So, I did not have anything off program, but I did not get all of my food in today. Was celebrating a family member's birthday at a restaurant in New Haven. There were no vegetables that we could have on the menu. I ordered my tuna on a bed of field greens, and it came on a half a cup of ice berg. They had no veg. on their salads except beets. Not an easy restaurant, but the company was good, sometimes it is not about us. I just got home, my headache is crashing, there is no way that I can eat 3 cups of veggies at almost 12:00 am. Oh well, tomorrow's another day.

[QUOTE=want2bskinnyagain;4959427]
Steph: Can you not do a couple of weeks of P3 and see where you are and if you are not happy go back to P1 for a while?
QUOTE]

Hi want2bskinnyagain, that is the plan for now. I will return to Phase 1 March 25. I gave myself a deadline to be finished Phase 1 by April 18 so I could be fully phased off for maintenance starting May 16 which is a mother/daughter weekend trip to see Wayne Dyer in Vancouver. I may not be where I hoped I would by that time but I think I need to stick to this deadline and learn how to maintain the 40+ lb loss. If I want to lose another 5-10 lbs or just start looking leaner/fitter I will start incorporating exercise.

Slipfree -- I did that once too not eating all my veggies and I survived! I also once had to eat 4 cups at dinner - I dont recommend that plan either!

I was told by a coach that the veggies are really just the fiber and filler so you go to the bathroom. Not sure if this is true.

Made this last night. Saw it on the Talk it was pretty good and super easy to make. Any white fish would probably work

Baked Halibut with wild oregano, olive oil and lemon

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 halibut fillets

2 tablespoons olive oil

½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Juice of 1 lemon

2 paper thin slices of lemon, cut in half

½ teaspoon wild oregano (or ¾ teaspoon of regular oregano)

Scant teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper



Directions

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment paper. Pat the fish fillets to remove any excess moisture. Sprinkle the fillets with the salt and some freshly ground pepper. Place the fillets on the baking sheet.



In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and juice, whisk in the olive oil and the oregano. Pour the lemon and herb mixture over the fish fillets. Place a half slice of lemon on top of each fillet. Bake the fillets in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until cooked through and opaque.



http://www.cbs.com/shows/the_talk/topics/show/1002065

If your blood work was only a little bit off and the doctor wasn't concerned, I would think you might just be a little insulin resistant. I would get your blood rechecked in a few months after you've stabilized at your goal weight. I bet it will come back normally. Mine has improved since losing weight and my doctor us going to check it again when I get closer to or say goal. I still have no idea why what it would have to do with water retention. I thought insulin resistance caused your body to store and retain more fat.

Losing 73 lbs is really incredible and it is super exciting how close to goal you are. You are going to hit your goal and you deserve to be excited about it. I get excited every time another 10 lbs are gone.

Hi all,

I have been up since 7:30. On a Sunday, WHY?


Luccilove, thanks for the support and the recipe. I can not eat meat on Fridays during Lent and I struggle to come up with fish recipes that I like.

Kooky, i will ask the coach for clarification next time I see him. How was your day out in Carmel?

Steph and Want2be, nice to know that I am not the only one contemplating self image. I do think that our mindset has to change. Working on that!

Wantanewme, so glad the coach said yes!

Slipfree-I was up at 3:30am on Sat could not sleep so I was on the computer then crashed big time - me not the computer ahhaah and went back to bed did not get up until 9am on Sat. I hate when I do that ruins me and the day.

I am off to do some food shopping. Trying to eat more fish and chicken. Anyone have great recipes for these please post-I find it very helpful.

For insulin resistance I never heard that it makes u retain water-it retains your fat thus is makes it hard to loose weight I think especially in the belly.

Self image--I look at myself and I do not think I have lost the 49lbs I lost. But I sent a photo to my parents and Aunt and they could not believe I looked so different. I just dont see it. I know my clothes are super big but I feel I just look less bloated or I look deflated if that makes any sense? I still see my flab and big stomach etc. On the flip I can feel parts of my body a bit more easier - IE my ribs, hips, neck area.

