Heh - There's a book by Laura Fraser called "Losing It" where she describes people doing the Overcoming Overeating thing...I don't have the book in front of me but I remember one gal filled her bathtub with M&Ms (I hope she cleaned it first), and another lady bought boxes upon boxes of strawberry Pop-Tarts, which she ate for breakfast every day with almond crunch ice cream for a few weeks, until she started craving salads, and Poof! all the weight just fell off and she was cured!

I know me...if I did the PopTarts and Ice Cream for breakfast and got tired of it, then I'd probably just switch to maple sugar poptarts and strawberry ice cream or something like that, and I KNOW I'd be the size of a baby elephant. With me, it's definitely 'out of sight, out of mind'. Besides, I prefer Toast'ems to PopTarts anyway.

hahahahahaa My DS can't stand Pop Tarts either. He's a Kroger brand fiend. That's one food that I absolutely can NOT have in my house. I could eat those with anything, ice cream, broccoli, tartar sauce - anything. I don't understand the concept of eating something so much that your body doesn't want it and you crave normal stuff. I eat stuff til I am physically ill, I sit still for a while til the feeling passes then I am back to eating the same old stuff. Either I am missing a step, or maybe I shouldn't stop when I get ill. How bout this? Just don't have it around me. That sounds like the better plan.

Tiki.

Swimming in M&M's!!!! I can see and I doing just that!!! But that wouldn't work for me either, I'd switch to Smarties after I got sick of the M&M's...

OMG Mel !! I just read your post!! Lines of PopTarts!!Too funny!!

I, LWL, 3FC and the Rooster know exactly what you speak of, when we all compare food notes!!

MrsJim, I must say "ditto" again. I'm am such a variety nut that even if I did get tired of eating my favorite thing day after day, I'd move on to something else after that. In fact, I'm not really one of those people who can eat just one type of thing & be satisfied. Let's say I'd eat 1/2 a pint of Ben & Jerry's Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk for breakfast. By 11:00 or so, I'd want something else, but it could easily be a cheeseburger. In other words, I'm not sure the author of Overcoming Overeating or 7 Secrets envisioned someone like me for whom there are seemingly endless bad food choices!

But, seriously, I'm not knocking those plans. In fact, I wish they would work for me, & who knows? someday they just might. They wouldn't right now, though.

BTW, I just wanted to update everyone: It's 7:03 & I've managed to stay on program for the second day in a row! Yaaay!

ISSUES ISSUES ISSUES!!!! if it's not one thing, it's another... some days i'm not interested in food and other days it's the only friend i want to have a relationship with!!!!

look folks. it's like this. a couple of weeks ago, i had an appt with the dietician, and have been switching my eating around. the first few days were NOT EASY but it's gotten better the past few days. and i 've lost aobut 5 pounds or so, even with eating more.

and i've been keeping up with the cardio. but here's the problem... i'm exhausted. and i don't mean just plain tired. if i walk a block or do an errand after, say, 5 pm, i can barely move. i had to skip a workout this weekend. and on monday as well. went on tuesday, and i'm scheduled to go to the gym tonight, but i walked a little more than a mile to go pick up my car and i'm exhausted again.

i'm terrified that i'm going to slow down to a stop. BUT in a more rational moment [and they're few and far between!!!!!] i start thinking that maybe my body is adjusting to the new food schedule. or maybe I'VE BEEN DOING TOO MUCH!!! and for too long.

should i push or not?

or maybe my blood sugar is getting low because i haven't eaten on schedule? i ate about 4 g of protein - hummus - on a whole grain rye crisp with 2 slices of tomato at 6 pm. and that's been it since 2:30 lunch. and i should be eating now, but i'm not in the mood.

i had some tea instead.

<sigh> any thoughts?????? please?????

Jiffypop: Didn't you say elsewhere you were having a problem with iron absorption? Could you be anemic? Also, maybe ask if you should be using a glucose monitor like a diabetic-- they have to be especially careful when they exercise, because of the hypo danger.

Jiffy -- That Mel, oh I mean Meg, , is spot on take the weekend off and see how you feel....


