Awesome job on the 18 pounds!!!! Feels great doesn't it?

I too sometimes suffer with the "burned-out-on-salads" feeling. However, I love and I mean LOVE taco salad. So when I get blahed out with the "garden" salad which is a little better for me, I make a monster taco salad, and when I say "MONSTER", it's usually so big I have to box some of it up for later.

Other things I like for lunch are wrap sandwiches. I'm on a low carb plan too, but allow myself 1-2 servings of carbs/day. I found some whole grain tortillas that are 60 calories each. They make a great wrap sandwich and an even better quesadilla. You can put whatever you want on them, well whatever within reason. I've found cold cuts that are 70 calories/serving and any sort of fresh veggie. Another good lunch idea is soup, either homemade or canned. I want to say the "Healthy Request" soups aren't too high in calories, fat or carbs, but you have to read the labels. Generally I make my own soup, so can't say for sure on the canned variety. Other things I like at lunch time are Greek yogurt, low-fat cottage cheese, fresh cut veggies with homemade dip or low-cal salad dressing, tuna, deviled eggs and fresh fruit. Oh and I almost forgot, leftovers make a great lunch too, and I don't mean cold pizza. So when you cook, make extra. If you're not the sort of person who can eat the same meal 2x in a row, throw it in the freezer and get it out next week.

morning...just checking in before i head to aquafit...im off this week and so decided to try out two daytime classes and they are great! wish i could do them regularly. After reading the morning posts I now want a cheeseburger with pizza and top it all off with cheesecake!! :p:p:p
Lost half the weight I gained last weekend...looking so much better for my weigh in friday!
Welcome to all the newcomers!!
have to scoot..have a great day everyone

Been a good week!
 

Hi Everybody,

It's been awhile since I've posted - I was off work for 4 days and that was not good for staying on a good eating schedule. I didn't keep track and was very relaxed with my eating. Well when I got on the scale yesterday I was down another 10 pounds from last time I weighed in! So I'm now down at total of 28 pounds! Monday I got back on track and am recording everything that goes in my mouth!

The weather has been very raining here in Iowa - so getting outside has been a little difficult. I started weights last night - and goodness my arms feel it today! :eek:

It sounds like everyone is doing well. I love reading your posts!

amylee32--I was using the left over 'pie crust' to make the CocoClouds so let me whip up a batch later today and I'll write it all out & get the exact calories and carb count for us. Or you can log onto a recipe website and probably just substitute the sugar with artificial sweetener (dont use nutrasweet this way since heating it causes it to change into a toxic chemical) but be sure to use something to fix the egg whites if you don't use sugar so they don't collapse. I use cream of tarter (rule of thumb there is at least 1/4 tsp per egg white). A slow oven btw is just a way of saying to keep it lower than 300 F, I'll write it all out later for you.
I'm getting ready to get my hair cut & styled today! It's been ages since I've been to a good salon and this feels so wonderful. If they do a good job I want to incorporate this into part of my lifestyle change. I haven't even gone yet and I feel good LOL

Almeeker - I LOVE taco salads, too. I make my own salsa & lately I've been mixing a TBS into some Greek Yogurt or lowfat cottage cheese to make a creamy taco salad sauce. I've given up avocados for a while, even though it's good fat, I just about fainted when I saw how many calories & fat grams one avocado packs. :eek: Also I've been keeping salads interesting by mixing it up with various veggies & herbs. Favs are Greek & Italian salads, and just as you would imagine I load it up with fresh herbs & veggies according to the taste theme. My health food store occasionally carries a locally made very low fat Feta (like around 3g fat per ounce)...OMG it's so good in a Greek salad with a few imported Kalamari olives, fresh Greek oregano (no basil yet), sliced tomatoes and a bed of Romaine & if I need more protein that day I'll add some beans. Awesome lunch!

I make my burgers & sandwiches like you Pattialbert. It's the only way that I like head lettuce, but I swear their outer leaves make the best sandwiches ever. Lately I've gotten into adding No Sugar Added Bread & Butter pickles (they use Splenda) and with lowfat cheese, mayo, onions & tomatoes, these burgers taste just like Carl Jr's original burgers! My addiction burger....seriously I could have mainlined them or inhaled them until I saw how many calories were in each one. They must use very fatty meat there. Have fun at Aquafit today and don't think about those foods or you might start obsessing. LOL

It's freezing & windy again today and I haven't been able to get out to play in the garden for waaay too long. We're having a late Spring & I have so many plants all hardened off & ready for the garden with no place to go. Poor babies. When I go out today I'll also pick up new herb seeds to replace the ones that I've lost due to outside early planting during March's warm spell...it sure felt like Spring then.

