have them eat chicken nuggets and pizza than nothing at all, but I'm not convinced that these are the only options. Would she really eat nothing if that was the only alternative to yogurt, granola, eggs, homemade chicken nuggets, roast chicken, black forest ham, etc. etc. etc.? I feel like there should be a way for me to win this fight.
William(4) wanted waffles for breakfast so I made waffles for everyone. Just a short time ago he asked for a snack. I offered him two healthy options. He fefused so I asked him what he wanted and he said fruit snacks. I gave him about ten and told him that they are not healthy for him. I do this every time he eats something downright unhealthy.

I am hoping that by educating him he will at least learn to make his own healthy choices. I dont want him to end up resenting healthy food because I forced it down his throat.
Every time I serve the girls anything unhealthy, I always talk about how it is a treat, and not a snack. If they want a snack, they know they need to choose yogurt and/or a piece of fruit and/or cereal or toast. Cookies and ice cream are not snacks; they are treats. They probably get treats about five times a week.

Reno_1ted

Sun, February 12th, 2006, 06:49 AM

I realise the importance of teaching your kids healthy eating and making sure they are healthy etc, but do u think Guava that perhaps because YOU were unhappy with your figure at that age, you are letting that cloud your judgement somewhat and perhaps she is perfectly content with the way she looks, so really its less of a problem and you are more concearned because of how YOU were then, not because of how she is now.

I think that because of stuff you have posted, that YOU see an overweight child, though techincally she isnt, that you felt unhappy at her age at that weight and your worried she will to, yet you say she isnt and she doesnt consider herself in that way ? She isnt you, is not necessarily going to feel the same way about things and wont have the same enviroment that you had at that age (i dont know what your enviroment was, i just mean 2 people dont really ever have the same enviroment).

It can be, in my experience, quite a negative thing to let the way you were / are effect other people. Thats not to take anything away from the basic principle of having kids eat right, just something to consider. :)

guava

Sun, February 12th, 2006, 09:47 AM

Yes, Reno, that's exactly what's going through my head. I feel now like I wish my mom had been more careful about what she fed me, and I don't want to make the same mistakes. I'm trying to find the balance between good health and the fun of being a kid. Not sure where it lies.

Reno_1ted

Sun, February 12th, 2006, 01:09 PM

doordude42

Sun, February 12th, 2006, 01:56 PM

BOO!!!!!!!.....................

http://smiley.onegreatguy.net/ghost.gif

guava

Tue, February 14th, 2006, 10:57 AM

http://basketballboards.net/forum/images/smilies/love.gifHappy Valentine's Day!

My husband has this meeting with the Japanese to attend tonight. Not surprisingly, his boss will not be attending; he has better things to do. He, however, will never run the company, and surely, my husband will. Or his own company. Or the country. :lol: The boss told him to schedule a meeting for after we get back from holidays to let him know what he missed because he was too busy celebrating Valentine's Day.:rolleyes: I told him to make sure he scheduled it for his wife's birthday, or something.:moon: I suppose his boss doesn't realize that Valentine's Day is my favorite day of the year. (That, or Canada Day. I keep forgetting.) Way better than any birthday or Christmas or any other holiday. And I will enjoy it no matter what happens today.http://smiley.onegreatguy.net/kiss5.gif

I'm cleaning out the fridge. I found some cherry pie filling that's been in there since Christmas. It still looks as fresh as the day it was opened. That can't be good for your body.

I tried the overhead squats last night, and they do cause wheezing. I'm going to look into focusing a bit better on positioning and see if I can change that. Need to find that thread again.

Love is the true means by which the world is enjoyed: our love to others, and others' love to us. ~ Thomas Trahernhttp://www.basketballboards.net/forum/images/smilies/kiss.gif

Happy Monster

Tue, February 14th, 2006, 02:02 PM

Your whole post seemed filled with an excited smile. :p :D

guava

Tue, February 14th, 2006, 03:08 PM

Your whole post seemed filled with an excited smile. :p :D
The whole DAY is filled with an excited smile.:D

Happy Monster

Tue, February 14th, 2006, 03:50 PM

:jumping:

phillydude

Tue, February 14th, 2006, 04:41 PM

[IMG]Valentine's Day is my favorite day of the year. (That, or Canada Day. I keep forgetting.) Way better than any birthday or Christmas or any other holiday.

You frighten me. Really, you do. I'm sitting at the far end of the table, with either John or Chris sitting between us to protect me.

Either that, or you and I will end up with the bottle of tequila between us like that scene from Raiders Of The Lost Ark.

I've also got a client meeting tonight. Hopefully my wife will wait up. I left her present on the dining room table just in case.

doordude42

Tue, February 14th, 2006, 07:14 PM

http://smiley.onegreatguy.net/whip.gif

:D :D :D ..............:whistle:

guava

Tue, February 14th, 2006, 07:50 PM

You frighten me. Really, you do. .I frighten you? That's a new one!:confused:
I'm sitting at the far end of the table, with either John or Chris sitting between us to protect me. John frightens me, so you'll have to put Chris there. :lol:

guava

Thu, February 16th, 2006, 10:30 PM

philly, you can rest easy because they confiscated my knives :evil:

Yeah, silly me, I decided to pack some butter knives so that I could spread my peanut butter that I packed. Problem is, I packed them in my carryon bag, and that's not allowed.:o So, they were taken from me, and now I have to spread my peanut butter with a plastic spoon.:rolleyes:

Orlando, wow, it's great. I love it. We went to Animal Kingdom today, and it was awesome. A beautiful day. One of the guides there was asking where we were from, and when we said "Canada", she said "Oh, that explains why you're not dressed." We all had shorts and t-shirts on, and she was wearing pants and a long coat.

The rest of my family are not very ride-adventurous, so I had to ride "Expidition Everest" alone. It turned out well, however, because, as a single rider, I had less than a five-minute wait in line. Actually, the whole park was very quiet. Unbelievably, the longest we waited for anything was 10 minutes for the Jungle Safari first thing in the morning! They let us stay on Kali River Rapids because there was nobody in line. Tomorrow, we go to Universal Studios, and I'll cross my fingers for the lineups to be similar.

Unfortunately, the hotel does not have babysitters as described, so we'll be bringing the kids along with us to the cheat meal on Saturday.

I met causticmuse and Chameleon last night; amazing people. Causticmuse has such a such magnetic poise, and Chameleon has enough energy and self confidence for three people!

Drinking the two cups of coffee last night was a mistake. I hardly slept at all. I put my husband on "caffeine watch" today. DO NOT LET ME NEAR A CUP OF COFFEE. I'm planning a bit of an earlier bedtime tonight, if only I can stop myself from reading the complete update in "This thread is Internet Crack" (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?p=281521). I think it's impossible. Crack, ya know? :bang:

John Stone

Thu, February 16th, 2006, 10:49 PM

Hey, I told you - I'm completely harmless. :) Besides, Lisa keeps in line; in fact, by the end of the night you will all probably be making fun of me. Lisa knows all my secrets, and after a drink or two she will undoubtedly regale the group with the most embarrassing of the lot. :eek:

Glad you are in Orlando and having fun! I'm looking forward to meeting you and your family on Saturday!

Bluestreak

Thu, February 16th, 2006, 11:13 PM

... and Chameleon has enough energy and self confidence for three people!
She never stopped talking, did she? :lol:

That's my girl. :D

-R

Looking forward to Saturday night, gang.

guava

Thu, February 23rd, 2006, 09:24 AM

Whew! Am I the only one who looks forward to vacation being over so that I can go home and eat broccoli and canned tuna? I've been missing my vegetables. It's such a relief to be able to prepare the things that I'm used to, and the foods that I love in the combinations that work for me! For breakfast this morning, I prepared a large "salad" of broccoli, green apple, raisins and walnuts. Beats any breakfast buffet.

Other than the eating part, the rest of the holiday was fabulous, including the cheat meal. I developed a taste for Starbucks coffee as well. Any store that makes cinnamon shakers available to its customers wins points in my book.

The first thing I did last night after throwing a load of clothes in the washer was rush out to the grocery store. I bought broccoli, baby spinach, apples, whole wheat bread, fat free ham, and fat free yogurt. I will miss the pina colada yogurt that was so easy to find in Orlando. Here, there's one brand that makes a really tasty cherry flavor available at some stores, but usually my choices are limited to vanilla, strawberry, blueberry, or peach.

Slowly, I'll be getting back into my lifting routine. Cardio will be harder to get back into. I suppose I walked several miles each day on our vacation, but I'm not too crazy about anything other than walking, so it'll take a little bit of self talk and some interesting movies to drag me back onto that elliptical.

It is only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it were the only one we had. ~Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

guava

Fri, February 24th, 2006, 06:28 PM

I applied for a job with Statistics Canada. I'm so proud of myself.:D

It's for the census; runs for 7 to 12 weeks, full time or part time. I'm hoping to be considered for a supervisory position, but I really don't have any relevant experience, so I'll take whatever they offer.

guava

Sun, February 26th, 2006, 11:36 PM

My daughter played hockey today and yesterday. Ford was raffling off a Gretzky hockey jersey to those people that took a new Fusion for a test drive. Driving is not my idea of fun, but I did accept their free coffee (two cups) and let my daughter have hot chocolate (two cups). Then I felt bad about mooching, so I paid $2 for a bracelet to support the Wayne Gretzky Foundation (http://www.waynegretzky.com/community.aspx).

This afternoon, I went to a tea to thank me for being a "Friend of the Library". (I help out at the annual book sale, and do other things) When a woman offerred me a dainty, I told her I couldn't possibly eat it while standing up. She looked at me a little funny at first, but then I showed her that I couldn't handle a crumbly butter tart AND a teacup and saucer while mingling. She seemed to buy it. I did, however, have a piece of cake that they served. And three cups of coffee. I also amazingly enough seemed to manage the crowd pretty well. I asked people questions about themselves and didn't end up looking stupid.:tucool:

I did 45 minutes on the elliptical to the tape of U-571 that I borrowed this afternoon from the library. McConaughey looks and sounds pretty goofy in the movie, but there was a nice preview for The Fast and the Furious on the tape. Unfortunately, Vin Diesel doesn't have quite the same charm as Matthew.

For breakfast, I had Red River cereal (cracked wheat, flax, etc.) with raisins. Lunch, about 2 C raw spinach, an apricot, some walnuts, then as a snack two pieces of toast with peanut butter (and above-mentioned cake) and for supper an egg, an egg white, and 8 strawberries. Later on, another snack, half an orange, one leftover perogy, and one leftover meatball.

Today has not been a perfect day, but then, not all days can be.

I walked a mile with Pleasure,
She chattered all the way;
But left me none the wiser,
For all she had to say.
I walked a mile with Sorrow
And ne'er a word said she;
But, oh, the things I learned from her
When Sorrow walked with me!
~ Robert Browning Hamilton

Daniella83

Mon, February 27th, 2006, 06:56 AM

Hey Guava,

I was wondering how it was going with your daughter and her eating habits.

I don't have any children, but I do have two younger sisters (eight and thirteen years old.) and I tutor English to young children so I spend quiet a bit of time around children.

I totally agree with michael2938, about letting her have pizza every week with her friends as a reward for eating healthy the rest of the week. Do you think this will work? Have you given it a try?

Regarding lunch box solutions, you said she eats steak and pork chops with potatoes at home but refuses to take them to school. Maybe she is conscious about eating things that require a fork and knife because other kids could make fun of her.

How about making sandwhiches with steak or pork. You could try making the sandwhiches with raisin bread to make it a little more interesting (if she likes raisins that is :nod: )

You said she is willing to eat apples, another sandwhich solution could be whole wheat bread with light cream cheese and chopped apples. (or cream cheese and reduced sugar jam, may sound weird but it tastes really good)

You also mentioned that she likes crackers and cheese. How about replacing the regular crackers with whole wheat or soy crackers and give her reduced fat cheese (I bet she would know the difference :tu: )

Also, you said she is willing to take pizza to school. I dont know if you work or whether you have time for this, but you could make healthy pizza for her to take to school. You can make a healthy whole wheat crust, and top it with sugar free tomato sauce, tons of veggies (the ones she is willing to eat. peppers, onions, mushrooms, pineapple etc.), healthy protein (chicken strips, tuna, lean ham, or meatless meatballs) and reduced fat cheese.
You could make a few pizzas (or enough for the week) during the weekend and freeze them (defrost as needed)

Lastly I don't know if she is willing to eat veggies. I tutor two kids who just hate vegetables. So most of the time the mother makes juice from all kinds of fruit/veg (for example once she juiced zucchini, carrots, apples, and oranges) I tried it also, and it was actually pretty good. Or a good multivitamin would work :D

:gl:

guava

Mon, February 27th, 2006, 08:46 AM

Those are some great ideas. Many of the foods you suggested I've asked her about and she says she won't eat them, but maybe if I just prepared them anyway and tucked them in her lunch she might try them and decide she likes them.

