Carol Sue, I am SO looking forward to it getting lighter! The gray days and short hours seem to be affecting me more this year than in other years. I'm definitely more aware of it. It seems to be affecting my mood (blue) and physical activity (lazy). :( I'm glad to hear your BP went down some, as long as the diastolic didn't drop too low. :cp: I hope you get good news when you do hear back about the Echo. :crossed:

Hi all! Bro is a little better today....breathing better, better bp and kidney function. However he is still on the edge. Things can change in a minute. Heart doc says that it's still day to day and outlook is still not too good. Goal is to get him stable enough for teeth pulling. If he survives that, then heart surgery. He knows we're there and follows me with eyes, but they keep him pretty sedated. They said it causes amnesia and he will not remember any of it.

I'm going home Saturday morning, but gold mom I can come back asap if things change. Hopefully the changes will be good ones.

Break/lunch - Subway Philly cheesesteak
Snack - 1/2 bag if unsalted dried fruit/nut mix
Dinner - wings and 2 lite beers (my idea to get a carry out from local place)

Jacqui Thanks for the welcome. Your weight could be where it wants to be our it could just be your body taking a break to adjust to you loss. Since you aren't changing anything, you will eventually know which.

[B][/PrairieQueenB] Sorry to hear about your brother. Prayers coming y'alls way. My deceased hubby used to go in the hospital and it would look like he was at the end but he would surprise the docs and get well and come home. One time he came home and went back to work. As one nurse told me years ago with my 1st husband, "Never give up till it is over". Sounds like he has a tough go of it, but I pray he will be fine in time. :hug:

Mars I see you drink a whey shake. May I ask what you use for it. All the ones I've seen are high carb. Could you tell me which one you use? Thanks. I hope I will get to the place I don't want sweets any more. I never cared for sweets until I was diabetic. When I crave sweets, it usually means my bs is up. One nice thing about low carbing is that the desire for sweets usually goes away.

Carol Sue I'm glad your bp was down. I hope you get a good report on the Echo.

Today has not been a low carb day. Started out that way, but we took DGS out for his 22 birthday dinner. We went to Longhorn steakhouse and I usually do very well at a steakhouse. I ordered steak, steamed broccoli and salad with Ranch dressing. But DGS was late getting there and I had waited so long to eat that I was near faint. When they brought the bread out, I caved and had 2 pieces. I came home and ate carbs tonight. I'll do better and have a LC day tomorrow.

Good news, PQ! Hope things continue to improve. My, he still has a lot to go through. You guys hang in there.

I don't know about the Ifs and Ands Mars, but I'm with you on the No Buts. You know, I rarely have that 'proud of myself' feeling, but I do about all the exercise I've been doing, and it is helping my mood. You're not wrong about that.

Thanks, Jac. My day could have been better. I kept thinking about PQ and her real issues and back to times when I had similar real situations, but it didn't help. I've been surrounded by angry, barking people all the livelong day, growling DHs and DDs that are too busy to even speak during the 5 min I try to spend with them, frustrating situations at work, and it is just really taking a toll on my self esteem. I don't think I have SAD...but funny that I googled therapeutic lights last weekend...for some reason. Wouldn't hurt to try to be happier woodit? (but I am concerned about their effect on my eyes). On the good new front, I made a connection with a nice person at my gym. Sometimes I forget that people can be nice.

WooHoo, Carol on 198!! That's awesome!! :p And the bp, too. You and Mars seem so well put together and in control, I didn't know you were dealing with binge issues. Will we ever be a finished product?? Sigh.

Welcome, PattyGirl...I'm on the SeeMyFeet plan. You'll all know when it starts becoming effective.

And just why does the way I'm treated in this world bother me more than the $600+ repair bill on the car?? Because people are not repairable? idk

Carol Sue I forgot to congratulate you on the 198.:carrot: Happy for you.

SeeMyFeet :wave: Thanks for the welcome. I have the same problem with people sometime. I think it bothers me more when it is someone really close to me like husband or one of my kids. I feel your frustration.:hug: Glad you met someone nice a the gym. I don't know why those situations affect our self-esteem so. I'm trying to learn to not let it get to me so.

