[quote=Shannon in ATL;2974457



Megan - I have never eaten a cranberry product at Thanksgiving... until this year I had never eaten cranberry anything, now I've had craisins, cranberry muffins and cranberry juice. Since I'm hosting Thanksgiving this year I may have to try your mom's recipe!

![/quote]

Never had cranberries at Thanksgiving ? You do live in the US don't you ?
Cranberries are as prominent as turkey at Thanksgiving.

Shannon, I think caramel apples should be ok for a 4- year old, I guess just make sure he's careful and doesn't burn himself making them!

This thread is turning into some serious food porn, though!

Shannon, does that mean you have never had cranberry sauce??? The recipe on the back of the ocean spray cranberries package is pretty good. I admit I still have a soft spot in my heart for the ocean spray canned jellied cranberry sauce, which comes out shaped like the can. Love that stuff.

Mel, I grew up with both Hannukah and Christmas, but I don't think I could handle two Thanksgivings!

Today I took DH shopping for winter running gear. He ended up spending $380 at the running store. But it's good because it will keep him fit this winter, and next winter, and the winter after that... He tested it out this afternoon (it was about 42 degrees out). I had picked out two layers for him because I would have worn that much in this weather, but he was too hot! He was comfy with just the one long-sleeved shirt, no hat or gloves.

That does mean I have never had cranberry sauce. I had a list of foods I didn't eat, and the cranberry was on the list.

Bargoo - I was surrounded by cranberry sauce at holiday gatherings, I just avoided it. Looking forward to trying it this year. Something else I didn't try until just a few years ago... Apple pie. When DH found out he said the same thing you did about the cranberry sauce.

Jessica - I remember the jellied cranberry sauce, it always looked weird to me. I wonder if that was why I avoided cranberries...

I need better winter running gear... Went out this afternoon in a thin sweatshirt over a long sleeved running shirt & long tights under shorts. I just can't wear those tight pants without shorts over them... Took the sweatshirt off and tied it around my waist after about 20 minutes. Oh yeah, I also had on an Old Navy fleece cap with the ball on top. Everything was different colors - purple & gray sweatshirt, pink & white top, black pants, forest green shorts, baby blue cap. I'm sure I looked fabulous!

Iris - definitely turning into food porn, yes... At least the week is almost over and we'll start clean!

So I'm upstairs talking to my grandmother on the phone a few minutes ago, DH is downstairs watching the GA Tech game... I hear yelling, some applause, then a tinkling noise. I step into the hall and ask if everything is okay and hear "I think I broke the ceiling fan..." He apparently hit the pull chain on the fan as he was gesturing, the finial on it swung up and hit the globe of the fan and broke the glass. His mom used to put away the breakables during major sporting events... Who knew I would need to put away the ceiling fan!?!

Good night everyone!

Hmm ... I am planning a run tomorrow morning and I'm not sure what I'll wear. It's supposed to start at about 36, so maybe full length running tights and one long-sleeved layer on top. I am afraid I'll be hot, too, except my hands and face will be freezing. Anything lower than about 26 sends me inside to the treadmill.

Oh, man - it was over 90 for my run this morning - yeesh! I got a teaser of decent temps last week and now we're back to summer.

So I tried telling myself that I didn't need to weigh in every week or write down what I was eating.

And those Halloween candies wouldn't end up as extra weight either.

The result of letting my maintenance lapse was that it lapsed - gained 4 lbs. in 2 weeks . This weight loss/ maintenance business really is a life-long commitment. Sigh.

Back to business today. Taking my cousin's kids to the movies. Popcorn for them - pretzels brought from home for me.

And I'll be "fat" at the reunion on Friday. That's my pattern and I haven't suceeded at breaking it . Realistically 4 lbs. do not make such a difference but I can now use them as an excuse to chicken out and not go at all. Or to go and sit in the corner.

Funny how even if you know you're lapsing into a pattern or bad habit sometimes the behaviour is too strongly ingrained to break. I'm curious to see if the hypnosis will give me a new tool to break the old patterns.

I'm getting really tired of the old patterns. And frustrated at myself for maintaining them. There's so much useful information for living our best lives out there - it's just too hard to sort through it all sometimes to find what we need for our individual selves.

Time to go lift some weights!

Have a great Sunday all!

Dagmar

Dagmar, that's a lesson that I've had to relearn myself a few times on this journey. Yep, maintenance takes constant vigilance and for a lot of us, that means continuing to track what we eat and daily weighing. It's easy to pretend that oh, we already know what we're eating so no need to write it down, and gee, we don't want to get obsessed by the scale so let's not weigh in -- and then poof, before we know it, we've packed on a bunch of bonus pounds. Our capacity for self-deception can be pretty amazing, can't it?

