No more jiggling July .. 100 plus ladies
07-27-2010, 03:30 AM
#201
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 46
Just curious-- how has your grocery shopping changed since you started this?
Anyways, I feel like I am spending wayyyyyyyyyyy more on groceries that I ever would have before, because it takes more (quantity to make me feel full and satisfied- as well as to have a normal calorie intake).
Anyways, I feel like I am spending wayyyyyyyyyyy more on groceries that I ever would have before, because it takes more (quantity to make me feel full and satisfied- as well as to have a normal calorie intake).
Next year, you could try growing your own. Even apartment dwellers can usually have some potted tomato & strawberry plants.
2) If you have to buy at the store, buy in season fruits & vegetables (This is a good site to see what's in season in your area: In-Season local and this one is good for season veggies at the store (which should be the cheapest: In-Season Produce. Bananas are usually always a fairly inexpensive choice. Buy veggies whole & spend time chopping them yourself into serving sizes (head of lettuce, carrots, broccoli, etc.) Buy dried beans & cook them yourself. The more prep work you have to do to the food, (usually) the cheaper & healthier it is. As changeisgood29 mentioned, frozen veggies or fruits are also a good choice, and you don't have to worry about them going bad.
3) Planning your menu out is helpful. Plan a week in advance if you can & create a list based on that plan. Basing your plan on weekly store sales & coupons is also helpful.
07-27-2010, 03:47 AM
#202
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 121
I do shop at the farmers market... although this year, they are doing pretty bad. Stuff I buy there seems to go bad within 1-2 days 
How do you freeze squash/zucchini?
I tried to grow some veggies, but I don't have a green thumb. I had sprouts, but nothing else ever happened. I live near the river, so the bugs outside eat at everything, so I even tried putting it outside, but that was pointless.
How do you freeze squash/zucchini?
I tried to grow some veggies, but I don't have a green thumb. I had sprouts, but nothing else ever happened. I live near the river, so the bugs outside eat at everything, so I even tried putting it outside, but that was pointless.
07-27-2010, 03:49 AM
#203
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 121
Well I hope your plateau is over. Tell your body it has enough of a break
hee hee
07-27-2010, 05:17 AM
#204
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Chicago Suburbs
Posts: 262
mstaff It sounds like in some ways we are similar.. I have thyroid probs, horemone probs since a hysterectomy ( but no more monthly visits!) and I am diabetic. Add the fact that I am over 50 and all that makes it harder. But you seem to be hanging in there and doing great! Keep it up!
chunkydunk- The reason you are ( and we all are) paying more for groceries ( or growing them) is because all the food that makes us fatter and unhealthier is the cheapest and most filling foods. Rice, Pasta, breads, fatty meats etc. And in some areas that are low income or a lot of unemployment.. like I keep hearing in the inner city of chicago, there are entire areas that cant get fresh fruit and veggies because they are so low income, they cant afford it and so the stores dont supply it. That is incredibly outrageous to me. Amazing that the USA has huge populations living like some 3rd world country and cant get healthy foods. You can still get 3 boxes of kraft mac and cheese for like $1 but I have yet to see 3 cans of veggies or 3 bags of fruit for $1.
I went to a diabetic class several months ago and I told the instructor that I have a very limited food budget, could she suggest anything to help get the right foods within my budget. And with a straight face, she looked right at me and said if you cant afford to buy healthy foods, you wont be able to change your diet. And I looked at her like she was from Mars ( and also reported her attitude to the hospital HR.)
But I have found a few tricks. Check in your town for fruit and veggie stores.. they arent always equal. I have one that charges, for instance, $2.99 for 3 lbs of navel oranges. I found another that only charges $1.50 for the same thing. The other option is frozen veggies. I would say frozen fruit but I priced that out at several places this past week and they are outrageously expensive for tiny little bags. So buy the fruit wherever it is cheapest and freeze it yourself. So the same with veggies when they are on sale.
You can also do that with meat. Buy chicken or pork or whatever you use on sale and get a few to freeze.
