Thanks for asking doing fine went to the gym today for my weekly visit, the weight is dropping slowly but steady. I made her laugh by asking her if she had any exercise for sagging knees, apparently no one ever asked her that before she noticed after that I was pulling her leg, got to keep it light.

I have to say that I am totally fed up with the scale, the fluctuations that are due to water or any reason. Decided that body measurement is motivating me more. On the scale when I did the measurement I weighed 139 with hips of 39, six pounds down the hips are now 37 and drop also for the rest, I find more motivation this way since it is more tangible and I can picture in my head how I look and if for some reason my weight loss stops I would still be happy with the results. It motivates me to keep going to the gym because in the past I have been similar number of pounds but my body was bigger.

Good morning,

Bunti - maybe you should count net carbs, where you subtract the fiber grams of each food from the total carbs. And you might want to raise your limit a bit, then see if you will still lose at that new number. Just a thought. Dr. Oz talks about addiction in his book You On A Diet. He mentions dopamine, and calls it "the brain's fun house". If you haven't read this book, you might want to check it out at the library, since you said you would like to know more. There is a wealth of good information in it.

KittyC - oh, the dreaded scales! I have a love/hate relationship with mine, lol. It's hard to not let it influence my mood on weigh day, even though it is often not accurate for true weight loss (or gain!). The extra cheese and processed meats you ate are both salty and could have caused a water weight gain. About the soda, I'm thinking maybe the best thing to do is to not bring it in the house at all. That's what I have to do about my trigger foods. If it isn't here, I can't over-indulge.

Michou - hey, if you find an exercise for saggy knees, let me know right away, haha! I'd rather have saggy knees than fat ones, though. Right now mine are both! You are so close to goal, and that must be a very good feeling!

Hello to anyone reading this.

I've got my food plan in place, and my goal for the day is to drink more water. No sure why, since I really like water, but I've been slacking off on it, and I can really tell a difference in my energy level. I hope to get the comforter for Holden finished today so I can start a new project.

Have a good day!

Good Morning All,

Jane - Glad to hear you are all rested up. A good night's sleep can work wonders, can't it? You must have burned a lot of calories shoveling snow. Where do you get SF Bread & Butter Pickles? I love those, but have never seen them in the stores around here.

Bunti - Congratulations on your NSV. That neurologist's speech you heard sounds very interesting. It's so fascinating that regardless of the addition, some of the same centers in the brain are affected. I remember when I quit smoking 14 yrs, 3 mos & 20 days ago, I read that nicotine addiction affects the same areas in the brain as heroin, cocaine & alcohol. Now carbs are added to the list. It makes sense to me, too. I also find is so interesting when I read about others' experiences with carb addiction, how different we are when it comes to what sets off the cravings. For me sugar is the worst, with pasta of any kind a close runner up, but I can eat reasonable amounts of bread, rice, & potatoes without any cravings being sparked. Someone else who is carb addicted might have an opposite response. I'd like to learn more too.

Kitty - It is awfully hard to give up emotional reactions to the scale isn't it. Good job on talking yourself out of the pancakes. That's a huge victory. Could the carbonation in the diet gingerale have done it? Did you give up diet soda because of the AS or carbonation? I gave up diet soda about 5 years ago because I read about the negative effect of carbonation on bones. I have not given up AS & drink non-carbonated SF drinks often, as well as water. Regardless, it seems to me that weight fluctuation is worse for women than men. I think our harmones at any age are just whackier, plus fluctuations can be caused by so many other things. I have noticed temp gains with extra salt consumption, if constipated, when inflammation increases, when I haven't had enough rest--you get the picture. If I did a graph for my whole weight loss journey, it would be a jagged line with a steady downward trend & a maintenance graph would be a jagged line with a steady straight across trend. It is never a straight line, but the steady progress is harder to see until you look back over at least 2 or 3 months ( At least, that's been my experience).

Michou - It sounds like you are doing very well. You & Kitty both seem to be motivated more by measuring that the scale. Glad you guys have found what works to keep you motivated.

