This is an observation I had tonight, and I wonder if anyone else noticed something similar. I've been on plan for 5 weeks (not counting preconditioning), and I notice my finger nails are super strong now. They were always strong, but now they don't break at all and I could not bite them even if I wanted to. I guess it's the protein and EFO's?

Victoria--YES! I've noticed the same thing! Even had some ask me whether I'd gotten my nails done! Nope, I just painted mine! I didn't think about it being the protein, but could be. I also take MSM, so thought maybe that was it-who knows, but I like it!

I've noticed the same thing. Also, my hair grows like crazy.

Well, it's official.. I'm taking a "vacation" and going to Orlando to visit my best friend, his wife and their new baby boy. Not really counting it as a real vacation because I will have to work for a few hours each day.. the downfall of being the only one that does what I do and people can't live without me or at least live without my reports I do each day.

So I'm starting my game plan now to stay OP while I'm there. Luckily, I have a direct flight from Northwest AR to Orlando but on the way back I fly from Orlando to Charlotte. If that plane lands in time, I have 35 min to make it from US Air to a Delta flight that takes me to Atlanta. Then Atlanta to Northwest AR. I've never had to switch airlines before - so hoping my bags get from US Air to Delta without me having to get them and recheck them in because doing all that in 35 minutes probably won't work

Anyway - I'm staying with my friend, so I will be able to cook and I'm going to take bars & shakes just in case. I'll be gone from 8/12-8/18.

I just keep thinking.. If I can go to a Snack & Candy show and still lose weight, then I can go to Orlando and lose weight!

Can't wait to see all my friends and play around in my old stomping grounds. Oh, and I'm not going to Disney or anything like that.. I lived there for 12 years and hardly went and really have no desire. It's all about visiting and seeing the new baby.

Congrats to all the losers this week!

Hoping everyone stays cool. Today we are supposed to get up to 108*. Yesterday my car temp showed 112*. UGH!

As for the corn... that's all I grew up with. I ate corn and my brother ate green beans. Now I'm eating green beans! I do miss my corn & carrots but if I was going to plan a cheat it wouldn't be with one of those two things. It would be a slice of pizza or chocolate cake or ice cream Oh the sacrifices to a healthier person.. but I would much rather continue losing weight and getting more healthy then to go off program and probably feel guilty if I did cheat.... just my 2cents.

I have much catching up to read - and apologize to everyone for falling so far behind. I've really been discouraged. I've been at the same weight for two weeks now (& that's a pound up). While I sit and limit my eating I watch my husband cut back, but not nearly as much and it seems every morning, he's like "another pound down". I'm glad because I want him to be healthy, but for crying out loud...it's like he's putting in very little effort and getting huge results. I'm doing tons of work and getting no or little results. Extremely hard to motivate myself while this is going on. Sorry for the rant and congrats to all who are staying OP and losing!

Victorialynn - Yes! My nails are super strong right now. Love it!

Candi - Doesn't matter if you're home or on vacation, I know you'll rock it! Heck, even if you were going to Disney, you can still stay on plan there. That was a big thing for me to learn. I cheated at Disney because I wanted to, not because there weren’t options there.

coarkkayaker - First, have you discussed this with your counselors? If you have good ones like mine, they can help give you suggestions based on your food sheets and ways to bust out of the plateau. With regards to the foods you are eating, check the sodium content. This is something I just dealt with. While I thought my turkey was good for me, 4 oz. contained 1100 mg of sodium! No wonder why I wasn't losing any weight. The fresher the food is, the better. You can also modify what you eat on plan to help push you out of the stall. My center's “plateau buster” consists of sticking with chicken, turkey, & tuna/white fish. Veggies should be green beans, squash, or zucchini. Starch as normal. Keep fruit to berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, etc.) No cheese or protein bars. Doing this for a few days helped get my weight loss moving again. What else? Make sure you're drinking enough water. Meta-Quick is also great for moving your weight loss again. Don't give up hope!!! Just stick with this and it will start moving again.

*****

WI at lunch and down another pound! Actually, my scales this morning read 161.8, but the center's only measures in half pound increments. Bummer! LOL That just means I have a "bank" of 0.2 pounds when I go back next week.

Dieting with husbands is never good for motivation. In general, they lose so much faster than we do, and if you compare yourself, you'll go crazy. Maybe you should tell him that while you're very happy for him, it makes it all the more frustrating for you when you're stuck like this. He could probably tone down the celebrating if you ask him to.

As far as the plateau, they stink. I've just gotten off one, and the scale is finally moving again, but I was stuck for a week and a half, and it's definitely not fun. It WILL move again, though, if you stay OP. You just have to figure out a way to keep it from messing with your head in the meantime. And JenB has great suggestions as well for getting past it.

When my husband did WW (or a modified version of it) with me, we ended up just talking about the diet in general and not how much we'd lost that week. It was easier for me if I didn't hear his number, but we were still able to be supportive about eating OP, etc. He didn't last long, lol, but at least it gave him some perspective on the difficulties of dieting. Now when I diet, he's really sympathetic. He's always able to just lose a few lbs. if he wants by not eating out, or cutting a little junk-- it's definitely frustrating to see how easy it is for him, but that's the way it is.

Candi – congrats!!! I’m so happy for you, you are rockin’ this program! What a difference in your physique – pictures always tell the story.

