Good morning fellow maintainers.

I was intentionally absent from this thread all of last week. Doing a little experiment.

At this point in my journey, whether or not I post here, has no bearing on how well I stick to my plan.

I've just been finding, that feeling that I HAVE to post here every day has become burdensome. And it does not help me. I have no problem telling you folks when I've dipped in the cereal box, nibbled at the baked goods and the such. Sooooo, I think for now, and of course that may change in the future, far or near, I will not post here everyday.

And wouldn't you know it? Last week and this past weekend was the best 10 day stretch I've put together in a LONG time. Again, no bearing whatsoever whether or not I post here. And lo and behold, my weight is DOWN!!!! Well, ummm, yeah - stick with the plan - and your weight goes down. Duh.

But not for long, I plan to splurge on Thanksgiving. And I plan to enjoy it. Each and every high calorie morsel.

I'm in a great place now. Had some great realizations over the past week or so. I'm so okay with an occasional splurge and even a *temporary* weight gain. It's all part of the "plan".

Robin, that's great that you have your groove going!

I find posting to threads to be helpful most times when I remember to do it

I do daily postings on a small board that calls ourselves the Tough Love fitness club. It's a no whining, kick your butt place where you post what you did that day for food and fitness that day, not a detailed eating plan, but just whether you stuck to it or not.
That's been more helpful for me.

So anyway, this is my today:

B - protein pancakes with blueberries, cafe au lait
L - tuna wrap, cucumbers
S - 2% latte
Dinner - turkey breast, steamed broccoli, strawberries
S - Fage yogurt mixed with honey and chopped berries

Exercise - upper body strength training, 30 minute jog.

Lori, I know for many, many people posting their menus and fitness routine really, really helps to keep them accountable. But for me, at this point, and again, that may change at anytime - 2 months, 2 weeks or 2 days from now, it's been of no benefit.

But I will tell you this, it is of GREAT, GREAT comfort to me, to know that I CAN at a moments notice, call out for help (and that butt kicking) if need be here at 3FC.

Regardless of whether I post or not daily on this particular thread, it is quite helpful to me and very reassuring to know that I've got all you folks plugging along with me day in and day out, facing the same exact food issues that I face. QUITE HELPFUL. And I really don't know how or what I would do without this place. It's a like a weight loss/maintenance haven.

Lori, if I can ask you - would you mind sharing your recipe for protein pancakes? I've asked about them in the past, but still haven't tried them. But I think I may do so in the near future. Thanks.

Robin - here is the recipe:

1 egg (some people use 2 egg whites instead)
1/3 cup cottage cheese
1/3 cup of rolled oats
Protein powder (I add about 8 grams)
dash of cinnamon
sweetener if desired

Blend in a blender until smooth and cook like pancakes. Makes 2 really big ones, or 3 medium sized.

I top with blueberries.

If you don't sweeten these, you can use them as buns for burgers, they are quite sturdy.

Hiya folks!

The bulk of the move is now behind us and we're officially over at the new house with cable, internet, and all. My elliptical isnt working (the belt needs to be replaced and that is...technically challenging to say the least) and I'm pretty sure I strained my rotator cuff again, but we're here!

So this weekend I ate moderately...I didn't count, but I didn't go nuts. I know I was at 2000 or so on at least one day. But...all the moving exercise paid off, and I'm down to the lowest bit of my maintenance range that I've been in 5 months or so. So that's good!

We're here, and we can cook, so it is ON. Back with the program to move this weight-losing-momentum forward.

B - English muffin pizza
S - Greek Yogurt
L - Tuna on Sourdough w/ pickles, Apple
S - Popcorn
D - Chicken stirfry with many veggies, brown and wild rice
S - Light Ice Cream Cone

E - My body says today is a no-go. If I start feeling better, I'll do a cardio tape. otherwise, I'll rely on mowing and box-unpacking for my calorie burn today while my body recovers from this weekend. I can't IMAGINE how beat up I'd feel if I'd still been almost 300 lbs!

This weight loss is important to living, Amanda. Yesterday I bolted up a flight of stairs and sprinted down the hall for an emergency. Being strong and healthy is so essential to be the best us we can be. Unpacking, moving, lifting, hauling, squatting, reaching....etc.

I read a blurb about a new show with that Pamela Peeke lady.....about "Fit enough to live" where people on the show have to move and act to save their lives or something? Could I pull myself up over a cliff if I had to? Now, probably.....

Lori, thanks for the recipe. I must make sure to copy this down as I've asked for this recipe a few times and could never locate it when I needed it. I've been meaning to try it. Thanks again.

Amanda, glad to hear the bulk of the move is behind you. I hope your rotar cuff is not badly injured. Way to go on your fabulous weigh in.

