Lets Talk about You

Lets Talk about You
VH Melville
I’ve talked enough about me in the past few days. What is your story?

1. What are your problem arias?
2. What are ways you are turning things around for yourself?
3. Why do you want to get healthy. I am not saying thin. You can be thin an unhealthy.

About My Weight Loss

About My Weight Loss
VH Melville
Faq: Weight Lost: I lost over 100 pounds. My WW weight was 234.8 my current weight is 119. My goal weight is 124 to 126. I had lost 17 pounds before that but it was labor so I am not sure it counts/

Faq : Maintenance My weight bounces instead of straight maintain.
I use my maintenance points to keep it off when I gain a little I go done two points when I loose a little much I go up two points. I reward myself for good behavior.
Faq: I’ve been on maintained since late October of 2005. I made lifetime in December of 2005. I know there will be some ups and downs if I have another child. Usually I start gaining within weeks of hitting goal.
This is the longest I’ve maintained.
I know I can gain all my weight back if I am not careful. Even though I hit goal I still journal. Eating healthy doesn’t teach you to eat like a thin person. A lot of people think they never have to journal after they goal and are surprised when the weight comes back. Not to be too graphic, but I’ve seen the puss filled holes in my late grandmother’s legs. One leg had to be amputated. I also know that I am the influence to my family. How can my family be healthy if I am not?
Faq: I did not have a weight problem until I was around 10.

5th time's a ...........charm?

I've dragged my butt back on the wagon yet again after evaluating things and trying to change some of how i think and approach this process.
Sometimes i was too hard on myself, setting unrealistic goals and not celebrating any success.
Sometimes i was way too easy on myself, letting my mistakes go on and on for weeks off plan, constantly vowing to return the next week, which i did not.
I got back on plan and managed to start losing again.
Here are some things that i'm going to do differently this time.
I will be excited about small losses.
I will celebrate every 5lbs lost.
I set an initial goal of 3 days exercise per week , anything over will be counted as a bonus - 30 bonuses and i get to treat myself to something, either art supplies or a block of time to create some art.
(this idea was taken from v.melville!)
and if i bite it - i write it.
No two ways about that one.
I will not let a derailment lead me off plan for weeks on end.

How and what are you doing?

Be Happy Now

Be Happy Now
Vh Melville
I know I stated this before.
Being thin won’t make you happy. Fat is just fat it doesn’t have feelings and won’t feel bad once you get rid of it.
Often people’s reasons to lose weight or gain muscle are to feel better about themselves. Start feeling better about yourself now. I did the whole when I lose weight I will like myself and it doesn’t work. I was thin and unhappy and binged myself bigger than the last time. This time I started feeling better about myself before I lost the weight.
1. Do not give up your life to be thin
2. Live life with joy,
3. Have fun.

Trashy Edibles: Gourmet Food Gone Bad

Trashy Edibles: Gourmet Food Gone Bad
VH Melville
Having great food once in a while is a treat. Counterfeit gourmet food can be fun in it’s own right but what happens when you have the real stuff? How do you keep that in your plan? A gourmet hot dog in real life would probably have a toasted bun, roasted red peppers, and caviar relish but many times gourmet is just tacked onto the food as an after thought. Gourmet food is also often fattening. It’s okay to have it once in a while like it’s okay to have a little candy if you count it.

There are some lighter options such as vegan pate, steamed lobster, and bare salads.
What our your own tips would you have for making everything lighter.

1. Have you ever made real gourmet food?
2. Do you own a gourmet cookbook?
3. Have you eaten in a gourmet restaurant?

More Than My Diet

More Than My Diet
VH Melville
I talk about calories, exercise, WW and points quite a bit.
There is more to me. I am an art collector. I like art friends and family have done the best because threes a personal connection. I buy some pieces as well.
I write children’s books and go to yard sales and have made homemade yogurt. I blow bubbles. I am a loving wife.
I am devoted mother. I am creative. I am a fly baby. I am a Christian. Though some confused people don’t realize mine is a Christian religion. I once died my hair pink.
I want you to write down who you are besides your diet.

