Hi Susan
 

Hi Susan,
Until 10 years ago I just always tried the starvation route. A friend told me about Sugar Busters and I read that book. It has worked for me (several times). Now that I'm retired I read a lot about nutrition from as many sources as I can and then use what makes sense to me.

I eat oatmeal almost every morning. I munch on fruits and veggies about every 2 hours during the day and try to have a little protien with it because I read that it helps keep you satisfied longer. I eat triscuit crackers with some of my snacks. But I have not eaten bread in a long time. My husband does laugh at me cutting up all my little bowls of snacks - but I'm losing and he isn't so guess I get the last laugh.

When I started this "last" journey 2 months ago I had to give up my nightly beers. It was really hard - but now I don't miss them at all.
I am going to have one with my treat one Sunday - but I will not get back in the nightly pattern. I don't want to start over - easier to just keep going.

I like that he eats protein bars and whey protein powder. :lol: He's definitely a little goofy and gimmicky, but I like that he focuses more on scientific research rather than medical research. Although that's just my bias as a scientist. :)

I'm thinking the same thing about grains for me... maybe all processed grain products are out (pastas, breads, crackers, etc no matter how "healthy") but whole grains are in. Perhaps wheat is out altogether, but I've got half a bag of bulgur in my cupboard to deal with. Hmm.

I couldn't do it yesterday. I got called to work 3-11 and when I got home near midnight, I was starving. I had a sandwich (they are so frazzin' easy). This morning, I feel bubbly and bulgy. YUck!

Good day.
 

I made it to the gym yesterday - increased the weight on 2 of the machines. Then went to the store and bought all the good fruits and veggies. Then I came home and cleaned and cut up all the veggies so I would be ready for the week. I never sat down until 7:00 pm - didn't eat a lot - just wasn't hungry. And the scale still didn't move! Hello plateau!
But I tried on a pair of pants that would not even come together when I started and I was able to button and zip. :carrot:

Today my goal is to do some walking.

Good morning, everyone! Didn't see anone mention snow - is anyone on the East Coast? I live on Long Island right near the Sound, and the storm just missed us - not even a flake here.

Struggling a bit this week - I maintained but hoped I would be down. Having some bathroom issues - finally had to resort to senna tea(sorry, TMI) since nothing else was working - I'm now down 2 lbs. and feel better. Have to the gym the last two days - will definitely go today. Food went well yesterday - about 1200 calories and 90% healthy.

Made oatmeal and egg white/spinach cups for the week for breakfast. Will make a big salad and grill some chicken for lunches. I SO want to be below 140 for V-Day but it's not looking good :-(

Looks like everyone had a great January with maintains and losses. I find January to be the toughest month - post-holiday letdowns and crappy weather. I was down about 5 for January - if I can keep that rate up I will be THRILLED.

Morning natamars: there is a blanket of snow outside, but it's not as bad for me in Indiana as it is for the folks who live eastward. The weather was the worst on Friday, but now they've cleared the roads and it's sunny out, so it's just a normal winter day.

I'm up to 129.6 again, which is kind of a bummer, but my waist did shrink a half inch (before breakfast, that is :p) I'm surprised I've been able to stick to 1600 calories for an entire week--without feeling starved! I have no idea what changed my body's hunger cues, but I like it.

Hunger cues
 

tmk256,
I am a lot less hungry then when I first started. I don't count calories but I do notice I am able to be satisfied with smaller portions.
I'm guessing that our body gets use to what we give it - and that helps us stay in control. I also notice that exercise really helps with the food issue. What do you think?

hi all :)

I'm feeling a little disappointed, i really felt like i turned it up this week, but I only lost a pound! i think i want to start cycling calories, because there were a few times this week when i felt like i was eating when I wasn't hungry in order to get up to 1500 cals, and then other days when I was still hungry after exhausting my cals for the day.

I'm not deterred, I'll still keep after my seemingly elusive goal weight. But I kind of feel like i'll neeeeeeeveeeeeer get there.

I love coming here and seeing new ideas!

RE: hunger cues - I am eating way less and not feeling hungry since I went back to South Beach a week ago. It's surprising to me, but it makes sense. If I am consuming so many bulky vegetables, beans, high-protein Greek yogurt, etc there isn't that empty gnawing feeling of needing more, more. I have had three days that I only ate 1000 calories - not intending to go that low (in general I aim for 1300/1400 each day). I am just thrilled to have my late-night grazing under control.

RE: calorie-cycling. I did it for a while and I guess I kind of inadvertently do it now... it makes sense to me but when I was doing it for "real" I found it was a lot of planning. And I kept moving my days around so I don't know if I defeated the point. Basically I aimed for a weekly average.