Today WI up to 173. Whoops! I got in 2 good nights' sleep & can't help wondering if there's a correlation.
The ship is turning around but ever so slowly! My goal today is to stay out of the work cafeteria. Next, need to work on grazing & right before bedtime. Stressful time can be an opportunity to exercise control over food choices, an area that there actually IS control, lol! Viewed from the right perspective, sticking to a healthy WOE can actually be a source of comfort. SAD is extra challenging--I think an enormous number of people have it. It seems to increase with age. That said, I do like to go horizontal once I get home when a short outdoor walk might do wonders. SeeMyFeet gonna try to follow your example!
Here's today's plan, maybe pre-posting will increase my commitment :crossed:
B broccoli omelet, whey shake/coffee
S B-up protein bar
L salad, chicken, kidney beans, evoo, Walden Farms 0 cal dressing (100 Island)
S whey shake, coffee
D turkey chili, broccoli
S potato, broccoli
6 glasses cold herb tea
get outside at lunch

What is everyone doing for the holidays? Are trees & decorations up? :snowglo::shocksn::snow4::wreath:

"My example", Mars? Grrl you don't know the pressure your'e putting on me! Thanks for the dx of the shake. Now that I know it has crack in it, I'll be sure to avoid it. Oh My! sunburned eyes! What you described is what I expected, so thanks for the sunburn story--now I can put that idea to rest and stop browsing for a light. I have had so much eye trouble, I just cannot risk anything more. (but I do like the idea of bathing in light :( )

Whell...day off. Going for the (fearfully dreaded) periodontist surgery soon :sp:. I really should be taking the wrapping off the new washer and getting laundry done, but I'm reading up on longevity studies in animals and wondering awful things like "Is my glaucoma an indicator of a shortened longevity?" "My RA prolly isn't 'cause GM lived to almost 100, but is my treatment going to shorten my lifespan?" Sometimes I think way too much. Think less, live more. I need to put that on a T-shirt and wear it.

I'll have to check back in while I'm on drugs. It'll make for a much better conversation!

oooooo, I hope my prattling on isn't bothering you PQ...I cannot imagine how you're feeling and what you're going through. Well, I can, a bit, because I've been there. I know it's awful. Forgive my prattling and my desire not to go back to that place. We're here for you and we're all wishing, hoping and praying for the best with your DB and that you are finding the shelter you need in this crapstorm that life has thrown at you.

I just lost my post. :?: Oh well.

Mars Thank you for the shake info. I will look for it. It is so hard to find one that is low carb besides Atkins and I can't drink theirs. I think they changed something in it or my system changed because I have to run to the potty a lot when I drink theirs. I think I have developed a reaction to sugar alcohols because I can't even chew diet gum any more. I had a brand I did like that was lc friendly but the store that sold it closed and none of the other stores carry it.

I ended up with a bingeing last night on my favorite cookie I get from the $Tree. I've eaten them from other places, but don't like them from any where else because of the texture. I could have saved them for carb day, but I had a moment. I don't have binge moments much any more so not sure what triggered it. Maybe it was the thought of starting a new way (slow-carb) of eating and the old "last supper" syndrome kicked in. Any way, even though this is Friday and tomorrow is Saturday, I am going to get started with this today. Funny thing is that I expected the scale to go up, but it was down a fraction. Go figure.

Jacqui I noticed when I was reading online about the slow-carb that sweet potato and lentils were on the plan. I will have to look back on your plan, but do you eat the sweet potato? I think of a potato as a potato sweet or not. Now I notice he uses lentils and black beans in omelets. I like lentils, but not black beans and not sure if I would want them in an omelet.

Haven't decided if I want to buy the book or not, but probably will.

Morning/afternoon all and thank you for all the support. And don't worry about it SeeMyFeet. Coming on here gives me a diversion. We just got back from some grocery shopping ..... The cupboards are pretty bare. We have put off going to hospital so early.....the long days there are wearing mom out. We're getting ready to head out now. No calls from hospital....no news is good news.

This morning when I got up my BP wasn't as high as usual before meds. 155/66. Since we are going to the casino and I don't want to have it drop dramatically there, I skipped one of the old pills that I don't think ever did anything but too the double dose of the new pills. Right now it was 135/57. Good enough for me! Down, but not in a danger zone. I realize I am supposed to take my meds the way the doctor prescribed them, but he is not looking at the results every day like I am.

PQ, I agree that no news is good news, in most cases. Hope he's improving. One thing about having empty cupboards, if it's not there you can't eat it!

