Chazmom, All you use is cooking spray? That sounds really good!! Have to try it. I'm having pizza tonight but probably won't eat that because of the calcium. I made a little pizza that I won't put only a sprinking of cheese on. My daughter-in-law and grandkids are coming up and my hubby is going to be late working. The crust is rising so there won't be much else to do. When I make pizza crust I usally double it and freeze half. Works great.
Hi ladies,
Gosh I stay away for two days and come back to for pages of reading!!! But good reading it has been. I've read several things I want to comment on, but I don't want to flip back and forth to who posted what, so I'll shove them all in here. Okay???
First, The weighing issue. As my nutritionist reminded me, weighing is a no win situation. If I lose weight, then I either think- Why didn't I lose more? or Hey, if I start a crash diet I can lose faster. or Time to go out to eat to celebrate. If I gain weight, my thoughts are- I'm just a loser, I might as well go binge. I thought I could handle weighing, but when I weighed and I was only down 1 pound in a month it didn't feel good. I couldn't even give myself credit. I guess I'm going to have to put off weighing for a while more.
Another thing I have to guard against is the "little tricks" for helping lose weight. When I read about the orange water that you "have" to drink. It just made me think diet all over again.
My biggest trick in keeping the craving bug away has been planning a variety of food each week. I used to get in the habit of eating the same foods all of the time. That would lead to cravings because I never got to eat anything "good". It is such a powerful and amazing feeling not to be binging any more!!! The weight may not be dropping off like I would like, but I feel so proud of not going out and buying food and binging in secret! When there is food in the teacher's workroom, I don't HAVE to eat it any more. It is embarassing to say, but I used to sneak in when everyone else was in class and load food (usually sweets- the more chocolate the better) into napkins, my pockets, etc.and take it somewhere to eat.
I am reading a lot about people "putting off" their hunger or waiting to eat. I worry that that will lead to being overly hungry and eating more than necessary. I interpret IE as being able to eat when you feel hungry and not eating when you aren't. We have strictly enforced not eating in front of the TV at our house so that we can be fully present when we are eating. It is amazing how much food you can put away when you are watching TV and not even realize it!
One last thing. I have had to break some of the ties with my friends who are actually "eating buddies". My older sister was a huge eating buddy of mine. I hate to blame my weight on her, but when I moved back to Texas and started hanging out with her is when my binging got out of control and I gained 30 pounds. She would come over to put together a puzzle and bring pounder bags of M&M's, pizza, etc. She has since had gastric bypass and lost at least a hundred pounds. Her eating is still out of control and she vomits all the time because she over eats. I am afraid she will gain all the weight back. I don't go out to eat with her anymore. I only invite her to actual activities that are not food related.
Okay, I think that is long enough for now. I have felt really good about my eating lately. I love not having to go to bed and say to myself, "I'll start again tomorrow. Maybe it will be a better day" Each meal is a success story or a learning experience. You can't lose!
Well today I didn't pack anything to eat when I finally did get hungry so on thew way into work I picked up a jamba juice (they make smoothies with just fruit and nothing else) got a small. About an hour later I was hungry (I think I might be able to tell the difference) and had a pack of peanuts. Ate half the pack and then a little later returned to it.
I had a problem at work that I needed to be around for so I was ready for lunch when I finally got a chance to leave and I was headed to Wendy's with a vengence. About a block away I asked myself do I want Wendy's because that's what I want or am I eating it because of whatever is going on at work and it is (was) a forbidden food. Maybe I thought of it as comfort food or revenge food???? I don't know, but I know until the issue at work cropped up it hadn't even occured to me to eat there. I made a turn and headed to subway which was what I had been thinking about before the drama erupted at work.
I'm trying to buy a condo and it has been fillled with highs and lows, so today I called my attorney who I really am learning to dislike. And there is no news (we are waiting for the title work to come back) so I am just on hold. I called her right before I left work. When I got off the bus to come home I wanted fried chicken and I realize now it was really just a way to comfort me for the whole house thing. I ate what I had planned. and I am venting here. House Buying Sucks....
On a weird note. I was telling my co-worker about the whole IE thing and I said the cool thing is there really isn't a wagon to fall off of for me. LOL
I failed to mention the chicken was baked...sorry. Here is the whole recipe if you want to try it.
