Thanks Jessica. I just googled that book and I think I might order it... I want to really step it up on the weights because I'm okay with my weight but I am NOT happy with my body!
Hooray, my portion of the class is over, and I had good students this year (as opposed to last year's, who didn't want to participate at all). Despite wearing sunblock I've gotten a little pink and the sun is wearing me out. I'm glad I don't have more field work this week. I'm going to hide inside my office in the AC for the next two days.
Iris, I did the NRLW program last year, and really liked the results. It was challenging and the program changes up the workouts often to keep from stagnating. My arms looked awesome! I wish the workouts didn't end - could the authors have a website or something that they just post my workout for the week on, please? I'll keep "buying the book"!
Lily, congratulations on the new grandbaby! LOL about the ark. I wish we were getting some rain here on the coast! All the storms seem to have skipped over us. I wasn't a rebellious teenager either, but I'd definitely take those car keys away in addition to withholding allowance. Shelbey doesn't usually cause this much trouble, right?
Dagmar, your meal sounds delicious, healthful, and beautiful! I really like to make pretty looking salads. I feel like I'm getting a real treat if my food looks nice.
Sheila, your trip sounds lovely! I've had a veggie garden for a few years, and do a bunch of potted succulents, cactus, and herbs. As I live in north Florida I put the veggies in the ground in early March, and can usually do two growing seasons, another in the fall/winter. This spring I've got tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, bell peppers, jalapenos, eggplant, lettuce, radish, and onions. I've gotten about 3 lbs of green beans off the plants in the last two weeks so I've been eating lots of those, lettuce, and radish so far, and everything else is blossoming. Yum!
Shanna, glad to hear you're taking care of yourself.
I actually posted a question about "Lift like a Man, Look Like a Goddess" earlier tonight in the weight training part of this forum.
I'm not sure if that - or another book I posted on there - provides good results since I'm only into weight training for about 2 months now. I'm still reading those books so I'm reserving judgment (especially since I've heard very good reviews myself on "Lift like a Man...."!!). But I'm very motivated to keep going overall in weight lifting!
Congrats on your own weight loss progress!
Meg (and everyone else wondering what to do about Mother's Day) ... I'm getting a terrific, NON-caloric gift for my own mother this coming Sunday
It finally came out on dvd on tuesday-- the movie "Enchanted April." It's a wonderful, relaxing film that many people loved dearly when it came out in movie theaters in the early '90s. It's a perfect gift to kick back with your mother and watch on a Sunday afternoon
~ tea
Last edited by teawithsunshine; 05-07-2009 at 05:46 AM.
. . . to temptation and I jumped right through last night.
I spent a really long day fighting off the caffeine cravings and keeping my mental state positive. I even walked a "problem" dog I haven't seen for over a year for my last walk and handled him really well.
I was really pleased and proud of myself when I got home. DH walked in about 20 minutes later with grocery bags which he squirreled away in the kitchen.
After dinner he pulled out rice cakes and regular potato chips. When I mentioned that I was trying to keep junk food out of the house he replied
"These are better than cookies and ice cream, right?"
They are, if you can eat a portion. But we never can. So I caved and sat there eating in front of the TV with him.
I feel so beaten and depressed today. I still can't figure out why I gave in after feeling so great about my NSV (of a kind) with getting through yesterday without that 3rd diet Pepsi.
Since my weightlifting tournament I've been having lots of trouble on the maintenance front. I know I sound like a broken record. Heck, I feel like one. I've been lacking motivation to go to the gym. I got off my early morning schedule and don't want to go after work. When I go, I do halfhearted elliptical and maybe strength training, I don't do any high intensity cardio. And I'm just totally addicted to eating right now - I want to have something in my mouth at all times. Last night I ate an entire sleeve of Ritz crackers between the gym and dinner. I wasn't hungry, I didn't even enjoy them, had crazy dreams last night and woke up still tired from the carb hangover. I wake up every day and I tell myself I'll be better by eating xyz and doing abc exercises at the gym, and I don't even believe myself. Those of my pants that I can still get into are tighter than ever. I'm not even frustrated... just sort of despairing. I don't know what to tell myself to snap out of it.