Everyone have a great day!

Dont worry girls the trainer told me she will look into the sagging knees problems but dont put your hopes in a miracle cure, anyway if she comes up with the solution I have other body part that need a miracle.

As far as measurements vs scale this morning it is showing 135.6 a 1.6 increase and there is no way I gained fat in one day my measurement on the other hand are the same. I am hitting menopause and I think that plays a big factor in my weight fluctuation.

I wanted to say also that I enjoy reading this section of the forum.

Wishing you all a great day.

Back for a quick update.

I was working on my last message while Jane was posting hers this AM. FYI-It takes me a long time to compose a posting because I have rheumatoid arthritis & it is especially bad in my hands, so my typing is super slow. Please take a 'time lag' into account when reading my posts.

Anyway, I wanted to comment on what Jane said about YOU ON A DIET. I'd like to hear more about that book & plan to see if my local library has it. In the meantime, would anyone be interested in writing book reviews on the diet books they've read? Would this be an appropriate place for that, Jane? I bet that we have all read several diet books we could review & share what we have learned from them. If anyone is interested, I'll try to post a review of The Insulin Resistance Diet sometime this week.

Thanks for asking how I am! Struggling, that is how I am. I am really having a difficult time getting going this month. I am up about 4 pounds from over the holidays and just can't seem to get my stuff together. I had a good day yesterday, but that was on the heels of the weekend. Over the weekend, I got a new stove (have been without for about 2 months) so I spent the weekend baking things I shouldn't and then eating them. Uggghhh! Why is it so hard??? So now, I have pissed away almost a month, where I should be down a few pounds at least.....I am still up 4.4 from my lowest of 242. My new goal is 239. I need to take small steps......but I have so far to go. One day at a time, right?

Good Morning! Down another pound this week Now it's time to add regular exercise ( hatin' it already) !
Kitty C - about the diet soda - I used to drink almost 3 litres a day (think quart if your not metric) once I broke that habit( at the same time I quit smoking - nothing like a splitting caffeine withdrawl headache to take your mind off of nicotine withdrawl) I still missed the fizzy part of soda pop - now I get low sodium club soda - all of the fizz - none of the caffeine or aspartame. I don't drink much of it but hey it works for me Have a good day everyone

Hadenough, look ahead not behind you can make it

Thanks everyone for your responses. Day two no soda and lots of water. One other thing I realized that I had quit doing was drinking my green tea in the AM. I found the kind I like again over the weekend so have had some the past two days and that seems to help.

Joyful Retiree, I quit because of the Aspartame. I was having bad brain fog and heard that Aspartame, especially given my heavy use, might be part of the problem. As I scutinize what's been going on I see that having got back on track after the holidays I leaned on the soda to keep that sweet taste going. It's funny how fast our bad habits come back. Hope everyone is doing well.

Way to go Tea Granny.

I'm back for just a minute to post this address for diet book reviews right here at 3FC:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/diet/diets/diet-book-reviews/

There is a long list, and I haven't viewed it for awhile, but there it is. One of the book heralded over and over on this site doesn't seem to be on the list. It's The Thin Commandments by Stephen Gullo, PhD. He talks about dopamine and addition on pages 39 and 40, and recommends coping skills to beat it. I forgot to mention this book earlier, but I highly recommend it.

If any of you want to start a book review here at the Age 50+ forum, please do!

Good Morning All,

Just a quick drive-thru this morning, as I have a busy day ahead. Jane thanks for posting that link to diet reviews. Everyone have a great day!

Hello, Carb Counters!

Joyful Retiree - Mt. Olive used to make sf bread and butter pickles, but I can't find them anymore in my little town, so I make my own microwave ones. Very easy! Speaking of triggers, mine are crunchy chips/crisps and all kinds of pastries. Regular potatoes, pasta, etc. aren't an issue for me. My DD has had RA since she was 26, and so I sympathize with you. You are welcome to begin a book review at any time here.

Michou - menopause did wreak havoc with my weight, and I've heard others say that, too, so that might be what you're facing now.

