"VOLUMETRICS" -- Fall is in the Air
 

:welcome: . . . Thought we should have a new start once again, since it is the start of a new month and, for some reason (at least to me) Labour Day always feels like the start of the new season as well :dizzy:. . . Hope this will become one of your favourite places at 3FC . . .

VOLUMETRICS is not new, it just hasn't been making as big a splash in the weight loss community as some of the better known plans. I first discovered Volumetrics about a year or two ago thanks to the review on 3FC. After reading the review I went and bought both of the books and decided the Principles of Volumetrics was something I could live with . . . forever.

VOLUMETRICS explains how to FEEL FULL ON FEWER CALORIES . . . and let's face it, most of us won't stick with something very long, if we feel totally deprived all the time. The guiding principle is to get the 'highest volume of food at the lowest cost in calories' by choosing foods with a lower ED (Energy Density). BTW, 3FC has a data-base of over 7000 foods and is one of the few that includes the ED for all the items.

What foods have a lower ED? Basically, those that contain the highest water and fibre contents . . . for example; we all know that grapes and raisins start out as the same fruit, right? Raisins simply have had the water content removed. Did you know that 1/4 cup of raisins contains about 100 calories? More importantly . . . did you know that you can eat almost 2 full cups of grapes for the same 100 calories! I know which would make me feel fuller and stay fuller for longer . . . how about you?

Anyway, enough of my blathering for now . . . Please come and join our little discussion group as we help each other make our way along the long and winding road to better health and fitness the VOLUMETRICS way . . . hope to see you all soon . . . :wave:

Yesterday was a really strange day . . . it looked so good in the early afternoon, I decided to go do some shopping and was wandering around Walmart when a really freakish storm arrived. Walmart took a hit to their main generators and were rushing everyone through cash and out of the store while they still had emergency power. Got soaked getting to the car and then decided to do a couple more local stores anyway since they were warning everybody to stay off the roads during the downpour. Storm continued to rage throughout the night and forecast says we might be getting more rain again today.

After I finally got home, I definitely got into some food that I shouldn't have so my not so OP month really ended on a very NOP day. Hopefully, we will all have a great SEPTEMBER . . . :crossed:

Count me in! I have the books on order from amazon, but am pretty familar with the concept from web articles.

Caloric density of less than 1: eat away.
Caloric density of 1 -2: Start portion control.
Caloric density over 2: red light foods

Does that sound right?

I am 54 and finally through with dieting. My approach to this is just follow the guidelines above and forget the rest. No more points, grams, carb counting for me.

I have about 60 pounds to lose. Count me in for volumetrics!

Sheryl

:welcome: CHERYL and :wel3fc: too . . . glad you found us. You are definitely on the right track, Chickie. :yes:

Welcome Sheryl!

Here's an inspirational quote for everyone to start off September in the right frame of mind- "Success is falling nine times and getting up ten!" I have no idea who said it- it's just one of the quotes I have posted around the house.

Good Morning, Gang . . . :grouphug:

Since the long weekend has now passed into history, the sun is shining. :lol: Oh well, doesn't really mean a lot to me (ORF, you know) but I do feel for those who had their last taste of summer freedom dampened by Mother Nature. I am glad to hear that her DS, Gustav, has mostly fizzled out, but looks like her latest, DD Hannah, is picking up steam and may even get all the way up to us by the coming weekend. :yikes: Hey, that's a long time away from now and things may change. :yes:

I really like that quote LIZ . . . and it's so very true.

See you all later . . . keep things POP-ing today . . . :carrot:

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the welcome.

My new motto is progress not perfection. Last night I ate THREE (albeit small) bowls of Breyers Free French Chocolate Icecream. Now this icecream is fat free and full of fiber, and has a low caloric density. But three bowls?

The good news is that I got on the scale this morning and didn't gain. Now I can guarantee you if that icecream had been Haagen Daas, there would definitely be a gain.

I really like Volumetrics. You read the labels and get a sense of what is high or low calorie (because of the calorie's relation to its weight), and then make a wise choice.

I'll be working my way down to one small bowl!

Welcome Sheryl!!

Today we had meetings all day. So it's only a 3 day week with the kiddos.

Hey everyone! I'll bet you all thought I had run away from home. One thing and another (obsessing on the political situation, the storm on TV and being gone for a few days) has kept me away.

Anyway, it's time for a reckoning. Tomorrow morning I will weigh myself and assess the damage.

marigolds- so does that ice cream taste good? Like real ice cream, or do you kind of have to get used to it?

I usually have that whipped chocolate yogurt in the house if I have a craving I can't get rid of, but it's not low calorie. It's just less damaging than real ice cream.