I think we've discussed something similar to this before. I was ALWAYS worried about things like this. One of my biggest fears, amongst my many when I was morbidly obese - if something would ever happen to me while I was on the Subway - and we had to evacuate. The rescuers would FOR SURE leave me behind. I would be to difficult "to save" and I would not be a priority. Now, I don't feel that way.

Robin - I make my protein pancakes with essentially the same recipe as Lori posted - but no protein powder. I find that I get quite thick pancakes, and my preference is more towards Swedish pancakes, or crepes. I just take the basic recipe and add water until it's a thin enough consistency to make thinner pancakes. Plus you get more that way too!

PS - an immersion or stick blender works excellently to mix these up.

Thanks for the additional info Pat. I have a hand mixer that I think would work well. If not, I've got the immersion blender as well. I LOVE that thing!

Robin, this is directly copied from a post Mel made a long time ago for her recipe. I make these all the time - I love the pumpkin, vanilla, and spices addition. They're so tasty I feel like I'm eating a pastry or something, but without the guilt.

4 egg whites
1/3 c. oatmeal
1/2 c. pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons ground flax seed
1/4 c. cottage cheese
1 tsp psyllium husks
vanilla ~1 tsp.
Cinnamon ~ 1 tsp.
a little water

Blend it all, and cook about 6-7 minutes per side. The pumpkin makes it "thicker" and takes more time to cook, but adds volume, vitamins and fiber.

Makes 3: Cal 127, fat 3.7 g, carbs 13.7 g, protein 10.2 g, fiber 4.2 g

I personally omit the psyllium husks (nutrition info is w/o them), add a little Splenda, and will either double or quadruple the recipe to make a bunch at once. A double recipe fits nicely into a 9x13" pan, and you can bake it for ~30 min. at 350 rather than all the flipping in the skillet. I cut them up and freeze them individually in small plastic bags or saran wrap. Either thaw in the fridge or microwave, maybe add a little bit of Mom's apple butter, and voila!

Yesterday was OP - I'm going to see how much exercise my shoulder will tolerate today (normally I'd hop on the elliptical, but it is pending repair. So I have to come up with something non-bouncy that I can do with no equipment, or find some way to restrain that arm so it doesn't bounce. We'll see, I know I plan to do some yoga that has no inversion poses).

B - English muffin pizza
S - Apple
L - Leftovers - chicken stirfry with lots of veggies, thai black pepper sauce, brown and wild rice
S - Popcorn
S - Greek yogurt
D - Stuffed super lean beef burgers, caramelized onions, side salad
S - NSA Ice Cream bar

E - SOMETHING. We'll see -what- exactly when I try things and see what hurts.

I was totally OP yesterday, and clean eating, too! Yippee!!

Doing well today. Will post my menu in a bit.

My Thanksgiving Pledge to be on plan up to turkey day imploded and my 100 calorie "off plan" choices are turning into 400 and 500 calorie off plan choices and I am slipping into bad habits (like finishing the kids' food, pizza for "snack", and dipping into the leftovers after dinner--in the kitchen standing by the stove....) Bad habits that need to be banished!!!

I have done some on plan things---exercise has been good....um....alrighty then!!

My weight has been bopping around as usual but the ups and lows are about 2.5 pounds above my usual ups and lows. Nothing that a day of clean eating hasn't taken care of before after an off plan DAY but I am concerned that this new weight pattern reflects off plan DAYS and might therefore be real weight rather than water weight.

Back to basics:

meal 1: 2 eggs, english muffin, 1 slice cheddar
meal 2: hardboiled eggs, olives
meal 3: greek yogurt with pumpkin granola, walnuts & pear
meal 4: protein shake & fruit ( I MUST have this meal---skipping this makes me starving when I get home from work and that's when I make really horrible choices!)
meal 5: post workout protein shake, BBQ chicken breast, steamed veggies

exercise: 1 hr personal trainer

Also, we are having our Thanksgiving meal on Friday and we just split up the dishes last night, so I get to go to the grocery store tonight after dinner! Do you think there will be any celery left? Maybe it won't be crowded....surely everyone else has already bought all their Thanksgiving stuff, right?

On plan today, no excuses, NO missteps, gonna work it, oh yeah!

Oh yeah.... count me in on that, momma!!!

Have a wonderful holiday chicks!!

Today's plan

Exercise 45 minutes-done
B-2 egg, 1 mini bagel w/jam, coffee
S-mini bagel, tea
L-chicken, vegetable and rice soup, 'baked' apple, water
S-SF cinnamon rice pudding
D-pita pizza
S-sunflower seeds, popcorn

Probably not totally balanced but today is hectic.