So - I am down another ****0.2**** pounds! I'm actually not even been sarcastic, this is great news for me as I seem to get stuck here for the last year (~145 lbs).

Super Bowl party later. I'm bringing ultra light beer - 64 cal - and while it's definitely not great, it tastes the same to me as every other wimpy domestic lager, so I figure one or two will be OK so I don't have to be completely out of the party.

Also, I made Hungry Girl's "Jalepeno Swappers" and "Lord of the Onion Rings". OMG - these are amazing! I was dubious but they far exceeded my expectations. My only suggestions would be to freeze the stuffed jalapenos first (the filling oozed out of most of them) and give the onion rings a spritz of the cooking spray on top so they don't dry out. Yum. Healthy junk food :D

Oh, I also tried making my own cheese yesterday with lf milk. It turned out really soft, so I added herbs, garlic and onion powder and made a delicious dip/spread. Like the Rondele garlic & herb spreadable cheese.

Have to squeeze in some gym time today so I can feel good about enjoying these treats!!

EmmaD
.2 may be a baby step, but it is a step. Keep hanging in there. One more thing that keeps me going is, "I hate the first week of the journey." The goal seems so far out of reach and everyone else has already started. I have only lost 10 pounds - but I will keep going-----because I don't mind getting back on track after a night off-----but I don't ever want to start over----ever again. :^:

ugh. im very frustrated with myself the past couple days. ive gained like 4 pounds, and it scares me because i know that once my weight starts climbing, im afraid that i wont be able to get back in control.
i think im going to try some calorie counting. its been awhile since ive tried it so i think my body might be able to handle it a little bit better now (i have lots of health issues, and so calorie counting is really hard for me because there are days where im hungrier than my calorie limit and my body will fight back if i dont eat more). but ya i think im going to try it again because i really need to get this under control. i just feel so defeated right now. i was so close to getting into the 120's and now im freaking out about going back to the 140's. Why do a few days make so much difference? ugh. so ya, just figured id vent to you ladies because if i dont get this out then my friends are going to get an earful of it and they arent exactly the most understanding (dang naturally skinny ppl lol)
so ya, tomorrow. tomorrow im back on track so im just going to try not to worry about the past few days. moving forward right?

ugh where's tomorrow? week 2 of feb needs to start...

100%-- i know what you mean! i regained weight after my sister's wedding last summer, and i was kinda resigned to the fact that i was gaining it all back, as if i had no control. but for me it was like i had decided subconsciously that i would start dieting again eventually, but that i hadn't hit my high yet, so i was still ok--and then i hit and surpassed my high. for me a big part of this journey is mental. when the scale starts to show me numbers that are headed in the wrong direction, i have to stop weighing until i've had 3-4 good days in a row. and a good day for me is one with low (and good) carbs, lots of veggies, lots of lean protein, and some fruit, plus getting in a nice, long-ish sweat session. just a thought...

ha! i think i need to take my own advice...

Everyday - a new beginning.
 

100percentMe and Shasha,
We hear you -- you know what to do -- you want to do it -- we are with you every hungry and sweaty step of the way. Go on and have a great day and once again you will be on your way. Just keep coming back and reporting your progress - the good the bad and the beautiful. :hug:

I've been a little less active on here due to the craziness of settling in to our new house, but I love it and I'm so glad to be here. My eating has been off, so I'm happy to report that I'm having an OP day today. So far, so good with food and exercise. Time for me to stop the excuses and just make good choices....

Grr. After celebrating how well I did last week, I just had to go and bake some cheese danishes yesterday! The danishes themselves weren't that bad, since I used a sweet whole wheat yeast dough of my own design that excluded the pound of butter called for in proper puff pastries. The damage was caused by what I call The Snackwells Trap: just because they're 200 calories each doesn't mean I can eat two! And then, of course, the sugar made me hungry....

I didn't even weigh this morning, because I knew it would just stress me out. But though it may take a few days for the bloat to go down and I won't lose for a while, I really don't think I'll gain, either. Instead of focusing on the 2100 calories from yesterday, I'll think of it as an "1800 per day weekend average" :D

So I started off today with a banana/spinach/greek-yogurt smoothie and a hard-boiled egg, brought a lean turkey and hummus sandwich with fruit for lunch plus raw almonds and raisins for my snack, and I have an apple-chicken salad planned for dinner. That should clear my system of the pastry overload.

Hey Feathers.....

Not such a good weekend eating wise. I STILL have a chocolate chip cookie cake on my counter that keeps calling my name. I need to throw it out, but the kids want it to stay.

