I had a very busy day yesterday and today will be easier, just house cleaning etc to do...i'm not going to the gym, my calves are super sore from all the incline walking that I've been doing....so it's "rest" and by rest I mean, get everything else done LOL

Thanks Diana. It probably is the sodium. I will try to eat more fresh.

Up 0.4lbs to 166lbs today. Calories will be about 1700. I fly tomorrow to Brussels for the week. Hopefully I can get some good, fresh seafood there.

Fat Calories Protein Carbs
Breakfast
oats 5 300 8 54
Flaxseed milk 4 38 0 2
dried apricot 0 32 0 9
honey 0 21 0 6
Coffee 3 25 0 1
Wild Planet Sardines 5 183 33 0
Coffee 3 25 0 1
Ekone lemon pepper oysters 6 165 17 12

Lunch
quails eggs 3 42 4 0
Pan-seared shad roe 16 275 36 3
Millers jumbo lump crab 1 120 26 0
Ekone habanero oysters 6 165 20 9
anchovies 2 65 10 0
Honey 0 64 0 17
Mushroom 0 2 0 0
Red onion 0 8 0 2
Kidney beans 0 18 1 3
Kimchi 0 100 10 10

Total 54 1646 165 129
Weight 166
Protein/weight ratio 0.99
Targets based on weight Low High
Calories 2324 2656
Fat based on 20-30% caloric intake 37 55
20% less calories to cut 1859

Exercise: Did 1 hour weight training. Ran 3.5 miles.

Hello all, I'm in a kind of maintenance stage, not thrilled about it, but have to accept this is where I'm at.

laciemn I've found the monthly exercise challenge thread in "chicks up for a challenge" keeps me motivated, you spoke about measurable goals, some people shoot for a certain number of miles or minutes exercised for the month, I find having to post that I didn't make it keeps me moving, you could check it out and see if it might help.

Larry I saw rutabaga on your list, I have recently been dicing a rutabaga, a sweet potato and a couple carrots, peeling and throwing in a bunch of cloves of garlic and a diced onion, I put them in a bowl drizzle some olive oil so they all get a bit, with some smoky chipotle seasoning, roast at 400 for about a half hour mixing it around once about half way through, it is delicious and very satisfying, fills you up, and hearty enough I usually just have that. It makes 2 9x13 casseroles, sometimes we have leftover, sometimes not.

Ian sounds like the sodium is getting you for sure, I'm always saying to DH "are you drinking enough water?" I wonder if maybe some type of decaf tea or a food that is a natural diuretic might help keep you from holding on to the water. Otherwise it sounds like you are doing great keeping on your program and getting in your exercise. As usual Diana had a great suggestion I wouldn't have thought of.

thekiwi know you are not alone, working through the mental challenges are just as hard some days or harder than watching what you eat. And just like watching what you eat, be proud of the progress that you make on those challenging days, not having a full on binge, getting back on plan the next day rather than a few days later are things to be proud of. Keep up the good work!

Best to all

IanG could it be the squats? You could be retaining and that's why you're up a pound. Or maybe salt?

alaskanlaughter that's a difficult decision to make. Would you be able to find jobs? And sell your house? Why would you have to move?

Syckgirlsfv working at the carnival should be fun! And that's a pretty horse!

thekiwi Oh come on, you could've done worse! You'll do better tomorrow.

laciemn If you think your internet is terrible, you should see mine! I once ran into an add for internet services in Britain and what is considered to be the fastest and most expensive internet speed here was offered for 5 pounds. Diet and drinking isn't a good combination, is it? It just seems like useless calories. I'm still on antibiotics but I'm already worried about it ruining my diet in a few days...

Diana3271 I've been thinking of adding strength training but I dread the water retention... How are those dvd's on the knees? If they only last 10 minutes each, maybe I could handle a couple.

shr1nk1ngme it has taken me almost 4 years to lose 100 pounds. I take long breaks very often. I'd like to have this over with sooner but I'm fine with the way I'm progressing. I've learned to maintain, I've memorized the calories in *everything* I usually eat, I've had the time to teach myself to eat better and I haven't deprived myself of everything. But yeah, I can't believe I had the patience to stick with it for all these years. I'm chronically and severely anemic, too. I don't even take iron because I don't think that my body knows what it is anymore. I get all the side effects but my iron levels keep plummetting. I just read that iron can't be absorbed without copper and I'm thinking about trying that. I have iron and probiotic enzymes sitting around and I might buy some spiroulina. But I don't know where I'll find the time for iron between coffee and t4 and t3...

kelijpa I enter maintenance stage every other week or so. But I always come back. So just keep at it.


