Thank you for the warm welcome! I lost 29 pounds a few years ago following the Dukan diet, which is basically protein and veg. best diet, no sugars, and 1 serving of complex carb a day.

I stopped because I began to worry about my body's ph levels - because i heard that eating too much protein makes the body very acidic and creates an evironment for lots of degenerative diseases in the long-term like arthritis (i.e. my back problems) And i switched to weighing food to control portions. Eventually I got lazy with measuring, made it to the gym less, worked more, then started school on top of that, and here I am! Needing a change.

I am very tempted to buy the 4 hour body book by Tim Ferris I have heard some interesting things about it. I'm also investigating the intermittent fasting programs, so far it seems there is an eat stop eat, a leangains, and Fast 5....research, research...:)

HI relosers/friends..

Yesterday was a very focused day. Always grateful for that. I stayed with my plan until right before I went to bed. Some stress tripped me up. As Dr. Beck says.... we shouldn't just focus on what we didn't do.... but, what we did do. (Just learn from it all)

Credits:
Planned/measured/logged food
lots of water
stretches & strengthening
journal daily goals and thoughts
ate seated mostly
no seconds
left a bite
ate a little slower
-down and up... weight up and down a pound or so - today it's lower than my ticker weight. Wednesday is my 'official' weigh day.

I must work on reading the Beck Book and my cards.

Tonight neighbors are coming over for a campfire. (It might need to be tomorrow... wet wood.) Smores are on the menu. I have PLANNED one for myself. It's a slippery slope. But, I also plan to sent some the extra fixin's.

The garden paths are almost done. DH says I should wait until the grass grows around them more.... before going fulfledged into walking on them. He was suppose to golf today... but, too much rain. It's too bad because it's his vacation. However... he came back home and instead did weeding and trimming. Gotta love that guy.


thistoo- So glad to see you! We all have times when, for one reason or another, we don't get here. My life has been kinda crazy too. But - the nice thing about 3fc is that folks always just welcome each other. I think when we start a different way of eating... our body reacts in different ways. Maintaining is good.

mahtha - I am doing a happy dance in honor of those jeans fitting! That's an awesome NSV. Good planning ahead as you face celebrations, etc.

justwant2b - good reminder about facing celebrations etc with aiming for healthy options. Thanks. I love turkey sausage too.

LSfunky - YAY!!! on your two pound loss. So nice when the scale says what you deserve.

couchabou - glad you are joining in. It's easy to gain after an injury.

msdreamer - credit for all that exercise! Hop back on your plan and you will take that weight off.

Have a good weekend, folks.

I did East Stop Eat for awhile and it helped me with calorie control for sure. With this new program I'm following I'm not supposed to eat breakfast, so I've switched to more of a Fast 5 approach, though my eating window is more like 8 hours instead of 5. Regardless, my point is that intermittent fasting is effective when it comes to controlling calories. It can be tough to get used to, but I find it's fairly easy now that I've been doing it for awhile.

Don't spend $40 on the ESE book; you can get all the information you need from the website itself.

Beverly, you are so right, as usual! This place is always so welcoming and it's really nice. Smores are one of my weaknesses too, so you're stronger than me. Good luck, and above all, enjoy yourself. Food is only part of that, of course.

Had a solid good week!! Woo hoo!!

thrilled with a 3lb loss this week!!!

quick check in. GREAT day yesterday.... until right before bed.
DH was eating the smore ingredients. (Bad weather has postoned the campfire until tonight.) I started fixating on chocolate & graham crackers and gave into it right before bed. I must learn that just because DH eats something.... doesn't mean I get to have it too. As soon as the campfire is over.... the leftover graham crackers, marshmellos, and chocolate will GO away.

He just came home with candy from the Speedway. Here we go... I must learn to live with it around and NOT eat it. I've gone down this road for years. Keeping the environment 'easy' is what I need to strive for. Always a process.

Yesterday I took over twenty minutes eating my dinner - tasted each bite, put my fork down, and took a few deep breathes before I began. Credit!