SMF, I love your sense of humor. Don't stifle. We need it here!!

This morning I was reading about the difference between binge disorder and compulsive overeating and I have decided that my problem is the latter. I don't eat large amounts of food in a short period of time, but I tend to eat too much food and hunger has nothing to do with it. It's just the availability of food. Recently I have been waiting until I feel hunger to eat and stopping when I feel satisfied, instead of eating until I'm stuffed. I think because of doing this I am eating less food and that is causing the weight loss. I don't feel deprived, but I also don't feel overly stuffed. The trip to the buffet at the casino today is going to be challenging. I am still in the process of making this behavioral change become a habit and I realize I can overeat at any moment if I'm not careful. In most cases it helps me to tell myself that I can always eat more later if I'm still hungry, but that's not true with the buffet. Unless I just sit in the buffet area for a couple hours to see if I get hungry again. LOL

Trish, the book on Slow Carb is ridiculous. I borrowed it from the library. Trust me, you don't want to buy it. There is so much information in it that doesn't even apply, and it is such technical jargon. And the book is about 5 inches thick. About 1/10th of it is information you will use. I think that's why there is so much good information about it on the internet. The choice is up to you, of course.

What were the cookies from Dollar Tree? DH loves cookies and we shop there a lot.

Mars, sleep is supposed to help you lose weight, not gain! What's up with that?

Jacqui, I think part of the reason the darkness doesn't bother me is because I'm inside most of the time and don't really notice it. Then I tend to go to bed so early that it's only been dark for a short time, and I usually get up around 5 and it's almost always still dark at 5. I think my body adjusts to the rising and setting of the sun. My step-daughter is really bothered by dark dreary weather. She lives in the wrong state. PA doesn't get a lot of sun. I don't imagine OH is a lot different from PA. I was only in OH once. That was when we were trying to find Mountaineer Park casino and we made a wrong turn and ended up in Ohio.

Carol Sue Thanks for sharing with me about the book. I won't buy it. As you say there is a lot of good info online. Instead I may just create my own plan. While googling Slow-carb, I also found out about something called Carb Nite Solution. I read about it on a lowcarb site and it seems to be eat low carb for certain number of day... I think it was 10 days and then on the 10th day at night meal make it a carby meal. Makes me think people have taken Dana Carpandar's way of doing low carb in her book about losing 40 lbs and made some different ways of doing it to fit their lifestyle.

Sorry I can't remember the name of her book something like, How I lost 40 lbs and kept it off. Not sure. I have it around here somewhere. If I remember correctly, she ate more like an Atkins low carb most of the time, but on holidays or special occasions like her birthday or anniversary, she would take one meal that day and eat the carby food of her choice.

All this tells me that we can make a personal low carb lifestyle that we can live on and get good results. I personally like eating low carb during the week and take either one day or one meal each week and make it a carb day or meal.

You will do good at the casino. You always do. I read somewhere last night when googling to be sure and eat plenty of protein and low carb veggies. I think you are especially good at doing that when y'all go to the casino. So relax, you will be fine. I think it is good to try to eat until satisfied and not full. I want to learn to do that again myself because I never liked the full/stuffy feeling.

PQ :hug: Thoughts and prayers are with you and your family today. I pray your brother is improving.

Well....I'm back home already...shaky and feeling a bit traumatized....that procedure is Grue Some!! But I had the utmost confidence in the skills of the physician--a compliment that I sadly am seldom able to pay to others. The same procedure he performed on the other side 1.5 years ago was model, textbook perfect, so I anticipate a good outcome. More Importantly, in my discussions with him afterward, this procedure was necessary due to a developmental issue with my teeth, and he did not see any indications of inflammatory periodontal disease, which I thought my dentist was implying. So yippety yay yahoo! But unfortunately, he agreed that the expensive nighttime mouth guard was a good idea. Boo!

I agree with Carol. Don't buy the book. Not that I've read the book, I'm just biased. I don't buy any diet books. You can read about the philosophy of a diet plan and look up the nutritional value of foods online. That way, you save yourself some money, have fewer things to dust at home, and avoid making some undeserving Quack rich. Plus: you're (A) not really going to stick to their plan anyway, or (B) you're going to turn into a fanatic disciple of that plan and live to judge the rest of us who do not follow your religion, and then we will all start avoiding you :rofl:. (I did say I was biased, didn't I?) I don't buy plan food, either, although PattyGirl's experience with the Atkins shakes makes me want to run out and buy some. (Seriously, everyone on this thread seems to have outgrown the need for such books.)

