nepeanut--

My center tells me I can't eat any soup that's not from their supplements or cookbook.

I even made myself a healthy marinara sauce from scratch for my "mock spaghetti" once, and then was told I shouldn't have done that because the tomatoes were supposed to remain uncooked, etc. Basically, it wasn't OP, even though all the individual ingredients were (all approved veggies & seasonings).

I still lost weight that week, though, so I'll probably eat it again and just not tell them that it was made without the supplements.

Ugh!! I'm not feeling so great today. I think reading about other people reaching there goals or losing 45lbs in 2months is discouraging me somewhat. I know that my losing 20lbs in 2 months is considered pretty good and a nice normal weight loss, but being stuck at 212 for the last 2 wks has really got me feeling discouraged. I know that losing weight take times, its not going to happen the same for everyone etc etc. I think I just need some encouragement. I have been on the beige menu and following it pretty religiously, drinking all the water, and even adding in the extra HSNs that I am allowed. I know I need to exercise more and plan on starting that today.
Just feeling down I guess.

Frustrating! I mean, if it has the right ounces of vegetables and protein, who cares if it's not in the cookbook. I love the lady that does our cooking classes, but, she took the summer off. I might see if the center will give me her email address and ask her about soups. I will eat soup when it's cold, plus, I need something new. After being on this diet for over a year I'm getting bored and I'm still about 50 lbs. from goal.

I am glad it didn't make you feel miserable -- cause that is just no fun at all! One thing I did notice in my weight decline though -- that more times than not, I would eat something OFF plan in any given period, and still usually enjoy a loss -- maybe not huge, but nevertheless, a loss. I came to realize, and this is really deep here -- "It is what we do in the bigger picture that yields our success!" So you can afford to get slightly off plan OCCASIONALLY, and still see losses. And isn't that a great revelation to encounter! However, when I followed plan to the "T", I usually saw 3-5 lbs losses in a week's time! All about choices and what is truly important to us at any given time, I guess!

WI was today for me. I'm on Day 10 of the program and I have lost 9.5 pounds!! YIPPEE!! I also got the green menu and was thrilled with the choices I have now! Love that I'm melting away!

This is great. You go girl!

Congratulations!!! Keep up the great work!

I surpassed my original goal of 166 this morning! I'm so excited! I'm shooting for about 10 more pounds - my contract is up at the end of October.

Congrats hatethesweatpants! We're in the same boat.. just passed original goal and inching towards new goal of the last 10 lbs.

Congratulations!

Wow, we started at the same weight! I lose about 2lbs/week. Wanna make a friendly wager - see who gets there first? I could use any motivation I can get!
Deb

Had my WI today... down a total of 11.5 in 3 weeks!! I leveled out this week but think it is because of TOM because I was down 1.5 again this morning, so I am encouraged for the weekend.

Monday will be difficult, I will be traveling all day in the car so it is harder to drink all my water without stopping every 5 minutes. I am bringing a bag full of food so I am not tempted and not hungry at any point.

Yay!! So happy for myself. I just got off metaquick and I am down 5lbs in a week! I went out last night and while my friends were eating cheesy fries and beer I had (and enjoyed!) a salad and vodka with crystal light. I am giving myself a little leeway and it is proving to make me so relaxed and not stress out so much!

When I went for my food instruction class, one of the suggested usable items was the McCormick packaged seasoning mix for chili, provided you find the low sodium one. So when I'm in the mood for something hot and comforting, I make up a batch of chili using the mix, plus a pound of ground bison browned with a bunch of green onions and a rinsed can of plain pinto beans. I know there are sticklers out there who insist on no canned goods, but I'm too lazy to cook my own beans so I just read the labels and rinse the beans well. I deglaze the pot with a cup of cold water and toss in two 8 oz. cans of no salt added tomato sauce (the one I use is made by Hunts - those cans again!) I let it simmer, and it is fabulous! The beans are allowed on the green menu, the bison is allowed all the time. I figure if there is sodium hiding in there, I've minimized the damage as best I can by my purchasing choices.

I have never heard the bit about tomatoes having to be raw. I'm looking at the menu, and the only vegetable mentioned here specifically denoted as raw is tomatoes. I'm not sure why that is, so I plan to ask next time I go to the center. I wonder if it is because cooking concentrates the sugars in them? I love fresh tomatoes anyway, so during the summer I eat them every day as much as I can, just sliced into wedges and coated with a little olive oil, sea salt, and a splash of balsamic vinegar. I'm in heaven!

One more thought - there are items forbidden on our food plan which actually show up as ingredients in MRC products. Take caffeine, for example. We are told to avoid it, but the All Day Weight Loss product contains caffeine. IMHO, if it doesn't affect my weight loss, I don't get too hung up on minutiae.

Thanks so much for your insight. I too have found low sodium chili seasoning and used that with buffalo and canned no salt tomatoes. I leave the beans out because I don't like them. I don't know what the deal is with raw tomatoes, if you find out let me know. I too love raw tomatoes out of the garden, but, the ones I have to buy in the store now aren't the same. I weighed in today and lost 2 pounds. I need to get my mind back in the ballgame and get this weight off.