What a nice welcome from you all. It may take me a while to catch up on who everyone is. Please excuse me from addressing each of you for a few days while I try to get a handle on the conversation.
BillBlueEyes asked earlier if I had chosen a diet plan. Right now I intend to go back to a low carb(ish) plan while trying to keep the calories under 1400 each day. I started this week tracking my eating in Fitday. Fitday and I are old friends. So far I have managed to put every bite into the program �� and have met my eating goals for each day.
Because I know the program through previous experience I am picking up successful habits up again pretty quickly. Having a group of like minded individuals to keep me accountable may be just the ingredient that I was missing.
"Food doesn't cure tension" ---Amen and Amen! I'm a slow learner, too.
I was five days without internet (two of those without cell phone except at work) while I made the transition from Eastern Washington to Western Washington and a classroom full of kindergarteners. Wow! Things have gone really well, considering, and I have done quite well with eating, also. I have routine breakfasts and lunches I eat before or during work, and a bag of staples like turkey chili and salmon that I can piece together into dinners, with the help of a bag of salad, etc. When I did hit McD's one night, I got the chicken grilled and tossed a good chunk of bun. When a new colleague gifted me with three fresh baked sweet rolls, I will confess to eating most of one, but I threw the others away as soon as I was away from school so nobody's feelings would be hurt.
I kept asking myself when I would have a melt down with all of this new stuff, and last night was a mini-melt down that ice cream did not cure, but lots of phone time with DH, DD#2, parents, etc. did cure. I was rested and ready this morning to do a great job again. And ice cream is gone; no regrets about tossing it.
Exercise? Hah! If you don't think I'm getting a workout chasing 18 busy 5 year olds, come on down and try it yourself!!! I hurt in places I had forgotten about from bending, sitting, squatting, and generally being on my feet for hours on end. I'm interested in getting on the scale when I go home this weekend...see what the kinder kid workout has done for me!
Tomorrow: lunch of hummus & chips, apple, soy nuts, after breakfast of yogurt, kiwi, fiber one. Dinner? Probably a brown rice bowl with (canned)salmon and baby carrots. Dessert? A chunk of extra dark chocolate, served in bed after lesson plans are done.
By the time I come back on Sunday afternoon (maybe as soon as Thursday), I will have the place I will live during the week for the rest of the school year. That will help me stabilize a lot of stuff and live more comfortably; I'll also bring back pots and pans, etc. for the kitchen. And I'm really looking forward to getting things set better in my classroom so I have time to explore this beautiful wild and scenic area; so much nature for anyone, especially a nature girl!
Nature girl -- your herding kindergartners sounds like fun -- I love them at this age, and yes, i'm sure you get your exercise in.
I'm doing better, made veggie beef soup tonight, and planned my food to take to work tomorrow, measured each ingredient, and measure volume, quantity to figure out calories....was lots of work, but i wrote it all down so I'll only have to measure this out and figure out calories this time....
I made an appointment with doc next week, need to tell him how exhausted i've been.
Found beck book today, and will read a chapter before I go to sleep, and will listen to relaxation tapes.....
Diet Coaches/Buddies - Ahoy, Matey's! A six inch limb fell from a Norway Maple onto the sidewalk and front porch during mild wind yesterday. Exercise, CREDIT moi, was clearing enough away that we could use the front door. Amazingly, no structural damage to the house and no one was injured.
Eating was on plan, CREDIT moi, with larger snacks than planned - Arrr!! I've got a plan today to solve the snack problem, to wit: I've planned to stick to my plan. Raisins are not health food! At least I can CREDIT moi that I ignored grocery store cookies and DW's dark chocolate in the pantry. Sorta proof that hunger isn't a factor.
Joy (gardenerjoy) – Thanks for the demo of the thinking about "Accepting Your Maintenance Weight," with, "I will be happier if I just choose to be happy at around 169 for now." [LOL at telling kids that half the cast is dead at the end of Hamlet. Neat set of symphony concerts for the season.]
Debbie (Lexxiss) – Yep, that sodium shows up on the scale. Ouch for Mr. Manning's career low first quarter trio of interceptions with Kudos for choosing diversion rather than consolation eating - glad you weren't stuck at the stadium with the food vendors loudly hawking relief.
Nature Girl – Kudos for surviving "18 busy 5 year olds." Count me as a believer that kids that age are vicious exercise trainers. And Kudos for making this change in your life work, including using phone time when ice cream calls.
FutureFitChick – LOL at your fruit tart, "stabbing the silly thing into tiny bits." Kudos for making wise choices even though it's well documented that being a Charity Ball automatically halves the calories of served foods. Am heartened that "I don't often want to kill my peers."
