Still doing pretty well. Eating is probably about 85% OP with some "extras" mixed in. Walked the dogs yesterday. Scale moved down a few pounds and then back up the next day. I can't seem to make it STAY down and continue moving down....... but that will not deter me. I am trying to focus on NSVs for now. I am making progress, but still much room to improve, as always. I saw my podiatrist and scheduled foot surgery (to repair a dropped metatarsal) for July 16th. I would really like to shed some weight before then, because doc said it will be a few months before I can exercise vigorously again after surgery. Oh, well, been there, done that. I can do it again. And, hopefully, after THIS surgery, I will be able to "wog" (walk/jog) without pain and get the weight off quicker. Hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for all of your support!
Oh, and to sparks17!!! Glad you found us!
Last edited by IBelieveInMe2; 05-10-2013 at 11:27 PM.
Quick note for me tonight. Eating--totally completely off plan from about 3:30 - midnight. Two parties. Two sets of overeating. I don't even know that I enjoyed the food that much. I just ate--and I don't feel good about that--my stomach is even a bit upset. I left all the uneaten cookies behind at the second party.
Too little exercise--didn't do my challenge stuff--I'll do it tomorrow.
Diet Coaches/Buddies – Took my walk (CREDIT moi) under a weather report of "0% chance of rain." Spent many steps pondering how it could be zero. Then remembered. I'd read the 'hourly' report for the following three hours. I do believe that it's possible to use satellites and other data and know the weather future over three hours with some certainty. I only recently learned that hourly reporting was available. Real exercise was driving in the stakes for the fences for the sugar snaps in our community garden. They're about 8 inches tall.
Eating was OK, CREDIT moi, not fully on plan. Both lunch and dinner were away from home with meals prepared by others with lots of chatting with different people for long times at the table. Sitting before food for a long time makes it seem reasonable to continue to eat. Today's the day I tick my monthly counters, CREDIT moi.
Joy (gardenerjoy) – Always nice to see your exercise ticker ticking.
Debbie (Lexxiss) – Congrats on demolishing - a wonderfully irreversible step. Yay for "just another day."
Beth (bethFromDayton) – This is the part that bugs me when I overeat, "I don't even know that I enjoyed the food that much." Kudos for seeing that to help make plans for your next parties.
IBelieveInMe2 – Great motivator - staying on track before some forced low exercise time. Ouch for the reality of scale jiggle - that does annoy.
Rosebud170 – Congrats on the progress behind "feel in' sassy!" And Kudos for not letting a hair appointment block exercise.
sparks17 - Oh Yes, does Beck ever force us to discover, "I really eat mindlessly a lot more often than I would have thought!" Kudos for seeing that so that you have the option to think of what to do differently.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 5 Get Ready: Lay the Groundwork
day 2Pick Two Reasonable Diets . . . It doesn't matter whether a diet directs you to consume certain combinations of food; to eat prescribed meals; or to count calories, grams, or predetermined numbers assigned to foods. The bottom line is that you'll still be taking in a limited number of calories. Researchers at the U. S. Department of Agriculture have determined that most people who don't vigorously exercise need to pare down their daily consumption to between 1,400 and 1,500 calories to lose weight. In fact, in a review of popular diets published in the journal Obesity Research, researchers found that the daily meal plans of several current popular diets each contain roughly 1,500 calories.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Beck Diet Solution (Pink book), pg 63.
Hi Beckfolks... Home Sweet Home. I got home last night from our visit with family. I couldn't use DH's computer while I was gone. It's a new rule from his company. (It's his company computer.) DS has a handheld phone/computer thingy - I didn't want to get involved with that. It's very strange and almost hard to not have the computer at my fingertips. I realize that I wanted to 'google' something frequently and had no way to get that information quickly. I must admit that the computer is a huge part of my day to day life.
I had a wonderful visit with my son, dil and two grandchildren. I am exhausted. Having little children keeps a person busy every second. I wouldn't change a thing. My one year old granddaughter is so fun as she loves to dance, smile and is so curious - and trying to talk. My GS always keeps me hopping with his wonderful shenanigans.
My son and wife, as all parents of young children, are so busy between work and children. So, I took it upon myself to do lots of cooking so that they will have things ready to pull from the freezer for a quick dinner. It was mostly healthy things and some of DS's favorites. I did not use this time to overeat. I was careful about eating while cooking.
Exciting news... I will be a grandma again in October!
Now... on to the food. It was on and off... mostly off. I did get on the scale and saw that I am up 6 pounds. EEK But, what goes up, can come down. I think a portion of that is water as I took a vacation from my sodium watching. I have made a plan and will get to the grocery today to fill up the fridge with healthy choices. I am so glad to be back in my food comfort zone.
The garden has grown so much in my absence! Many more things are blooming and emerging.