Tkdtara84 – congrats on your one lb loss. Some days, I get on the scale praying for any kind of loss. At least it is moving in the right direction. Hopefully the loss will speed up and you’ll see the kind of drops you want to see.

Brandy8188 – congrats on your 10 lb total loss!!! Can you notice a difference in the fit of your clothes?

Goneforgood1128 – good luck on making it to your goal. You have the tools and knowledge to do it.

HappyHallie – I’d do the substitute and eat the corn (a FRESH seasonal item), but only if it is going to be a one-time thing. However, with that, you have to be able to not beat yourself up if the scale doesn’t like it and you have to re-focus and not make it a habit. That’s just my opinion.

LetHerOut – I’m so sorry to hear about your grandfather. The loss of a loved one is difficult to deal with and I’m a stress eater, so I tip my hat to your only gaining .5 lbs. That testifies to the fact that you’re taking in all of the information and making lifestyle changes – you were probably still mindful of what you were eating and practiced portion control. Things I’m still struggling with.

Momoffour – happy to hear that your body is responding to the meds. It is SOOOOO hard to gain weight when you haven’t done anything ‘wrong.’

Ginpea – I’m right there with you! I was exhausted yesterday!

Coarkkayaker – so sorry that you’re putting forth effort and the scales aren’t cooperating. It is not fair that men lose weight so easily! But it’s a fact of life. Jen had some great ideas, so I wish you luck.

JenB72 – congrats on your loss!


I went to weigh-in yesterday and I was up .5. But I'm okay with that given my weekend. Also back at work and I'm so tired...this will take some getting used to. But at least I have a few days before the kids come back. I was SUPER SNACKY yesterday and today I am retaining water...ugh! But I guess this has sparked a fire in my head of what happens when I am not diligent and on program. So, today, I'm much better, making better choices and such.

I'm almost out of the cortitrim and phentatrim and planning on giving it a go without them considering their cost. So, cross your fingers that things still go okay.

Jen - great ideas for breaking through. Thank you.

tkdtara - thanks for sharing your experiance with your diet partener lol. We'll have a good talk about it tonight.

luvs2read - thanks for the support.

thanks everyone for your support - I'll stop being a baby and get back to work! I'm going on vacation next week - and it'll be a challenge for me to come back and tell you all that I lost while on vacation...keeping my fingers crossed.

Thanks for all the support, everyone.

Candi, the airline will check your bags all the way through to your final destination. No need to retreive and re-check them! I always fly with at least 1 layover. Enjoy your trip. I look forward to hearing your strategies for staying on plan while traveling. You'll do awesome!

Coarkkayaker, Jen had lots of great ideas for getting past your plateau. Plateaus are a normal part of the weight loss process and it means you're doing everything right! Stay OP and you'll see progress. As others have mentioned in the past, while you aren't seeing scale changes, you could be losing inches.

I WI tomorrow. Looking forward to it. I did mess up my lunch yesterday and included a starch when I wasn't supposed to. Don't know what I was thinking!

Hello everyone! Thanks for the feedback on the nails. I wanted to make sure it was the program and not my imagination. lol I'm only taking the EFO's, multi and mineral vitamins, so I really think it's the protein. I've read gelatin is good for hair and nails and I think that is in the protein source in the HNS. Too bad it doesn't get rid of gray hair!!!

corkkayaker - you got good advice and I personally had a stall when I had too much sodium and started the protein bars. I'm leary of the bars now and don't eat the deli turkey.

Rzrbackcandi - Have fun and no stressing. We all know you will be fine, especially with all the preparation you are doing.

On another note, I'm curious what some of your names refer to. Mine is obviously my first and middle name. Back when I first used it in 95, there was already a victorialynn, so I added the 2, and have just stuck with it over the years.

Mine is short for tae kwon do. It's silly that I still use it. It was my AIM name in high school when I did TKD, but I haven't done it in years. I just use that screen name for everything because it's never taken, and it's easy for me to remember, lol. 84 is my birth year.

do i have to buy all the supplements and vitamins and shakes, etc. or can i just follow the food plan? congrats on your success!!!

tkdtara - I thought there would be some interesting explanations. I think the first place I used mine was some chat site in 95. Who knew we'd still be using them years later? I hope others share their stories.

bigdog - most centers require you to buy the HNS drinks at least. They help with the weight loss and ensure you loose fat, not muscle. They require a multi and essential fatty oil. Some want you to buy from them, others are fine if you want to buy them somewhere else. Most other supplements are optional and again some centers are more pushy about them then others.

Personally, I buy the HNS drinks because they taste good and I can't find them cheaper if I buy 10 boxes for $100. I bought their multi vitamin, mineral vitamin and EFO's but as I run out, I'm going to get those at Costco. I also bought the super veggie but it's not what I expected. I expected it to taste like most green drinks with spiruiina, but it has a minty flavor I don't care for.

Well - I grew up in Arkansas and went to the University of Arkansas for 3 years before moving to Florida. Our college teams are known as the Arkansas Razorbacks (GO HOGS! WOO PIG SOOIE!) Sorry, had to throw that in there! Only 29 days until College Football and I'm stoked! Anyway.. I was a Marching Razorback for those 3 years and loved every minute of it. So when I moved to Florida, I set up a gmail account WAY back in the day and just did rzrback and my name is Candice so I just shortened it to candi