Sorry Meg, I'm sooooo bad with names that are similar... My nieces names are Kelly and Wendy, and I'm finally getting them right! They are 19 and 16 BTW...

mel won't come and beat me up and make me feel guilty if i don't go to the gym??? hmmm. doesn't matter. i can do the 'beating up and feeling guilty' shtick all by myself without any help from anyone!!!!

SITC; you're right about the anemia... the iron is still low but the hemoglobin is going up.. slowly, but going up. it's just about where it should be, but the iron stores are just not there yet. and it's real slow going.

i just finished eating something and am starting to perk up. on tuesday, when i felt pretty decent i ate on schedule and at 6:30, before gym, i had a small salad with chick peas, kidney beans, spinach, shredded carrots, and some cheese, and i did great on that. didn't do that today.

hmmmmm. here's the deal. i'll eat on schedule and get some rest and see how that works. i'll go to the gym if i feel up to it. and i won't push myself there. i'll pay attention to how i'm feeling. does this sound like a plan??? <oh please say YES... i don't know if i could manage without having some sort of project ... the idea of RELAXING is just too foreign to me right now!!!!>

and it's a bit bizarre - to me at least - that i'm actually eating more and losing!!!

thank you ladies, .,don't know what i'd do without you ...

I agree w/ Meg, Jiffy. When I don't want to work out, I ask myself whether I'm really tired or I'm just being lazy. Sometimes it's because I'm tired, & if that's the case, I do what's right for my body: rest. Also, Meg is right about a few days of not exercising not making much of a difference in terms of your weight. I read somewhere that eating is 80 percent of the weight loss equation & exercise is 20% (although we all know that exercise tones & strengthens & generally makes you look better even w/out weight loss). I believe that to be true. Please take care of yourself, & go see a doctor if this tired feeling continues. By the way, did you run this by your dietician? She may have other clients who have experienced similar symptoms when switching to a new eating plan.

Well, I ate on program for 2 days straight . . .but I must admit that I didn't today. After eating dinner, I ate a 1/2 cup of Haagen Daaz Ice Cream (where did I get that, you ask? I went to the grocery store & did what I know I shouldn't have: I walked past the ice cream freezer). I realize, though, what the impetus for my eating that 1/2 cup was: my dinner was not satisfying. This isn't the first time this realization has struck me. I find that if I eat an unsatisfying dinner, I feel "cheated" somehow & go looking for something to make up for it. It sounds stupid, but I was really looking forward to my dinner. I had it all planned out: I would eat a cheeseburger & some green beans on the side. I did just that. However, I used extra lean meat & even though I've eaten extra-lean many times, it just seemed tasteless today. I ate it anyway because I was hungry, but I didn't like it. Hence, my trip to the ACME ice-cream freezer. Okay, here's my strategy for next time: If I'm eating a planned meal & find that I'm not enjoying it, I WILL STOP EATING IT IMMEDIATELY. I'll then find something that really does appeal to me.

I'm not going to panic about overeating today (I still did manage to stay at my maintenance calories). However, unlike other times of beating myself up & bemoaning my lack of "willpower," I'm going to tackle it by utilizing a new strategy to combat it. (Boy, if I get any more positive, I'm going to make myself puke )

I know what ya mean...I am SORE tonight. My Legs..my legs!!! I did 10 laps non-stop in the big pool after playing tennis and I was in pain...the good pain though...but still...Painnnnn!!!
I am lucky in the fact that the gym we are going to join provides the personal trainers for free!! It's all in their fee. They have this thing where they start you off with photos and some chart things and a thorough interview, then set you up on what you want and feel you need to be doing. Then you can meet with them as much as you want. I'll rant about it more as soon as I join. I still don't completely understand all of the "gym english" yet. hehehehe...
And Yes, everyones invited!! Granted, I might be in Portland, Oregon or Southern California for that weekend but...come on up or down! No gifts allowed, though!! Just yourselves. I'd give up all gifts in the world just to have a great get-together with a buncha great people.
Me too, Meg. Cept I haven't lost that craving for dark chocolate. But anything else candy-wise is just too sweet for me. I rather eat fresh pineapple than a Twix bar anyday. Besides, fresh pineapple has the enzymes that your digestive tract can use beneficially that canned pineapple doesn't have.
A loaf of "Low-Carb" bread costs $4.00 here!! And it's smaller than the regular high class stone ground wheat loafs!!!
Ditto for us too. We managed to save $400 extra last month by NOT eating out and NOT buying a buncha junk!! Yet somehow the fridge is still full of healthy goodies. I got out of the grocery store last week spending only $65!! And my cart was full!! Go figure.

