Dieting for Disney

[bubba73]

I have good news and bad news. I'm going to start off with the good news. The good news is that I was able to get to the gym tonight. It was awesome. I felt good and strong. I was actually able to do an incline bench of more than 200 pounds for reps. Just to let you know, incline has always been my weakest lift. It was a wonderful feeling. I also was able to test my knee a little and did 15 minutes worth of cardio. I didn't want to overdo it so that is why I only did the 15. But when I was done, I felt wonderful. It really got me in a better frame of mind. Amazing isn't it? I have been avoiding the gym because I didn't think I had the right frame of mind and then I go and I feel better than I have in weeks.

Next, I can't thank all of you enough. I have been crying a lot at the emotion and the support all of you have been throwing my way. You will never know how much you have helped me through this. Another part that was amazing to me was the way my boss at work has been showing me a lot of concern. He has also been giving me a lot of positive energy on the distinct possibilities of a promotion which could also include close to a $5000 or $6000 a year raise. (That will be very helpful right now!)

Now for the bad news. Yesterday was not exactly what I would call a success. I ended up having to call the lawyer's office and they basically called me a liar when I said I hadn't been contacted at all. They also said that the only way I can get this garnishment taken off is to give them $4000 now. Otherwise, nothing. They wouldn't negotiate lowering the amount that is being taken off of my check. I am really concerned about this but I am going to some serious soul searching and math equations to see how I can make it. I am also considering talking to a friend of mine that is a lawyer and see if he can make any suggestions for me.

I am not giving up hope by any means. I am discouraged but until something good happens, this will be the last I mention these troubles. I know you all have told me that you are here for me and you are throwing me tons of . I can almost promise some of you that if things get really discouraging, I will be pm'ing some of you but, as the unofficial "leader" of the group, I really feel the need to get back on a positive forum. I don't want that to come out the wrong way. You have all been exactly what I have needed. The love that I have for all of you is indescribable. Yet again, you have all proved what I have been saying. We are a family!! So with that said, I know it is getting very close to Christmas. I believe there are a couple of our group that is actually at the World right now. Oh, how jealous I am of them. But, we are all left behind enjoying our families and friends and getting ready for one of the most special days of the year. I thank you all for coming along on this wonderful journey of health and fitness. I pray that you all have a fabulous Christmas holiday filled with love, happiness and the exact gifts that you want. (I already received my dream present. That is having all of you in my family!) And then, I sincerly wish you a very Happy and Prosperous New Year! May it be filled with health and happiness. Time out! It sounds like I am leaving the group. That's not going to happen. I will be here as long as anyone ever wants to come here to ask a question or seek that little bit of encouragement that is always needed.

Have a GREAT rest of the week!!

Bryan

 

[fromscratchmom]

Hello, all! We are home from our trip and recuperating nicely. I'll cut and paste most of a small trip report of sorts that I wrote for a different forum. Its actually rather long but not as long as some of the detailed accounts that go day by day as some folks do in writing trip reports... I was going to write separate trip reports for different audiences, but I'm so zombie like right now as I'm recovering from my trip and my illness that it took me forever to write just one and so I want to share it with y'all as well. Maybe after the fact I'll write something different for the families forum. So here it is:

We're back and we had a wonderful time! Which may sound strange considering I was very very sick on Thursday and Friday. But it turns out being sick at Disney is still better then being sick at home, plus I was able to tour the parks the other days which was amazing at every turn. I had gone to Epcot on Thursday morning but went down hill fast after about 11am. I ended up leaving around 1pm and took Liese back with me. She rested and watched cartoons while I napped. I tried to get in a couple of morning hours of touring again on Friday (MGM), but it about killed me and then I missed Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party at the Magic Kingdom that night. The rest of the trip I was OK to tour all day each day, but at the same time, not exactly in good health.

I had been to Disney several times when I was younger, always for just one day at a time and usually to the Magic Kingdom (once to Epcot). And I have to say that it just gets better and better. It far surpassed my expectations for this trip. The kids had a great time every single day with hardly any drama --- only one sad crying spell from Gwyn that only lasted a few minutes and only one rather longish cry from Liese from getting over tired at the end of our first day. After Liese got calmed down and got some good food into her, Gwyn basically told me that she understood how Liese felt. Then she kind of laughed and shrugged and said that "now" she understood why I kept making them walk on the treadmill, her legs felt "like jelly".