My husband made supper last night, and when the girls wouldn't eat what he made, he completely flipped out. He would support me being stricter about "you eat what's in front of you" but I'm not even sure that's the right way to go.

guava

Tue, February 28th, 2006, 10:26 AM

Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. Look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true. Think only of the best, work only for the best, and expect only the best. Forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. Give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others. Live in the faith that the whole world is on your side so long as you are true to the best that is in you! ~ Christian D. Larson

guava

Tue, February 28th, 2006, 03:01 PM

I'm feeling a little better than I was this morning, when I wrote my journal entry then deleted it.

When I have negative thoughts, my first instinct is to flee from the situation, but it's really much easier in the long run to fight through it.

Everything seems a little more manageable now that the house is vaccuumed and dusted, the dishes are done, the laundry is done, and I have a nice warm bowl of chocolate oatmeal in front of me.

The library at the school was closed today, so I couldn't do my reading coaching again today (I couldn't find the librarian last Thursday either.) I won't be going this Thursday either, because that's when I write my assessment test for Statistics Canada. It's nearby my husband's work, so we'll get to go out for lunch together when I'm done. :) If they're speedy about it, then my interview will be next week. That's the one that makes me nervous.

Next up is a spin on the elliptical while finishing off the submarine movie.

Perhaps all the dragons in our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see us act, just once, with beauty and courage. Perhaps everything that frightens us is, in its deepest essence, something helpless that wants our love. ~Rainer Maria Rilke

Chameleon

Tue, February 28th, 2006, 03:23 PM

guava

Wed, March 1st, 2006, 08:57 AM

It's going to be a good day!

Because it's Wednesday. Wednesday is gymnastics day for the little one, and that means shopping, and shopping always makes me happy. The grocery store has frozen terriaki salmon on sale, so I'm all set to restock my freezer.

I ate my breakfast calories last night (stupid bad-mood binge), so I'm going to stick with either just an apple or an orange and some coffee for breakfast, and I'll pack a salad or something with me to eat at the mall.

We look forward to the time when the Power of Love will replace the Love of Power. Then will our world know the blessings of peace. William Ewart Gladstone

phillydude

Wed, March 1st, 2006, 10:11 AM

Alert: Matthew is going to be on the Barbara Walters special tonight. Check local listings for time and channel.

guava

Wed, March 1st, 2006, 10:21 AM

Alert: Matthew is going to be on the Barbara Walters special tonight. Check local listings for time and channel.
Thank you philly!!!!!
I knew about this, but it slipped my mind. I owe you big.

1FastGTX

Wed, March 1st, 2006, 12:55 PM

The grocery store has frozen terriaki salmon on sale, so I'm all set to restock my freezer.
Okay this sounds GOOD. I'm going to have to look for this!!!

guava

Wed, March 1st, 2006, 05:12 PM

Okay this sounds GOOD. I'm going to have to look for this!!!

Introducing Stir-Fry Creations (http://www.highliner.com/pgs_eng/product_category.asp?product_category=#Stir-Fry%20Creations,%20Teriyaki%20Salmon)- Teriyaki Salmon, a complete meal ready in just 13 minutes. Try the delicious taste of wild Pacific Salmon, long grain rice and fresh tasting vegetable medley served up with a robust teriyaki sauce. Low in saturated fat, with 1g of saturated fat per serving. Zero trans fatty acids.

The salmon, vegetables, rice and sauce are individually pouched to ensure freshness and easy of preparation. Available in 800g package.

Regular price is $8.99, and my store had it on sale for $3.99! I've never tried it before. I bought just two boxes, because that's all the room I have in my freezer right now.

I don't know how my tv works, :doh: so I'm not sure if I'll ever find that Barbara Walters Special.:cry: Google?

guava

Thu, March 2nd, 2006, 07:30 PM

Test completed. I got two answers wrong for sure. They'll let me know in April if I get an interview. The test was not stress-inducing; what was difficult was driving there. Once I was almost there, I stopped to get some coffee, and figured a brownie might help calm me as well. I had a couple of bites, and saved the rest for when I was finished the test. This monster was nearly the size of two decks of cards, so I estimate about 800 calories. Driving home afterwards was a breeze; I'm impressed how much better I'm becoming at it.

I went to the mall afterwards, looking for a sweater. I'm not crazy about the current style that insists everything should look like it's painted on. The salesperson would not even let me try on a size Large. :rolleyes: She said the small was too big; I told her the medium was too small. :nono: Great reason to buy clothing at Value Village; if you don't like this year's style, buy the things that were in style five years ago.:p

This week is the grand opening of yet another new grocery store in the town next to us. I managed to pick up three huge sirloin steaks that were marked down to $6. My husband barbecued them for supper, but I opted instead for shrimp that I had left from what I bought on sale yesterday. I just about bought a six-pack of giant chocolate muffins ($1.75), but I put them down when I read on the back that each muffin was made up of 474 calories, 198 of which were from fat. Sometimes good deals are not good deals. :nope:

Since my diet was so awful, I thought I'd check it for fun. Pretty low on protein today, but everything else is not really not as high as I thought it'd be:
Spaghetti with meat sauce 6 oz 201 5 28 10
Bread, whole wheat, 100% 1 regular slice 69 1 13 3
Peanut butter 0.5 tablespoon 47 4 2 2
Coffee, made from ground, regular 10 fl oz 6 0 1 0
Aspartame sweetener, sugar substitute 1 teaspoon 11 0 3 0
Milk, whole Guideline amount per 10 fl oz 15 1 1 1
Fast foods, brownie 3 brownie (2" square) 729 30 117 8
Weetabix Whole Wheat Cereal 1 cup 213 2 44 7
Apple, raw 1 medium (2-3/4" dia) (approx 3 per lb) 81 0 21 0
Yogurt, fruit variety, nonfat milk, no sugar 1 cup (8 fl oz) 100 0 15 10
Shrimp, steamed or boiled 8 medium shrimp (shelled) 55 1 0 11
Rice noodles, cooked 0.6 cup 115 0 26 1
Broccoli, cooked, 0.5 cup, 14031
Sweet and sour sauce1 tablespoon 14040
Total Calories 1670 45 277 54

My scale is recording pretty close to my lowest weight ever, so I must be undereating. I'm not sure how that could be. Perhaps I should go back on my superfoods diet for a while to clean things up some more.

Bear in mind, if you are going to amount to anything, that your success does not depend upon the brilliancy and the impetuosity with which you take hold, but upon the ever lasting and sanctified buldoggedness with which you hang on after you have taken hold. ~ Dr. A. B. Meldrum

guava

Fri, March 3rd, 2006, 10:13 AM

52.0 kg 16.6% body fat.
Lowest weight ever recorded in the last year. Lowest body fat percentage ever recorded. But not reason to celebrate because I can't account for it. :confused: My calories have been low, but not good quality. My lifting has been regular, but not to failure. I'd like to get my focus back to health, because I'm not sure I'm moving in the right direction anymore with this extreme drive to uncover my lower abs. I'm going to restructure my diet to more closely resemble the superfoods diet. If I get the job, I'm using some of the money to buy the 50 pound Bowflex Select-Tech dumbbells.

For breastfast, I had about 20 shrimp with cocktail sauce, and an orange. I'm happy with that.

I just got a call from Statistics Canada. (Just right now, in the middle of typing this update.) She wanted me to schedule a convenient time for her to call back to conduct a telephone interview. Since the kids will be home with me most of the time next week for spring break, there wasn't really any better time, so I said "Why not now?" She seemed impressed with my answers, and said she'd get back to me in a week or so after she contacted my references.:D

doordude42

Fri, March 3rd, 2006, 10:45 AM

For breastfast, I had about 20 shrimp with cocktail sauce, and an orange. I'm happy with that.

D

Breastfast????:lol: :lol: :lol:
I like your new avatar. It's very nice.

guava

Fri, March 3rd, 2006, 10:54 AM

Breastfast????:lol: :lol: :lol:
I like your new avatar. It's very nice.
:doh: OMG!
http://www.aximsite.com/boards/images/smilies/rolling2.gifhttp://www.aximsite.com/boards/images/smilies/rolling2.gifhttp://www.aximsite.com/boards/images/smilies/rolling2.gif

It's that damn thread that Jim G. started.

Happy Monster

Sat, March 4th, 2006, 02:23 PM

Oh no! What happened to the nice picture of you? :(

guava

Sat, March 4th, 2006, 04:51 PM

My husband told me a couple of weeks ago that he could get me a job at his work. I said "Thanks, but no thanks." It's not that I want to work; I want to do something that I'm good at. If there were any positions related to data collection or data analysis, I'd do it, but I don't think I'd be very happy in anything clerical. We'll see what comes up.

Oh no! What happened to the nice picture of you? :(
It went on vacation.:p
It makes me self conscious. I'd rather be thinking about other people instead of thinking about me.

My current avatar is from the show Lazy Town. The guy is an Icelandic gymnast named Magnus Scheving.
http://vestmannaeyjar.ismennt.is/vefir/comenius/people/moskva.jpg
He was born 11th November 1964 in Reykjavík. He started to practice Aerobics in the year 1985 in Reykjavík. Since then he has trained one hour a day and he alco teaches Aerobic.
Magnús became the Icelandic men's Individual campion when he started compting in aerobics in 1992 and has gone on to win 1st place in Iceland 4 times. In 1993 he was Scandivian champion, took 3rd place at the Suzuki World Cup and also came 3rd in the Taejon Expo in Korea. In 1994 he was European champin, was in 2nd plase at the Suzuki World Cup and won the international competition in Seoul, Korea. In February 1995 he won the European championship for the second time.

Magnús has not only trained Aerobic. He has got 70 award for race mainly for 1500 and 5000 meters. Once when he was a kid he also practiced basketball, handball, and athletic. He is interested in all kind of sports but tennis is his favorite. Magnús was chosen the sportsman of the Year 1994 in Iceland.

Magnús also gives lectures and demonstrations in Aerobics all over the country and gives lectures about good healt and sports for children in schools. He has also written a book for children and teenagers. Magnús is married to Ragnheiður Melsted.

There's a Superhero Challenge on Nick Jr. (http://www.nickjr.com/playtime/cats/games/index.jhtml) where he asks you to spin a spinner, move your marker on a board, and follow the instructions on the card that you pick. He told me to "Do split jumps!" I looked at him like he was crazy, but I gave them a try. ;)

http://www.bswc.co.uk/smilies/woohoo.gif

“Live life fully while you're here. Experience everything. Take care of yourself and your friends. Have fun, be crazy, be weird. Go out and screw up! You're going to anyway, so you might as well enjoy the process. Take the opportunity to learn from your mistakes: find the cause of your problem and eliminate it. Don't try to be perfect; just be an excellent example of being human.” ~ Anthony Robbins

guava

Sun, March 5th, 2006, 05:47 PM

I watched "Lost in Translation" last night. A nice movie that really struck a chord with me. (It could have done without the R rating. I don't know why those dancers were in the movie, other than to demonstrate that Bob was seeking emotional intimacy rather than physical stimulation.) In the special features of the DVD, there's a segment with Billy Murray and Sofia Coppola. Bill talks about being in Tokyo and having to deal with "always being misunderstood". I could really relate to that based on the different countries I've lived in. In fact, I felt even more vulnerable than the characters in the movie did. They were on a trip for a few weeks; I was completely relocated for years at a time. For myself, like the characters in the movie, that feeling of being misunderstood spilled over into my personal life to completely consume me. For a full six years of my life I more frequently felt misunderstood than understood. I've never really been able to pin that down until I heard him say that.

I went skating with my girls today.:D

My husband was there as well, so I got some time on the ice on my own. It was invigorating to whiz by on skates, feeling the breeze on my face. Whenever they played a good song, I felt like dancing, but then I remembered I really don't have that much talent on the ice.:p :o

After skating, I went to the store. I bought pretty typical stuff for me: two whole grain rolls, a bag of spinach, 4 apples, 4 plums, a bunch of bananas, a can of black bean soup, and a container of fat free yogurt. I passed a woman who had in her cart a large frozen pizza, two packages of toaster strudels, a four-pack of chocolate pudding, a bag of croissants and a six pack of muffins. :eek: I had to fight myself not to rush over and start lecturing her.