If you belong to a Sam's Club or Costco or whatever.. even if it is only you, get the giagantic cans of veggies and then split them and freeze. It comes out to a whole lot less per can than buying small cans. Same goes with fruit, grains etc. And see if any of your larger stores have a bulk food section, that is always cheaper.
OK I have to take my chatty bod swimming. Have a good day all!!
chunkydunk- The reason you are ( and we all are) paying more for groceries ( or growing them) is because all the food that makes us fatter and unhealthier is the cheapest and most filling foods. Rice, Pasta, breads, fatty meats etc. And in some areas that are low income or a lot of unemployment.. like I keep hearing in the inner city of chicago, there are entire areas that cant get fresh fruit and veggies because they are so low income, they cant afford it and so the stores dont supply it. That is incredibly outrageous to me. Amazing that the USA has huge populations living like some 3rd world country and cant get healthy foods. You can still get 3 boxes of kraft mac and cheese for like $1 but I have yet to see 3 cans of veggies or 3 bags of fruit for $1.
I went to a diabetic class several months ago and I told the instructor that I have a very limited food budget, could she suggest anything to help get the right foods within my budget. And with a straight face, she looked right at me and said if you cant afford to buy healthy foods, you wont be able to change your diet. And I looked at her like she was from Mars ( and also reported her attitude to the hospital HR.)
But I have found a few tricks. Check in your town for fruit and veggie stores.. they arent always equal. I have one that charges, for instance, $2.99 for 3 lbs of navel oranges. I found another that only charges $1.50 for the same thing. The other option is frozen veggies. I would say frozen fruit but I priced that out at several places this past week and they are outrageously expensive for tiny little bags. So buy the fruit wherever it is cheapest and freeze it yourself. So the same with veggies when they are on sale.
You can also do that with meat. Buy chicken or pork or whatever you use on sale and get a few to freeze.
If you belong to a Sam's Club or Costco or whatever.. even if it is only you, get the giagantic cans of veggies and then split them and freeze. It comes out to a whole lot less per can than buying small cans. Same goes with fruit, grains etc. And see if any of your larger stores have a bulk food section, that is always cheaper.
OK I have to take my chatty bod swimming. Have a good day all!!
07-27-2010, 06:06 AM
#205
FitDay Member
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Michigan
Posts: 3,742
Two years ago my New Year's resolution was to cut my grocery bill in half. It's hard to say if I've managed that or not, because groceries have gone up so much it's not an equal comparison. But here is what I know on the topic:
1. Never throw anything away. We always try and freeze or eat up leftovers right away, we in fact have "leftover day", so it's all used up on Saturday (my day off from the kitchen). If you have veggies that are looking like they need to be used up and it's not going to work out to eat them today, blanch them in boiling water 2-3 minutes and freeze in zip bags or freezer boxes. I also save bread ends in the freezer and then chop them up to make bread crumbs, croutons, stuffing cubes, bread pudding or breakfast casserole etc etc. We waste very little in this house.
2. Match coupons up with sales, generally speaking these are H&B items and junk food. While I don't buy too much junk food, I love to buy my H&B items for a fraction of their regular price. I also like to stock up it up to the rafters when I get a great deal on something I know we'll use.
3. Plant your own food, or join a garden coop. If you don't have a green thumb this is a great bet. Friends of ours belong to a garden coop, and pay $350/year for 1/2 a membership. They get a crate of veggies every week, and by the end of the season they've gotten a whole lot more veggies than $350 would buy at the store. On the other hand our family plants a garden, it costs maybe $400-600 to put in (it's big almost 2 acres) and I can or freeze probably $5000+ in groceries annually. I actually don't count the groceries we eat right out of the garden.
4. Farmer's markets are great. I try and hit ours at the end of the day, you are much more likely to get deals at that point. I also will dicker and deal with the sellers. For example if I'm buying apples, will you give me a break if I buy 3 bushels as opposed to 3lbs.? Believe me this works really well, they don't want to have to take that stuff back and drag it out to sell another day. Many fruits and veggies can be stored for months in a basement, squash, apples, potatoes, onions, tomatoes (wrapped in brown paper), etc etc, so don't be afraid to stock up.
