[Frances123]

Welcome, Walrus! This is a great thread!

I'm so glad to hear that you didn't have a gain, Wannabehealthy! Yeah, forget the past and just move on!

And three cheers for being back on track, noname! Going out of town and being out of your routine is SO hard, I know! Glad you had a good time!

I am feeling much better today. I really triggered something dangerous with all the sweets. First it was anniversary, then lots of people coming into town (dessert and dessert-y breakfasts), and stuff for my husband's work...I have struggled with sugar addiction but had gotten to a place where I could have a bite of two of something sweet every other day or so, or a full serving once or twice a week, but all that sugar within a short period of time...I was totally out of control. I actually told my husband, "Well, at least I made it to 183 [before starting the gain back]..." He was super encouraging and helped me white-knuckle it through a few days of NO sugar. It was so tough. Today is the first day where I mentally feel like I've got things under control again. I weighed and I'm only up one pound. So there's a little victory, too, and possibly that will be gone by my official weigh in this weekend!

[Wannabehealthy]

Originally Posted by nonameslob

I am back and I had a great time at Fest, but I will say it always takes a toll on my body lol Lots of drinking and other substances....

Substances??? LOL I won't ask...

It does sound like you had a good time and that's what vacations are for. To relax and have a good time and get away from everything for a while.

Frances, it's so nice that DH gives you so much support to help you through your sugar issues. Mine would never do that because he eats sugar constantly and never gains. He says sugar will never make you fat. I can prove him soooo wrong. LOL I am like that with Hershey's Kisses. If I buy a bag of them I can sit and eat them until they are gone. There for a while I was buying them to have in the house for when my grandson came, but sometimes they were gone before he got here. One time I told DH to hide them from me. When my grandson came, Pap Pap showed him where they were. I asked my grandson to bring me a couple and he brought out the whole bag. So no more Hershey's Kisses. If I know he's coming I will go out and buy some sweet treat to have for him. If I bake something for him, I send it home with him. Let mommy get fat. LOL

[nonameslob]

Frances Girl you are sooo very lucky to have a husband who is that encouraging! Cherish him! It really does make it easier to have support through this process. I'm so glad you're getting back on track after all that sugar.

Wannabe LOL...I was trying to be vague, I figured you guys could fill in the blank. :P Sounds like a good plan for the grandkid Poor mommy though! haha I could never ever keep candy in the house for that same reason.

Small NSV I forgot to post about yesterday. I bring a bunch of long flowy skirts to the festival, and usually I end up wearing shorts underneath because I'm walking around a bunch and my thighs start chafing and it's so uncomfortable. But this year I didn't have to! It's so freeing being able to throw on a skirt without another layer, especially when it is hot. I haven't worn my slip shorts at work in months, either. Yay for smaller thighs!

[Frances123]

Oh, I do, I do! I tell my husband he's a saint. He does anything he can to help/support me and then some. He is such a blessing.

I can't keep candy in the house either! If I have a bag of something like Hershey's Kisses, I'll give them to my husband, tell him to hide them, and then have him dole them out to me. But I basically have stopped buying that stuff!

NoName, that's a great NSV! Aren't they encouraging? I forgot to post that I had the same thing happen at the beach a couple of weeks ago - I'd brought a pair of shorts to put on over my swimsuit, not intending to actually walk in them, because shorts ride up and have to be constantly tugged down. But I noticed that they were staying put and actually totally comfortable. I hiked four miles in them! Something I NEVER could've done before!

[Frances123]

Just checking in to see how everyone is doing - Walrus, MarliQQ, Wannabehealthy, Noname, anyone else?

Phew! After isolated baking incidents, followed by a few days of being back on track, followed by more baking, I bloated up to 186.2 as of this past Monday! But with exercise, abstaining from sugar, and following my plan, I'm back down to my lowest weight (183.2) today. Hoping to dip into the 182s by tomorrow so I can finally change my ticker!

[nonameslob]

Hi Frances! Glad to hear the bloating is gone So proud of you for sticking to your plan!

My week is going well. I don't expect a loss tomorrow but I am almost back down to my low after an crazy spike to over 196 on Monday. Second fast of the week today, have a yummy dinner to look forward to, then planning on hitting the gym. We are hoping to go hiking this weekend as well. Nothing too exciting to report.

