Hi girls! Both of you seem to be doing so well! Congratulations!

Andi, I know it gets discouraging when you hit a plateau, but I always told myself that my body was catching up with my weight loss. I think it reprograms itself to the new weight, then all of a sudden you get that whoosh and the weight loss starts again. You are certainly eating well and keeping up with your exercise.

Izzy - Congrats on your 3 lb loss and your 3 mile walks! I should check to see how far I'm walking. I usually go by minutes because they stress lenth of time walking for glucose control and sometimes I walk slower or faster depending on how my body feels. Also, if my husband isn't home I take it easy because with my heart problems, I don't want anything to happen when I'm home alone. I always figure that walking slowly is still better than sitting in the recliner!

I went to the surgeon for the last time and he has ruled me "good to go!" I am so glad to have that all behind me but I feel the loss of the daily nurse and wonderful doctor who have be such a big part of my life for the past 12 months. Usually a surgeon only sees a patient for a few follow up visits after surgery, but with my complications I was seeing him once a month or more for the past year. What stuck in my mind was that the doctor said to me twice "You take care of yourself." And I figured, after he got me thorough a life threatening situation, the least I can do is make the rest of my life as healthy as I can. I am back to my exercising 40-50 minutes per day, on the treadmill and elliptical and doing my quadracep exercises. I have seen a slight drop in my glucose and blood pressure already and I am down 3 lbs from the 17 lbs I gained over the past few months. I have cut way back on my starchy carbs and I have never really been much of a sweet or junk food eater. My problem was and still is portions. I have to slow down my eating so I get the "full" message before I stuff myself. When I get that uncomfortable feeling a half hour after dinner I know I over ate. I do my exercising right after noon but I think I might add a little walk after dinner to shake up my metabolism.

Here's hoping we all see a big difference by July 4!!!

I've been reading a book I bought at the Goodwill store Dr Bob Arnot's Revolutionary Weight Control Program. It is not a new book, 1997, but it is an interesting read. He is really big on soluable fiber for weight control, and he stresses some things that I did in my "thin" days to keep my weight down. Like" a calorie is not a calorie" and "when you eat matters." The soluable fiber is only partially digested and stays in your intestines longer, absorbing a lot of the excess fat and calories in your food and carrying it out of your body. He explains how protein, carb and fat have such different effects on your body and how you should eat a substantial breakfast and lunch to fuel your body throughout the day, but eat a very small dinner because your body is preparing for sleep and doesn't need the nutrients then. He says you should go to bed on an empty stomach so your body will burn fat during the night instead of burning up the calories you ate before bed. He says to drink a glass of skim milk upon waking, then take your shower or get dressed and then come back and eat breakfast. When eating a meal, eat your protein first and let it start to get into your system before continuing the meal. It starts to give you the satisfied feeling and keeps you from overeating. The protein will not raise your glucose level which in turn raises your insulin level. Insulin is the fat storage hormone so you want to keep your levels low. If you eat the carbs first your glucose and insulin levels are already raised before you eat your protein and the effect of the protein will not be the same. Since I am type2 diabetic and have a bit of trouble stablizing my glucose levels, I'm wondering if this approach will help me lower them.

I don't know if all this stuff is right, but I do know that when I was single and kept my weight down I usually just ate a vegetable plate for dinner, and always went to bed hungry. I not only kept my weight off but slept better, too. It just didn't make sense to me to eat a lot of calories that I wasn't going to burn off. And when my step-son was growing up I used to get so mad at him because he would eat all his meat first at dinner before eating his veggies and starch. He always finished his meat, but not always his veggies or potatoes. I felt that he wasn't getting complete nutrition. But he was like a beanpole and now that he's in his 40's and has gained some weight, he is just at a normal weight, not overweight at all.

Even if this is just a lot of hogwash, none of it sounds harmful to me. I am going to start eating a lot less at dinner and gradually adding more soluable fiber to my diet. What do you girls think about this? Does it sound like it makes sense to you?