The best surprise, I weighed myself this morning wondering if the dreaded stall (the curse) was really broken or if I'd bounced back up to 195 again - and was so very, very happy to see I'd lost another half pound.

Awesome! I bet that your way of eating has become a lifestyle and you didn't even notice the fewer calories or carbs or fat. Cuz 10 pounds is a big loss, girlfriend! Way to go! 28 down and counting - you're doing great!!! Hang in there with your weight training.

Hello everyone! New to the post...need the support!
 

Hello guys!! I'm hoping to find some support here from somebody who is going through similar struggles! I was 147 in June 2009 when I was diagnosed with Spondylolisthesis, DDD, Arthritis and Sciatica! March 2 I was at an all-time high of 245! My goal is 150 and I'm hoping to be at least to 175-180 by December. Although I cannot exercise, I did find something I can do.... Swimming! I love it and so far from March 2 to April 7 I went from 245 down to 235! Hoping to keep it up. The bad thing is...I'm in the Air Force and my back problems have caused pain AND weight gain! So now I'm going through a medical discharge and will have to start ALL OVER again once I'm out (maybe around June/July) I have a husband who is very much supportive but he works two jobs and cant really "work out" with me! He's like 5-8 140 pounds, can eat ANYTHING (and does!) and never gains weight! I used to be like that until my injury. I've been eating good and keeping my cal down to under 1600 a day. I've been to nutritionalist and dietitions and heard everything there is about "how to diet" and all that. I've been doing good...but I would really appreciate some support. I'm new to "losing weight" and dealing with pain and all so I'm hoping to find somebody that I can motivate and they can motivate me! I'm so glad something like this is hear! Thanks in advance guys and keep on losing that weight.

RECIPE FOR BLACK BEAN & CABAGE SOUP

Ingredients:
Cabbage, fresh, 2 cup, chopped
Carrots, raw, 0.50 cup, chopped
Celery, raw, 0.50 cup, diced
Okra, frozen, cooked, 2 cup slices
Onions, raw, 1 cup, chopped
Green Peppers (bell peppers), 1 cup, strips
Zucchini, 1 cup, sliced
Vegetable Juice Cocktail (V8), 5.75 cup
Beans, black, 2 cup
Beans, red kidney, 2 cup
Macaroni, dry, enriched, 1 cup elbow shaped
Turkey, Ground turkey, 93% lean, 16 oz
Crisco Pure Vegetable Oil, 1 tbsp
Del Monte Petite Cut Diced Tomatoes, 3.60 cup
6 cups water - add more if boils down too much


I saute the onion, celery, carrots, green pepper in oil - remove from pan/ then brown ground turkey in pan and drain any excess fat- stir in water, rest of veggies, tomatoes, drain and rinsed beans, v8 & water bring to a boil and reduce heat. simmer for 1 hour- add pasta and simmer for 15 minutes longer. you can add any no-salt type seasoning salt or pepper, parsley, garlic or basil if you like

this should make approx 10 - 2 cup servings
each serving is approx 285 calories with 5.4 fat and 19.3 protein and 41 carbs

I think you're headed in the right direction diet and exercise-wise, all that advise from the experts will come in handy, although it sounds like it bored you to death having to listen to it. I made the big HEALTH leap myself in January after realizing that I just couldn't keep up with my kids - at all.

I can relate to being overweight and living in constant pain, but unlike you I'm not new to either one. I think I've been overweight since birth and living with constant knee pain since I was 9 (which was a very long time ago). That being said, I think the best thing you can do when pain is "normal" is to learn to accept that some days are going to be bad and not let it get you down overall. The other thing I can't stress enough is that you have to move those muscles, especially when you don't want to. Often the only way for me to get my pain back under control is to work the muscles, often it's painful enough I have to grit my teeth through every step. I also would recommend talking to your doctor about a drug/treatment protocol for the bad days. It's good to have some hope for a better tomorrow, and a plan of action. Good luck honey.

Grrr
 

I ate 1300 calories today :eek:. I'm mad about it. This cheese has got to go... reduced fat my butt! :mad:

Wanted to post that recipe I promised and I would appreciate the receipe for Alton Brown's cabbage soup - it is a real help to me to have a low-cal and filling meal already prepared for dinner. All the veggies really help me to stay full and for those doing the low-carb you could leave out the macaroni. It has a lot of fiber and potassium, which I'm finding I seem to be real low in. I looked for a supplement, but potassium pills at the drug store only have about 2% of the RDA. I'm not taking that many pills- rather get it naturally. I'm trying to eat raisins as a snack- 100 calorie pack and spinach as well.

Anyone else have any sugggestions- I don't really like banannas

I know what you mean! Yeah I am taking all kinds of meds now! Hydrocodone-naprosyn-robaxin I got everything from pain to muscle spasm meds! I hate takin them though and because of my job (USAF) I cant take them during the day when it really starts to hurt so I just have to deal with it...like you said.