HaleyJu - Yep, it's a good idea to avoid writing personals right away - it takes a while to "meet" the individuals here. First priority is reading and reporting in to feel like part of the community. Good news that you're getting the old strategies back quickly.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 7Stage 4The Think Thin Lifetime Eating Plan
Accepting Your Maintenance Weight
What might you suggest to your best friend if he/she were in this exact situation? Would you offer the following advice? . . .. . .
Consider the relative unimportance of your weight. Think about it. Your weight is really so superficial. You have so many more important, wonderful attributes. List what they are.
. . .. . . Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), pg 183.
Food for the day is packed for work. Credit. That includes WEIGHED nuts and Raisins.DS and DH were at the SF Giants game last night so I had a small salad for dinner and watched "The Margiold Hotel....(whatever the name is)" I liked the movie's mantra "Everything will be alright in the end. If everything is not alright, it is not the end."
I cannot say I was 100% successful with eating only planned food and sitting down. Drat the self will run riot.
Haleyju: I am go to PT for a shoulder rehab this morning. It is discouraging to want to exercise and yet to be prevented on doing what I want to do. I need to not use it as an excuse and walk! There is nothing wrong with my feet. Naturegirl: It sounds like you are taking a less than ideal situation ( having to be away from home) and making it work for you. Congratulations. I also can't help but think what a lucky group of kids who have a teacher willing to squat, bend and play with them. I have known many a kinder teacher not willing to get out from behind the desk. Elizabeth: The measuring is so helpful. It brings a clarity that prevents my addiction from thriving.
I never made a plan yesterday. I ate pretty much as normal except I, somehow, rationalized larger than normal servings every single time I ate. I think the logic went something like: unplanned calories don't count. Oh, that it were so.
I made a plan last night and intend today to go much better.
WI: NA kgs, Exercise: +15 770/1400 minutes for September, Food: NA% op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes
HaleyJu: no worries about personal responses -- as you can see, we don't all do it all the time, anyway. The most important thing is to report your challenges and progress. You never want lack of time or energy to respond to others to interfere with that vital part of the buddy / coach dynamic.
Nature_Girl: I'm so glad things are falling into place for you. You sound like you are really weathering this challenge with grace and humor.
Elizabeth779: perfect time of year for veggie beef soup. Excellent to realize that the calculations only have to happen once for a dish that you can enjoy over and over again.
BillBlueEyes: I heard "Boston" on the news this morning with a story about weather and power outages, so I'm glad to see you here with only some tree damage.
Hi folks... I don't know why I don't post when I am struggling. But, I've had some very bad food days. I have had three healthy days - monday, tuesday, wednesday. I am trying to figure out what plan to follow. I do think that I have a problem with sugar and sometimes carbs. So, I guess I need to address this. My friends say - go gluten and dairy free and I will feel wonderful. It's a hard thing to do. I don't think I have a problem with these foods.
I need to figure some plan to hold on to.
Today I wrote it all down and checked in. I weighed and I am at 218.
Today was a pretty good day. I managed to track all foods eaten, and to stay at 1400 calories. However, I do need to practice using the resistance muscle more. That second helping at dinner tonight pushed up both the calories and the carbs. I am good at planning foods and eating OP until I get home in the afternoons. Then it's a battle every day not to snack and snack. We eat dinner late and that is obviously a contributing factor. It is what it is-- and it's something that will likely not change. I had it in control before, I will get there again. Overall though, I am not displeased with the day, just wish that I could have been better.
maryann I hope your PT for your shoulder goes well. Try adding some yoga classes. I believe that was a big contributor to my healing process. My shoulder is not "good as new", but it's a darn site better than it was.
Diet Coaches/Buddies - Excitement was watching the city workers with their tree chipping machine remove the large branch that fell on our front porch. Those machines are awesome - perhaps that'll be my first toy when I buy a house with a huge barn so that I'm not limited in what I can own. Exercise was gym, CREDIT moi, of the usual sort.
Eating was only OK, CREDIT moi. Snacks remained high, despite my planned intentions. I still act like eating will resolve feelings - whatever ones are passing by. I had opportunity to overeat at a potluck dinner, but didn't so CREDIT moi for that.
Joy (gardenerjoy) – It frightens me how powerful rationalization is.
Beverlyjoy – Kudos for "Today I wrote it all down and checked in" - you're on track. It's fashionable to be gluten and dairy free - my take is that the jury isn't in on the benefits.
maryann - I was so annoyed when we went to Marigold Hotel because everyone in the audience had gray hair and I didn't want to be at an old person's movie. Then I got in the spirit and laughed myself silly. Glad the Giants had a big win for your DS last night.
HaleyJu - Yep, the old resistance muscle gets weaker with just a day off duty. That long period between arriving home from work and dinner used to be my downfall; good luck at finding your solution to your late dinners.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 7Stage 4The Think Thin Lifetime Eating Plan
Accepting Your Maintenance Weight
What might you suggest to your best friend if he/she were in this exact situation? Would you offer the following advice? . . .. . .