I had one little spell too. Our first day there DH got cranky about a few things before we even got in the park and was a misery to me until I decided that we would have to split up and tour separately. After Alec and I had our own little bit of fun riding Space Mountain twice in a row with hardly any waiting we got back together with DH and the girls who wanted to stay together as a family and did pretty well with them. Later on I told DH that if we ever get to go back, he would have to plan the next trip. I do not like being the one responsible when he doesn't like the plan. Anyway, I think he really ended up having just as much fun as the rest of us during most of the trip and he told me several times that he was really glad that I had "practically forced" him into a Disney trip and that he thought I did an awesome job planning it. And now that I've told the only negatives I have to repeat that over-all the whole trip was fantastic! Even with illness and everything words can't express how glad I am that we went.

Now, I have to make a recommendation here. The Dining plan is really wonderful and an amazing value. I mainly wanted to get it so that we wouldn't be faced with thinking over our budget at every restaurant choice and every menu. Getting the dining plan and making advance reservations seemed like the best way to go. Boy was it ever! I had no idea just what a great value it would turn out to be. If any of you ever buy a Disney package you HAVE to add on the dining plan! (And Disney packages at the value resorts are really a pretty good deal anyway. We really liked our "family suite" at the All-Star Music. It met our needs perfectly and really impressed us especially considering the good price.) My son couldn't get over telling us how great our dinner at Ohana was on the first night and he was right; it was worth every bit of his rave reviews. Then several of the other restaurants inspired me to be nearly as impressed as I was with Ohana rather than let down after having the best for our first meal.

... We ended up at MGM again on our day that I hadn't planned, which was DH's and Gwyneth's top choice for that day. And we gave Alec the independence to go where he wanted and he did Animal Kingdom and Epcot that day. He told me later that 4 days previous someone had set a new record by riding Kali River Rapids 37 times in a row and he had wanted to break it but he didn't make it. He only rode it 18 times in a row! His clothes were still not dried out when we had to start packing on Tuesday night. (a cool aside about our accomodations: there were 2 bathrooms in our "family suite" and both tubs had a laundry line that you could pull across to hang wet things! After we discovered Alec's heap of wet clothes and hung them they were close enough to dry to be packed by Wednesday morning!)

Speaking of packing... I was about brain dead by then and luckily DH came to the rescue and handled it. He really took over and made our exit easy on me. On a trip like that you sort of suffer from a little bit of diminished capacity, a little more and more with each passing day, or so it seemed. And we were both feeling it on the way home on Tuesday. Maybe adrenaline keeps you from realizing it until you actually leave Walt Disney World Property. At the airport, we had to keep telling the kids that we were feeling frayed and that they just had to try to understand and calm down for us. DH told me that he wanted to try to go back again, but if we planned for the same length of stay we'd be just as frayed (and we both knew we were a little too frayed at that point). We settled on the idea of either taking a shorter trip or taking a longer one with a couple of rest days built in. For example on this trip we went to church on Sunday morning, ate lunch at Subway and then went to Animal Kingdom until 7pm. Then we capped that off with DH and Liese driving our friend Amy back to Tampa and me and Alec and Gwyn going to see Animal Kingdom Lodge and view the savannah with the night vision goggles and eat at their counter service restaurant, Mara. (The food there was great by the way.) But if we get to go back in some future year, we'll plan on just church followed by pool time and naps or maybe walks or putt-putt on Sunday.

Incidentally, I had looked up some Church of Christ congregations in the Orlando area and ended up thinking that I didn't know anyone living in the area at the time and didn't know anything specific about any of the congregations so I just picked one that would allow us to get back to WDW early in the day compared to the others. But when we got there I turned my head to glance around and saw someone that I knew from when I was a teenager in Atlanta, then the preacher mentioned the man by name while he was talking about joint work teaching a class with him. So I thought, I guess they live here now. After church I got to speak with them and catch up, which was really nice. It turned out that they were just visiting their son, (same name as dad) and that he and his new wife lived there now. I babysat their son when I was a teen and thought it was pretty cool to see him all grown up and responsible! And that isn't even all. I also happened to pick up one of their church bulletins and looked down and saw a name I recoginized on that too. It was a man that grew up with my dad in Texas and now lives in Orlando and is an elder at that congregation! I mentioned all of this too DH. After church while I was chatting with the one family that guy came up and introduced himself to DH. DH mentioned that he knew a connection with the guy through his father-in-law and then that guy came up and introduced himself to me and told me all about staying at our house in Virginia once when I was very young and he had come there to preach a gospel meeting. Then he also told me a story about when he was a teenager and had been in a bad accident (he was a pedestrian hit by a bus) how my grandfather who had worked for his father at a filling station he owned had been driving the car to bring his dad to the scene of the accident and then rushed him to the hospital. I never knew my father's father, but it was very cool to talk to this guy. So the whole time was like old home week and, of course, we did not leave and get to Animal Kingdom early in the day. But the man who knew my dad asked for me to give his number to my dad and ask him to get in touch and the mom from Atlanta asked after my mother and wanted her number and address to contact her. And needless to say, I was very glad to have visited that particular congregation! It's a small world after all, isn't it. (yes, I know I'm very corny!)

