We managed to make it over there 4 days this week. We'd probably go again on like Sunday or something, but they're closed on Sunday, so we have to wait until Monday to go back. We did end up going Mon, Tues, Weds& Fri though. We have a weigh-in in about a month, and in 3 weeks, they'll personalize workout plans for both of us as well. I'm so impatient about seeing results, though, and it's frustrating. I know I'm going to have to wait months before I actually feel any better. I do think that my metabolism has had a bit of a kick-start, though. I find my stomach is growling a lot more. I'm making an effort to eat a little bit of something whenever that happens.. so a granola bar or a yogurt or a piece of fruit or something else like that. I haven't really had to compromise anything in terms of food, though, which is nice. Portion control is still difficult, but I think I'm getting there.
It probably has to do with the way they organize the machines and the time you spend exercising, because the whole process reminds me about something I read a while back about high-intensity training. I don't know much about it, but you're supposed to go all out for like a minute, and then go slower for a minute. You do this for as long as you can handle it, and it's supposed to kick-start your metabolism and help you burn more fat in between workouts.. so this might be something like that.

I can't say I've noticed any massive progress in the space of a week because I know it's going to take a lot longer than that.. but if there's any truth in this metabolism stuff, the weight should hopefully start to melt away within the next week or two. Even losing 30 lbs by Afest would be amazing.

I guess I should mention as a sidenote-

No, I'm not making an effort to lose weight for a convention. It's just that... I've been going to Afest ever since my weight started going up. It seems like every year, Afest is like the annual feel-bad wake-up call that tells me I need to do something with myself. As far back as 2000, I can remember looking at my Afest photos thinking "Geez, has it gotten that bad? I really need to lose some weight." But instead of having any success with any dieting programs, it just got worse. It's almost like I'm afraid to talk about how hopeful I am about this because I'm afraid I might jinx myself :P At any rate, Afest seems to be my annual self esteem/fat checker, which is why I wanted to set my goal for Afest this year. I still don't have hotel plans or know if I'm going to be able to make it, but I would like to be able to look back at my pictures this year and feel better about them instead of worse.