Hey all

Hope you are having a good day!

I am feeling a lot better after spending my weekend mostly in bed, work today but off tomorrow!

I am feeling pretty on track so far.... down to 355 only one pound away from my ticker, so things are looking up!

Good Morning ALL

I am up and going this morning and not nearly as sore as I thought I might be. I really feel like we accomplished a lot yesterday. It is supposed to be nice today and I want to work outside again. I have a couple of things to bring to the garden plot to ready it. I also have some more clearing toward the end of the fence row. Gotta make sure all the vines and such are gone and saplings cut off at the ground or dug up. So another day of the same sort of stuff but not nearly as much. I am really motivated to have fresh veggies!!!

Ubee - enjoy that cabbage... I know ours was so very yummy!!!

Time - so glad you are feeling better!!!

Well I am off to get ready for church and then back to work on the garden.
Have a POP Perfect On Plan Day!!!

merstopher Thank you for that web site from Canada. It has a lot of useful information. I am getting good use from it. Congratulations on staying with your calorie goals.

betsy2013 I hope you are continuing to have great days!! I understand procrastination. I have a black belt in procrastination myself.

Fiona W. How is your angina? We all care about you, Please take good care of yourself.

time4me2change I am glad to hear that your cold is better, I hate having them.

Ubee - I am not hungry on my low calories days. I usually eat two meals a day with a healthy snack. Lunch is our main meal of the day and has meat, starch and vegetable. I am calorie counting and I try to keep my lunch under 600 calories. for the evening meal I have been following the Volumetric Diet theory. It is simple if the food you eat has a low density of calories, you can eat more. For example a pound of carrots have the same calories as an ounce of peanuts. Guess which would fill you up more? Following this I have been eating huge meals at dinner that are very low calorie and the volume of that food satisfies my hunger. Last night at dinner I ate a mixture of the following vegetables seasoned with a little hot sauce:
Del Monte - Canned Cut Green Beans No Salt Added 1 3/4 cup
Del Monte - Whole Kernal Corn - No Salt Added, 1 3/4 cup
Glory Foods - Sensibly Seasoned Lower Sodium Tomatoes, Okra & Corn, 1 1/2 cup
This totaled to five (5) cups of vegetables. That was a huge volume of food that but only 380 calories with 520 mg of sodium.

If you are not familiar with the Volumetrics diet check this out
http://health.usnews.com/best-diet/volumetrics-diet

pjvw34 Yard work is great exercise. I am getting ready to build a BBQ pit at the Shriners and I will be lifting and carrying about 100 heavy concrete blocks. One at a time of course.

silentarctic - Your words of encouragement always means a lot to me. Thank You.

pluckypear - Welcome back. You are not alone, I was gone for too long also and discovered that I do not do well on my own.

I just finished preparing a chicken thighs with rice casserole for lunch and it is in the oven. I will add a side of asparagus and that will be lunch for my DW and I.

Hi Everyone!

My name is Sam, I'm a newbie here on 3FC but I have really been feeling the love here the past couple days that I've been here. I am working to make small subtle changes to change my overall lifestyle amd try to follow a diet that is free of processed foods and excess sugar. I'm going to the market today to get a few things for my breakfast lunch and snacks and hubby and I will plan dinners! I hope everyone is having a wonderful day!! Can't wait to meet more of you!!

Hi all! Happy Sunday.

I had a good weekend. Went to the movies Friday night and made sure I had enough calorie room to enjoy a vice of mine, movie theatre popcorn with butter. . Last night out for dinner but thanks to a day of great eating had lots of room to enjoy a nice dinner and even a slice of pie for desert without breaking my calorie goal (before I even subtracted exercise calories). Today went to my Sunday morning breakfast AA group and learning from last week enjoyed the buffet but with better moderation to set myself up for a day where I can still have room for some healthy eating. Went for a run outdoors yesterday, and today will hit the pool. Overall feeling really good and like I am in total control.

Larry - glad the website is useful, it seemed like it would be for someone with your unique eating requirements. I am very impressed you are doing so well while sticking to the limits imposed by your health considerations. I have also been trying to fill up when I get home in the evening with a salad before I start to think about other foods, working so far.