5. Be a You-pick patron. We have a couple of really good ones near us. It's usually fruit, but you can buy berries for around $1/pound, larger fruit is maybe half that. And if you picked it yourself it will last days longer than if you buy it at the store. It's also sort of fun, and the kids seem to enjoy it.
6. Buy your meat from a local farmer. We usually get a cow, a pig and a lamb annually (not at the same time however). I know it's difficult to shell out several hundred dollars at a time, but it works out to about $1 - $1.50 pound and that's for steak, hamburger, ham or bacon. One thing I LOVE about buying the whole animal is that the butcher calls and takes my cutting orders, so it's cut and packaged to my specifications. So I know beforehand that my steaks are 3/4" thick, frozen 5 to a package and roughly 5 oz each, and that my rack of lamb is rolled in seasoning, tied and ready to roast, or that my bacon is smoked, peppered and thick cut. Also they use a fantastic vacuum packaging machine at the butcher so we never have any freezer burn issues. Believe me once you've purchased meat this way, you won't want to go back to the grocery store.
1. Never throw anything away. We always try and freeze or eat up leftovers right away, we in fact have "leftover day", so it's all used up on Saturday (my day off from the kitchen). If you have veggies that are looking like they need to be used up and it's not going to work out to eat them today, blanch them in boiling water 2-3 minutes and freeze in zip bags or freezer boxes. I also save bread ends in the freezer and then chop them up to make bread crumbs, croutons, stuffing cubes, bread pudding or breakfast casserole etc etc. We waste very little in this house.
2. Match coupons up with sales, generally speaking these are H&B items and junk food. While I don't buy too much junk food, I love to buy my H&B items for a fraction of their regular price. I also like to stock up it up to the rafters when I get a great deal on something I know we'll use.
3. Plant your own food, or join a garden coop. If you don't have a green thumb this is a great bet. Friends of ours belong to a garden coop, and pay $350/year for 1/2 a membership. They get a crate of veggies every week, and by the end of the season they've gotten a whole lot more veggies than $350 would buy at the store. On the other hand our family plants a garden, it costs maybe $400-600 to put in (it's big almost 2 acres) and I can or freeze probably $5000+ in groceries annually. I actually don't count the groceries we eat right out of the garden.
4. Farmer's markets are great. I try and hit ours at the end of the day, you are much more likely to get deals at that point. I also will dicker and deal with the sellers. For example if I'm buying apples, will you give me a break if I buy 3 bushels as opposed to 3lbs.? Believe me this works really well, they don't want to have to take that stuff back and drag it out to sell another day. Many fruits and veggies can be stored for months in a basement, squash, apples, potatoes, onions, tomatoes (wrapped in brown paper), etc etc, so don't be afraid to stock up.
5. Be a You-pick patron. We have a couple of really good ones near us. It's usually fruit, but you can buy berries for around $1/pound, larger fruit is maybe half that. And if you picked it yourself it will last days longer than if you buy it at the store. It's also sort of fun, and the kids seem to enjoy it.
6. Buy your meat from a local farmer. We usually get a cow, a pig and a lamb annually (not at the same time however). I know it's difficult to shell out several hundred dollars at a time, but it works out to about $1 - $1.50 pound and that's for steak, hamburger, ham or bacon. One thing I LOVE about buying the whole animal is that the butcher calls and takes my cutting orders, so it's cut and packaged to my specifications. So I know beforehand that my steaks are 3/4" thick, frozen 5 to a package and roughly 5 oz each, and that my rack of lamb is rolled in seasoning, tied and ready to roast, or that my bacon is smoked, peppered and thick cut. Also they use a fantastic vacuum packaging machine at the butcher so we never have any freezer burn issues. Believe me once you've purchased meat this way, you won't want to go back to the grocery store.
Last edited by almeeker; 07-27-2010 at 06:10 AM.
07-27-2010, 09:25 PM
#206
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Birmingham, UK
Posts: 292
Hey everyone, hope you're all having a good week!