 

[CJK]

I'm just dropping in for a quick second to wish everyone a wonderful Christmas full of family sharing, thankfulness, laughter and healthy living!! I don't think I'll get the chance to post again until after Christmas. Thanks for the update Bubba. I hope you have a terrific Christmas with family and friends. I'll continue to keep you in my prayers. Fromscratchmom: Welcome home! Sounds like you had a magical trip!

Best wishes for a magical holiday season!

 

[fromscratchmom]

Quote:
Originally Posted by WebmasterAlex
Over the holiday weekend we will be upgrading the boards to the latest version of the VBulletin software. This upgrade will involve major downtime for the boards. I will be bringing them down around 5pm on Friday and it will take 24 to 48 hours to upgrade them.
The new VBulletin has a host of exciting new features, this should really make the boards a better place for all of us.
Alex

Yikes! Y'all have a great holiday. I guess I'll keep taking time off of everything and enjoy the holiday with no disboards! I'll check back in sometime later. Since my mom is about to get into to town, I probably wouldn't have any extra time, I guess. So maybe I won't go into withdrawal.

 

[fromscratchmom]

oops, before I sign off, DD, age 6 1/2 says I have to use these two emoticons:

And she says that they are perfect for telling y'all how awesome Philharmagic was! Wow. we had so much fun. The kids really loved it, but I think Philharmagic was an even bigger hit than most of the attractions. And hey those 3d glasses do fit don't they?!

 

[bubba73]

I just wanted to jump in real quick and tell all of you how much I really appreciate each one of you. You have been the "rock" that I have needed in my life. I love you all and I wish you all a very happy and safe Christmas Season.

Merry Christmas!!

Bryan

 

[twotoohappy]

Just wanted to give a quick shout out to everyone and wish everyone well over the holiday season! I'll have more time later today to read up on what I've missed. I'll post too about my trip, but in a nutshell it was great and I pretty much ate ok, but the alcohol made up for the difference I'm trying to get back on track now. Ttyl

 

[fromscratchmom]

Hi, all. I'm writing in for a little encouragement and/or help from y'all. I know from my own experiences that it is very hard for others to be good support to a dieter and even more so to encourage someone to try who isn't ready. But I am so worried about my mother's health. She desperately needs to lose weight and to improve her cardiovascular health. She'll accept some discussion on the subject from me because she knows that I truly understand how hard it can be and also because she knows that it comes from love. But it is still difficult to know what to say to her. Please pray for her that she'll be able to get her frame of mind to a place where she can think positively and can make permanent positive changes in her life.

 

[bubba73]

Twotwohappy Welcome back! I know you had a great trip and I look forward to reading your trip report. You did what I have been wanting to do for years and that is to be able to go to WDW during Christmas. Awesome!

Fromscratchmom Welcome back to you as well! As far as what you mentioned, I can relate to your situation completely. My Mom has wanted to loose weight for years but never stuck with anything more than a couple of weeks. But ever since I lost my weight, she has a renewed optimism about being able to achieve her goals. The first thing I have tried to do is to live by the example that is needed. I do everything I can to show a healthy lifestyle. Then, I offer to exercise with her so I can show her different ways to workout. I always try to make known that what we are doing is not a "diet". It is a lifestyle change. Also, make sure not to scare her away. Usually, if you introduce someone to this type of lifestyle, we all start off the conversation by saying everything that you can't have. In the immortal words of CJK, preach "moderation". That is the key. Yes, there is exercise involved but no one said it can't be fun. Offer to go on a walk with her, if possible. Just be as supportive as you can. That will go a looong way.

Have a great day!
Bryan

 

[CJK]

Sorry for not posting here for a while. Hmm, it seems like I've been starting many of my posts with an apology! Tiz the season of being busy isn't it? I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season with family and friends. I wanted to stop by and wish everyone a safe and happy New Year's celebration. I hope we all make 2007 the healthiest and happiest yet!

I've had so much going on in my life recently, but I don't want to bore everyone. The good news is that I've managed to lose a couple pounds during this holiday season. I still indulged in some favourite treats (brownies, sugar cookies, candycane cheesecake, turtles....just to name a few! ), but I guess I was able to use portion control and exercise to help make up the difference.

