[nationalparker]

Another chilly August morning here - not complaining, but very shocked at these cool temps. Much earlier than I've experienced.

Got home early yesterday to find a letter from the IRS that we owe $1K from two years ago. What?? To figure this out, I took a snack out of the cupboard and sat down after calling DH. Ate the snack and still hadn't figured it out and took a small handful of peanuts. Ahhh... I see the issue. Called DH again and we worked all evening to get the paperwork in order to resolve and not have to pay (HSA stuff), so I'm hoping that tonight it'll be completely prepared to return to them. The idea of don't eat while distracted went out of the window. Also the idea that we owe the govt more than 4% interest on the amount was interesting as WHO in this world has an account that gets 4% interest, but I digress. Hope tonight wraps it up.

I had initially chosen calorie counting and ww as my two diets and I am going to swap those out - reading the three-hour diet (eating small amounts every three hours) and initially I like the idea and have NO idea if it's just malarkey or what. But issue would be limiting lunch and dinner to the calorie allotment needed - not that far yet. But need a shake up and a wake up.

[ForMyGirls]

Hey National Parker - if you are on the hunt for a new diet (or new back up diet) I can recommend the one I am using. I used it 10 or so years ago and liked it (but stopped because of a pregnancy). And I am really liking it again this time.

It is called the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet. cSIRO is a major national government funded scientific research organisation in Australia so it has good science behind it. It is a high protein diet (but not high fat or low carbs).

I really like it because the high protein means I am rarely hungry - so it is just emotional craving I am trying to conquer, not physical hunger as well. I also really like it because it is easy to plan because you get 3 serves protein, 3 serves carb, 3 serves dairy, 2 serves fruit, at least 2.5 serves vegies and 3 serves fat per day (plus 2 or more indulgences (eg: alcohol, chocolate etc) per week - how many depends how fast you want to lost weight and how active you are being). I have found I pretty quickly get a hang of what a "serve" is (eg: 100g meat or 2 eggs is a protein serve) so planning a day's food is easy - I start with whatever dinner is planned, decide if there is something specific I want for lunch or breakfast and then plan the remaining meal on the basis of whatever serves I haven't used up yet. Leaves me feeling confident I have a balanced diet and not much time is spent adding things up.

The only downside is that it can get a bit expensive because of the high protein - but I figure I am well and truly ahead when I factor in all the snacks and coffees I'm not buying.

If you are interested in knowing more http://www.csiro.au/Outcomes/Health-...eing-Diet.aspx. I am using the number 2 book, which I managed to find as an e-book for my beloved iPad :-) I also found an ebook of a separate recipe book with more budget concious recipes. The books have a total meal plan if you wanted to use it - but I am finding I am grabbing a recipe from the book here and there but mostly fitting things around dishes that are already part of my repertoire.

[gardenerjoy]

Hit a new low for the month. Started a big project and didn't eat as if that deserved a treat (credit!)

WI: -0.1 kg, Exercise: +30 555/1500 minutes for August, Food: 100%op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

[Lexxiss]

Hi Coaches!

Yesterday I did something I rarely do anymore....I swapped out my "cool calm and collected" food plan for one which allowed me to have some "comfort foods" and stay OP. It's not my preferable choice but every once in awhile I have one of those gut wrenching emotional crappy a** days....and choose to not revert into a very old, comforting, diet/health sabotaging good ol' fashioned "binge". It worked. My choices fit into my SBD plan and I didn't overeat. Most important for me, I did not eat any off plan foods...donuts...pastries...cookies...McDonalds(sh h...I thought about it)....go to a restaurant for high fat/high calorie fix. I simply ate a little lower on the health scale than I usually do. Today, it's back to the business of my health. credit.
And....
Beth(from Dayton), no I did not do my exercise but did today. Thx for keeping me accountable.

BBE, yay for happy and healthy worms...and for giant ripe tomatoes!

reesuh, I, too, love the "nup"….I'm often nupping in the middle of the night. I find I don't sleep for more than 5 hours at a time and learned to find a little peaceful/productive time between sleeps. Fortunately, I don't eat then. I'll be interested to hear your findings as you move from step 11 to 12. Personally, it was very eye opening for me to find I didn't always "have" to eat and I'm quite comfortable now with missing a meal if my only other choice is something really off plan for me.

onebyone, kudos for all the exercise you've been getting AND for getting back on plan.

Beth(from Dayton), yay for a last minute dinner out which worked within your parameters. ...a very successful tool for me, too. It has been most amazing for me to learn/experience the fact that I'm quite comfortable with smaller portions. It was a scary thought for me at a higher weight….(I'll have to eat less if I want to lose weight). So glad to know today that it's OK! Response: I accept that I feel OK eating less because I feel so much better now that I weigh less.

ForMyGirls, I'm going to read about your diet. Thanks for the link. Yay for Lindts stashed for a special time….there's nothing worse to me any more than a less than satisfying caloric indulgence. So interesting regarding second sleeps….fits me to a tee. Often I'm in bed at sunset….up in the middle of the night and rising again with the sun. Fascinating!

gardenerjoy, yay for a new monthly low!

nationalparker, ouch for your "letter". Believe me, I understand your frustration (from experience, of course). Yay! for recognizing the need for a shake up and a wake up! gardenerjoy found switching plans fairly often to be effective and I think it helps us to learn what we want to stick with in the long run.