Feed

Feed
VH Melville
Food is not my drug I need it to breathe
Even though the pull sometimes is like an addiction
Food is my plcebo you are my passion but also my truth
You are love
My need
My eternity
But you tell me the truth real truth
You are the one who makes me feel good about myself at any weight
You taught me
Food should taste good

Time and Money

Time and Money
VH Melville
I am taking a cue from one my favorite fitness blogs http://www.starling-fitness.com/ and ask some questions.
1. What tips would you have to people who either can’t get to or can’t afford a weight loss support group on their own?
2. How do you keep yourself accountable if you’re not doing meetings?
3. What tips would you give someone who needs to maintain/lose or gain muscle but don’t have a lot of time?

The Spot

I felt like binging last night. I wrote this poem about it.


The Spot
VH Melville
Misery princess
Freckled skin hidden beneath her veiled crown
People finally tell me I am beautiful now that I am awake
Alive again
Once protected in a tower of fat
With a scab blob where a heart should be
In a glass coffin, Asleep
Will you be my prince, always?
Even when I stand here in the empty spot
I keep filling up with food that rots instead of nourishes
You are the spot beneath my skin that believes in me
The better part of me
The fairy tale goddess yet to come

Dieting in Groups Better Than Dieting Alone

Dieting in Groups Better Than Dieting Alone
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,197996,00.html

Work at Home Fitness

Work at Home Fitness
VH Melville
1. You might want a mini peddle cycle to place under desk.
2. Can you walk in the living room during conference calls?
3. Put frozen veggies in your freezer, canned veggies in your pantry and fresh veggies in your fridge.
4. Schedule a time to work out as you would a meeting. Can you squeeze in 15 minutes a day before your lunch break?

Food Preoccupation

Food Preoccupation
VH Melville
I realized before I joined WW I had preoccupation with food only before I just gave in and ate it all. How does your food preoccupation manifest it’s self. What tips would you share?

My preoccupation symptoms:
1. Eating when not hungry
2. Thinking about other people eating. I make stories up. I am a writer and I fixate a lot on the food my characters eat.
3. Surfing sites of restaurants I never plan to go to.
4. Eating to reward myself.
5. Eating to cover something painful like stress, border and or loneliness.

What helps me:

1. Counting my points/calories even on vacation. Counting even after I goaled.
2. Not depriving myself. Yes I eat a lot of salads and healthy stuff but I know I can have candy if I count it. Some foods though I used to eat I would no longer
3. Support of my husband.

Promoting Fruits and Veggies

Promoting Fruits and Veggies
By VH Melville
Ronald McDonald good marketing children’s love clowns. Well I found them scary but Ronald is less scary than other clowns. I don’t know why the fruit and veggie board http://www.aces.edu/department/associations/afvga/AFVGA_bylaws.html don’t try fast food marketing. I am not talking about fancy commercials. Hitting children during cartoon time would be priceless but budget is not always there. I am talking about whine factor.
They could put cheap prizes in bagged salad. They could do school parties and give coupons for free fruit for good grades from local farmers and groceries.
They could run a contest for the best Ronald type characters.
They could start auctioning off weird celebrity items to get in the news.
How would you promote fruit and veggies?

Healthy Value

Healthy Value
VH Melville
Fast food places won’t sell healthy food unless we buy healthy food. We must make a commitment to buy healthy food. People don’t buy things that don’t taste good. They also want value.
I wish fast food restaurants would start lean value menus.
Canned vegetables can be just as healthy because many canned vegetables were cooked and packaged at the height of freshness and would have more vitamins than some veggies that had to travel long distances. It’s a myth that canned vegetables are bad.
A healthy Value Menu could have vegetable based soups, bean based chilis, small spicy bean wraps, oatmeal, side salads, turkey ham, baked fries, bun-less JR burgers for the low carb people, vegetrain baked chili fries, bean based sloppy Joes and frozen yogurt. These types of foods can all be cheap and tasty.
Also there needs to be more option of than Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi. What about diet Sprite or Diet caffeine free coke, or diet root beer. According to some studies caffeine makes some people hungrier.
Last but not least. Why not make most of the dressings low fat, or fat free, accept Creaser, and classic Italian? Most people assume they are getting low fat dressing.

Someone Else

Someone else will always be thinner

So aim for health and strength

Loose skin happens sometime

You are still pretty

Love yourself loose skin and all

Love yourself when your little or big

Love others

It is not selfish to be healthy

Your babies learn through you

Love with your whole heart.