Welcome Tams! These are a great, totally supportive bunch of ladies. We are all at different points in our weight loss, and started at different places. We look forward to learning more about you!
How is your first week going? What is your biggest struggle so far? We've all been there, and we'll be glad to help you through it!
Hey Fiona,
My first week is doing ok. My biggest struggle was the first 3 days with the Take Off plan. I didn't lose a lot of weight like the counselor said I probably would and that was disappointing.
I started today with my Gold plan and unlimited starch and proteins. I can't eat the limited ones yet.
Tammy-Welcome! I think if you stick with the program you will be so glad you did! The first week is tough as you are depressed because it was so easy to go to the fridge and eat whatever. Now you need to stop and think what you should be eating and how much! It becomes second nature though so hang in there!!
Hi to everyone else! Fiona you always have the best advice!!!
I just got back from weighing in and was down again! I have lost 2 pounds in one week! AND the best news of all was I went to the mall for a pair of jeans and thinking and banking on a 10, well I walked out with an 8!!!! I have not wore a size 8 in like 9 years!!!! They are a little snug in areas but I know by next week they will be perfect! I would have waited as I still have 15 pounds to go but it is soooo cold here this week at school and well the 12's looked just ridiculous. I am going to hang on to them and everytime I start to eat wrong on maintenance I am going to have those as a reminder of what I have worked so hard for!!!
Have a good day OP everyone! I know I am still floating!!!
Sammy
Woooooow Sammy, you are doing GREAT!!! I have never worn an 8 - lol - I went from a six to maternity clothes to a 14 and up from there....lol. I cleaned out some messy drawers in my bedroom today and found 3 pairs of 18 jeans and two 16s that obviously never got boxed up after they didn't fit anymore - I tucked them up on the closet shelf where they are out of the way but I can see them and be reminded of them everyday. Couple more weeks, maybe.... It'll be interesting once I reach 170-160-ish...I don't own any clothes from that size down to a six, because I never WAS those sizes!
I didn't weigh in today because I was up a lot on my home scale...don't know what's going on there...I'm going to go tomorrow regardless but hopefully the news will be better.
Tammy, I didn't lose a lot those first few days, either - not as much as they hyped, anyway. I think because I didn't eat as much as they encouraged (or drink as much water - on top of all that juice)! Since then I've had really good weeks and really bad weeks based on how closely I stick to the plan. I know you can do it!
Happy, the first few weeks are confusing. If this helps, in my dairy at the bottom of a page, in the purple section where you check off your water I write in the following (I’m on the GOLD plan):
P P V V V F F F S S D F
(ie, Protein, Veggie, Fruit, Starch, Dairy, Fat)
That lists what I can eat for the day. When I write what I have eaten, I put a check near that item I listed (at the top) when I put a line through the letter that I used. Does that make sense? Of course, modify for fit your plan.
Fiona – hope work goes better today.
Sammy – congrats on the pants! What an awesome feeling, with many more to come…
To all, as far as the cheats – I write them down, and put Opps next to them so they know that I know what I have done. And, actually – I don’t have many cheats – if I do cheat, it’s only with the items on plan. For example, if I’m having a hungry day and feel the need to eat something and I only have 1 fruit left, I should only be eating a ½ of a mango, I might eat a whole one – which means I would go over by 1 fruit. Not a major crime, but still a cheat as far as OP. The majority of the time, I do not get tempted by cookies, cakes or chips. But I do have a problem with peanut-butter and ice cream and try to avoid them. Overall, I guess it’s my state of mind this time. I really want to get to my goal and stay there. I have found with my other attempts at losing weight and not succeeding were do to the “oh, this cheat won’t matter” – it’s only 1 piece of cake, which leads to just a taste of ice-cream, and maybe a few fries, then I’m back to eating the way I always did to get me into the same situation again and again. What also helped me is that last year, when I was almost 200 lbs, I was talking to some ‘thin’ friends, and they were saying how they have to cut down on their foods just to stay where they were at – I never thought that ‘thin’ people had to watch what they ate, I always thought they could eat what they wanted.
Fiona, I wouldn’t say that the SF/FD pudding was a big cheat – come on, LA sell pudding which is probably more calories then what you ate. That is another reason why I don’t buy their snacks. If I have a starch like a slice of diet bread, it’s only 40 calories, and 3 LF Triscuts are maybe 60 calories – their LA snacks can be counted for a starch and they are at least 90+ calories. What’s up with that? Double standard for LA products (that if you read the ingredients – they are sometimes worst that what you selected).
Does anyone know why we can have FF Cream Cheese and not FF Sour Cream?
About the LA Lite Bars, I am completely out and don't want to invest in anymore. I have most recently tried the Luna bars, I hate to say this, but they just aren't as good. All the flavors seem to taste the same to me. They can't hold a candle to the LA Double Chocolte or the Chocolate Crunch. I also bought some of the Nabisco 100 Calorie Packs, Oreo Crisp and Chips Ahoy, which also fall way short.
