hello everyone!
 

hi everyone! i am not new here, i am a major lurker and i finally decided to jump in. i wanted to tell everyone how helpful you are even to those of us that lurk. i am starting core today. my mom bought me the books at her center in florida and i just got them. thanks to you all i knew a lot about it before i read the info.

i also love your tips and recipes. i have a lot of trouble with variety. i am a picky eater and i also work full time on second shift so my dinner is at work. i carry a cooler as mentioned above and bring leftovers or sandwiches,etc.. easy stuff. i am also single so sometimes i hate to cook for just one. i am trying very hard to break that habit. i think that the core program will help with that issue.

well, have to get ready for work. just wanted to join in so i would be accountable to someone else besides myself. and thanks again for all the help us lurkers get here.
kathy :D

Thanks for jumping in, Kathy. The water's nice and warm!

Linda - aren't eggs core?

Rhonda - steel cut oats are core (although, based upon my last question, now I'm wondering!)

Danny

Danny - eggs are CORE - fried (in CORE oil), scrambled, over easy, boiled, omelet w/CORE ingredients (Canadian bacon, green pepper, onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach, asparagus) add some ff cheese if you would like too! :)

Only plain instant oatmeal is core. The quick cook, long cook and steel cut oats are the recommended varieties for Core.

I'm loving Progresso soups for lunch and my favorite is also lentil. I also eat the Healthy Choice Split Pea. I checked with WW headquarters and they said I don't have to count the few potatoes in there as my potato serving.

Also, if you cook you should definitely try this recipe link, www.barbosdietkitchen.com/archive.pl. They have some of the most amazing recipes for many programs but also for WW Core. I'm made several of them and they are fantastic. All of the dishes freeze well, so even if you are cooking for yourself, you could make individual portions and freeze the leftovers.

I sort of invented one myself and put it on there. It's called beef, bean, and rice casserole. There are several others I can recommend if anyone is interested. You should all check it out. The nice thing is that once you visit, it will always tell you which recipes are new since your last visit. This keeps you from having to cover old ground! My husband is a very picky eater and we have at least five recipes already that we would eat again.

I mentioned this because if I had to eat plain chicken and baked potato every night I wouldn't stay on the program long. I also don't want to cook every day so it is nice to have dishes that will freeze and reheat well.

Thanks for the Borden cheese recommendation. I needed someting for my ground sirloin burgers.

Hi Kathy (CorningKat) welcome!! Glad to see you here. This is a great board with so many supportive 'friends' You'll get some great ideas here, especially from the Cooks of the group! They come up with some GREAT ideas!!
The books your mom got you are great. The more you look through them the more you will see. Soon you'll be having ideas of your own. I was a Core holdout, successfully doing points but I switched last week, and had a great w/i. So I am continuing my Core journey, and actually like it. Another Kathy posted a good snack, which I was leery of but when I read it I ran in the kitchen and tested it. It is the Plain FF yogurt with some SF/FF pudding mixed in....it was VERY good. I am a snack person, but don't miss the empty calorie snacks I was having on pts. So this may just be my new find. I have also started having fruit 3 times a day. SOMETHING I never did on pts. I am not a fruit person, but I amazed myself this week. It is part of the 8 Healthy Guide lines. Well I wanted to say hello and welcome, keep us posted on how you are doing too......Linda (L.J)

Vickie.....the cheese is going to be great on your burgers!! Enjoy!!!!!!!! Linda (L.J)

I thought eggs were core -

Linda - why are you counting points - because you're using egg substitute?

Dan

Danny, eggs are Core. If you add a non-Core item (regular or lowfat cheese) or cook them in non-Core oil (butter or margarine) then you'll have to count the points. If you just have plain egg or egg and veggies and you cook them with Pam spray, then they are still all Core.

I have to say...I have been going to ww for three weeks now...well, I missed my meeting last week...and I was getting ready to chuck it in. but after spending some time here I know I have to make a go of it. I am switching from flex to core to see if it is easier...and I have to say all of the recipes and suggestions here have been just wonderful...

I know the experts say that eggs (protein) are better for breakfast because it keeps you satisfied until lunch, but I find the complete opposite. If I eat cereal at 7:00 I am good until 10 or 11. If I eat eggs, I am hungry by 8:00. Don't know why, but that's the way it is.