[Newlifestyle]

Hello everyone,
I was op for eating and exercise. It feels so good to make a simple plan and follow through with it.
My new job has lindt chocolate on the counter, that I walk by many times during the day. The have no appeal to me...yeah. I was worried when I saw them there, but so far, so good.
BBE - what a great job leaving food on your plate, I need to practice that one again.
Lexi, You are doing amazing,
Beth, Thanks for all the support you give.
Onebyone- yeah for being back on plan.
ForMyGirls, - I am going to check out that food plan, it sounds interesting.

Hello to everyone else, I have laundry to finish and then off to bed.
Take care and thank you all for being here.
Ann

[VioletDolphin83]

Hi coaches and everyone else!
So far I'm up to success skill 4. So far I've had trouble with my advantages list. I read it every morning like suggested but I find that in the mornings it just doesn't work because of being dazed in the mornings due to meds. What would be the best time of day for me to read this list then?

[maryann]

Good Evening, Coaches.

I have been swallowed alive by work. Or I have swallowed all the chocolate at work, I can't remember which. I have made an early meeting with my boss to try and ensure job security for next year. It also allows him the opportunity to say, "No". In either case, the kitchen is closed for tonite. In either case, DH and DS pick me for their team. In either case, I get credit for bravery.

And if the answer is "No" or "We'll see how it works out" I will still do my best to be of service to 650 under resourced kids. How can that not be enough?

[BillBlueEyes]

Diet Coaches/Buddies – Great exercise hiking for some three hours with DW in the closest 'wild' chunk of woods to Boston. CREDIT moi for the exercise. It's all well maintained trails, but once out of earshot of the highway it feels like the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Oddly enough, we didn't see a single bird and only heard two.

Eating on plan is easy when the plan is pre-made in the backpack. CREDIT moi for packing a healthy sandwich and a juicy plum. A juicy plum is a tad messy for lunch at a place with no easy water - but I could feel my body sucking down the wet, LOL.


Joy (gardenerjoy) – Welcome new low.

Debbie (Lexxiss) – I hate that a part of my brain even remembers McDonalds at all, LOL.

maryann - Good luck at your meeting with your boss. Neat that your DH and DS have your back.

Ann (Newlifestyle) - That's a classy job to have Lindt chocolates on the counter. Yay for their lack of appeal to you.

nationalparker – Ouch for paperwork, be it HSA, IRS or any of the other three letter annoyances. My guess is that no diet is "malarkey" if it gets under your resistance radar so that you can follow it.

VioletDolphin83 – I'd save reading my Advantages list until the part of the day when my mind was most alert. Perhaps during lunch?

ForMyGirls - Neat that a small amount of cheese is just right. Gotta think about that "second sleeps" notion.

Readers -

day 5 Eat Slowly and Mindfully

How to Notice What You're Eating
Here are some tips to help you concentrate.

what are you thinking?
Do you have any sabotaging thoughts about this step in the program? If so, make Response Cards based on the relevant thoughts and responses below.


Sabotaging thought: I truly don't have time to eat slowly.
Helpful Response: I need to rearrange my schedule to make the time. If I needed to take time for a lifesaving medical procedure three times a day, I'd somehow find the time. I'm not giving eating properly a high enough priority.

Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Beck Diet Solution (Pink book), pg 82.

[BillBlueEyes]

Diet Coaches/Buddies – Great exercise hiking for some three hours with DW in the closest 'wild' chunk of woods to Boston. CREDIT moi for the exercise. It's all well maintained trails, but once out of earshot of the highway it feels like the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Oddly enough, we didn't see a single bird and only heard two.

Eating on plan is easy when the plan is pre-made in the backpack. CREDIT moi for packing a healthy sandwich and a juicy plum. A juicy plum is a tad messy for lunch at a place with no easy water - but I could feel my body sucking down the wet, LOL.


Joy (gardenerjoy) – Welcome new low.

Debbie (Lexxiss) – I hate that a part of my brain even remembers McDonalds at all, LOL.

maryann - Good luck at your meeting with your boss. Neat that your DH and DS have your back.

Ann (Newlifestyle) - That's a classy job to have Lindt chocolates on the counter. Yay for their lack of appeal to you.

nationalparker – Ouch for paperwork, be it HSA, IRS or any of the other three letter annoyances. My guess is that no diet is "malarkey" if it gets under your resistance radar so that you can follow it.

VioletDolphin83 – I'd save reading my Advantages list until the part of the day when my mind was most alert. Perhaps during lunch?

ForMyGirls - Neat that a small amount of cheese is just right. Gotta think about that "second sleeps" notion.

Readers -

day 5 Eat Slowly and Mindfully

How to Notice What You're Eating
Here are some tips to help you concentrate.

what are you thinking?
Do you have any sabotaging thoughts about this step in the program? If so, make Response Cards based on the relevant thoughts and responses below.