HadEnough - I agree with Michou when she says just look ahead. Don't fret about yesterday, but begin anew now. You'll be so glad you did, six months down the road. We will be here to help you on your journey.

Tea Granny - yay for your loss!

KittyC - so glad you found the tea you like best! I'm kind of picky about some of my favorites, too, and don't like to run out!

ANewCreation - in social situations, it might help to remember what you want most, rather than what you want in the moment. You might want to stay away from true trigger foods, and just take a bit of what you can control, only if you've planned it. As I mentioned to Had Enough, we will be here to help you through it.

Hello to anyone reading this.

I was out early today with DD Katie. She is beginning her 7th month of pregnancy, and had to go in for a routine blood sugar test this morning, so I kept her company during the wait. Also, I stopped in at one of my sisters and we sang some karaoke for a while. I can't sing worth a darn, but love to, anyway, haha.

Tonight is a new book club meeting at my church. We're reading The Help. I read it when it first came out, and really enjoyed it.

My food plan is in place, so I'm good to go.

TTFN,

Jane thanks for the response. I loved that book The Help and saw it featured in our library when I stopped there Monday too. Sounds like you are busy.

Good Morning All,

It seems like many of us are struggling after the holidays. With so many good memories & associations with special foods, it's no wonder we often go off the rails & take some time to get our bearings again. I recently read a post on another board that really struck a cord with me--the poster said that being a successful loser & maintainer was in part due to the fact that since it was going to happen regardless, she gave herself "permission to fail", & just put a plan in place to deal with it. I don't remember it all, but it kept her from feeling out of control & it was basically to just get back on plan with the next meal.

Jane - Congrats on becoming a grandma. So sorry to hear your DD has RA. Is that Katie? It reared it's ugly head with me at age 52 & I thank God that it didn't happen when I was younger. When I think of the wondrous blessing of all the things I could do & took for granted when I was younger, my heart just aches for young people with this disease. My hope is that her's is a milder form. I will remember her in my prayers.

You post so much interesting info. When I finish this, I'm checking into THE HELP.

Also, I looked at those diet reviews here at 3FC & The Perfect Fit Diet sounds very interesting. Evidently, there's a very lenghty questionaire in the book about dieting history & based on that a recommendation of 1 of 3 diets. I also goggled The Thin Commandments. On Amazon there are 39 customer reviews, by far the most of which are positive. There was also a very good review of it on WebMD if anyone is interested. After checking that out, I realized that my idea about reviewing diet books here, was NOT the best idea I've ever had. I found that the 3FC reviews are very good, & on Amazon, there are usually plenty of customer reviews to get a good idea about the pros & cons of books. On the WEB MD review of The Thin Commandments they mentioned that the author talk about Neuropeptide Y. That's one of the things I found very interesting in The Insulin Resistance Diet. In addition to discussing the roles of Insulin, Dopamine & Seratonin in appetite regulation, they said that current research (book copyright 2001) showed that Neuropeptide Y has a very strong effect on appetite, starting to increase at 2-3 hrs after eating. Levels continue to rise until a critical point is reached & being able to make good food & portion control choices "becomes virtually impossible". They maintain that if you wait too long to eat this neurotransmitter encourages overeating. That would certainly explain why a lot of people find eating more often a successful strategy. I guess it is pretty evident that I'm a diet book junkie.

Michou - Please get back to us if your trainer finds anything to help with the saggy knees. LOL.

HadEnough - Yes, one day at a time. You have a good attitude & a good plan there. I agree with the others, look forward.

Tea Granny - Congrats on the loss & on the stop smoking. How long have you been quit? Can you find some exercize that you won't hate?

kitty - What green tea do you drink? For some reason the taste difference seems greater than with black teas. With all the benefits of green tea, I'd like to find one I could enjoy.

ANewCreation. You've just had a temporary set-back, that's all. Your plan is really sound--get past the sugar addiction & get appetite under control. Good Luck!

Everyone have a great day.