Sometimes, these are things you would rather not hear. Other times, it's exactly what you need to keep motivated. Personal comments in the form of a compliment. I love them!

A coworker of mine told me, "What are you doing? You're looking so great. You're getting into such good shape."

Oh, yeah! Exactly what I needed to hear. Even though I'm not quite to the halfway mark, it made me feel like my efforts were not in vain. I'll keep trucking along until more and more personal comments are shot my way and more of my clothes begin to fit again.

The weekend weather is supposed to be decent, so I may begin changing clothes out. I really need to. There are still maternity objects hanging next to shirts, dresses and pants that are very wintry and probably won't be worn again anytime soon. I'm sure I got them out last year when I thought I'd drop tons of weight, after the baby was born. It didn't happen. Hormones are a bitch, but thank God they don't stick around forever.

Last night, it was "Hooked on Aerobics" again, but this time, the babe didn't want to work out with me. She started to, then changed her mind. I guess that whole being sweaty thing was getting to her (poor kid, she just doesn't know what she's in for). :) I felt really good afterwards. I showered, got the girls their dinner, then I had mine. Lentil soup and bran cereal should have had me living in the bathroom, but I'm fine even now. I guess my body is adjusting to all the fiber I'm getting. I'm glad. No one likes to live in the potty.

Hubby said that I'm starting to sound differently when I sleep. My body is looking different, too. Woohoo! It's all about those personal comments.

I weighed this morning. I know, I know. Only Wednesdays, but I had to know. I was feeling a bit lighter and thought I'd check it out. I would never have guessed the number in a million years! I'm hitting 181.5 this morning. Was it the removal of all that excess hair or really fat loss that's occurred? Whatever it is, it's the smallest I've been since having had Indy. Woohoo! I'm totally stoked. I hope that now that I'm feeling better and can get in those extra workouts (one being today), I'll really start to see it fall off.

Due to my husbands strange sleeping habits, I wasn't able to go to my water aerobics class on Friday and I was really bummed out about it. So, Saturday (bright and early) I got "Hooked" and felt truly invigorated afterwards. I didn't eat much Saturday or Sunday (the decongestant I'm on really zaps my appetite) so, I've eaten purely for nourishment, not for taste. It must have helped because, dig that number above! This also means I've hit a goal (if I can stay within a three to four pound radius of that number by Wednesday). I hope to find a place that can give me a nice manicure without breaking the bank. It might be that I have to breakdown and go to my place at the mall, but that's okay. I'll make up for the cheap price by getting some sweet spring decals or something extra special like airbrushing.

Next goal? Oh, man! I'm ready. Bring on the massage!

As I posted the other day, I went through a Hooked routine and got an intense workout. Yesterday, it was the walk video and today, another Hooked routine. My calves were already sore, yesterday from the first Hooked workout (it's 80's, so it's they're workouts have more impact than the workouts of today). As long as you're not doing outrageous stretching or damaging your knees, these older workouts still have a lot to contribute. I mean, seriously. People were really fit in the 80's but I digress.

We were in training and the conference room we were in is two floors down from where my office is located. I ran up and down those steps about 6 times for various reasons. Now, my thighs are sore. This is me trying to work in extra activity where I can. It's easy to do, working in the activity, but it definitely shows you the truth of the shape your in.

I'm wearing a maternity top today, not because it fits me so perfectly, but because it's really quite nice looking. It's a bright pink with a long neckline and sharp, tapered cuffs. Hubby asked me this morning, as he was wishing me a happy anniversary, "What happened to your breasts?" I was like, "Huh?". The shirt, as I said, is maternity and emphasis is put around the mid section. My mid section, sans baby, is still a little round. Therefore, the horizontal pattern of the material makes the boobs look almost non existent. I think it threw him for a loop because I am quite chesty. I lifted my shirt to prove to him that I still had the goods and he seemed satisfied. Writing this now, I can't believe we even had this conversation.