I made Gazpacho last night for the first time- it was good, but I have serious issues with the raw peppers. I even used milder banana peppers from my garden, but they still came up all night. I think I'm going to have to cook and then cool it next time, or just leave them out. It's a really perfect soup for the hot summer days, though, and it's very low ED and very healthy! Even my DH liked it, although I think I put too much lemon juice in it for him. I like stuff tangy/sour, and he doesn't so much. He also likes creamy tomato soup, so next time he's going to try stirring yogurt or sour cream into it.

Hi :wave:

Think I've mentioned before that I get good mileage out of FF/NSA yogurt by stirring in a sponfull of Splenda and a spoonfull of cocoa powder.

Just to let you know, I've been having really weird computer problems the past few days and will be making an appointment to get this nasty little beastie a checkup either Friday or Monday. At the moment, 3FC is one of the few places I'm able to access, but I don't know how much longer that may last.

Decided I needed a backup machine and bought myself a new toy yesterday, a laptop, along with a cute little stand for it (which took me over 3 hours to put together :dizzy:) and a thingee for setting up my own wireless network -- BUT -- this snarly desktop (which is currently hardwired into the cable connection) will not let me load the software to set up the wireless. Today I will be tackling the laptop set up. Do any of you have any experience with VISTA? I've not been hearing much good stuff about it. We'll see.

Hopefully, I will be back . . . :crossed:

I had to get a new computer, too. I got a Dell desktop with Vista. I have been having connectivity problems. Not sure if this is due to Vista/new computer or the relatively new satellite internet connection. It was working just fine, but something isn't quite right now.

Now for my "reckonning". My ticker says 142, but I only weighed 142 for a couple of days. I have held at 145 most of the time. This morning I weighed 148 after all kinds of bad eating for the last few weeks. So, it is a kind of good news/bad news thing. I am still very happy that I have kept so much off for 9 months!!!! That is better than I have ever done with the maintenance. I have GOT to get a grip and not blow this.

congrats on the new computer Gail!!!!

Everyone have a great night.

My daughter worked in the IT dept at her college until she graduated, and they held off doing anything with Vista for a long time. From what I understand, there's a lot of patches and updates that you need to stay on top of to fix the problems .

I did try mixing vanilla yogurt with diet hot chocolate powder, but it was too sweet. I should mix it with plain yogurt- it's be cheaper than buying the chocolate yogurt.

Meowee- I tried the ripe banana/fruit fly trick and it worked really well! I had to bag up all my fruit first so they had no choice but to pick the banana, but then it was easy to catch them all.

We're finally getting some rain- I think it's the leftovers from Gustav.

:wave:

Took me four tries to get here this morning, but I made it . . . :lol: . . . a friend gave me a number for a local computer wizard that I'll try to get to come here to look at the desktop rather than having to lug it to Staples -- so far no answer, but my guess is he actually works somewhere and does this 'on the side' so I'll try again this evening.

Laptop is functioning and has lots of free games to keep me busy until I can get somebodyto fix this one so I can connect the internet to the new one. As soon as I manage that little chore, I'll definitely check for updates on the MS site.

The Staples guy mentioned when I complained that Vista came on the laptop that most of the problems start to arise when people try to use Vista with older software. good old 'planned obsolescence' on the part of Microsoft no doubt so we have to buy newer versions of everything they make. :s:

Definitely try it with plain yogurt, LIZ, add your own sweetener, and definitely use unsweetened cocoa powder (I've always found that diet hot chocolate stuff to be cloyingly sweet anyway) -- that way you can control both the sweetness and the darkness/richness/bittersweetness of the chocolate component.

:yay: GAIL . . . the big secret to this weight-loss game seems to be in the keeping it off part and not neccessarily in the joy of reaching any particular number. It's pushing toward 3 years for me 'this journey' and although I've still got a long way to go before I even break out of the "obese" category. I'm both amazed and pround of my almost 75 pounds. :yes:

Okay . . . guess I'd better get around to a few places while I'm lucky enough to have a connection . . . hope to see you all later. :

Hi All,
Well, I'm off to a good start! I must say I've enjoyed this week. I've made 4 cheese lasagna, curry veg. soup, lt.& fresh veg. soup, p'nut chicken stew, & fruit soup. All were terific!! I spent a lot of time in the kitchen though, which I don't mind but I won't be able to do that all the time. So I froze indiv. portions. So I have lunches & dinners in the freezer & I'll keep adding as I try more recipes. I'm excited!! I've been having soup & sandwich to work for lunch. For breakfast I've had GM Wheaties, which is what I want to ask about. The book says 2 cups is a serving (which I'm NOT complaining about) but the box says 3/4c. is 100 calories.............which should I go by?????
And the oatmeal serving seems quite LARGE too? Can I really eat this much and LOSE wt.?
I've really not been hungry betw. meals=) Today I tryed the frozen fruit smoothie-banana, pinapple, 1pk. sw.n.low, ice, & club soda to get it mixing......... it was SUPER-GREAT!!!
I've not had desserts/sweets this week either....which says a LOT for ME!!
I ate 3 plain dk. choc M&M'S just to see what they taste like (I'd never tryed them b4) & that's all I ate-3!! I didn't even want more!!! WOW!!

