Hi, Turtles,
Welcome to all of you new folks! This is likely to be a long post since I haven't been able to post for a while.
Kaylets, we always have room for one more. Welcome. I hope we can help you reach your goals. I think it's great that you're trying new things. Boredom is one of the things that can mess us up quickly! I hope you enjoyed Cirque de Soliel.
Effenbee, welcome. Well, going up for two weeks and then down for one definitely counts as a turtle pattern. One reason we go slowly is so that we can figure out and work on the things that keep us stalled or cause us to do that kind of yo-yo thing you mentioned. Stick around and we'll do our best to support you in whatever way we can.
Welcome, Terri. Please don't give up. I'll tell you, we've all gone through stages where it's been very difficult and we've contemplated giving up, but we keep posting, no matter what, and our motivation eventually seems to return. Hope we can help remotivate you. Good luck with your exercise.
Lauren, I hope you enjoyed having your visitors. I'm glad to see that you're getting more writing to do. Much congratulations on reaching your Adirondacks goal. Way to go!!
Kathy, I do have a lot of favorite menus I use over and over. I think the best tip I have right now is the easiest low-fat salad dressing in the world. First, a tip about oil sprays--I don't use the ones you buy because you get chemicals and low-quality oil. They cost a lot per serving, too. So, I use inexpensive extra-virgin olive oil in a Misto, which is the same calorie count per spray as the nonstick sprays you buy. (I admit if my budget were less strained, I'd use expensive and more flavorful extra-virgin olive oil, but you can't have everything.) For you new folks--I'm a avid chef and use the pinch of this, pinch of that method in everything except baking. I believe that everyone has their own tastes and you can figure out how much herbs, spices, etc. you like. That's how much is the right amount.
Here's how: Put your salad ingredients in a bowl. Squirt some olive oil over the top. Pour whatever vinegar you like--balsamic, wine vinegar, rice vinegar for an Oriental flavor, lemon juice, lime juice (the key word here is acidic ingredient) over it. The amount will depend on how much salad you've made. If you 're doing Oriental, substitute peanut oil for olive oil and add about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame seed oil.
Sprinkle an herb blend of your choice over that. Add a pinch of salt. (I like to buy the salt-free blends, then put the amount of salt I like. If your blend has salt, then don't add more to the salad.) I also toss fresh herbs or make my own blends. To make your own, just open your spice bottles and sniff. If they smell good together, they will taste good together.
Sometimes I put plain black or white pepper and sometimes I put a pepper blend, depending on what flavor I want. Toss. Taste. If it tastes bland, add a pinch of salt. If it's too sour or bitter, add a pinch of sugar or honey. There are no extra bowls to wash. You get a variety of flavors because you pick your herb blends. And you can't go wrong unless you get too heavy-handed with the spices. Put a little and taste to see if you need more. Experience will teach you how much you like. And remember, you can always add, but not subtract ingredients.
Steamed veggies can get pretty blah after a while. So, I spray olive oil over them, which makes the herbs and spices stick, then sprinkle herb blends, salt, and pepper, just like on my salad. Sometimes I put balsamic vinegar or lemon juice. Salsa is a really good addition to salads or veggies instead of other flavorings, too. These things really perk up the flavor of plain veggies without adding a lot of calories. Hope this gives you more variety with your vegetables.
I hope you had fun sewing this weekend.
Judy, it's good to hear from you.
April, congratulations on the .4 pounds. Don't knock the slow pace. I know it's easy to be impatient, but remember two things. One, you didn't put the weight on fast and it's not likely to come off fast. Two, people who take it slowly tend to keep it off, which is our ultimate goal.
Erin, I don't eat sophisticated food every day. Mostly I cook fairly simple stuff, but with the best ingredients I can find and afford. But sometimes it's so much fun to get in the kitchen and try something really elaborate, if cooking is your thing, that is.
Guess I'd better tell the new folks a bit about myself. I'm the ultimate turtle, which is why I started this thread. My mother convinced my pediatrician to put me on a diet when I was about nine because she was afraid I'd get fat. I did, eventually, fulfill that prophecy and have been fighting this battle my whole adult life. I've lost and regained more pounds than I could count, like many people.
One of my biggest hindrances is severe PMS, which can cause me to regain and lose the same weight month after month. I've discovered that a regimen of calcium, a mulitvitamin, and magnesium supplements, eating mini meals, drinking extra water, and walking every day helps keep the PMS more manageable.
What is difficult is that I currently am living in a situation I abhor because I'm very isolated and I'm really fighting to keep from overeating and gaining weight. I've also been feeling very tired about even making the effort because I've been doing this for 40 years, and haven't been a normal weight since I was a teenager.
But I'm still here, still posting even though I'm not exactly following WW right now. I've noticed that for me, continuing to post, being honest about my issues, helps to keep things from getting so out of hand that I end up back where I began. When I'm struggling, I'm happy to maintain my weight.
As for the rest of my life, I'm 48. I've been married 25 years. I have two sons, 18 and 23. My 18-year-old is headed to art college on Wednesday. I keep busy helping with moderating duties on two forums in which I've been active. I also am working seriously on a fantasy novel. I've been a hobby writer most of my life, but now I'm trying to improve my writing skills, hoping to have my stories accepted for publication. My other project is to find that dreaded "day job", but since the economy is down, that project isn't being successful. That's both good and bad. Bad because we really need to increase our income, but good because I have more time to write.
Well, this post is long enough. Once my son leaves, I will have more computer time and will be able to post more often.
Again, welcome to you new members. Please let us know in what ways we can help you achieve your goals. Best advice--remain active, no matter how things are going.
Happy turtlin'!
Lin