RE the sugar alcohols, my DS will eat a whole box of breath mints because the sorbitol does that to him. He thinks its funny. Weird sense of humor is obviously a genetic trait. Unfortunately, the reaction to sorbitol is not. (yeah, you bet I tried that one.)

Oh, thanks for the mention of sweet potatoes and lentils. I tend to avoid them, too, on accounta the carbs, but I keep meaning to plan them back into my diet. These foods have high nutritional value, and lentils pack a lot of protein for a veg. Also lots of fiber--my new obsession--so that subtracts out the effect of carbs in some people's minds. (If I were diabetic, I would test out that theory, tho.) They have exactly the nutrition I need: folate, vitA, minerals. Back when I made beef stew, I would add in sweet potatoes. Yum.

Wow, Carol, your bp IS all over the place. THAT is what you should be discussing with your cardio, and if he doesn't show concern, get a new one.

Another lesson learned today: avoid the Dollar Tree and the Dark Side...they have cookies.

Woohoo! This thread is hopping! :trampo:

PrairieQueen, I am so glad that your brother is continuing to heal! I will be praying for him until he's back home! :yes:

Trish, oh those rolls at steakhouses are pretty hard to resist, and with a celebratory birthday dinner, it's easy to give in! I like that you accept it for what it is and just jump back to eating well! :dancer: I don't think sweet potatoes are an "official" part of the plan; however, I believe Tim Ferriss, the author, gives the go ahead to try things out and see if they work for you, and some slow-carbers have discovered that sweet potatoes work well for them. I haven't tried them, not because I'm against them but because I am not fond of sweet potatoes. Carol Sue did really well with small sweet potatoes though, so if you like them, I definitely think you should give them a try and if they don't trigger your appetite or raise your blood sugar unduly, add them! :hungry: If you are interested in the book, you may want to see if you can check it out from your library. From what I understand, only a very few pages are dedicated to the Slow Carb Diet, and pretty much all that info is online. Personally, I think he's a bit of a kook. I just happen to like the gist of his Slow Carb Diet. :lol: Oh, lol! I just read that Carol Sue and SeeMyFeet gave you the same advice! Great minds think alike! :D

Aw, SeeMyFeet, I'm sorry you've been under such stress lately. :( And yes, PQ's situation keeps bringing back memories for me too. I am SO glad she traveled to see her brother. My father told me to wait with mine and that still haunts me. I keep praying for her brother, and Mars' mother, and Carol Sue's BP, and now I'll add you to the list too because you need some PEACE. :hug: Yay on the good news about your teeth! I'm glad the procedure went well and no periodontal disease! :woohoo:

Carol Sue, Oh I missed the 198! YAY!!! I am so glad that how you are monitoring your hunger is working for you! We all struggle with that I'm sure. Great job! :broc: And I love the good news of your BP being lower but not dangerous! :high:

Mars, no doubt I look and feel better than I used to, so I'm happy! :D Oh yes, I walked down the aisle at my daughter's wedding to that song. Love The Beatles! A lot of people in Ohio have a winter Florida home. I'm beginning to think that's not a bad idea! My DH wants a home in Panama (not Panama City FL, but actual Panama), and I always laugh it off, but maybe I should take him a little more seriously! :sunny:

DH was in a hurry for breakfast this morning because he had to leave so I forgot and ate before weighing. Oh well, I'm guessing I'm...hmmm...170. :D

Week 29:
11/29--171
11/30--170.5
12/1--170
12/2--170
12/3--170
12/4--DNW
12/5--

Today's Meals:
Breakfast:
2 fried eggs
A slice of ham
Fage Greek yogurt with Mio
Mio water

Lunch
Fage Greek yogurt with Mio
Diet Dr. Pepper

Tea Time
Hot green tea

Dinner: @ local sports grill
Vegetable soup (ate around the potatoes)
Salad with grilled chicken and craisins
Hot black tea

Today's Exercise:

Hi all! Things today were good (considering).... A tiny improvement in heart rate. Docs have decided that tomorrow is going to be oral surgery. He's reached a plateau and has been stable for three days. He cannot get any better until teeth are removed and antibiotics can get to "pockets." If he survives this surgery then heart surgery once he's stable again. I'm headed home n morning although I know I may have to go back.

