A few days ago I wrote down all the place I've lived. I got a list of 49 of them and posted it on my blog. The good part is that I've lived in my current home for ten years now. I'm trying to put the many moves behind me.
More good news - I finally started to lose weight - four pounds so far (I know it isn't much yet but it was so hard to get started!) I finally started fasting until five pm and am now down to one meal daily. I know this is totally against traditional diets that recommend a morning meal, or six small meals... but that didn't work for me. Once I get my body used to losing weight I might try that again. My one meal of the day consists of cheese, tortillas, and vegetable soup. (I'm a vegetarian.)
I'd appreciate hearing what kind of dieting is working for each of you.
Linda
Last edited by ToBThinAgain; 01-16-2010 at 06:15 PM.
Linda, just monitor yourself... your plan is risky.
Counting calories is the only thing that has ever worked for me... I think Bobbi told me about fitday.com (yes?), and it's just the BEST site. It keeps me honest, even during times of complete derangement.
Lynn, Linda has you beat hands down on the places she's lived. Wow, 49 places. Including attending 2 colleges, I've lived in a total of 5 places since I was born.
Linda, I'm a calorie counting vegetarian. I eat three good meals a day and occasionally a snack in between. My calorie limit is 1200-1400 calories a day. You need to eat to lose weight. I also use fitday.com and love this site. I'm afraid you won't be able to keep up the daily fast for long because your body will crave not only food but the nutrients that you need to function. A slow and steady weight loss of 1 or 2 pounds a week is recommended if you want a successful weight loss. I'm almost at goal now and it took me 2 years to get this far. I had one set back where I regained almost 20 pounds but other than that it was slow and steady. I also exercise 5 or 6 days a week, mainly walking but do some strength exercises also. I don't have any trigger foods in the house because I'll eat them until they are gone. My big trigger is potato chips. Just can't have them around. Chocolate on the other hand is safe around me. I like it but can leave it alone. But no food is really restricted if it fits in the calorie count for the day. But I try to eat as healthy as I can making every mouthful as nutritious as I can, except for my one day when I have dessert. So I'm on a vegetarian, calorie counting, exercising diet for life.
I was down 1.5 pounds this morning. Finally, finally saw a new number on the scales. (It's been almost a month.) Every pound I lose now makes me the lowest I've been since I was 24 years old. Now if I had the skin and hair of a 24 year old.....Hahahahaha.......not happening.
Have a great life, ladies.
Last edited by retiredone; 01-16-2010 at 09:29 PM.
Count me in as a calories counter too! I stay around 1200 calories, only way I can lose. One meal a day wouldn't work for me either, your body needs at least 3 balanced meal a day. The key is typing in every morsel you eat in Fitday or some similar program. Don't go over your calories for the day and you'll lose. Eat lots of fiber and drink plenty of water with the extra fiber.
Hi ladies. Sorry I've been MIA again but it's gonna be tricky here until we get all this straightened out with my brother's stuff, debts, etc. How the heck I got roped into being the one helping my brother who's the executor of the will, when I'm already the one caring for our elderly dad, is beyond me. Probably because I'm WAY too co-dependent (and always have been) and can't say no to anyone.
Still losing weight...down to 142 lbs. this morning. I've lost about 52-53 lbs. and am within spitting distance of goal.
Linda....I tend to agree with retiredone and Bobbi here. Fasting like that could work short-term but for the long-term, it could slow down your metabolism and be counter-productive plus, it could be unhealthy for you not to get adequate calories and nutrients.
I am also not a breakfast person...but I make up for that later in the day...in order to make sure I get adequate calories and nutrition.
Lynn...glad you are okay. I once had a problem with cough syrup but turned out to NOT be due to the codeine but to the phenergan. I can NOT tolerate phenergan....practically puts me into a coma...even without codeine. I am very sensitive to anti-histamines anyway but that phenergan was a real disaster for me. I'll never touch it again!
deena
PS Crabby Maxine says: " Know what I hate? Getting the flu after using all my sick days pretending I had the flu."
Hi Deena. Glad you could squeeze in a couple of minutes out of your busy schedule to chat with us. We're both so close to goal. Feels so good.