Well maybe we can be each others pain buddies and weight loss buddies! I def need one. ;) The pain does get bad but the workouts and just eating right seem to help a lot. If you look under "Food stuff" and then "menus" you'll find my menu of food for everyday....that's for anybody who needs something new and doesnt like to count 5 fruits 5 veggies 4 oz of this and 6 oz of that! Maybe it'll help somebody else...it's been working so far for me. Keep in touch and let me know you're status...you can email me too if you want I'm at [email protected]

Good morning everyone :)
I'm just dropping off the recipes & will be back later to visit.
Alton Brown’s Braised Cabbage & Apple
· 1 tablespoons canola oil
· 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and cubed
· 1 pint unfiltered apple juice
· 1/4-teaspoon caraway seeds
· 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
· Freshly ground black pepper
· 1/2 head of red cabbage, shredded
Sauté the apples in oil. Add the seasonings. Stir. Add the cabbage, cover & simmer for a few minutes.
For entire recipe as written: 520 cal; 15.2g fat; 98g carbs; 5.3g pro
For entire recipe if you omit the oil: 396 cal; 1.2g fat; 98g carbs; 5.3g pro
For entire recipe if you replace the apple juice and oil & use water with ½ tsp apple cider vinegar & 1 teaspoon Splenda: 163 cal; .7g fat; 40g carbs; 5g pro. I added the Splenda & vinegar right before I added the cabbage so the apples wouldn’t absorb the flavor too strongly.

Cocoa Clouds
Preheat oven to 250
2 egg whites
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp cream of tarter
1 scant tsp (a little less than a tsp) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 TBS Splenda

Total recipe: 48 cal; 0.4g fat; 3.2g carbs; 7.5g protein
Yields 50 clouds at: a little less than 1 cal; 0g fat; .06g carbs; .15g protein per cloud
Whip egg whites & begin to slowly add other ingredients when it reaches the soft peak stage. Continue to whip until it reaches stiff peak stage & egg whites have reached their maximum volume. Pipe small bite sized clouds onto a lightly oiled baking pan. Bake for 25 minutes at 250 (if it's a humid day add 5 minutes at a time until they're light & crispy & no longer chewy). Open oven door keeping the pan in place & allow it to cool slowly in the oven for an added fluffy crunchy texture.
Suggestions to have the eggs whipped up to their maximum volume: Never use plastic utensils, be very sure that you have no egg yolk in there, that all utensils and your hands are completely water & oil free, (any oil or water in the whites will keep them from peaking right or at all), separate the whites when the eggs are right from the fridge (easier to separate cold eggs) then allow the whites to sit on the counter, covered, to reach room temperature before whipping.

I know why desertmountain was a fat girl. She's a kitchen diva!

Just reporting in this morning, feeling really great today. I've officially lost 60 pounds, this morning I weighed in at 183.9 (started at 244). In celebration I put on the LL Bean jeans, and actually got them buttoned. Okay, I had to lay down to zip them and then I couldn't breath, but the point is that I got them ON, and lived to tell the story. Pretty soon I'm going to wear them - outside the house, but not until I can wear them while sitting and breath.

You know what works wonders for me on a really bad day? I drink double the water that I normally do (120 oz vs. 64), cut my sodium intake as much as possible, limit caffeine, then at night I take 2 Alieve (actually I buy the store brand version that are cheaper) and a short soak in the tub. Usually the next day I feel better, maybe not great but better. Naprosyn and Alieve are the same thing BTW. Naprosyn comes in different strengths, but the OTC stuff comes in a smaller dose. If I'm still bad the next day I get out the Skinners or the Bio-Freeze and lather it up over the worst areas. It's sort of like Ben Gay only stronger, I get it from my massage therapist. Arnica works well too, but you have to be careful with it.

New to group hope you'll let me join.
 

Not sure how this works so I'll start typing. My dr says i need to lose 150 but doubt I'll ever see that happen, but for now my goal is 60 lbs. by my next birthday, which is Oct 20. I've dieted several times before and lost weight but always gained back more than i lost until about 5 years ago. I lost 45 lbs then and only gained back 30:rolleyes:
But i'm getting arthit. in my left knee and when it is hurting really bad, it is a definite motivation to get the weight off. I read that every lb is like 3 lbs on the knee.
Started at 300 in first of March. I've now lost 20 lbs and have 40 more to go. This last week I only lost just over a lb and it's now starting to get really hard.
I'd like to lose 60 and maintain it a few months then try for another 50, which would get me below 200.
Hope to help stay motivated here.;)

CC1158 - you're doing great! Keep it up with the small goals and NEVER I mean NEVER doubt that you can achieve any amount of weight loss. I personally have lost over 200 pounds and was within 60 pounds of my goal (I needed to lose 260)- then fell off the wagon for 3 years and regained 100 of it. Now I am back on the wagon and need to lose another 130 pounds. I am going to get there. It's terrifying to think that you need to lose more than half of your body, but people do it all the time. Just give yourself very small goals (I give myself 10 pound goals at a time). Good luck, I absolutely support you!
And remember, even if you don't get to 150 pounds lost - a 10% weight lost vastly reduces your chances of all kinds of diseases and complications. That's just another ten pounds for ya. Good luck you can do it!

