Betsy I am thinking you aren't stalled, but that your body is comfortable at your present weight. How old are you? (If you don't mind me asking. ) I am only 2 inches taller than you and my goal weight is substantially more than yours. Of course, I am 38 so that could make a difference. Although if you are already at a size zero there can't be too much to lose.

Girls- What do you think?

Hey! I do a combo of WW and SBD, but here's something I've been doing lately that may help. When I'm hungry, I eat different veggie options at first, usually one or two (salad, cauliflower and dip, steamed broccoli with butter spray, green beans with crumbled 'bacon' on top, etc.) By the time I'm done eating, I'm usually full, but if I get hungry again, I allow myself a grain. Then I repeat. That's how I make sure I get my veggies. If I don't get my veggies, I don't lose weight, and then I get frustrated. Just a thought. Hope it helps.

Lisa

I agree but who am i to judge

at 47 and not even 5'3" (i'm shrinking) the gym trainers tell me I should shoot for about 180 pounds due to how my body is constructed.

Weezle, I like that. I never thought about the order I ate my meals. Interesting!

Do you like that butter spray? Where do you find it in your grocery store? Do you prefer it over olive oil?

Kara

I asked my doctor what my ideal weight should be. I'm 5' 3" and 44 years old and she said with my bone structure that 125-135 would be best. I know as a teenager I was 120. It is quite possible that you are at your ideal weight, Betsy, but I don't know your age or bone structure so it is best if your doctor judges. I agree though that you are not eating too much fruits.

I do like the butter spray. It's in the refrigerated area with the regular butter/margarine. I don't necessarily prefer it over olive oil.... it just depends on what I'm eating. They have I Can't Believe It's Not Butter brand and Parkay. I get the Parkay because it's cheaper and it tastes the same.

I, too, am 5'3" but 27 years old. With my small bone structure, I'm supposed to be between 110-127 ideally. I figure 115 is in there somewhere so that'll be my goal, and if I "stall" at 120 then I stay at 120. I'm not going to force anything, I'm just going to continue eating the way I know I should to be healthy, because that's what doing this is all about, really.

I keep having to explain that to my DH. He keeps saying "Once I get to my goal weight, I'm not doing the 'diet' anymore." Ehhh, does that mean I can smoke once we both hit our goal weights? No. It was about maintaining a healthy lifestyle, not trying to lose weight so we can look good. That part's just an added perk.

So yeah, if you're a size 0, dear Lord, stop! I know they make negative sizes now but for crying out loud, why? My mom and I were watching an episode of "I Love Lucy" not long ago, and tiny little Lucille Ball was whining on TV about having to SQUEEZE into a Size 12. A 12! Does that tell you how our sizes have changed over the years? It's society and the media forcing us women to actually become UNhealthy because we're more worried about numbers than our health.

Ooh, I believe I got a little fiesty today! TOM and all, apparently I needed a little rant. Whoops. ANYHOO, yeah. Just eat right and quit worrying about everything else. The end.

Lisa

Oh, last year we belonged to a CSA and got the most delicious tomatoes I have ever had outside of New Jersey! He had yellow and orange and bright red and grape and cherry and varieties I had never even heard of! We used to go pick a whole bucketful and just leave them in a bowl on the counter, like you say! Mmmmmm. I miss Farmer Jim!

Kara

Hmmm...I'm 5'3" too...(does that mean that all 5-3 women are fat?)... I have a small frame too, so I'm shooting for 120. I weighed 104 when I got (re)married 15 years ago, but that was really way too skinny..my legs looked like sticks. I'm 51. Right now I am at 158 and seem to be stalled there, and I'm thinking the grains might have something to do with it. Yesterday I decided on only 1 a day. I love laughing cow cheese with Stacey's simply naked chips for a snack, so I going to have to plan ahead to try to avoid another grain for the day if I want that snack!

5'3" women aren't fat.... we're just not stretched out like the tall girls, so we look wider. ???? Something like that.