It's amazing how good plain hot cereal can taste. I make a big pot of porridge in the evening for the week and tonight I mixed the oats with the Cream of Wheat along with wheat bran, ground flax seed and wheat germ. It's usually just oats but I wanted a change so I added the Cream of Wheat. I found myself licking out the pot and enjoying it immensely. I found that when I eat it in the morning that a half a banana mashed in the cereal really gives it a flavor boost. It's better than sliced bananas. I also have a couple of chopped dates in there for sweetness. I'm not even hungry and I'm thinking of my next meal....sigh....
Well, I finally got some exercise! Spent almost 4 hours this afternoon traipsing around the Museum of Fine Arts with DH and our grandson & granddaughter - Devon (DD#2's son) and Morgan (DD#3's daughter). We had a super time, took the kiddos out to eat afterwards, and then spent an hour or so at DD #3's playing with our little twins. I was careful about what I ate, and don't expect to be doing any grazing tonight - I seem to have gotten past that horrible phase.
We are presently living in the duplex owned by my DD#2 and her husband. We've been here for two years, now. We downsized considerably when DH lost his job a few years back, but are thinking now about buying again - something with 3 or so bedrooms and a couple of bathrooms, easy to maintain, etc., etc. With real estate costs so low it seems silly not to buy something, but by the same token, we're not exactly sure where we want to do it. We're pretty comfortable where we are now so we aren't looking as hard as we might, but I imagine we will, sooner rather than later.
Lord, I am tired....off to bed, I'm afraid. I'll be checking back in tomorrow.
Z
PS - trying to attach a few pictures from the museum today. We'll see if they attach.
I'll tell you, it's the darn phone calls that are tying me up more than anything. My brother, the attorney/executor...who I love dearly...is practically the only man I know who loves to talk on the phone...and talk...and talk. He is stressed and constantly saying how much he has to do but I want to ask him that if that's so, where is he finding the time to call me almost constantly?
And honestly, it's not even a 2-way conversation. I suspect he just wants someone to listen while he thinks out loud. Problem is....he goes on and on and on....several times daily. It's seriously wearing me out and stressing me out....in addition to all the tasks I'm doing for him.
Doesn't it feel so great to look normal again? I had a bit of a reflective moment last evening when I read the first post of a new member. She seemed to be saying that one of the biggest obstacles to her losing any weight is that she LOVES food. I thought this over for a bit.....and finally posted back to her that I think we ALL love food here on this site...probably TOO much. But that I wanted her to know that nothing ever tasted so good as looking normal feels now.
I truly do GET that now. No chocolate, Big Mac, french fries, etc. EVER tasted as good, looking back, as looking normal feels now. I had to get here to truly realize that.
I make steel-cut oatmeal for my dad every morning. I add raisins while it cooks so they plump up and then at the end, add honey, sliced bananas and sliced strawberries. He really likes it.
Ella....you look very cool in those photos. I like that....as I also tend to like going with the "not the typical grandmother look" just for the **** of it.
When I moved from NYC to a small town...and stuck out like a sore thumb because I was so dark....I kinda decided to go with it and ramped-up the whole gypsy look. Over time, that sorta morphed into me getting a huge kick out of having my own (albeit a bit odd for my age) look.....like the hair down to my waist at almost 58 years old. And my thrift shop clothes.
I learned you can pull-off almost anything if you're comfortable with it and have fun with it. I wore dangly Christmas ball earrings and a Santa hat to the condo Christmas party.....amongst all the dignified looking grandmothers that live here. Turned out that they loved it.
Good Morning, Everyone,
REALLY gray here this morning. My cousin and I made a BIG genealogy find yesterday. One of my great-grandfathers disappeared from family (wife and 5 children) in the same year as his last child was born. Well, we found him in Canada, marrying a new woman. Turns out he moved from Canada to Ohio, had 5 more children and died in his eighties! We felt like we had hit the lottery!
