Well, the sore throat turned into a good head cold. Last Feb. it took me a month to get over something like this.......maybe that's because of the prednisone. Not very peppy but I did get my exercise in first thing this morning. Just can't seem to get enough sleep. So I will lay low for a few days to see if I can shake this early. Of course, food doesn't look quite as appealing and maybe that's good!

Fiddler, I was thinking about something you said about not weighing and wondering why that was. Does it bother you to when you weigh? Just wondering.

It doesn't bother me. Or at least I don't think it would--it has been such a long time since I knew my weight that I'm not really sure. Mostly I just consider it kind of pointless and counterproductive, for the following reasons:

• Keeping in mind that the objective is to lose fat, not weight, I just don't feel it's an accurate measure of my progress. My weight tends to fluctuate wildly. I once lost 14 pounds in 24 hours. There's no way that all, or even most, of that was fat.
  
• I feel that not weighing puts me more in touch with my body, in keeping with basic IE principles. If you're not weighing, you have to pay more attention to how your body looks and feels to tell if you are making progress.
  
• I put on muscle easily. When I work out a lot, it tends to stall my weightloss temporarily, even though I still lose inches and body fat percentage points. If I were going by the scale reading, it would discourage me from exercising. (In fact, how many times have you seen people on these boards say that they've decided not to exercise until they're near or at goal because it slows their weight loss?) There is more and more evidence coming to light that it is one's level of activity, rather than their weight, that determines their general health. That is, active fat people are more healthy than inactive thin people. It's a personal decision, and I'm not criticizing anyone else's choice, but for me the right choice is to exercise.

The people at the gym I go to do weigh me. I stand backwards on the scale so I don't see the number (it's silly, I know). They also tell me what the trend is, i.e. whether I'm losing, gaining, or staying the same. And I have told them that once I am under 200 they can tell me what I weigh. :)

Time to smack those hands
 

Seems like as soon as I stop posting things go down hill, blah. My eating didn't do so badly, but i was doing the I'll excercise later or tomorrow, and it never comes.

Anyway, I've been having foot and knee problems and I went ot the doctor till I had a thought. I only had knee pain when I DIDN'T excercise. So I am back at it again...and guess what the knee and foot pain is better.

Questions. I know where doing IE and you can have what you want, but do you have something you just can't have in the house or cook because regardless of how hungry you are you still what to gobble it down?

I love my spaghetti, nothing special about it. I made it and it is sitting in the refrigerator. I have been moderating it, but I've been I seem much more aware of it than I am of other foods.

How is everyone else doing?

Hi, Obi! I think with IE the idea is if you allow all foods that they soon loose their specialness and I have found that to be true even though I have not lost weight. I have tried to go back to dieting but it just doesn't work anymore. I read The Sonoma Diet and when I got to the chapter where she says to throw out all sorts of food I thought, "Does she think I'm the only one living in this house?" Maybe it works for some. I remember what Gwen Shamblin said about changing the heart instead of trying to make the food behave and I have to agree. Anyway, it is an exciting journey so keep posting . Love those posts!

Forgot to say that right now I have a terrible cold which has really cut the appetite. I, too, have foot pain and sometimes it lasts a year but then goes away and I don't know why...just glad it does. Just recently the side of my left foot was really bothering me for probably 4 mo. but now it's gone. My mom was thin and she had foot and knee pain off an on, too, so who knows what causes it.

I know that if I were to get all the foods I like out of the house it would just make me want them that much more.

Besides, there's something empowering about having them there and having the choice to eat them, but choosing not to. I feel that's a more "adult" way to deal with food, instead of treating yourself like a little kid and putting it all out of reach by removing it from the house.

Just my opinion.... :)

Still not feeling up to par with this cold but the sneezing has at least lessened. My appetite is still low. Does anyone ever get constipated when they don't eat as much as usual? I haven't had trouble with that in a long time since I try to get in a lot of fiber. Also wondering if cold meds could cause it.

I like posting everyday. It helps me keep track of things. I just emailed a friend who is also doing IE and has had similar trouble with meds like me telling her that one of my problems is associating weight loss with illness. I wonder if that can become a subconscious distraction. It seems the only time I ever lost a lot of weight is when I was really sick and in the hospital. But I don't think of myself as an emotional eater. In fact, when I'm stressed I tend to avoid eating. I just enjoy good food and was thin until I started dieting and fasting. To get back to the old thinking seems to be a mighty hurdle to overcome.

I had stopped posting because I figured everyone didn't wanna read about boring ole me, but here whats been going on. Well remember how at the beginning of the month I was supposed to do all this excercising to hit my first goal (being able to use a scale that only went up to 350). Well in the middle of the month I started talking myself out of working out...I'll do it later, I'll do it tomorrow. You get the idea. Then my foot started to hurt. (and my other knee pain came back) Short story finally went to the dr...and he found some other unrelated problem that had nothing to do with the foot, and then told me I would need to see him regularly and you get the idea. So I have an epiphany(sp?) I can't stop working out. I mean I can, but then I feel crappy and since I don't want to feel crappy I need to work out...period. So I have been back at it with my walk away the pounds DVDS, and my knee and foot pain is gone. I am going to order Turbo Jam after Xmas is over.

As for eating, no problems, and I think my body is along for the ride as well. I came home last night and Friday is my no cooking night, so I picked up some fast food. I bought like the days before IE (I would think no way I can eat just a regular serving and buy 2) so I took it home ate half and the rest is sitting in the kitchen and I have no desire to touch it.

Obi, you are not boring! That's how we learn.......by reading how others are handling things. Way to go on the exercise and leaving the food behind. Someone had started a thread here saying there shouldn't be a McDonalds add on this site. I didn't answer but I love McDonalds. After 10 kids it has to be one of my favorites though I don't go there often anymore. The kids are nearly all grown up....youngest is 16. ha! I talkd to my son last night. He said they had a foot of snow in Milwaukee. He and some friends had walked to a Thai restaraunt downtown and said the food was awesome. Can't wait to visit him again.

Hello, Intuitive Eaters!
 

Hi,
I'm Jo, and am a new chick to this entire site. Carol with the cute cat avatar posted a welcome to my intro and suggestion to join you all. I have not read all the intuitive eating posts but have skimmed most of them and it does seem like a good place to be. I have not read the books but I went to the Intuitive Eating website and read the basic principles. Makes sense to me. My intuitive stuff is definitely counter to what most people do (eating and otherwise!)
It's good to see all the support and encouragement going on here.

jo

There is an Intuitive Eating thread that has the first 350 posts that you might find interesting, Jo. Please share any or all of your experiences with IE.

new chick questions
 

So, is there an Intuitive Eating thread besides this one at Intuitive Eating #2? I didn't find any other. I have read throught the first 8 pages and *I like it.*
Please excuse my new chick questions but what is DH? I am amusing myself with possibilities: Designated Hooligan? Drunk Hunk? Desirable Handyman? Darn Hangeron? And what is TOM?
:?:
Thanks,
jo

DH Stands for Dear Husband.

The link below is a link to a post about all the acronyms. I was pretty confused until I happened on it.

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=83585