Just thought Id update: I didn't fall off the diet wagon this weekend, mostly because Im not on it (yet). Im afraid to set goals for myself regarding what i will eat because thus far I always fail miserably. Even with no goals, I still ate pretty poorly this weekend.. I think Im rebelling against the mere IDEA that i might be restricting my diet soon. haha.

On the upside, I'm really proud of myself for getting in some really productive workouts and staying very consistent with that. Since about Friday Ive been going every other day, because Im slightly concerned about this pain in my hip that isn't going away and I think might be feeling a tad worse, but I dont think exercising every *other* day will make it any worse, and I think it probably helps to loosen it up and keep moving. Once it starts feeling a little better I'll go back to daily jogging.

I'm concerned about meeting my weight loss goal, but so far I don't think I'll have any trouble meeting my exercise commitment :0)

congrats to all who are doing well, and good luck to those who are struggling. we can do this!

lilith

Well I am off to a great start *not*.

Only had 2 bottles of water yesterday. My calories were low though not entirely balanced.

Lilith - when I first decided to go back to dieting - cringe - in the first month or so, I just concetrated on portions and gradually weened myself off the really bad things like butter and crackers. I started drinking more water and over the first few months started planning meals from total calories, ratio of fat, carbs & prot and time of day to eat. For 4 months I tracked every morsel, every drop of water, sodium, cholesterol, fiber and major vitamins. After that I got into a routine of foods that I liked that I could eat regularly and it started getting easy. I allowed myself to enjoy treats that became available but didnt seek them out - stress is bad for diets so I dont do stress - wink -

Anyway - dont call it a diet - call it a healthy eating plan, dont do it to lose weight - do it to feel better - the loss will be a side effect.

Best to all - later.

Trish

Thanks Trish, what a great way to look at the whole thing.. and it's not so overwhelming or frightening to make the good changes like adding more water, adding more veggies, etc. I think I'll focus on the good things that I need to add rather than thinking about what I need to cut out.

I feel better already :0)

I have a good two days this week and I hope I can continue this way. Tomorrow will be a challenge as DH won't be home for dinner and I get lazy about cooking a proper meal if I'm on my own.

More on Fitday. If there is something that have eaten that isn't in Fitday, you can create custom foods and then FitDay stores them for you. Its the best free on-line tool for tracking your food that I have tried.

Tiki.

I tried Fitday - but found Excel to be simpler. Almost everything I eat is a custom food (being the detail freak that I am) and by using Excel it is a simple cut and paste from my Fridge List to my recipe maker and my daily counter.

I would be happy to share my template with anyone interested - just tell me how to load a file that is downloadable.

Best part is you dont have to be online and you dont have to wait for webpages to load.

Fitday does have other features though and it is the best Free tool on the web - I just found it to be more effort than I wanted to put forth. (so lazy am I).

Later ladies.

I went ahead and bought the fitday download to have on my laptop about a year ago. I really like it. Unlike the online version I don't have to get on the internet to use it and, since I seem to carry the damn thing everywhere with me, I always have it with me. The features are pretty much the same, but I find the layout easier to use. Also I can create custom activities, for things they don't have. I wish I could remember more of the differences, but there's a tour of the download on the fitday website.

FitDay is a way tio track your calories.

Here's my journal and just go to www.fitday.com if you want to sign up. It takes a little getting used to, and takes time to customize a lot of your favroite foods, but I swear by it.

http://fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJourn...Owner=Newbirth

Thanks for the fitday info guys! That looks really interesting, I think I will try it out. Meira, good job! Don't obsess over fractions of pounds though. I only weigh myself once a month, sometimes less, since I don't own a scale. Think about wether YOU feel better I'm feeling pretty darn plump at the moment...but I think its because I'm getting ready to have my period. On the plus side, no cheating whatsoever today on my diet, which is the first time in a few weeks. I got up early & packed tons of low carb stuff....I found that I was still starving on the way home but when I stopped for gas (gas prices...gasp!) I picked up a low carb bar instead of......ahhhh...the twinkies & mt. dew that were calling my name so seductively.

Homemade soup has less sodium. That is what I do. Also there are low salt triscuits. I also atay away from tea cause 1 cup and I retain like crazy!!

dawnlizbeth~Good for you for not cheating! Just keep at it!

yeah, i know there's low salt Triscuits, but the rosemary ones are just tooo good and the canned soup is good for convenience if I'm running late and don't have time to pack lunch. It's crazy how many different things there are to track-calories, fat, fiber, sodium...sheesh! I'd go crazy trying to keep it all straight! I already know I need to add some more veggies to my meals today, so I'll probably just throw a salad together for dinner.

mauvaisroux~Good luck keeping it together tonight for your dinner w/o your husband!

I've been good this past week, overall. It helps that I have a cold and thus no appetite. I'm worried about tomorrow night when I'm going out for Mexican food and beer for a friend's birthday. My husband just re-joined WW with me, so hopefully we can rely on each other for strength to get through the night without scarfing down tons of chips or drinking too many beers.

During the first few months of school, different student organizations have their first meetings and they always include free pizza. My biggest achievement last week was only eating ONE slice of veggie pizza at a Community Service Initiate meeting, instead of the five that I really wanted.

Week one done with clean eating the whole way. Keep going ladies, we can do this!

Tiki.

pizza, man, pizza sounds sooo good right now.

Well my eating was all over the place this week and since it is cooler and we finally got rain (good for the grass and trees and fire hazard - bad for diet) I havent been drinking enough water. And the overcast sky makes me even more lazy.

On the upside though I have a buddy that is going to walk every day on the track at the hi school starting Monday. So that will be 4 days a week and every lap is a 1/4 mile so I will count and let you know how far we walk. That is going to help alot.

Missed my WI - think I will skip it - I will weigh to make sure no damage from bizarre food choices but not count on my chart since it was supposed to be yesterday.

Homemade soups are the best - I used to be a cook at a small cafe and made the soup of the day 5 days a week. Just bought all the ingredients for split pea - mmmm - with ham chunks.

If I can force down the water - that will offset the bad food - havent been binging - still keeping calories down - but not getting enough fiber or veggies and too much salt again.

I bought some SB cereal bars -very good and filling enough. And some Pria nutrition shakes by powerbar - those are pretty good too. So if can stick to those, plus my oatmeal/cottage cheese and have a decent dinner with lots of veggies - plus the walking and the water - maybe I can swing my goal?

I would love to be below 220 before thanksgiving when we go to Portland to visit family. We'll see. Fingers crossed.