Nice reading everybody and seing that we all face the same challenges. It is a slow with for me, my energy level is not at its best but I still go to the gym to do the exercices at a lower pace it is better than not doing them at all. I Will feel better in a few days and pick up the speed.
I had set a goal and I am almost there but I feel that once I am there that I will want to go a little further. It feels nice to give myself that option. When I started my goal was 140 made it, lowered it to 125 will make it, then...might decide for another 5 or concentrate on the toning and maintain the weight.
This weight loss of mine is taking a lot of my time, made me refocus my priorities. I use to sit in front of an easel all day and night, now I am more balanced. I still spend a lot of time with paint tubes and brushes since it is my profession but my body comes first, then art takes care of my soul and all this process makes me whole.
I'm increasing my font size to 3 for those that have bad eyes, like me!
KittyC - I read The Help when it first came out, and was delighted when I found out a group at church was going to discuss it. We had a good time with that last night. Are you an avid reader? What authors are your favorites?
JoyfulR - Katie is the DD who is expecting in April. It's her 1st baby, but my 9th grandchild. My DD with RA is Mary. She just turned 30 last Saturday, is married, and has 5 children. (blended family) She goes for infusions every few months, and they have helped her pain tremendously. Thank you for the prayers for her! I think we all tend to take for granted our abilities until they are challenged or gone. Sad, but true. I also have a son with 3 children - another blended family. Over the holidays, I gave myself permission to indulge on a few days. : Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, and New Year's Day. Not pig out, but to have extra. I ended up losing in December for the first time I can remember! My method may not work for everyone, but it worked for me.
Michou - you are doing wonderfully with weight loss! I may adjust my goal once I get closer. I absolutely love how you explained your priorities. You've covered the bases that make you healthy and happy.
Hello to anyone reading this.
I've had to up my carbs again, because I was becoming very unsatisfied with what I got to eat, and will keep concentrating on eating complex carbs. I'm a carb lover, and will never be happy trying to limit them to an extreme.
This is my *52nd* week of staying OP, and that sure is a good feeling.
I spent the last couple of days with an awful headache and I don't know if that's because I've lowered my carbs or what but there it is I will say that today it has been much better.
I decided to follow phase one of the SB plan. It's pretty much what I was doing before but I never did the phase one plan of anything to break the hold sugar has on me. Other than the headache, I am loving this. I feel back in control. I can't wait to see the results at the end of the two weeks of phase one. Of course I am hoping for that big weight loss but honestly if it sets me up to be free of the hold sugar has on me I will consider it a success.
I want to thank all of you for the encouragement you've given me. I have to run--company is here Maybe I'll be back later this evening....
Michou - Sounds like you are listening to your body & I'm betting that it will naturally settle at an appropriate weight for you as time goes on.
Jane- WOW! 52 weeks on plan & losing weight during December. Now, that's impressive. And, you are a Grandma X9? You must be a very busy woman. It makes me appreciate even more the time you take to be here to support and give feedback to the rest of us. Thanks for upping the font size. I tried to with this post, but all I got was font size 3 printed out & enclosed in brackets. What did I do wrong?
ANewCreation - I am so glad to hear you are feeling back in control. The Sugar Monster is hard to tame, but it can be done & I agree that to accomplish that, with or without weight loss, is a major victory. Keep up the good work.
ANewCreation - your headaches should disappear within a few days, once your body gets used to the new WOE. It sure is a good feeling to be back in control. We thank you, too, for your input here!
JoyfulR - I didn't think my font looked bigger but maybe it does to you others. What you do is, highlight the whole message, then click on the "size" bar at the top of the message box where you type your response, and then click on 3. Thank you for your kind words. I get as much support as I give around here - that's why I love it so!
A big hello to anyone reading this.
I have a busy weekend planned. Five of the grands will be here tonight, and stay over until tomorrow evening. We have several projects planned, including some science experiments. Hope we don't blow the place up, haha. After church on Sunday, I'll have a family dinner, then scoot off to a bridal shower. But I'll be able to check in.
