Hi, Turtles,

Here's the fable that started it all:

The Hare and the Tortoise

A hare met a tortoise one day and made fun of him for the slow and clumsy way in which he walked.

The tortoise laughed and said, "I will run a race with you any time that you choose."

"Very well," replied the hare, "we will start at once."

The tortoise immediately set off in his slow and steady way without waiting a moment or looking back. The hare, on the other hand, treated the matter as a joke and decided to take a little nap before starting, for she thought that it would be an easy matter to overtake her rival.

The tortoise plodded on, and meanwhile the hare overslept herself, with the result that she arrived at the winning-post only to see that the tortoise had got in before her.

Moral: Slow and steady wins the race.

This comes from a book handed down from my grandmother to my mother to me. The book is so old it doesn't have a copyright date or an author/editor's credit.

That fable has been the motivation for us turtles for several years. Someone on the ancient WW forum mentioned the fable and I discovered it was very motivational for me. I talked about it in posts and other people said that the tortoise philosophy worked for them, too. So, I started a thread for us turtle types.

We've been reflecting on what the turtle philosophy means as we start our second hundred posts. The turtle philosophy was a difficult one for people to accept. People want the weight off--NOW!! But reality is that it took time to put it on and it will take time to take it off. People want it to be easy to take off the weight. But reality is that it's not easy. You can have a program that's easy to follow, but following it steadily--that's hard. People don't want to exercise much, if at all. But reality is that our bodies were designed to move. So, we're setting realistic goals that take the weight off at a healthy pace. We're setting goals that will keep us moving steadily toward the healthy weight we want to be. And we're just plain moving. We're setting realistic exercise goals that will move our bodies the way they were meant to be moved.

We've also noticed that our turtle philosophy has affected the rest of our lives. I've started writing fiction again. I realize that I can finish a novel, or two, or ten. All I have to do is to set realistic daily goals, work steadily toward achieving them, and they will build up into finished books. Turtle Power at work in my everyday life.

Anyone who wants to join us in steadily moving toward all of our goals is welcome. I've met some wonderful people on this thread. I hope to meet many more. I know the battle with our weight is a difficult one. Having such supportive people come and post regularly keeps it from getting overwhelming. I hope to see many more people join us as we move forward on our journey.

Let's Get Moving!!

Hi, Turtles,

Judy, it's so good to see that you're still using the treadmill. You keep at it. You're going in the right direction. You have such great family stories. Your granddaughter's first time talking on the phone was a cute story.

Good going, Lauren. You're doing great, especially since it's winter. Keeping those summer clothes in mind is a great strategy.

Hi, Hotcupojava. You've been here before and we're glad to see you again. I hope you will post on occasion and let us know how you're doing.

I hope the rest of you will post soon, too. Choosewell, swan, eponin--how are you all doing?

I'm not doing as well as I'd like, but that's not surprising. It's PMS. I'm just getting through that. I have gotten some walking in the past few days. That's one good thing.

On the job hunt front, my husband found a job that he's well-qualified for. We're sending a resume to that company for sure. And getting on with the hunt. I hope it doesn't take longer than our money will hold out.

I hope you're all managing to get in some exercise.

Hi, tortoise ones.

Lin, PMS again already? Gack! Hope you're getting in those supplements. Great news re: DH; I hope he gets the job. Will continue to pray.

I'm up some this week, for no discernible reason. I must be holding water. I'll check in again tomorrow, and whichever weight is lower will be my official weight this week. On the down side, I ate a LOT of my flex points this weekend! Not sure why, just felt like eating a lot. But I didn't go over my flex points for the week, so that's good. Also good: I worked out 5 days this week. I'm VERY happy about that number. And also good: my measurements are starting to go down. So the scale is lying. Maybe it's the increased exercise; who knows?

Onward and downward,

Lauren
274/193/189 in early February

Hi Turtles,
Hi Java, Yes, as Lin and Lauren posted, you've been here before and we're glad to have you here! Post when you can. This is a great site and we're very good support for each other. It's always good to get new ideas from other posters.

Lauren,
It's great that you exercised so often last week *and* that your measurements are decreasing. That's so wonderful.


Lin,
I had the same reaction to your PMS as Lauren. It seems to me that you're dealing with this almost all the time. Glad you have figured out what to do with supplements, etc. to keep yourself feeling better. Good luck for your dh on the job he's interested in. You're all in my thoughts and prayers.

I was away for the weekend with my dh and dd. We went upstate to visit my ds and ddil and dgrandkids. We had the best visit so far. My daughter-in-law hadn't been able to get out in the cold and snow to buy food, etc. My ds came home from work with pizza for dinner. I had guessed that this is what they would do, so I planned for the pizza. The next day she went out for groceries and bought more snacks than were easy for me to deal with, but I'm only up a little. The last time we went there I gained 4 pounds in three days and that was miserable. It stopped my losing streak and was demoralizing. So, WI is tomorrow and I'll probably be up some, but I know I can do this. I know I want to do this. And I'll definitely get on the treadmill today to help lose some weight. I'll also make sure I hit my target points today and won't go over to give myself a little help on the scale. That's the great thing about weighing in once a week. The accountability is strong.

