FLady ... I just read your intro over on the other thread, nice getting to know you

Nichola

Hi all, thanks for the warm welcomes! I'm Flady or Lady if you prefer. I'm 31, married, no kiddos due to PCOS, diabetic and looking to be a healthier person. As Nichola said I have intros in other threads, so feel free to go over and check it out. http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=83955

Well, FLady and HK sorry it's taken me so long to respond again. I lost this thread but found it again! I am in a group in Veggie chicks forum if you want to post there instead or we can keep this one going. Perhaps we should move it somewhere else so we don't crowd out this busy forum. Any suggestions?

Hi Sarah! Thanks for the Welcome and WIll check out the Veggie Chicks forum. I need more veggies in my life!

It is possible if you learn how to control your appetite by eating the right foods at the right time. If you want to post a sample diet I will see if I can make some suggestions that might help you.

Hi LuckySmyle,

Well, I think I'm pretty much eating a good balanced diet already ... my problem before wasn't so much "what" I ate, more like "how much" I ate

This is a typical days menu (now all weighed and calorie counted of course):

Breakfast:
1 serving Natural Organic Muesli with skimmed milk

Snack:
1 piece of fruit

Lunch:
Salad, Jacket Potatoe or Sandwich with Tuna, Ham, Chicken or Cottage Cheese & Low fat dressing

Snack:
Low fat yogurt or stick of celery spread with Laughing Cow Light

Dinner:
Chicken, Pork or Fish with either Salad or Veggies, or Stir Fried with Rice

Snack:
1 piece of fruit

I usually use lots of herbs and spices in my cooking to make my meals more interesting. I love hot spicy food, so I sometimes make, for example, Indian/Mexican dishes, but now I always adapt the recipes to be low fat.

I must confess to being a bit of a chocoholic, but I've managed recently to kick the habit to a certain extent ... as long as I don't have any I'm ok, but the moment I get a sniff of it I'll binge. So until I can be sensible about it, I'm keeping well away! The other thing that can cause me a problem is wine ... I love to have a glass with dinner ... but I find it difficult to stop at one and weekends are even more of a struggle ... but I am trying to cut down!

As I said before, I do eat mostly healthy food ... it was my portion sizes that were a big problem ... I usually ate probably 2 or 3 servings of rice or pasta, for example, but now I'm weighing out my portions. And sometimes I would eat many pieces of fruit each day for snacks whenever I felt peckish ... but obviously the calories for fruit soon adds up ... now I stick to 2 or 3 pieces each day, and if I'm still hungry I'll eat raw veggies.

So, I think I've finally got this thing sorted ... unless you can spot anything that I've not noticed, which I'd be more than happy for you to point out to me ... All I need to do now is stick to my plan and keep weighing and counting those calories!

Nichola

The only thing I can suggest is to try to eat protien with every meal and snack (especially early in the day). It really does help get rid of the hungry feeling later in the day.

LuckySmyle ... Thanks for that suggestion, I'll certainly give it a try ... I tend to be in the habit of eating muesli every morning for breakfast and then fruit at around 10.30am for a snack, so I don't really get any protein until lunchtime. I guess I could try eggs for breakfast for a change ... but that means I have to allow myself more time in the mornings to cook it

Any suggestions for a "quick" protein breakfast that I won't have to spend any more time doing than it takes pouring my breakfast cereal into a bowl? ... I never have a spare second in the morings when I'm getting ready for work!

Nichola

Hey I am with you. I hit my all time high in February and realized I had to get really serious about this, as I was miserable.

As for counting calories... I don't, and I am losing weight. I just eat small portions of meat, etc. and lots of whole, fresh fruits and veggies.. very little of the processed stuff. This works better than any diet I've ever tried!!

Hi Misti,

I tried the same thing myself a few weeks ago (not counting calories), and for a while it went well and I felt much more in control of my eating habits and wasn't obsessing about food/diets. Unfortunately, it didn't last and although I was eating healthily, my portion sizes started getting bigger and bigger again ... hence the all time high! Consequently, I decided to start journaling and counting the cals again. It may work ... it may not work ... but I will keep trying and eventually, one way or another, I will get to my goal.

Nichola

Nichola,
You sound like me,,I am 44 and was'nt really overweight till after kids were born,,have a girl 19 and son 21. I have lost weight in the past year,,but not enough. Here lately I haven't been as dedicated. I get burned out on dieting and start eating unhealthy again. I have a treadmill that I try to use,,and I am off in the summers so its alot easier to excercise and eat right when I am at home. So I am trying to get back on track. I started counting cals and carbs on Fitday yesterday,,I am going to have to do that for while to keep me on track.
FattLady- I know its hard to lose with your health problems,,my daughter has PECOS,,but she won't even try to lose weight and I am really worried about her because she is so heavy. She craves salt,,I have caught her with a salt shaker just eating salt out of it. She also has alot of emotional problems too. I stay pretty upset and worried about her,,right now we are not even communicating with each other, she doesn't live with me and chooses to be with a man that I cannot accept for alot of reasons. She has cut me off and will not have a relationship with me because I can't accept him. So this makes me binge and go off my diet,,but as of yesterday,,I have just let it go and placed with my higher power as it is something I can't change.
I hope you stay on your diet and keep trying,,I know its hard,,but you will feel better about yourself when you start feeling better,,,

Beth

For a quick protein breakfast, I always scramble eggs. I have a small pan (5"?) that takes very little time to heat. I spray olive oil on it and just break the eggs in the pan when it's hot. It takes me less than 5 minutes but I guess you want faster than that. I sometimes eat a high protein cold cereal. It actually takes me longer to eat the cereal b/c it takes forever to chew it and I can just pop the eggs in a wrap to carry with me if need be.

Hi Beth, nice to meet you ... looks like we've got a few things in common.

Sarah, I'm going to give the scrambled eggs a try this weekend ... I guess they're going to be just a quick as a bowl of cereal if I do them in the microwave. Maybe I'll alternate my brekkie with cereal then eggs for a bit of variation.

Well, I weighed in again this morning, and although I thought I'd pretty much done the same food-wise as last week, I guess I was kidding myself ... I will admit to the odd day in the past week when I haven't completed my daily calorie journal ... mistake No. 1 ... I've also had far too many glasses of wine throughout the week and didn't write them down!! ... mistake No. 2 ... After last weeks 6lbs loss I became complacent ... mistake No. 3. Consequently, I've gained 2lbs back. I'd like to blame it on the fact that TOM has arrived ... but I think I'd be kidding myself

It won't happen again next week!! I will not let this beat me!!

Nichola

Yes, I've tried numerous weight loss programmes over the years ... and yes, they do work as long as you stick to them properly. I have had success with programmes such as WW in the past (although never got to my final goal), but I find working out the points very tedious ... for me, counting the calories is much easier and that's why I decided to give calories a go again ... I just need to make sure that I write them down!! I like the fact that nothing is restricted, although I do try to make sensible choices ... just need to keep my portion sizes under control ... and watch out for the wine!

Well done on your weight loss so far and good luck with continuing success on the Jenny Craig programme