Thanks for listening, I just needed to get it off my chest.
Ants invaded my gym bag yesterday! Actually, my car, probably from the parking lot at work, and then got into the gym bag. I spent 20 minutes outside the gym waving and shaking my shoes, bag, and just about everything in it around outside the gym. The people walking by were very entertained I'm sure. Luckily most of them were going into the gym and knew me, so knew I wasn't crazy. Ants have gotten in my car 4x in the last 5 years. Gah!
My sis and I are getting our mom a non-caloric gift for mother's day, too. She's an avid gardener, and my sis found a pretty rain chain for her this year (her turn to buy the gift). Tea, sounds like the movie will be a lovely way to spend the afternoon with your mother.
Dagmar, you're doing a great job cutting back on caffeine! Don't let a little snacking slip ruin your week. Do you have a hobby that could keep your hands busy while watching TV? I crosstitch (hello Megan, take your own advice here!), but something like that - knitting, scrapbooking, even sorting through bills or receipts or solitaire - just something to keep your hands busy instead of eating?
Dagmar - sorry you got pulled into the snacking! I drink a lot of hot tea during tv time to keep from snacking, and just got several great decaf teas actually. Great job with turning down the 3rd Diet Pepsi, though! You'll get back on track!
Megan - your vent sounded like I wrote it, you just described me right down to the halfhearted exercise, the pants and the despair. I got off schedule a month or so ago, haven't been able to fight myself back on. I've been eating more and exercising less.I know I've been a broken record on here lately myself, and I'm sure people are thinking "you are eating too much junk and not exercising, why does weight gain surprise you?". I'm certainly thinking it. I've been trying to snap myself out of it this week, too. We can do this! I exercised yesterday morning and did some yoga last night, didn't do any this morning because I'm going for a run after work and didn't want to overdo it - not an excuse, trying to remove one from tomorrow. My pattern has been nothing, nothing, nothing, way too much exercise in a couple of days so I wind up sore, leading to more nothing, nothing nothing... I have tried the standing naked in front of the mirror when I want a snack or candy this week - it has actually stopped a couple of snacking plans.
We are not doing non-caloric for Mother's Day... We are doing a luncheon at a cute little restaurant south of Atlanta. My SIL, her sister and myself have done a big luncheon or high tea with all of the mother's grandmother's, MILs, and a couple of aunts every year since 2001. It has become a tradition. It started out as high tea, but the tea room we went to closed and we haven't been able to find another one convenient. This place has all organic food, grown on the property, and cute desserts. I don't think it will be too bad - got a menu in advance and there are several options that aren't too bad for me. DH & I are taking my MIL to see the Star Trek movie on IMAX on Sunday, so there is likely to be popcorn, but I'm pretty good at limiting that to a small amount and sticking to water.
Tea - I love that movie! You and your mom will have a great time!
I've eaten below maintenance calorie for two days in a row now, and yesterday was candy and extra snack free. I'm only about 150 calories under the TDP recommended maintenance level, but considering I've been eating 300 over their level for the last several weeks it is progress! I did some yoga yesterday and only fell flat on my face once. Planning a run at the park after work, some strength training in the morning. DSS all weekend with lots of running around, so don't know how much exercise I'll get in, but am going to work really hard on the eating at least. I'm going to get back on track. I really want a two piece bathing suit this year - not that I go anywhere to wear it, but I still want it! And, my shoulders look really great IMO right now, and I don't want to lose that.
We have no plans (caloric or non) for Mother's day. I doubt my DD will be home and we only plan on going to see Star Trek. I flatly REFUSE to go out to brunch on these "holidays" because I simply HATE crowds!
Megan~vent away. I certainly understand 100%. Total frustration here!!