So, I begin again. Getting on the scale was a hard thing to face... I am giving myself Credit for that. On the way home we stopped and had lunch at an Italian restaurant. I ordered a side dish of spaghetti and a salad.. it was a perfect amount. Credit.
I will try and catch up with what everyone is doing as the day goes on. Now off to the laundry.....
Have a GREAT day.
Last edited by Beverlyjoy; 05-11-2013 at 07:20 AM.
My day was 100% on plan yesterday. Woohoo! Credit for going with club soda and lime when I was offered champagne at the symphony last night. I'll save champagne for France.
Exercise: +30 415/1000 for May
sparks17: It doesn't come naturally -- but it does get easier with practice!
Rosebud170: Yay for sassy capris! Cool that you're getting in all that exercise and a hair appointment, too.
IBelieveInMe2: Good thinking before your surgery. Beverlyjoy has some tips, I think, for getting in some exercise even when you're not on your feet.
bethFromDayton: Good for you for planning to get back on plan! Would it help to get really determined about getting to 190? My previous attempt at weight loss stopped at 199, then went back up -- this time around I was terrified at that weight and couldn't rest easy until I go to 190.
BillBlueEyes: yay for sugar snaps tall enough for stakes. I had some kale that I planted last fall hoping for an early winter crop come back this spring. Now it's blooming. I've never had kale bloom before. Fun to watch.
Beverlyjoy: Exciting news of a third grandchild! Good for you for getting back to a plan, including a run to the grocery store. And laundry!
This week at work was very challenging. It ended in conflict and controversy, two things that make me very, very hungry.
It was difficult for me to leave the classroom for this new leadership position. i had big time guilt. I am so thankful for this words gardenerjoy wrote to me a few month's ago:
"I hope you can find a way to peace with your new job description. It's so obvious from the outside that you are doing a job that needs to be done, that you have the experience and expertise required to do that job, and that there is no reason whatsoever to feel guilty. The banter is meant to be what it is -- a light-hearted way to recognize your separation and your connection at the same time."
I have read and re read these words and they really helped me in my last meeting of the week when a teacher verbally attacked me for coming into his classroom to reteach intervention students. He has done everything possible to keep me out—from not giving me student names to telling me none of his students need extra help (in spite of the fact 70% of students in one of his classes were receiving "F"'s.) Because of gardenerjoy's words and others' support, I was able to not react defensively. I explained my reasons again for promoting school change in the area of writing.
Then my principal and vice principal supported our initiative and tried to move on. I think the teacher thought I was working on my own but everything I did was completely approved and encouraged by my bosses. Eventually, my principal basically shut him down and the teacher stood up, slammed his chair against the desk and stomped out. This was very frightening to me. I asked if there was anything I could have done differently and was assured the teacher was on the last nerve of everybody.
So here is my challenge: I am wired to believe conflict is bad and to be avoided. This is not true. If I am to promote the change I believe in there MUST be conflict. It is inherent in the process. So how do I stick to my beliefs but not give in to overeating resulting from the anxiety change produces.
The only answer to me this morning is to continue to be transparent with you all in this post, with my friends and family. To continue to focus on the only thing I really have control over: what goes in my mouth. To trust that the feeling of abstinence will be more comforting in the long run than a dozen cookies stuffed in my mouth,
IBelieveinMe2: Whenever I make a gratitude list, I never think to put healthy feet and yet how life becomes restricted if the feet are out of commission. I am working through plantars faciatis. It is painful and painstaking. Now I put feet on my gratitude list.
BethFromDayton: i was in the exact same overeating position last night. i made myself uncomfortable with food. This morning, per gardenerjoy's suggestion, I am going to reccommitt to get under 160 by the end of the month.
BBE: Credit for some restraint during "endless" meals. I really want to be a hermit becuase then I can control the food that comes into my little cave.
Beverleyjoy: Congrats on new baby. What an exciting time.
Can I use this forum as a coach? Am I better off finding someone in my real life as well? The truth is that everyone I know who might help me would probably be too soft on me....except for my younger children, who would probably be martinets!
Last night I made my menu plan and this morning my husband shopped...and I still found myself in the kitchen with no idea what I was doing for dinner! All my planned options seemed boring and I wanted to treat myself - not with sugar, but with as much delicious food (I was particularly craving pasta) as I felt like eating. I did not like the self-imposed restraint one bit. But I made chicken breasts and broccoli for the whole family (some had cereal and/or fruit afterwards) and no one suffered too badly (thyme and garlic make everything tasty!)! So - credit to me!
BTW - is it too soon to start commenting on every one else's posts? I don't want to horn in, as you all seem to know each other so well....
Just another quick note from me. Food was boring but OP. I never seem to plan weekends very well, but as long as I'm not at a party, I eat within my "ordinary usual meals" so everything is OP.
