Yay! My scale is still cooperating! I get to move my ticker out of the 200's today! And it's Carb Day!

Week 5: High 206.5, Low 204.5
5/31--(202.5) 206 Carb Day
6/1--(203) 206.5
6/2--(202.5) 206
6/3--(202) 205.5
6/4--(201) 204.5
6/5--204.5
6/6--205.5 Carb Day
Week 6: High 206.5, Low 204.5
6/7--206
6/8--206.5
6/9--205.5
6/10--206.5
6/11--205.5
6/12--204.5
6/13--204.5 Carb Day
Week 7: High 205, Low 201
6/14--204.5
6/15--205
6/16--203.5
6/17--202
6/18--201.5
6/19--201
6/20--201 Carb Day
Week 8: High 202.5, Low 199
6/21--202
6/22--202.5
6/23--201.5
6/24--202
6/25--201
6/26--199.5
6/27--199 Carb Day

Today's Meals:
Breakfast:
2 eggs fried in coconut oil
2 slices of bacon
1 slice of whole wheat toast, spread with coconut oil
Mio water

Snack:
A LARGE brownie with frosting and chocolate chips

Lunch:
Chicken
(I'd eat more but I'm too full after the brownie!)
Mio water

Snack:
Thumbdrop cookie

Dinner:
3 square slices of scramble pizza
Mio water
Breyers Girl Scouts Thin Mint ice cream

Today's Exercise: (I went for all cardio today, just to switch it up! )
3-mile walk around the track, 45 minutes on the elliptical (15 minutes, 3 times)

Mars, I think you had a great day yesterday! Even with the cheese pizza, you didn't eat the crust! And all those steps! Let's hope the scale cooperates for you today too!

I did well with my food yesterday and I am down 2 lbs from carb day, right at 200 lbs. I think I am onto something. Although I understand the rules of the plan, no fast carbs for 6 days and then 1 carb day, I have trouble keeping the 6 days free of fast carbs. It's not a lot, but when I make things for DH I might eat a few bites of potato, or rice pilaf, or sometimes break off a small piece of roll when we eat out. I think that might be why I didn't have a gain after my big carb day...because there are fast carbs in there, here and there most days. My drop this morning surprised me, but I think this is the way the plan is supposed to work. Have your carb day, go right back to slow carb, and get a drop. What do you think? Am I just trying to justify my slip ups? Numbers don't lie. Maybe this is the way it works for me. What ever it is, I do try to stay slow carb. It's very easy at breakfast and lunch, but it's at dinner when I prepare the starchy carbs for DH that I take a taste. I will take a "wait and see" attitude and see what happens in the coming week.

Mars, when DH gets pizza, I pull off the toppings, cheese and pepperoni, or sausage, cut it up and put it in a salad. I call it "pizza salad." DH thinks that's funny, but that's how I get my pizza taste without the carbs in the crust. Pizza crust really spikes my blood sugar.

Congrats on all the steps! I want to hang my head in shame. I think I average about 3000 per day and have been under 1000 a couple times. I went as high as 8000 once, and over 5000 twice. I did really well the day my dog ran away and I was chasing him all over the neighborhood! LOL

Jacqui, good for you on getting and staying below 200. Hopefully, I am right behind you. I have to keep up! LOL

I have renewed this book from the library and am going over and over certain parts. I might even write some things down so I can research them further and can refer back when I want to. It's some things I've never heard before and find it all interesting. I think there are studies referenced. I see a lot of footnotes but just haven't been paying any attention to them. I know I heard years ago that you should never have 2 non-exercise days in a row. I'm not sure what he meant by only needing 15 min per day. Maybe he means that rather than skip a day altogether, fit in at least 15 minutes for that day.

Jac,

Jacqui That is onederful Enjoy your Carb Day!

Carol Sue I think you are onto something re WOE. You are staying accountable and your weight is moving in the direction you want. And you're trying to find what you can realistically sustain. It's a very individual puzzle. That's what I love about this Slow Carb plan--it has the safety net of a diet but you can tweak it a lot to fit without feeling like it's cheating. I don't do well without structure, but if there's too much, I want to rebel.

Robert Lustig is my hero for getting me to think about how sugar affects me.

chickadeee Here's to enjoying your fresh start!

I slept in today. I wonder if I need those pizza topping carbs to get adequate sleep. Scale is the same at 168; it was wavering at a lower weight but settled on this one. Today I will see how my body feels, hopefully it will be up to a gym visit and a walk. I'm still a little worn from yesterday. I love that my phone has a step tracker---it keeps me moving. Wouldn't it be great to have a tracker for calories burned while chewing, digesting, breathing?

Today is numbers day for me, down 2 lbs and 1/2" overall. The 1/2" cracks me up. At this age it is hard to move fat that is for sure, but again, slow and day by day. (I did wear some pants yesterday that I haven't been able to squeeze into since last summer, so that is the best gauge of all and how I feel about myself.)