Put your weight in perspective. Look at the other positives in your life. Give yourself credit for all of your other accomplishments in life. List them, too.
. . .. . . Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), pg 183.
Short and late. Today's big challenge is a donor dinner. Fortunately, I thought through that earlier in the week when FutureFitChick mentioned her experience.
Yes yes, it was a good day. Tracked everythig I ate, went to yoga, kept the snacks in check. Starting over is good so far. (I got a big reinforcement on why I need to be doing this earlier today when they took faculty pictures. Saw the proof on the computer monitor. Oh My!)
It strikes me how rare it is for me to self-reflect online and how this is my special space for doing that so thanks for contributing to this community all you guys out there.
I am in Ottawa, staying an extra night with my SIL in her spotless, retro, 1970's home that I love, discovering it has the EXACT layout of the house I spent lots of time in as a kid that my aunt owned. Weird that. No gold and avocado shag rug here though, but they do have an avocado commode and wall sink! Groovy (even though that's 60's slang... sec... Lookin' Good (said Chico and the Man style)
Can you dig it?
I spent the Monday-Wednesday with my mom who if you asked her today will tell you I have never visited and she has never left that place where she lives since she got there last week. Or last year. Or she is there for now until she goes to her real house. Take your pick at her answer, and then ask in a few minutes and it'll be different. I am used to all that now, but she exhibited a new thing: she couldn't tell me the time on her watch. It was "10 after 1" and she read it as "one two" not translating the minute had at the two as 10 minutes. New loss of cognition there. She was able to tell the time a few hours later though. And that's my experience of this disease in a nutshell; it keep you guessing. Suprisingly, I'm not as down about this as I have been about other things that have happened since she was diagnosed.
I did eat over it a bit. I have bot been following my food very closely but I have been hungry at times and I have had regular food. I'm not concerned. I can't weigh in until I get home and I am fitting into all my clothes and so I face each meal as consciously as I can and try to make the best choices I can. I'm pretty confident I am maintaining and not gaining. I am pretty good at that now. This is NOT the time to breate myself for not losing weight-actually I don't think there is a time to do that anymore ever. *credit*
Oh, exhaiusted now. Have to go to bed. Will check in inthe morning. Bye!
Why is it I get nervous if I follow my plan exactly? And then I get nervous if I don't! I can only keep checking in and keep writing it all down. My food plan revolves around a certain number of calories per week. I allocate a certain number of calories per day and then if my snacks (or whatever) are a little over I adjust the rest of the week. But I don't allow any one day to be out to control. Nonetheless, if I go over one day I forget that this is normal and I start to panic a bit.
I need to trust myself and to remember that I have the tools to do is successfully. My eating is a bit up and down, but it is not out of control and I am following my plan. So I guess I'm ok.
Diet Coaches/Buddies - Exercise was several walks, CREDIT moi. Got to watch the high school cross country guys out running, wearing little more than their buff. Stopping at the library causes books to come home with me. It always does. The new style apparently is to have more books invitingly offered, instead of wall-to-wall crammed shelves. I'm drawn to books just returned on a special shelf for only 24 hours before being shipped to another library.
Eating was only OK, CREDIT moi - a disappointment since I wanted it to be pristine 100%. My meals remain exactly on plan, my snacks wandered off. Ouch.
onebyone – We just got rid of an avocado commode that DW (and kids no longer living here) found unacceptably dated. Can't wait to tell them it's now 'retro.' Kudos for staying clear about your mother when you could choose to let her statements hurt. Have you considered taking pictures of her outside with you that she can see as reminders?
Joy (gardenerjoy) – Hope dinner went well and that you avoided the thought that you had to consume enough to match your donations.
TeachMe - Sounds to me like you're following your plan. Especially encouraging to hear that you, "remember that I have the tools to do so successfully."
HaleyJu - Ouch for pictures that motivate - I know about those.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 7Stage 4The Think Thin Lifetime Eating Plan
Accepting Your Maintenance Weight
What might you suggest to your best friend if he/she were in this exact situation? Would you offer the following advice? . . .. . .
Improve your life in other ways. Do all of the things you had put off doing until you lost excess weight.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), pg 183.
Credit to me: all day I had students coming in to see if I would sample their cooking (sticky toffee pudding, Thai curry, chocolate chip cookies). I had one small bite of the first two and none of the last! Very happy with that, and the fact that I thought it might happen and allowed a bit for it. So sweet that they offer, but not so sweet on my wobbly bits!
Wednesday - International Talk Like a Pirate Day
Yes yes, it was a good day. Tracked everythig I ate, went to yoga, kept the snacks in check. Starting over is good so far. (I got a big reinforcement on why I need to be doing this earlier today when they took faculty pictures. Saw the proof on the computer monitor. Oh My!)
How am I doing?