I spent today curled up on the couch reading, with a cat on my hip. She thinks I'm a perch.
sparks17, we all serve as each other's coaches (and coachees).
Diet Coaches/Buddies – Happy Mother's Day to all of you who've spawned. And to all of you who were of woman born. Just dance at the marvel that the tiny egg and sperm grow themselves as well as the marvel that a human spirit can be patient enough to nurture us for umpteen years until we can flourish on our own. Whole Foods will be providing Mother's Day dinner here (restaurants around here are crazy today) and we'll go out for dinner on another day.
Mediocre day - mediocre CREDIT moi. It started raining each time I walked to the front door and I seemed to 'forget' that I owned an umbrella and Gore-Tex. When offered a slice of apple pie at dinner by friends, I tried to feel noble because I left the big chunk of crust. It was also an option to just pass on the pie altogether - there was no one around with ego so fragile that they cared.
Joy (gardenerjoy) – Can't beat 100%. But special Kudos for recognizing that champagne is just champagne - until it's in Paris. [DW just yanked our over-wintered kale as it was blooming. Her beauty side isn't moved when in her functional garden, LOL.]
Beverlyjoy – Yay for the joy you find in your DGS and DGD. Kudos for making a side dish your lunch instead of groaning about restaurant entree portions being too large. Congrats on pending grandmotherhood. Take your vitamins.
maryann - Powerful thought that conflict is necessary for change. Kudos for recognizing how much of a challenge that is for you and moving forward anyway.
Beth (bethFromDayton) – LOL at the image of your lioness treating your hip as a perch - better to stalk the wilderbeest. Boring isn't a crime and On-Plan is worthy of Kudos.
sparks17 - Oh Yes - we're each here to be your on-line Diet Coach/Diet Buddy and ask that you serve that role for us. My take is that an ideal real-life Diet Coach is the best option, but spouses are a terrible choice due to conflict of interest. This group works well for me. Jump right in. And do personal responses as you see fit - there's no waiting period. It seems daunting that we might all know each other, but many of us are only posting together for a few weeks. Kudos for making your menu plan and Kudos again for wrestling with the desire to do something else.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 5 Get Ready: Lay the Groundwork
day 2Pick Two Reasonable Diets
. . . All diets enable weight loss
in the same way - by getting you . . . . . to eat fewer calories.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Beck Diet Solution (Pink book), pg 63.
Happy Mother's Day, Becksters! I've not been hiding out because of perceived failure on plan - just have another weekend full of office work - lasting until 2 a.m. each night and should wrap up in about two hours today, I hope. I'm weary. Not even able to get small chores like vacuuming done because of the pace of the work. Food has been okay, nothing spectacular. Few, if any, veggies, though. Weight is up a pound from ticker. I never want to move it up, but try to hold me back from moving it down.
DH is working all weekend as well, and will drive over to his mom's after work, so will figure out dinner and plan tomorrow's lunch, too.
Despite my good intentions, I have found it difficult to resist extra snacking the past few days. I really need to GET and STAY FOCUSED for the long haul..... or my haul will be even longer! I wish I could make some lasting progress to prove to myself that I can do this. I am focusing on NSVs, but those just aren't moving the scale down, which I desperately need. It would be different if I was losing inches or something, but that's not happening either. Clothes all fit the same..... I guess I am feeling a bit down about it all (again!) today. I will try to move forward from here, though, especially since it is Mother's Day, and make some progress. I did have a HUGE non-scale victory today, though, which I need to be proud of. My kids were going through the Dairy Queen drive through and I thought, "Well, since it's Mother's Day, I will treat myself to a dipped cone and then start over afterward." Just as soon as I had that thought, another "voice" chimed in ~ fortunately louder and wiser ~ and said, "No! Since it's Mother's Day, I will treat myself to better health and NOT have anything!" So BIG CREDIT there! I will CHOOSE to focus on the positive over the negative and maybe it will help to improve my mood, which will put me in a better frame of mind for this incredibly challenging journey!
Food was OP today, except for the add-in of popcorn at the ballpark. I skipped making a starch for dinner, so I was still on target calorie-wise, so I count that as a win.
I've got next week's meals all planned out, and DH is going to swing by and pick me up to go to the grocery store after he gets home from work. It'll be faster for him to get me and let me do the shopping--it takes him forever and I'm pretty quick at it.
After an anti-whoosh yesterday, I'm back at ticker today.
I'm getting antsier and antsier about not driving--I don't mind the post-op shoe that much, but I really want to be self-mobile again!