oh my goodness!!! such wisdom here. as usual. i'm with you on the grocery stores, meg. i usually travel the outside of the grocery store here, with a dive into the pet food aisle and, believe it or not, a trip down the candy aisle to stock mom up with her snickers bars [they've always given me a migraine, so i can stay away from them very very easily]. and i pick up a bag of dark chocolate/almond hershey's nuggets on occasion., i'm allowed to have them!!!

which brings me to another point, angel darlin noodles woman. about the chocolate. and this isn't from me, it's from the dietician who's helped me lose about 5 pounds over the past two weeks...

the dark chocolate, esp with almonds, is one of the best sweets you can have. a little protein, a little fiber, low glycemic index. I DON'T HAVE TO GIVE IT UP!!! but i have to count it in my carb intake and eat it as 'dessert,' ie, as part of a meal.

that doesn't mean eating half a bag, but the 3 pieces or so that i want are just fine. so with you and your dark chocolate kisses... and the fact that you are allowed - biologically - to eat sooo much more than i am, my vote is that you don't have to give them up!!!!

look... if you're doing everything else right - and it sounds like you are - the dietician says that we can have 90% of what we should, and 10% of FUN every single day.

so enjoy your chocolate without guilt.

and i'm also amazed at the low carb selections! don't get me wrong, i have a stash of atkins chips for emergencies, right next to the dry roasted edamame... i prefer the edamame, but if i'm in a situation where i need to grab and go, it's the chips. happens about once a month.

but i'm digressing again. i'm right there with you, meg... since when does processed food = real food??? we're being attacked by that good old marketing hype, and we'll end up with the short end of the stick [or cruder!!! but i don't want to be moderated!!!] both financially and nutritionally.

vmelo: it sounds to me as if you had a very good day. you had a wonderful treat without binging, always a reason for a huge pat on the bag and many cheers. and that idea of not eating stuff that's not working for you - a very very valuable lesson. YOU DID GREAT!!!

jack: is there a slight wistfulness in your post concerning those friends still stuck on their barstools? yes. you are soo much better off than when you were sitting with them, but i'll bet they're still a bunch of nice guys and you share a history with them.

as for me... it's really strange to say this, but i'm actually pleased that i DID ABSOLUTELY NOTHING yesterday, except go to work and watch my food. i ate on schedule. and rested. and i'm still tired, but noticeably better. not having that 'all my miuscles are gonna give out any second' feeling.

so, i've planned a trip to the mall or to kohl's to get mom a new nightgown to go with her fancy new slippers, and then out to lunch, probably at my favorite fish restaurant. and then a stop at the yarn store for some yacking, and MAYBE, if i feel up to it, a walk or a hike [notice i said IF!!!!!] OR a little workout with my big exercise ball.

and tonight: peachie's oldest son has a baseball game, so i'll take mom, and pick up a hotdog for her [her favorite meal] and go cheer the boy on [even though we're NOT allowed to call out his name!!!!!]. i'll have something to drink and my knitting.

peachie is cooking mother's day dinner tomorrow. and that about does it around here.

meg's doing the MIL thing [such nobility!!!!] and i hope that everyone's families gives you all many smooches and hugs for all you do for them.

more later, i hope...

COOL!!!

Thanks, Jif!!!


I knew there had to be a valid, non-guilt reason why I love/crave dark chocolate and almonds. I use to eat the milk chocolate until I read an article somewhere about dark being better, so...I forced myself to get use to it and weaned off of the milk chocolate, and I'm glad I did. But I had forgotten why dark was better than milk until you reminded me Jif. Yummmmm!!!

On a side note...To all our "Moms" in here...whether by birth or adoption, foster or marriage, step or honorary, moms of kids, cats, dogs, rats, and other critters, and just cause...this is for you...

Nooodles! I love your creative and colourful posts! Thank you!