Baked Oatmeal?
 

Someone today mentioned Baked Oatmeal with Peaches. That sounded really good - would someone mind posting that recipe for me:coffee:

I found two baked oatmeal recipes. You could probably substitute peaches for bananas in the second recipe. I found both recipes on the link I shared above.

Baked Oatmeal

2 cup uncooked oatmeal
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup fat-free skim milk
1/2 cup Egg Beaters
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce ( I did an apple in the food processor)
1/4 cup Splenda ( I added more- 1/2C)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon ( I add more(at least 1T)or use apple pie spice)

Preheat oven to 350* Combine wet ingredients and add dry ingredients. Bake in sprayed 8" square pan for 35-45 minutes.
Keeps well in refrig. or freezer. It's good cold or warm.
Baked Oatmeal Cake

2 cups oatmeal dry
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup skim milk
1 egg
1 egg white
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup sugar twin brown sugar
2 mashed bananas (instead of raisins, which you could use and count)
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanill
Mike dry ingredients then mix in wet ingredients. Pour into 9" cake pan. Bake 350 for 45 minutes. For points it is 3 points each for six servings (the points are figured with regular brown sugar, sweetened applesauce and raisins instead of banana, so don't know how different points would be this way.

Hi All...............

DANNYas everyone else has said Eggs (even the real deal) are Core perhaps Linda(derrydaughter) is counting the egg beaters. but even they are core so maybe we just misunderstood.
For breakfast I have started to mix 1/2 Fiberone (core) and 1/2-2/3 c of puffed wheat with my ff milk...it is also very satisfing to me. I know we shouldn't have the same thing everyday but I do mix it up a little bit. Actually I am going to have egg beaters and (cooked) cut up sweet pot for breakfast tomorrow, like a potato and egg omlet. I am SO enjoying my different versions of MY barley soup. Mixed with a spoonful of Campbells Green Pea and some other vegs and FF Chicken broth to thin out the soup, and it is just great!! Great when mixed with Tomato Soup too.!!
I am so much enjoying this way of eating -- NEVER thought I'd say it :-)
And now I look for my fruit snack. NEVER thought I'd say that either :-)
I did try the mix of FF Plain yogurt with a tsp or 2 of the Choc FFSF instant pudding, that one of the Kathy's posted........it's very good, and I do not like Plain yogurt. Give it a try.....if you're a snack person like me.
POOZA - give Core a try....this is coming from someone who was dead against it AT FIRST, being the pts person I am (or thought I was) You will get much support here and some great suggestions. We do tend to make better choices - I know I was using my pts for things like Wow Chips and bread, and I have not had either of those....well this is my second week without them. I am surviving :-) :-)
JEANETTE I am glad to see you here. I hadn't in a while unless I missed it. Glad it's still going well for you too.
Hope everyone else is doing well. Have a great day out there, chat with you all later......L.J. (Linda)

Wednesday update
 

Danny, just to clarify, it's not what WW is recommending, but I am actually doing Core foods with the flexpoint system.... keeping in my point range. I found that I was a bit out of control with Core foods, eating more than I truly "needed" and wasn't losing like I know I want to lose. That is why I gave the points (also, just a habit from YEARS of doing this stuff....). I'm trying to stay to me 20 ww point range and track core foods..... also, this is giving me extra motivation to break through my plateau. Journaling really keys me into what I am eating and need to do. I'm happy to be doing this, and very happy with the core foods. Hope that makes sense!
Welcome to our newcomers/lurkers! Kathy, I feel "single" at lunchtime each day. I'm a stay at home mom and during the weekdays my kids are in school and my husband is at work. I don't take along a lunch, but I make use of leftovers and try very hard to eat a balanced and healthy lunch. When I used to be single, though, I would do things like buy one larger steak, cut it in serving size portions and freeze them. I'd buy a packet of chicken and do the same thing. I would try to make myself a true "meal" almost every night and always have my veggies, etc.
I am enjoying chick peas and kidney beans at lunch time, I love legumes and open a can and have them alongside a grilled boneless chicken breast or tuna, etc. They are quite filling and I have salad with ff dressing, often mixing everything together as well.
You will find the Core foods very adaptable. Other people have mentioned lunches of canned soups that are Core and they are making soups. You could make up, and freeze a goodly amount of things like that! If you don't have a crock pot, why not pick one up - they are easy and fun!
Thanks for posting the oatmeal cake recipe. My daughter is on ww, but using points, and she is going to have her 14th birthday on 10/18 and I am searching for a "good" cake for her. Maybe I'll give this a try?
Linda