Today is also the day I allow myself a slice of 12 grain toast with breakfast, and let me tell you - I feel awful after eating it, hard to explain, run down, almost sick to my stomach - my DH told me it is probably the gluten that my body is not use to and maybe never liked. So, will rethink that one day treat in the future.

Have to do some baking this weekend, I am running low on bean brownies and almond squares - both of which I use as treats when I need something. And I like them.

Have to go do some shopping today and then mow the lawn with the push mower.

As usual you guys are doing good, your posts make my day, seeing where everyone is at and your trials and errors.

Mars: I think they was research in how many calories are burned from chewing! Think of almonds or peanut butter on a whole stalk of celery!

Good day to all.

Mars, what were your pizza toppings that they contained carbs, other than those in the cheese? I don't consider the topping to be carbs, just the crust. They do say that a little bit of carbs before bed can help sleep.

I think my Fitbit syncs with my phone but I don't know how to do it.

Chickadeee, we were typing at the same time. My Fitbit account tells me how many calories I burn just by existing. I have my profile set up for sedentary so I know what I burn before I actually do anything.

By bean brownies, do you mean black beans? I have seen some recipes for them. Would you please share your recipe?

Yes, please share the recipe chickadeee! I'm so glad to read about your progress There is nothing so rewarding as to fit into those clothes. Thank-you for the vicarious pleasure! I notice the same thing about bread. I think I always did feel over-stuffed after eating a sandwich. I don't miss bread much, I just want to avoid that feeling so it's easy to steer clear of it. I don't know why I don't feel that way after cake--wish i did!

Carol Sue I set my MFP tracker as sedentary as well. Although I don't really take the numbers seriously, I've noticed that it fits how I feel. If I'm really hungry, it corresponds to being under 1700 cal on an average day.
I'm not sure how Fitbits work. Are you able to get any data from it without synching it? There is one that you can just read directly without synching--I think it's the Fitbit Charge? I'm really tempted as I find these things can motivate me a lot to move my body.

Re pizza topping...I might take a second look at this. I wonder if because of the carbs and fat together that cheese is not on the allowed Slow Carb list. the piece i had yesterday was just cheese with very little tomato sauce, probably 2 oz of cheese. I added a few slices if fresh tomato. The other choices at hand were all sorts of fast carbs, nuts, fries, beans, fresh fruit in the cafeteria at work. The cheese just felt right. Nut don't make me feel great & i felt that the cheese would be a slower carb that the fruit.

I worked 2 extra-long shifts this week, which I never ever normally do. On both days, I noticed that I made minor errors at work but ones that I normally would not ever make. I'm wondering if i just didn't fuel my brain well enough with slow carbs, or a cumulative sleep deprivation, a medical issue, etc. So I am going to be sure to get in some more fast carbs tomorrow, and made an appt. for annual labwork. I have thyroid antibodies but normal labs. The dermatologist I saw the other day said even with normal labs, thyroid antibodies is Hashimoto's thyroiditis. I googled and read that some folks report cognitive issues with subclinical thyroiditis. I have a good internist who keeps me from overthinking these things, and will see what he says. But my slips remind me of my time on Ideal Protein, so likely due to lowish blood sugar.

Thank you for the little cheerleader, Chickadeee, lol! CONGRATS on your 2 lbs down and 1/2 inch loss! That's great! And yes, if you wouldn't mind, please do share your recipe!

Carol Sue, c'mon! Come and frolic with me back in Onederland, lol! And yes, if I'm reading what you're saying correctly, I think you might be rationalizing just a tad if you are reasoning that because you take bites of quick carbs throughout the week, that's why you didn't gain weight on Carb Day, like you had conditioned your body to accept quick carbs. It doesn't work that way, not even for you I'm afraid, lol! For EVERY gram of carbs, you hold about 3 grams of water. It's just how the body works, so every time you eat carbs, you are adding extra water. I think why it looked like you didn't gain after Carb Day is because you probably did drop lbs, but it didn't show on the scale because it was delayed by your Carb Day water weight increase, so it came out looking like there was no difference in weight. Now, you've shed that Carb Day water weight, so you are showing your 2 lb drop! CONGRATS! And I have a question about the high carb bites you are taking in the evenings. Are you taking them as you cook to taste how the preparation is coming along? Or are you taking them just because you want a bite? If you are taking them for the preparation, that is understandable, and if the taste is small enough, it probably won't make a difference. (If I feel I need to taste, because I cook like that, I will either put just a teeny tiny bit on the tip of my lips or I'll take a bigger amount into my mouth and then spit it back out.) However, if you are taking a bite just because you want some, that's going to add up. Those are real bites. And you can keep doing that and just figure that in as something you accept as part of your plan, but you have to be careful. That's the kind of a trap people fall into when dieting. They start underestimating just how many extra "harmless" bites they're taking. Don't ever think you are getting away with eating free bites. Those carb grams and their associated water do show on the scale, as I think you are figuring out. You may still be losing weight but at a slower rate that you might otherwise. If that is okay with you, then keeping those few evening bites, which are not quite full-on cheats, as a modification to your diet works for you! The idea is to make modifications that work for you. If the changes to the diet don't spike your blood sugar, don't cause you to have cravings, and don't prevent you from losing weight, then there's no reason not to go for it. If they don't work, however, you need to be honest with yourself about that. For example if you start craving more and more or if your blood sugar isn't where it should be or if you have too many long stalls on the scale, you probably need to make adjustments. In any event, I'm sure you'll get it figured out! I think you are like me in that you kind of experiment to see what works and what doesn't! Oh and if you come across any other interesting parts of your book like the information about the daily exercise, please share! It's so helpful and I sure appreciate it!