Star, have you tried Clif bars? They're made by the same company as Luna bars, but they're a little more geared towards men, as Luna are geared towards women. The Clif bars have a little bit more in calories and maybe fat, and a little bit less of the "women's nutrition" stuff like soy protein and extra calcium, but they also taste a little better than Luna bars. Luna does have a couple of flavors I like a lot though - I think my favorite was one called "Sweet Dreams," which tastes like its got a bit of Bailey's Irish Cream flavor to it. But I do agree that Lites definitely taste better than Lunas.
Oh, if you like the Double Chocolate lites, Slim Fast makes a chocolate brownie bar that I think is pretty similar. There's a Slim Fast bar that's really similar to the cookie dough Lites, too.
Thanks so much for the warm welcome, and the tips. Im on the gold plan, and they just introduced me to the carb cravers menu. I was relieved to see it, since afterall you can have a slice of pizza again. I was a little worried that I couldnt have that again.
Also about the cheating, Im glad y'all get whipped too! The first week, I went over on a starch one day, just 1 and it was a diet peice of bread, yep got whipped at my weigh in. I was so overwhelemed that it slipped passed me, and I couldnt believe their reaction. I understand their point, but still it was a very humbling experience.
A little bit about me, Im 28 married, with 3 dogs, & live in the lone star state. I havent always had a weight problem, this was something I aquired along with my college education. I signed up to lose 20lbs, that would put me at 140, and Im 5'3 & at this point, Im not looking to be model thin.
Star:
I really never found any other protein bars to be as satisfying as the la lites, some were either to sweet tasted terrible or had more calories than the La lites did. Balance bar also had some that tasted pretty good. I don't know how much you pay for protein bars but here I would pay between .99 cents to $1.29 so it would end up being almost $10.00 a week depending on which one I got.. If I caught a good special at Lawl I would get them for around the same amount I was spending in the supermarket. Just my thoughts on the lites.
Welcome Holly I am the same height as you and going for the same goal, I am older than you though.
Diane
Hi all- about the lites, my mom is on LAWL and refuses to buy the lites. SHe has been op for about a year and has never bought a box. She still looses (when she is POP as she has slip days and weekends too!). But just to encourage you the diet alone works wonders!!! I bought in bulk the 20 boxes and still have 14 left at the center. To me they are good about every other day. I get sick of them and the routine taste!!! I have school on Tues, Thursday and braces so when I eat them well if anyone has had braces you know what a train wreck that can be! Plus mine get really... not hard but very tough and they are hard to bite into???? I do absolutely love the PB as I miss my PB sandwiches and Reeses PB cups! I should have had a couple more handfuls of those before I started! Today I licked the knife after making my son's PB sandwich and it was sooooo dreamy, and creamy and well I miss PB.. Interesting comment about the LA Snacks, I was wondering about the cheez puffs because on the carb cravers for lunch one could have a sandwich which only counts for a protein. Well yesterday I bought a bag of baked lays plain and had about 1/2 a serving (yes, more than one!!) but there was less fat, calories ect. in them than the trisquits which I had been alternating with my bread for lunch. Any thoughts??? It is sad to think that we will have to watch what goes into our mouths even after we are thin. I think by then our stomaches will have shrank and we won't be nearly as hungry and the stuff that is bad but tastes good won't taste as good then! As far as the supplements they were having a sale on them at my center today but I really have little interest in them as I feel it is a ploy to make money.
Aim-have you noticed on the slim fast bars if they are the "snack bars" or the "meal bars?" I buy the "snack bars" but was not sure how the "meal bars" compared in calories, protein, carbs, etc.....
Good day to all will check in later! Anyone heard from June or Kristi???
It'll be interesting once I reach 170-160-ish...I don't own any clothes from that size down to a six, because I never WAS those sizes!
The first week, I went over on a starch one day, just 1 and it was a diet peice of bread, yep got whipped at my weigh in. I was so overwhelemed that it slipped passed me, and I couldnt believe their reaction. I understand their point, but still it was a very humbling experience. 
Interesting comment about the LA Snacks, I was wondering about the cheez puffs because on the carb cravers for lunch one could have a sandwich which only counts for a protein. Well yesterday I bought a bag of baked lays plain and had about 1/2 a serving (yes, more than one!!) but there was less fat, calories ect. in them than the trisquits which I had been alternating with my bread for lunch. Any thoughts??? It is sad to think that we will have to watch what goes into our mouths even after we are thin. I think by then our stomaches will have shrank and we won't be nearly as hungry and the stuff that is bad but tastes good won't taste as good then! As far as the supplements they were having a sale on them at my center today but I really have little interest in them as I feel it is a ploy to make money. 