Sabotaging thought: I truly don't have time to eat slowly.
Helpful Response: I need to rearrange my schedule to make the time. If I needed to take time for a lifesaving medical procedure three times a day, I'd somehow find the time. I'm not giving eating properly a high enough priority.

Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Beck Diet Solution (Pink book), pg 82.

[ForMyGirls]

Enjoyed my planned Icecream treat tonight. It was lush. Some credits - had precisely zero chips from our Friday night fish and chip dinner; noticed that I didn't actually feel like my final dairy serve rather then being in automatic "but I'm allowed mode". Responded successfully to the "my back is sore therefore I should eat" thoughts.

Gardener joy - nice work not using food as a reward

Lexxis - what a wise idea to give yourself a less than perfect day to avoid a total blowout. What a fine example of avoiding all or nothing thinking!

New lifestyle - walking past Lindt balls all day. That is really impressive. I am lucky that I work from home a lot so it is very easy to control my environment - not sure I could keep walking past chocolate all day.

VioletDolphin - I reckon you should pick the time for reading your card that works best for you - maybe the first point in the day when you are present enough to absorb it and/or the time you are most likely to fall prey to sabotaging thoughts?

Maryann - yay for being brave and yay for noticing you are being brave.

BBE - your hike sounds lovely - I could almost taste the plum - in fact I'd trade my Icecream treat for a juicy plum at this end of winter :-)

[gardenerjoy]

A nice drop! Credit for realizing that I didn't have fixings for a salad and writing on my plan that I would carry-in a salad for lunch from the grocery store (while picking up what I would need for a salad at supper). It worked!

WI: -0.4 kg, Exercise: +60 665/1500 minutes for August, Food: 100%op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

[nationalparker]

Happy Friday, Coaches!! I had high plans for today, but have spent morning and early afternoon at dr. office and government office, but ended SO positively when I went back up to the counter to say I was pulling myself out of the line so they'd cancel me out of their system and would send it all in myself. The counter agent looked over everything and asked a few questions and handled it for me then, made me copies and I was on my way. Good karma out of a nerve-wracking situation; I'd already waited 90 minutes.

ForMyGirls - thanks for the link; I'll check that plan out. Protein is my least favorite food group (not counting melted cheese on pizza), but I turn more to black beans, etc., so there are other options than meat I need to remember.

Bill - Kudos for the hike - sounds lovely. Laughing at your plum on the backpacking trip - packing fruit is my hardest part on hiking if it's not an apple - I smush it in the top of the pack too often.

Off to try to do some housecleaning and laundry that I've let slide this week. Think the plan tomorrow evening is a picnic event at Big Bad Voodoo Daddy ... I'm itching to do a good picnic and now I'll say it's tradition, DH has consented to go the last two years It's a splurge on the tickets at the last minute, but life is short.

Waiting to hear back again from the vet regarding our older cat, who has seemed fine... but the message was kidney issues, so we'll see what that means. Right now, I feel like I've maxed out on parents worry, pets worry, job worry, lack-of-staying on plan worry. Things ebb and flow, and compared to others, this is nothing.

[Lexxiss]

Hi Coaches!

A late check in as I was at Chevy in Denver at 8am for a necessary repair covered by a recall . I took my bike along and rode to WhFoods where I shopped. On the way home I stopped at RedRocks Amphitheatre. Lots of buff folks walking the steps (200 OW). I did one down and back up...it was too hot but beautiful and very nostalgic. My first concert there was PeterPaul&Mary...I was probably 6 or 7. Credit for trying a new exercise.
This is my day off and I'm at work tomorrow 530am. Think I will try a nap today.

I bought healthy foods, had a nice discussion with the veggie guy and 100%resisted anything in my basket that did not serve me well. OP so far today and I have a plan for the rest if the day .

[Newlifestyle]

Hello all you wonderful coaches, it is so great coming here and posting and not feeling stressed about missing anyone or not saying the right thing.

I walked 8432 steps today as well as working a ten hour day, towards the end of the day, I could feel myself wearing down. It was a real effort to avoid the junk food in the back office, I am sure some people would never refer to it as junk, I only called it junk because it was not something I would eat unless I was tired/exhausted...etc, I resisted it.
I am tired and am going to bed soon.

I have a busy day tomorrow but I have planned my meals and that is half the battle,
Have a wonderful night all.
Thanks for being here.
Ann

[onebyone]

Coaches

Made a plan for today and followed it. Prepared extra onplan food to brign with me over the weekend so I can stay on plan while away. Not sure if this will be a stressful event or not. I am away with the potters' guild members, a couple are becoming real friends now, others are closer than before. I have three cauldrons of varying degree of accomplishment to go into the pit to be fired so I am pleased I managed to get them to this stage. I wasn't sure I would. I'm sharing a room with another member so that will be interesting. I like her and so that helps too!

So, foodwise I am packing stuff for me stay on my plan and I am hoping we don't go anywhere for dinner. But if we do, I will have my cards with me and I hope to check in from the hotel room tomorrow night. My goal is to report that I stayed OP.

Have a good night and I'll be in touch when I can.