ooh, linden, i heard about the e.coli outbreak today and i thought about you. ugh, i'm sorry that you got it, but i am glad that your survived and are ok now!!

ooh, linden, i heard about the e.coli outbreak today and i thought about you. ugh, i'm sorry that you got it, but i am glad that your survived and are ok now!!

Yay! So sorry you had to be a part of the massive e. coli outbreak, but am happy you're healthy and back at it! IP, that is. Not e. coli. Keep out of that. Mad love to you, in an internet kind of way.

I've been staying busy editing so that I won't think about the fact that I still don't have a job for next school year. Good news is that I found a wonderful nannie...now I just have to figure out where to go when she has the kids and how to pay her. It'll work out, though, because I'll make it. One of my authors has asked me to contribute to an audiobook; it's a compilation of short stories...but I'm thinking it over. Some of the scenes are very...mature. We'll see. Or hear.

yeah i hit the ONEderlamd a few weeks ago and i am soooooo happy congrats on your journey!!

i agree Not weird at all i will likely do the same lol

my hubby cooks alot here but when i started IP that changed...He cooks with soooo much butter. I make the meals for my diet and he makes his startches or he eats what i eat

Have a great summer!!

thanks for sharing

I so agree. I started IP on March 27th and have lost 37 lbs with many more yet but IP is the perfect weight loss program i have ever done. Its soooo easy, just have to follow the program. I think if people are always discussing their cheats...do you really want to lose weight? just asking

Exactly, I know they are trying but if they are cheating every week, I wish they would check into why they are cheating. Maybe they just aren't ready, I know I had to be ready to do this one. But I guess all said and done, it is their choice so I will try to butt out but somedays when it went on and on it was like I just want to reach in and shake them and say don't you see what you are doing you are sabatoshing yourself so don't come here and complain that your not losing weight fast enough... now it is not the ones that have planned cheats or the one time it is the ones that cheat over and over... I don't think they are ready but it could just be me. I find this diet was a gift for me, I was in a rut and now I am living again. I love that this forum has helped me and basically I just want to help others. Have a great night.

We started at the same time! I was in Vegas the first weekend and felt if I could stay on plan thru that, why are others having so many issues?

I really need a whack over the head. I'm just weary and tired of IP. I'm 9 pounds from my "goal" but I know I'll need to lose 10-15 after that. I literally feel like I can't go on another day! This weekend I had a "screw it" attitude and ate lots of cheese, restricted bars (3 or 4 a day!), bacon, dressings that have a bazillion fat grams, etc.

Has anyone else been super strict for many weeks and lost control at the end? I feel like I'm so close to my goal and I'm sabotaging myself. I go to Vegas for a trip with my husband on July 21st and I want to feel amazing.

Please please please give me a virtual kick in the butt and advice about how you push through a brick wall??

Slow down and breathe.

I am sure you have heard my story before, but I will share it again as it will have more value for you now.

First change your mentality....this is not a race....when you get to the end...you can't all of the sudden eat like before so it really doesn't matter if it takes you a year to get to the goal.

My original goal was 175 (I started 4 pounds more than you) and I stood by that from September to January and then I started thinking I should get to the 150's. So I started get stressed an anxious about how long it would take.

I too ate alot of cheese, dressings, etc around weeks 19/20....frustrated with the restriction as I had been SUPER SUPER 100% for those first 4 months.

Then I almost quit and was happy at around 185 and a size 10/12 (depending on brand).

Then something in my head clicked and my whole outlook changed. I no longer worried about finishing or getting to maintenance. I will ALWAYS have to watch what I eat so the longer this takes...the more likely I am to stay with this forever.

Unfortunately those of us who have more to lose need to be on IP much longer and all that deprevation can be taxing on our minds.

So I have enjoyed my planned cheats and literally the second the trip or event is over....I am 100% back on plan. The cheats help keep me going. I have wanted to quit over and over, but each time I feel stronger and more able to finish.

I now hope to be done shortly after my one-year mark (around October). I am 100% phase 2 until the end of this month and then I go to Vegas from the 28th to the 8th of July and then I will recover with phase 1 and then I have a Finger Lakes reunion with girls from high school and then I will recover and then I have a big family weekend in August and then I will get back on plan until I hit 145 or so (yeah....I keep setting my goal lower).

In the meantime...I feel strong and capable of doing this forever. I do not feel deprived or left out. My size 8's are literally sagging and falling down. I am now purchasing more size small tops than mediums....this diet is amazing and so worth it.

Do not give up...dig deep and find inner strength to stay committed.

The Super Walmart here actually sells steak that is called Rouladin steak. But any thinly cut steak will work. The thinner it is, the easier it is to roll. I'm making it for dinner tonight!

Ash-

You have worked so hard to get where you are!! Self sabatoge is such a wonderful thing, is it not?! *insert eye rolling smiley here*
I have not been on IP as long as you have, but I have been on my weight loss journey for over a year now. You've hit your wall..but the thing is, You ARE stronger then that wall! Dust yourself off, and really take a look at what you've accomplished!! If you have progress pics, pull them out, and really LOOK at them. You can do this.

I have tried and failed at weight loss so many times in my life. I am 35 and have ALWAYS been over weight. When I graduated highschool I was over 220 pounds, I lost down to the 190s when I started college, and stayed at that weight till I had my first daughter, and my thyroid went off the wall and I gained 40 pounds in 1 month

This time I will not fail. I am worth finishing it out, and so are you!

Personally I think you should get rid of the bars, and not let them in your house..but you don't need to take my advice on that, as this is your journey.
You may have lost a small battle with yourself this weekend, but You can win the war. Believe in yourself and Get-R-Done!!!