Break - McD's sausage burrito w/hot sauce
Lunch - subway club
Dinner - slice of pork tenderloin, sliver of key lime pie (mom's friend brought over

PQ Glad your brother is improved enough for surgery. Praying everything will go really good tomorrow. :hug:

PrairieQueen, that is wonderful news! :cp: May he continue to improve!!!

Mars, I think DH may have first heard about Panama as a retirement location from a morning news program when International Living Magazine selected it as their 2014 World's Best Retirement Haven. Here's an article about that: http://internationalliving.com/2014/...nt-haven-2014/. He's talked about it ever since! :dizzy:

We came home with empty pockets but I sure enjoyed the buffet! I ate steak and shrimp, baked fish, chicken, collard greens and mac & cheese, . which they only have on Friday. So, I did have a bit of carb. I consider it a choice, not a cheat, since no food is actually forbidden for me now. I didn't feel uncomfortably stuffed, but full, and was still not hungry by the time we got home so went to bed having only 2 meals yesterday.

PQ hope brother continues to be stable enough for the surgeries.

This morning before meds, my BP was 141/63. I took all my meds as prescribed, even though I was a little worried about that diastolic dropping too low. I am going to check it once an hour to see what happens.

Mars, I know you're concerned that you enjoyed the treats at work, but this happens around the holidays. It's not something you will do every day and I think you will keep it in line over all.

I get absentminded, too. DH tells me I'm getting Alzheimer's, but I told him not remembering where you put your keys is one thing. Alzheimer's is not remembering what keys are.

Bro had surgery tonight because doc had two emergency surgeries before him. All went fine and he went straight back to his icu/heart room. Updates tomorrow after all other docs make their rounds.

He went from not going to make it Tuesday night (per heart doc) to 50/50 later /next day to making it through surgery one. Heart surgery will be the biggie. I hope I can someday talk about our Christmas miracle. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers! (And I'm back home today.)

Today's airport menu....

Break - jalapeño bagel w/ham, egg, and cheese ala SW Florida Int'l
Lunch - chili cheese fries (I felt so guilty at first, but I got over it) ala Detroit Int'l
Dinner - grilled wings and lite beers (at our local) ala my favorite hometown historic hotel pub

PQ So glad his first surgery is done and went well. These things aren't easy at any time of the year, but the holidays are extremely difficult. I will continue praying for him and your family and trusting the Lord that this will just be remembered as a Christmas miracle for your family.

Mars I was able to order the Designer Whey protein powder from the vitamin Shoppe where I order other vitamins from. I read about it and it seems to be a very good quality. A beautician at the salon where I go had told my beautician that she had lost weight by giving up bread and sugar and upping her protein. So I had been thinking about adding protein to my plan, but didn't know where to get a good low carb friendly product. Thanks again.

I remember reading about your Mom, but couldn't remember it was you. How is she doing? I need to go back and read your original post concerning her. Before I married my DH, I was a caregiver for a lady so she could live at home. I took her shopping, out to eat and she went to church with me. It is good to help her keep things normal as she still has a feeling of independence. I think they do better if you can do it that way, but not everybody can and keeping them safe becomes the important thing.

Jacqui I have kind of taken your plan and made adjustments to make my own plan. I like the one carb day so I will be using that although today I made mine a 1 carb meal instead an all day carb day. Because there are times not every week that DH likes to eat out and I can't always stay low carb, I will probably not do an all day carb day, but a one carb meal when necessary. However, I like having Saturday as my carb day most days.

I have been counting my carbs this past week just to see how many carbs I do eat. I really don't eat above 70 carbs each day. I don't remember if I shared here or not. I've always said I eat Moderately Low Carb (MLCD) along with Intermittent Fasting. I do that so I will stop eating by 8 pm. Also I try not to eat until I am hungry and stop when satisfied/full. So this is my plan that I have chosen to follow a MLCD.

Carol Sue I hope you get your bp straightened out. My Daddy's bp goes so low sometimes to the point that it doesn't even register. I don't like the way his doctors play with it. It went so low he almost fainted when he was visiting my step-mom one day at the nursing home and the nurse out there told him when that happens from now on to drink ice water and it will bring it back up. Mine is always higher at the docs office and I have pretty much decided it is because they do it manually. Not sure. I've also heard that exercise will help with keeping it regular.