Yesterday I attempted to "embrace hunger" and did quite well. I intended to do the same this morning, but my stomach said otherwise! Anyway, I really feel more in control right now and think that this new cookbook is really the perfect answer. I've always said I hate diets that tell you to eat this or that...I prefer choosing my own meals. That's why calorie counting is the best for me. Anyway, for the past several nights we've been eating well measured/weighed meals from my new cookbook (Cooking Light Fresh Fast & Easy??) and so far all have been great! Last night I chose another 6 or 7 for next week and made my shopping list already. I'm really happy with my choices so far and as long as I continue without major setbacks, I foresee getting back to goal by mid summer (or sooner if I'm lucky!).
Megan, yuck about the ants!! One time at college I picked up my laptop off the floor only to find an entire colony of ants had been swarming around underneath it. They were all gone by the time I managed to find some RAID. As for being in a rut, maybe you need a new eating plan too? Believe me, I have been in that same rut for the past year+ and it gave me 20lbs. So far picking up a brand new diet plan has been working great. I think you and I usually eat pretty similarly except you probably get more protein than me. Maybe you should try Volumetrics? Not to be an evangelist, but I've found that fundamentally it's the same as my old plan, but having a different way to calculate has made a major difference for me.
Then again maybe I shouldn't suggest it until I actually am back to goal weight. My scale was insane this morning. I weighed 5 times, some before my shower and some after, and I got 146.4, 146.6, 145.8, 146.6, 146.4. I'm so bad, I picked 145.8 to write in my log!
Tea, I'm following the workouts from NRLW but not the diet or anything else. I don't do well with high-protein diets, so I figure as long as I'm getting enough protein it should work out okay with NRLW 2x/week. I like the workouts because I can really tell that I'm working my muscles. I'm sore for days afterwards (the good sore, not the bad sore!).
Allison, glad the cookbook is working out for you! I love Cooking Light. My maintenance plan for the past few years has always been picking recipes from Cooking Light for the week, doing all my shopping at once, and then only eating CL recipes and some other staples (*cough* spaghetti and canned sauce *cough*) during the week. I only ever pick recipes that take less than half an hour to make.
As for Mother's Day - I sent my mom a plant and small box of truffles, and a card to my grandma. We're having DH's family (including his mom and grandma) over for brunch Sunday. I figured having them come to our house and me cooking would end up way healthier than going out! I've been trolling the Cooking Light website for recipes and I think I have it nailed down. We'll have fruit salad (just plain cut up fruit), lowfat vanilla yogurt, lowfat granola, so people can make a whole salad/parfait/whatever out of those, then muffins and scones (I think I'm just going to use a mix for these, my time is not infinite! ), Hash Brown Casserole with Bacon, Onions, and Cheese (made with turkey bacon, DH's family is just Jewish enough to not eat pig meat ), and for dessert Sparkling Fruit Gelees. I found a recipe for Fruit Salad with Honey-Yogurt Sauce but I think I'll just go for regular fruit and yogurt.
I'm having mixed feelings about whether to make muffins and scones myself or use a mix. I want to use a mix because it's less work for me, but on the other hand I have a weakness for breakfast breads and I'm likely to overindulge on something like Betty Crocker blueberry muffins. I have a history of doing things like making a package of Jiffy muffins and then eating ALL of them at once. At least if I made them from scratch I could make something healthier, but then, this brunch is for the moms, not for me.
In case you're interested, this is the Cooking Light book I got. It's a lot different than the recipes from other books, the magazine or the website because the ingredient list is short and the recipes are super fast to make. Fresh Food Fast
. . . bathroom, kitchen, living room. I put out the commercial traps and they are almost gone three days later. I don't like poisoning any critters but this was just too much. There were hundreds of them.
Things are going better on the caffeine reduction front. Last night I accepted that, since I'm withdrawing a chemical from my body, my body is going to crave all sorts of other things to try to replace that false energy caffeine gives me.
I have to give it a couple of weeks and get over the caffeine cravings before I start to seriously diet : down to goal again. I can't do everything at the same time.
I have been beating myself up over not maintaining my weight instead of congratulating myself on kicking my last serious addiction.
