Hey everyone. I'm so frustrated I can't see straight this morning! Last week was TOM and I gained 2 pounds. I could deal with that. It happens. The week after TOM I ususally lose the couple I gained and a couple more. Not this week! I've gained 5 pounds! How can this be? Yesterday, I did cheat. Went to a funeral and then to the family's home afterward. I had a piece of fried chicken and some potato salad. It made me feel sick. Haven't had any fried food since Feb. This is like only the second time I've gone off plan since Feb. Five pounds for fried chicken?????
I exercise 6 days a week. Yesterday was 3 miles in 30 mins on the elliptical. Day before it was Tai Chi and 7 miles on the bike. Here's a typical day of eating for me.
Breakfast: Kashi shredded wheat, light & lean yogurt, berries
snack: lowfat cheese stick or nuts, a fruit or veg depending on what we have and my mood.
lunch: large salad with grilled chicken or a ww tortilla wrap. No dressing, just balsamic vinegar
snack before exercise: Kashi granola bar and an orange
dinner: grilled chicken or lean red meat, vegs (my favorite is roasted-yum!) and a salad
Occasionally I go to our local coffee shop and order a latte, skim, sf syrup, decaf with 2 splendas in it.
That's it! A trainer at my Y thinks I need more carbs. I'm South Beaching and think I'm pretty generous with my carbs. What do you all think?
You're probably seeing some water weight from salty fried chicken and potato salad. It's much better for me to pay attention to weight loss trends over time - weigh yourself again in a couple of days.
I doubt that the fried chicken caused a five pound gain, could be you had more salt causing water retention combined with TOM.Also it is normal to have flucuations of weight, mysterious to us but it happens.Weighing yourself too often is sure to drive us crazy, weigh once a week and you won't see the variations.It is the net result we want to achieve , isn't it ?How many calories are you eating in a day?
Shelly,
Please see my thread "I want to throw my scale through the window!" I know exactly how you feel. Salty foods make my weight automatically go up several pounds. Just stay off the scale for a couple of days. Your food choices are really healhty, and you're doing great with exercising!
Shelly,
How frustrating!!! I am experiencing exactly the same thing right now, plus noticeable water retention. I have increased my daily water intake and added some more fruit to my meal plans and am waiting for a change.
Hang in there. You are doing so well and your level of commitment is admirable. In fact, just reading your post and subsequent responses has motivated me. I am sure you'll reap the rewards soon...
~Laura
p.s. Several members have suggested that, for those of us who weigh daily, charting is a good strategy to avoid frustration. Do you do this? For those who do - what system to do you use? Thanks!
Laura - I just log my weight every morning into the dailyplate. It has a running chart. When I really want to motivate myself I change the chart dates to reflect the past 3 months rather than just the past week or two! It's amazing how far it has fallen.
I'm not a daily weigher. I weigh once a week on Mondays. I think that is why it is so frustrating. I expect the daily flucuations, but figure it should even out in a week. I took my measurements too. Not much change from last month. I will not binge, I will not binge.... (say it with me....)
If you wear rings, they often can help you gauge whether you're seeing "real" weight or water weight. At least it works for me. If I've gained "real" weight, it seems to be fairly evenly distributed and my rings fit normally. However, if it's water weight, my rings are tight and harder to get off than usual.
Another way to supposedly tell if you're retaining water is to press a finger into a fattly part of your arm for a couple seconds and pull it away. If you can see the light impression of your finger tip for more than a fraction of a second, you're supposedly retaining water. For me, my ring-fit test works better, but if I'm retaining a lot of water, like during TOM the finger tip effect is very pronounced.
I can hear your frustration in your post. A five pound gain on the scales can be extremely aggravating. Please don't let those doggone scales bring you down. One piece of fried chicken and some potato salad will not result in five pounds of fat. I bet that water weight will disappear from the scales soon....if it hasnt already.
Regarding the carbs for the day, I'm not sure of your portion sizes, but your menu looks like it falls in-line perfectly with the Southbeach plan. The goal is to consume approximately 4 cups of veggies a day and include up to 3 whole grain options and up to 3 fruits per day. Some of us can't eat all of the fruit options or all of the grain options and have to adjust based upon our body requirements. How has your weight loss been so far? If your loss has been steady and the inches are coming off, then I wouldnt change a thing. Do you ever visit the Fat Chicks on the Beach forum here at 3FC? When they hit a plateau, many of the Beachers will use Fitday for a week or so to get an idea of how many calories they are consuming. Although Southbeach teaches that we don't have to count calories, sometimes we need to double check that we aren't consuming too much of the right foods and preventing weight loss.
Kaplods, I agree whole heartedly with you regarding the rings. I can tell the same thing with mine. I can also feel it in my feet when I am retaining just water. Maybe it is an age thing (not that I'm THAT old, 43), but with the water retention, I find that my fingers and feet feel stiff/sore.
Shellyknits: I don't have any better advice than what has already been posted. I can really understand the frustration!! I guess if you can hang in there and keep on plan, it will turn around for you! I'm sure that you can do it!!!!
Diane, I'm only 41, and I still am starting to feel the "aging" process. When you're young you feel invincible, even when you know better. Even morbidly obese, except for some mild arthritis in my knees, I was HEALTHY AS A HORSE (and ate like one too) until I hit 30, then my body started falling apart (Sometimes I think I can hear the bits hitting the floor - unfortunately they obviously don't weigh much).
If you wear rings, they often can help you gauge whether you're seeing "real" weight or water weight. At least it works for me. If I've gained "real" weight, it seems to be fairly evenly distributed and my rings fit normally. However, if it's water weight, my rings are tight and harder to get off than usual.
VERY true! The same is true for me.. I can usually tell by looking at my fingers, especially around my knuckles. I think I'm really sensitive to salt because my fingers look like sausages if I had too much.
Shelley, you keep going! You're doing so well, and I'm sure that stupid water weight is gone by today.
ARGH! So frustrated!!!
I can hear your frustration in your post. A five pound gain on the scales can be extremely aggravating. Please don't let those doggone scales bring you down. One piece of fried chicken and some potato salad will not result in five pounds of fat. I bet that water weight will disappear from the scales soon....if it hasnt already. 
