Hi ya'll, My name is Keli. I am brand spankin' new to this site, and I am prayin' that someone here has walked in my shoes, and will be able to tell me what to do...
I am going to walk ya'll through my day, and I would appriciate any of you telling me what to do differently to help me lose this freakin weight. My baby is 10 months old now, and I am a tub...

3:30 - wake up, get ready for work
....coffee....coffee.....coffee......
5:00 - wake 4 year old up, and get her ready for school.
....coffee...coffee....coffee....
5:30 - get baby up and dressed, and do last sweep to make sure nothing has been forgotten....

5:50 - drive 35 minutes, and drop baby off at day care.

6:45 - driving to work.

7:00 - If I am already close to work, I eat a McGriddle from McDonald's.

7:30 - arrive at work, if traffic isn't too yucky...

7:30 - 5:00.... I am an architectural drafter, so I sit at a computer for the majority of my day.
....Throughout the day I munch on CRAP. Usually M&M's and coffee....

5:00 - 6:00 - Drive to school...

6:00 - 11:00 - School... Dr. Pepper, and more M&M's.

11:00 - 12:15 - Drive home...

12:30 - 3:30 - sleep....

.....So, what do ya'll think? Should I sacrafise another hour of sleep to work off the candy and dp, which I only eat to keep myself alert...

Damn! I don't know how you even have time to write that! lol. How about your lunch hour? If you snack through the day, you should be able to have time to spend your lunch hour at the gym. Is it close? If not, you could go for walk or something?

Also, try some sort of granola bar for b-fast. I bought a few different kinds, South Beach Living, Fiber One, Kashi, and belive me, I would NOT eat them if they tasted like cardboard, but I fianlly found a few that I really like. Only 140 calories, lots of fiber and protien and easy to grab and go (I know how necessary that is!)

Switch to diet drinks. I had no idea how many calories I was consuming on dang drinks!! No, they don't always taste as good, but nothing tastes as good as being thin feels! You'll get used to it and it's a small sacrafice to make in the long run.

I'm a sugar-aholic too! I have a giant container of mini york peppermint patties (they are my weakness!) but at 40 cal, I allow myself to have one after lunch and one after dinner. It's enough to satisfy my urge, but not ruin my diet. And when I want to binge, again, nothing tastes a good as being thin feels!! (It's my motto...can you tell?) I simply tell myself, I can have it tomorrow, and I do, my one for lunch and one for dinner.

You could try some of those 100 calore packs. I used them last time I dieted cause I needed to snack and I love sweets, and they make oreo ones, lorna dunes, chocolate chips, etc. Again, no, they're not the same and not as good, but they did the trick and allowed me to satisly my sugar and snacking habit without ruining my diet.

Keeping a little notebook and writting down everything I eat with the calories is something I have to do. I go into denial on how much I actually consume if I do not keep track of it. It may not be easy or for everyone, but it works for me. www.calorielab.com

I don't know what you usually take in your coffee, but if it's black, well you're all set. But it's probably not, and I can't go without sugar, but I started using skim milk and evetually bought this vanilla falvored powdered creamer, no fat, and added a minimal amount so it wasn't sickining sweet, but enough where I didn't have to add any sugar! You may not want to mess with your coffee (people can be very particular about thier coffee! lol) and that's smrt of you to recognize, since messing up too much of your world can throw you into quitting, so leave that for last if you want, but maybe you can start playing around with it eventually.

Ok, well, I hope any of that helps a little. It's not going to be easy for you, but you can do it! Best of Luck!!

I'm not an expert, but if I were you, I'd start with the foods - pack your own. Get a cute cooler that you can pack for the day - foods while you drive, for meals, at the computer...you can't go wrong w/ fruits and vegetables - 100 cal snacks that ForMyMarnie mentioned are great. Pop some popcorn. Fill drink bottles w/ crystal lite (or walmart equivalant).

You really can't rob your body of any more rest, you're right. Add a multi vitamin to your day - pack your own foods and see how you are doing in a week!

And ALWAYS have a drink at your desk - water, water, water!!!

Good luck!

So how have you been? Just wanted to see if you've been trying anything new out? We can learn from your changes too, so keep us updated!! Best of Luck!!

Amy

R u sleeping only 4 hours a day? Amazing. How do u find enrgy to do anything? Probably with sugar. So my suggestion is trying to sleep a little bit more if possible. I noticed I am eating more when I don't sleep enough. With the extra energy maybe you can start walking during lunch times or something? Hope you are doing fine now. Best of luck!