We had the little one's birthday party last night and I indulged in one small piece of cake and one scoop of low-fat, Dreyers strawberry cheesecake ice cream. They were both delicious and just enough sweets to make me happy. The dinner consisted of sweet and sour chicken (which I had a bit of), chicken lo mein and Moo Goo Gai Pan. Yum! I actually loaded up on the veggies and felt really good. Lunch was brought in for our training and I had one serving of the pasta and filled the rest of my plate with salad. I'm doing well, folks. I'm doing well.

I won't weigh again until the weekend, though because TOM appeared on Tuesday (1/9/07). I'm bloated and, regardless of all the water I'm drinking, I know I'm holding on to a lot. I'd like to wait to weigh.

Yesterday morning, I tried Hooked on Aerobics for the first time in a long, long time. It was rough! I found myself transitioning down to the low effort, often. I was just huffing and puffing, but thankfully, staying within my target heart rate. With as difficult as it was, I felt really energized afterwards. It hit me while I was showering that it was the most energized I'd felt since beginning my program last week. It occurred to me that I probably haven't been reaching my target heart rate with the walking workouts...you know, not putting out enough effort to reach it regardless of the sweat I was seeing.

Today, I couldn't do Hooked because hubby was home and the only VCR that currently works resides in our bedroom (I fixed that this morning on my way to work by stopping at Wally World and picking up a new VCR to put in the living room). We needed one anyway. My mother gave us a DVD burner for Christmas and I want to convert home videos and such to DVD...but I digress. I took my walking DVD up front and went through the two-mile, thirty minute workout. This time, I put forth the effort and felt like I was really doing well. I also noticed how much better I did since last week. I guess I'm getting stronger. It's still a bit uncomfortable, but I did it. I can't way to say that about Hooked and The Firm. Then, I know I would be making huge leaps.

Here are my stats from yesterday: 72 ounces of water, 1380 calories, 41.5 fat grams and 35 grams of fiber. I'm not counting carbs or protein this time because I'm eating low glycemic items. Doing so, my carbs are under control and I'm getting a lot of protein. I really like this because I don't feel like I'm going to starve to death. That was always my issue before. I would just get so hungry and want to eat everything in site. I'd crave those high glycemic carbs which would only satisfy me temporarily. Then, I'd be hungry again. I've also noticed how even I am. No more highs and lows with erratic behavior towards my hubby (or at least, not as erratic). With all that, I'm putting out an APB on my extra weight. It's armed and extremely dangerous. It has a warrant for attempted murder, physical and mental abuse. I'm hoping it gets the death penalty...preferably by electrocution by body heat.

Things are still going great and on Saturday, I was down two pounds. Woohoo! I found them again today, unfortunately (I hate those day-to-day fluctuations). I'm pretty sure it's water retention from my impending TOM, which is supposed to appear today. We'll see. It's been pretty finicky these last couple of times.

The Walk-at-Home video is going well. I completed up through the fourth on Saturday, took Sunday off and went through the fifth today. I do prefer her workouts where she's working out with "everyday Joes" rather than her instructors. She talks to her folks and they are all shaped differently, which is motivating to me. Her workout instructors don't say anything and look like robots. I suppose the Firm has it's robotic feel too, but this seems different somehow. Oh, well. I did decide today that I won't be able to use her workouts all the time because they aren't challenging enough. Most times, I break a bit of a sweat, but today...I only glistened. I need something to rev things up so, I may have to break out my "Hooked on Aerobics" tape again.

I can't wait to get going with the Firm as well, but I'm doing things the right way. Weight training will be added into the walking DVD this week, then next week, I'll begin the Firm. I'll have to figure out how to work those in because those workouts are much longer. It may be that I do aerobics in the morning, then the Firm in the evening before dinner.

Hubby grabbed the schedule from the Aquatic Center and found out that they have a water aerobics class in the evening on Fridays. I may try to do that as well. I love what swimming does to my body (tone, shape). Even before I've lost a pound, that look is fabulous! I remember we swam every Thursday in college and my calves and thighs were beautiful!