CC158, you can do it! :) You've done it before, you can do it again. I completely understand about the arthritis in the knee. Last year I fell and hurt my knee and had to see an ortho doc. The fall did do some damage, but the biggest issue was the fact that I had arthritis in my knee. Bad enough arthritis that he said that if I didn't lose a "significant amount of weight", I would end up needing knee replacement by the time I am 40. (I am 32 now) Everytime I exercise it hurts, it grinds, feels nasty. But as of today i am officially down 20.5 pounds and it is starting to hurt a little less. So, hopefully, as time goes on, yours will start to hurt less too. :)

I was so proud of myself this morning when I weighed myself. I set myself 10 pound goals, and I was so excited to meet my 2nd goal in a month. But tonight I went to take a shower and looked at myself long and hard in the bathroom mirror. I see no changes. And I see that I have SOOO far to go. It is so, so discouraging. Why did I let myself get this bad?? Ugh. I know we are supposed to love our bodies no matter what, but I am so not in love with my body. At all. Ugh. Seeing how far I have to go makes me want to give up. It seems like an unatainable goal. Hopefully I will wake up tomorrow morning with a much better attitude, lol.

Have a good night everyone and have a HAPPY FRIDAY!

Amylee - you rock girl. Thank you so much for this post. I have lost 26 pounds in a month and I don't see anything either. What makes matters worse is that no one has really commented on it. My boss said that my face is a little thinner but that's it. My clothes are loosening a bit... and I have another 130 pounds. I am sure we'll both need picking up from time to time as we move closer to our goals.:cool:

SkinnyErin- Thanks! I TOTALLY relate to what you say about noone noticing. All I hear is that my face is a bit thinner too. I get aggravated! I didn't realize it would take 50+ pounds for people to notice a difference, lol. I fit into a pair of pants a size smaller than normal, and my clothes feel bigger, but I think I am the only 1 noticing. I guess the good part is that I only have about 3 chins now insted of 6. :p I have about 130 pounds to go also. Seems like a long way to go, but I love your quote about not having to lose 130 pounds, you have to lose 10 pounds 13 times. :) Motivation helps and anytime you need some let me know! Thanks for the support :)

encouragement
 

Thanks so much, I know what you mean about 20lbs not being noticeable.
But my clothes are looser and I can wear some others that used to be to tight.

I know I shouldn't weigh everyday because when you don't go down it is depressing. Really need to stop weighing every day.

Going on vac in a couple of weeks and won't be able to weigh but also will be harder to stay with it.

start weight 302
current weight 281
first goal 240
final goal 175

Afternoon ladies
I think you gals were reading my mind this morning. Two years ago I lost over 40 pounds and got lots of compliments, I lived in a small town then, now I live in a bigger city and no one knows me. I think because of all the compliments I thought I didnt have to lose anymore...in my head anyways...and started to backslide. Now Im back to losing those 40 pounds and my waist is back to the same size BUT there is no compliments..no one knows me here...they just see an old fat woman still. Recently at christmas I saw a video of myself sitting in a chair....I keep this picture in my head because I truly know what I look like and it aint pretty. I just bought jeans in two sizes smaller and felt so good that day...but I have to keep that image in my head or I will start to slide again. So Im kinda glad Im not getting compliments ... I know weird.

I don't think it's weird at all. I think we all have ways of motivating ourselves. Last night I was exercising and I so badly wanted to quit. I hate exercise! But I kept telling myself "Remember Amy in the mirror, remember the Amy in the mirror". It helped push me further than I have gone before and it felt good. I do NOT want to look like this anymore. A good friend of mine told me the other day that I have such a vibrant, healthy soul, it's time for a healthy body to go with it. I went shopping today for spring clothes. I HATE shopping for me. Nothing fit right. And honestly, I am so large it is hard to find clothes that work. That's hard to admit. I used to blame it on manufacturer's, haha. I would walk out of Fashion Bug mumbling "Plus size my a** " But now I realize they had absolutely nothing to do with it. Today when my sister and I went into the store, I grabbed a pair of capri's in the size that I normally wear and they were BIG! So, I grabbed the next size down and they FIT. I was so excited. Pretty soon I had tons of clothes in my dressing room and loved that everything I grabbed fit me, and actually fit decent. Don't get me wrong, I have a LONG way to go. But little victories like this make me feel a sense of accomplishment. Does that make sense? I think I feel a shopping addiction coming on, haha.

