been OP, doing great, got up this am and was down 2.5 lbs on my scales...was like woo hoo, had a meeting before going to MRC for weigh in so ate one boiled egg, tiny bit of water....then weighed in and only 1 lb loss :-( not 2.5. when i got home i took off my pants and weighed in...down 2.5, put them back on and 1.5 more!!!! so disappointing but i do know i'm losing so i tried not to let it bug me. so from now on, i'm keeping a change of light clothes in the car! to change into!

Weighed in at lunch and was officially down 1 pound from last week. I'll take it! 4.5 pounds to go until I hit my wedding weight.

Tami - :bday2you: :celebrate: :bday2: I hope you are having an awesome day!!!!

bigdog - Sisters can be so mean that way! LOL You'll show her! And congrats on your loss today. A loss is a loss in my book. And, I'm with you on wearing light weight clothes at weigh in. I have a set in my car that I wear every time I weigh in so I know that the weight difference is me and not the clothes I happen to be wearing.

Candi - So great to see you around again! I've missed your posts. You are looking incredible. It's amazing to watch your journey. I hope things settle down for you soon.

Bigdog -I hate that! Clothes can really make a difference. I try to wear almost the exact same thing every time. At the risk of being obsessive, I track both my home naked weight on a paper with the center's weight next to it. You can see the trend better when you look week to week at both because clothes and water and time of day can mess it up. I know the center weight Is supposed to be the one that counts, but really it's the overall trend that keeps me motivated.

Candi- that was so cool to see your changes!!!! You must be so excited. You are truly changing your life. Oh, and your hair looks fab!

Key point: "when she stopped cheating and fooling herself.". That really took my breath away.

me too, Camaswa...hit home and remotivated me to take this seriously. we have the tools to lose weight, so we can do it!!! journal, be accountable to ourselves, drinking water as i type this!!! i walk every am 40 minutes and am planning on dusting the exercise bike off and riding that this pm while watching tv. i love the recumberant bike - easy to ride, just need to get my bootie on it and pedal!! i think that will step up my loss and tone up too! oh, re: the sage suit...put that on yesterday am and spilled makeup on the skirt! OMG, this is why i wear dark colours..i'm a mess! so haven't worn it yet...LOL

Thank you all for my birthday wishes...it was a great day :)

I lost 1lb at my WI, but I am crystal clear that it is my own fault. Patzi is right about the cheating..staying OP is key.

Eating out simply does not work. Every time I do, it sets me back so far. Sometimes I get frustrated with my counselor, or with the program, and forget that it is "Tami" that is making the choices. I seem to continue to justify myself, and it isn't working in the long run. I want to get this weight off, and know what I need to do to get that done...just need to DO IT. It is hard, ladies....some days are just plain hard.

Tami:dust:

like Tara told me, a loss is a loss!!! i lost 1 lb this week too. hey, pick up a lb. weight...i was going to say a lb. of sugar but i'm sure you don't have sugar in your pantry w/ this diet! lol .that's one more pound off!! taking it one day at a time :-)

Big Dog...
My scale at home is 2 1/1 pounds under scale at MRC. I wear the same two pants for weigh in and then take a change for when I get to my business.
I had them weigh a pair of jeans for me, which I thought were not heavy and they were almost 2 pounds on scale.. Congrats on your weight..

Jen...
Congrats to you on your weight loss, and hope you are feeling better.

One thing I can relate to y'all about myself before I started MRC.. I always felt sorry for myself, and was angry when I went out to eat and it was poor me, because I could not eat and drink like others, so off diet I went. If I gained weight I would be angry with myself and reward myself with fattening food and it would spiral out of control. I just could not stop eating . I was doing South Beach Diet and cheating like crazy, and when I gained, would just go wild with crazy eating.. All a mind thing and like I said yesterday I was fooling myself, as I would cheat and my weight kept escalating.. When I joined MRC, I made my mind up this was it and I was going to stay OP.. It is not easy, trust me, but it is the only way you will make it to maintenance. I always told people I was on a special diet, and if they liked it fine, if they did not, oh, well that is their problem.I have never been up front to people about dieting in the past, and it felt good. But one has to stop and think this is about me.. I want to become thin, I want to feel good and look good..You will all make it, but you need to stay OP. No other way will work.. Remember there is this forum and as I said over and over, I would not have made it without it..Also remember don't say to yourself, a little of this won't hurt to eat or drink, well, yes it will , as it is not being OP. It will creep in there as a weight gain.
Hang in there, it will all turn out.. Remember I am the queen of seed.. There are times I took off .2 pounds, which I called a seed, but it all adds up.. I wish you all the best, you can all make it. If I can help anyone at any time, please feel free to ask.

