BTW, I read this article the other day: http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-a...astoriginalsL2

It still has bits of a diet mentality, but I like how the trend seems to be moving more towards a version of IE and common sense.

ALO22, I agree there are so many discoveries that comes with IE and un-dieting!

On a personal note (and not really related to the topic of discovery), I am discovering that I really enjoy chocolate! lol (Who doesn't?)

I want to make a correction to what I posted earlier (I'll correct it in the post, too).

When I said that the calories should vary 300 to 500 I don't think I posted it the way they meant it. I posted it as if "X" was your average calorie intake and from there you should vary 300-500+/- when what I think they were saying was that the range of your calories should vary 300 to 500 calories. So that you may be eating up to 500 calories differently +/- on any given day. So, today you might eat 2000 calories and tomorrow you might eat 2250 and the next day it might be 1750. The difference between 1750 and 2250 being 500 calories. (The way I had it originally made the range vary 600 to 1000 calories. Oops!!!) Sorry for that misinformation! I wish I hadn't thrown out the magazine! And I may still be posting it wrong, but the idea is variation. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. Some days you may be hungrier than others and that's OK. Some days you might not be as hungry, that's OK, too. That is what I understand it all to mean.

Speaking of discoveries: I discovered that calories being posted everywhere is starting to annoy me! The whole front of my mini-bagels box is covered by HUGE prints that say 100 CALORIES!!!, mi cereal box has the calorie count on the front AND on the back, the box gives me tips on how to live a healthier life style (including going out with friends, laughing and of course eating their cereal). And then, the last drop: there was a sticker on my banana that said "lose weight!"

I think this is going overboard. First of all, I don't care how many calories there are in my food and second, breakfast is my alone time of the day and I LOVE IT; I put relaxing music on and I enjoy it thoroughly, I really don't feel like getting all those calorie and weight loss messages from my food packages (or banana peals) this early in the morning...

venting out =)

Good morning, ladies...Carol and Trish, I'm chiming in with best wishes for the health of your husbands.

I got caught up in the diet mentality this morning, and spent a couple hours reading some low carb boards. I determined that "this was it", and I was going to do Protein Power no matter what. I ate a plain cheeseburger pattie for breakfast.

Then my husband got up, and I made homemade waffles for him. I just couldn't pass one up, so ate a small one with butter. Hit the spot.

Now my "low carb day" is blown, and I can get back to IE.

Blue Serenity, that's very interesting info that you posted. I've read something similar, but forget where it was. It just goes to show that if we'd leave diets alone, any kind of diets (even if they try to make them appealing by calling them "healthy eating plan" or "lifestyle change"), we'd probably be a lot better off, and wouldn't have so much to lose in the first place.

One of my sisters swears by the gym, and thinks I'm odd because I couldn't stand going to a gym. (I enjoy walking.) But I think she runs into the exact problem your info stated--she burns too many calories, cuts too many calories, then wonders why she stalls all the time. She's starting to yo-yo wildly, and that only ends up in packing big chunks of pounds on a person. That's why I have well over a hundred pounds to lose, instead of probably fifty or less if I hadn't yo-yo'd so much.

Thanks for all the good posts. Kind of tired here and it is really snowing so I'm just on the inside looking out and enjoying the beauty.

You know that saying about if you do the same thing you've always done, you'll get the same results you've always gotten, or something like that? When will I learn?

I'm so DESPERATE to budge some of this weight that I'm sucked into the diet thing again. Once again, stupidly--because I know I can't stick with it--I started off the day with some cheddar and 2 fried eggs, not because that's what I wanted, but because it's low carb, and I was adamant that I was going to start "serious low carbing" today. I even wrote "start low carb" with a big arrow pointing to the date in my journal. (Of course I did that yesterday too, then crossed it out when I started eating Reese's Cups.)

Now here I am, just can't wait to eat a waffle, or bake some cookies, or something like that.

I seem to have this big "rebellion" thing in my mind: nobody's going to tell me what to eat--even when nobody IS telling me what to eat. It's just what I think I SHOULD be eating.