You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you'll discover will be wonderful. What you'll discover is yourself. ~Alan Alda

guava

Mon, March 6th, 2006, 02:50 PM

The VIP forums are quite interesting indeed. Sometimes there's a little bit too much honesty in there.:o But, listening in on the inner conflicts of real people is vastly more entertaining than any soap opera. No wonder I'm addicted.:p

I got in a good workout on the elliptical late this morning. It says I burned 598 calories. :eek:

A good day for food so far as well:
whole wheat bread with peanut butter
plum, 1/2 banana
tuna, broccoli, yogurt, red pepper on whole wheat roll
1/2 C spinach

I need another snack about now. Maybe I could do something with some tofu. For supper, I think I'll have black bean soup, or chickpeas with tomatoes on a whole wheat pita.

Drew Barrymore is so beautiful and silly.
http://www.drew-barrymore.org/gallery/gal/Professional/Magazines/Elle_Girl/eg09042.jpg

“Daisies are like sunshine to the ground.” Drew Barrymore

“Oh, I love hugging. I wish I was an octopus, so I could hug 10 people at a time!” Drew Barrymore

“A fish may love a bird, but where would they live?” Drew Barrymore

“Kissing-and I mean like, yummy, smacking kissing - is the most delicious, most beautiful and passionate thing that two people can do, bar none. Better than sex, hands down.” Drew Barrymore

“I am obsessed with ice cubes. Obsessed.” Drew Barrymore

Amongst the things Drew writes are poems. A lot of them are Anais Nin-inspired eroticism. "It's sort of embarrassing. They're really dirty, actually."

guava

Tue, March 7th, 2006, 02:12 PM

Man, I am getting old! :blank:
I visited a website yesterday of a store where I buy clothing from occasionally. Garage clothing (http://www.garage.ca/products.aspx?section=1&page_id=1&department_code=01&caching=20858). I took their online survey.
Select your age: under 13
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
over 25

Okay, so I got that one. Later on,
What other magazines do you read? Check all that apply.
J14
Twist
Elle Girl
Elle Girl Quebec
Teen People
Teen Vogue
Cosmo Girl
Teen
Seventeen
Fashion 18
M
Clin D’Oeil Filles
Adorable
Full Filles
Star Inc.
La Semaine
Cool

Sorry, no. :nono: Shape, Psychology Today, Real Simple, O, Chatelaine, Today's Parent.

Needless to say, when it asked for my natural hair color, grey was NOT an option. :lol:

So, I'm shopping in the wrong stores, but the right stores don't carry the right sizes. :nope: I'm stuck either way.

In the mood for falafel for lunch, but I didn't feel like looking up the recipe, so I'm doing it freestyle. I blended some chickpeas in the blender, then added some chopped onion, garlic, cinnamon, parsley, a bit of cloves, oregano. I also added a bit of ground up sesame seeds (I don't buy tahini) and once I formed the mixture into balls, I rolled them in some sunflower seeds for some crunch. I'll eat them with spinach and tomato. Maybe I'll forgo the pita. (It's in the freezer, and I'm too lazy to dig it out.)

“I used to look in the mirror and feel shame, I look in the mirror now and I absolutely love myself.” ~ Drew Barrymore

guava

Wed, March 8th, 2006, 09:52 AM

I've been cutting milk out of my diet; not because of any health or aesthetic reason, but because it gives me gas. Currently, I'm out of lactase enzyme, and I'm in no hurry to buy more; it costs a fortune, and I'm not even convinced it completely solves the problem. I still eat plenty of yogurt, so I'm pretty sure I'm okay on calcium, but it's not fortified the same way, so I'm thinking I could be low on vitamin D, especially since it's winter and I don't see much of the sun. I still can't take a multivitamin until I'm finished this round of Accutane.

Thanks to Gordo in this thread (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=26044), I've been browsing journal abstracts about the makeup of protein and carbohydrates in a weight-loss diet. They're a little more scientific than the material I'm used to reading, so it's hard to get used to evaluating wich results are significant. Anyway, here are some interesting findings:

In the medical circles, 25% of calories from protein is considered a high protein diet.

An often cited, adverse effect of diets high in protein is a potential effect on renal function, and individuals with impaired kidney function are advised to reduce levels of dietary protein. Experimental data, however, indicate that GFR varies little when dietary protein ranges from 10% to 30% of total energy

Above-mentioned "high protein" diet (25%) has shown some promise in reducing weight more effectively than one with 12% of its calories from protein. It also makes you warmer. I'd like to get the results from this literature review:

Dept. of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, 665 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA. frank.hu@channing.harvard.edu

For years, proponents of some fad diets have claimed that higher amounts of protein facilitate weight loss. Only in recent years have studies begun to examine the effects of high protein diets on energy expenditure, subsequent energy intake and weight loss as compared to lower protein diets. In this study, we conducted a systematic review of randomized investigations on the effects of high protein diets on dietary thermogenesis, satiety, body weight and fat loss. There is convincing evidence that a higher protein intake increases thermogenesis and satiety compared to diets of lower protein content. The weight of evidence also suggests that high protein meals lead to a reduced subsequent energy intake. Some evidence suggests that diets higher in protein result in an increased weight loss and fat loss as compared to diets lower in protein, but findings have not been consistent. In dietary practice, it may be beneficial to partially replace refined carbohydrate with protein sources that are low in saturated fat. Although recent evidence supports potential benefit, rigorous longer-term studies are needed to investigate the effects of high protein diets on weight loss and weight maintenance.

On the other hand, these studies focus on weight loss, and I'm more concerned with how maintaining an ideal body weight affects long term health, so it may not be relevant after all.

I've also been browsing the old magazines I found lying around the house. I'm learning some tips from MoneySense (http://www.moneysense.ca/), but it's an odd mix of articles that contain information that is a) beyond my comprehension or b) already so much a part of my lifestyle that they're a waste to read. I really do have to start doing some investing, but I don't feel comfortable about making any moves until I have money of my own to invest. It just doesn't feel right for me to take control of the family finances. I should get over that.

I'm also reading Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0684849143/104-6735235-5307114?v=glance&n=283155). The science of shopping excites me so much that it's shocking. Must chase related career paths. I keep thinking it's marketing research that I want to get into, but, really, there are other areas of consumer psychology (http://www.psichi.org/pubs/articles/article_52.asp) that would be an even better fit.

“There's something liberating about not pretending. Dare to embarrass yourself. Risk.” ~ Drew Barrymore

Gordo

Wed, March 8th, 2006, 11:27 AM

I'd like to get the results from this literature review

Me too.

With respect to the High Protein comment....you have to remember that at the time of the study, it WAS considered high protein in contrast to the recommended 15% Protein based on the old (pre-revised)USDA food pyramid.

45 carbs/15 pro/40 fat <---- a crappy model if there ever was one.

Here's a neat little chronology on America's relationship with food (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/diet/basics/cron.html)

A neat blurb on the history of the pyramid and the politics behind it:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/diet/themes/pyramid.html

Gordo

Wed, March 8th, 2006, 11:29 AM

When it comes to Giant chocolate muffins....quarter them.....you'll enjoy them longer ;)

Gordo

Wed, March 8th, 2006, 11:34 AM

Here's another site that you can lose yourself in for the next couple of weeks.....use it in compliment to the WHF site :)

The Linus Pauling Institute (http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/index.html)

and

http://www.pdrhealth.com/

guava

Wed, March 8th, 2006, 05:13 PM

Gordo, did you go give your opinion on the revamping of Canada's Food Guide (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=25729&)?

It's important! :nod:

I'm in a hurry right now, but I'll check out those links later. Sounds like lots of fun reading. :D

Gordo

Wed, March 8th, 2006, 05:50 PM

Gordo, did you go give your opinion on the revamping of Canada's Food Guide (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=25729&)?

It's important! :nod:

On my way :tu: ....didn't know about that. Thanks

guava

Wed, March 8th, 2006, 06:27 PM

With respect to the High Protein comment....you have to remember that at the time of the study, it WAS considered high protein in contrast to the recommended 15% Protein based on the old (pre-revised)USDA food pyramid.

45 carbs/15 pro/40 fat <---- a crappy model if there ever was one.

Here's a neat little chronology on America's relationship with food (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/diet/basics/cron.html)
I think it's presumptuous to assume that people are consuming what the food guide tells them to consume. I think people are consuming what appears normal to consume, which logically, to me, would be a wide variety of all the products available at your local grocery store. In the last fifty years, we haven't gotten a heck of a lot of new fruits and vegetables appearing, but, not only can we get hundreds of different varieties of presweetened breakfast cereals, but dozens of granola bars, fruit leathers, and other sugary products. Consumers think these products are a part of a healthy diet, but they're not; they are treats.

That's one of the things I'd like to emphasize to the group that is revising Canada's Food Guide. The food choices on the front cover should be illustrated as a representative portion of how our diet should be made up. I forgot to mention that in my original feedback, except where noting several grain and dairy items on "which foods should not be shown on the cover" and suggesting some additions to the vegetable and fruit items.

Attached is my favorite version of the food guide (except I'd move the plant oils up next to legumes). I had assumed that it was part of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, but I think probably it must be Williett's suggestion.

guava

Thu, March 9th, 2006, 09:21 AM

:bang: Caffeine is evil.

The girls wanted to go out after swimming lessons last night, so I decided to treat them to an ice cream. We went to this little cafe in town; they ordered ice creams I had coffee. The place has one of those fancy European coffee makers (http://www.coffee-makers-espresso-machines.com/solis-palazzo.html). I could tell because when she brought me the coffee (and told me the coffee of the day was "Coffee Americano") I could see that it was a little frothy on top. Have you ever had one of those fabulous individually freshly brewed cups of coffee? It was so good, I drank it black. (I've never drunk my coffee black.)

A pity about the cafe. The coffee is heavenly, the homemade chocolated and brownies are delicous, but the presentation sucks. The baked goods are displayed in plastic containers, the lighting is fluorescent, the tables are melamine, and the decor is ecclectic, but not charmingly ecclectic. It could be a great place, but if I'm going out to leisurely enjoy a cup of coffee, I require a place with a bit more charm.

The caffeine kept me up all night.:spaz: I think I maybe got an hour or two of sleep. Since I've been unmotivated for the last couple of days, I had set my alarm for 45 minutes earlier than usual to get cardio done before I had to get the girls off to school. I was going to nix that plan, but I decided that I needed it more than ever this morning after all. I'll schedule in a coffee break for my inevitable 3:00 low. Perhaps I'll visit that same place again.:drool:

Tuesday morning's leg workout didn't seem that difficult, but I'm still feeling it today, so I feel like I must have done something effective. I got a little nauseous on the elliptical which I at first attributed to fatigue, but then I remembered it's lately been related to overworking my abs. I think I'll give them a bit more of a break.

I understand there are inevitable things that we have to go through: heartbreak, famly problems. I don't feel like some quixotic idiot who says, 'We don't have to feel pain.' No! Let's feel it, let's make it work for ourselves. But I want us all to be able to get past it. ~Drew Barrymore

guava

Fri, March 10th, 2006, 10:52 AM

I borrowed Make the Connection (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/6304562233/104-6735235-5307114?v=glance) from the library the other day. It's a little over the top, but in parts, it's really good. If I ever had a trainer, I'd want him to be like Bob Greene. It's fun to watch him be so excited about exercise.

I was motivated by that and by Bluestreak's journal (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=9399&page=9) yesterday. He doubled his lifts. Wow.

This morning I was completely astounded at the strength I have developed - again. With the exception of leg press, this morning I doubled every weight I normally use for 12~15 reps and was still able to muster at least 8 reps per set! Almost every exercise I performed today is within 20~30 lbs. of the most weight I have ever been able to lift in my life - including my high school days as an athlete and wrestler.

I figured "If he can do it, no reason I can't" and also thought "Why not tonight?" I have a limited set of weights to work from. I've maxed out with my dumbbells on most of my lifts and just been adding more reps for months. So I took my ten pound ankle weights, removed 4 pounds from them, and strapped them onto my dumbbells. I was surprised to see that I could manage 4 reps of bicep curls at 28 pounds instead of 12 reps at 22. I'm sure that I am stronger today because of it. :flex: I also insisted on doing 3 sets of 6 chin-ups instead of my usual 3 sets of 4 or 5. I'm usually just not hard enough on myself, but just one day a month of pushing myself that little extra would cause me to make much bigger gains. And pushing myself that little extra requires simply that "just-right" mindset. I slept SO much better last night.