I am feeling so good today. I'm following the SB advice and not counting carbs, calories, etc. I'm just eating the allowed foods. And to be honest, my belly is so happy I'm not even eating as much as the menu plans allow. Wow, never thought I'd see that happen! So, I'm pretty much using some of the recipes just not all of them at every meal. And sometimes I just come up with my own plan for the day. It's working, it's working!
Spent about 30-45 minutes in the kitchen prepping some food for the weekend/tonight. Fish is thawed and in the fridge. Dressing made for the salad. SF jello in the fridge getting firm. I am trying something new I read about (maybe on this thread?). I took a small package of SF peach jello and mixed the powder with 2 cups of @% greek yogurt. One quick taste tells me that while it's not the same as fresh fruit/yogurt it tastes mighty fine and will do the trick. I might top it with some finely minced walnuts and call it dessert or breakfast over the weekend. My MIL is visiting this weekend and she might like it too.
So, my meals are all planned and I've done some advanced prep which should set me up for success this weekend!
I wasn't going to weigh myself but I can't help it. My wieght is down to 193. 4#'s to go before I'm back at my pre-Christmas weight!!!
Hubby is taking off early today and we're going to go to a movie. He has no problem passing up the popcorn (and he loves it soo much) to support me so I'll be taking some prepacked nuts for our snack and a diet coke.
Michou--what you say about making your body a priority really resonates with me. We really do have to make the time for ourselves, don't we? Keep up the good work and results will follow. I realize that it can be slow for me too but the advantage of being more 'mature' is that we often have more patience for the process
joyfull retiree--thank you for your encouragement! I hope you have a great weekend!
Jane--I am so impressed with 52 weeks of being on plan!!!! How do you do it? Every church I've ever been to really puts an emphasis on food and fellowship and I personally find it very difficult. I find myself often skipping that part. You inspire me, really all of you do! Have fun with the grands--I'm sure you won't blow anything up....but it may look like it when you're done
1 pkg whole grain tortillas (or tortillas of your choice)
1.5 lb sliced chicken breast (butcher will slice for fajita's)
1 ea. red,green, and yellow bell peppers
1 med sweet yellow onion
1 tbsp cajun seasoning
1.5 tsp cumin
1.5 tsp black pepper mix (red/white/black)
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 jar chunky salsa (I use medium - but use what you like)
1 - 2 cans black beans drained & rinsed
1 can white kidney beans drained & rinsed - or -
1/2 cup White Kidney Bean Hummus ("supposed" to inhibit carb uptake)
Slice onion and peppers in food processor -
saute in evoo or chicken stock - covered in large pot to sweat
when veggies are softened add seasonings, garlic and chicken
stir well and cover again
when chicken is about 1/2 way done, add salsa and beans -
simmer til flavors mix well & sauce thickens - about 15-20 min
Wrap burrito style into tortillas
Optional (but not necessary) toppings before wrapping:
avacado slices
mexican cheese blend
White Kidney Bean Hummus
3 cans Cannonelli Beans (white kidney beans)
3 roasted red peppers
8 cloves garlic (from salad bar)
3 red hot peppers (mixed with garlic on salad bar in grocery stores)
1.5 tsp pepper mix (white/red/black)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup water +/- - add slowly until proper consistency is reached.
~ Blend in food processor until mixed well.
Serve with low carb tortillas
Use as sandwich spread
Let me say, first of all, that I feel so blest to have found such a supportive & caring group.
Jane - Have fun with all your planned projects. They sound like fun. I'll follow your instructions to increase font size of this message. Here's hoping I do it right.
ANewCreation - I can just feel the happiness in your last message. I am so glad you have a happy tummy & have found what works for you. And, what a wonderful husband you have to sacrifice his popcorn for you. With all the planning & prep work you've been doing, you are well prepared for the weekend. That peach jello/ yogurt dish is similar to something I ate alot of last summer. I made a package of the SF peach jello, cut the firmed jello into bitesize squares & mixed it with a half cup of LF cottage cheese. It made a bunch of food & was so good. Mixing the dry jello with the yogurt sounds even better.