Quote:
Originally Posted by ToBThinAgain
More good news - I finally started to lose weight - four pounds so far (I know it isn't much yet but it was so hard to get started!) I finally started fasting until five pm and am now down to one meal daily. I know this is totally against traditional diets that recommend a morning meal, or six small meals... but that didn't work for me. Once I get my body used to losing weight I might try that again. My one meal of the day consists of cheese, tortillas, and vegetable soup. (I'm a vegetarian.) Linda
Hi Linda, bottom line is that there is a relatively simple science to losing weight – burn 3,500 calories more than you take in and you lose 1 pound. Most of us here have dieted for MANY years, tried MANY diets and ended up as calorie counters. The problem with what you are doing – eating one meal/day – is that you are slowing your metabolism. When you do this, it will take many fewer calories to lose weight. Remember, what you will need to eat to maintain is connected to what you eat to lose. Slow down your metabolism too much and you will need VERY low-calorie days to maintain a loss.
Quote:
Originally Posted by retiredone
It's amazing how good plain hot cereal can taste. I make a big pot of porridge in the evening for the week and tonight I mixed the oats with the Cream of Wheat along with wheat bran, ground flax seed and wheat germ. It's usually just oats but I wanted a change so I added the Cream of Wheat. I found myself licking out the pot and enjoying it immensely. I found that when I eat it in the morning that a half a banana mashed in the cereal really gives it a flavor boost. It's better than sliced bananas. I also have a couple of chopped dates in there for sweetness. I'm not even hungry and I'm thinking of my next meal....sigh....
Hi Isabella, I like a breakfast of whole wheat couscous (made with apple juice, cinnamon, and chopped up prunes and dried apricots) and covered with yogurt. Keeps me going for a good 5 hours.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ellabella
Well, I finally got some exercise! Spent almost 4 hours this afternoon traipsing around the Museum of Fine Arts with DH and our grandson & granddaughter - Devon (DD#2's son) and Morgan (DD#3's daughter). We had a super time, took the kiddos out to eat afterwards, and then spent an hour or so at DD #3's playing with our little twins. I was careful about what I ate, and don't expect to be doing any grazing tonight - I seem to have gotten past that horrible phase.
Hi Zoe, LOVE the photos. I went through a phase of evening eating for several years. Since I began eating more protein during the day, I managed to overcome it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Deena52
I'll tell you, it's the darn phone calls that are tying me up more than anything. My brother, the attorney/executor...who I love dearly...is practically the only man I know who loves to talk on the phone...and talk...and talk. He is stressed and constantly saying how much he has to do but I want to ask him that if that's so, where is he finding the time to call me almost constantly?
And honestly, it's not even a 2-way conversation. I suspect he just wants someone to listen while he thinks out loud. Problem is....he goes on and on and on....several times daily. It's seriously wearing me out and stressing me out....in addition to all the tasks I'm doing for him.
Hi Deena, so glad to hear from you. I am NOT a phone-talker and have trained most of my friends to keep phone conversations short. However, I have a sister-in-law who LOVES to talk on the phone and keeps me online for MUCH longer than I like. Even when I try to break off a phone call from her, she just keeps on going. Lately, if I catch her name with my caller ID, I avoid the call and then send her an email.
Lynn
Tah-daaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!!!! Lazy girl got on the Wii Fit this morning! And can I tell you that I really am offended by this stupid game telling me not only that I'm overweight (Yeah - no kidding!) but that I SHOULD weigh 136 pounds! I weighed 135 pounds for a couple of years after I was divorced in '95, and looked like death warmed over. My shoulder blades could've seriously CUT somebody, and my cheekbones - and the hollows under them - which at the time, I thought of as "sculptured" were pretty gaunt-looking, based on some pictures taken back then. Nuh-uh. My goal is NOT 136; 145 maybe. So, anyway, according to Wii Fit, I have gained back three of the pounds that I worked so hard to lose over the holidays, and that 5-pound loss by Christmas happened - and then UNhappened!!! Yeah. I'm annoyed at myself big-time, but I refuse to be dictated to by Wii Fit. <Stamping foot yet again>.