Speaking of addiction, somedays I think that this lifestyle change is a lot like what an alcoholic would have to deal with. The temptations, the cravings, the sense of being overwhelmed... Hi, I'm Amy, and I'm a food addict. I didn't realize how deep my habits truly went. Food was a big comfort for me. If I was happy I ate, sad I ate, mad I ate, sleepy, I ate. I just ate..and ate..and ate... :)

I think I have rambled enough. I'm sorry I just go on and on on here. It helps to write my thoughts down.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Hi, my name is Hope. I am new to fitday and to posting so am not sure if I am doing this correctly. I need to lose about 125 lbs and would like to join this online group. I am 41, on a small 5 ft 2 in frame and have been diabetic for near a decade. In the past I had fallen into diabetes denial and due to fearing it and not having been properly educated to grasp an understanding of this disease I have some complications. I really would like to get myself to a place where I dont have to worry so about health issues dominating my life. I want to be able to do things that more active and fit people do and enjoy this second half of my life. I have a child in college so I am pretty much at a place in my life where I can finally be the sole focus of my own efforts instead of everyone else coming first. I am ready to do this, and would like support for the long haul. You wont hear me make excuses, whine, complain or bellyache about a thing, I want this. I love eating healthy and dont miss much of temptations. I have painful nerve damage to my left foot due to my disease but know exercise is key and would help. I walk but dont feel I can get the intensity high enough to impact my metabolism. I would like to swim but affording a gym with one might not be possible right now. Need ideas for things that wouldnt put too much pressure on feet but allow calories to be effectly burned?

hi all

thanks desertmountain for posting those recipes, I love apples & cabbage

I worked hard yesterday and the scale rewarded me with a two pound drop!!

This past week was a real struggle - so glad to have the scale down at all
This week I'm more motivated to my goal and went shopping yesterday, so I have all the correct foods so no excuses this week lol

I have one more pound to go to hit a total of 50 lbs and want to see that so badly, all of you make it easier to stay on track. I totally get that even a t almost fifty puonds I get - your face looks thinner too lol But I realize that most people see me every day or every week and it doesn't seem like I'm getting smaller, but I can tell in my clothes and actually most of my old things I cannot wear anymore- they look terrible YEA! Looking forward to some spring clothes shopping as well.

everyone have a great weekend.

Welcome cc1158 & Hiddenhope-it's so good to have you on board. I know what you mean about the weight loss not showing up as much or at all really. When you've got as long of a journey as ours is, it really helps me to have you guys here that understand. I've lost 17 pounds and the only person who mentions it or even noticed is my husband.

Sorry that I've been MIA for a few days - I've been taking advantage of the warm weather & working outside every spare minute. My haircut was...is...a disaster. I got one of those I-need-a-paper-bag-over-the-head haircuts. sigh. I went clothes shopping afterward which helped buoy my sagging spirits. I'm in a size 18 now-finally out of the 20's! Horray! Last year when I lost all that weight so fast doing P90 I blew straight through to 16's. So I've been out of clothes that fit for several weeks now. This time I'm getting rid of all my larger clothes. There's no going back unless I go naked.

Everyone is doing so well-congrats Speedyfair! And Almeeker, you're my inspiration girl! I'll be back when I have more time - just wanted to pop in and stay abreast of all the news. Oh, and yes, being a foodie is a BIG part of why I'm the size that I am - I'm still a total foodie, just re-doing recipes to make them as low fat & low cal as possible & still taste yummy. Also learning to adjust my palate (that's the hardest part). My dh & ds are foodies too, but they have metabolisms of hummingbirds or something else going for them. They come up with the most outrageously delicious recipes-almost all are off my way of eating tho'. Totally unfair!

Amy - this is exactly how I am invisioning my weight this time - as an addiction or allergy to being unhealthy. Eventually I am going to have to come to terms with the deep underlying reasons why I literally built a flesh-prison for my soul. I honestly feel that people with severe weight issues (like me) feel they have to shield themselves from something - and when the sheild is gone, the impulse to protect myself will still be there. I will have to deal with it and either fight it, or find another way to protect myself. I have a strong idea what my underlying issues are - no one gets to be my size without something other than food going on.
In the meantime, I keep telling myself why I am working so hard - it's not my best friend's wedding (which I am the Maid of Honor) looming in just 3 months, it's a desire to be more confident, healthy and energetic for the rest of my life. I don't want my children to be embarrassed of me like I was embarrassed of my mother (who was over 500 pounds - my life is like "Who Ate Gilbert Grape").
When I was down to a size 14, I was addicted to shopping too...it's so much fun going ANYWHERE and fitting anything off the rack. I am looking forward to being able to shop at Target and spend $10 on a shirt, rather than Lane Bryant and spending $29.99 on a shirt and still feeling like crap. Losing weight saves so much money in the long time.
Ok - long post, sorry!

