What  a great thread...I can join in on this one as well...starting to drop and think more about overall health of my whole self, not focusing only on needing to lose some weight! Yolanda..great advice and quite a story...kudos to you girl!!!

ang

Way to go Bunny!!!

21 lbs. down as of this morning.    Making progress, despite the occassional cheat treat. 

Publix makes very tasty cupcakes by the way.  Hard to resist when Weaselboy is enjoying them almost nightly!  But, I let myself get corrupted now and then. 

~Bunny

I just think that you're ALL hottie-hot-hotties and I'm gonna' be as happy as a pig in mud to be surrounded by ALL of you lovely Ryndamsels onboard this cruise!!!!

~Weasel

Ebony---You go girl!!! I'm so proud of you!  Now that is not only a great accomplishment, but kudos to you for sharing it with us as well!  You are undoubtedly an inspiration to many here, and within your own realm too, I'm sure!

All of your advice is excellent!

I too tried/lived Atkins for quite a while, almost 2 years, when I was first diagnosed with PCOS.  I had it real bad and had to go on Metformin to try and get my insulin levels regulated.  I essentially had to induce a form of diabetes through medication, as I was having an almost reversed form of it.  I had to drop my carbs to zero a day.  -talk about a near impossible diet to try and keep!  I didn't lose much weight on it though.

Surprisingly, all that meat and fat, along with the Metformin, had a strange side effect that the doctor was amazed to see...my cholesterol plummetted!  Initially it went up, but then it dropped way down after about 18 months.  Doc was going to do a paper on it for a journal.  That was almost 10 years ago.

After 2 years, I was "freed" of the wacky diet though, since my insulin levels were considered "normal" at last.  However, with a normal diet, my cholesterol levels started rising again...strange!  So now a few years later, I am on cholesterol meds and a cholesterol restricted diet!  geee whiz, just can't win!  haha

I never had a problem with cholesterol or fat until my knees got blown out and I couldn't excercise (run) like I had always done.  I used to be the super active aerobics instructor/marathon runner/army girl and never had to worry about weight.  But when my knees blew out, and I couldn't bend my knees a lot any more, then the weight started coming on.  The cholesterol went up too.  Being italian and a good cook doesn't help...I love food! -and Weasel will tell you that my portion control is really bad.  I actually eat very healthy foods, just not often enough and when I do, I eat too much. haha  At least I know my food faults!

So now I'm trying to drink a lot more water, eat regular meals (times and sizes), use good food combinations that increase metabolism, and try to choose low cal good snacks when I have to have something.  Adding excercise incrementally should help too.

Hopefully those that saw me on the last cruise will be shocked to see me by this next one!  haha

~Bunny

atkins is pretty good, but didn't really work for me although i know others who did really well on it, I'm diabetic and about 8 years ago i weighed in @ 500 plus, it hurt my heart to walk from my room to the living room much less anything else I've since lost down to 300 plus, but it is very hard work i exercise an hour a day and watch what i eat, here are some things that worked for me

1. avoid big meals....... i went from one to two big meals a day with lots of  snacking in between to 6 small meals a day averaging 300 to 400 calories a meal ...... with snacks in between no more than 100 calories at a time

2. hydration...... some times your body only thinks its  hungry when really its thirsty, most people don't realize the impact of plenty of water, not crystal light, not juice, not soda but water, drinking a glass before  eating actually helps yuo eat less

3. chew don't swallow....... alot of people take a bite and wash it down, not really  chewing your  food it takes  your tummy at least 20 minutes to know that it is full

4. don't go shopping hungry....... if  your  belly is full you are least likely to purchase quick fix things , it also doesn't hurt to make a grocery list and to stick to that list.....alot of times we are so busy til we  don't really have time to cook full healthy meals but alot of healthy meals are able to  be popped in the microwave or put in a zip lock bag or sandwich bag

5. prepare  yourself.......for instance i work overnights at my job and every night my co-workers eat very greasy fast food, i bring my meals and not only save money but save on calories i also attend school so i've noticed that is  i prep my food the day before i can grab and  go and  am not as tempted to  buy fast food

6. be your own person...... don't compare  your self toothers  your personal best and some one elses may not always be the same, alot of times when eople change their way of eating if someone else is losing weight faster or expercising more it discourages  the other person and they fall to the wayside nothing wrong with changing eating habbits  together  but just remember every flower blooms in it s own time but are  equally  beautiful in the end

7. set realistic goals... when i first started exercising i felt bad because i could only do 10 mins a day with out my chest hurting... but if  you start out small and add time as  it gets  easier  youare  more likely to continue  rather  than exercising 1hour for the  first  day and being so sore that you never want to move another muscle in your life

8. portion..... some people think that a portion is a ful plate, that not so a portion is a single serving, depending on what food like meat is supposed to be about the size of a normal fist or a golf ball .. you can go to different nutritional sites and they have examples of serings  and portions

9. reward yourself ........... don't deny yourself everything start small or you can eat what you want  just  not as much to lose weight your output just  has to be greater thatn your in put

this is probably the longest post  i've ever done but  this is a subject that i know alot  about i almost lost my life due to  not eating right and being so large but i now proud to say I've lost over 200 pounds and i'm healthier  now than I ve ever been and i'm still working on it.  Eating healthy is hard to start but easy once you get the hang of it, you feel so much better and have so much more energy... its  amazing and i can say that  because i lived  it ... if any one has  any questions i'm an open book, the hardest thing to  do is start it ...congratulations on step one ..........................

Great!  Are you guys trying any particular plans, or just winging it yourselves?  How long have you been trying?  What are your goals before the cruise?

Quitting smoking is a great thing to do!  You'll have a lot more fun because you won't find yourself stuck on deck or having to take a break from fun activities, or be late for them, in order to catch a quick smoke.  All added up, we easily spent over 12 hours just on deck smoking.  That is 1/2 a day that we wasted!  Then again, we got to know our Canadian Jan, pretty good!  haha.

But good for you guys tha tyou are trying to quit! Think of all the money you'll be saving too, cash that you can use on the cruise to buy bling!!!   hahaha

Ok Gals, like many others, I am intent on changing some things.  Some of us want to lose weight, quit smoking, get more physically fit, and generally better our health.  Sometimes it is easier with a little encouragement and setting goals.

Our cruise is a perfect goal date to accomplish what we set our minds to do.  We have about 6 months until we set sail, so what is it that people want to accomplish?

Whether we meet our initial goal or need to tweak it along the way, lets keep encouraging eachother!  -maybe we could even set up a competition or something?

I'm on a diet now, that I started just after Jan left (she visited a few weeks ago), hoping to drop quite a few pounds before the cruise.  I already dropped the smoking, which wasn't too hard for me, but I understand it is really a beast for others!  I also want to improve my cholesterol numbers and finally get my arse out excercising more!  (is fishing excercise?!)

Is anybody else planning on losing weight or have some other goal that they want to achieve before we sail?  Maybe we can report our progress or share tips, etc.  I noticed before the last cruise that many gals were trying to shed some pounds the last month before the trip.  -Quick/crash weight loss diets.  We all know that those are the kind of pounds that usually come right back on!  So a slower, steady plan seems to be the best way to do it, but that takes more long term drive and encouragement.  So this seemed like a good forum to get the "attaboys" and "stick to its" that we need to get the job done!

Anybody interested in keeping this sort of thread going?

~Bunny