Hi everyone, it's been a few days here. I weigh every morning-- yes I know I'm not supposed to and I'm not going to stop because it's my way of focusing myself every morning. Anyway, my weight has been bouncing like crazy and I finally figured it out: medication for migraine (constipating) plus anti-inflammatories (always make me weigh more, not sure why) plus assorted unanticipated hormonal challenges.... this is just one of those weeks where I have to keep focused on what is going "in" and trust that the scale will register a change down the road somewhere.

Also, my activity level is better than last week. I find when I get a consistent 2 activity points a day, I tend to lose. I'm one of those people who eats every flex point and activity point. Much to my delight, I am finding that I can take 1/3 of a serving of pancakes or 1/2 of a small piece of cake and really enjoy it. I used to have trouble with portions of those kinds of food before core.

Breakfast I am eating porridge (flax, oatbran, oatmeal, wheatgerm, cracked wheat, cracked rye) with a banana and milk, or shredded wheat with a banana and milk. Sometimes I put canned fruit over cereal or porridge for a nice treat. Once or twice a week I make a 2 egg omelette with 2tbsp of cottage cheese mixed in the egg-- that tastes much better than it sounds. I am usually hungry by 10 or 11, and that's when I have my coffee with milk and maybe some applesauce. On core I do get hungry between meals and I just accept this as a fact of life. My only regret is that prunes are not core and I hate using my points on them!

Have a great day everyone-- thanks for the recipe ideas. One thing I"m finding is that store bought soups are awfully salty. Sometimes we can get the reduced salt ones but in general I do not have access a lot of "diet" food in the store. I've never seen fat free cheese anywhere around here, although I have a feeling I probably wouldn't like it anyway.

Cheers all!
RobinS

Hi all, does anyone know if ww bagels are core? Thanks
J

Sorry wanted to know too if ww english muffins are core?

No, neither the bagels or the english muffins are core, one needs to use flex points for these.
Linda

Thank you very much for answering my questions :).
J

I keep forgetting about the bread thing :dizzy:. I hate having to use pts. for bread, because I believe ww is so healthy but oh well, I guess I gotta count the carbs.

Robin - while prunes are not Core, you can have 5 of the Sunkist ones for 1 pt, still a bargain in my book. I like to let them soak in some hot water and plump up then add to my oatmeal.

I just had the Kraft Fat Free Shredded Cheddar and it actually melted. Doesn't taste too bad either as long as there are other flavors too.

I know it's kind of a "culture shock" to have to use points for bread, but I am used to that now and am finding the one point Joseph's low carb/oat bran pita bread to be a great choice for a quick noontime sandwich.
Try spraying it with ww butter flavored non stick spray and sprinkling Splenda and a bit of cinnomon on it, then crisp in the over - yummy for one point!
People keep talking about low carb/counting carbs here and I don't consider this a low carb plan at all, truly. I consider it a "healthy carb" plan. It's more of a no sugar thing than low carb, in my mind. Sure, I can have sugar, but have to use up flex points for it, too. The carbs that I can have a so high in fiber and good for me!
Linda

jorninsmama - THANKS for the headups on the Kraft FF shredded cheese, will be looking for it this weekend!! Bet it's great on a baked potato...I was use Borden's FF slices for that. Has anyone seen the Kraft FF grated cheese?? I know it's out there but I can't seem to find it?? If anyone is from SE Florida please let me know. I know there are different grocery stores all over but some of them not in this area.......Thanks!!
Linda (L.J.)

I have a nice recipe to try, totally core.

Boil whole wheat pasta (enough for one or two people). When it is cooked, add 4 cups baby spinach to the pot and stir to blanch. Drain everything. Add (per person) 1/2 cup cottage cheese and 4 ounces of shrimp, cooked (I buy the frozen cooked ones and thaw them under the tap. Toss together, putting the pot back on the heat to warm the cottage cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.

