Another sodium- free diet soda is Hansons. I love the ginger ale and spritz with sparkling water. I buy it at Trader Joes.

This is so important! How much of the time do we eat stuff that isn't even worth it? Stuff that's not even all that good! Why do we do it? To please others, to blend in, because we feel sorry for ourselves.... All kinds of reasons. I had read the tip of asking yourself 'will this help or hinder my progress?' On MRC, if it's off program, the answer is pretty much gonna be 'hinder' every time. That paves the way to the question 'why, then, do I want it? Am I truly hungry or it there another feeling I'm longing for... Easier said than done. But recognizing that corn on the cob wasn't worth it to you was FABULOUS. You go.

i usually eat 2 boiled eggs and cinnamon toast (lite wheat bread, spray butter and cinnamon) toasted in broiler, 1/2 grapefruit

or if i'm not rushing out the door...

cheese scrambled in eggs w/ cinnamon toast., 1/2 grapefruit

French toast, lite bread dipped in whipped eggs and cooked. sprinkle w/ cinnamon and spray w/ spray butter. if you eat fruit for breakfast, strawberries or blueberries on top

Cheese bread

it was pretty cool. i like being in control. my counselor sometimes will say do you crave this or that and i'm like nope not really a craving...sometimes it's just there...like for example my DH would have cape cod Jalepeno chips on the counter.. used to eat them all the time just becuz they were there..would walk by and grab a handful, then another, etc. one time i did figure out how many would make 40 calories and i ate those instead of my 40 cal melba toast :-)

Jen, the tacos were delish!!! made w/ the ground turkey... my DH was so excited like a little kid...it was like OH, BOY Tacos!!! LOL, too funny. he bought some small corn tortillas that were 60 cal so i took one of them and put the taco meat, cheese, tons of shredded lettuce and spicy salsa casera on top (Embasa brand) (not sure if i was supposed to have that but it's only 10 calories) no sugar. i didn't wrap the taco because i could only have one measly shell :-) so piled everything on top....

i also bought the keilbasa turkey sausage so figured i'd cook that w/ green peppers and green onions? can we have sauerkraut?

just curious ....are you on a different plan where you can have fruit for breakfast?

Jen-- those are some of the same "modifications" I've been making. Sometimes (okay, most of the time) I skip my veggie. I hate them. I like salads but only with real dressing, and I like other veggies, too, but always dressed up a little with some butter or cheese or something. I did so well in the first month about forcing myself to eat them, but for about a month now, I've just totally skipped them. I also have been letting myself eat cheese at dinner, and I eat a whole tortilla instead of half...I do a lot of the same stuff you were doing. I haven't stalled yet, so I suppose I'll just keep doing what I'm doing for now, but I'm glad I've heard about your experience because I'm sure the time will come when I'll have to shape up again. One good thing is that I'm doing some pretty heavy exercise, and on the days I have a good workout, I tend to lose no matter what little deviations I throw in.

I know I should follow the program better, but I'm just so bored with the food choices. I'm sure many can relate to that. I'm still losing, but I'm sure it's slower than it would be if I were eating better. At least this has me thinking-- maybe I will try to straighten up for even just a week and see what happens. I'd probably have a great loss, and then that might motivate me to continue.

ginpea - Congrats on the loss! Just take things a day (or meal) at a time and you will be signing the 30 pound board before you know it. :)

bigdog - I've had to experiment with different types of ground turkey to find the one I like best. I tried 99% lean, but it was sooooo dry. Bleh! I tried the 80% lean, but wayyyyy to greasy, even after draining...and draining...and draining. It seems the 93% lean works best for me and only requires me to drain the meat once and has the best flavor. As for the green peppers and onions, those are ok to eat as they are OP, but I don't think the sauerkraut is. ;)

tkdtara84 - I have also skipped my veggies. Guilty. I forgot that one. And, my honey mustard has to be the regular kind. I've tried the fat free kind, but I don't like the taste. But, since correcting my deviations, I've lost 4 pounds since last week and it's TTOM. I feel like crap right now, and it seems I have a sore throat and slight fever, but I'm still losing. :p

Weigh in at lunch time. Woohoo!

In defense of veggies- I went to a cooking class where I learned about blanching and it has given me a whole new attitude! Good quality vegetables can be so delicious when they aren't cooked to mush. When you blanch, they stay bright and colorful and sweet. (I do like to salt with good sea salt) A light drizzle of olive oil too.

Then there is roasting: asparagus, green beans, fennel, broccoli, cauliflower.... Toss with good olive oil and roast in a 400 oven. Roasting makes some of these turn a bit nutty and so much more flavorful than boring old steaming.

Definitely they could be doctored up with some garlic and maybe various herbs too.
Try it!!

Had an awesome weigh in at lunch. Down to 152.5! :cheer:

Way to go, Jen! You just keep losing!!! Very proud of you :)

Myself, on the other hand....WI today I lost "0" I didn't have a perfect week, but it wasn't horrible either. The past two weeks I lost 5 lbs total...and now this hault. May not be signing that 40lb board by my birthday next week afterall :( My own fault~

I am a bit discouraged. It looks like they want my goal weight to be where my BMI indicates it "should" be. That puts me in my mid 140's!!!! That has not ever been my personal plan. Plus, that goal feels overwhelming to me. I changed my goal to 160, and truly feel good about that. Originally, it was 175, but now that I am there, I want to go on a little more. I don't know...I am confused, frustrated, and left my appt. feeling pretty crappy. I lost more weight during PMS!

Current plan is to not eat out this week...and stay OP 99.99% of the time. I just wish my goal didn't have to create such confusion...should it be a BMI under 24.5 or what I think would be my best?...even though that would still be considered to be "over weight?"

Please help, ladies....I feel pretty unmotivated right at the moment. I ate a very OFF program lunch because of it. I need to get back on track.

Tami

OMG Jen! You are killing me!!! You are totally proving that it doesn't have to slow down as you get closer to goal. You just have to get focused! Think how great it will be to go into the holidays starting Maintenance- or pretty dang close. If I could count all the holidays that I have struggled to stay on one diet or another.... Congratulations.

Jen...
How awesome... You will be at goal before you know it..I am sure you are such an inspiration to others that may be struggling, that it can be done..
I am so very happy for you. You deserve the applause.

Patzi

Way to go, Jen!! Keep up the good work!!

Jen, I must say, you Rock! Congrats on the awesome weigh in. You must be really proud!

I am chugging along on maintenance. I find it hard to stay under my 1200 calories. Today I ate just like I would on my last week of stabilization with dairy and the extra carbs included and I went over 1200 (and I didn't even add my fat for the day). Of course this included one protein drink. They want me to be drinking 2-3 but I just can't fit it into my calories. I think tomorrow I will try egg whites instead of eggs for breakfast. That will save me almost 100 calories.