Mars, I think it's a smart idea to get some labs done! As far as why cheese is not allowed, although it's not quick carb, Tim Ferriss believes some research that says dairy spikes blood sugar. However, there is other research out there that says dairy is good for blood sugar, so that's why I don't get too excited about allowing a bit of cheese and now yogurt. The ONLY reason I don't allow more is because it does kind of trigger me. I LOVE cheese and I will overeat it. It looks like you have a great day planned today! Yay!

Jacqui I am like you with cheese--very triggering. I also have finally figured out that over a tiny bit of dairy and I get a skin/scalp reaction. It's the casein, so I am happy to leave cheese off the menu. I think i probably need to replace some animal protein with legumes, or something like that. Lower carb does wonder for me re keeping my hunger satisfied, but my brain seems to want a little more carbs. This is what I'm working out with MFP tracker. I know it's not 100% accurate but I'm learning that net carbs in the 50s might be too low for me. It might be that once in a while, when more active than usual, I'll have that pizza topping or something like it. Although I did feel myself react in the more more more way, the craving left quickly once I left the eating area. I don't keep it in the house as it would call out to me.

Hi Everyone

I've had a ton going on here with school ending. Work. Kids looking for employment. Work. Kids getting driving permits and licensed. Work. Travel for one kid, flat tire turned a 5.5 hour trip into an 8 hour trip. Little sleep upon return because I still had to go to work that night/day so 2.5 hours of sleep and then trying to catch up ever since

Weight hasn't changed much, gaining and losing the same pounds.

Jacqui I read your comment about the Greek yogurt and the Mio. Have you tried sugar free gelatin in your yogurt? More flavors for sure.

Lots of information here ... gotta catch up but I need a nap

My dear husband just brought me home a large brownie with frosting and chocolate chips on top. Did I wait to eat it until I had some protein to eat first so my blood sugar wouldn't crash? Nooooo. And it tasted SUPER SWEET, too sweet, to me. Did that make me stop with just a bite or even two? Nooooo. Chocolate really is my weakness!!!

Rennie!!! I'm so glad to see you!!! I hope things slow down for you soon and you can come join us again! I will have to look into the unsweetened gelatin. Thank you for that suggestion!

Hi Rennie!

chickadeee Thanks for the pnut/butter celery sugggestion. I think they sell single serving peanut butter at work--that may be just the ticket for a quick-energy meal.

carol Sue I hope you aren't really hanging you head in shame re exercise! I have so much resistance to it that right now it's all I can do to track the non-optional movement, ie work. See below:

Jacqui I hope you got to enjoy that brownie with no BS repercussions.

Today isn't over but I'm afraid the gym is. I had my workout clothes on but went to the grocery store first. It's the far one that has produce that will keep all week. It triggers me to shop there though. I didn't eat anything off program but I ate so much that I was too full to work out. I was hungry when I went, having run out of avocados for my omelet. And it was lunchtime....half a roast chicken, a large avocado, followed an hour later by tofu roll ups filled with the rest of the avocado, veggies, evoo. I tracked it in MFP just for curiosity and it was 1007 calories.

I doubt I'll be eating much more today since I'm still full. I'll do some mat exercise and premier my new oxycise dvd. There's no lesson learned here, just that I'm prone to overeat not tuned into my state of hunger. It just caught me off guard.

Official weekly WI.
Week1 168

It's Carb Day and scale is down to 166.2.

Early B veggie/avocado omelet, whey shake/coffee
L Outback restaurant, sirloin, steamed veggies, salad, bread or potato, butter. It's scary to read the calories of each dish. Was going for the steak salad and it has 995!
D Salad/kidney beans/avo broccoli
S Peach with strawberry balsamic drizzled on it (found a mini-bottle in the back of a cupboard )

Gym hours unfavorable to schedule; will do some walking at a butterfly sanctuary annual open house