The bad news is that some family members were VERY alarmed by my weightloss. My mom actually started to panic when she saw me. I'm about smack in the middle of my healthy BMI range, I've lost weight at a rate of 2lbs per week, yet I got some very alarming comments from family. I admit to shedding a few tears when I had a quiet moment to myself this Christmas season, but I'm trying not to let it get me down. I know that I'm healthy and that's the important thing.

I know I haven't been posting as much, but as Bubba has mentioned, I think of you all often. I thank my lucky stars for finding this WISH board. You're all so warm and supportive. I wish you all a very Happy New Year. See you next year!

 

[bubba73]

As we enter a brand new year, I want us all to reflect for a minute on what we have been able to accomplish this past year. We all have accomplished so much to be proud of. We have all had significant weight loss which in turn has made us all much healthier. We have all made new friends and family here on the DIS. And we all have learned that we can look forward to what tomorrow brings rather than being depressed. So with all that being said, I want to wish all of you a very Happy New Year. I sincerly hope that this is the best year of our lives (to this point). I wish that one day, we would be able to meet at WDW and have a day where we can truly celebrate each others successes. I can't express into words what all of you have meant to me this past year. So I hope that the words that I am using can possibly convey my true emotion.


May 2007 bring you all health, happiness and prosperity!

Have a great one and talk to you soon!

 

[thelionqueen]

Ok, well maybe not all of us are as healthy as we want to be right now, but a new year is the perfect time to get back into the groove!

I personally have changed my lifestyle and work schedule to accommodate my workout, this is the utmost important to me. I have come so far and I'm not giving up now!!

I hope you all know how inspirational you have and continue to be to me, and I wish you all peace and a prosoperous new year. NOW LET'S GET TO WORK!! A Healty 2007 for all of you, my extended Disney dieting family!!

TLQ

 

[CJK]

I wanted to take this time to congratulate ONE OF OUR OWN for winning the DIS Biggest Loser Challenge.............AlaskaMOM!!!!!!!! Woohoo!! Way to go!!!!!! She has done a remarkable job and deserves the Disney giftcard prize!! If people are interested, both AlaskaMOM and myself have posted before and after pics here, http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1313519 I hope everyone is off to a great start in 2007!!

I just found out that I'm going to Mexico next week!!! I'm trying to motivate myself to wear my first bikini EVER. We'll see if I'm brave enough! Our resort is widely spread out, so I'm looking forward to doing a lot of walking in between my martini's! Anyone ever been to Cozumel? It's my first time there. I'm wondering if there are any must-see things we should be sure to hit.

Keep up the great work everyone!!

 

[thelionqueen]

WOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

GREAT JOB ALASKAMOM & CJK..you ladies look FABULOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so proud of you both, and wish you continued success. You have been my mental motivation, and after seeing you both have given me VISUAL MOTIVATION like CRAZY!!! Way to wear that Dress CJK, and I KNOW you will FANTASTIC in your Bikini...GO FOR IT!!

As for me, I have decided to quit my job. I do not feel like a quitter in any way, just that the job was not a right fit for what I want in life, and it was completely limiting my ability to focus on my workout and my health...CAN'T DO THAT!! We have been doing just fine on my hubby's salary, and even though the added income was WONDERFUL (and was going to pay for my DVC membership ) my health and family will always come first.

I also got on the scale for the 1st time in a couple of weeks (was snowed in here!) and actually LOST 1 lb, so I SO stoked to get going again. I think my metabolism was coasting me through the sugar and salt filled holidays, so...YIPPEE...at least the HORRIBLE plateau was good for something

I am going to Vegas next weekend..(seems me & CJK are always going somewhere at the same time doesn't it ? ) and cannot wait to wear some clothes I haven't fit into in a long time.

Hope your new year is starting out well and look forward to MUCH continued success with all of you in 2007!!

Lanette
TLQ

 

[bubba73]

CJK You look absolutely fabulous! And that dress. I am so reminded of the song, "Woman in Red" from the 1980's. I am really almost speechless. About all I can say is that is so nice to finally be able to put a face to the name. But I will reiterate how exciting it is to be able to see such results from all of your hard work. Keep it up. And by all means, go ahead and put on that bikini. I think you are going to look great.

AlaskaMom I hate to say this but for some reason, your picture wouldn't open up on my computer. All I got was a red x. I am sure that the difference between the before and after is very exciting. I only wish that I was able to see so I could rave on your results like the others. I know that you have done a fantastic job and your results have been inspirational. I wish you continued success.