amylee8123, you are soooo right being a foodie is an addiction. I have all the same symptoms of any other kind of addict, shakes, uncontrollable urges, I also feel very controlled by food. Although admittedly I'm getting a little better everyday. I also have a love/hate relationship with working out, I love how it makes me look and feel, but I HATE doing it. I like the bit about "remember Amy in the mirror", my first name is also Amy. And congratulations on buying smaller clothes, I too feel a shopping addiction coming on... I never blamed the clothing industry, for me it was always the washer and dryer. Darn that dryer anyway, shrinking all my clothes...

Welcome aboard the short-queen-boat Hope. On New Years day I was 41, 5'-2", and 244 pounds. As of today I'm not younger or taller, but I've lost 61 pounds, so I'm almost 1/2 way to my goal of 120 pounds. Fitday is a great tool, and this forum is very helpful, we cheer each other on through thick and thin. As for your workout, have you considered a rowing machine? Not too much pressure on the feet and still a great burner. Yoga and hand weights are also fantastic for muscle toning and easy on feet. I have bad knees and have found that using an elliptical is much easier on me than a treadmill, but I don't know how that would be for bad feet.

Speedyfair: Great job on the 2 pounds, you go girl!!! I'm jealous of your shopping trip, my cupboards are getting to be like Old Mother Hubbard's. You know what I did with my clothes that don't fit? I gave them away, so I wouldn't be tempted to wear them ever again. Great job on nearing the 50 pound mark. People will start to notice soon, how can they not?

Oh desertmountain I'm so sorry about your haircut. Want to hear something funny? I too rewarded myself with a haircut at 50 pounds, and it's um a big fat disaster too!!! I even went back the following day and asked for an "older" stylist because the first lady was like 20 years younger than me. The second lady cleaned it up some, but it's so bad I have to grow it out again before it can be completely fixed. Argh! I hate to say this but I don't think they teach the cut I want at Beauty School anymore. I'm soooo going back to my previous hairdresser.

SkinnyErinn, I'm so glad you're dealing with the issues that have caused you to be overweight. My sister-in-law is a large woman, and I've always thought that she has never dealt with the underlying reasons for why she's an over-eater. I also love the idea that you have a goal in mind for the moment (that wedding), but that you're also in it for the long haul. I too hope it gets easier, but so far it's still a struggle for me every day and sometimes that struggle is all day long.

Okay I have had a different experience recently with my weight loss. I hit 61 pounds on Friday morning, then we drove off to visit the in-laws for the weekend. They haven't seen us since Christmas, and they were all SHOCKED and I mean completely, mouths hanging open SHOCKED at the size of me. I spent most of my weekend getting pulled aside and grilled by each one of them privately, they wanted DETAILS on how I'm doing this "life-style" change of mine. The funniest part is that they all knew I was dieting and that I had lost quite a bit of weight before we got there. My father-in-law was the funniest, when I told my husband that I was going for a walk. My father-in-law grabbed his gym bag and insisted that I go with him to the gym. I've been married into that family for 13 years, we've belonged to our own gym for the past 7 years (which dad knew) but that's the first time he's ever even mentioned taking me to the gym, let alone insisted. I gotta say it's a pretty swank workout facility...

So all I'm saying is give it time, pretty soon people will notice. Also think about it, you've been wearing thick heavy warm clothes for winter. Now that Spring is here, we'll can all shed those heavy clothes and show off the beautiful new "me" we've been working on underneath. It's sort of like popping out of a cocoon really...

Thanks for all the encouragement
 

I hope this works because this is the third time I've tried this today and I still don't see the other 2 posts. Is there somewhere that explains how to use this discussion board??

reading everyone's posts is a real encouragement to me. I really have to stay focused to stay with the program and when i get discouraged it's nice to see I'm not alone.

One thing I'm trying this time that I haven't before is the Alli pills. Although I usually only take them with the fatest meal of the day to stop some of the fat absorption. Instead of 3 a day I usually use 1. I don't want to take to many because they may impact my medicines so i schedule everything carefully. Has anyone else used them?

new here
 

Hi gals, I am new here. Starting today, Monday the 12th of April. I would love to find a good niche here for encouragement. I weigh 20 lbs. more than I did when I had my first baby, (I have 5 now!), and would like to lose 40 total. I realize this is the 100 club, but you gals seem so sharp and helpful, I'd like to join in.