It's a really nice dish. The cottage cheese goes creamy and melts. Tastes WONDERFUL (although DH refuses to eat cottage cheese so I make this when he is gone).

Things are going quite well for me. Had a burger with some points-- it was ok but I would have been happier eating something else. I'm getting used to my twigs and sticks food I guess! Tomorrow I will make veggie chile with the tons of tomatoes that are coming out of the garden these days!

Cheers to all

Robin

Hi All! I had my third WW and Core weigh in tonight. I'm a little disappointed, only .6 pounds for a total of 6.4. I expected and hoped for more since I have 100+ pounds to lose. I am drinking my water and have been walking on the treadmill seven days a week. I'll be increasing my water and trying not to eat so much at dinner. I ate several meals out this week. I ordered everything core, but I guess unless I'm in the kitchen I can't be positive that non-Core stuff wasn't used. Oh Well, at least it wasn't a gain. Why is it so hard to lose and so easy to gain? Better luck next week.

I forgot to say thanks for the Borden FF cheese slice suggestion. I tried them and liked them alot.....much better than the Kraft slices which didn't melt and tasted like wax to me!!!!

Hi all......Hang in there Vickie....and you're welcome re: the Borden FF cheese:-) good isnt' it and melts soooo well. As for the "why is it so easy to gain and so hard to lose" that seems to be the million dollar question. I am ending my 2nd week on Core this weekend and still I debate whether to go back to Flex. I kind of don't want to because I am eating better. But me like so many of us MAKES that darn scale sooo important. I hate that I do that. I do feel however Core gives us more of a choice of foods. For me however I STILL have to do portions of things, instead of eating until I am satisfied. I have not mastered that yet. So what I do eat at each meal seems to be enough and I walk away from the table satisifed with what I had. I w/i on Sunday and I am a bit ambivilent- I had a great loss my first week on Core. The last 14 weeks have been pts. Although I am a Lifetime member having lost 55 lbs. I did "somehow" manage to gain at 20 lbs back---gee how did that happen:-) :-)....but have lost 18 these past 15 weeks. Worked too hard to GO BACK there again. I guess w/i will determine what I will do this up coming week, but I am thinking I will STICK with Core. Just seems easier for this diehard NON Core person :-) After not counting pts for nearly two weeks but nevertheless still journalling I getting used to it.
I have to journal I NEED to see what I am putting into my body so I can tell what I did or did not do right or wrong.
Anyway Vickie - Hang in there. We are all here to help and support each other. But whichever program you feel works better for you is what you should be doing. This is one of the ways you will stay focused and successful. I wish you the best.
I hope everyone else is having a good week so far too. Guess we all have our ups and downs with this, but let's face it.....this is a Lifetime deal. That is why we become Lifetime Members. It's a struggle and battle every day that we all go through, but with the help and support here and in the meeting places we can achiever our goal. Let's do it for ourselves, first and foremost.
On that note, I wish you all a great day.......and good weekends if you don't come here over the weekend. Talk with you all later............Linda (L.J)

