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Team Lowe's SpaceWorking It Off Together, One Pound At A Time! |
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April 26 Small battle ... WON!!!!I just thought I'd share an incredibly tough day (& ended up night!) that I managed to survive yesterday, as it was a HUGE accomplishment in my book!
Yesterday, Ray forgot to set my alarm (we have one & he sets it after he gets up ... NEVER been a problem before, but I think he was running late, too!), so I was awakened from a DEAD sleep by my earliest daycare child pounding on the door! I was in a fog & b/c I had jumped straight out of bed, my head was NOT feeling great! The day started w/me WAAAY behind the 8-ball, as I had not showered or had breakfast before my entire crew was up & needing things before school. It was a crazy morning & I was already feeling the stress! I had a few other issues in the morning that just continued to add to my frustration & stress, so when I ran to the grocery to get some things for everyone, I was feeling VERY "needy" for some "SUGAR" ... I KNEW it was my "emotions" but they were STRONG. I ended up getting some chocolate chips to make my delicious peanut butter chocolate chip cookies (which I haven't had since DECEMBER!!). I was making banana bread muffins for Ray, as he left for a Men's retreat with our church yesterday & won't return until Sunday. I figured if I was already baking (I HATE banana bread!), I might as well make something I LIKE!!! Well, the day continued to be CRAZY & I only managed to make the bread for Ray. By dinner time (I had 2 daycare kids that ended up here an HOUR longer than they were supposed to be!), I was famished & couldn't WAIT to get my hands on an oooey-gooey pizza! I had planned to make one of my own broccoli-chicken pizzas on whole wheat crust, but I didn't have the time/energy to do it. I ended up devouring THREE pieces (I've cut back to 1 or 1 1/2 if it's normal pizza) AND I downed a Dr. Pepper (which I have basically given up!). I could feel the "soothing" kicking in. I ended up taking 3 of my kids out for a good walk after dinner, b/c I felt a little guilty for what I had eaten (& in the back of my head, I was STILL planning to bake those cookies when everyone went to bed!). We got back & my boys ended up having a friend over for a sleepover & I got the little ones to bed (later than usual b/c it was so nice outside!). Needless to say, by then (9:15 pm) I was feeling VERY tired & anxious to get those cookies baked (yes, even at THAT hour!!!).
 I started pulling out the ingredients & with each one, I felt worse & worse. THIS is NOT what my 212 Family would want me doing! Even though Ray wasn't here & I'd had had an EXHAUSTING day, I didn't NEED to feed myself w/these cookies! I literally BATTLED w/myself for 15 minutes!! Next, I said, "Fine, I won't make them, but I'm having SOMETHING sweet!" I raided the pantry & couldn't find ANYTHING (thank goodness!). When I really stopped & thought about it ... I truly wasn't even HUNGRY ... I was simply CRAVING some comfort (SWEETS!!!). Again, I pulled out some graham crackers & figured they would be the least "damaging" of anything I could make/find & almost ate them; however, I had all of YOU in my head saying, "STAY STRONG ... use your 212 DETERMINATION ... you don't NEED anything ... think how GOOD you will feel tomorrow when you have NOT given in to this temptation!!" I am proud to say ... I DIDN'T GIVE IN!!! I sat in my chair with a HUGE glass of water & relaxed for the FIRST time that day! It was STILL a battle sitting in that chair & NOT giving in, but I did it!!! I was SOOOO proud!!
 Around 11:15, Sarah (9 yr. old) came home from next door (she was sleeping over) w/a HORRIBLE stomach ache. She was crying & feeling like she needed to be sick. Well, to make a LOOOOOONG story short, it looks like she had FOOD POISONING from the restaurant that she ate at last night w/her friend!! I've NEVER had a child that had it & it was HORRIBLE!!! She literally was getting violently sick every 20-30 minutes!
 She was in SOOO MUCH pain & I felt SOOO bad for her!! She cried & tossed/turned in my bed all night (when she wasn't getting sick!!!). By 5 am, she finally settled into a fitful sleep & my darling Noah, Emma & Anna were up & READY for their day by 7 am ... I wanted to CRY!!! I am truly EXHAUSTED today & know I will fight another battle later on, but for now, I am feeling PROUD of how I managed to stay STRONG!! My son has a flag football game this afternoon & I'm hoping it will be quick so I can get in a at least a short little nap (my mom is coming over to watch the other kids while I'm at the game, so hopefully she'll stay a little longer & let me catch a quick cat-nap!). I want to really say THANK YOU to you, my 212 Family, for being "in my head" & keeping me STRONG when I really didn't feel like I could do it alone!!! You guys are AWESOME & I'm SOOOO thankful that you were "there" w/me in my battle!!!