I've been having a scratchy throat - and needing to clear my throat a lot - over the past two or three days. Not enough to start taking medicine, exactly, but annoying nonetheless. Freda, I'm going to buy some fresh pineapple today. I love it, and if it helps sore throats, all the better. Thanks for the tip! Linda, I'm afraid I really and truly have to agree with everybody else here about calorie counting. It's basic, it's scientifically accurate, and it works. Plus, eating more smaller meals rather than fewer larger ones keeps your metabolism moving, which is what burns the calories. I did Atkins for about ten years after I had my last child (who will be 29 years old this year) but I was raising four children, working full time, skiing all winter, playing tennis all summer, horseback riding...chasing kids...well, you get the picture. All that activity kept my metabolism moving, but I don't have anywhere near that kind of lifestyle any more, and I could never go back to such limitations (I used to manage on one LARGE meal a day and pretty much drink coffee and sip diet cola all the rest of the time). Now, my metabolism would fizzle down to nothing if I ate that way. Just a thought to consider. Isabella, I've been buying dates every week, and adding them not only to my cereal (which I love!) but also added them to some chicken salad that I made yesterday - along with apples and celery. It was REALLY yummy! (I make it with Lite Miracle Whip - so that gives it a little tanginess, and I also shake a little Cumin and black pepper in as well). We have some left over that we'll have again for lunch today. I make pita wraps (the 60-calorie, high fiber pita breads with flax) and top the chicken salad with a little Taboule salad that I buy pre-made - Cedars brand, or Josephs; they're both good). Yum. (Oh, jeeze...my mouth is watering just talking about it...may have to take my lunch break soon)
Hi Deena, well, as I've probably mentioned more than once, my mother insisted that women over 30 shouldn't have long hair - that it wasn't appropriate. I say nuts to that. I LIKE my hair longer; it was straight before, but I've always wanted it to be REALLY curly, and so that's what I went for this time around. I used to want to be less grandmotherish-looking, but I'm going to be 64 this year, and have six grandchildren now, so I figure I'm not trying for any particular age in how I dress or style my hair - just expressing ME - which is good enough, I think. I think your hair is marvelous - and I love the gypsy look. Even more than that, I love the idea that each of us is so much the same in how we think - and of course our shared desire to stay slimmer and more healthy - but also that we are each unique and different, and that we really enjoy and appreciate the differences that we each bring to Golden Girls. Come back as often as you can, Deena!
LOL, Lynn - I had a several times great-grandfather who apparently left Rhode Island (and a wife and four children) during the height of the gold rush, was never seen nor heard from again, and right around that time - maybe ten years later, the family name popped up again in California, and sure enough, it was that scoundrel Rhodolphus with another wife and children. So much for those stuffy New England ancestors of mine! Bobbi, I can't imagine having the energy you have for all your household projects and all that work keeping up that huge property of yours! AND using a stepper, and doing an exercise routine on top of it all! Yikes! No wonder your age keeps getting lowered. Wii says that I'm 68!!!! Donna, you keep stretching that leg of yours, sweetie. I used to have trouble with my legs, and have to (grudgingly) admit that regular walking seems to have helped. (And I'd better get some regular exercise going again, or I'll start having leg aches and pains again, too!) I got a foot cramp the other night that about killed me - drank two 8-oz. glasses of water in a row, and it finally went away. VERRRY unpleasant, though!
Okay, off to lunch...sorry for being so wordy.
Z Rosey & Karen!
Good morning, Everyone... although it's now afternoon! I thoroughly enjoyed reading today's posts. Everyone had something interesting to say, so... thanks!
Lynn, these cookies are called "power cookies", 3.2g fiber in each cookie:
I came home from church and felt my head filling... no, not with holiness but with SNOT! I hab a hed cole, I think! I'll go to bed and sleep it off and will be fine in a day or two.
Everyone, be well! You're all taking care of other people, so take care of yourself FIRST!
Lynn, what about Fiber One cereal? A bowl or two of that, with skim milk and some fruit should do the trick. If you want to make cookies for her, though, Donna's recipe sounds yummy - and you might consider adding some Fiber One cereal to it. (I add Fiber One to a LOT of recipes, including the stuffing I make to stuff chicken breasts. It's extremely versatile).
Linda
So I'm on a vegetarian, calorie counting, exercising diet for life. 
Spent almost 4 hours this afternoon traipsing around the Museum of Fine Arts with DH and our grandson & granddaughter - Devon (DD#2's son) and Morgan (DD#3's daughter). We had a super time, took the kiddos out to eat afterwards, and then spent an hour or so at DD #3's playing with our little twins. I was careful about what I ate, and don't expect to be doing any grazing tonight - I seem to have gotten past that horrible phase.
Rosey & Karen!
