Another day of low carb: one day at a time. Yesterday was kind of tough, because it was my sweet husband's birthday. He didn't want to do anything more than just watch a movie together—we didn't go out to dinner—but I found myself thinking all evening, "You/I deserve a treat. Let's go out and buy some cookies for both of us." I didn't act on those thoughts, but sheesh, they sure were annoying. The Cookie Monster inside of me still jumps on the least thing as an excuse to start hollering.

Ubee— I love it how you thought of us, and that kept you from snacking! We do have some strong energy going here, don't we? I also like your notion of dividing an especially stressful day into chunks. I think if I adopt that technique, I'll want to put a meal at the end of each chunk of time, so I can tell myself, for example, "All you have to do is make it until breakfast tomorrow morning."

Ubee and Fiona -- you're an inspiration to us all with being able to fight off the snacking monsters. Really, I think it's the snacking that undoes all my efforts every time. My meals are right on target -- even when we go out to eat -- but let me get bored or irritated or just generally having a pity party and there are the snacks. So I finally figured out that what I crave are salt and sweet. Lately I've been making lots of sugar free jello (enough that their stock may be going up from increased sales) and making parmesan crisps in the microwave. The parmesan cheese has enough salt in it to satisfy my salt cravings and the sugar free jello has enough to satisfy my sweet. Sometimes I whip the jello once it's begun to set to have kind of like a mousse effect. Will they ever replace potato chips, chocolate and ice cream? No, but they keep me from going totally off the wagon like I did a week or so ago. And it does help immensely to come here and find out that a) I'm not struggling through this alone and b) there are lots of good options for keeping things under control.

Ubee, Toby is such a delight. And I highly recommend a puppy for making one get up and move around more! I'm in the process of housebreaking him which means that he needs to go out every hour in the mornings, every two hours in the afternoon and ever three in the evening. I've also found that patience when we're outside is required as he's a lot more interested in every blade of grass, the dandelion heads, tasting every leaf that is still clinging to bushes, and just generally exploring everything. He is adorable, and we've bonded, but I know I'm moving a lot more than I used to during the day once I get home from the gym. I'm going to try to insert of picture of my little puppy -- he's a real crowd pleaser.

OK. Skip the picture for right now. You evidently have to uploaded pictures to a site on the Internet and pull from there.....too much trouble right now as it's time to go to the gym.

bad bad day here..... feeling extremely depressed, even though there is no trigger.... gave in to emotional eating....

making the choice to not beat myself up over it and just start again tomorrow...

You chicks are just what I needed! I had another stressful day. We have a young adult child with profound autism. You think I would have a handle on this by now. The good thing is while even though I was high in calories, it was healthy enough food. So, like Time4me I am not going to beat myself up!
Betsy, Toby sounds like such a gift. I am glad he will be keeping you on your toes! How do you make parmesean chips? I just googled craving sweet and salty and according to Womans Health Magazine... you have a mineral deficiency and if it is chocolate for your sweets it works as an antidepressant. (Oh yeah nothing like to much chocolate to make you feel better only while you are eating it.)
Fiona, stay strong! You really are doing great! I think part of my problem was that I could not get on the computer until now.
Thanks Chicks!!!

Another day of low carb, but a lot of calories because I was hungry quite often. Thank God for macadamia nuts & cheese sticks & packets of smoked turkey: they keep me away from the deadly gotta-have-cookies blues.

time4me2change— Sorry to hear you had a bad day... You're absolutely right that there's no percentage in gettin' down on yourself, nothing to be gained from negative thoughts. It took me a long time to figure out that when I'm already stressed by something external or internal (like depression), I should not stress myself further with negativity. I call what you're doing, with starting again the next day, a "re-set": it's like I push a button and all the self-castigating thoughts get wiped off the screen. "Today [or tomorrow] is the first day of the rest of your life" may be corny, but it sure is a helpful philosophy for those of us on longterm diets. Slip-ups are inevitable. They're part of the process. What matters is getting that re-set afterwards.