Next step is to dust off my weight bench in the basement, drag my husband down there to spot me, load up my equivalent body weight on the barbell, and just go ahead and press it. I'm hoping that my three sets of 20 pushups I've been doing has given me the requisite strength, and my mindset will take me the rest of the way.

"The more I sweat, the more fun I'm having" ~ Bob Greene

guava

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:02 PM

I don't have much to say, but I was hoping maybe posting in here might wake me up some and inspire me on to greater things.

I was voluteering at the school library on Thursday. When my five-year-old's class came in to exchange their books, I told her teacher that she still had two books at home. (She's really only allowed to have one.) The teacher said "Well, for a library volunteer, you're not really all that well prepared." (or something like that) So I explained to her that my daughter is in charge of her own library books. She seemed to give me this sort of weird look like she was about to nominate me for "Bad Mom of the Year" award. :lol:

It's a lovely day of 11 degrees. The girls dragged their bikes outside. Forecast is for 16 tomorrow. Maybe we'll go to the beach. :lol:

Photoshop fun. I changed my profile pic again. Some days, I like to be an artist.

Nothing so soothes our vanity as a display of greater vanity in others; it make us vain, in fact, of our modesty. ~ Louis Kronenberger

doordude42

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:04 PM

guava

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:06 PM

Hello.:)
Hi doordude. Nice day? I think I might go out and wash the van.

doordude42

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:10 PM

Hi doordude. Nice day? I think I might go out and wash the van.

I hate to rub it in but it's supposed to be around 70 degrees today. If I didn't have a few things to do i'd be lying out in the sun. I like tan!!!!!!!!:D
Did I ever tell you that my dad's entire family is from Canada. As a matter of fact my last name is French Canadian.:nod: (it ends in an X)

Happy Monster

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:22 PM

Spandex? :whistle:

doordude42

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:24 PM

Spandex? :whistle:

DON'T SCARE HER!!!!!!! I liked the other one she used in her avatar.:nod:

phillydude

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:44 PM

Spandex? :whistle:

That's actually pretty funny. :tucool:

Happy Monster

Sat, March 11th, 2006, 02:46 PM

I liked the picture of herself. She's too pretty to be hiding behind Drew Barrymore.

guava

Sun, March 12th, 2006, 10:33 AM

I washed the van, then rinsed off my husband's car a bit. If it gets a little brighter out, I'll finish it off.

I was dead tired yesterday, so I was all set to hit the hay early, but then decided to invite the girls to watch The Hoober Bloob Highway (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0248875/) with me while I did a leg workout. I later drifted off to sleep with my little girl in my arms. :)

I should do cardio today. Going out for a jog would be a nice unique thing to do, but it's a little wet out there.

I hate to rub it in but it's supposed to be around 70 degrees today. If I didn't have a few things to do i'd be lying out in the sun. I like tan!!!!!!!!
Did I ever tell you that my dad's entire family is from Canada. As a matter of fact my last name is French Canadian. (it ends in an X)
So you're plural then. I know a handful of people that speak French, (most of them I met while we were living in China) and I could carry on a conversation in French if I absolutely had to. My Dad was a French teacher (even though he's Ukrainian, not French). I wish my library had more books in French. Or magazines, at least.

I'm trying to prevent skin cancer and wrinkles, so I avoid the sun when possible. I'm not much of an outdoor person, unless I'm walking a trail somewhere. I need to buy a bike and rollerblades this spring.

Repeating seasonal events are comforting to me. Unique events are interesting, but I feel more secure in routine. Maple syrup season was nice, and coming up is the Eco Festival that I missed last year because of a crazy storm. Dove (http://www.dove.ca/promotions/tshirt) is giving away free t-shirts again this year. Last year I got the "Be yourself. Be Beautiful" and one that says "My beauty rules." This year, I'll go with the "100% real beauty".

That's actually pretty funny. :tucool:
Is spandex funny? I'm feeling self-conscious now. I don't think I own any spandex. They're just a cotton knit, and I never wear them out of the house. If I were hiding, I wouldn't have posted the photo. I just prefer looking at Drew than looking at myself.:)

C’est n’être bon à rien que n’être bon qu’à soi. ~Voltaire

phillydude

Sun, March 12th, 2006, 10:39 AM

Is spandex funny? I'm feeling self-conscious now.[/I]
you misunderstood... I was saying that the thought of DD's last name being "Spandex" was amusing... I hadn't noticed whatever avatar you were referring to. I've been enjoying the Barrymores.

BTW... you should never feel self-conscious around us... we're your friends. and as the t-shirt says, you're "100% Real Beauty."

guava

Sun, March 12th, 2006, 10:47 AM

you misunderstood... I was saying that the thought of DD's last name being "Spandex" was amusing... I hadn't noticed whatever avatar you were referring to. I've been enjoying the Barrymores.

BTW... you should never feel self-conscious around us... we're your friends. and as the t-shirt says, you're "100% Real Beauty."
Thank-you philly.:) I completely misunderstood what you meant.

I like the t-shirt in your avatar. I need one for myself that says I love carbs. :tu:

doordude42

Sun, March 12th, 2006, 10:51 AM

Is spandex funny? I'm feeling self-conscious now.

Ya see HM!!!!!! You CAN'T say stuff like that to her!!!!!!!!!! It frightens her or makes her self conscious. She's had 2 GREAT avatars of herself which she promptly removed when someone mentioned them. SHUSH!!!!!!:nono:

Devery

Sun, March 12th, 2006, 11:54 AM

Guava,

Looking really great!

:bow: :tucool:

Happy Monster

Sun, March 12th, 2006, 12:48 PM

:cry:

guava

Sun, March 12th, 2006, 12:56 PM

:cry:
What?

This is not a place for crying. (except by me) ;)

Cheer up, or take your tears elsewhere. :spank:

I'm trying to enjoy this beautiful rainy day. :whistle:

guava

Mon, March 13th, 2006, 11:53 AM

This day is not going in the right direction. :( I feel really sluggish, and feel like eating to comfort myself. That's usually a sign that I need to do more cardio. I DON'T like doing cardio. I like having done cardio.

Could be a touch of the flu coming up. Everyone around me is a little sick. I don't feel physically ill however, just a little emotionally drained.

Gotta go get moving. :flex:

guava

Mon, March 13th, 2006, 04:52 PM

The day did perk up a bit after cardio. I still feel like eating everything in site, and the best way to counter that is to eat "big". I've finished off half a pomelo (aka grapefruit on steroids (http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/pomelo.htm)). I LOVE those things! Also ate a little bit of spaghetti with a bunch of spinach and a big heap of spaghetti sauce, two slices of whole wheat bread with peanut butter, a banana, and a large mug of hot chocolate. I might just have soup for supper. Seems like the right thing to do. Perhaps some sugar free Jello would be a good thing to have on hand as well.

I just found out that friends of ours in Romania have been quarantined for avian influenza.:eek: Some of them are the same ones that were quarantined for SARS a couple of years ago. I don't think any human cases have been detected, but nobody is allowed in or out of town until they slaughter 13,500 birds. :eek:

Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today. ~James Dean

Bluestreak

Mon, March 13th, 2006, 05:02 PM

I just found out that friends of ours in Romania have been quarantined for avian influenza.:eek:[/I]
Holy crap. Had you been living there still, you might be posting from bird-flu lockdown! Wow. It's strange, but you lived in Romania... you were just here in Orlando from Canada... in a weird, roundabout way, Romania doesn't seem so far away all of a sudden. And neither does the bird flu, for that matter. That scares me a lot more than doordude could ever have scared you.

-R

guava

Tue, March 14th, 2006, 11:16 AM

Yes, it's hitting pretty close to home. Like I wasn't already alarmist enough.:rolleyes:

Today's cardio is out of the way. The movie of the moment is Mona Lisa Smile. Not exactly energetic, but my choices are getting slimmer for VHS tapes. (We have a DVD player in the living room and basement, but the elliptical is in our bedroom)

We watched Billy Madison last night, and I thought it was awful. Adam Sandler has so much talent (Spanglish was amazing), but he plays so many of these stupid roles it's hard to know which of his movies are going to be any good. Is Tiptoes (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0316768/) a good movie? Reviews don't sound very good. I can buy it for $1.50 if I also find three other second-rate VHS tapes that I like.

Yesterday it rained, today it's snowing. We went skating yesterday, and just might go for a swim today. Balance out the weather, I suppose.

My pullup strength is advancing in great leaps. Six reps are no problem at all. I'm going to try eight tonight. :tu: I don't know if this strength gain is related to stronger abs, or if I'm finally putting my concentration on the right muscles to give me that boost.

I did eat big yesterday. For a predinner-snack, I ate 2 C of steamed cauliflower, then some pieces of watermelon. Result was as expected: I was bloated for most of the evening. Still, through the "full" feeling, came the "feed me" urge, which I shut up by providing myself with increasing amounts of light hot chocolate. :D For supper, soup didn't sound appetizing, so I had a beef sandwich with spinach and barbecue sauce on it. I did NOT get any treats for myself at the skating rink, although the temptation was strong. (I even brought some leftover chocolate Santas from home as a treat for the girls and happily watched them enjoy them. :) )I prefer to feed myself at home, where I have the low calorie, low fat, high nutrient options available. Days like this, I like to estimate my calorie intake to judge the damage. Not that it's very accurate, but from what I recorded, I ate pretty close to maintenance calories. It's hard to go over on calories when you stuff yourself with so many fruits and vegetables.

But as far as myself is concerned...well..I'll fess up..I'm absolutely in love with me. ~HevyMetal

Chameleon

Tue, March 14th, 2006, 12:49 PM

guava

Tue, March 14th, 2006, 01:20 PM

I loved Big Daddy... if you haven't seen that Adam Sandler flick I'd recommend it ;) I should look through my VHS collection and see which movies I have on both DVD and VHS and send the VHS tapes to you... that is, if you don't already have those particular movies :D
Big Daddy might be okay. I enjoyed Mr. Deeds and most parts of The Waterboy. Parts of Happy Gilmore were great, but as a whole, I didn't enjoy the movie. The Wedding Singer was great. Of course, the best was 50 First Dates. :) Have not seen The Longest Yard, but I think I will rent it. Pretty sure I would not like Little Nicky. If you have any high energy VHS tapes, they would really come in handy.

Happy Monster

Tue, March 14th, 2006, 01:44 PM

I don't like Adam Sandler, but I agree, 50 first dates is the best work he's done.

Glad to see you are feeling and doing better. :)

Chameleon

Tue, March 14th, 2006, 02:03 PM

Big Daddy might be okay. I enjoyed Mr. Deeds and most parts of The Waterboy. Parts of Happy Gilmore were great, but as a whole, I didn't enjoy the movie. The Wedding Singer was great. Of course, the best was 50 First Dates. :) Have not seen The Longest Yard, but I think I will rent it. Pretty sure I would not like Little Nicky. If you have any high energy VHS tapes, they would really come in handy.

The Longest Yard was great, and I loved the Wedding Singer... 50 First Dates was good, but it's not a movie I could sit down and watch over and over like the other three I've mentioned... I never saw Little Nicky.

doordude42

Tue, March 14th, 2006, 02:05 PM

The Longest Yard was great, and I loved the Wedding Singer... 50 First Dates was good, but it's not a movie I could sit down and watch over and over like the other three I've mentioned... I never saw Little Nicky.

Little Nicky = son of satan. That would frighten our friend Guava to no end and we can't have that!!!!!:nono:

guava

Wed, March 15th, 2006, 10:37 AM

8!

I managed 8 pullups this morning!:claphigh: How come I couldn't do this three months ago? Next week will be ten.

I tried doing them last night, but my husband kept staring at me and saying "Holy cow, you're strong!" so I only managed 7 of them before I burst out giggling. When I got back from getting a glass of water, I caught him giving it a go. :p He sounded a little embarrassed when he reported that he was able to do two, but I told him that was great. :tucool: I have Matthew McConaughey as my wallpaper on my computer, and my little girl said "Is that what Daddy will look like if he starts lifting weights?" I said "Gee, I hope so!" :lol:

I had to give in to the cravings last night. Was not feeling right. I couldn't think of anything healthy I felt like eating for supper last night, so I kept putting it off. Then I ate a piece of cake. Unfortunately, I was still hungry, so I had a bowl of granola with milk. That didn't fill me up either so I finished off a box of cereal. :doh: :nono:

Got my hair cut last night. She blowdried it straight, and it looked pretty cool. My daughter for some reason kept telling me I looked like Elvis.:confused: I think it's very similar to Christine Lahti (http://www.sacconnection.com/images/0000006_0000047.jpg). I've always loved her hair, in all of the ways she has ever had it styled.