Good going, REGEE. I think cooking ahead and freezing in portions is one of the things that has helped me the most. I am burned out on journaling, counting, etc. I always know that my single servings are just right. Every few months, I make a gigantic turkey meatloaf. I slice it and freeze the slices individually. Then I toss it all in a freezer bag. I love meatloaf sandwiches. I also cook up a bunch of chicken breast and slice etc for chicken sandwiches. I have spent a heck of a lot of time in the kitchen, but it has paid off.

Linda, I had forgotten about your cocoa powder/yogurt desert. I will have to give that a try again.

Tonight I had a really gigantic stir fry. I told DH to watch out - I will probably explode sometime during the night. Anyway, 3 oz chicken breast, diced, onions, bokchoy, bell pepper, bean sprouts, asparagus, garlic and spinach. I love beansprouts - the seem like some kind of pasta. The only significant calories in all that is the chicken and the oil (1.5 Tbs). I used canola oil.

My DH likes to make Betty Crocker cakes. The store had them on sale for $.99, but you had to buy ten at once. So I did. Other than that, everything else I got was fresh and unprocessed. My fridge is full of produce and chicken. A friend went to the peach orchard and brought us back another 20 lbs. So, I have no excuses for not eating healthily. Other than 10 cake mixes. LOL.

Oh, yes, someone was talking about center cut bacon. It looks just like regular bacon with the fatty ends cut off. Only it really wasn't that lean and Hormel brand cost over $6/pound (yikes). I think I could just trim regular bacon. I thought the term "center cut" meant it was a different cut of meat.

:wave:

The desk-top has an appointment for this afternoon about 3 . . . add to the time estimate from the 'wizard-guy' of 5 or 6 hours in his shop plus another hour or two when he brings it back, the fact that it is the weekend, and the fact that Hanna is supposed to hit us late Saturday (with possible power outages), I have absolutely no idea when I will get back on-line. :dizzy:

In the meantime . . . hope everybody has a good weekend. :lol:

Hi Regee- This diet plan is good, but I think it's just like everything in life- if something seems too good to be true, then it really is. I would suggest taking the serving amounts and calculating the ED number and seeing if it's acceptable with the Wheaties, and with the oatmeal I would double check if you're measuring it dry or cooked. You still need to watch the carb amounts you're having. Adding ED things to them makes them more acceptable to eat, which usually means adding fruit or milk. Lots of times I eat just plain oatmeal, uncooked, with fruit and milk- it's kind of like granola, but without any additives at all. I like it a lot just like that, but you can also add sweetener if you need to.

I don't know about wheaties, but I use 1/2 c dry oatmeal to about 1 C of water. The box says this is 150 calories. I eat oatmeal and fruit almost every morning.

Different things work for different people. I seem to be in the "eat all the time" school. I always need a snack between breakfast and lunch, but if I didn't do that I would eat a bigger breakfast.

For lunch today I made fish tacos. I cut up a small tilapia filet and fried it in about 1.5tsp oil. Shredded purple cabbage, red bell pepper, green onions, placed this on a warmed tortilla topped with the fish and a lime-yogurt-cilantro mix. Quite tasty and pretty.

Well, Linda, we'll see you when we see you! I will be interested to hear what was going on with your computer. Mine is working really well this morning. I hope you don't have too much trouble with Hannah.

Tonight, I ate "salade a la Linda" - romaine, feta, and blueberries with raspberry vinaigrette. In my opinion this is a really great combination. I bought a bag of frozen blueberries. By the time I finished everything for dinner, the blueberries were just right. In fact, the blueberries were so sweet and juicy, I had to get the package back out of the freezer and check if they had sugar added. Nope. I was looking for frozen raspberries yesterday, but I could only find the kind with sugar added.

I'm talking to myself. LoL. I made a big recipe of butternut squash soup. Recipe from cooking light. It is resting comfortably in the freezer.

hi all- it's been a great relaxing weekend. yesterday and today the db and i got in a great walk with the puppy.

Hi, I have been doing good:-) Today I made a Vol. Pizza & it was GREAT!!
I put 3 slices in the freezer & 2 in the frig. for this week.I had an omelet this AM and it was really good too. I'm soooo glad I found this way of eating & this site!! I have not weighted myself in a couple of wks. but I FEEL a lot better w/myself!!

Sorry it's been a while since I posted...back to driving the bus, and life in general...