You ladies crack me up! I'm pretty wide too so maybe I just need a good stretching!

I'm actually shooting for my 8th grade weight which, believe it or not, was 150--but I was only 5 feet tall at the time! (Yeah, I was one of the fat kids.) At 5'5", that's the top of the weight range according to the tables but I was very very happy there as an older adult (>30 y/o) once and think I would look too wrinkly if I weighed less. There's no point doing all this work only to look like a sharpei with curly hair at the end of it.

In my struggles with Phase 2, I've also considered how to get a grip on the grains. I was reading on another thread about a woman who is doing Carb Addicts Diet. They have 2 meals of 1/2 protein and 1/2 nonstarchy veggies, then a third meal that starts with salad followed by a plate of 1/3 protein, 1/3 nonstarchy veggie and 1/3 starch. I like that principle, and I think it could work for me in doing SBD. I would have to have it for dinner and then REALLY concentrate on not munching the night away afterward, which I must confess to having done last night with the lovely fresh cherries I had bought for my husband. Those summer fruits! Not quite as tempting as pizza, but close...

So please hang on to my beach towel too. I think I'm almost completely back. It's been 3 days since July 4 and I've been behaving fairly well thus far. I really want to succeed with this and make it as automatic as my lifetime of pigging out has been. I know it's a long road but I'm sure glad to be walking it with all of you!

L

What an interesting thread and just what I needed to read right now. Thanks, Kara! I was very frustrated yesterday which led to some off plan and unacceptable cheating (involving snickers and ice cream...mmmm). I seem to be hitting a mental wall as I get closer to goal. The 125.5 weight on my ticker was from Wed. and as of this morning, I'm at 130.5. I have had some cheats Wed - yesterday to account for it and I know that part of it is water weight but its still frustrating.

I realize I'm at that do or die point where I either give into my frustration or refocus, analyze and decide what I'm going to do to get past this wall. So, laying in bed this morning, I banished the evil voice in my head and got honest with myself. Here's what I came up with:

1. I need to get FOCUSED on exercise. I did not exercise last week and when I'm this close to goal - how can I expect to make it without exercising?! Plus, I'm totally sporting the skinny-fat look these days. My body is not going to look the way I want it to without strength training - no matter how low the scale goes. That's a fact.

2. Stay on plan! I'm drifting into the land of one little cheat here, one little cheat there and the little voice is telling me "it's not that big a deal". Well, it is if it snowballs which it usually does or we wouldn't be here!

3. Patience, patience, patience! Rome was not built in a day. I know from reading others experiences that the last few pounds are the hardest. This may take some time and I'm in this for the long haul so it doesn't matter if its next month or several months from now.

4. Accept my body for what it is. I am tiny up top (especially in the one darn place I don't want to be tiny - I think half my weight loss was in my boobs! Where the heck'd they go?!) and I'm heavy on the bottom. It is disporportionate and even at goal and with some bodybuilding, I will probably never look my ideal. But this is the package I was given and its up to me to make it look its best possible.

Whew! That was a rant if I ever had one. So, thanks Kara and everyone. It's such a help to know that I'm not alone in this and have a place where I can read about others experiences and express my own. Let's rock this thing!

Isn't it amazing how varying people's shapes and sizes can be even around the same weight!? I'm 32, 5'4 (when I stand up really tall) and I'm hanging out in a loose size 8, snug size 6. Betsy's a few pounds less than me and is a size 0. And we can find all sorts of people anywhere in between.

Variety is the spice o' life.

Sary, how is it possible for us to gain so much in such a short time? I gained three pounds last week! And I know it wasn't water. It was just pounds. Poo-hooey!

I'm 29 (for the next 18 days!), 5'4", and in a 4 or 6 depending on the brand. I'd love to be in a 4 across the board, but only because that would mean that I've improved the tone across my midsection and lost more of that "spare tire" I blame on the babies. I know it's not about the number on the scale or the size of my pants, but that's all I have to go by.

Good thing we're in this together and can support each other, huh?!

Kara