Had a 1lb loss on the scales yesterday, but nothing is official until Saturdays weigh-in.
Also had my first twinges of self doubt after my work-out. Even though it was a decent one I still couldn't help thinking I could be doing more. It's such a slow process and I hate waiting!
Had a 1lb loss on the scales yesterday, but nothing is official until Saturdays weigh-in.
Also had my first twinges of self doubt after my work-out. Even though it was a decent one I still couldn't help thinking I could be doing more. It's such a slow process and I hate waiting!
07-27-2010, 11:15 PM
#207
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 121
I have been able to walk a little more without being in too much pain, so I am going to try to keep adding onto that and hope that it helps my back rather than makes it worse. I've been doing several walks a day rather than one long one, which makes it possible for me to walk more.
07-27-2010, 11:24 PM
#208
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Canada
Posts: 131
Im in the same boat lol. But I am so proud of myself because I have not touched the NUTELLA!!!!! I keep hearing people from here saying done do it lol.
I was wondering about heart rate..... I sweat doing nothing, I usually say it is because I have sooo much insultation lol. When I do my workouts every work day lunch hour I do step x2, pump and spin x2. Now I sweat lots but I am wondering if maybe I should not rate my workout on how much I sweat since I can sweat easily.
My question is if I want to stay in the weight loss heart rate, what do I do to stay there? I remember when I would try to do the machine at the gym and I used the heart rate thing I had a hard time staying in the weight loss heart rate. I would reach it very quickly and then get out of it. Am I supposed to slow down my speed in order to stay in that weight loss range or something?
I am wondering and I know this sounds funny but I am wondering if I am doing to much exercise for my weight? Does the fact that I reach the weight loss heart rate so quickly and can not stay in it mean anything? I am just still trying to figure out why I am not losing weight at a reasonable speed when I am doing 5 days a week exercising. I will try to start treadmill at night as well as my lunch hour workout since my husband thinks that is what I would need to achieve my goals.
I was wondering about heart rate..... I sweat doing nothing, I usually say it is because I have sooo much insultation lol. When I do my workouts every work day lunch hour I do step x2, pump and spin x2. Now I sweat lots but I am wondering if maybe I should not rate my workout on how much I sweat since I can sweat easily.
My question is if I want to stay in the weight loss heart rate, what do I do to stay there? I remember when I would try to do the machine at the gym and I used the heart rate thing I had a hard time staying in the weight loss heart rate. I would reach it very quickly and then get out of it. Am I supposed to slow down my speed in order to stay in that weight loss range or something?
I am wondering and I know this sounds funny but I am wondering if I am doing to much exercise for my weight? Does the fact that I reach the weight loss heart rate so quickly and can not stay in it mean anything? I am just still trying to figure out why I am not losing weight at a reasonable speed when I am doing 5 days a week exercising. I will try to start treadmill at night as well as my lunch hour workout since my husband thinks that is what I would need to achieve my goals.
07-27-2010, 11:35 PM
#209
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Canada
Posts: 131
I'm sorry I haven't posted in a few days...life has been pretty busy and I've had a little extra energy I've been putting to good use with housework.
ChunkyDunk78, CONGRATS! An 8lb loss? I'm so happy for you!
And WeightlossBoo, congrats to you for the 2.5lb loss as well as the extra time on the elliptical. It's great when you can tell how much healthier you are not just by the scale, but by your endurance too!
Susan8Less,its interesting to me that we're almost the same size, and after almost the same amount of weight loss we both had a week where it kind of halted. Maybe our bodies are readjusting? I wonder if it's typical for anyone to go through that after about a 13-14lb weight loss? I'd say give it a week or two to see if it's just a momentary readjustment, then tweak if you're not seeing results. Are you using measurements as well as the scale to track your progress? I haven't seen the scale move much in 2 weeks, but I've lost 7.5 inches in that time, so that's gone a long way towards making the slowed weight loss not so bad
almeeker, that sweet corn can be addictive. My big carb urge is usually mashed potatoes. I have to carefully limit myself with them & make sure my stepson & husband take care of any leftovers so I'm not sitting in front of an open fridge door with a spoon & a face full of mashed potatoes at 3am.
GameGal (& almeeker), I hate that the scale wasn't very friendly to you this week. Please know that you both are an inspiration to us, though. Seeing how much weight you've lost & seeing you weather the bad times along with the good is the motivation we all need when we have bad weeks & get frustrated early on.
So I had an OK loss this past week...1.2lbs (14.5 total). I have a feeling that my body may finally be readjusting to a more typical weight loss. If I can nudge that up just a bit to average 1.6lbs a week, I should be able to reach my goals.
I also think, thanks to some research on PCOS, that it may very well hinder my weight loss efforts. Women with PCOS have a difficult time losing weight due to the insulin resistance & hormone imbalances, and they may lose at a slower rate than most people. This didn't make me happy, but it's a reality check that this is not going to be an overnight fix. This is a LIFE change.
I upped my calories probably by 300-400 a day, and I definitely felt a boost in my energy I haven't felt since the 2nd & 3rd week of this diet & exercise change. This week, I'm only going to up it by 200-300 a day to see if maybe I can nudge that loss up a little. But this is also my TOM week (It should start this Friday), so the scale may not be happy with me on Monday.
But as I said above, I lost 7.5 inches on my body in the past 2 weeks, and 15.5 in the past month. I didn't really see a body or clothing change until the past few weeks, and now I can actually see I've lost a little weight.
ChunkyDunk78, CONGRATS! An 8lb loss? I'm so happy for you!
And WeightlossBoo, congrats to you for the 2.5lb loss as well as the extra time on the elliptical. It's great when you can tell how much healthier you are not just by the scale, but by your endurance too!
Susan8Less,its interesting to me that we're almost the same size, and after almost the same amount of weight loss we both had a week where it kind of halted. Maybe our bodies are readjusting? I wonder if it's typical for anyone to go through that after about a 13-14lb weight loss? I'd say give it a week or two to see if it's just a momentary readjustment, then tweak if you're not seeing results. Are you using measurements as well as the scale to track your progress? I haven't seen the scale move much in 2 weeks, but I've lost 7.5 inches in that time, so that's gone a long way towards making the slowed weight loss not so bad
almeeker, that sweet corn can be addictive. My big carb urge is usually mashed potatoes. I have to carefully limit myself with them & make sure my stepson & husband take care of any leftovers so I'm not sitting in front of an open fridge door with a spoon & a face full of mashed potatoes at 3am.
GameGal (& almeeker), I hate that the scale wasn't very friendly to you this week. Please know that you both are an inspiration to us, though. Seeing how much weight you've lost & seeing you weather the bad times along with the good is the motivation we all need when we have bad weeks & get frustrated early on.
So I had an OK loss this past week...1.2lbs (14.5 total). I have a feeling that my body may finally be readjusting to a more typical weight loss. If I can nudge that up just a bit to average 1.6lbs a week, I should be able to reach my goals.
I also think, thanks to some research on PCOS, that it may very well hinder my weight loss efforts. Women with PCOS have a difficult time losing weight due to the insulin resistance & hormone imbalances, and they may lose at a slower rate than most people. This didn't make me happy, but it's a reality check that this is not going to be an overnight fix. This is a LIFE change.
I upped my calories probably by 300-400 a day, and I definitely felt a boost in my energy I haven't felt since the 2nd & 3rd week of this diet & exercise change. This week, I'm only going to up it by 200-300 a day to see if maybe I can nudge that loss up a little. But this is also my TOM week (It should start this Friday), so the scale may not be happy with me on Monday.
But as I said above, I lost 7.5 inches on my body in the past 2 weeks, and 15.5 in the past month. I didn't really see a body or clothing change until the past few weeks, and now I can actually see I've lost a little weight.
07-27-2010, 11:42 PM
#210
FitDay Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Canada
Posts: 131
My dad has his own cows and pigs and chickens so we buy them from him and it is almost organic which is what I like. but because of that it is a bit more money like $2/pound but much better for us since ther eare no hormones or anything and they are fed the good stuff.
I love it!
I love it!