“Life is very interesting... in the end, some of your greatest pains, become your greatest strengths.” ~ Drew Barrymore

Chameleon

Wed, March 15th, 2006, 10:59 AM

doordude42

Wed, March 15th, 2006, 11:09 AM

Got my hair cut last night. She blowdried it straight, and it looked pretty cool. My daughter for some reason kept telling me I looked like Elvis.:confused: I think it's very similar to Christine Lahti (http://www.sacconnection.com/images/0000006_0000047.jpg). I've always loved her hair, in all of the ways she has ever had it styled.

“Life is very interesting... in the end, some of your greatest pains, become your greatest strengths.” ~ Drew Barrymore

8 pullups? That's impressive!!!:claplow: :claplow: :claplow:
No pictures of the new do? PLEASE!!!!!!!!!:D

Chameleon

Thu, March 16th, 2006, 12:34 PM

last night I was sitting down to eat my last meal and was running through all the movie channels to see what I could watch while I was eating and I ran into 50 First Dates... I think I had just forgotten how awesome that movie is... just thought I'd post it since I thought of you when I saw that it was on last night ;)

guava

Thu, March 16th, 2006, 06:14 PM

I won't be needing the VHS tapes quite so urgently now. Next week we will be able to access hundreds of satellite stations in our bedroom, so I certainly will be able to find something interesting at any given moment. (up to now, there have been no programs - just the tv and the VHS player) I don't ask questions, I just do what I'm told I can do.

I purchased some songs online this morning and uploaded them to my MP3 player. (It only holds 20 songs, but that's usually enough for a workout.) What I'm most enjoying are the Nickleback songs I've been wanting for several weeks. Also bought It's Still Rock and Roll to me by Billy Joel, Once Bitten Twice Shy by Great White, some Lynyrd Skynyrd, a couple of Tesla tunes that I have on casette tape only, and a tune from the Curious George movie soundtrack that I checked out just because the website recommended it to me.

I hate swimming. :mad: I was freezing cold the whole time and insisted that we leave after 45 minutes instead of staying for the whole 90 minute session. I would have been warmer at the arena. I think I'll put " wet suit" on my Christmas wish list. If I can ever find my thermometer, I might just start monitoring my daily body temperature to find out if I am indeed colder than everyone else, or if I for some reason just cannot be content at a normal heat level. I'm still sleeping in long pants, t-shirt and sweater under two blankets even though it's no longer the dead of winter. My doctor won't help because there's nothing medically wrong with me. I wonder if there's a drug that can harmlessly elevate your body temperature. Tequila, possibly.;)

If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice. ~ Rush - Freewill

guava

Thu, March 16th, 2006, 06:18 PM

No pictures of the new do? PLEASE!!!!!!!!!:D
The new do is not really me. It's a special occasion do. I posted it in the private media gallery because you asked so nicely. So far, I have two votes for "messy" over "new do".:p

never2old

Sat, March 18th, 2006, 05:42 PM

If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice. ~ Rush - Freewill

Just wanted to pop in for a few seconds to say
that's long been one of my favorite quotes.
You pick a "lotta good 'uns" - keep 'em coming!

doordude42

Sat, March 18th, 2006, 07:29 PM

The new do is not really me. It's a special occasion do. I posted it in the private media gallery because you asked so nicely. So far, I have two votes for "messy" over "new do".:p

Let me go look. I'll let you know.;)

guava

Sun, March 19th, 2006, 12:04 AM

never2old, they played that song on the radio a couple of times last week, and each time I heard that quote, I thought "I have to write that down", but of course I was always driving, and never did. By the time I got home, all I could remember was that it was by Rush. It took me a bunch of lyric searching before I finally uncovered it.

It's comforting to know that we live in a world of choice. I am SO guilty of "choosing not to decide", but, on the other hand, I am exceptional at dealing with the consequences of that nonaction, so it's been balancing out pretty well for me. I'm leaning more towards the acceptance that choosing between two negative consequences is better than believing that I have no choice.

I'm going to go to a job fair on Wednesday night at one of the fitness clubs in a town nearby. I've already applied for a job there (twice I think) but it won't hurt to show myself again.

Now I have to go lift some weights. :bb:

We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. ~Joseph Campbell

guava

Mon, March 20th, 2006, 08:54 AM

My mood is still a little more negative than positive. I like when science can explain me (http://www.becomehealthynow.com/article/conditionwomen/116).

Women with PMS in one study were shown to consume: 275% more refined sugars

See, it's not my fault.;)

It's sort of funny; I feel like I eat extra careful for three weeks of the month to "save it up" for the one week that my cravings take over. My intake for the one week sometimes goes back to how it used to be when I was overweight. This probably would have been a pretty typical day 3 years ago. (Actually, no, a typical day would have been without the spinach, red peppers, and tomato, with regular milk instead of nonfat soy, and with Honey Bunches of Oats instead of granola. :lol: Hmm... even when I'm eating bad, I'm eating good.:confused:)

Yesterday
2 blueberry muffins, (which happened to be iced with blue icing because my little girl insisted when she helped me make them Friday afternoon.)
an orange
a large coffee with cream and sweetener
2 more blueberry muffins
a salmon sandwich, half a red pepper, a tomato
a Diet Coke (haven't had one of those in ages!)
a plum
a slice of bread with peanut butter
hard caramel candy
2 pieces of garlic toast
3/4 C romaine lettuce
1 T light dressing
1/2 C raw spinach
1/2 C scoobidoo pasta
1/2 C canned tomatoes
1/3 C meat sauce
1/2 C scoobidoo pasta
1 mug chai latte homemade, made with skim milk, but sugar added
2/3 C very low fat homemade granola
1/2 C soy milk
1 mug of India spice tea, black

Amazing, no chocolate.;) I don't think it's more than 2200 calories.

I realized we still have a giant box of snack-size boxes of Smarties. They've been sitting untouched in our front hall closet since Halloween. I think I'll hide them around the house for Easter.:D

I haven't seen Failure to Launch yet, but I'm patient. I can wait for the DVD release. There's something about boats that's really sexy.:whistle:

People often say that this or that person has not yet found himself. But the self is not something one finds, it is something one creates. ~Thomas Szasz, "Personal Conduct," The Second Sin, 1973

guava

Wed, March 22nd, 2006, 10:28 AM

Yesterday's food:
two slices toast with peanut butter
fruit salad (mango, pineapple, blackberries)
two cups of coffee
orange
random leftover peanut buttery bread crusts :p
oatmeal pancakes made with cottage cheese, egg whites, bran, ground flax seed
two cups of decaf
apple
one hamburger
one chicken leg
romaine lettuce, spinach, light French dressing
yogurt spinkled with a bit of cereal
one cup of tea

only two glasses of water for the day, which has been typical for the past week or two. I'm surprised that my digestive system is still working okay.

I went to bed at 8:30 last night because I had no energy. I am not in the mood to go to the career open house tonight, but my husband is coming home early from work so I can make it. I'd rather work for Statistics Canada than for a fitness club, but I haven't heard from them yet about my interview. I didn't have the presence of mind to properly record the name and number of the woman who interviewed me, so I can't really check up on it. :doh:

I'm determined to continue to make healthier diet choices as the week goes on.
two cups of coffee already this morning, and no water:o
black bean soup with turkey for breakfast
for lunch, I think I'll have oatmeal pancakes as described above with a piece of fruit

I didn't work out yesterday, unless you can call vacuuming and ironing working out.:rolleyes: The day before, I did 30 minutes of cardio in the morning, and abs and stretching in the evening. Tonight feels like it should be shoulders or back (or is that shoulders AND back?) I'd like a more specific routine, but I'm too damn lazy to plan one.

My little girl and I have developed a nice evening ritual. We close ourselves in the bathroom and turn on the heater while we play Dominos. It gets so warm in there we can pretend we're in Hawaii. :) She's been throwing up for days (either once at supper time, or once at bed), but otherwise seems quite healthy.:confused:

"Each one of us has the power to make others feel better or worse. Making others feel better is much more fun than making others feel worse. Making others feel better generally makes us feel better.” ~ Unknown

guava

Wed, March 22nd, 2006, 10:34 AM

Can I hide those stars? My journal is rated three stars. :( I'd rather not know that.

Yes, I'm a baby. :cry:
:lol:

Chameleon

Wed, March 22nd, 2006, 10:41 AM

Can I hide those stars? My journal is rated three stars. :( I'd rather not know that.

Yes, I'm a baby. :cry:
:lol:

LOL... well I don't have any stars... so, if I were you.. I'd be REALLY happy with 3 :p :lol:

oh and about your workout schedule, or lack there of :p ... not that you have to listen or follow anything I've done, but here is the split I used to use, and the one I use now.

old split:
back, bi's & tri's
shoulders, chest & abs
legs

new split:
back & chest
bi's & tri's
shoulders & abs
legs

guava

Wed, March 22nd, 2006, 11:18 AM

LOL... well I don't have any stars... so, if I were you.. I'd be REALLY happy with 3 :p :lol:
okay, I'm happy. Well, I can pretend to be. And sometimes pretending to be can put me there. Is it not impossible to cheer up when you smile?
http://www.bswc.co.uk/smilies/woohoo.gif
What's that smilie with the something riding on a something? That one is so hilarious it cracks me up.

oh and about your workout schedule, or lack there of :p ... not that you have to listen or follow anything I've done, but here is the split I used to use, and the one I use now.

old split:
back, bi's & tri's
shoulders, chest & abs
legs

new split:
back & chest
bi's & tri's
shoulders & abs
legs
I have trouble with overlapping body parts. These are my favorite exercises, but I'm never sure what days I should put them on. I tend to get confused between back and shoulders. This routine by chicanerous (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/archive/index.php/t-3872.html) sounds pretty good, other than the handstand pushups. :p

bent over rows
upright rows
front raise
dumbbell flyes
side laterals
shoulder presses
pull-ups or chin-ups
pushups
bench press on stability ball
tricep dips
tricep extensions
dumbbell curls
lunges
wall slides/squats/sumo squats
bridge or ham curl with stability ball
flutter kick or sissy squats
supermans
glute kickbacks with ankle weights
crunches
leg lifts (on back for abs)
hanging leg raises

I intentionally leave out calves, but there are probably other key exercises that I'm missing. Feel free to suggest.

guava

Wed, March 22nd, 2006, 04:48 PM

I am NOT going to the open house tonight.:nope:

The day is still a bit of a struggle. I didn't plan very well this morning, so I ended up at the shopping mall for lunch without having brought any food with me. I bought a large decaf and two Slim Fast bars Chocolate Chip Muffin (http://www.slim-fast.com/products/product_info.asp?product_id=715) and Peanut Butter Crunch (http://www.slim-fast.com/products/product_info.asp?product_id=693). They're mostly sugar, with a few other ingredients. :bang: I was SO planning on being good, too.

Then my little one took a fit in the mall, so I had to bring her home instead of taking her to gymnastics. Despite getting a full sleep last night, she was exhausted and fell asleep in the van. By the time we got home, she had perked up, but I was exhausted, so I took an hour for a nap myself.

The phone woke me up from my nap. A woman wanted to know if I was still interested in the enumerator job for Stats Can. I said that I likely was interested, depending on the hours, and she explained that it was weekend and evening work which would be explained when they call to offer me a job.:) I gave my confirmation of interest.

I'm looking forward to becoming busier. I've been feeling kinda aimless for the last several months.

Begin to free yourself at once by doing all that is possible with the means you have, and as you proceed in this spirit the way will open for you to do more. ~Robert Collier

doordude42

Wed, March 22nd, 2006, 05:07 PM

Hi!!!!!!

guava

Wed, March 22nd, 2006, 05:08 PM

Hi!!!!!!
Hi dude.

guava

Thu, March 23rd, 2006, 10:41 AM

Last night again I was toast after putting the girls to bed. I forced myself to do a dozen pull-ups and a couple of dozen push-ups before hitting the hay.

The meals worked in not bad last night. I finished off the day with a turkey taco (lots of spinach and salsa) and a chopped cooked apple with yogurt and low fat homemade granola. Then my daughter wanted me to take her out for a treat after her swimming lessons (and volleyball game - she was busy yesterday) so I took her to Tim Hortons. I ordered a decaf; I'm drinking them with milk only now, no sugar or sweetener.:tu: They have the "Roll Up the Rim to Win (http://www.timhortons.com/en/about/2006-rutw.html)" contest on, and I won a donut. How 'bout that?:p Maybe I should donate it to the needy.

I've volunteered this afternoon to drive some grade four girls to a volleyball tournament at about 3:00, and then take them home at about 8:30. I'm not a huge volleyball fan, so I will bring LOTS of reading material.