Hello coaches,
What a great weekend...I planted containers and a few veggies today, planned food for the week, grocery shopped and prepared food for lunches and dinners this week. The weather is starting to get gloomy again. We have enjoyed the sunshine immensely while it was here though. We have four more weeks to our Healthywage challenge and I am quite motivated to hit 12 percent of my weight gone by then. It is a bit optimistic since that means 11 lbs in a month but I will do my thang and see what the results are. I am looking at veggie smoothie recipes that I can make in my blender. If anyone has a winning combo of veggies that is palatable I would love to see it! I am thinking that it could be part of my breakfasts...
Oh, and somewhere recently, I read about a slew of benefits to freezing an organic lemon and zest ing on food and in water, etc...I have been doing just the water and it is a nice addition...
Diet Coaches/Buddies – As planned, I walked (CREDIT moi) to Whole Foods to fetch Mother's Day dinner. DW liked that since she could work in her garden until time to actually lift forks to eat. She's prone to stay puttering until pitch black darkness signals that it's time to quit.
I even saved half of my salmon for another meal, CREDIT moi. It's possible to leave food on my plate when I know it's going to be eaten. I'm still wrestling with leaving food that's going to be thrown out, despite being able to understand the thought, Better wasted than waist'ed.
nationalparker – Hope all this extra office work doesn't keep you from remembering your mantra under your avatar, "Enjoying la bella vita." Vacuuming can wait until the kids leave home.
Beth (bethFromDayton) – Neat adjustment to dinner to account for ballpark popcorn. I'm so glad that popcorn is never sold at what it costs or I'd be one of those folks with the Uber Buckets.
IBelieveInMe2 – Kudos for the remarkable Helpful Response, "No! Since it's Mother's Day, I will treat myself to better health and NOT have anything!" Working the strategies like that will allow your body to adjust in its time frame - be it as "long haul" as it takes.
Rosebud170 – Kudos for using your "Healthywage challenge" to keep the path. Love the lemon zest addition to water to stave off liquid calories.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 5 Get Ready: Lay the Groundwork
Two Kinds of Diets
There are two basic types of diets: One type encourages you to follow a set eating plan, which provides a detailed prescription for meals and snacks. The other type is a counting system, which allows you to design your own meals and snacks - as long as you stay within a certain number of calories. . . . There are pros and cons to both types.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Beck Diet Solution (Pink book), pg 63.
Good morning! Yesterday I had planned to take the day off totally. So I did not plan what I would eat - but I did keep track. I ate out twice (actually only ate twice yesterday - late breakfast and early dinner) and ate as much as I wanted. However - I tried to do all the little things. I forgot my Advantages card but I mentally rehearsed the ones I could remember (6 out of 10!) - half credit? I sat down to eat -credit. I ate slowly and really savored it - credit. I ordered the pasta (with Chicken Parmigiana!!) I had been craving for dinner - and left half the pasta on my plate, as I just wasn't hungry anymore - credit.
And then I had an interesting mental adventure. I went to a show in the city with my sister (Listen to your Mother as we lost our Mom in October of 2012 and wanted to be together. Afterwards....I really wanted an ice cream cone. I looked around the area and saw only frozen yogurt places and Starbucks. I debated taking a walk looking for a place but I told myself no and headed to the subway instead. Got off the train near home and, instead of just getting on the bus, I scoped the neighborhood. Nope, no place for ice cream. Dunkin' Donuts, a great bakery, stores full of candy bars and Hostess cupcakes - no. I reasoned with myself - all those treats would not be satisfying. So I took the bus home. Now here are several stores up my block where I could get ice cream and bring it home. No. I had treated myself enough and it was time to go home. Oh well.
Now, I know that I will not always stand up to cravings, but the Beck book (I am reading ahead so have read about hunger, desire and cravings) is giving me a mental framework - thoughts with words instead of just feelings. Very helpful.
So, all in all, a day of credit even though I was off plan. Today - I have a written plan for breakfast and lunch. I haven't yet figured out dinner - I have a thing at 6pm and I have to leave at 4:30 for it - but I plan to know before I leave the house.
Today is Day 7 for me - Arrange Your Environment. My fridge is full of leftover Chinese food (my husband and 4 kids had it while I was out with my sister)...a good day to think about how I am going to handle things like that! Not that I can't eat Chinese on my plan, but it is a big trigger for me. I am not gong to worry about it until after lunch, so I am not making decisions on an empty stomach.
I believe in me - I also really like what you said about treating yourself to better health - I am writing that one down!
quick check-in
Oh, well, been there, done that. I can do it again. And, hopefully, after THIS surgery, I will be able to "wog" (walk/jog) without pain and get the weight off quicker. Hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for all of your support! 
to sparks17!!! Glad you found us!
Saturday - International Migratory Bird Day
just hanging in there.....
I will CHOOSE to focus on the positive over the negative and maybe it will help to improve my mood, which will put me in a better frame of mind for this incredibly challenging journey! 
to all of you!!!