I have some, but don't really use it. The reason is that after reading through all of their literature I realized that my diet was already so low in fat that they wouldn't really help me much, and the side effects are a bit of a concern. I occasionally take one if I end up eating a meal with more than 10-12 grams of fat, unless the fat comes from eggs, avocados or nuts. Because those foods contain "good fats" that my body needs. But that doesn't happen very often.

Hi,

I am new to FitDay. My dr told me to lose 120 lbs overall and to lose 20lbs by the end of the first week of July. I started with a food journal - which is a big step for me since I am not fond of writing things down and accounting for every little bit. I am also trying to cut down on fat, sugar, and simple carbs. I got grossed out when I saw a youtube video on what happens when sugar (and high fructose corn syrup) is metabolized. I never realized that sugar is digested as fat and that a lot of diets that are commonly thought of as low fat are not since fat is often replaced with sugar, which then turns into fat as it is metabolized. I really don't like sugar replacements (with the possible exception of stevia) as they have unpleasant health side effects, like turning into formaldehyde during digestion. Anyway, what techniques could I use to combat sugar/chocolate cravings? Sometimes the cravings get really bad and I don't want to give in to them.

It's not you it's the bbs cc1158. Half of the time when I post it takes me to a blank page (it's fully loaded/the browser shows that it's finished loading the page) & the post never gets posted when I go back to the forum. So I've learned to use my back button (when that blank page appears after a post) to take me back to the page where you write the post and then I click on the other 'submit reply' button (either one, usually one of the 2 will make it work). Anyways I keep doing this until it returns me to the thread & it shows that the post has actually been posted.
I haven't used Alli for the same reason that Almeeker stated. If you're eating 'bad' fats I would give it a go since they do help ppl lose weight faster, but if you're eating low fat & only eat healthy fats like Almeeker & me then it's only going to cause you miss out on the essential fatty acids that our bodies need. Alli is the same chemical that they used to use (they may still use it) in those low fat potato chips. When Lay's came out with those years & years ago I had a pretty bad (and ugly LOL) digestive reaction to them. If they would absorb other types of calories I'd be all over those little suckers LOL.
Yeah...a cake & pastry absorber.

HI FatCat92 & welcome to Fitday. Once you make Fitday part of your routine you'll find it easy to track every bite. Seriously, it's helped me more than I can say. As for the sugar replacement, you'll have to use Stevia or fruit. If you can spare the calories you may look into the natural sweeteners that aren't low calorie, but are metabolized differently than sugar like Agave syrup. I never used sugar substitutes until about 3 months ago & now I appreciate how just a small glass of diet soda or a little sugar-free jello will quiet the sweet cravings & not blow my calorie allotment for the day like fruit used to. Also, fruit and the natural sugars make the cravings worse for me whereas the fake sweeteners have helped to tame them. Some ppl get a 'sugar rebound' from the fake stuff, but I'm lucky that I don't get that.

Go ahead and give in a little, in the long run it will help keep you on track better than depriving yourself will. I have a chocolate problem too. What I do is to let myself have a single bite. We keep a collection of individually wrapped chocolates in the house. So I let myself have 1, and let it melt slowly in my mouth. But I also have to make sure that I do that while I send myself off to do a chore that takes me away from the stash and keeps me away for 20-30 minutes. I also have to drink a glass of water before and after. It sounds nuts, but it works. The craving goes away and I only have to log 10-30 calories (depending on the candy). I've also had success with Werther's chocolate candies, which are hard candy, but I use them the same way and they take longer to melt. Believe me if you go without chocolate for 3-4 weeks, that Werther's bite will taste good enough you might eat the wrapper too. Another thing I do is keep sugar free chocolate pudding cups in the house, they have 60-100 calories each and the ones I buy at the health food store are sweetened with Stevia. Another good chocolate source is to make a mocha in the morning. I'll dump almost anything chocolate flavored in my coffee, but your best bet is half a chocolate protein shake, a scoop of chocolate whey powder or a packet of sugar free hot cocoa mix. Oh and the Skinny Cow and Weight Watcher fudge-sicles are good too. You can get healthy, lose weight and still get your daily chocolate fix honey.

Bummer, I feel your pain. Mine is too short for them to fix, too. I've been telling myself that it'll grow out & then I'm going someplace else to get the cut that I really want. There's a Lyrica (since I have fibromyalgia I paid close attention to the ad) ad with an older woman clothes designer & I want her hair cut. I can't find the ad on the Internet otherwise I'd grab a couple of pics of her to take with me. I was thinking that my hairdresser just blew off what I said & did what she wanted, but maybe it is what you said, that she didn't know how & just did what she could with the knowledge base that she had.