I want my light to shine so brightly that others will be attracted to it and feel compelled to shine as brightly ~ Oprah Winfrey

TheRyanator

Thu, March 23rd, 2006, 01:05 PM

Hi Guava,

How do you cook the apple that you add into your yogurt?? That sounds good...I guess I am thinking something along the lines of apples with cinnamon and some sugar (splenda instead of course), like an apple crisp...yum :drool:

guava

Fri, March 24th, 2006, 09:47 AM

Yes, it's exactly like apple crisp! I chop the apple into little chunks then microwave it for one minute. I don't usually add any cinnamon or sweetener, but you could. Then I sprinkle some granola on it. If I'm feeling really decadent, I microwave it again for 30 seconds, then top it with vanilla frozen yogurt, or full fat fresh vanilla yogurt, or a small spray of light whipped cream. Or, sometimes I warm some milk in the microwave, mix it with vanilla and sweetener, shake it in a glass jar until bubbly, and pour it over top.:eat:

I think this is my granola recipe, I but I'm pretty sure I've been leaving out the sugar. I don't add the dried fruit or nuts either. I add it to the bowl if I feel like it.

Granola (http://christmas.allrecipes.com/az/Granola.asp)
2 bananas, peeled and diced
1 1/4 cups dates, pitted and chopped
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup hot water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
8 cups quick cooking oats
8 ounces dried mixed fruit
8 ounces blanched slivered almonds

1 Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
2 Puree the bananas and dates in a food processor. Add the brown sugar, hot water, vanilla and cinnamon; mix well.
3 Pour mixture into a large mixing bowl, add oatmeal and mix well.
4 Spread onto large baking sheets and bake at 250 degrees F (120 degrees C) for 1 to 1 1/2 hours stirring frequently. Cook longer for crunchier if desired. Once cooled add the dried fruits and nuts, and mix.
Makes 20 servings. Per serving Calories: 274 Total Fat: 7.9g Cholesterol: 0mg Sodium: 6mg Total Carbohydrates: 44.9g ** Dietary Fiber: 5.7g Protein: 8.1g

The volleyball games were FANTASTIC last night. They won 11 of 14 games.:claphigh:

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant."~ Robert Louis Stevenson

TheRyanator

Fri, March 24th, 2006, 02:05 PM

Wow! Those apple ideas sound absolutely awesome! Definitely some future decently healthy fixes for a sweet tooth!! Thanks Guava!

guava

Sat, March 25th, 2006, 11:11 PM

I've been having difficulty with my self-confidence in the past couple of days and in prioritizing my activities. It could be due to a virus I've been fighting; it seems to be slowly clearing up. I'm going to do a quick but not easy workout (legs, I think) tonight which should give me the boost I so much need. My caffeine intake has been almost doubled lately, and that can't be good.

I was thinking about starting a new journal to help me get a better focus on where I'm headed. I'm wandering again, and that doesn't work well for me. I need a new set of goals and a better organized strategy. I kind of like the idea of progress pics because I think it helps to keep me from slacking off, yet it seems silly to do because I'm not expecting any noticeable differences in how I look from month to month. I should be keeping track of some other measurable goals instead.

My bench pressing can't get any better until I get the basement reorganized. My flexibility is still improving, but it's at a snail's pace and I don't practice much anymore. I'd like to be able to improve my cardiovascular endurance, but the idea of doing any more cardio than current minimal levels does not excite me at the moment. I'm going to look into buying a mountain bike and some rollerblades, and the better weather should give me some new opportunities for being active outside.

Diet is looking pretty good. I don't crave chocolate more than about once a month now, and my sugar consumption in general is way down. I'm drinking almost half my coffees black (and all my teas). I don't drink diet Coke anymore except on rare occasions, and I've also been chosing oats over bread more often. My broccoli, tomato, spinach, and orange consumption has been great. I'd like to boost the amount of salmon and tuna that I eat, and choose beans more often and boxed cereal less often. I could consume more nuts, soy, tea, and berries, but those are not priorities. I'll eat pumpkin more often when I'm done with the Accutane.

We took the girls out for lunch today. I love Chuck E Cheese's, and I used to like the pizza too, but I prefer to go without now. I packed myself an orange and some cereal instead of sharing the pizza. Thursday night for the volleyball tournament, I'd done the same thing. Sometimes I feel like a freak for not being participatory or "normal"; other times the only thing that makes sense is to always be bringing and eating the food that is most rewarding to me in all aspects of my health and pleasure.

To both of the people that sent me private messages, yes, I think it's a little creepy. But thankfully, I also have a sense of humor. :lol:

I understand there are inevitable things that we have to go through: heartbreak, famly problems. I don't feel like some quixotic idiot who says, 'We don't have to feel pain.' No! Let's feel it, let's make it work for ourselves. But I want us all to be able to get past it. ~ Drew Barrymore

Devery

Sun, March 26th, 2006, 01:13 PM

To both of the people that sent me private messages, yes, I think it's a little creepy. But thankfully, I also have a sense of humor. :lol:

I received a PM also. Did it ask you to keep a secret by any chance?

guava

Sun, March 26th, 2006, 04:36 PM

I received a PM also. Did it ask you to keep a secret by any chance?
Hmmm... no, that would have been really creepy.

I worked my legs so hard last night, I had to hold on to the handrail with one hand and the wall with the other just to get down the stairs. :lol:

Two large coffees already today. I'm trying not to have another.:bang:

I made steak and potatoes last night for the family and for myself, a turkey burger with generous amounts of spinach plus a salad. Tonight, we're barbecuing pork tenderloin, and I'm going to steam some broccoli. They get potatoes again. I might make rutabaga or spaghetti squash for myself.

Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds. ~ George Eliot

guava

Mon, March 27th, 2006, 04:16 PM

I've been eating about the same, and very slowly progressing with the weight training, so my body weight has been pretty stable, and my body fat percentage has been slowly going down. I feel healthy where I am, so I don't think it will hurt me to stay at about 15 or 16 percent (according to my scale anyway). I'm not sure what I did to my legs the other day, but they are still feeling it. I even had to cut my elliptical workout short, but we took a walk to the park as well, so I still got in some decent exercise for today. My quads looked odd this morning; they sort of jut out to the sides when I flex. How come my quads are growing but my glutes don't seem to do anything?

The warmer weather has improved my outlook considerably. I'm considering taking up a new hobby:

Geocaching (http://www.navicache.com/faq.html) is quite simple and generally involves the hiding of a cache filled with small prizes, or "treasures" as some call them. The geographical coordinates of the cache is recorded through the use of a hand-held GPS receiver and then they are posted to a listing service on the internet. Along with the coordinates the cache owner will also place a general description of the area, and often other clues as to the location. Periodically checking the listing service for new caches in their area, other participants will then take these coordinates and clues, and using their own GPS set out on a sort of treasure hunt to try and find the hidden cache. Once found, the idea is to take something from the container and leave something of comparable value in its place.

Without my GPS coordinates it's hard to tell how many caches are hidden nearby, and it's hard to know if I'd enjoy the hunt unless I give it a try. GPSs are not cheap, so I may try to borrow or rent one before I decide if it's the thing for me. If so, I'll make the purchase, then I can spend my weekends treasure hunting.:D

No one ever said bodybuilding was healthy. And if someone did say that, they didn't know what the hell they were talking about! ~amyella, NPC Amateur Figure Competitor (http://amyella.blogspot.com/)

phillydude

Mon, March 27th, 2006, 04:33 PM

Hi Guava.... hope you are having a GREAT day!

Chopaholic

Mon, March 27th, 2006, 04:45 PM

considerably. I'm considering taking up a new hobby:

Geocaching (http://www.navicache.com/faq.html) is quite simple and generally involves the hiding of a cache filled with small prizes, or "treasures" as some call them. The geographical coordinates of the cache is recorded through the use of a hand-held GPS receiver and then they are posted to a listing service on the internet. Along with the coordinates the cache owner will also place a general description of the area, and often other clues as to the location. Periodically checking the listing service for new caches in their area, other participants will then take these coordinates and clues, and using their own GPS set out on a sort of treasure hunt to try and find the hidden cache. Once found, the idea is to take something from the container and leave something of comparable value in its place.
[/I]

can't you use a map and compass? :confused:

guava

Mon, March 27th, 2006, 05:21 PM

can't you use a map and compass? :confused:
You seem to need waypoints. From what I've read, it is usually pretty easy to determine the location in question, but the trick is in finding out how to get to it without swimming across a lake, or trespassing on private property, or climbing a big mountain.

example 1 (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=67fa09d1-7f08-4a92-bdb8-b9a64f1775b8)

example 2 (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=acfeadc6-71a3-457d-b7a2-6101eb1f8432)

The days will just keep getting as the temperature keeps climbing phillydude.:tucool:

Chopaholic

Mon, March 27th, 2006, 05:58 PM

You seem to need waypoints. From what I've read, it is usually pretty easy to determine the location in question, but the trick is in finding out how to get to it without swimming across a lake, or trespassing on private property, or climbing a big mountain.

example 1 (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=67fa09d1-7f08-4a92-bdb8-b9a64f1775b8)

example 2 (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=acfeadc6-71a3-457d-b7a2-6101eb1f8432)

it looks like i would need a log-in to look at the info. but, other than private property issues, that sort of information is provided by any good topo map.

just an idea to keep the cost down. and a great skill to teach your kids! :nod:

guava

Tue, March 28th, 2006, 09:39 PM

I did not plan well today.

7:15 two slices toast with peanut butter
banana
9:30 1/2 C fat free no sugar added strawberry yogurt
large glass of water
11:30 one cup of coffee, black, made by school librarian
large glass of water
12:30 large glass of water
1:30 (took the kids to McDonald's as a treat for meeting them for lunch)
1/4 leftover burger bun, 1 unidentifiable random green thing rejected from daughter's salad, plus three cherry tomatoes.
FORGOT to bring the orange that I'd packed
1/2 C Shreddies
4:00 from Starbucks - one grande Guatemala Antigua (With refined acidity, subtle cocoa texture and gentle spice flavors, this coffee is an elegant treasure.)
one granny smith apple I bought from the grocery store
6:00 Took the girls to Dairy Queen after hockey practice. I ate nothing, drank nothing
7:00 found my daughter's lunch in the car
1/2 roast chicken sandwich (1 deli slice on whole wheat bread)
7:30 arrived home
I ate the orange that I forgot to pack with me
1/2 C stir fried vegetables with about 1 oz pork tenderloin
1/2 C spaghetti squash
large glass of water

Still thinking about what else to eat for the day. I'm short on vegetables. I might open up a can of minestrone soup, but I'd rather have oatmeal and yogurt.

Of course, I was quite hungry all day. But it's a completely different kind of hunger than when I'm stressed out. Hunger on upbeat days is simply a feeling that indicates "you need some fuel", and I can delay the feeding if I don't like the available choices; but on bad days, I get the screaming "feed me!" cravings where I will eat pretty much anything I see.

Did hammer curls last night. I don't like hammer curls, so I don't do them very often. As a result, I can't lift as much on hammer curls as on regular bicep curls. I think last night was the first time I ever worked my arms so hard that I got nauseous. I've worked to the point of nausea with my abs dozens of times, and with my back and chest a few times as well. But I think I don't always push my biceps and triceps as much as I could. I expect to see some evidence of growth due to this workout.

I've chosen to participate in a Blue Spruce Reading Club. I'm sharing an award-nominated book with two classes of grade ones, two classes of grade twos, and two classes of grade threes. The book I chose to read to the classes is called Leon's Song (http://www.accessola.com/forest2006/bluespruce/leon.html) and is about inner beauty and hidden potential. I read it five times today, so I have it almost memorized. The kids will hear other books that have been nominated for the award, and then will vote on their favorite.

it looks like i would need a log-in to look at the info. but, other than private property issues, that sort of information is provided by any good topo map.

just an idea to keep the cost down. and a great skill to teach your kids! :nod:
How detailed would the maps be, and where would you get a map? I think you'd need to be able to pinpoint the area within 50 feet in order to find what you were looking for. As far as I can tell, there are only three caches hidden within 30 miles of my home, and I don't expect many new ones to show up soon, so I don't think it would be quite as engaging a hobby as I first mentioned.

Only as high as I reach can I grow, Only as far as I seek can I go, Only as deep as I look can I see, Only as much as I dream can I be. ~Karen Ravn

JaneR

Wed, March 29th, 2006, 10:53 AM

Orienteering maps?

Chopaholic

Wed, March 29th, 2006, 11:02 AM

How detailed would the maps be, and where would you get a map? I think you'd need to be able to pinpoint the area within 50 feet in order to find what you were looking for. As far as I can tell, there are only three caches hidden within 30 miles of my home, and I don't expect many new ones to show up soon, so I don't think it would be quite as engaging a hobby as I first mentioned.

Bummer. I would think a good solution might be a digital topo program, like Delorme's Topo USA (http://www.delorme.com/topousa/default.asp) (I assume there's something similar for Canada. Of course, it too is an investment! I think my advice might be falling apart here.

guava

Wed, March 29th, 2006, 11:22 PM

Spring is here! It was SO warm and sunny outside, and the whole day was happier as a result. :D I started it off on the elliptical, and went for a walk in the evening as well. I might just lift yet tonight too.

In the fall and winter, I occasionally get a little overexcited and go a little crazy in the grocery stores on the grains and breads. In the spring and summer, I suddenly and frequently turn fruit happy. I was in produce heaven this afternoon.

I purchased:
about 3 pounds of grapes
1 honeydew melon
a pomello
a couple of pounds of peaches
a couple of pounds of apples
a few bananas
two bunches of broccoli
a pint of tomatoes
a bag of spinach
a bag of coleslaw mix
a head of lettuce
:D

I will eat most of them on my own. The three other members of my family combined will eat about half of the fruit plus the coleslaw mix and lettuce.

Today
7:15
two slices of bread with peanut butter
banana
coffee with soy milk
9:30
1/4 C Red River Cereal (wheat, rye, flax)
a couple of tablespoons of raisins
large glass of water
11:00
large glass of water
1/2 C strawberries
2:00
large glass of water
nearly a pound of grapes :nod:
1 C Frosted Mini wheats
3:00
large glass of water
5:00
entire bunch of broccoli
about 1 oz of pork tenderloin, a spoonful of salsa, 1/4 of a tomato
one peach
1/2 C fat free no sugar added yogurt
6:00
black coffee
7:30
a couple of spoonfuls of Tony's Turbo's cereal (http://www.kelloggs.ca/newsroom/news19.htm) that my daughter couldn't finish
10:00
large glass of water

I suppose some more protein in my diet might be a good idea.

The winter session of recreation activities has come to an end. My younger daughter's gymnastics teacher will no longer be teaching the same class, so I think I'll put her in swimming lessons for the spring instead and get back into gymnastics in the fall. My older daughter isn't sure she wants to continue another session of the swim club. Soccer for both of them will start very soon.

I was at the drug store this evening to take advantage of the lowest price of eggs in town. While there, I spent at least 15 minutes looking through Men's Health (http://www.menshealth.com/cda/homepage.do) Magazine and Women's Health (http://www.womenshealthmag.com/)Magazine. The cover of both issues was in black and white with red lettering and had a woman on it. Inside the men's health issue, the dark color scheme continued, but in the women's issue, it got a lot brighter with more whites, reds, and pinks and less black.

Men's Health
number of photos of women inside the issue:
about 20, most of whom were in club wear
number of photos of men inside the issue:
about 40, most of whom were wearing athletic wear
articles:
how to do more repetitions in your workouts, motorcycles, which are the coolest bikes, how to pick up women, getting sex more often

Women's Health
number of photos of women inside the issue:
about 50, about half of them in athletic wear, about 1/4 of them in party wear, and 1/4 of them in office or casual wear
number of photos of men inside the issue:
two or three maybe, in office attire
articles:
how to motivate yourself to work out, make-up, which are the coolest beauty accessories, advice on how to manage office romances, getting better sex.

I did learn some things from the articles I skimmed.
From the Women's Health issue:
Your perfect weight: get there, stay there
One of the best indicators of whether you're at a healthy weight is how much of your bulk is fat. While between 20 and 31 percent is considered a "normal" range for women, an ideal level for fitness (and looking fit) is around 21 percent.

This would be fine if the models they featured in their magazines were around 21 percent, but I highly doubt it. See the sotry photo. (http://www.womenshealthmag.com/article/0,6176,s1-11-67-719-1,00.html) The women wearing yellow and pink tops look might be about 18 to 22 percent, but the other two look closer to 14-18%. It's unlikely you'll look like a fitness model at 21 percent, so why tell people they will?

From the Men's Health issue:
How to do more pullups
do half the amount of pullups you can normally do (eg. for me do 3 because I can do six), rest 30 seconds, then do one more (eg. 4) repeat until you can't do anymore, then rest 30 seconds again and ladder back down.

I couldn't wait for success, so I went ahead without it. ~ Jonathan Winters

phillydude

Thu, March 30th, 2006, 10:32 AM

I get both Men's Health and Women's Health magazine on subscription, although they are running out and I haven't renewed them... I also have Men's Fitness on subscription, and its about the same as Men's Health (maybe a few more bikini girls and sex articles) but much less expensive, so I think I will be keeping that instead. We used to have a subscription to Shape, but dumped that as it was pretty much useless.

I REALLY enjoy FitnessRx for Men and FitnessRx for women... much better information and the articles are complete with citations to the research materials used to prepare the text. I just buy that on the newsstand, however, as it only comes out every few months.

Chameleon

Thu, March 30th, 2006, 12:00 PM

guava

Fri, March 31st, 2006, 01:31 PM

More evidence of spring this morning. My crocuses have started poking through the ground. After dropping off my girls at the bus stop, I went to pick up the mail, then went for a short walk/jog, then stopped at home for a drink of water and washed the dishes, then went out for another short walk/jog, then stopped at home for another drink and to get my camera to go back and capture what I'd found. After that, I had a shower, did some vacuuming, now I'm settled in front of my computer picking at my lunch. I 'll post some pics in the private media gallery later on.

Shape magazine doesn't do anything for me. Actually, I don't get that much out of Oxygen either. It puts together some routines, but I don't recall reading about any new techniques like I saw in the Men's Health issue. I'll take a look at FitnessRx if I come across it, though I tend to be just a little suspcious of fitness magazines that feature women on the cover (http://www.fitnessrxmag.com/) with more generous than B cups and scrawnier arms than my daughter.

Just as much as we see in others we have in ourselves. ~William Hazlitt

guava

Mon, April 3rd, 2006, 09:41 AM

All that walking and jogging on Friday was surprisingly hard on me. Makes me realize how important it is to change up my routine once in a while. And makes me feel how incredibly old and less adaptable I am becoming.

Saturday was fun; I went to an Eco Festival with my daughter. Rarely before have I ever been surrounded by so many cotton-wearing, make-up shunning, earth friendly vegans. For a change, I felt like a rebel. :lol: First off, we watched a nice music group that sang songs about animals, water shortage, world peace, etc. I left my daughter to do crafts and have her face painted while I browsed the exhibitions. Part of me felt guilty that I don't always do all of the things I should be doing to help make the world a better place, but when I went around later with my daughter I felt better. I set a good example by reusing shopping bags, not idling the car, turning down the thermostat, recycling our waste, giving away our used clothing, and buying some of our clothing used, using reusable lunch containers, and other things. The Animal Rights Koalition (ARK) display really annoyed me, as it always does. Those people with their PETA brochures always look so smug. I don't like their freakshow propaganda, and I can't have a lot of trust in an organization who's so incredibly proud of Pamela Anderson (http://www.peta.org/). They all looked rather pale and lethargic. When I retrieved my daughter from the craft area, the Unitarian Church told me about their Sunday school program. Traditional religious institutions are not for me, but I just might check this one out which promises "wisdom from the world's religions which inspires us in our ethical and spiritual life", and "a free and responsible search for truth and meaning".

We had company over yesterday. They barbecued ribs; I had a turkey burger. Of course, I got the "You know, you could eat a little bit of fat," lecture, to which I replied "Yes of course. Didn't you see me finish off the ribs from my daughter's plate, and help myself to a cookie and a chocolate?" Indulgence, to some people, is more than to others.

Chop your own wood, and it will warm you twice. ~ Henry Ford

guava

Thu, April 6th, 2006, 11:21 PM

The amount of calories I require is inversely related to the outdoor temperature. Is my body trying to pack on fat to guard myself from chills? On warm days, I very rarely have any food cravings, but on snowy blowing miserable days, I find I can't eat enough, even if I'm in an otherwise good mood. I'm always second guessing myself on days like this. Do I honestly need more energy, or am I eating for the pleasure it brings. Maintenance is no fun at all. It would be more fun to go on two week bulking and two week cutting cycles.

The fruit frenzy continues. I bought a giant pineapple nearly twice the size of my coffeemaker, a miniature watermelon, a honeydew melon, several bunches of bananas, 6 pounds of apples, and two different types of oranges. Also more spinach, broccoli, peppers, and tomatoes.

I have not heard back from Statistics Canada yet. I really should call them, but I hate doing that. Part of me, I suppose, would really rather not be working. I am still looking around. I found an ad in the paper for another job that sounds great. I went over to the Employment Resource Centre for some help critiquing my resume. A woman there did a super job at getting me started, then let me know about a job in marketing and communications with their organization that was opening up.:tucool: I'll have to perfect my resume using the tips she suggested so I can submit my application before the deadline on Tuesday.

The Easter Bunny went shopping. How much junk is too much? I bought:
one bag of foil wrapped chocolate eggs (200g)
a pen with a bunny on top
a chirping bird
a little stuffed bunny
a little stuffed chick
a ball of slime
two egg shaped bubble-making necklaces
two eggs filled with playdough
some plastic grass and a bag of 18 plastic eggs to fill

I'm thinking about filling the eggs with jelly beans. My daughter really likes the Jelly Belly (http://jellybelly.com/Cultures/en-US/Fun/Flavor+Guides/Jelly+Belly+Flavor+Guide.htm) and Easter might be the time to splurge. (More expensive per pound than a decent steak!)

I went looking at Canadian Tire for a new bike, and they were not really helpful. What should I be looking for as a beginner? I'll probably try to throw it in the van and take it along on bike paths at the provincial parks nearby. I don't imagine needing to be able to switch gears, but this "dual suspension mountain bike" I hear about sounds like it could be useful. It's on sale until tomorrow for $150 (reg $200).

Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. ~ John Calvin Coolidge

guava

Mon, April 10th, 2006, 12:11 AM

Further to Thursday's update, I looked over my random progress pics and did indeed see an interesting trend. July has traditionally been a lean month.

I haven't seen a big change in my biceps over the last several months, er, make that years (though I had to remind myself that I haven't been specifically training to see large differences) so I decided to give them a good workout today. (With the assumption that if you work so hard you feel like you're going to hurl that's a good thing) I will take some pics tomorrow and see if they look any different than they did July 2004.

Ideally, I would stop focusing so much on what I look like (and how many exact calories "should" pass my lips) and keep at it for the sake of my health. I keep healthier daily habits when I look at it from that perspective, but I tend to veer off course more often because the goal lacks specificity. So I keep asking myself "Why am I doing this?" The answer "so I can be healthier than other people" doesn't seem to be tangible enough to motivate me any further.

When Chatelaine magazine surveyed women, they found that they would rather be praised on how they looked than on their skills as a mother.

Yesterday and today were tough. I was away from the house for most of both days. Although I packed fruit and a box of cereal, I tried to somewhat relax and eat like a "regular" person, but I ended up not feeling good about it by the end of the day. I skipped the food court in favor of a small portion of the cereal I brought so that I could splurge a bit at my daughter's hockey party, then I ended up eating more than I felt I should have.
For the day, I estimate through fitday
Total: 2216
Fat: 64 573 26%
Sat: 22 199 9%
Poly: 12 110 5%
Mono: 23 208 10%
Carbs: 349 1309 60%
Fiber: 22 0 0%
Protein: 71 285 13%
Alcohol: 0 2 0%
(Fit day is now blue. How 'bout that.:confused: )

Today, of course, I felt like I should try to balance it out, so I ate light again in the morning and through the afternoon so that I ended up ravenously hungry around supper time and overate again. Still I think it was close to 1500 calories, which brings the weekend back to close to maintenance calories.
Total: 1421
Fat: 32 285 21%
Sat: 7 60 4%
Poly: 11 100 7%
Mono: 10 91 7%
Carbs: 225 774 58%
Fiber: 31 0 0%
Protein: 71 286 21%
Alcohol: 0 0 0%
Tomorrow, I promise to eat more protein. The high carbs early in the day may have been what was causing the dinnertime overindulgences.

Good news is, I have a new bike, with dual suspension. My daughter said she's going to arm wrestle me for it; she's not happy with the limitations of hers.

She won "Most Improved Player" on her hockey team. I'm so proud of her. I'll see if any of the several dozen pics I took are decent enough to post in the private media gallery.