Ubee— Wow... I don't have any kids, so I can't begin to imagine what that's like to have a child with profound autism, but I'm sure it includes a high level of ongoing stress. If I were in that situation, I don't think I'd ever "have a handle on it." Every day brings new challenges, doesn't it? Good for you that you ate healthy food!

Betsy— Your alternatives for sweet and salty snacking sound very creative: I'm impressed that you do the work to get them set up! That's effort invested in taking care of yourself, and we all need plenty of that. I've read that fat women are very often caretakers for others, and they (we) tend not to spend enough time taking care of themselves (ourselves). Then food ends up being the preferred means of doing that self-soothing. It's so important to develop other ways to be nice to ourselves.

I have a healthy snacking tip: quite often I take a package of low-fat mozzarella cheese sticks out of the fridge and lay them on the kitchen counter. I do that for two reasons: (1) the cheese tastes a LOT better if it's at room temperature, and in those individual sealed plastic sleeves, the cheese sticks will keep for a couple of days unrefrigerated; and (2) if they're out on the counter, I immediately see them when I go into the kitchen, so I tend to grab a couple of those instead of looking in the fridge or elsewhere and being tempted by food I'm not supposed to eat. (You may have to put a sticky note on them that says "Mom's food" or whatever, if you live with other people.)

Good Morning!
I am feeling optimistic today! I woke up during the night and realized yesterday had been so crazy because we were out of our routine and I ate carbs for breakfast. Something I have not done for almost a year. For lunch I had a sub. Carbs have a negative effect on my mood. It is highly noticable.
Fiona, our family loves the cheese sticks. I am trying to get my whole family on the same healthy eating plan as I am on. (At least when they are in the house.) I am getting more and more strict with what is allowed in the house as time goes on. We keep our cheese sticks in an open dish, front and center in the fridge.
How is everyone doing?

OK. We'll try this again. I just typed in a long post, and 3FC had a hiccup.

Time4me -- Good for you for not beating yourself up. It truly doesn't do any good, and don't you find that if you had a bad day and ate stuff you shouldn't that the next day just repeats it if you're berating yourself. We all have them, and Fiona's idea of a reset is great. I hit reset on different appliances and then they start working again. Not once have they said (if I had talking appliances!), sorry, but I'm ashamed for having not worked yesterday. We'll get there.

Ubee -- I felt so badly for you having had such a bad day, so it was a relief to get your post this morning that you realized that you had a carb reaction. As the main caregiver for an autistic young adult, you deal with more stress on a daily basis than I will ever know -- I admire your commitment and ability to always offer a word of praise and support on here. The salt and sweet cravings are also tied into chemical reactions in our brains that are very primitive -- evidently part of the survival urge. I know there are days I feel I won't survive if I don't have some chips or ice cream.

Fiona -- your comment about fat women often being caregivers who care for everyone but themselves really hit home -- how true. And, food is my best friend. I'm trying to turn it into an acquaintance, but it sometimes seems like a bad relative who came for a short visit and moved into the basement.

Ubee, you asked about the parmesan chips. Basically, grate parmesan or any hard cheese, season with whatever taste you'd like (onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, paprika), mound onto a silicon sheet or oiled (both sides) parchment paper and bake at 300 degrees for 5-6 minutes. They can be formed into cups by inserting them into muffin pans while still warm or else just allow to cool and then peel off. Great with homemade tzatziki sauce.

Hey all...

Thanks for the support! It definitely helps me to be positive to myself when I have positive support.

Today was a better day, not perfect, but better....

I also think I have a cold now... and feel not so great from that.

Talked to my mum and she was also having a depressed sort of day...around the same time it really hit me.... weird... we decided something must be in the air.

Hope you all have good days

I'm gonna pop back in today because I don't know if I'll be able to tomorrow.
Betsy, I loved how food is like a relative living in the basement... Thank you for the recipe. I had to look up tzatziki sauce and I am so excited about that recipe. It is just what I have been looking for! Thank you!
Fiona, I hope you report in tomorrow. I am so absorbing all your wisdom. It is like getting free cognative behavioral therapy!
Time4me, hope you are feeling better. One of my mottos is "Progress not perfection." You are so lucky to have your mom supporting you. I'm glad we are all here for eachother also.
How is everyone else? Lurkers, care to join us?