Have a great day.

DGRAMIE ~ way 2 go on doing well this week and that 3 lb loss!:carrot:

CAROLINE ~ we are doing a similar experiment lately; eating less meat (eating more fish & poultry) and meals with eggs, chz, etc. I eat more meatless meals than DH but he loves his peanut butter so he eats that a lot too (so I am copying that). Sooo, you are doing the "Fast 8" plan; and I'm doing the "Fast 12" plan ... ;)


BEVERLYJOY ~ You are still doing well with your BECK solutions though; I am taking my time and chewing my food more too. Those paths sound wondeful. When we lived in the country, my DH used to clear a path in the winter for me (so I could walk); some people thought that was crazy but now he has his snowblower, he can clear all he wants. Now I have my ramp, I can walk around our place a lot easier too.

We had home-baked pizza last night (hadn't had that in 2 months); but I gave my furry baby most of my crust and chewed really slowly -- I really noticed that I felt fuller that way too. I added more veggies like chopped onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, and olives as well. This one did have pepparoni on it, but when I make my little ones for my lunch, I make it vegetarian now.

I made a healthier version of pancakes today for breakfast -- by adding oatmeal, protein powder, and bran fiber for something different. They were good and filling. We plan to do that once a week. Next time will be French Toast, I think.

DH cut the grass in the AM yesterday. Then we had friends over visiting in the afternoon. The weather was lovely in the morning, but the winds picked up quite a bit by dinnertime. I've got a few more snowballs on my Hydrangea bush today; it is blossoming for the first time. I had put some compost around the base last week, and it seems to be helping. Before that I didn't know what kind it was ... :lol:

My eating has been much better this week. I have been trying out new strategies like eating a bit more in the daytime; eating different things (some that seem to be more satiating); and going to bed earlier, which all seem to be helping too. So very happy about that ... :D

We had :rain: here all night long, but it's the first really big downpour that we've had this spring so that will help our greenery a lot too. Hope you all have a wonderful, OP weekend. Just do your best, ladies ... :flow1:

I am doing the happy dance. I finally had a healthful food day. I am so grateful.

We were outside for hours getting the gardens finished up and I missed lunch. So I added some protein to my afternoon snack and it worked out OK. Grateful to remember that eating isn't an emergency.

I planned for a s'more - I had it and savored it. I had an extra dime size piece of chocolate when it was left in the wrapper. The fixn's went home with the neighbors. Grateful for the willingness to try.

My mom is coming over for lunch today. Grilling hamburgers and a turkey burger for me. I am taking green beans and mushrooms with a small about of evoo and garlic powder for a tasty side.

Some credits for yesterday:
ate seated mostly
no seconds
exercise
lots of water
weighed - the same
wrote down my food

There are many more things to be working on, of course.

Justhealthy2bme - yes, I am still trying to incorporate the Beck techniques. They are helpful when I am willing to use them. Kudo's for making healthy verisons of family favorites! I agree... it helps to use different strategies. Sometimes they change.

dgrammie - awesome to hear of your good week and weight loss. Carry on!

thistoo & chouch - I am always amazed to hear of so many food plans. As in all parts of life... "One size does not fit all."

Have a great day.

thanks al lfor the support. It was mostly water weight and I have been stuck at 239.6 for the last 4 days WTH? maybe I'm over training IDK. I want to go swimming today but I have a feeling i need to tak the dy off since I have been in the gym 6 times this week:\ (BF decided he wanted to go to the gym for the first time tomorrow morning. Now on mon/wed/fri we will be getting up at 4 am to go to the gym *GULP*

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. I survived all the graduation festivities with a minimum of damage. Looking forward to getting back on track tomorrow with a little more structure and a little less temptation in my week. All the leftovers are going to work or the trash tomorrow to get them out of the house.