Why don't you try and take a picture of it with your camera? My kids take pics of the TV - ALL THE TIME, and for the most part they are clear enough to see the people.

I find more and more often that the younger hairdressers don't understand what I want. No offense to the younger crowd. I know what I want is not the latest fashion, but the new styles with all the layers in the back, um, yeah that is basically committing me to an hour over the hair every morning, which I don't have time for and my hair will never hold anyway. My hair has some natural wave to it, but when it's long it's so heavy that it's straight. However when you start putting layers in it - LOOK OUT. Because the shorter it is the curlier it gets. Whenever I have layers I always end up with this ring of poof around my head with scraggly bits hanging out below that flip up no matter what you do to them. It's awful. Hopefully I can get it fixed before my cousin's wedding on May 1st.

thanks so much for the information, some meals I'm eating are higher fat so I'm using the Alli on those, so far the reaction hasn't been bad but I'm only taking one a day.
thanks also for the posting advice.

Made it down to 279 somehow that one lb feels so much better than the last one.
After reading about the bad hair experiences I'm almost afraid to get a cut and perm this week but my hairdresser's been working on me for years and hasn't messed me up yet. It's my reward for almost getting to 25 lbs off.

hooray!!
 

it's official- this morning I was down to 255 have lost 50lbs so far and thanks to all of you for your encouragement and support. You have no idea how many times I have come to this board to read how everyone is doing and going thru the same struggles- and no one judges me - it's my cravings fixer.

Skinnyerinn- I too understand the underlying issues of the weight, I have done a lot of soul searching on this journey as well and I have had a weight problem most of my life. I think I used food as a shield to protect myself from life and then comfort myself when my life was not what I wanted- it was a vicious cycle of eating to feel better and then hating that I ate. My goal thru this has been to change my lifestyle and that not only involves food and diet, but taking chances and doing some things out of my comfort zone.

desertmountain so sorry about your haircut- I had a lady once cut my hair to about two inches - I cried and have not let anyone cut it short since. It does grow back though and eating healthy will only make it grow longer and stronger than ever.

Welcome to all the new friends - so glad you are all here, it really is motivating and informative to discuss this journey with others.

hope everyone had a great weekend- time for a bowl of my homemade vegetable soup. back on track this week LOL

Happy Monday. I read of everyones posts more than I will most likely post. I did good today and think I ate well. I work in an office that has alot of munchie days, birthdays and random for any reason goodies around not the best environment for weightloss by far but am ignorring it. I walked on my lunch despite having foot pain today. I need to cut down my coffee and drink more water. Is there a specific weigh in day or just weekly as we wish? I usually weigh in sunday mornings to see any weekend damage and make an adjustment. I have good feelings about this because I am not going to embrace an all or nothing mentality on this journey. It is a lifestyle change for good. That means I can have things I enjoy but in moderation and taking into account if my glucose readings allow them at the moment. I had dinner out this weekend, I decided that I would order what I liked but eat less. I ate half the steak, all the broccoli, half of the potatoes and my dinner came with dessert so I had a friend eat most of it, I had 3 or 4 spoonfulls it was delicious and then felt good that I tasted it but didnt need to eat more of it. I do tend to subsitute coffee in exchange for rich or decadent foods I would rather eat which tends to lead to me drinking alot of coffee on bad temptation days and that is my major downfall. I use stevia and non dairy fat free creamer in my coffee. Anyway off to fill in my food log/workout logs. Hope everyone has a wonderful week. Hope

started 256/current 251/short term goal 199/ long term goal 120. (will decide once I get there if I want to go to 105).

Way to go Speedy!! That's AWESOME! :)

I had a dinner meeting after work tonight. I figured I couldn't do too much damage because I figured there would be a decent salad or chicken breast on the menu. Umm, no. The salads they had were full of unhealthy junk and they refused to put dressing on the side. Not sure why?? So, I ate pork tenderloin (grilled), sweet potato fries and green beans. I asked if the fries were baked or deep fried and I THOUGHT they said baked, but my co-worker said she heard fried. Of course, she mentioned this AFTER I had eaten half. I double checked with the waiter, and sure enough they were deep fried. Crap. Oh, and they ordered appetizers before which I participated in eating. They ordered spinach and artichoke dip on bread (yum) and calamari. I ate 2 small pieces of the bread and dip. Sigh. I tried the calamari and almost choked. Ew. I don't recommend it. I hate when I eat the wrong things. I feel miserable and am very hard on myself. But, on a good point, several of my coworkers noticed I am losing weight. Logically I know I didn't undo all my hard work in one night, but I am so afraid of falling into my bad habits again. I am almost scared to weigh myself in the morning now. Oh well, tomorrow's a new day.

Have a good night everyone!