I ate more yesterday. I had another serving of spanakorizo with tirosalata and then I also ate cereal. I was honestly starving. I ate almost at maintenance but I lost 1.5 lb today. I had to step on the scale 4 times because I couldn't believe it. I'm wondering if it means that I need to eat more. I walked for 3 hours today and I did eat more. I had to have a cup of chocolate milk to go closer to 1690 but I was still a bit under. I hope I won't gain tomorrow...

Breakfast: Two eggs, a slice of bacon, 10 grams of regato cheese, 1 apple, coffee.
Lunch: Pan-fried salmon with some mustard and lemon, rice, salad.
Dinner: 1.5 serving of shrimp risotto with soy cheese, 1 cup of chocolate milk.
Total calories: 1574

Hello Diane and everyone. My family and I treated ourselves to Bahama Breeze today and it's my fave restaurant and I admit I did pretty well.

B: Yogurt with peanuts
2/3 chocolate bar

L: Shrimp and Lobster quesidilla's and also chicken curry rice bowl.

I won't be exercising until it warms up outside when I can walk. I wish it would hurry. And this is all I plan to eat today. It should carry over until tomorrow....hopefully

Weigh in today. Up .6lbs but trying not to be too upset because I followed my plan with only one slip up. I am hoping for my efforts to be reflected in the days ahead.

Hey Diana and everyone.

Diana: DD went home Thurs but I been spring cleaning dogs like crazy. I'm tired! LOL!

I ate my allotted calories yesterday but I bought a bag of "Bare Naked Granola." Giant NO NO for me. It was like a magnet pulling me into the kitchen to snarf down the bag. I ate some and didn't even realize I had eaten it until I slurped up the Almond milk. Ugggg,I swear it was calling me in my sleep. It is so out of here! I just can't seem to have delicious but scary carbs in my kitchen yet. oh well my time will come.

Much better today though. No exercise because of all the dogs and standing.

Have a beautiful rest of the weekend everyone!

Waterbunny, that lunch sounds really good! I’ve never actually had lobster, but I imagine it’d be quite good in a quesadilla!
Kelijpa, thanks for the info! I’ll check it out.
Marniadec, yeah, usually I find alcohol isn’t worth the calories, but I do like to have a drink if I’ve had a long day. In this case, a friend brought a batch of experimental Jack Daniels at 128 proof! I had to try it for novelty’s sake. It was REALLY strong, but I didn’t too very much to my drink.
I’ve done pretty well today. I ate around 1400 calories. My arms and shoulders are quite sore from working out. I felt really good during my workout this evening. I did a mini-workout this morning and decided to do a bit more since I was bored anyway and didn’t want to do any more homework.

i'm sure you all have felt the call of "home" and that's what we feel especially after being back home for the funeral etc....I've always felt a strong connection to the village and that's where DH grew up and where his family lives...we are about a half hour's flight away right now...the sense of community and Tlingit traditions are strong there and it feels RIGHT to be there

jobs are scarce but can be found...even really good jobs...the drawbacks are that the cost of food and utilities are very high and there is no medical/dental/vision care there or auto mechanics etc....so up there, if my car broke like it did this winter, there's no telling how or when it would get fixed....I doubt we would sell our house, but perhaps rent it out...

i'm not 100% on board with leaving everything we've established here....DH and I have worked our BUTTS off and what we've earned here has been done on our own, with our own credit, our own hard work, etc and i'm not sure i'm ready to leave that

I left once before to be with DH...years ago when we first got together, I left my long time job, my home that I had just done remodeling work on, my parents and my friends and moved with him here, to a town i'd never even set foot in before, with no idea where we'd work or live....we just came here on the state ferry with my car to start a life here...and I did that for him, to be here where he'd spent his adult life...i'm not sure i'm ready to quit everything and start yet again in another place

but on the other hand, military families for example do this routinely and other families do also.....so we think about moving....and think and think....

Hey folks, up at 148 this morning again. I think I'm probably not drinking enough water.. Anyways. Trying not to be bummed about it!

Today was a good day, got up early and drove up to cross-country ski. My friend and I ended up skiing about 15km in all. It was really great, I love it so much.. it's just so peaceful and you can go at your own pace, and just glide. You work up quite a sweat, I know I didn't drink enough water today (I just feel like sometimes it doesn't appeal? I don't get thirsty but I retain water like nobody's business especially when I exercise...)