I hope you are ALL having a SPECTACULAR SATURDAY & I can't WAIT to hear how everyone did this week!!!
Take care, everyone & until next time .... drink some water, move a little & SMILE! 
Angie April 20 FINALLY ... HALFWAY THERE!!!!It seems like I have waited SOOOO LONG to post this, but I am THRILLED to finally be able to do it ... Ray & I have officially reached the halfway point of our weightloss journey!!! With our weigh-in this morning, we topped 50.5 lbs. with only 49.5 to go!! I am just ECSTATIC right now! Ray has been posting a nice steady one pound drop over the past few weeks & I have remained STUCK around 177. I was totally prepared for at least a one pound gain this morning, as my wonderful "Auntie Flo" arrived for her monthly visit last night! I was in total SHOCK when I got on the scale this morning & it read 175.5!! I honestly had to step off & get back on because I was CONVINCED I was just IMAGINING what I WANTED to see!! I think I FLOATED down the steps!!! I am soooo excited to see the downward trend again & I am DETERMINED to make it continue now!! Although we are at our halfway mark, Ray has already lost an INCREDIBLE 28 pounds!!!! I am hanging in there with 22.5 lbs., but I now have the majority left to lose, as Ray only has about 12 more pounds to go! I know he will be done before me, but I know he'll continue in his healthy habits AND he'll continue to support & encourage me as I continue the journey! I have to say, I wondered if I'd be having a good week b/c I put on a pair of shorts yesterday for the FIRST time this season & they actually felt a bit baggy. Now these were shorts that were STRETCHED to the limit last summer (even took out the string that made the elastic part!) & yesterday, I was wishing I still had that string, as they would have fit a bit snugger that way! I was a little surprised, but I tried not to get my hopes up ... now I can see that there IS a difference & I wasn't just imagining it!!! WOOOOHOOOO!!! I am hoping that my 212 family had as good of a week as we had ... spring has finally SPRUNG & it's time to get our bodies BACK in gear!!!! NO MORE EXCUSES!!! WE CAN DO THIS!!! Ali was SUCH an inspiration this past week & if she can do what she did (MOSTLY AT HOME!!!!), then we can CERTAINLY do SOMETHING, don't you think??? She definitely had that 212 DETERMINATION & I was SOOO proud of her!!! I am going to think of her, sweating it out at home ALONE, every time I want to give up, NOT exercise, or eat something I shouldn't!!! What a tribute it would be to her & ALL she did to inspire America if we could follow in her footsteps, one pound at a time!!! Keep up the GREAT work you are doing, America!! We can do it!!!
Take care, everyone & until next time .... drink some water, move a little & SMILE!
Angie April 15 Getting my "MoJo" back ....I will be honest with all of you guys ... I was really starting to lose steam & looking back over my past 3 weeks on my spreadsheet, it was obvious! I've either maintained or gained/lost the SAME .5 pounds.
Honestly, I am TOTALLY in SHOCK that it's not MUCH WORSE!!! "Life" happened & I'm typically not one to make excuses using my "sick kids" or "crazy schedules" or such. We CHOSE to have a large family & we roll w/the punches no matter what!!! Well, we seem to have had a round of strep that just will NOT leave our house (at least one or two children home every few days with it for the past THREE weeks!) and I started babysitting for another 4 yr. old & 9 mo. old last week, so that was a HUGE adjustment for everyone! Yesterday, Emma (our daughter who just turned 7) had an appt. w/a pediatric neurologist. She's been having headaches since late Jan. & our regular pediatrician felt it best to see a neurologist, even though she was 90% sure they were NOTHING SERIOUS! The day finally arrived & we found out that Emma is suffering from childhood migraines. She has them fairly mildly & right now they are treatable w/motrin, although we may need stronger drugs or maintenance drugs in the future. I learned a LOT from the Dr. yesterday (including the fact that my mom & I most likely have migraines, too! I just assumed the really "DOOZY" headaches I had every month or two were "stress" related. I just figured it was normal to have such a bad headache that I was nauseous & felt like my skull would explode?? I didn't "see bubbles" or have them for days or anything like what I THOUGHT migraines were, so I never IMAGINED that I had them!). Anyway, they are apparently "hereditary" & once he determined that my mom & I most likely suffered from them, he felt MUCH BETTER knowing that this was most likely the case w/Emma, as well. Apparently this is a common age for kids to be able to start "explaining" them & hers were "triggered" by a virus everyone had in Jan. that included high fevers & headaches. He said a virus is a very common trigger for migraines in young children & that she may not be destined to have them as an adult, as she MAY get rid of them in her teens (although he said girls typically have a little bit of a harder time b/c once the "hormones" start in, that can also be a trigger). So, we were thrilled & relieved to know it was nothing serious (we have to go back every 6 mo. to have her re-evaluated for a while), but nothing serious ... PRAISE THE LORD!!! I guess I really hadn't realized how worried I was about it until it was all over yesterday ... I felt like a WEIGHT had been lifted from my shoulders (to bad it couldn't have been LITERALLY six pounds or something!!  ) So, on the ride home from the Cleveland Clinic yesterday, I decided that there were NO MORE EXCUSES! I had to continue taking care of myself, no matter HOW MUCH I just didn't "feel" like it. I have lost 21 pounds & felt frustrated that MORE hasn't come off! I'd lost my "workout MoJo" & had really not done anything for almost 2 weeks! NO MORE! It was up to ME to stop the downward spiral & I had a choice to make ... I came home, changed into my workout clothes & went walking/running in our neighborhood!!
