The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[DogMa]

Walked for the hour today, AND the scale finally showed some movement in the right direction. But I signed up for that other program yesterday, anyway, just to give myself a jump start - and to take a break from spending so much time on meal preparation and planning.

[BiggerInTexas]

Yay, Robin! I really love reading about your journed through transition and maintenance. It's a stage I really fear! You're figuring out what works right for you. And you stay faithful to exercise even when the scale doesn't move or you're not feeling it that day.

The prepared meal plan sounds like a good idea. One of the things I like about MF is not having too think too much about food choices - the more I think about it, the more I want what I can't have! The prepared meals will give you the same freedom.

Hope your arm is finally getting back to normal!

[DogMa]

Yeah, I feel kinda bad that it's not Medifast, but I wanted more calories and more "real" foods, like veggies and fruits, plus I wanted food that more resembles what I already eat on maintenance. So there's till a little more work than with Medifast, because you have to add several servings of fruits and vegetables, plus even some extra protein throughout the day, but it should be pretty minimal as long as I keep some hard-boiled eggs and low-fat string cheese and such on hand, just as I do now.

I didn't like the message boards over there, though. They didn't seem very well organized at all.

My food shipped today, according to my e-mail. So assuming it comes in a few days, I'm planning to start Sunday or Monday (depending on my weekend plans).

[BiggerInTexas]

Don't feel bad about it not being MF! You used MF for what you needed it for, and now you're finding what works right for you where you are now. I can't wait to see how it works out for you, 'cause I know I'm gonna be doing the same thing down the road!

[DogMa]

Well, yeah, it definitely worked when I needed it. I just want something a little less drastic since it's only a few pounds. I'm interested to see how it works, too. And how the food is. Although I was telling a friend, if I could live on Medifast for a year and a half, given how I felt about the food - especially at the beginning - I can make do with just about anything. And they had so many choices, I'm hoping I'll be gone by the time I try them all!

Plus the one thing their site DID have is a section with ideas for fixing up the foods, just like here. So that should be helpful. And they all talk about how tastes change while on the program, just like here.

I think I'm mostly excited about just doing SOMEthing different. Which might be just what I need, to get some fresh motivation.

[DogMa]

Ran hills, but just three because they wiped me out. Ran 20 minutes of the hour, walked the rest at 4 mph. Weight unchanged, but still down where it was yesterday.

And my food is scheduled to be delivered Friday. Yay!!

[BiggerInTexas]

Do you have a pedometer that lets you know how fast you are walking/running, or do you run on a treadmill? I've been averaging 3.5-4.0 on the treadmill, but with it flat. I can do short 5min jogs on 5.0 periodically.

Fun runs and charity runs are a big thing here in Austin. If I stick to plan I should be in shape enough by next summer to join a 5K. Do you do runs/marathons?

[DogMa]

I run on a treadmill, with a heart rate monitor. But yep, I've done some 5K runs (but haven't run a whole one yet; my goal is to do the next one with no walking). They're a lot of fun, plus you almost always get a T-shirt that I LOVE to wear on weekends cause they make me feel athletic.

I run or walk on a small incline (bigger for hills, obviously). I can run 6 mph or more, but not for long enough, so I slowed down to 5 mph to build up my endurance. Once I can do 30 minutes at 5 mph (which should be this weekend, actually), I'm going to start increasing my speed.

I dunno about doing a 5K in summer, though. I pretty much swore off 'em till the weather cools off again. My favorite's the Jingle Bell Run in Fort Worth (benefits the arthritis foundation), because they give you little bells to attach to your shoes, so everyone jingles while they walk or run. Plus it's in the evening, so you don't have to get there at the crack of dawn. (Second favorite has been the Zoo Run Run, because you run through the Fort Worth Zoo, past some of the animals, and then in the surrounding neighborhood.)

[BiggerInTexas]

Oh, those sound fun! I think I'm following a similar path in trying to build endurance. I started out walking 10 min at 3.0. Now I can do 30 min at 3.5-4.0 with some short sprints at 5.0 (ok, it's a sprint for me ).

[DogMa]

That's pretty much how I started, too. My original jogging speed was 4.5 mph.

The weirdest thing for me, even more than the fact that I'm running at all, is when I'll be in a hurry to get somewhere, and I'll just break out into a jog. Last night when I got home from work, I saw a dog that had obviously gotten out of its yard. I was trying to catch him, or at least keep him from running into the street. Eventually his owner came out with some other people and managed to get him back. So I was about half a block from my house and heading back, and even though it was hot as blazes out, I SHOCKED myself by jogging home.

[SharonR]

That must be a great feeling Robin!

[DogMa]

It's just weird. But it didn't even occur to me NOT to jog. In a hurry to get somewhere? Run. What a concept.

Of course, I was in a hurry to get back into the A/C. But still.

[SharonR]

Not being heavy you can do what seems natural. For me to run would cause another scene that I would not want to deal with! LOL
I can't wait for that feeling!

When are you going to post some more pics of you!?

[DogMa]

But that's the thing. It's never BEEN natural for me, so it's very weird to have it be that way now. Apparently the doc from those YOU books says your muscles have a three-year memory, so if behave like an athlete for three years, your body will act like you ARE an athlete. Or something like that. So I've been working out about two years now ...

And errrrrr, maybe when I've been on this new program awhile and have (I hope) lost a little more weight? I was going to post pics from the bat mitzvah last year, but I still haven't SEEN any.

[DogMa]

Workout day off today. Food comes tomorrow. A co-worker and I are going to try to run to the farmers market during our "lunch" today, so I can get some more of that great fruit I've been enjoying all week (the new plan includes two fruits a day).

That's about it. I have a luncheon tomorrow and dinner plans Saturday, so I'm going to start on Sunday.