You all take care. Bandit2, was your trip to the falls fun? Sounds great and aren't you lucky that you have such a large group of friends to travel with.
Choosewell, come on in and chime!
Swannie, let us know how you're doing.

I find this time of year with the snow a little harder than I thought it would be. I'm surprising myself, but I'm looking for comfort foods that won't do me in as far as points.
Take care and be well.
Love,
Judy
234/212.4/thinner

Judy, I'm running into the same thing. Here's what I've been going for:

-- Open-face peanut butter and banana sandwiches. I use light bread (2 slices for a point), natural peanut butter (up to 2 tablespoons) and a banana. Two slices of warm-you-up enjoyment. About 7 points (less if you use less peanut butter). I eat this for dinner some nights. You could have just one slice for half the points.

-- Thick soups. We're fortunate to have a local chain restaurant called Zoup that makes about 12 different kinds of soup each day. They're very good! I had white chicken chili this past weekend, very filling and just 4 points for 8 ounces. (I had 16 ounces and was stuffed.)

-- Diet hot chocolate. I've been drinking the sugar-free, fat-free, taste-free kind. 25 calories. It's a bit like brown water, but there's a little chocolate flavor in there.

-- Hot decaf tea and coffee. Hot herbal tea.

-- Baked potatoes

I'm open to other suggestions!

-- Lauren

I haven't forgotten you all, but I am still having crash-related problems. Apparently, it's because I have a Mac. I have been e-mailing Suzanne and she is making code changes, but I still can not see some of the right margin in this forum. It is very frustrating! I can see that I have private messages, but can not access them. I only have up and down arrows which work. I have tried to get Lauren's e-mail address by clicking on her name, but even that didn't work. I'll keep trying.

I hope I'll be able to send this along to all of you. Even my posts haven't worked.

Editing and removing my email address. Just got a note from Swannie, so at least we can add her to our email list. Hope she gets that Mac problem fixed.

Hi everyone:

Had a great time in the Falls - didn't win any $ at the Casino but we had a good time with all the people there. Got in some swims & hot tubbing and a few walks, which helps out when I am having some treats & snacks. Also did some shopping in the outlet malls. So, everyone enjoyed themselves and had a fun time.

Sounds like everyone is doing well - so, keep up the good work and stay OP.

Today for lunch I am having an egg salad sandwich & am already thinking about it.
Can't wait. Bye fow now.

Hi Turtles,

Swannie, so glad to see you and so sorry you are having trouble with this site. Hopefully Suzanne can fix it for you. In the meantime, onward and downward!

Bandit2, weren't you smart to get in some activity at your weekend away. It is really easy to sit at a slot machine and not do anything else all weekend!

Lauren,
Thanks for the food tips. They are exactly what I was looking for. I had made some yummy soups in the past month and haven't gotten back to making them again, so I think I'll make a nice batch today. A banana and peanut butter sandwich sounds heavenly and I've got the ingredients to make it. Last night I had just read that cocoa has as many antioxidants as red wine or tea, so I popped up from the couch and poured some skim milk into a cup with my diet cocoa package. It was really good.
Since I really don't drink or eat anywhere near the dairy products I should, this was a great way to get milk back into my program.
All goes well here. I'm down a tiny bit more on the scale, but think I will postpone my official WI until tomorrow where I might see a tiny loss rather than a tiny gain or staying the same. It's really important for me to finally get to my 10% difference and see the WW's scale going down.
Good luck to everybody and take care. Onward and downward!
Love,
Judy 234/212.4/thinner

Well, phooey. I'm actually up for my weigh-in, for reasons unknown. But that's how it goes, and I don't want to lose my momentum. I think that's typical of me; I hit a plateau and lose heart and overeat ... not this time.

Bandit, glad you had a fun time. Nice to see you again.

Judy, post those soup recipes! I need to make soups. They're so handy. Cocoa has as many antioxidants as tea and red wine????? Woo-hoo! I just *knew* chocolate had to be good for you.

Onward and downward,

Lauren
274/193/189

Real Quicky,
I bit the bullet and went to official WI at WW's regular time and stayed the same as last week's AM WI. This is very good news. I'll write later.
Love,
Judy
234/212.4/thinner

Hi Turtles,

Lauren, your being up at the official WI is not fun, but it's what happens to us a lot.
My guess is that what Lin writes about--which is holding onto or gaining weight in the first couple weeks of increased exercise--is what happened. Glad to hear that you know getting disappointed and eating over the disappointment gets you nowhere. Glad to hear you're going to work through this!