OK, better to find out about the weight gain now, while it's only four pounds and not a whole lot worse! You know what to do and you've got a good plan for the day.

Sure, the old patterns and behaviors will always be there, but you've come a long way in building new behaviors and habits to replace the old ones. I think a lot of us are surprised and disappointed to discover that our old issues aren't cured and tend to always be there, lurking beneath the surface. But you already have the tools and strategies to defeat all those old, destructive patterns and issues. So long as we make our choices mindfully and thoughtfully, we can escape the old, destructive patterns and habits.

Back in the fat days and when I was losing weight, I imagined what life would be like at goal. And I always thought (though I'm not sure why!) that I would be a different person with a different relationship with food once I lost all the weight. It was scary at first to discover that I'm exactly the same person with exactly the same issues with food that I ever was, until I realized that I know how to deal with those issues. So what if my knee-jerk response to stress is to want to eat? My brain tells me that it won't fix the situation and in fact, will make it worse and that exercise is a lot better strategy for de-stressing. I don't have to give in to that first, instinctive response. I've created a better response. So even though I'm still a fat chick in a normal body, I have an awesome arsenal of tools, habits, and strategies to overcome all the old, bad patterns and habits!

And Dagmar, so do you!

Happy Sunday, gang! I hope everyone is having a lovely, restful weekend. After working 15 out of 17 days, I actually have a weekend and am starting to catch up. Today I plan to do a lot of bulk cooking: bean soup, butternut squash fries, grilled shrimp, grilled salmon, hummus, and a leg of lamb dinner tonight for the boys (not my thing, I'll have fish).

Meg Bonus pounds - love it! Enjoy the rest of your weekend and thanks for the guidance. You always have the right response for everyone!

Dagmar

Yes, but the rewards can be a lifelong joy, also.

No food has ever given me the "high" that being able to slide into small clothes, look good in a skimpy dress, do HANDSTANDS, pull a clean, super heavy dead lift, and do unassisted pull ups have. Of course, the food hasn't made me as sore as the pull ups, either!

Hang in ther. We all have the tools, and we need to use them in that millisecond when the thought first crosses our minds. Once you start an internal discussion or argument, you've lost.

Mel

Mel, David Kessler (in The End Of Overeating) talks about the need to short circuit the behavior as soon as the thought crosses your mind too. He says it's very hard to stop once the chain of events is put into action. You're right, we need to implement our strategies as soon as we become aware of the danger. I know you've read it, but I can't recommend that book highly enough to anyone who hasn't had to chance to check it out.

As for the rewards, you're so, so right. Why else would I still be doing what I'm doing, eight years later?

Wardhog, I remember that part about what to wear when running in the fall. I would layer up with a dri-fit T-shirt underneath a long-sleeved shirt and wear gloves that I'd eventually take off. But I'd wear shorts, too, because I knew I'd be getting hot, plus I didn't have breathable tights. Not allowed to run anymore, and really miss running in the fall.

Regarding cranberry, I never ate cranberry sauce until I discovered a recipe for cranberry orange sauce that had gotten lots of rave reviews at All Recipes. Made it last year and it was yummy. I don't eat turkey (or any animal products) anymore so I just kind of ate it by itself. Would be a good jam replacement, too. Cranberries are really good for you, but it's the sugar that you have to put in them to make them edible that really messes you up.

Dagmar, I hope you don't let 4 lbs. scare you away from going to your reunion. In the scheme of things, 4 lbs. is nothing, and I'm betting that people will be carrying a lot more than 4 lbs. of extra weight. You wouldn't think less of them for that, would you? So please don't punish yourself so harshly--go and have a wonderful time catching up with people and hearing what they've done with their lives.

Our handyperson got sick last week so our kitchen has remained torn out for a week, but he'll be here tomorrow (I hope). The electrician is supposed to come Tuesday and fix all the stuff we discovered was wrong once we tore out the soffits. Hopefully the cabinet guy can come the next week, and then we can get the appliances back in. I cleaned up the garden beds and discovered more spaghetti and acorn squash plus a whole lot of carrots. Anyone have a recipe for a good carrot soup?

Hope everyone has a great Sunday!

Sheila I'm definitely going to the reunion - wearing tight bright pink corduroy pants too! I know I'm going to be one of the fittest people there. The 4 lbs. would have stopped me 10 years ago but no longer.

I may not have changed the overeating habit but I've definitely changed the social situation avoidance. I'll have a bit less confidence but I'm still going.

Dagmar