Eldest son is rapidly finalizing his Eagle project for Scouts, and the parental assistance needed therein; the garden is starting to produce many tomatoes (and weeds...); DH has been called in twice this weekend to cover the third shift (he's a tuckered pup, to be sure); and the various and sundry day-to-day chores, distractions, and "Mom, I have a question..." - that would be youngest son.

Good thing, though - all these tomatoes mean it's time for my favorite meals. I just finished a yummy tomato/bread salad - Chopped tomatoes, tossed with a light sprinkle of salt, pepper, and a pinch of sugar. As I am a garlic fiend, I sauteed 3 sliced cloves in a tablespoon of olive oil until lightly golden - I drained most of the oil (ended up with about a teaspoon), and added the oil and garlic to the 'maters - along with chopped fresh basil, a sprinkling of balsamic vinegar, and a 1/2 ounce grated parm cheese. The bread - I toasted it, rubbed both sides with a clove of garlic (mmmmmm), cut it into cubes (you can toast it again for crunch factor) - then tossed it in with the tomato mixture. You can wait a bit and let the bread soak up the juices - I generally dig right in, crunch factor;).

The other recipe is in the oven - roasted tomatoes and herbs. I coat the bottom of a roasting pan with olive oil (2-3 T), halve or quarter the tomatoes, lay them cut side down in the pan (this uses a lot of tomatoes). I coarsely chop garlic (1-2 heads, peeled), scattered over the tomatoes, then sprinkled with salt & pepper, and whole herb leaves (basil, thyme, sage, parsley - whatever sounds good). Place in 250 degree oven for a good part of the day - the juices will carmelize, the tomatoes will wrinkle and shrink down, the garlic will brown, the herbs will darken and dry out. We usually spread the tomatoes over a good italian bread, or I'll whir the whole batch in the food processor - the sauce created is incredible.

mmmmmm - love the 'mater season....

I have made that tomato bread salad. Yummy. Anything with tomatoes and garlic has to be good.

Here's hoping that Linda didn't get blown away by Hannah. I saw on tv yesterday where Hannah had gotten to the Canadian Maritimes.

hi all

Judi- welcome back to work!!!

I tried to post yesterday, but got bumped, so I'm trying again today.

This time of year, (with all the tomatoes,) for lunch I cut up tomatoes, put them in a small bowl, top with LF cottage cheese and seasoned salt. Stir. If I'm still hungry, I have an LT- it's a BLT without the B. Yum!

Still no Linda, so I guess she's having some serious computer issues...

Liz - hmmmm - the tomatoes w/cottage cheese sounds intriguing - I've never really eaten cottage cheese "as is" (usually cooked or mixed with something else), and that salad might just bring me into the "CC Camp"! I'll give it a shot for lunch today.

Yeah - Linda's 'puter issues seem to have kept her off 3FC - hope she's back soon!

I'm back . . . finally. :yay:

Don't know when (if ever) I'll actually get caught up after being off-line since Friday the 5th. I think it's going to take a week to find all my stuff and somethings may have just gone off into never-never-land forever. :( Most of my software is reloaded but actual application files have disappeared.

Never a dull moment . . . :lol:

So, Linda, what kind of weather did you get from Hannah?

It was hardly a burp . . . lots of rain, but not even very windy . . . at least not right around here. There were some places in Atlantic Canada that had a lot of flooding, but here in northern NS, we got quite lucky.

Welcome back, Linda! I hate computer stuff- I think the worst part is the helplessness to fix things yourself. It's to the point that unless you've really studied computers, you either need to ask favors of people who have or you need to pay people to help. Speaking of which, we're going to bring mine to my daughter on Sunday so she can get the new one up and running while we use the old one. I get to see how the puppy's doing, too, so it's a good deal at the cost of dinner out for everyone.

Good Morning . . . :wave:

Fall is definitely around today . . . beautiful and sunny but only in the single digits (below 50F). Good day for the weekly mall-crawl anyway.

See you all soon.

Another beautiful morning in northern NS . . . hope things are glorious in your neck of the woods too.

After I got home yesterday and started playing around with the computers, I decided I'd need to 'go to town' again today to find a book -- something along the lines of "An Idiot's Guide to Vista for Dummies" might be appropriate. :yes:

Other than that -- SSDD -- see you later :wave:

In Kansas were having lots of rain and more is coming. So it sounds like I'll be stuck in the house.

Hi, Happy Weekend:-)
I've had a good week even though I've had a visit from 'Granny'. I had a craving for 'something' so I made some Fluff (cottage cheese FF, jell-o SF, cool whip FF, pineapple & manderin) It has been good. The portion is large and it's only 200 cal.
Have a great weekend Ladies!

:wave:

Lots of rain here, too. Looks like we'll have more coming from the hurricane in the next day or two, also. Gas prices sure have jumped, and just in time for us to take a day trip to see my grandpuppy again!

Have a safe trip Liz.

I went to my parents this afternoon to let Bruiser run around their big yard.