Pattygirl Your plan sounds like a good fit for you. It's great that you do well on just 70 carbs!Some of us play around Carb Day--I tend to eat carbs all day, but sometimes I limit it to a meal. I like the 'permission' aspect of it. What sort of carbs do you do you like on your regular days?

I'll be interested to hear how you like Designer Whey powder. I use the ready-to-drink shakes--just works better for me. I have an intolerance to all the milk-protein drinks that use casein as the protein. There is a tiny bit of casein in DW, but not much. If I have too much, it irritates the skin on my face and I get a rash. I used to think this was hormonal because I also got it with PMS, but in hindsight, I think it was the Cheetohs that I always craved at those times, lol. Anyway, I hope it agrees with you. I used to drink Muscle Milk shakes. They are low carb, adequate-for-a-meal protein. I think they they taste great, but are super sweet and can trigger sweet cravings.

Thx for asking about my Mom. I think it is slowly dawning on her that she has to slow down. I think a caregiver is a special kind of angel.

Carol :rofl: re keys!!! Not I just need my glasses to find me. I hope you're richer after your next casino night!

We went to Texas Roadhouse yesterday and I was pretty good. I had a couple sips of DH's beer and 1 bite of a roll. My dinner was roasted half chicken. I ate the leg and thigh and brought the breast home to make a bit of chicken salad. My sides were fresh vegetables, (broccoli and carrots,) and a tossed salad. No potato or starch at all. Water to drink.

I hate to make this all about my blood pressure, but I am wondering about it being high in the AM before I take my meds. I thought the meds were meant to keep it steady over all. This morning it was 161/67. The 161 is way too high, but the 67 is perfect.

Trish, I am not concerned about my blood pressure going too low because my systolic is usually not lower than 135. But it's my diastolic that dips low. I read online that if it goes below 55 you double your risk of heart attack and stroke. I don't know if the doctor is even taking that into consideration. It seems that he just wants to get the systolic lower, but there's no way to lower one without lowering both, as far as I know. I think that the big difference between systolic and diastolic could be caused by my bad heart valves.

I wanted to mention something that's in the Slow Carb Diet book. 4 Hour Body. He says to have a protein breakfast on Carb Day and just include the carbs in lunch and dinner, so I think you are right on track only having carbs at 1 meal. It's not meant to be a day to stuff yourself with all the carbs you want, but a day to allow some carbs that you miss during the other 6 days. I know that Jacqui sometimes has carbs at breakfast, but with the rate of her weight loss, who are we to tell her she's wrong? LOL

Mars, I have some Whey Protein Powder that I bought to make shakes in my Bullet, but I found that I am not really a shake person. I drink it in addition to my meals instead of as a replacement and that is counter productive. I never thought to try using it as a creamer in my coffee. I buy sugar free caramel flavored Coffee Mate, but I'm going to try the Whey Protein instead.

DH told me that when he was growing up there was a woman in the neighborhood who had Alzheimer's and she used to go outside and run around the neighborhood naked. I've hear of that before. I wonder why they do that?

PQ I am so glad that your brother had the first surgery and got through it successfully. I know he's not out of the woods, yet, but it's a step in the right direction. What is the heart surgery going to entail? I pray that he's strong enough to get through it.

On the road (stopping for gas) but want to mention that some whey powders I have tried are hard to dissolve. Also perishable. So I use the ready to drink ones. Someone on 3FC, I think Kaplods, gets fresh whey from a farm.

PrairieQueen, I am so relieved to hear your brother's first surgery went well! I hope the second one goes smoothly also and he recovers with no problems! I'm glad you made it home safely. :hug:

Mars, I agree with Carol Sue. Temptations abound during the holiday season, so eating off plan is not a big surprise and no big deal. It would be a big deal if you did it everyday, or if it somehow changed your attitude and made you decide to jump off the wagon completely. but that's not going to happen. So, you have an unexpected Carb Day here and there during the Holidays. You can work with that! :yes: I'm so glad things are falling into place with your Mom!