PJ - way to go! Gardening seems so foreign in this climate right now. But functional "real" movements are the best form of exercise, as is the principle behind cross fit.

Time - glad you are feeling better! I think I am getting a cold.... My chest is a bit congested today. Hope it passes!

Ubee - yes fitbit is an activity tracker! And a sleep tracker... As I suspect I sleep REALLY well (since I stopped drinking)... over 8 hours last night, 96% efficiency! Dinner theatre was fun, the food left a little to be desired, but I had a decent jambalaya as my main.

Plucky - don't be afraid of the scale, the important thing is you are back in the saddle

Silent - good job on the better choices!

Betsy - I TOTALLY relate to you on the housecleaning. I am SUCH a procrastinator for things like that. "Don't put it off, procrastinate now" seems to be my motto. I bought a book recommended by my therapist - "you mean I'm not lazy stupid or crazy", an adult ADD self help book - maybe there are some answers in there for me. Given my multiple degrees I know I am not stupid (or lazy), but am really poor at managing the simple things in my life, and always do feel so lazy when I can't bring myself to keep my environment clean for example. But I did clean yesterday finally, so good to be in a clean tidy environment again...

Gonna let my breakfast settle, the to the pool!

Sam We have a great group with lots of love and support.
Sounds like you have a good plan. Please visit and share often. Together we can all be successful.

I spent quite a few hours yesterday cutting little pieces out of that National Geographic and collecting them up in boxes, so I'm looking forward to spending more long hours in my work room making at least two, maybe more, collages out of them. Unfortunately, though, last night my mind was buzzing so much with collage ideas, I didn't get to sleep until the wee hours of the morning. So I'm slow getting started today...

Larry— I admire your dedication to all the little details of your diet. Most days I do the opposite of volumetrics, which is also valid: I eat small portions of high-fat foods (cream being my current fave), getting filled up quickly because of the way fat slows down stomach emptying. So far, I haven't been told to avoid those foods, but I'll see what the cardiologist has to say about that later in the month. I am blessed in that my serum lipids are all in good shape. No more episodes of chest pain, so please don't worry about me. I, too, like doing that pattern of having some days that are much lower in calories than others.

Pam— Your work clearing out the vines and such reminds me of how our previous, and much loathed (by me, at least), President Bush used to get his exercise clearing brush on his Texas ranch. Of course in his case the Secret Service peons probably did most of the hard labor. Lord, I love Texas—all the different sections of it. You are lucky to live in the country of bluebonnets and Indian paint brush! That's so nice you get along well enough with your aunt to live together and work in the garden like that. I like so much living with my husband, just the two of us, if I should ever lose him (Goddess forbid) I'll have to move in with a friend—that's how much I've gotten used to having someone else around the house.

Melissa— I'm glad to hear you had such a nice vacation back home. Good for you to only be one pound off your ticker! I was three pounds over mine the last time I weighed myself, so I'm going back to weighing myself just once a month (on the 22nd, because 22 is my lucky number). I'm pleased to hear you're shaking off that cold: nothing like traveling by air for picking up every bug under the sun.

Ubee— You're going to hit the treadmill today—terrific! I can't wait until I can go back to doing cardio exercise, because it has such a wonderful effect on my mood. Between your diet and exercise, you're a model for us all. I'm glad you like cooked cabbage, because it's such a good food: you remind me about how much I like cole slaw, made very plain the way my grandmother taught me, with just Hellmann's mayonnaise, salt and pepper, and nothing else. I'll have to make up a batch some time soon.

Andrea— Welcome back! Please don't beat yourself up for going off plan for a while: it happens to all of us. It takes a lot of courage to correct your course and come back to where your support is, after something like that.

silent— I agree with Ubee that it sounds as though you're rallying from the lowest of the winter doldrums. I can't really say, in your case, that spring is soon around the corner, but if you get your energy going, you'll be ready for it when it does!

Betsy— I hope the birthday celebration went well. You're getting a lot of good exercise in, running up and down those stairs for Toby! Do you have someone who's going to install the doggy door for you, or are you going to have to do that yourself? Congrats on those binge-free days: one day at a time is all it takes, and if you have a slip, you'll learn from it, and will have benefited already from the long streak of days of having those urges under control. Your comment about cutting up Nat Geo reminded me of how far I've come, during my last few years as a collage artist. We have to cut up books & magazines! The first time I cut up a book, though, I had a real hard time making myself do it, even though it was an old used paperback. The only way I got over that prohibition was to totally destroy that poor book, and then make use of every single image in it. =laugh= Now I'm an old hand at it, and have lots of books I call my "cutter books."