Hi, everyone...I haven't posted on this thread yet, but have been reading.

slmn11, That makes a lot of sense to me. I am also going to adapt what I am doing to that. I am not following a regular diet plan. The reason is, the moment I go on a diet...and I have been on a million of them...and never very successful...the moment I start, I obsess about the food I cannot have. Not so much sweets...I am pretty good at cutting them out...but carbs. So what I am trying to do, is just eat healthy, drink more water, portion control and exercise. So far, so good. I ride my exercise bike 3X a day, and plan to add more exercise and weights.

I am definitely going to try these principles. I am two weeks in, and have lost 10 pounds, so maybe this will keep the weight loss moving along.

Thanks very much for sharing.

Hi Everyone and :welcome:byugal
Carol Sue, Thanks for the information and it does make sense. I am going to try it. Today I walked for about 40 minutes and I had a good breakfast and a great lunch. I kept dinner a salad and water. I think this will help me alot. I am interested in seeing how this works.
Byugal congrats on the weightloss... 10lbs!...awsome! I believe you have a very realistic approach and it is working for you. I agree that when I say diet, I obsess over food and end up eating more than I normally would. So maybe a combination of these things will help me start lossing. It certainly won't hurt. Keep up the good work byugal!
Carol Sue it is great to hear that the doctor has given you the ok and that you are doing well. I pray things will continue improving for you.

Hugs
Izzy

I'm all in for this. I bought some of that fiber stuff you mix in water. Unfortunately, I got the unflavored...I've used orange before. That stuff (unflavored) is r-e-a-l-l-y nasty. I guess I could mix it with orange juice, but whatever, I am going to chug a glass of it with a rounded tsp. of the stuff 30 minutes before every meal. I am going to eat a good breakfast and lunch and for dinner just have a protein shake, and make that before 6 pm. I hope I can adapt my husband to this plan....because if I have to cook dinner, then my plan is "out the window". I would be setting myself up for failure if I had to cook supper, and then couldn't eat. That much I do know.

Since I have lost 10 lb. fairly easy, this might be a good week to try this out, because I expect my weight loss to slow down. Tomorrow will be my first day....although I did have a glass of the fiber stuff to see if it was nasty...and it was, but that's okay. I can do this. :D

Byugal - I have the orange flavored fiber mix, but I am afraid to use it because one time I mixed it and didn't drink it right away and it turned into this glob of gel. It looked gross! LOL That is what it's supposed to do inside your body, but seeing it in the cup grossed me out. LOL A friend of mine uses it and she doesn't like the orange. She uses the unflavored and mixes it in her coffee. I don't know how that would work because you would have to drink the coffee fast before it turned to gel. I have Metamucil but my friend buys the store brand. Same thing, different name.

Yes, you are supposed to drink it right down. I mix it with about 8 oz water and chug it down fast then chase it with another glass of water. I drink it fast, even when I have the orange flavored....it's not something you want to sip. :D

Hello Ladies,
I have tried the fiber mixes and there is something in them that I am allergic to. I swell and my hands itch. But I do eat a lot of fiber. I need to up my water intake. Monday was my first day of trying eating a great breakfast & luch and a very light dinner. I did feel better this morning, but worked all day with just breakfast and ate a big dinner at 4:30.
I felt like I was starving! I am mad because I should have taken the time to eat lunch. When I am working at a fast pase, I don't stop to eat because I get sleepy. But tomorrow, I'm right back to the plan. I will not eat anything else today, just drink water.I would like to lose at least 5 more pounds before July.
byugal hang in there, you are doing great!