Carol Sue, how did the BP readings go yesterday after you took your meds? I'm glad you enjoyed yourself at the casino and at the steakhouse. It sounds like your way of eating is going really well! :cp:

Trish, you should definitely do whatever works best for you! And I think having a Carb Meal instead of a Carb Day is a brilliant idea! I know that the Carb Days I experience would be a terrible idea for someone diabetic. In fact, I'm sure they aren't very good for me either! I have entirely too much sugar! It's particularly bad during the holidays. Hopefully, I will find the discipline to slow it down and make my Carb Days a little more reasonable after Christmas. :crossed: And Carol Sue is correct: Tim Ferriss does say to wait to start Carb Day until after breakfast AND that's not a rule I follow in my modified plan, lol! :D

SeeMyFeet, how's it going? :wave:

Rennie, I hope your schedule is slowing down! :yes:

Yesterday was Carb Day and I had all kinds of sweets :eek: as well as pasta for dinner, so today I am up to 173.

Week 29: High 171, Low 170
11/29--171
11/30--170.5
12/1--170
12/2--170
12/3--170
12/4--DNW
12/5--170.5 Carb Day

Week 30:
12/6--173
12/7--
12/8--
12/9--
12/10--
12/11--
12/12--

Today's Meals:
Breakfast:
2 fried eggs
A slice of ham
Fage Greek yogurt with Mio
Mio water

Lunch
Yogurt
Hot green tea
Diet Dr. Pepper

Tea Time
Hot green tea

Dinner:

Today's Exercise:
2-mile walk around the track

Carol Sue :carrot: You did great at Texas Roadhouse. That is DH and my favorite place to eat. We usually go there for anniversary or birthdays and find it so easy to stay OP because DH usually tells them not to bring the rolls. We took DGS to Longhorn restaurant because of his schedule that day. TX RH opens at 4 here and he had to fit the dinner into his schedule. It was his BD dinner so we got the bread. I had gone so long without eating and it was there so I caved in and ate some of it. :?: It wasn't my plan. I compliment you. :)

P.Q. I hope you get good news on you brother's recovery today. Prayers continue your way.

Jacqui I really didn't change a lot of things in my plan from yours. And obviously I didn't follow my one carb meal rule yesterday. LOL I'm really just getting serious about this so a lot of things are subject to change. However, your plan is so similar to how I like to eat and in the beginning of the new thread here, I noticed you invited newbies here to share the plan they are following, so I decided to use what you do to put more structure to what I'm doing because it is working so well for you. I will make adjustments to it if I need to, but at the moment I think yours is a very good plan.

Well, I spoke too soon on my carb day. I ended up staying up extremely too late and after writing last night, I had more carbs. So yesterday ended up being an all day carb day. Today is my 1st of the 6 days of Moderate carbs.

Mars DH and I have one meal together each day usually around 3 pm. I finally have him eating a salad so we start our meal with a salad when it fits into the meal. Then I put some kind of veggie with it. I also like being able to have legumes with it because I have recently learned that I really enjoy something like lentils in place of starchy carbs. I also like a glass of milk at that meal. Now that I've learned about the protein shake, I will be blending a tablespoon of it in my milk. I ordered chocolate to use in my milk and I ordered Fr. vanilla to use in my morning coffee. On my carby day, that will be my day to enjoy potatoes, pasta etc.

The Designer Whey I ordered seems to be for people with allergies such as gluten, eggs etc as well as low carb. So I'm hoping it won't cause me any problems since I have never figured out if Metformin causes my diarrhea issues or if it is caused by something I eat. I like Carol Sue like flavored creamer in my coffee, but I don't use it because of the carbs. It will be nice to have the protein powder to put in it.

I still have some of the old protein powder that I have had for a while. Not sure how good it is but I started using it yesterday in my coffee and tastes ok. It is chocolate and it tastes more like mocha coffee. I made the bullet coffee with it this morning using on 2 spoonsful rather than a whole scoop and 1 t of coconut oil. I read somewhere that CO lowers triglycerides so I plan to have that each morning. Besides tasting good, it helped me so I didn't eat anything this morning since I felt I had overdone the carbs on my carb day as I felt guilty about eating so many carbs yesterday. So strange how we get conditioned so it may take me a while to get used to having a Carb Day. :dizzy: I will have to not make it quite so carby as my weight was up 4 lbs today, but then I haven't been really faithfully to my new plan since I found you guys. Today is the official day to get seriously started.