TGIF Guys!!!!!
Robin, I will definately try that recipe, thanks for sharing! I love all the ingredients in it, so I know it will be great!
LJ, you and I have gone down a similar path, I almost could have written exactly what you wrote! I typed in my version below!
Vickie, don't get discouraged. I have heard MANY a ww leader, over the years, ask people who are frustrated with the weight coming off slowly, "how long did it take you to GAIN all this weight?" You have to ask yourself that.
Also, the million dollar question is such a hard one to address..... I went away over the long Labor Day weekend. I gained back 1.8 pounds in three days..... disaster! It took me an entire month to get below where I was before. I've been told that the fat cells in your body have a "memory" and they can regain weight VERY fast, guess this was so with me. I couldn't believe I put that weight back on so suddenly. Was I THAT bad? I didn't think so, but I did revert back to some old habits, for sure.
I was mad at myself for eating out over a three day period and going "off the wagon". Now, I look at what I did. I know, now from experience, that I might make some better choices next time. If I don't, such is life! When I am on maintenance, again, I will have to be ever watchful of dining out and special occasions. I may have to go back on weigh loss mode and journal each and every time this happens.
I want my weight loss to be permanant, no more gaining it back. No more excuses. I'm in this for a life-long journey. I feel this is a life or death situation, based on what I read about things like cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, arthritis, diabetes. Who have I been fooling all these years? It's like I was playing Russian Roulette with my fork! I'm now 49 and if it takes me TWO years to lose the weight, I have to view it as taking off the last 7 or 8 years of indulgence. Sadly, there is no magic potion. The fad diets don't work, we all know this. The medications are bad and have side effects. Surgery is drastic and could lead to complications and I was never "that" heavy. So, here I am back again, and with a more serious outlook. I've gone full cycle and have been not only with ww, but with Atkins (way, way unhealthy), So. Beach (a bit heathier but a bit much for me) and have bought books, tried starvation practicually, tried it all.
I am a ww lifetime member, I've known all along how to do this and how to do it well. I could be a ww leader, I think, as I know so much about all of this. I actually hope to be a leader once I get my weight to a point where they will hire me, just a few more pounds!!!!!
I just ignored what I knew, went back to all my old habits, and went on my merry way. Here I am, years later, with MORE weight than I had before to lose (well, now have lost SOME and now am lower than I have been since 2001!) and it's harder and harder the older you get.
You are here, your life WILL be long and healthy if you can do this. Don't get discouraged, increase your activity, watch your portion size, be careful eating out, and you will, ultimately, succeed! I KNOW I will!
My loss the first week with Core was good. The second two weeks on it were very slow and then I got "wise" to the err of MY ways. I stress the MY ways, as this is ME and how I am with control. I started journalling again. I need that paper to keep me "honest" as far as how much is going into my mouth all day. I am being VERY careful to keep with the CORE foods and track each and every point and am really tracking water intake and all the things I should. I am staying pretty close, in not completely, to my "old" points target, but the Core is my choice of foods.
I know ww promotes CORE as being the easy non-tracking plan, yet I have been on ww a long time, off and on since my original acheivement of Lifetime status and I know, for myself, that the journal is my best friend.
Maybe some people can do Core and keep on it without the journal, but I need that, at least for now. I was looking over some of the daily menus that some people are posting on this core support board. It looked to me like they weren't eating enough. I am a volume person and acheived Lifetime by eating enough to feel satisfied. My loss was slow, due to that need to eat at the top of my points range and my need to absolutely have a big bowl of popcorn (now core, thank goodness!) in the afternoons to make it until dinnertime. So, I have to find a way to feel satisfied, to eat right, to stay active and be the healthy person I know I can be. I'm getting there. It's slow and some weeks I've had (either on Core or not) only a .2 weight loss (two weeks ago) but I know I am on the right road!
Maybe when (notice I didn't say IF) I get to maintenance again, I will be able to stay with Core foods and maintain? I'm interested to know how ww has maintenance set up for Core people..... if you lose by eating Core plus these 35 flexpoints, then will they add something like 5 more flexpoints? Will they change the core foods list and include a few things that are not there? I can't wait to get there!
Linda in NH, where the leaves are turning and starting to fall and it's nostaligic and beautiful

Vicki, I lost 6 pounds in 3 weeks on core and now I seem to be stuck at 180. I know in my heart I'm eating better and making better choices. Sooner or later the scale would catch up to me. There are so many little variances in our bodies-- the scale doesn't always show us what's happening in one week. For me my big problem is not what I "eat" at meals, it's what I end up binging on. Core removes those possibilities (I'm too stingy to spend points on a binge).

Take care all

To both Lindas and Robin, I can't tell you how much your words of support mean to me! I feel so much better this morning. I really feel lucky to have all of you and my husband for support. My husband keeps telling me that this is a marathon and not a sprint; and he's right! Two of you mentioned that you continue to journal and this might be something that I should do as well. I guess I just had some momentary disappointment. I have 150 pounds to lose and thought that I would at least lose a pound or two a week. Hubby again wisely pointed out that my average IS two pounds a week so far. I really love that man!

I'm going to stay with WW and Core. I, too, have tried a zillion other diets. I fasted for 6 months on optifast, I did SouthBeach, and a special diet with a bariatric doctor a million years ago that was alot like SouthBeach but with no carbs or oil EVER. Of course, this is also about the fifth or sixth time I have joined WW. Many of the plans worked but none were healthy except for WW. I feel healthy on WW and Core. More importantly, I don't feel as hungry or deprived on Core. On Flex, I would spend points for empty calories and would end up being hungry and wanting more of whatever little squib of stuff I would eat.

This is the beginning of my new Core week!

Thanks again!

I was looking at my food lists and couldn't answer this question, so maybe one of you can help me. I know sweet potatoes are core but are they on that list of foods that you can only have once a day?

Thanks

Hey all! I have a sort of random question that I hope someone can help me with. I joined WW last Thursday and actually started CORE on Monday. I went to last night's meeting and weighed in - down 1.4lbs.!!! - this was after being on the program a little less than 4 days. I wondering in order to propoerly gauge my progress if should consider Friday as the 1st day of my new week or should Monday continue to be the day. Just wondering if anyone had the same issue at that point and how it was handled. This will definitely affect my FPs.

Robin, my week one book just says potatoes are limited to one meal a day. Sweet potatoes are not listed separately anywhere, inclulding unders the starches, grains and cereals that we can have more than once a day. My conclusion is that the ARE limited to once a day.

Sorry...I suspect you hope for a difference answer! :stress:

Chic, welcome to Core! I would start your new week of Core with last night's weigh in; meaning you start fresh today with 35 flex points. You know WW encourages you to stay with one or the other for at least the whole week to avoid the dilemma that you were/are in.

No, I'm fine with that answer. I just really didn't know!

Robin

Vicki, thank you so much for your reply! Thinking about it, starting today would make the most sense. YAY!

txlawchic....The more I read and re-read your post the more I agree with Vickie. Good luck on your weight loss journey......Linda (L.J.)
Keep us posted!!
Have a great and focused weekend....

Linda, I have maintained the last 2 weeks even though I was trying to lose. I'm thinking it may be because I ate 14 WPAs this week when I usually only use 5 or 6.

I wonder if your body will just level off when you get to the weight you should be and stay there as long as you continue to eat Core and limit the WPAs to 35? After all, isn't that they way natural skinny people maintain their weight? Eat only what their body needs, eat only when hungry, stop when full and limit extras to special occasions? Just a thought.

Janette....I am not sure which Linda you were writing but this is LJ and as I read your post I am now wondering, if we want to get a bit more weight off would going back to Flex help boost that. What you are saying make sense and yes eventually we must maintain our chosen goal. Tomorrow I w/i officially and can't help but wonder if I will show another loss. I have been very good and 100% on program. I have learned that our bodies will LET us know when it wants to show that loss. We have no control over that, sad as that is :-)
I know when I reached WW goal and did the 6 weeks of maintainence I never added those extra pts we were suppost to and continued to lose 7 more lbs. I am now .5 below my WW goal and I doubt very much that I will be adding them again. I am satisfied with the amout of food I have been eating on Core. I do not stuff myself at all and eat what ever the serving size sugguests, and I walk away from the table completely satisfied. I don 't have that "eat as much as you need to be satisified" thing don't pat yet, and so just doing servings suggestions works fine for me.
Today starts my 'new' week, although I w/i on Sunday. I am having a little battle with...should I continue Core and do Flex. The past two weeks has been nice not counting points, although I DO journal everyday. Actually I journal the night before for the next day, so I am on top of things and focused. I also feel going out to eat is much easier on Core. I most likely wil continue my weight loss journey this way. After all isn't a lifetime committment might as well enjoy the ride with as little stress as possible.
Yes I am at WW goal but I'd LOVE to lose 7 more lbs to get back to my personal goal.
I have not cheated once so whatever the scale says tomorrow the scale says. I know I have been On Program.
Looks like for the next week it's Core for me again.
Oh as far as using PA last week I used 15 and the end of this week I it's 13. Last week I had a good lost so we'll see. I mean we are allowed to use those PA if we choose. I will let you all know how it went. I have a feeling it will be a STS (stayed the same)
I hope everyone else is having success and feeling good about what they are doing.
Hoping to hear from everyone....but in the meantime, have a great day out there.
L.J (Linda)