Gwen - Thanks for posting those recipes. I love, love, love beans & have the ingredients on hand to make the white bean hummus. I don't have tortillas on hand, but I bet it would be delicious on whole wheat toast. As you can see, I get excited about trying new recipes. Unfortunately, it can get me into trouble if I'm not careful. LOL!
Size 3 is our regular font, so use size 4 if you want to increase it a bit. Not sure what I was thinking!
ANewCreation - I am so, so happy that you've found a WOE that is working well for you, and more importantly, one that you like. Yay for the loss so far! You are doing great. How I stay OP is that I am not nearly as strict as I was in past weight loss efforts, and that makes me happy. Which movie did you see?
Gwen - thank you for the recipes. I've never made hummus with anything but chickpeas, and this looks good. I like new recipes.
JoyfulR - I feel blessed to have each of you here, too.
Michou - hello!
Well, my weigh-in today was great, and I can officially say that I am down 55 total pounds now, after completing my first year. One year of healthy eating down, the rest of my life to go. I've never felt better!
Hoping someone pops in and can answer this question for me. If you have some sugar do you have to start the whole phase one (SB) over again? I ordered a diet coke (and that was the only thing I ordered) while we were out today and I didn't realize until I'd drank about 1/4 of a medium cup that it was regular. Why is it I can never tell the difference???? Handed it to hubby and he confirmed it was indeed regular coke, not the diet we ordered. Since we had gone through a drive thru and were half way to our destination I just stopped drinking it and tossed it when we got there.
So, how is this going to affect phase one? I can and will start over again if I have to but it would be nice if I didn't. I can't recall reading anything in the book I bought about what to do if this happens......
Btw, Jane, congrats of the weigh in and one year of astounding success!!!!
joyful retiree--love your cottage cheese idea! I love cottage cheese
Gwen--thanks for the recipes!
Last edited by ANewCreation; 01-29-2011 at 07:28 PM.
Jane - Congratulations! 55 lbs down in a year is great.
ANew Creation - Sorry to hear about that sugary coke episode. You'll be just fine & it's a good opportunity to learn how your body reacts. You are still in Phase 1? See how you feel at the end of Phase 1, even with that 'blip', you may be fine to go on to Phase 2 as planned. I suspect that it's a very individual thing. If I understand South Beach correctly, you can go back to Phase 1 at any time, as needed. Good luck.
ANewCreation - I wish I could answer you about the cola question, but can not. By now, I suppose you've handled it, anyway. If it were me, I would just carry on, but I'm curious what you did?
JoyfulRetiree - I just made out my food plan for the day, so I'm good to go. My breakfasts and lunches are similar everyday, but my dinners vary.
Hello to anyone reading this. :wave
I had such a fun weekend with the kids, and then went to a bridal shower yesterday.
Today I'm making my game plan for Spring Cleaning, which will begin tomorrow, Feb. 1st. I like to get it out of the way before spring actually gets here, so I can go out and work in the yard then.
Food control is going great. I need more intentional exercise, though.
Jane, I've been researching SB and can't find an answer to my question so I guess I'm just going to move on. I'm not sure that it has really had any impact on me. I have been a bit hungry this weekend but I've also been exposed to a lot of food that isn't allowed on phase one. We had a lot of company over the weekend and ordered in some pizza. I was good and enjoyed my SB Cobb Salad but the smell and sight of pizza left me jealous So, I guess I'm just going to play it by ear....
I must get to the grocery store and run some more errands before the snow hits. I will spend part of the day doing laundry and prepping some veggies, salads and veg quiche cups for the week. I am in love with the quiche cups and I have some leftover crab from the cobb salad so I'm going to throw that in the quiche cups and freeze some for later use. Yummy!!!
I will say that today it has been much better.
Maybe I'll be back later this evening....
Recipes