On another note, please post any holiday recipes one might try and recommend.
Patzi

Thanks Patzi for more words of wisdom :-)
at least i'm losing and i'm very happy about that! i am a former "Weight Watcher" join, lose, lifetime member, gain, join again for 20 years! wow, crazy, huh? but i did meet some great people at the meetings and am still good buddies w/ some of the leaders. i like this food plan better and it works. w/ WW, even OP sometimes i wouldnt see a loss at all and would even gain a couple lbs sometimes during weigh in. when i joined in August, i've only gained one time out of all those weigh ins and it was a pound. Wow, that is a huge accomplishment for me. and survived this program for 10 days on vacation at the beach. i love it! trying new recipes and making up HNS protein drinks has really helped me. i mix the vanilla creme w/ the pink lemonade HNS sometimes and count as my one creamy a day or the vanilla w/ diet orange soda, etc. i love this food plan...it's easy to follow and not too many crazy choices like WW. i had a friend that ate her 22 points using slim fast bars! haha, she wasn't successful in losing at all.
i love the Egg Custard - do you have that recipe? good w/ blueberries for lunch...or strawberries...

Candi, I just have to say that you look fantastic!!

Joining Again
 

Hi everyone. I see some familiar names, but mostly new people. I'm Rocki and I did MRC in 2008. I lost 48 lbs. I was much healthier, felt, and looked great..well..3 years has gone by and I have slowly but surely worked my way back up the scale. I've gained about 30 lbs back and really need to get back on track. I'm thinking of going back to the center on Monday. I really need the accountability. However, I can not afford to buy the supplements and drinks. I have my own drinks and snacks still left over from the many times I bought them (I re-signed several times from 2008-2010). I think I can get 10 weeks for $79 and with the holidays coming up I can earn more weeks for losing over those weekends probably. I'm hoping I can get up to 14-15 weeks and lose 30 lbs again.

What do you all think? What's the average around here? I know everyone is different. But realistically, is 2-3 lbs per week reasonable to expect?

I have to get back to the gym and start eating right. I will try to come in here for support and to give support as well. This group was a HUGE part of my success before. I've struggled over the last year and a half with trying all kinds of different plans again.

**Ignore my ticker..I need to update it. I tried Atkins this year (along with other plans)..

Wow - I'm back 2 days in a row!

Thanks everyone for the compliments! I think when I get frustrated, I'm going to pull up this collage to put myself back into place.

As for the clothes thing at WI. I take a pair of light weight pants and will have to take a tshirt, now that it's below freezing in the mornings. It was actually 27 this morning. Brrrrr! I have a digital food scale and have been known to fold up a pair of pants or top and change the settings from ounces to pounds and weigh them before I put them on and if it's too much, I find something else. I don't own a real scale and refuse to buy one because I know I will become obsessed with it and probably throw myself way off and on the wrong track if I weigh myself everyday. I know I will eventually need to buy one when I hit stabilization.

Patzi made mention of holiday recipes. I would LOVE to know what everyone does for Stuffing on Thanksgiving?!!? And gravy? Still no gravy OP which is going to be hard for me. Easter has really been the only holiday I had to deal with but I can live without Ham. But Turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing & gravy? I don't know. I'm getting real nervous about the holiday season. :?:

Haven't checked in at center yet today but had to go see my family doc for an apt today. WI there and down 2lbs from what the center said from last week so I'm hoping that is the same when I get to WI for them. The thing that made my day was the excitement my doc had for me. My hubby told him I was losing weight but he said he had no idea how much. From my heaviest there I've lost about 40lbs he said. I didn't realize I had lost almost 20 on my own before MRC...it was just taking much longer. He was extremely happy which made me feel even better about this. He is helping me get on the bio identical hormones through another doc (I use military for main apts and found another doc off base for bio identical) I am so grateful to have such a wonder doc!

Ok, turkey is on the plan and you can make the pureed cauliflower w/ chicken bouillion - as a substitute for mashed potatoes.. if you don't have the recipe, i'll search for it tonight... they have fat free gravy in a can and i'm sure you can add some turkey to that to add taste.... there's a recipe for deviled eggs in the MRC cookbook..... the stuffing could prob. be made w/ the lite bread?... i used to make pumpkin pie w/ sugar free fat free vanilla pudding mixed w/ canned pumpkin and lite cool whip, nutmeg, cinnamon. i didn't put in crust but served in wine glasses (like a mousse) but i'm sure it's not on this plan but better than the old fashioned Pumpkin Pie. i have to go to a restaurant w/ my in-laws for thanksgiving. and it's a buffet w/ tons of desserts and a chocolate fountain. and mimosas which i usually overindulge in (did i mention dinner is w/ in-laws?) hmmm...may have to do the one bite and leave and fill up on turkey and veggies.....