Steph-Very excited for you about trying P3-let us know what you think about it and how is it different for you. Any pros and cons on it? Curious.

Luccilove, I baste chicken in Dijon mustard, sprinkle on tarragon and cook in a crock dish for 20 minutes. Or baste with Dijon, sprinkle with roasted garlic and dried shallots for a more savory taste. Serve with Boston lettuce and cucumbers. Homemade dressing: lemon, Dijon, Evoo, cider vinegar and fresh chopped shallots. I should go grocery shopping, but I want to stay in my jammies

Slipfree- I didn't end up going because of my migraine and TOM started with bad cramps. We rescheduled for next weekend. Good job btw on staying OP at a restaurant without many IP options.

I wish birth control pills didn't cause so much weight gain (and other issues), or I would go on them to make TOM more manageable or skip it altogether. I'm sitting here with my heating pad right now waiting for the Advil to kick in. : (

Lucci- I agree with you on the insulin resistance and I can testify as someone who is insulin resistant (but not diagnosed as having PCOS) that my stomach is where I store most of my fat.

Here is an interesting link to a TV segment on insulin resistance, sugar, and obesity. It really explains why it's so difficult to lose weight eating sugar and carbs.

http://www.uctv.tv/shows/The-Complet...-Obesity-25717

Kooky-u are right and I take birth control - the pill since high school because of my PCOS. It helps with my TOM - it makes me get it regularly and it is not so intense. One time I took a break from being on it in my 30s and TOM was very bad-heavy and painful. (Sorry dont mean to be gross). Birth control also helps PCOS from hair growth (hirtsium) and allows me to get more estrogen. On the flip my drs said birth control might be causing my liver enzymes to be high but I will go off of this as a VERY last resort.

Slipfree-thanks for the recipe stuff.

Off to food shop and look at some houses. We drove by some houses yesterday-nothing we liked.

Have a good day everyone - enjoy your Sunday!!!

JIG-take off your boots/shoes for WI!!! OY!

You're not being gross...mine has gotten that way some months and it's terrible. I'm lucky that it usually comes on the weekend, so that I can deal with it at home rather than struggling at work. I hope it works out that you can stay on the pill because it sounds like it really helps you.

Hope you have a great day and have better luck house hunting!

A few years ago I was told I was "borderline" PCOS, and most of my weight is in the stomach area, I also have some of the other symptoms as well. From what I have read, I am beginning to think I am insulin resistant. Hmm, interesting.

Slip: I think staying on plan in a restaurant that didn't have much you could eat is a NVS. I know you didn't get your veggies in but you also didn't order something you couldn't eat instead. Good job.

Glad we are all so chatty this weekend!!

Good morning friends! Phase 3 breakfast rocks! It is sooo much food. Felt pretty full and now it's time to eat lunch. Not hungry yet but I have to eat now as I have a pedicure apt in an hour. I might just eat half and save for later if I'm hungry? This is what I had for breakfast:

1 piece of toast w/ 1 tsp butter
2 pieces of back bacon
3/4 C greek yogurt
1 pear

I could have had a hard boiled egg as well according to my Phase 3 sheet but I had enough protein w/ the back bacon and yogurt and it was so much food I don't think I could have fit the egg. I'm a little nervous as to how this will affect the scale but I'm just going to stick to it and see what happens. I have a lot of energy and am feeling really good right now. Hope I don't have a crazy blood sugar crash later!

Have a great day everyone. The sun is shining here. 10 degress Celsius. Spring has sprung. Lots of walking with the dog today

Best news ever- my friend that needed a kidney desperately found a match. I am so relieved!

Steph- breakfast sounds good.

slipfree-great news with your friend and the kidney My dad had a kidney transplant 5 yrs ago. He is still kicking!!! He didnt even know he was sick - no disease or anything. He was obese, didnt take care of himself eating wise and high blood pressure. It basically killed his kidneys!! So this is a huge reason I wanted to lose weight - dialysis is one of the worst things I have ever seen-I didnt want to end up like him.

Had a great dinner at a Hibatchi restaurants - lots of shrimp, scallops, lobster and veggies