TGIF, I get to sleep in tomorrow! (Probably will sleep to the late hour of 7:15 like every other weekend, lol.) It's getting hot here and field work in the sun has been sapping my energy, so I just need to be sure to get plenty of sleep. I had a much better day yesterday. No extraneous BLTs or off-plan eating, and made myself get on the stairmaster for some HIIT at the gym and got in a good workout. I just need to keep it up.
Shannon, thanks for the support. We will cheer each other on! How was your run last night? This is the thing I appreciate most about all my friends here at 3fc - no matter how many times I've whined about falling of the wagon etc. someone understands, we've all been through it, no one tells me to just be quiet. We will do it! We will get back into our skinny pants, comfortably!
Dagmar, eww, your ant problem sounds way worse than mine! The apt. I lived in growing up had really bad ant problems all the time, despite professional monthly spraying. I hate the poison too, but sometimes you just don't know what else to do, cleaning doesn't deter the little buggers! Hang in there - caffeine is a really hard habit to kick. I used to intentionally not drink caffeine during my college breaks to detox myself a bit, since it was my favorite study aid. My mom would be alarmed that I was sleeping 10, 12 hours a night. "Megan, are you ok???" You will make it and you're right, you can't do everything at once.
Jessica, I would have picked the lower number too, lol. Your mother's day brunch for DH's family sounds delicious. About the muffins, first of all, does DH's family and DH all like muffins/scones? Do you need both? (Are you really making the m/s for them or for you is what I'm getting at.) Then, since it's such a problem area for you, I would suggest setting the cooking time such that they are coming out of the oven after your guests arrive. Have some little goody bags/tupperwares all ready, and package up the leftovers to the Moms and Grandmas and hand them out as they walk out the door. Then there won't be temptation lying around for you.
Allison, glad you're enjoying the new cookbook!
I don't really have plans for the weekend besides the usual working out, chores, etc. (though I think I will sit down tonight and make a chore to-do list, and schedule my workouts in, food log, etc. to make sure I stay on track). Is anyone doing anything fun? Moms enjoy your day! Have a great day all!
Megan, that's a good point about the muffins and scones. I do love them. I'm afraid that with my BIL there if I don't have a lot of food it won't be enough -- the man is like a bottomless pit! Even more so than DH! But you're right, I probably don't need to make both. Maybe I will just make scones because I am more addicted to muffins.
Okay, so my first week on my new plan I lost 1lb, but this week I only lost 1/2 lb. Still a loss, so that's good. I think it's because I ate too much crap last Saturday and ended up at 2000 cals. Goal for this weekend: my only cheat meal will be the brunch, and I will keep my calories in check even with that cheat. Maybe next week I'll have another 1-lb loss that way.
Dagmar, ugh, I hate ants! We had them last year. I used a spray that you spray along their entry points and trails, and it deters them from coming back for up to six months (according to the package). We haven't seen them since then.
Allison, thanks for the link! I may have to pick up that book!
Hi ladies... I'm new to the maintenance forum, so I hope you don't mind if I join in I've been lurking around here for the past few days, and reading through everything in this forum, and I must say that you ladies are quite the inspiration to me, and reading about your struggles and successes have made me realize that yes, it is just possible to keep this up and keep off the weight long term.
If you'd like a bit of background... the hubster and I started our own TBL contest back in January as we'd both packed on a few more pounds than we would like.. Our TBL contest ended on 4-25 (I kicked his butt btw ) Unfortunately, for the next week after that, due to a combination of grad school finals stress, not having time to cook or go shopping, and that wonderful "I'm finally done w/ my diet so OBVIOUSLY that means I can eat WHATEVER I want" feeling made me go right back to my old eating habits... Fortunately I realized what I was doing after that week lol, so I've been back on track 100% for this week...