Southern Oven Fried Chicken
1 Cup Corn flakes, crushed
1/3 Cup Flour
1 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Ground Red Pepper
2 Egg Whites, slightly beaten
1/4 Cup Skim Milk
2 lbs. Skinless Chicken, cut into even strips
Mix all dry ingredients in large bowl. Mix egg whites and milk in small bowl. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray cookie sheet with butter flavored cooking spray. Dip chicken into egg mixture and coat with corn flakes. Place on cookie sheet, and spray with more cooking spray. Bake for 15 minutes, then flip pieces and spray with more cooking spray. Continue baking for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
So I had no bkfst or lunch and was starving for dinner. I had thawed out some turkey meatballs I had in the freezer...another good recipe, you cook them in a mix of ketchup and whole cranberry sauce in the crockpot. Anyway...I kept eating them and I honestly never felt full. I ate slow, got up and piddled in the kitchen and I could still eat more. Maybe with skipping lunch I was a bottomless pit....oh well.
So today I had....I am thinking 7 meatballs? A green salad and some corn.
Still not feeling satisfied I just ate a piece of cheese on whole grain bread and now I feel full. Not miserable, but full.
Hope everyone has a good weekend. Mine is filled with football! Going to a high school game Friday night and my son plays on Saturday. OH....I booked a show for a girlfriend and I to go and see on Sunday. It is called...and no, I did not make this up....Nipples to the Wind. Seriously...the reviews have been good and it is suppose to be a fun show about women for women. I will give ya'll my review in case it plays near you in the future.
I can see some of you are like me........you get over hungry and then can't seem to get full. I haven't quite figured that one out yet. Maybe there is such a thing as getting too hungry. Maybe we need to pay a little more attention and address the hunger when it begins. But, hey, I'm as guilty as anyone for skipping meals!!!! Kay, your post was quite an inspiration.....and not too long. I love reading. As to house buying. well. we only built one house and made plenty of mistakes. We probably won't build another so we can't really learn from our mistakes. ha!
Thank you carol, You put a much needed smile on my face. I am going to try and ignore it and just hope it all works out. When they call and tell me everything is done I'll deal with it then.
runnin, I guess I don't see it like a diet. I figure if there is something I can do to help my blood sugar not plunge several times a day making me want to eat constantly then I will do it. I am not a bkfst eater and never will be...drinking the orange water makes me feel better in the morning plus it helps me get in the water I need during the day and it is easy. I like easy. When I drink it or don't drink it, I am usually ready to eat around 10-10:30, but would rather wait until noon to eat with friends. I do use little "tricks" she suggests to help with that, which would be to eat 2 pb crackers, or 15 peanuts, or a couple oz of ham, etc....In the past I would have grabbed a sandwich and then gone and had lunch. I have found that 2 pb crackers will tied me over for an hour or so. So I don't think the "tricks" are too bad. They are tools you can use if you want to, but you don't "have" to do anything.
She does say if you follow her advice you will get the best results. The same concept is still there. Eat when you are hungry, stop when you are full. She says to give your brain a chance to realize it has been fed, to eat slowly and take 20 mins for your meal. I do find that to be true and helpful info. When I took her class I met many returning people who had and are maintaining huge wt losses. More than half of the people in her classes were referred there by their doctors. Several were diabetics and had high cholesterol and it is amazing to hear how their blood sugar levels and cholesterol and are now manageable from the wt loss.
I like the "tricks" just telling me to stop eating when I am full is not enough...heck, you would think I should already know that.
Today I had a kids chicken nugget meal from chik-fil-a. I gave up sodas a couple of years ago, so had unsweet tea. It was plenty for me and very satisfying...I LOVE chik-fil-a! We are having Mexican food for dinner. A "trick" would be to crunch up some chips and dip each in salsa, eating slowly rather than consuming a whole bowl so as not to be full when your dinner shows up and eating it anyway because it is there.
I agree with you... Some stuff from my "skinny" days has been coming back to me. If I was hungry and dinner was something i really liked and was within a few hrs, Id have something really small or wait it out...I would rather have the good food.....SAVING room for dessert was something i used to do too...instead of cramming it in on top of a huge meal.
Ive been journaling since I started out on this...not to count or anything...just curiosity if I would start eating alot more. My calorie consumption is way way down, im just not hungry very often, and Ive dropped 1.5 lbs in the past week. I was actually under 700 yesterday, and full...had to fight off the little voices in my head saying "thats unheathy go eat some more" and "WOW, I have enough left over today to eat 1/2 pint of Ben and Jerrys Chubby Hubby" I just wasnt hungry tho so I didnt. When I was counting calories and eating stuff I wasnt really crazy about because it was low cal...I had a hard time staying under 1200 -1400...I realize now that it wasnt that i wanted more food, but that my appetite wasnt being fed with my hunger...does that make sense? Food is also much better when its A. exactly what you were in the mood for, B. you are hungry, and C. you are taking the time to really enjoy it.