Now, onto a way to get comfort in good yummy soups. Here are a few of my favorites in terms of easiest to more complicated:

FRAN'S TORTELLINI SOUP (serves 8)
2 16 oz. cans of chicken broth (I use water and very low sodium instant boullion)
2 16 oz. cans of Italian Stewed Tomatoes
1 10 oz. box of frozen chopped spinach
1 1 pound bag of frozen tortellini

Put soup and tomatoes in pot. Bring to boil. Add tortellini. Heat spinach in microwave. When tortellini is almost done, add spinach. Serve with parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. (Add water if too thick). 8 servings--each serving =3 points

CREAM OF BROCCOLI (OR CAULIFLOWER) SOUP
Makes 4 servings of 2 points each

14 oz. water and 2 pkg. of very low sodium chicken boullion
2 cups broccoli chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4-1/2 t. dried thyme and oregano or basil
1/8 t. pepper
dash garlic powder
1 cup evaporated fat-free milk
2 T. flour
In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients except milk and flour.
Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes

Stir together the milk and flour until smooth. Add to the saucepan mix. Cook and stir until bubbly and thick. Makes 4 side dish servings.

This next recipe has a million ingredients, but it's very easy to make and tastes great.
What makes it even more appealing is that it makes 8 servings for only 1 point per 2 cup serving! This is the one to make if you're hungry and need something filling for almost no points!
ITALIAN LENTIL SOUP
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/3 cup chopped onion
Pam
5 cups water
1/2 small head of cabbage, cored and chopped into 1 inch pieces (4 cups)
1 cup dry lentils, rinsed and drained
1 cup tomato puree
1 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/4 t. pepper
Spray a large saucepan with Pam. Cook carrots, celery and onion about 5 minutes until crisp tender.
Stir in water, cabbage, lentils, tomato puree, and spices.
Bring to boiling: reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until lentils are very soft. Ladle into bowls. (If you like, you can also use an immersion blender to puree some of the lentils and veggies--this makes a smoother soup)

SPLIT PEA SOUP
16 oz. pkg. dry split peas
3 quarts water
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 instant boullion chicken pkg.
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. oregano
1/2 t. pepper
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced carrots
1 cup chopped celery
In large deep pot, combine all ingredients but carrots and celery. Simmer uncovered for 1 1/2 hours. Stir in carrots and celery and simmer for about 2 hours more.
Makes 10 cups of soup for 2 points per cup. Enjoy! (I top mine with a piece of lite bread that I've toasted and cut up to act as croutons.)

Well, I hope I haven't used too much space here. You all take care and let's all get through the winter together. I thought once Christmas was over, it would be easier, so now I'm trying to be grownup about this weight loss plan. Actually I'm very successful. I am now lighter than any time in 2003 and I am looking forward to losing about 6 more pounds to be the lightest I've been in ages. Then my next big goal will be to conquer the 199# mark!

Onward and downward for all of us!
Love,
Judy
234/212.4#/thinner

Wonderful! Thanks so much, Judy. I'm really looking forward to trying these.

Are these frozen cheese tortellini? Or just plain? I keep only finding the cheese variety.

And congrats on staying the same this week, too. That's so exciting that you're so close to two great goals. We'll cheer long and hard for you when you reach them.

I haven't been able to get any exercise in for the past couple of days due to having to be at work so early (and getting home so late). I'm hoping today will be my last exercise-free day. I need it for my sanity, never mind my health. Work has been long hours and will be for a little while yet. Then things should settle down.

Tonight and this Friday will be tough in terms of food. Tonight we'll be eating at a friend's house. I know exactly what she's making, and none of it is low-calorie (ham, cheesey potatoes, lemon squares, waldorf salad). So I'm going to eat a little less during the day today, and then just take small amounts of things for dinner. Friday we're going out for Italian food with friends, then coming back to our house for a single-malt scotch-tasting party. Liquid points add up quickly, never mind the Italian food! So I anticipate using all my flex points this week. I DEFINITELY need to exercise!

How is everyone else doing? It's been pretty quiet, which is usually not a good sign. Lin? Choosewell? Java?

Onward and downward,

Lauren

Lauren,
Good luck with the food challenges. As far as the tortellini, I use the frozen cheese tortellini and the soup's great!
Yeah, I'm worried about everybody. Chime in and let's keep on going!
Love,
Judy

Hi everyone:

Judy - those soup recipes look great. Think I will make the Italian Lentil one this weekend - big portion, little points - sounds like a winner! One question - the tomatoe puree - is that real tomatoes mushed up or something in a can?

Lauren - I agree, those liquid points sure add up if you're not careful. Sometimes I order a glass of white wine with club soda on side & keep added it to the glass of wine a little at a time - makes it last a long time. Also, we went to an Italian restaurant in the Falls last weekend. I had stir fry with shrimp over angel hair pasta & only ate a little of the pasta but all the veggies & shrimp with 1 pc of bread. This was really good & very filling.

Today is my daughter's birthday - she turns 18 so tonight I am taking her shopping then out to dinner, don't know where she wants to go yet but hopefully I will make good food choices. There is always something to challenge us - just part of life, I guess & that is why I like WW you can have whatever you want but just be accountable & plan ahead for the indulgences. Did my curves 2x so far this week & shovelled snow and from what I hear there is more snow of the way. We certainly have had our share of it this year - too bad it lands of the road & makes driving unpleasant.

Anyway, hi to everyone else & drink your water. Bye for now.