She insisted on staying up late tonight to watch The West Wing. Why do they have to grow up so fast?:cry:

I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward. ~Thomas Alva Edison

guava

Mon, April 10th, 2006, 04:23 PM

I've written a cover letter for one of the jobs I'm interested in. This one seems so much harder than other ones that I've done. I think I've spent more time procrastinating over it than working on it. Someone give me a kick.

:bang: :bang: :bang:

I'm not feeling myself. Maybe I need a good workout to snap myself out of it.

I'm happy about my diet today:
meal 1
1/3 C beef barley soup
meal 2
1/2 C spaghetti
1/2 C meat sauce
1 C spinach
large glass of water
meal 3
1/3 of a leftover apple
6 shrimp with 1/2 C pineapple, 1/2 C red pepper, 1/4 C diced onions, hot pepper sauce
large glass of water
meal 4
1/2 C nonfat sugar free yogurt with 1/2 C frozen blueberries and 1/2 C cereal
cup of coffee

Two more meals to go. I feel like having some cottage cheese. Perhaps I will make this zucchini frittata (http://www.hphood.com/kitchen/kitchReciDetail.aspx?id=161) for supper.

I've put up these progress pics before comparing the first few months after joining the forums. I added on a present picture to the end. The lighting and angles are terribly inconsistent, but there still does seem to be a continuing difference as I go along. I changed my profile picture again to a before and after. They typically say it takes 9 months to lose pregnancy weight, so that picture of myself with my nine-month old daughter was pretty sad for me. It doesn't matter now; speed may not be my forte, but I have endurance on my side.:)

If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance. ~ Samuel Johnson

never2old

Mon, April 10th, 2006, 05:07 PM

Three more awesome quotes there! (Coolidge, Edison, Johnson)
The Coolidge one has given me a boost for years.

Awesome transformation pix too! :claphigh:
Wish my shoulders would let me re-make them (and my arms) like that.
Like my shoulders and arms, my abs are a lost cause too -
at least you can cut the pregnancy bulge.
I'm stuck with a Stone Baby (http://www.obgyn.net/ENGLISH/PUBS/ARTICLES/Stone_Baby.htm), [WARNING: graphic] it seems -
permanent distension.

Start writing a cover letter for your previous job;
see if that breaks the procrastination or writer's block.
You might barely get started on it, and suddenly it'll all come clear to you:
"HEY! I REALLY know what I want to say about THIS one!" :gl:
Just another random thought: your blood sugar level might be
at least part of what's making you procrastinate or unable to write.
Just speculating - sometimes I need a little sugar to make my brain work.
(If anything it does can be called work.)

Congrats on the daughter's award for improvement in hockey! :tu:

rockenmama

Mon, April 10th, 2006, 05:48 PM

Nice Progress Guava! Even though you haven't really been working on arm size I definetly see some growth there! Abs are coming along nicely as well :)

Pam

I've written a cover letter for one of the jobs I'm interested in. This one seems so much harder than other ones that I've done. I think I've spent more time procrastinating over it than working on it. Someone give me a kick.

:bang: :bang: :bang:

I'm not feeling myself. Maybe I need a good workout to snap myself out of it.

I'm happy about my diet today:
meal 1
1/3 C beef barley soup
meal 2
1/2 C spaghetti
1/2 C meat sauce
1 C spinach
large glass of water
meal 3
1/3 of a leftover apple
6 shrimp with 1/2 C pineapple, 1/2 C red pepper, 1/4 C diced onions, hot pepper sauce
large glass of water
meal 4
1/2 C nonfat sugar free yogurt with 1/2 C frozen blueberries and 1/2 C cereal
cup of coffee

Two more meals to go. I feel like having some cottage cheese. Perhaps I will make this zucchini frittata (http://www.hphood.com/kitchen/kitchReciDetail.aspx?id=161) for supper.

I've put up these progress pics before comparing the first few months after joining the forums. I added on a present picture to the end. The lighting and angles are terribly inconsistent, but there still does seem to be a continuing difference as I go along. I changed my profile picture again to a before and after. They typically say it takes 9 months to lose pregnancy weight, so that picture of myself with my nine-month old daughter was pretty sad for me. It doesn't matter now; speed may not be my forte, but I have endurance on my side.:)

If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance. ~ Samuel Johnson

guava

Mon, April 10th, 2006, 11:58 PM

Nice Progress Guava! Even though you haven't really been working on arm size I definetly see some growth there! Abs are coming along nicely as well :)

Pam
I keep wavering. Sometimes I feel like I want to bulk, other times I feel like I want to cut. I can't make up my mind.

I sent chicanerous a private message about post #704 up there (March 22nd), and I'm hoping he has some advice for me on how to better balance my workouts.

never2old, your shoulders will let you remake them. Have patience. That's the funny thing about progress pics. Before you see what you can accomplish, it's hard to believe it's possible.

I've never been hired for a job I wrote a cover letter for. The last job I had was finished more than ten years ago, and it was only a temporary thing that I lucked out on by being recommended by the supervisor of a summer volunteer position I was in. I'm confused about these jobs I'm applying for because the pay is so good that I sort of feel like I must not be qualified, but, on the other hand, I have some awesome skills, experience, and leadership qualities that many other people simply don't have. I'm having trouble expressing my qualifications without having the paid experience to back me up.

mr. d

Tue, April 11th, 2006, 06:16 AM

guava

Tue, April 11th, 2006, 07:13 PM

YOU've been pregnant!!1111? I couldn't tell. You have no stretchmarks. Natural or did you get them lasered away?
Twice!:D
My stretch marks are further down. If I get a dark tan or use self-tanner on them, they are camouflaged, but as they are, I'm not comfortable in a bikini. I'm trying some "stretch mark cream" and it seems like it might help a tiny bit as well. Good news is, t-shirts have lengthened by several inches this season, so they finally hide the lower ab area. (Now that you can finally find jeans that are not low rise.:rolleyes:)

Since you're curious, I'll be brave and post this embarrassing shot from July. And the new t-shirt I bought today.:)

SarahRebecca

Tue, April 11th, 2006, 07:58 PM

Hey! I was just looking through some of the fitness journals on this website, and I saw your last page. How do you have such great abs? I noticed that your diet isn't super strict and that you eat 4 times instead of 6 times. What's up with that? How do you do that? I didn't even know I could eat spaghetti. Is it because it is easier to maintain results once you get them, or did you always eat that way, even while cutting? By the way, you look fantastic.

Lael_TG

Tue, April 11th, 2006, 08:06 PM

Your abs look awesome, stretch marks or no. Vitamin E cream can help reduce their appearance, if you want to try it, but I think you're looking good, no matter what! :tucool:

guava

Tue, April 11th, 2006, 09:36 PM

Statistics Canada finally called me back. I'll be training for three days at the end of April, then enumerating for ten days. My husband will be away on business for four of these days, so that will mean I'll have to find some child care. At the end of May, there will be three more training days, then a follow-up on non-returned surveys, which will take about the same amount of time.

Job applications went smoothly today. I got one resume and cover letter sent out, and will be sending out another next week. Things are getting busy.:p
Hey! I was just looking through some of the fitness journals on this website, and I saw your last page. How do you have such great abs? I noticed that your diet isn't super strict and that you eat 4 times instead of 6 times. What's up with that? How do you do that? I didn't even know I could eat spaghetti. Is it because it is easier to maintain results once you get them, or did you always eat that way, even while cutting? By the way, you look fantastic.
Persistence.

My diet isn't super strict, but it balances out. Compared to the average North American, my diet is very healthy. Sometimes I eat three times a day; sometimes I eat seven. I don't follow rules; I take tips and adapt them to my lifestyle.

I suppose my abs are the way they are because my strength training is sufficient to maintain muscle tone, and because my average daily calories are enough to maintain my current weight.

You can eat whatever you like. Even while I was cutting (September 2003 to July 2004), I probably didn't go two weeks without a small amount of chocolate or ice cream. If you consume fewer calories than what you burn, you'll lose weight. If those calories are quality calories, you'll feel great too. :) If you lift hard, you'll gain muscle. My weight has been fairly constant for the last year, but my body fat percentage has been steadily (but slowly) dropping.

Some people grin and bear it; others smile and do it. ~ Unknown Author

Chameleon

Wed, April 12th, 2006, 09:42 AM

CONGRATS on getting the job with Statistics Canada :claphigh: and for getting your resume and cover letter out... you're on your way :claphigh: :claphigh: :tucool:

ChicoMom

Wed, April 12th, 2006, 05:29 PM

Congrats on your new job...you are always an inspiration to me....

mr. d

Thu, April 13th, 2006, 09:39 AM

Twice!:D
My stretch marks are further down. If I get a dark tan or use self-tanner on them, they are camouflaged, but as they are, I'm not comfortable in a bikini. I'm trying some "stretch mark cream" and it seems like it might help a tiny bit as well. Good news is, t-shirts have lengthened by several inches this season, so they finally hide the lower ab area. (Now that you can finally find jeans that are not low rise.:rolleyes:)

Since you're curious, I'll be brave and post this embarrassing shot from July. And the new t-shirt I bought today.:)

How much did the first one weigh, and the second? which one did more damage stretch mark wise? My mum only had me, she's completely marked all over. Riddled with marks on her stomach. Yours are barely noticible. Have you seen pammela anderson, she doesn't have any. I wonder if she had hers lasered or if it was natural :confused: . I don't find it hard to believe some people just don't get them. I think it's due to what you eat and how you abuse yourself during a pregnancy. My Mother smoked during hers but then she's quite thick :mad:

Have you seen Angelina Jolie recently? :eek: Her bump is too small and she has no baby fat on her. I think she's undereating.

guava

Thu, April 13th, 2006, 11:55 AM

Thanks ChicoMom and Chameleon. That made me smile. :)

I sent in my other job application yesterday, and I must say I would sure jump at the chance to hire myself for that position.:D

I bought a brownie with my coffee after I sent in my job application on Tuesday. I took two bites of it, and the rest of it is neatly packed away in a container above my microwave. I'm not sure if I feel like eating it.

Meal 1
1 C nonfat no-sugar-added yogurt
1/3 C oats, dry (mixed with above yogurt)
1 apple
1 cup coffee
Meal 2
leftover crusts from a peanut butter and jam sandwich and one bite of blueberry bagel
1/2 a medium sized rutabaga, boiled, plain, no salt

Today is Thursday, so that means I'm taking my daughter to McDonald's for the two cheeseburger meal (with diet Coke and salad). I don't usually order anything when we go. I cooked some wheatberries in apple juice so I'll take that to snack on during the day while I'm volunteering at the library, plus a hard-boiled egg that cracked while I was preparing it for my daughter to dye at school.

In the fridge, I have a head of cauliflower I need to prepare, and some black forest ham that's on its last day. Maybe if I put it on some pizza the girls will eat it. Well, I can dream, can't I?:p

Actually, I might mix them up with some evaporated skim milk and a bit of pasta, and garnish it with sundried tomatoes. Sounds tasty.:eat:

How much did the first one weigh, and the second? which one did more damage stretch mark wise? My mum only had me, she's completely marked all over. Riddled with marks on her stomach. Yours are barely noticible. Have you seen pammela anderson, she doesn't have any. I wonder if she had hers lasered or if it was natural :confused: . I don't find it hard to believe some people just don't get them. I think it's due to what you eat and how you abuse yourself during a pregnancy. My Mother smoked during hers but then she's quite thick :mad:

Have you seen Angelina Jolie recently? :eek: Her bump is too small and she has no baby fat on her. I think she's undereating.
Before I got pregnant in 1995, I was 155 pounds. Gained 35 pounds in the pregnancy, I think baby was 6 pounds 13 ounces. By the time she was two years old, I was eating more sensibly and down to 130 pounds, which I maintained until I got pregnant in 2000. Gained 30-35 pounds, baby was 6 pounds 6 ounces. They were actually worried while I was pregnant that there might be something wrong because she was aparently small compared to other babies. By the time she was two years old, I was back down to 130 pounds. I'm about 115-120 now. I think the second pregnancy only added a few extra stretch marks, but I wasn't in much of a mood to show off my abs when I was a jiggly 130 pounds anyway.

My sister says she didn't get stretch marks because she rubbed cocoa butter on her tummy while she was pregnant. Worth a try, but I can't be sure that's the reason.

I haven't seen Angelina Jolie lately. I hope she has a good doctor that is offering her sound advice.

If you do the things you need to do when you need to do them, then someday you can do the things you want to do when you want to do them. ~ Zig Ziglar