I know that when I stay off the scale, stay off the diet sites, stop trying to record what I eat, that I do better and my eating slows down. I wonder if I'm just fooling myself...is there really any way that somebody that has gotten up to nearly 300 pounds is going to be able to lose by eating intuitively, or am I too far gone?

I don't even care any more if I ever get back to my original thin self. I'd just like to get under 250 at this point. That would help a lot.

Sigh...

What if you focus on a NON scale related goal? Is there some sort of sport you enjoy doing? For me, I love hiking with my kids. My health goal is to be able to hike up this trail we love without having to stop and catch my breath! I could accomplish it at 180 pounds or I might not accomplish it until I'm 150 pounds, but I'll have fun hiking up there over and over and over again to see if my respiratory health has improved.

That's a good idea. I guess one of the first things I'd like to improve is to be able to carry a basket of clothes up from the basement and not be winded by the time I get to the top of the stairs.

Beckey I do the same thing about the "diet" mentality. The thing is that I know that I do better and feel better on low carb. I too have lurked the low carb diet sites. I tried the Metabolism Miracle Diet again, but don't like the eat during the night thing. Looked at some of the others and didn't like some of their ideas either. I noticed some low carbs allows some foods as freebies and other don't, etc. So I decided that I can take the info I have read and do my own low carb thing. That is what I am doing. I can even allow myself a treat once in a while of what I really want and contrary to what all low carb diets tell us, it won't be a disaster and keep me from losing weight. I think this makes things so much more simple and it becomes "My Choice". No one telling me what I can or cannot do or eat.

babygrant - I like the idea of the NO SCALE goal. It gets us away from always making things about food. I would like to get to the place where I can be more comfortable about going out with the ladies in my neighborhood. I can't do a lot of walking when they want to go shopping and out to eat because of my back. Losing some weight and exercise would help change that. I would also like to be able to walk from the parking lot to the church sanctuary at Bible Study without huffing and puffing.

Carolr - Hope things are going well with your hubby. Tony had the cat scan which shows there might be (according to the technician) a blockage. We will know more about that when he goes for a appt next Tuesday. They did the colonoscopy and the doctor said that looked good.

Blue, Julie and everyone else

Have a great evening.

Even after losing 40lb, I still want to diet because of the 30 left. So when it comes to the dieting mentality, I guess it never goes away. So most of the time I just try to think, eat when hungry, stop when satisfied. I've had a couple of days when I got too full but I just keep on keeping on.

I should add that winter is harder because I always gain then but I noticed that this winter my clothes still fit. Go figure.

That's fantastic!

That is great Carolr. You obviously are doing even better than you thought. I'm sure that gives you a great feeling.

Today has started good for me food wise. I wasn't hungry enough to cook so had a protein shake for breakfast and my usual 2 c of coffee while I talked to my sister. She had lap band surgery over a week ago and has had some complications and just started feeling good today. The big problem was that the hospital put her on the wrong diet and she experienced a lot of nausea. She also thinks they may have used a sedative that she is allergic to, but won't know that until they can check into it more. I have been interested to learn that the diet plan they have her own is basically the way I enjoy eating accept that she has to eat 5 to 6 small meals daily where I like the idea of eating when hungry and eating until satisfied. Has changed my whole attitude about the way I eat IE/Low carb. I actually feel good physically today and find that I have no "diet" thinking today which is very good.

Starting tomorrow my week goes back to normal for us as for as church classes, BSF etc. BSF started Wednesday, but because of Tony's tests I missed and church small group classes start back tomorrow night. Hopefully that will put some structure back into my days especially Sunday and Wednesday and hopefully I can get some planned exercise into my life. I really need to do that. If I can get some exercise going, I will be well on my way to getting some weight off. I've got my CD's picked out so that I will have variety to keep from falling into boredom so now I JUST NEED TO DO IT.

Y'all have a great week end.

Hi Trish. Concerning exercise, I do 20min a day on the eliptical and sometimes my legs hurt so and I am so breathless that I finally told myself, " This has to be for the Lord." Other wise, I cannot get through it.