Edit: I am very much jumping ahead with this, but I've decided my New Year's Resolution will be to RUN the 5K we do as a fundraiser at work each year (usually late April/early May). I'm going to ask for running shoes for Christmas and start training beginning of the year. I've never been much of a runner aside from when I played soccer as a kid, but I'm feeling the need for a change and I'm also hoping that being skinnier, running will suck less. LOL

At last year's 5K, which I walked, my coworkers and I jokingly challenged each other to run it next year. Well I'm going to take it seriously and show them what's up!

[thewalrus0]

Hey all, my goal for back to school was 195lbs and I am just almost there, although I have been hanging around 197.

But 195lbs marks 100lbs lost and I am ready to say "I lost 100lbs!"

And I won't lie, being in the 180's sounds awesome too. That is my Halloween goal!

[nonameslob]

walrus, wow, that is AMAZING!!! When do you go back to school? You can do it! Are you a teacher or are you in school yourself? Congratulations on your loss so far. Really, truly inspiring. How long has it taken you?

No loss for me this week...well, I did lose all the bloating (7 pounds of bloating!) from the festival. Sitting at 189 today. Next week will be my week! I did lose a half inch on my waist and half inch on my chest in the past month, though, even if I haven't lost any pounds. I feel much better this week though!

[Wannabehealthy]

I lost the 3 lbs I gained back after my whoosh, so I am back to 195. Now I want to continue on down instead of going back up like I usually do. I think I get so excited that I showed a loss that I ease off a bit. Big mistake. I can and will get back to or below my recent low of 193.

We are going to the casino again today. Wheeling WV, if anyone's interested in meeting me there! LOL They have a fabulous buffet. I usually overeat when I go there, but I do stay low carb. I'm hoping not to do much damage. I'm skipping lunch to allow for a little more. I will try not to stuff myself. I'm hoping the only gain I have is in my wallet!

Walrus, I really admire anyone who can lose 100 lbs. It shows discipline and determination. Hats off to you! You will no doubt reach your goals.

NoName, good for you on your inches lost. I think I need to lose about 2-1/2 inches in my waist to fit into my smaller pants I have. They are relatively new. I bought them when I was down to 182 over a year ago, but didn't stay at that weight long enough to get much wear out of them.

Today I was reading about JUDDD. 500 cals every other day. Considering it, but definately not today! LOL Someone said it can be done with low carb. Anyone ever try it? Noname, is that similar to the 5:2 that you do?

Doing great, Frances! The 170s aren't far away for you!

[nonameslob]

That sounds like fun Wannabe! I've never been much for casinos myself. I'm sure if you walk into that buffet with some sort of plan, you can manage to enjoy yourself and not stuff yourself. Have fun!!! Do you play the slots or any particular games?

I've heard about JUDDD and it is very similar to 5:2, and I think basically the same thing as Alternate Day Fasting. I had considered for a while, but honestly I prefer the slower loss by doing 2 fasts per week. I tried three "fasts" (of 500 calories) in one week a few times, and it was more difficult for me. I didn't want to risk a diet that would make me miserable and feel like giving up. But some people are able to do very well on it and their losses are much speedier than mine!

I imagine it would be very easy to do with a low carb diet. I naturally eat low carb on my fast days - you get more "bang for your buck" as far as calories. And then the other days you eat "normally", so you could basically eat the foods you do now. Intermittent fasting is very versatile in that way - it doesn't control the foods you eat, so if you have your own restrictions, you can easily combine the two! I think there was a JUDDD thread at some point on here, but hop into the IF or 5:2 threads if you wanna get more feedback. Maybe a new plan will help give you the push you need to get out of the 190s!

[Frances123]

Walrus, your weight loss is AMAZING! You're on fire!! (I like these little smilies too much!)

Noname - Doesn't it feel good to lose the bloating? I love your idea of setting a fitness goal, too! I did Couch to 5K a long time ago, but I have to admit that I don't care for running. Still, I agree, maybe it's better when you're thinner?

Wannabehealthy - Woooo for 3 pounds down! You're doing great! Good luck at the casino with the buffett...sounds like you've got a plan in place to handle it! I don't know if I could be that strong!

Ugh...no ticker movement for me this week. Still sitting at 183.2. I've officially been in the 180s for six weeks because of going off plan a few times. I'm totally ready to buckle down and see some amazing progress this next week!