Rennie I'm glad to know you are a part of this thread. Hope you are doing ok. I know this is your busy season right now. Be sure to be good to yourself.

SeeMyFeet Hope you are having a good day.

Edited: I seemed to have forgotten to erase some things I had moved around. Hope I got it right. Shouldn't multi-task. :) Hope I got it right.

Hi all! I've been a little stingy with the personals lately but I am reading everyone's posts.

Bro update: back on dialysis and bp meds, doubled his pain meds BUT it's all due to the surgery last night and was somewhat expected. Mom/stepdad meeting with all his doctors in morning about a plan and the scheduled heart valve (both) surgery on Thursday.

Today's menu....

Break - Coke Life
Lunch - beef minestrone ala PQ, hunk of buttered Italian bread
Dinner - chicken w/lemon-mushroom cream sauce over mushroom fettuccini

sooooo...in order to get the RDA of all the micronutrients such as K, Mg, folate, etc., we actually need to eat 10,000calories of fresh fruits and vegetables? Or 1,000,000calories of processed foods?.....whell, that 'splains a lot....

PQ, are they going to repair your brother's valves, or replace them? At his age they will probably give him mechanical valves. My step son has one as he needed his at age 42. He has no problem with it, except for needing to take Coumadin. I hope everything goes well for your brother.

I'm going to the doctor with DH. I'll be back later.

His are too far gone to repair, he will probably have the prosthetic type vs. biological which only last 10-20 years. ICU doctor thinks he's too critical to plan on a Thursday surgery, but that is up to the cardiologist (whom my mother hasn't met with yet today).

Hope everyone's dr visits turn out well....so much going on this time of year!

I've been playing around with the micronutrient settings on MFP. I'm seldom getting "enough" sodium (set at 1500mg) and never get enough potassium. Not sure what I can do about that--sure don't want to eat more and I take enough supplements already....(wish it measured Mg--the upgraded version prolly does, but I'm too cheap to pay for it.) Of course, I'm wondering what all this does for weight loss, or lack thereof, and mood, etc etc.

Well, I had a lemon poppy seed muffin yesterday, and after reading the nutrition label, it was not guilt-free. Mars prolly heard me howling about it all the way out there. 450-freakin'-calories! Blew my day to smithereens....and of course, my scale was laughing at me this morning.

ooo, my MIL had early onset Alzheimers. Once, when we asked her to get into the car, she pulled up her dress and acted as if she were going to go potty right there in the car. When your brain starts getting scrambled like that, you do strange things. Lots of older men are in the sex offender registry because they become inappropriately sexual. Very Sad. There's an assisted living home down the block from us. We all keep an eye on the older folk going for walks--mentally they are fine, and allowed to go for walks. It's a lot to deal with. And very sad.

Well, let's kick Dec 7's butt today! Healthier, wealthier, and wiser.

Oh, PQ, there you are...glad your bro is stable. Hang in there, sweetie. We all take different journeys through life, and it's hard to find enjoyment or comfort during your journey when loved ones are going through the rough patches. Deep breaths. Hang on to your sanity and find perspective.

This morning before meds my BP was 159/58. I took all my meds then went to the DR with DH. He told us that the purpose of meds is to keep your BP even, and not to have the spikes when it wears off. When we came home my BP was 129/59. That's perfect, in my book. Now if I can get it to stay that way. We went shopping after the doctor so I think the walking around helped.

SMF, I am on MFP but rarely use it. I have another tracker I prefer, but I don't think it shows micronutrients. I will have to check it out on MFP. Occasionally my doctor does bloodwork that shows my levels and how they compare to normal and they are usually pretty good.

Bro update: Cardiologist thinks it's better to wait until next week for surgery. He was meeting with three other heart surgeons this afternoon/evening to discuss his case. Either way, I'll be heading back to Florida.

Today's menu:

Break - McD's sausage burrito w/hot sauce and ice tea w/stevia
Lunch - leftover chicken w/lemon-mustard sauce over mushroom pasta
Dinner - leftover minestrone and grilled cheese w/bacon baguette

No snacks.......yet.

PQ How many valves does your brother need replaced?

I believe two. I just got an update from mom, and his bp and heart rate were decent and almost back to where they were before oral surgery. Sounds like they're going to let "heal" a bit more before they decide on a day for surgery.