B: plain greek yogurt with berries, sunflower seeds, walnuts
L: Raw veggies with hummus, two of these weird chickpea/peanutbutter/chocolate energy cookie concoctions my friend made and a hard boiled egg, plus a few strawberries and a couple crackers.
D: Went to a friend's for dinner, she made saag paneer (basically spinach with some cheese), some brown rice and 1/2 a naan. Also had half a brownie for dessert.

I know today's calories probably really added up, I didn't track well. I did get a lot of exercise, so felt okay with it. Back on with my planned meals tomorrow.

Thanks for the encouragement, Diane, Marniadec and Kelijpa. I know this doesn't happen overnight, not the weight loss nor the changing habits.

miniapplecocoa I totally know how that is, I can't have granola in the house either! I just like it too much and although it is calorie dense it never seems to fill me up..

Alaskan - that's a tough choice to make, and it's hard to imagine leaving a place where you've invested so much time building a life. It's hard work, doing that..

Hi Everyone!

We just finished eating dinner. It's really late. DH took our friend (the one who has cancer) hunting. DH had to take him back home and everything just took more time than normal since he's sick. That made DH get home late, so we ate late. I will probably show a gain for tomorrow since I ate so late. I ate on plan and my calories are probably good. I haven't added them up, yet. Eating late, not getting enough sleep, etc makes me show a temporary gain. But some things are unavoidable. I wanted us to eat dinner together.

Shr1nk1ingme Congrats on your weigh in!

Alaskanlaughter I hope you were able to get some things done and relax a little this evening.

Ian Safe travels. Enjoy your trip and great food you will experience.

Kelijpa Nothing wrong with maintaining. Keep up the great work.

Marniadec Chris show modifications in the workouts. Here are some good options for workout programs. They show modifications, too:
This one uses weights: https://www.totalfitnessdvds.com/30-...-DVD-p/533.htm
Both of these use bands and they are included:
https://www.totalfitnessdvds.com/Pow...bee-p/1045.htm
https://www.totalfitnessdvds.com/Pow...nie-p/1003.htm

Waterbunny I hope it warms up soon so you get enjoy the outdoors.

Sherma Those daily fluctuations can make you crazy. Hang in there.

Miniapplecocoa I can't have that type of stuff in the house, either. Yes, the foods do talk to you! I have heard them call my name, too. Hang in there.

Laciemn Good job getting the workout in.

Thekiwi I'm glad you were able to get our and enjoy the skiing.

Total Approx 1555 Calories +

Breakfast (395 Calories + coffee)
spritz oil in pan
egg 70 cal
egg whites from carton 60 calories
Vegetable of choice
1/8 cup feta cheese 40 calories
Rudi's Whole Wheat English muffin 130 calories
1 teaspoon jam 20 calories
juice 75 calories
coffee w/sugar and cream

Lunch (360 Calories)
Artisan Bistro salmon dinner 280 calories
steamed asparagus 80 calories

Dinner (800 Calories)
Rotisserie chicken - DH ate both drumsticks and both sides of the breast. I ate what was left minus the fat. 400 calories
Quinoa salad 200 calories
okra and tomatoes 100 calories
fresh orange slices 100 calories

Exercise:
Early in the day, at home:
GYBB Core Strength
Twist premix from Yoga Zone Yoga for a Strong & Healthy Back
later in the day, at the shop
GYBB Slim & Strong Arms
TJ Cardio Party Mix 2

I've survived one week with a new puppy, and hopefully can get back into a bit of a routine this week.

Here's the plan for today, we are going out to a movie with friends at 5:20 -- so I'm merging lunch and dinner a bit, and making room for some popcorn

Breakfast: leftovers -- pork chop & roasted potatoes & coffee (383 cal)
Snack: Celery with laughing cow cheese (98 cal)
Lunch/Dinner: Roast chicken & caesar salad (600 cal)
Snack: Small movie popcorn (480 cal)

Exercise: Taking puppy for a long walk

Food: 1562 calories
Exercise: -175 calories

Hello, I'm a very occasional poster. I check in once in a while, mostly to express frustration/disgust with myself. My weight soared when I hit my late 40s (had been a very nice 125-140 my whole adult life), and at 53 I now seem permanently stuck in the 160s. I Zumba 3-4 times a week and eat healthy/organic. But in addition to eating healthy, I indulge too often in evening wine and treats. Evenings seem to be my undoing. Middle age sucks, weight-wise. I really have to stop it. I look "okay," sort of neither thin nor fat, but I really miss being able to rock nice clothes.

Oh well. There. I figure maybe posting my thoughts will help motivate me. Have a good day, everyone!

Oh, and my knees are killing me. More than anything, this bothers me about my extra weight.