They are predicting more snow for our area, which means no outdoor exercise for me this week. I'm getting sick of it, and wanting it to be spring!

I weigh in tomorrow...we will see how much damage I created over the weekend with my poor eating.

Hey girls :wave: ... Was MIA this weekend I went to Montreal with a g/f to a fitness conference... What a great time we had... On Sunday I did a Kbell class, a yoga class and a Groove class, it was all so much fun... I ate extremely clean with some wine on the side and I didn't gain weight :woohoo: ...

Today was work and the gym tonight... food was good so far today :D

Sounds wonderful, Ilene!!!!! What a great weekend!

question
 

I just posted but don't see it. What happened?
Also after I sign in and then write a post - when I click submit it will tell me I am not signed in? Is that true for everyone - or am I doing something wrong?


Ok - I see this one showed up. I wonder where the first post went?

Baby steps.
 

Scale went down .5 this morning. Now I have to work hard to make sure it does not go back up again. I will go to the gym this morning and then maybe to the store to buy a new pair of work out pants.

Ilene, that sounds like such a fun weekend.
Have a great day everyone.

My weight has stayed the same for the past 3 weeks. So I am maintaining, but not really losing. I know why....it's overindulging in treats and also not being consistent in exercise. I need to do better if I want to reach goal. At least I haven't gained, so that is a good thing.

Had my first good OP day in a while yesterday...hopefully today will be #2! I'm kinda in maintenance mode for this month with all the commotion of moving and my appliance issues. If I lose, fantastic, but no sweat if I don't...as long as I don't gain any more. ;)

Ilene - your fitness conference sounds great. You posted somewhere else about your yoga session where you went in hungry & with a headache and came out refreshed. I always have to remind myself of that! Even when I really don't feel like going, I don't think I have ever regretted a yoga class. I really want to go to a yoga/meditation retreat someday. Someday...

So - I switched up my diet about 10 days ago. I have had my first ever significant drop in weight in the past year and am FINALLY back to where I was in November. So basically I gained nearly 10 lbs in ~a week and it took me >3 months of hard work to lose it!! Lesson learned, lesson learned. Those cookies were NOT WORTH IT!

This also means that I am at my low point for more than a YEAR of trying. I am at 143.2 lbs. It has been a couple of years since I have seen the 130s (except for once more than a year ago, I saw 139 when I was sick and hadn't eaten for days!). That's the next goal. According to my year-long plan, I have till June to get there.

The dietary changes I have made (pretty much South Beach but still calorie-counting) have made my overall carbs go down. I am averaging 70-150 g carbs/day, all from veggies, beans and whole grains. Maybe there is something to this carb monitoring, at least for me. I always strived for 40:30:30 Carb:Fat:Protein, based on the Zone but I never got close to it with my "regular" eating/calorie counting. Now it's pretty close without specifically trying for that (for example, Friday was 38:30:32). I'm not technically manipulating carbs now, but it's something to think about.

:tread: Now - need to get back on my running program!! :running:

EmmaD -- I have gone to a Yoga camp in the Laurentian Mountains and really really enjoyed it... Nothing like doing a Yoga class at 8am on an open air platform in the mountains :yoga: ...

Just back from a 5k run, felt great it's relly gorgeous out! Food has been really good lately...

Good Morning,
It is 2:40 am. I woke up at 1:00 am and couldn't go back to sleep so I gave it up and got out of bed at 2:00. I hate it when this happens. The scale is at 131.5 so that is good. But it is going to be hard not to eat with all these extra hours I am going to be awake. :(

Whoa, good early morning Danni :coffee:... I sure hope you won't be too tired the rest of the day though... I don't need as much sleep anymore since I've reached my 50s...

Yesterday I visited a CrossFit gym, I desperately need something different. They give a one week try out so I will be going either today at 3pm or tomorrow.

Food was spot on yesterday too... On with the day

Ilene--crossfit sounds awesome! I want to try something like that.
danni--goodness that's an early morning! at least you'll sleep well tonight. let us know how it went w the not-eating during those awake hours.
Emma- YAY for your low!!! keep on track, you'll get there!!! :D

As for me, food was good yesterday. I didn't have a minute to work out (need to start getting up to do it before my vicious day begins), but i continue my push up/squat/sit up challenge today. Bought a tape measure to do my measurements on Sat.

Happy Wednesday all! :)

Ilene - what is crossfit?
I'm still going strong - well 4 cups of coffee and 3 cups of tea.
I'm babysitting so no time to slow down - I will probably crash when they leave.
I am trying to control eating - tomorrow is weigh in day.
EmmaD - good news for you. I can wait to see 129 again - it has been too long gone.