[Wannabehealthy]

Good Morning. I did eat a lot of food at the buffet, but no carbs. The meat is all grilled, so no sauces etc to add calories. I had steak, roast chicken, shrimp, salmon and cooked cauliflower and broccoli. The pieces of meat are small so you can take a variety of things instead of a large portion. There are a lot more things to choose from but I've been there often enough that I know what I like and don't like. They have an asian station that I avoid because all the meat has sauces and I would not be able to pass on the steamed and fried rice. Also, they have a pasta station where you choose your pasta, sauce and up to 3 add ons. I pass that, too. I also pass on the carving station because it's ham and roast beef and the roast beef is usually fatty. Then there are things like mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffed cabbage rolls, seafood casserole, corn on the cob. It's a food lovers dream. LOL I usually take some spinach and select toppings from the salad bar. I am pleased with my selections. It's all good, but it IS a lot of food and I wouldn't want to eat like that every day.

We play the slots. DH is addicted, so I have to pull in the reins and we go according to how our bills are effecting our checkbook that particular month. There are a lot of other things we could be spending that money on, but DH gave up most of his other addictions, like cigarettes and booze, so I allow him this one vice. And we do win sometimes. Not today, though! LOL Without DH I would not be a casino lover. I always tell him if they didn't have that buffet I might not be going.

Frances, I don't feel that I deserve the Woo Hoo because it was the 3 lbs I gained back last week. When I get below 193, then I will feel that deserves a Woo Hoo.

Noname, I think I do IF now, but using an eating window daily rather than having fast days, and my eating window is not as rigid as some. I didn't think I could do a 500 cal day, but after reading about it and seeing some of the things they eat, I could probably eat a lot of veggies and not go over 500. I might start out by doing a 500 cal day and see how it goes from there. I tend to tweak diets to fit my own lifestyle so I could probably do that with this....have 500 cal days, but not necessarily on a regular schedule, but according to how my life is going on certain days. Since I have to take DH into consideration and he will not fast and doesn't need to, a lot will depend on what he wants to eat on a particular day. I can skip or limit breakfast and lunch, but dinner would always be a challenge. I wish he were one of those guys who will eat whatever you put in front of him, but he's not only picky, but at dinner, he wants me to sit down and eat with him, hungry or not.

I like the idea that the 500 cal fast days will not put your body in starvation mode because you don't do it more than one day in a row. I think I need something like this to shake things up.

[MarliQQ]

thewalrus0 Happy you made it into this new decade!! Feels good to be nicely on Onederland doesn't it?

Wannabehealthy!! I should have went with you! Food and gambling! I have lost a bit of money at the casino and I wasn't angry about it until I went home . For some reason, I run on gamblers high during the duration of the trip, probably because they keep the drinks coming while you are in the casino . So maybe it is more an alcoholic high--rather than an actual gamblers high for me . Glad you had fun.

Frances123 I feel like you will definitely see a move on the scale soon. You are due a woosh soon. It always comes when we least expect it .

nonameslob That is a lot of bloat to lose, and you did a great job getting it off . And I love to hear about inches coming off. I was thinking of cheating and measuring early, so I can have some fun numbers to look at. But I think I am going to hold off until Sept. 1, so that I can have something to look forward to.

[Frances123]

Hey, MarliQQ! I saw on the other thread that you've peeked at 179?!?!?! But aren't counting it until your 'official' weigh in? You'll be moving off to the 170s board before you know it!!!

Wannabehealthy - 3 pounds is 3 pounds! Sounds like you did a great job at the buffet table, too.

I'm STILL stalling between 183.2 and 183.6 for the second? third? week in a row...I am planning on mixing up my menu this week. So tired of eating the very same meals day in and day out! Hope that change jump starts the scale!

[MarliQQ]

Frances123 I killed that "streak" today, yesterday I overate . 181.0 I really did try hard not to overeat on my rest day, but see there was this cookie and a foot long from subway....and oh....before that too many pringles?? Honestly, I am hoping that it helps me wiggle free so that I can venture lower than 179.5. I am going to be quite disappointed if after today I weigh in tomorrow and that sucker is still 179 .

Here is to hoping that you and I wiggle free of these numbers ....Funny how maybe 20lbs ago I would have loved to be fighting with these numbers...all in perspective right?