Chewing food (suprising huh... who'd a thunk) has been working incredibly well for me...stop a second when you get your plate ready and look at it too (or if you are the praying type, use a second to thank your creator for the wonderful bounty he has put in front of you)....smell it, take smaller bites and chew them...really taste everything...give your brain a chance to catch up to what your mouth is doing lol....Ive also been trying to throw away at least a bite of everything on my plate (sounds weird, but its hard...at least for me...Ive been a member of the Clean Plate Club for 10 years now) I find that the portions im eating are much smaller before I am full...and if i get hungry later...the food aint going anywhere...I got a houseful ...lol
Button, I know what you mean about tasting your food. Once I started slowing down and actually tasting what was in my mouth I was shocked how many things I thought I really loved now are really gross.
I used to love lettuce wraps from a local chinese place. I could not get the first bite down after I let it sit in my mouth for a minute and actually tasted it. It was an eye opener, and kind of sad that we just shove in the food and never enjoy the taste of it. Or in this case, not enjoy the taste of it
Wow! so, I've been doing this Intuitive Eating thing for about 3 days now and I've lost 3 pound with no stress. I went to a friends house today for lunch. Any other time I would have felt stressed not knowing how many calories or points or whatever there would be and subsequently overeating.
Well today I had a victory that I wanted to share. I actually went to my friends for lunch and enjoyed my meal and the visit with no stress. I ended up eating half of what I would have on a normal day. I was just having so much fun with the conversation I didn't realize I had stopped eating and when I looked on my plate and saw there was still food I really felt comfortable and didn't want anymore and actually left the other half of the meal there instead of stuffing it in.
I went on the thintuition website today and ordered the starter kit (book and hunger guides) the one free guide I printed out is really helping me alot during this new adventure.
I have to honestly and with all my heart say 1000 blessings to who ever started this thread and a 1000 more to all of you who are sharing your experiences and stories during this process of IE. I truly feel free of diet stress - You've all truily made a difference in little little ladybugs life.
Thank you!
and I'll keep loggin' on with my stories and progress too.
WTG ladybug...thank carol for the thread...Im glad I found it too...helping me re-learn HOW to eat....such a stupid thing to lose touch with...Just wish I had found it sooner...would have saved me 5 months of calorie counting...pah...Thanks carol!!
Button and Chaz, you are so right about really taking time to taste the food! IE has really ruined a lot of food for me! Now that I am actually trying to slow down and taste food, lots of food isn't as wonderful as I once thought it was. Also, when I was binging for emotional reasons, stress, anger, revenge- (Which is a whole other point- I would get revenge by hurting myself with food!) I was so intent on the emotions that I don't think I actually tasted anything. I was just trying to numb the pain.
It is actually disappointing when Friday night comes because I used to take care of the stress by drinking lots of wine and eating chocolate. Now that I can do it, and it isn't a "reward" at the end of the week, I don't crave or even want it!!!! Jeez!! I feel like a party pooper!
BTW... the whole wine and chocolate thing has been a habit for more than 5 years and now its gone without a fight! Isn't that crazy! (I would usually make sure to indulge on Saturdays too) Now I would rather drink a couple of diet sodas!
Obsidian, I feel your pain with the house shopping. We were trying to buy a condo or townhouse when we live in Los Angeles and it was a nightmare. Then we saw how much cheaper everything was in Texas (and lots of family was here) so we literally quit our jobs and moved to Texas in one week. Our realtor kept calling our cell saying, "Where are you?" We said, "We moved to Texas." I trully think he thought we were lying. The only downer was that we had to live with my parents for 3 months while we found a house. Luckily we got jobs within 2 weeks. I love my parents, but you know, you can't go back and live in their house and feel quite right. If we went somewhere for dinner or something, I felt like we had to ask permission. We would never have been able to do it all without them though. Now my boys get to see their grandparents all the time. It is wonderful.
I was actually heading to bed, but wanted get this out before I forgot....
For me I had sort of start the IE on my own, but this thread (thanks to whoever started it) and the books that were recommended have given me a guide to focus on.
I think that whatever program chooses (IE, Low card, WW,..whatever) it is more of a guide than a hard and fast rule. A person need to do what they need to do to make it ok for them.
So for me my relaxing moment of the day is when I can settle down and watch the stuff I Tivo-ed. I don't really have a problem with food at home it seems to be everywhere else that is the problem, particularly work. So my challenges for next week are to not to eat at my desk and take the entire hour I get for lunch.
I have never been much of a calorie counter, but I seem to be doing 2 meals and 2 snacks. I eat more fruit and vegtables than I have in who knows how many years. I think alot of it is becuse I am not forcing myself to do it. I drink more water now than I did before and I don't seem to have to go to the bathroom as much as I once did. I still have some emotional eating issues to deal with but each day I get better at telling the difference between biological hunger and everything else.
I also had to do something that may not make much sense. I had to have a hamburger to prove I would not overeat and something bad would happen.
Near Miss