Good morning everyone :wave:. It's Monday, the food madness is over and I'm back on track! I was running crazy this morning and didn't weigh in but can't imagine anything has really changed. I made good choices, all things considered and ate/drank mindfully all weekend. My biggest challenge going forward is this awful weather! It's cold and damp and perfect comfort food weather. I must plan, plan plan and stick to my plan.

Cassie, you're one motivated lady to face the gym at 4 am. That's not ever going to happen in my world! ;)

Beverlyjoy, Congrats on a great day! Isn't it amazing how easy it can be to get derailed? I hope this is the beginning of a "it's not so hard to do this" run for you.

Rosebud, I love homemade pizza! The veggies really make it for me so I can skimp on the cheese and not really miss it. Last week I added some chicken sausage which was really yummy (and filling) as well.

I hope everybody has a fantastic day.

Hi... I am checking in. Sunday was an on plan day. I had a nightmare, woke up in the middle of the night and ate extra food. I am not sure if it counts for today or Sunday. LOL I think I am counting it in for Sunday.

I did many of my Beck tasks.

I got a package of Weight Watchers Dark Chocolate on Raspberry ice cream on a stick. DH was buying ice cream bars for himself. I actually planned for a couple... and had to throw away the rest. (I was obsessed and it was just easier to let them go in the trash covered with dish soap.) It's too soon. I'll leave my ice cream getting to the DQ's no sugar added fudge bar for 50 calories. Just get ONE at a time.That is a more controlled setting and keeping my environment 'friendly' for food sanity.

Mahtha - glad you are back in your 'food comfort zone'. Glad the weekend went well.

msmdreamer - sometimes it's important to 'pace' yourself when doing new exercises or getting into them again.

Gotta run!

I wasnt on plan saturday or yesterday. TOday will be totally OP. Meals are planned. Why is it that we mess up after doing so well and showing a good loss. GOod news is my scales havent moved upward.

Hi relosers -A good on plan day yesterday (90 %op). I pushed throught my sabataging thoughts. I wanted to eat lots of unplanned foods in the evening, but ended up going to bed earlier than usual. Some credits:

planned/measured/logged food
used distraction techniques
lots of water
did my exercises
ate seated, mostly
no seconds
left a bite

Today this came through on the Beck Facebook page:
Tuesday Reality Check: If you were driving on the highway and missed your exit, you wouldn’t think, “Well, I’ve blown it now,” and continue driving four more hours in the wrong direction. No! You’d get off at the very next exit and turn around. The same is true for dieting – the moment you make a mistake, turn yourself around and get right back on track.
Such a good reminder!

dgrammie - good for you planning a healthy food day. Sometimes life/food happens. Hop right back on your plan. Glad the scale didn't move.

Today I am taking Mom to the doctor. I need to rehearse.

Have a great day.

^Love it^ ... just common sense once you think about it this way! Thanks for sharing that with us today.


DREAMER ~ I agree -- I couldn't imagine dragging myself to a gym at that time of the morning. Kudos to you and your BF for doing that. Be careful not to hurt yourself now. :)


Our temps have come up to the 70's F today; we've had :sunny: and :rain: alternately all day. It can't make up it's mind, but it sure cooled things off for us though. We had a rushed and busy Monday; got our shopping done, and I was able to find some more berry bushes (and on sale too). I picked up some blackberry and blueberry bushes to round out my mini-fruit orchard. Now we'll just get GOD to bless them with lots of fruit each year. ;)

Since the weather was so weird, I just did some trimming around the beds today; popping some dandelion heads too cuz I don't want them to go to seed. DH just cut the grass and dozens of the little suckers came out today, so out came the mower again to cut them down. :lol:

I planted the front bed with some veggies: parsley, lettuce, radishes, onion sets, garlic chives, and early beans. DH finally found my baskets of seeds from last year. I found a pack of perennial seeds of a nice blue Agastache flower, so I'll plant some of them tomorrow and see if they grow here. Just finding the right spots for everything is key.

Glad to hear that so many of you were able to manage all those celebrations; plus recouping, and staying on track as much as you can. Hope the rest of your week works out well for you all too ... :flow2: