OH Juli

travelgirl It's taken some time to get to that point. I've been doing cardio since October and really hitting it hard since January. Trust me I was all jelly even after that when I got on the bike the first time this spring. They say you never forget how to ride a bike, which is true, but my body sure wished that I had! Juli

I am off to buy a new road bike today, hopefully. I biked 20 miles on Sunday and know I need a better bike if I'm going to get to 50 mile rides by August. (My Goal) And I'm no tiny thing as you can see by my stats below. Wish me luck. I've already been to two stores today, going to two or three more tonight. Also, I'm talking with a the organizer of a women's riding group I'm planning on joining! I would have never thought this possible a year ago. Woo Freakin' HOO.

Tia- I'm coming from a place of love, you hear me? Break out your blender and make chicken salad, ham salad or tuna salad. Make it wet and slick and take small bites. Try meatloaf that's not too dry. Crab sticks are great, get some real crab too, you're not going to eat that much, you should buy the good stuff! If you can eat dairy try some low fat yogurt, cottage cheese and other cheeses. You need to be getting at least 800 calories of good nutritious food. And really, really, you should be eating your protein, not drinking it because drinking it just goes through the band and you are doesn't keep you full. But girl, drink that protein instead of nothing. You're going to hurt your hair, skin and bones if you don't get your nutrition in! :hug: Juli

Tia You crack me up! Good to know the ChaCha is in plain view again! I can't tell if my hair is thinning or not. I always have a bunch in the drain and on the brush...but it's getting long, so is it more hairs or the same amount but longer? I figure if I really can't tell then there really isn't a problem. But I do fret sometimes. Aside from taking Biotin I can't do much else, I eat tons of Protein. Tia, what does your surgeon say you should be eating? Like how much? Do they have a nutrition plan for you? Do you take a multi Vitamin? Have a great day everyone!

Pam Who would think that doubling our time, from 3 nights a month to 6 would mean a lot? LOL. I know what you mean though. We are years away from being together every night. But it's like a honeymoon on the weekends we get together! Our kids left at the school on Friday last week. There's a calm around here now. The teacher's last day was yesterday. They say the three best things about being a teacher is June, July and August! HA. Stay away from the booze!

Eddie- That is horrible! But what can you do now? The bitch ruined your evening (I'm not talking about Sean either). And now you can either let it fester and pop more bad food in your mouth or you can say enough of that and you're in control now. I like the control method myself. You can control how long you and Sean are angry with each other. Pam said call him. I agree, make the first move. You can contol how you react to clients calling late. Go for a walk, drink a bottle of Water, write a nasty email and NEVER send it...there are ways to express your emotion that don't involve eating. You can, when you are both more calm, talk with Sean about client boundaries, what they are and what can be expected when they get crossed. (Because they always will). And, bitch ass bitches about your ruined evening. You've got a lifetime of some sweet man time, it was only one night...I know, you really wanted it and it got dissed for a client, but you do have him forever. Kisses,

Denise- I'm in Columbus, Ohio and she is in Kalamzoo. It's 284 miles from door to door. It's a 4-5 hour drive. I hate that she lives there. She was working in Columbus, knowing she would be transferred back to MI, so we weren't supposed to last, but you know love happens. Thanks for the praise. I'd love to do your trip in Sonoma. Can you send me a link? We are talking about going to CA next year...that would be fun. Drinking and Biking! ha ha! You'll have a blast! Laralynn- How's the belly dance/yoga class?! Rosi- Welcome back home! You'll get back on track in no time!

Hi gang. Just a statistics thing...the non exercisers are not going to click on your poll. Go figure. My gym is at work, Monday through Friday I spend my lunch hour there. Two days a week I go back in after work (shared custody of my kid, and I don't need to rush to pick her up.) So that's 3.5 hours of cardio a week and 3.5 hours of strength training. On my non kid weekends and some week nights I bike long distances. I'm shooting for a 50 mile ride by August. I just did my first 20 mile ride since I was teen on Sunday! On my kid weekends we spend hours at the pool, bike together where we stop and pick flowers every 100 feet, or walk around the zoo. I tend not to push too hard then...but I make sure we do SOMETHING! I have to run her like a puppy, she has too much energy! As for crazy restriction people on here, Chickie, I feel you. When people complain or brag that they could only eat 5 french fries I think WTF?! Wouldn't you want to get the best quaility food in you if you could only eat 3 ounces? I have yet to get a fill. Sometimes I get jealous of people who are losing without exercise, because they aren't eating much. But I know I am fueling my body and it is getting stronger and healthier. My rate of loss is good, so I try to focus on me not everyone else. Ya know?

Happy Tuesday Gang! This weekend I was with the GF again! I'm so happy we are spending a load of time together this summer. We have taken to bicycling. We did 13 miles on Saturday and 20 on Sunday!!!!!! That was a stretch goal, but we made it! (My ass dragged the rest of the day, but I don't care!) Our goal is to get up to 50 miles by August when we go to P-Town. Apparently there is a 25 mile stretch of Rails to Trails on Cap Cod we are planning on riding. Woo-Hoo! I'm so blessed to have a sweetie who's taken up the eating right and getting fit cause to support me. :love: I'm sure you can feel the love oozing out of me... Hope you all are doing great too!

soon to be- You're funny. I get what you are saying about negativity. I certainly don't want to be bothered with this particular fight. But there is a time and a place when you need to fight back. I'm guessing those filing the law suit feel such a need at this time. Yeah them!

I LOVE PFM! What a perfect way to describe that attitude people have about it! The, "wow, so the band really works, huh?" question has had me go, "No, I really work hard with the band!" I now will tag on, "it is not PFM!"

sweethot143 it's a civil rights issue. No one said the black people couldn't have water, they just needed to get it from a different fountain.

I was visiting my girl friend in Michigan this past weekend. She's been super supportive about my surgery and even has gone about eating better and losing weight herself in solidarity to my efforts! We've taken to biking when we get weekends together. Saturday was 13 miles. Sunday we set out to do 20 miles and we did it! Our goal is to be up to 50 miles by August when we go on vacation in Provincetown! There's a 25 mile rails to trails bike trail on Cap Cod we want to ride! We are talking about riding a century (100) mile ride next May! I've always wanted to do that! You know I'll keep you posted! Woo Hoo!

I'd say not to have a fill before your vacation, especially if you are in pain right after one. You wan to enjoy yourself while you are there. Have fun!!!

It's a combination of things, but being a single mom who wants to do better for my kid is the primary motivator in my life. I need to make more money becasue I can't squeeze another penny from my check, so I'm back in school and losing weight so I will get that better job. Also, it's easier to play with the kid at a lower weight. Go figure.

Eddie I was born in Cincinnati and moved to Columbus 20 years ago. Columbus is the a pretty queer town. I love it there. Now, while driving to Michigan this past Novemeber I hit a deer in Lima. What a mess! The deer didn't look so good either. It wasn't my typical route and I'll never drive it again! And just an aside for the other LDR's out there I'm with my honey again this weekend. We're both typing away madly at a coffee shop near her home. :target: or should I say :girl_hug: I"m so nasty! FYI, if your man and you want cheap flights back home skybus.com has some great flights from Jacksonville/St Augustine to Columbus.

Hi gay people. Nothing to report, just checking in! xo J

Denise- You crack me up! I'm going to go in search of somthing out of my regular, sounds like Yoga won't be it! What are you going to do with your summer months?

Recovery from lapbanding hurt more. Really, I think it was the difference between having your internal organs moved and having stuff on the outside moved. I do have sensation in my nipples, which there was a 10% chance of losing that! But the sides of breasts near my underarms are numb. I know other people who will don't want reconstructive surgery. As for the pannis, the hanging belly, when ever I get rashy there I call my doctor to have it in my medical history, so removal can be medically indicated. I'm going to have to pay for everything else I'm sure.

Linda, I'm a mom and when my kid gets up with me I can't stand it. I need my sanity time, which is really only 20 minutes but it makes such a difference! Sue, Sorry to hear you're in pain with your torn muscle. You'll start losing quickly when you get healed. Don't even begin to think you're going to stop at 35-40 pounds! About breast reductions. I got one 5 years ago, when I dropped 90#. I was a 40H and 40I. A little lopsided! Before I had lost the weight I was wearing J cups. Yes, they were custom bras that cost $65 each! The surgeon took me down to a full C. With gaining back lots of the weight my cup is a D...I'll have a revision when I get the weight off. I'll also have a belly-ectomy!! But my point is....GET PLASTIC SURGERY IF YOU WANT IT! It's the best thing you can do for yourself, once you are healthy.

Yea YOU! Sounds like you are doing better with this! Can I suggest one more thing in regard to the hotel. You can ask your sister what her budget is for a hotel, and offer to find one close that fits! That way you are "helping" her, but you can also KNOW FOR SURE that there is a hotel booked. You can even call the day before to make sure everything is still good at the hotel then call your sister to assure her.... And don't think a gulity thought about not spending every free moment with them. It's your time, your life and you don't need to give it away to anyone. xo

Lucy My GF and I were talking about vacationing in Miami next year. Would you be a good person to tell two 40ish year old lesbians where they might want to go and what to do? Your big day will be here very soon and you'll be on the otherside of bandland with the rest of us! Juli

LLSibley I like how you think! Good morning all!

Carlene- Outinamerica asks your gender and your sexual orientation. So you could easily enter female and straight. It doesn't only have man seeking man or woman seeking woman. And how it's listed when you go to seek is by your gender and your sexual orientation. There are males, females, male to female trans and female to male trans as far as gender goes. There are straight, lesbian, bi, gay and curious as far as sexual orientation goes. So me, back when I was on the market I skipped all the males, all the bis all the curious, all the trans and looked at the girls who dig girls. You could go there and hunt for the straight men. I doubt you'd find them, but catagorically there is room for them. And the idea of reverse descrimination, which I think you are talking about, just doesn't hold Water. Because though minorities can be anti-majority, they don't hold the sway or the power that the majority have. They can scream and kick and say you can't come to our party but until they get to critical mass there's not much they can do. It's like an ant kicking the toe of a human. The ant can be angry, mean and indignant, but the human has size and power on their side and can easily squash the ant. Being part of the majority, for me it's being white, it's hard to step aside and allow for other expressions without thinking something is being taken from me. (I'm so not used to having things taken from me!) I've been places where whites have been excluded and at first it felt uncomfortable, but when I got the "aha" moment, I realized other people deserve to be free of a place where the majority is looking in. Juli

Well I typically eat about 1400 calories a day, which is more than a lot more than other people eat who have good restriction. I haven't had a fill yet because I'm losing at a good rate. But if you want to see how I eat specifically here's my fitday journal. FitDay.com - Diet and Fitness journal for juligirl01 Today was a bad day...I had some pizza! Which isn't normal, but it happens. Really, I just don't eat many simple carbs so I've got to eat something. Fruits and veggies which I do eat regularly don't keep me full like Protein so I try to get some nearly every time I eat.