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Ubee, but I don't have any wisdom today. =laugh= Just another low-carb day, one with some relationship stress (a friend, not my husband) but otherwise OK. This diet still feels like an endless desert to me, only now I know I'm not the only one trudging through the boring sand.

I probably should ditch the desert metaphor: some deserts are beautiful, especially under a full moon.

I want my ticker! =pout= Six or seven more postings, and I'll get it.

Just buzzing by...
Yesterday my husband brought a free cookie out to the car for our daughter. She took a bite and handed it to me. I rolled down the window and tossed that evil thing into the ditch. Some poor critter is on a heck of a sugar buzz right now! I hope I didn't kill it!
Fiona, so close to getting your ticker. I wait in anticipation to see if it is a short term or long term goal. My money is on short term.
How is everyone doing?

Another day of low-carb. It sure helps me to keep busy! I'm a collage artist: I spent the day gathering pieces for a collage I'll make tomorrow morning—scanning, printing, and lots of scissor work. The time just flew by, and I moved around enough to work up a sweat.

I have a thing where whenever I'm standing up or walking, I contract those abdominal muscles—make them as hard as I can. Doing that supports the spine, so your back doesn't have to do all the work. It really helps me avoid the lower back pain that comes from bending over while I'm doing stuff.

Ubee— I love your story about tossing the cookie out the window: you rock! When I used to buy 7-11 cookies that come three to a pack, I'd open up the pack outside the store, and toss two of the cookies into their garbage can. I'd still get a treat, but limit the damage. But I'm not doing that anymore, because of my abstinence from cookies—yay!!

Betsy— Thanks for the parmesan cheese idea: I used to melt parmesan cheese on Triscuits in the toaster oven, so I know exactly what you're talking about. Who needs the Triscuits, right? As I write this posting, I'm having a luscious low-carb (almost no-carb) snack: the Boursin garlic and herb cheese that comes in a little tub. A few heaping spoonfuls is enough to satisfy my craving for something yummy and gooey. So convenient, too, because you just seal the tub and pop it back in the fridge. I never have much time to spare, so I'm definitely into foods that don't require dishes.

Carry on, y'all! One day at a time! Focus on those mini-goals!

Hello.

Watchout! I would love to hear more about your IP Alternative plan. Care to share?
Fiona, working abdominal muscles? I'm not ready to go there yet! But, you go girl! I have no idea about the cheese you are talking about but, it sounds so good. Today I am making low carb pumpkin soup I found on yummly.
I lost 3 pounds this week! This is my first ticker so I am excited to see it move. This is the 5th time I have been at this weight during the last four months. It is my lowest in decades and I will move past it this week! I will do it!
How is everyone doing?
Where is everyone else?

Good morning. I've survived a family gathering yesterday complete with the two little ones (6 and 3) both of whom were infatuated with Toby......who spent a lot of time hiding under my desk. I fixed a big meal, ate reasonably, and we all laughed over what had to be the worse low carb brownies ever created -- recipe off of Facebook, and I don't have to worry about over eating them as they got thrown out.

Time4me -- glad you had a better day, and hope your cold was just a day's sniffles. I always get a cold when the seasons change.

Ubee -- I laughed about throwing out the cookie and some animal being on a sugar high. If you drive by that ditch and see a lot of little critters lined up, you'll know they had a great party. I can relate to your nearing in on your low weight for the 5th time in 4 months. You go girl, get past it and put it in the rear view mirror. You know I'm in the same boat. And I'm determined that by year end I will be to my lowest weight in about 30 years.

Fiona -- I misread your endless desert comment and initially thought you'd found a way to have endless dessert. Obviously, I have to work on where my mind is! I love the Boursin cheese.....except I have a tendency to overdo it. I'm sitting here contracting my abs.....I imagine standing would help.

Watchout -- Hello. Join in the conversation!

Off to the doctor to get the coumadin levels checked. Then to the gym. Then to the co-op, run to Costco, home to reconcile the check book, and then I want to make up ham salad out of the left over ham from yesterday. That should keep me out of trouble for the day!.