Now, here's the "212 SUCCESS STORY" for you Michelle (& anyone else who NEEDS one!) ...
I have NEVER in my life run further than chasing my kids down the driveway to keep them out of the street (FYI, my driveway is NOT very long!!!!
) I absolutely DESPISE RUNNING w/all my heart! I have NEVER wanted to be a runner, but it was SOOO nice outside & I KNEW that I had to really "mix it up" in my walk, if I was going to benefit from getting out there & doing it! So, I started out warming up w/a nice brisk walk & then I alternated walking 5 min. & running 5 min. for an entire 40 minutes!!! I will be honest ... that first run, I truly thought my lungs were going to EXPLODE after only a FEW driveways. I didn't see HOW I could keep going at that pace for an entire 5 minutes (sounds so wimpy, doesn't it???) & how in the WORLD did I think I'd do MORE than 5 min. of running???? Well, I thought about our little 212 group & how we have made an effort to always give that ONE EXTRA DEGREE, so I kept myself going by playing little mind games w/myself. I said, "you can make it to that blue car (which was about 3 drives down)" & lo & behold, I did it w/o dying. I figured I'd made it that far w/o passing out, why not try for the corner ... so I DID! Pretty soon, I found a little "rhythm" (which certainly would NOT break any records!!) & I had run for an entire 5 minutes!!!!! I slowed down & my heart was about to beat out of my chest, but I had done it! I couldn't WAIT for my 5 min. of walking to be done, so I could see if I could really try it again. Amazingly enough, I did & I ended up walking/running for over 3 MILES in 40 minutes!!! I was SOOOO excited & PROUD of myself!! Honestly, my legs & body really felt like they could keep on going, but my lungs were NOT part of that group. I was sucking some SERIOUS wind by the end & I could tell my endurance was running out! That night, I was still wheezing a bit before I went to bed & wondered if maybe I have a little "exercise induced asthma" like my son has? I had asthma as a child (no wonder I HATED running!), so who knows??? But I KNOW it will get better if I keep at it! Today, I am quite sore & my feet are KILLING me (I don't think I really have a good pair of shoes for running ... $15 Wal-Mart tennis shoes probably aren't the BEST support for a larger person who's trying to do some running!). Anyway, I don't think I'll ever have the desire to graduate to a full blown "runner," but now I know I CAN add it to my walks & get some HUGE benefits from upping my effort!!To several of you who have reached out to check on us, I have to tell you how MUCH that means!! I didn't see that I was really helping anyone as I was in a "slump" & saw that many others were, too. I didn't feel like I was really that much of an "inspiration" anymore, especially as the MPMU wound down & people really started to leave. I can't tell you how MUCH it means that several of you have asked us to keep this up & have mentioned that we are/were an inspiration ... THAT was my WHOLE FOCUS in the beginning & I really lost that a bit recently. I'd LOVE to continue & know that I NEED all of you to help me jump back in & get back to it!! We've got a great little "family" here & I want ALL of us to succeed!!! Ray & I are going back to doing our 212 sit-ups each night, as that seemed to REALLY help us in the beginning! I'd LOVE to have you guys join us again! Let's all start tonight & do them BEFORE we watch the EXCITING BL Finale (or do them during commercials if you don't have TiVo!!! Who's with us???