Danni, this is the definition of CrossFit... and this is the CornwallCrossFit site...

Well I have gained a few pounds & just when I was motivated to get back OP, I get S-I-C-K! Of course DH & DSs (3 and 5) also have been sick, and it's really been lingering with all of us.

The good news is I've been having nothing but healthy food since I can't taste anything anyway. Ah well. I will wait until I'm better to start exercising again, but I WILL start again.

Hope everyone's having a great day & making great choices. And really isn't that all any of us can do? ;)

Ilene - thanks for the info.
I stopped eating at 5:30 pm. I'm going to stay up as late as I can and try to get back on track with the sleeping. Have an 8:00 am dentist appointment and then I really need to go to the gym. This not sleeping leaves me too tired to exercise and makes it too easy to overeat just to feel better. Just goes to show me how easily we can be thrown off track. :dizzy:

Hey ladies since Im close to goal I peek in here from time to time. I might change my goal once I reach the first one because I want to get down to the high 20's once in my lifetime. Weight has been steady the last 3wks plus this pass Mon TOM came thru so Im hoping to see some loss by the end of the wk. Its getting kind of discouraging not seeing the scale move when it was moving so fast at first. Im hoping that restarting Chalean and warmer weather (running outside) will get me out of this rut! Diet hasnt been bad but not all that great. So after this period Im hoping for a fresh new start...lol!!

Good Morning,
Only got up at 5:30 am this morning. Weight didn't go up - so today is getting it back on track time. I haven't exercised in 3 days and I feel so sluggish - must get to the gym today. I woke up so thirsty this morning so I am not drinking enough water. Seems like its hard to get all the parts right at the same time. (eating, exercise, & drinking enough water)

I heard Dr. Oz answer a question on TV about why you don't lose after you really have a good workout at the gym. He said, after strength training, your muscles retain water for a while. I wa wondering why the scale didn't move the next day after I had really pushed myself - maybe that is why.

I tried to do the sig ticker.
I don't get the copy and paste part.
It showed me what I had chosen but it didn't show up on my post.

Grandma need help from you young ones!

danni-In the little window below your ticker it show some code that you need to highlight and then press Ctrl C (hold the control button down and then press "C") to copy the info. Once you're on your signature page on 3FC, move your cursor to where you want your ticker and press Ctrl V to paste the code into that spot. That's what I did at first anyway. I use the ticker factory and now I just click on my ticker and change it and it auto-updates! Yay! Anyway, I hope I didn't make it more confusing! Good luck!

I got a notice that you have to have 25 posts - I thought it was only 20.

NO TIME, my honey is kicking me off the computer... but just wanted to say I went on a little JOG today for the first time in months!! and I didn't die. fun :) more tomorrow... love you feathers!

Ms Perception
Thank you so more for the help. I really feel like an official feather now. I am totally impressed by all the weight you have lost - great job.

I got to the gym today and just did an hour of walking - but it helped get my engery level back up.



http://www.3fatchicks.net/img/bar-bl...3/125/132/.png

Hello Feathers :wave:

I came back from my holiday on Tuesday but my bleeding computer died a death and I had to buy a new one - it's very sparkly and I'm most pleased with it! I daren't weigh myself - it's going to be horrific. I can't claim to have stuck even vaguely to my plan whilst I was away. I did OK for the first two days and then it was total disaster - I've learnt nothing, BIG SIGH. What's worse is that this weekend is one of my best friend's 40th birthday weekend. Not a birth "day" a birthday "weekend". It starts at 3pm which is in 3 hours here and ends on Sunday night, late. I've had to book Monday off work to get over it! I'm not going to even pretend to be on plan this weekend because it'll only wind me up when I've failed after the first bottle of wine. I shall enjoy myself thoroughly but at the back of my mind I'm looking forward to Monday and getting back into the swing of things.

I'm determined to do it this year. OH and I have booked some time off for a short city break in May (don't know where we're going yet - maybe Italy) so my aim is to be 145 by then. Even if I'm back to 160 (which I think I am) 145 is an achievable target in that space of time. Lent starts next Wednesday - anybody giving anything up for it?

Good morning!

We have had a couple of weeks of upheaval in our lives ... economic, flu-like ... you know the drill. Blah blah blah ... and the blahs :)

Aaanyway ... I've got my head on straighter this morning. I'm boiling eggs and cooking chicken breast. I'm hunting for something to watch on TV while I'm on the elliptical. And planning the next week.
I'm off today (so I can do this stuff) and then I work six shifts in a row. I need to have lunch foods ready, an exercise plan in place ... the master of my own ship, so to speak.
Reeling my life back under control ... ahhh ....