Chris— I hope you had a great weekend on plan. You're also a model for us, especially for all the exercise you're getting. It sounds like it's making you feel like the king of the world—you go, man!

Sam— Welcome on board! I love the name Sam, and these days I'm reading two different biographies of the writer Samuel Beckett, so it's much on my mind. Good for you to be getting off the processed foods and sugar! I look forward to getting to know you.

Well, I have a lot to do today, because in addition to the collage work, it's one of the days when I email my Belgian friend, Robine—in French. We used to write every day, during the phase when we were hot 'n' heavy on building our friendship. We got to a point, though, where the intensity was driving us both crazy, so now we have a pleasant schedule of writing twice a week. She's so impressed with my French: HA! when we finally get together in person, she's going to realize how much I've been relying on my handy-dandy online dictionary that has idioms as well as words.

304 => 302... Next weigh in in one week, will keep them weekly from here out

Just wanted to check in with you guys because my spirits are so high right now!! Not only has today been my 7 year wedding anniversary but I also took some time to go to the grocery store and buy some food to start slowly making the switch to a healthy lifestyle. When I got home I did a ton of prepping for my breakfast and lunch for the coming work week. One of my favorite makeup artists and beauty guru's has lost 125 lbs over the course of 4 years and she posts recipes on her blog from time to time.
One of them was for a turkey taco salad without the taco part so I made up 6 salads for the week and made my own dressing with salsa, a little green chiles and a little sour cream. I also made some gluten free oatmeal with some vanilla cinnamon apples and rasins. I just finished dinner and going to pack some snacks up!! Today has been so great I just wanted to share with you guys! I still need to get a scale but will have to wait until my next paycheck to get that so maybe I will take my measurements tonight. Take care all!!

Hey all! Thanks for the warm welcome back.

WI 297.2
Yikes! I am not changing my ticker but I will report in for WI. I did my WI at home this morning however I am going to TOPS and will WI there tomorrow night. I will post that weight too. I expect it will be higher as WI will be at night as opposed to in the morning. I wanted to be accountable. Wow I gained over the holidays.

Time to recommit and get back on track.

pjvw34 I can't imagine getting ready to garden right now all I see in my back yard area is snow and ice. When will you be able to plant?

Ubee Hi and thanks for the welcome back.

Fiona Thanks for the encouraging words. I am back and I did miss the support I get here. Sorry to hear about your angina. I have an appointment with a cardiologist on Tuesday due to an abnormality found after having my stress test. I am anxious about the results. Please keep us posted as to how you are doing.

Hello to everyone else. I will do more individuals as I get back on track here this week.

Andrea

Pluckypear welcome back!
Hi everybody, I hopeyou are all keeping positive,especially of the weather is troublesome!
We are still getting alot of rain here but did manage a dry and sunny day Saturday which was rather startling!
I had my Monday weigh in this morning and have lost 4lbs this week, which makes half a stone since I recommitted on 1st Jan. I am really pleased as my knees have limited my exercise options somewhat. They were really bad on Saturday and I got really down but I woke up Sunday and the pain had reduced by about 50%.....thank heavens!
I am sorry not to do an individual reply to all my lovely cyber friends but my head is in a slightly weird place at the moment and my concentaraion ain't great.
Big Hugs

Good Morning Everyone!

Mountain Walker Congrats on the 1/2 stone loss!! That's great!! We had dreaded rain over here on Saturday so I stayed in as much as possible.

I just had my breakfast a little bit ago. I had the oatmeal I had prepped last night. It was really good. I didn't make it as sweet as I usually do (only sweetened with honey) since I am trying to cut back on the sugar intake and really limited myself with the amount of sugar I put in my coffee. I am going to try to make the switch to stevia. It's pretty cold here today but I'm going to try and go for a walk after work, even if it's only for 30 minutes. I figured even if it is hard for me to do too much strenuous exercise right now, walking will at least help a little bit. I forgot to take my measurements last night but will do it tonight when I get home. I'm feeling pretty hopeful so far. I think as long as I keep posting on here, it will hold me more accountable for my actions and I will succeed better. We're all in this together so it's nice to support other people and be supported too

Hope everyone has a great day!