Sorry this got so long, but I thought you guys deserved to know how I had sorta "fallen off the wagon" & how much your words of kindness have encouraged me to keep going!!! Thank you to EACH of you & I hope you will continue to stick w/us, so we can help support our struggles & CELEBRATE our successes!!! Hang in there, guys & let us know how you're doing!!!!
Take care, everyone & until next time .... drink some water, move a little & SMILE! Angie
Angie March 25 212 Group - Week 8and the "BIGGEST LOSERS" this week are ...
SCOTT & FRANCES!!!! They have officially claimed this title for the FIRST time, even though they've NEVER posted a LOSS in 8 weeks!!! Please pop over & congratulate them at: www.scottandfrances.spaces.live.com It was a close one, between Scott & Frances (.82% lost), Ray & Angie (.76% lost) & Tammie & Glenn (.67% lost)!! Individually, I nudged out Scott's 1.08% loss w/a 1.1% loss myself! I am SOOO excited to declare them our 212 team winners, though, as they have continued fighting EVERY week, overcoming MANY obstacles along the way! Their 212 SPIRIT is obvious!! Keep up the GREAT work you're doing, guys! It's paying off & you are an inspiration to us all!!!!
March 18 212 Group - Week 7And the "BIGGEST LOSERS" this week are ...
TAMMIE & GLENN!!!! They have officially claimed this title for the THIRD time!! They basically BLASTED themselves into first place by losing an AMAZING 7.2 lbs. (Glenn, I'm sorry you had to get so sick, but it definitely worked in your favor!!!). Tammie must have had the 212 LASER FOCUS this week, as she lost an INCREDIBLE 5 lbs.!!!! On a week when most of us either gained a little or maintained, she deserves a HUGE round of applause!!! Tammie, tell us what you did to make that happen so late in this journey!!! I think many of us have "hit a wall" & need some extra motivation or "UMMPH" to get us rockin' & rollin' again! Please share what you did & send us your challenge for the week!!! Also, a BIG CONGRATS to Mike & Michelle (www.mmullins94.spaces.live.com), as they were the only other team to post a combined LOSS ... way to go, guys!!! Keep up the momentum!!!
As for Ray & I ... I gained a pound (my first gain since starting this journey ... BOO-HOO!). I know it was my lack of working out on the weekend & not monitoring my food as well as I should, so I'm not surprised. Guess that means I'll have a GREAT week this week, huh??? I've gotta give Tammie a RUN for her money!!
 Ray lost .5 lbs. He battled eating well at school & missed a few exercise days, so considering that, he did good just to post any loss!! Overall, I'd say this is the week we need to STEP IT UP gang! Spring is just around the corner & we need to get these bodies in TIP-TOP shape before we have to start removing layers of clothing, right???
I KNOW we can all do this & we're stickin' together until the end, so let's start cheering each other on & checkin' up on each other to see how we're getting through the week! When you want to put something in your mouth that isn't the BEST for you, think of the rest of your 212 family right there w/you, urging you NOT to do it!! If you don't feel like exercising, picture one of us encouraging you to just give it 15 minutes (you can do ANYTHING for 15 min., right??!!!) & once you get going, you'll just POWER THROUGH a good workout!! Honestly, gang, we KNEW this would be tough & we all have REALLY GOOD REASONS for sticking to our journey ... our families DESERVE to see us healthy & HAPPY for a LOOOOONG time to come!!!! 212 MOTIVATION & FOCUS is what we need to think about this week!!!Now, get out there & eat smart, drink your water & MOVE your bodies!!!!
~ Angie |
We want to thank ANYONE who "leaves their mark" on our space! Whether you're cheering us on, or looking for some support, we'd LOVE to hear from you! Together, we can ALL make a difference!
The Jimenez Menace!wrote:
Hey...I'm still here...feeling a bit run down and tired from the end of school ups and downs, but hopefully I will get back on track after school is over. Hope everything is going well for you and your family. Hugs!
Apr. 30
The MPM Reunion Pagewrote:
Hi!
We are really sorry to hear that you won't be able to join us on the cruise. We do however want to let you know that we are also considering future events, so hopefully you will be able to join us at another one!
thank you for all of your support and advice. I'm sure it will certainly be used!
carla
Apr. 21
nowrote:
Just wanted to stop by and say hello....wanted to check in on a few of my favorites!! Hope all is well-as we continue on this journey.
sherry
Apr. 17
Mike and Michellewrote:
just wanted to stop by and say hey, haven't heard from you in a while. hope everyone is good. have a 212 week!
Apr. 15
twrote:
Hey Guys! Just checkin in on ya. Havent heard from anyone all week and wanted to say Hey!
Apr. 11
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