Hi Izzy - My husband usually goes all day with very little to eat except coffee, coffee, coffee, but he always had a meat and potatoes dinner. He also eats a lot of baked goods. But he stays relatively thin. This is rare. I will say he is very physically active so he burn off alot, but I don't know how he can go so long without much food. He doesn't starve, but he might have a few cookies in the morning and a cup of soup in the afternoon. Not really enough. This is just how he has always eaten. He uses sugar in his coffee and it is probably this sugar that gives him energy to get through the day, even though it isn't really good for him. He knows absolutely nothing about nutrition and doesn't really care to. He doesn't know a protein from a carb and to him, fat is just what you cut off the edge of your steak. LOL

One day we left early in the morning to go to the store, then we stopped at the Goodwill store to look around and then decided to go to KMart. Pretty soon it was 11 AM and I was starving! We stopped at a restaurant and I ordered a huge breakfast and ate it all! I know that was wrong, but that's what happens when to go too long without eating! A small cup of soup probably would have curbed my hunger. I didn't even think of that, I just dug in to that huge breakfast!

I was listening to Dr. Oz this afternoon.....sometimes I think he is a bit of a crackpot....but he was touting the Metamucil(Fiberall, etc) as a good way to lower cholesterol. He also suggested it three times a day. I have never had high cholesterol, but you know, "it couldn't hoit"....and I have been taking a rounded tsp. 3 times a day, mixed in water, chased by more water. Doing pretty good on my diet plan....which really isn't a diet. I am hoping for at least a 3 lb. loss over the week.

Ok, today went and I did not do to bad. I did not get my walk in, it was 97 here today and I have asthma. I am working on cleaning my basement so I can get to my eliptical.
Now, I love Dr. Oz.But sometime I wonder about some of his suggestions.
In one show he will say to not use or do this, next time its a different story.
Best to do your home work and then decide.


Hugs to all
Izzy

Good morning girls, and welcome Byugal!

I've just returned from moving my son to Omaha where he has a new job - it took about 14 hours to get there one way in my old van with no air conditioner and in the 90's outside. Then we drove right back the next day and I'm absolutely pooped! Didn't eat much, just some Subway stops along the way, so I didn't gain any weight.

I love fiber and take a Glucomannan fiber capsule with a big glass of water 2 or 3 times a day. This fiber is gluten-free so Izzy you could probably take it without a reaction. It's made from the root of the Konjak plant (same as magic noodles) and absorbs much more than the kind of fiber you mix into drinks. I buy it online, but I'm sure you can buy them at the store or a health foods place.

I agree with you about Dr. Oz. - he'll promote something on the show and you see later that the product happens to be a sponsor or something. But overall I don't think his recommendations hurt anything and he's getting the right message out there.

I'm going to get back into my normal routine today and walk walk walk! Everyone have a great day!

Andi

The reason I bought the Metamucil in the first place was because I heard that it helps with weight loss and also with cholesterol. I will probably get back to taking it some day. When I was having the home nurse here every day I discussed it with her and she said to be careful with it, and when I told her the package says to take it 3 times a day she told me not to. I should have asked her why, but I didn't. It might have been because all this doctoring I've been doing in the past 12 months was because of problems with my digestive tract. The doctor told me to eat lots of fiber, but maybe the nurse thinks that would be too much fiber. You never know what to do or who to listen to. I don't want to end up back in the hospital.

I don't like everything Dr Oz says because I think he pushes too many supplements. I wonder if the companies pay him to do that. Most doctors recommend a diet as natural as possible. No processed foods, no supplements. And lots of prescriptions! LOL

I have been eating a very small dinner the past few days. Twice I woke up hungry in the middle of the night, but I was able to fall back to sleep and felt fine in the morning. I have been weighing myself every morning and my weight is going down a smidge each day, like maybe an 8th or 4th of a pound each day. I probably should wait a few days to weigh again to see if is a measurable amount. My blood sugar has dropped slightly and there has been a very noticeable drop in my blood pressure. There have been no adverse effects.

I have IBC and it was suggested to me for that because it kind of "evens things out".

hello everyone,
things are going slow and I too see small results in weight loss. I have cut back on portions and i walk early in the morning to be the heat. I try to eat very light in the evening and it really helps. I sleep and feel better when I do. I need to be more consistant in everything.

hugs
izzy