TLQ Lanette, my Sister that I never had. You make me sooo jealous sometimes with all of the trips that you are able to take. Right now, it is looking like I am not even going to be able to take a trip this year. Well, not unless some miracle happens. But that is ok. You deserve a vacation. If not for any other reason, just to get away from that blizzard that you have had to endure for the last couple of weeks. I hope you have a great trip to Vegas.

Update I have been able to get to the gym 3 days this week and I am going again in the morning. My gym is having some kind of "fit festival" with instructors and freebies so I am going to go for that and get a workout in while I am there. Plus, I was able to get back to my therapy and while I was there, I got permission to start doing some light cardio. I can't overwork my knee yet but I am able to get back and start burning some extra calories. I am getting excited about the prospects of what is happening at the gym so that's good news. Plus, I am getting more frequent in the gym. So, no matter what is going on on one side of my life, I am still very excited about this portion of my life and I have all of you to thank for it. I really don't have too many people to help motivate me while I am at the gym. All the people I used to workout with has stopped coming to the gym so I have lost all of my partners. So what really keeps me going is thinking about what all of you have been doing and all of your successes. And now, I have been able to see some of those successes. I am more motivated now than I have been in a long time. I can't wait to get back at the gym in the morning.

Now, I know there has been a Biggest Loser Challenge here on the Dis but I want to see if we can't come up with our own little challenge to keep us motivated through the Winter season and all the way to the Summer. We have had some good ones in the past. Cardio everyday for a week. Lose the weight of your Christmas dinner. Let's come up with something that can keep us going and than achieve it. I want this to be the best week, month and even year that we have all had. Let's take the ball and RUN!!

 

[bubba73]

Just checking in with everyone. No one has posted anything in quite a while. Everyone ok or just reaaaally busy? Well, I hope all of you are doing well and staying motivated.

I was going to let you know that therapy on my knee is going pretty well. I still have flare ups but I am encouraged because I can tell that I am getting some mobility back. I can go deeper on my squats and put more pressure on them while exercising. I am also allowed to do more cardio.
This was a big hurdle for me. Now, at least I can feel like I am not gaining any more weight.

I am also staying in the gym 3-4 days a week. I don't always get to do what I would like but at least I am moving. I guess that is the most important thing.

I really miss all of you. You are all my family members and I miss our time together. Hope all is well and you will be able to post so we all can know how to cheer each of you on.

Have a GREAT day!!
Bryan

 

[twotoohappy]

Hey Bryan!
Glad your knee is better! Nice work heading to the gym that often!!
I'm waaaay off track with no motivation. Today was my first day
back to the gym. I've gained maybe a pound since my Disney
trip, but just got stuck in a rut and I'm having trouble finding my way
back on track. I hit the gym for an hour and a half today and feel
much better, now I just have to stay focused.

How's everyone else?

 

[twotoohappy]

CJK

Now, I know there has been a Biggest Loser Challenge here on the Dis but I want to see if we can't come up with our own little challenge to keep us motivated through the Winter season and all the way to the Summer. We have had some good ones in the past. Cardio everyday for a week. Lose the weight of your Christmas dinner. Let's come up with something that can keep us going and than achieve it. I want this to be the best week, month and even year that we have all had. Let's take the ball and RUN!!

Oh I soooo need this!

 

[bubba73]

Wow! I feel wonderful right now. I just got back from the gym. I was able to do a solid back workout and a little over 20 minutes of cardio. If that is not good enough, I am not feeling any effects in my knee. I am hoping that this is a positive sign of things to come. I still have a "twinge" from time to time but not as much as I used to. But the other side is that I am finally able to get back into a solid routine at the gym. It really feels good to be able to push myself like that again. I can't wait to be able to start seeing the results. It is really exciting again.
I hope all of you are doing well. Are we making our goals and staying motivated? For that matter, let's address what Twotwohappy mentioned in her last post. We need to have something that can hold us all accountable and keep us motivated. We don't want to turn this into the Biggest Loser but we do need to keep the morale up. Anybody have any ideas? Let us know.

Have a great day!!

 

[CJK]

Hi all!! I'm back from Mexico!! I hope you're all doing well. It must be a busy time since I found this thread on page 2!!

Thanks for your VERY kind words re: my picture. I was quite nervous posting it so I thank you for being kind! The good news is that we had a great trip. The bad news is that my eating has been HORRENDOUS! We got back on Thursday and my eating hasn't gotten better yet. I must get my act together ASAP since I don't want to undo my hard work. I've continued with my exercise at least and tomorrow is a new day. Time to get back on track and continue striving toward my goal.

I hope you're all doing well. Please check in when you get the chance! I miss everyone!