Anyhow, I'm good at doing the diet thing... but this whole concept of maintenance is still something I am trying to wrap my head around... I still have a few more pounds to go before I hit my goal weight, but I think that right now it is more important for me to start focusing on the longterm, keeping-this-up-for-the-rest-of-my-life aspects of my weightloss journey, rather than the immediate dropping of the pounds... So anyway, that's what brought me here... I hope to learn a great bit from you ladies, and also to offer whatever support or advice that I can along the way
Ants! I hate them! And, for the last two nights they have been crawling around on my kitchen counters, too! They haven't moved to anywhere else yet, and there haven't been many, but I know it is only a matter of time if we don't get the ant barrier out...
Allison - Thanks for the link to the cookbook, I'm going to give it a try.Glad it is working for you!
Jessica - I'm with you on the muffins or scones. I have no willpower for them at all when they are hot out of the oven. If I'm going to cook muffins I get the Krusteaz low fat Blueberry or Cranberry Orange, which are a little better than the Betty Crocker. Timing them for right as your guests arrive and package them to go is a good idea - I've done that too. Or, I package them up and bring them to the boys who work downstairs right away. Good luck! And good job on the loss so far!
Dagmar - you are rocking on cutting out the caffeine! Don't beat yourself up over maintenance right now, cutting out the caffeine is a big deal!
Megan - We can definitely get into skinny pants again! Work conspired against me on the running plan last night - I got out two hours late and still had to go shopping for clothes for DSS for this weekend. Instead I did 75 minutes of exercise when I got home - swiss ball, strength training on the Weider, some calisthenics and some kickboxing for cardio. I have rescheduled the run for this afternoon. On the upside of working late, I finally hired the staff accountant I have been searching for the last three months! That was totally worth changing my exercise plan over. The important part was that I changed my plan instead of scrapping the exercise altogether. How are you doing today?
Yesterday was day 3 of eating under maintenance calorie level and staying OP. I changed my evening a little since I got home so much later than planned, so can't say I was POP, but was still 100 cals under maintenance and had no extra snacks and no candy! I'm back under redline today, but still not where at my ideal. I'm sore today from the weightlifting, so probably retaining water again - I looked back at my diary from last year, and my pattern seems to be to bloat a lot in the warmer weather. Darnit. My big work stressor is gone with my new accountant starting work on Monday, so I'm hoping I'll settle down emotionally after that and things will start to feel natural again instead of forced.
Good day everyone, and good weekend!
ETA - Welcome MtnChic! Come on in and post away! Congrats on your TBL contest victory! I'm still wrapping my head around maintenance, too, after almost nine months. The people here have been a great source of support and advice along the way. Look forward to hearing more about you!
Last edited by Shannon in ATL; 05-08-2009 at 10:13 AM.
DH opened the door . . .
I have tried the standing naked in front of the mirror when I want a snack or candy this week - it has actually stopped a couple of snacking plans. 
One time at college I picked up my laptop off the floor only to find an entire colony of ants had been swarming around underneath it. They were all gone by the time I managed to find some RAID. As for being in a rut, maybe you need a new eating plan too? Believe me, I have been in that same rut for the past year+ and it gave me 20lbs. So far picking up a brand new diet plan has been working great. I think you and I usually eat pretty similarly except you probably get more protein than me. Maybe you should try Volumetrics? Not to be an evangelist, but I've found that fundamentally it's the same as my old plan, but having a different way to calculate has made a major difference for me.
My scale was insane this morning. I weighed 5 times, some before my shower and some after, and I got 146.4, 146.6, 145.8, 146.6, 146.4. I'm so bad, I picked 145.8 to write in my log! 
any critters but this was just too much. There were hundreds of them.
all sorts of other things to try to replace that false energy 
caffeine gives me. 
: down to goal again. I can't do everything at the same time. 
on kicking my last serious addiction.
How was your run last night? This is the thing I appreciate most about all my friends here at 3fc - no matter how many times I've whined about falling of the wagon etc. someone understands, we've all been through it, no one tells me to just be quiet. We will do it! We will get back into our skinny pants, comfortably!
) Unfortunately, for the next week after that, due to a combination of grad school finals stress, not having time to cook or go shopping, and that wonderful "I'm finally done w/ my diet so OBVIOUSLY that means I can eat WHATEVER I want" feeling 