Good Morning!
Time4me, glad you are feeling better and good job keeping your weight down.
Pam, my cabbage was good thanks. How is the garden coming?
Larry it is so sweet that you do the cooking. Gotta love a man that cooks and does the dishes!
Sam so glad you are feeling the love! I am loving your positive energy. Good job planning ahead. "Failing to plan is planning to fail."
Chris, I want you to know I walked a 24 minute mile yesterday. Let's see you beat that!
Fi you always impress me. That is so neat that you are learning French.
Andrea sorry about even more stress being added to your life. Let us know how it goes. How is your coffee? I've missed your relaxing morning coffee updates. I like how you always point out the simple things in life that give life true meaning.
Donna great job on the 4 pounds!
The birds are singing today. It is January in Wisconsin there should not be birds singing. I hope it means we will see an early Spring!
I am down 3 pounds this week. I am totally off my IBS meds for a week now. My blood pressure has never been better. My lactose intolerence is almost a thing of the past. This diet goes against everything I was taught. My whole family is healthier. I am so happy to have found it.
How is everyone doing?

Good morning all. This will be a quick note without any (or few) personals. Just want to say welcome back Andrea (and my tail might be wrapped around my neck by now so you're in good company) and welcome to the group, Sam.

You all are so upbeat and committed to staying on plan -- even with the occasional up and down -- that it really helps. I'm feeling much better about getting the binging under control, but haven't been watching what I eat very well -- I've allowed myself way too many carbs which is just not something I can do. So, back to seriously counting my calories and carbs and sodium (Larry, our medical challenges are somewhat similar!), and that will take care of the binging because I can't stay under my limits if I'm binging. Might be reverse logic, but hope it works.

Great but tiring day yesterday with the family. Toby was outside with Becky the whole day in the rain and mud. Got him dried off enough to allow him inside, but he's getting a beauty treatment this afternoon once I'm back from taking my BIL to the hospital for his pre-op appointment.

Have a great day. I'll be back to my very long windedness tomorrow. And, yes, the house did finally get cleaned!

time- glad things are back on track for you

pjvw - Glad you are not as sore as expected Hope the gardening goes well.

Larry - The rice caserole sounds yummy

Sam - Welcome

merstopher - movie theatre popcorn... ah the indulgence. Smart of you to plan ahead. and kudos on the loss!

Fi - That is cool that you have a buddy to practice your language with.

plucky - your back on the wagon I'm sure it will all matchup soonly!

MW - you are doing FABulous!

Ubee - That is so awesome about your BP, and all the other great things, but I can relate as someone who has had blood pressure issues to that in particular. I am glad you and your family are doing well!

betsy - It's great to have a good group of people. I'm in a good mood this week I think I had a good social fix this weekend that always helps. Whilst, for the most part staying on track eatingwise. Hope the cleaning goes well... I sort of used the socialness to avoid doing my own work.

Radio - hope you are doing well!



So had a busy weekend, wasn't sure played it by ear all three days/nights and had a good time. Yesterday I had another brunch date, which wasn't so healthy the menu options were pretty much fried everything (fried eggs, fried bacon, fried homefries...) and another friend made me a healthiesh (just slightly salty) supper so. MY weight this morning actually suprised me I thought I'd be retaining a ton of water but the number stayed below 320. I DID however get to play the latest version of just dance with my friends neices while she cooked so maybe that helped? It was pretty hilarious. I love when I can be goofy and just relax. The perfect cap to the weekend.

Just feeling lucky, despite whatever else goes on between people in my 'world'/circle, I know that I have people that love me regardless of my weight, my messy hair, my personality quirks. I don't know I feel pretty darn blessed at the moment. (The slow return of the sun, and some 'decent' temps on saturday lifted my spirits) its now back to be cold as all heck but... the mini-break from extreme cold definitely had an impact on the overall tone of my mood. I'm sure that the novelty of that one day and the return of the -50 windchills will eventually wear me down again but I'll take the great mood while it lasts.