Linda -- I'm only just learning this year to eat breakfast at all; our usual schedule prior to this year was "lunch" around 10.30 am with "dinner" sometime around 4.30 pm. We're just not morning eaters for some reason -- or not whole meal eaters anyway. Toast is a big concession for me. The stairs actually turned out to be much, much easier than I'd though they would be! We were visiting the Law Library in the Ashville Courthouse -- and its housed on the 10th floor. The stairs begin as a central, open staircase and then turn into a more standard one-flight-landing-one-flight-landing from the 2nd floor to the 6th floor. Finally, from the 6th floor to the 10th it was a twisty half-flight-landing-half-flight-landing and so on set o' stairs. Very steep! But we all made it (my kids were with me).

J-Ann -- I hate lost post syndrome!!! I hope you enjoy your time in the pool!!

OK Let's try this again:

My menu's for breakfast and lunch are a lot like Terri's. I usually have breakfast sometie betwee 7 & 8 A.M. at my desk.

BREAKFAST

1 Toasted Eng. Muffin (a lite one if I'm eating heavy later in the day) or a bagel
2 tsp. peanut butter or jelly
1/2 c. oj
Coffee, lots of coffee.

SNACK

1 C. Lite Yogurt

LUNCH

a 5 or 6 pt. frozen dinner
fruit or a salad w lite dressing.

or, in place of the dinner:
2 oz. tuna or chicken
2 tsp. lite mayo
1 slice reg. or 2 slices "diet" bread

SNACK

a few m&m's or 1 oz. nuts

DINNER

Monday:
3 oz, roast venison w/1 tsp Cumberland Sauce.
a baked potato with some horseradish as a topping.
Steamed veggies

Tues:

3 oz grilled chicken and mixed steamed veggies over
1 C. Angel Hair pasta

Wed.

3 oz. grilled chicken with a spicy dry coating.
1 C. brown rice
Salad w ite dressing

Thurs.

Left over venison 3 oz.
1 slice garlic toast
Cucumbers and onions in vinegar
Prob. also a salad w lite dressing

Fri.

3 oz. Cornish hen - roasted
1/2 acorn squash baked with 2 tsp maple syrup
Baked potato

EVENING SNACKS

Depending on pts. left for the day:
1 skinny Cow
small apple
small salad
air popped popcorn
a couple of oreo's
1 Dole Fruit Juice Popsicle
Nothing

WATER I try for 50 - 60 oz. thruout the day.

I also take a multi vtiamin, calcium and Vit. E each day


I'm not a venturesome eater. So I stick to variations on the basics.

Oh well so much for my wonderful menus I gained two pounds this week
But I did not have good eating over the weekend as I was completely undisciplined so I suppose that is to be expected.
I have a problem with sticking to healthy and productive food chioces (as they say) when I am less than happy. Further as my oven has broken, the week's planning went out of the window and I thought I could plan 'on the hoof' and that did not really work. So lessons all round.

Today I dont know what I am going to have for lunch. I am out from 10am until 10pm today. When I get in, late as it is, I shall have pasta, which is 7.5points for half the pack. I will also have a ww dessert which is 1.5. For breakfast I had a bagel (3.5) spread with low fat soft cheese 1 point and jam 1 point. I will take some rice in a tupperware thing for lunch I think, and maybe mix in some tuna and some kidney beans but I dont know how many points are in kidney beans. i will have to check.

Feeling a bit glum about it all. I think I have got woolley round the edges with my eating. I also detect that I have stopped really accepting myself for me as I am. I have subtly sneaked in to the mindset of 'better to be slim and light than fat and heavy'. So life has become a bit of a 'I HAVE to lose weight' thing. Guaranteed to grind me down. Especially when under that there is 'And I cant I just cant do this....' which is the sneaky fear. Do you know what I mean?

Hmmmmm. The truth is that I dont want to do this because I HAVE to, or because of anything anyone else (including 'society' ) says. But how to scalpel that out from my thoughts for what I want truely madly deeply for me????

I want, truly madly deeply, to be accepted for me, for me and who I am no matter what shape and size. And above all I want ME to accept me. Only when I love myself that much can I keep, easily, making the powerful food choices.

I dont have a punchline today, like 'and now I have typed that I know that I love myself enough to eat lettuce for lunch' or whatever. It helps to pause and reflect on these self image things though (for me any way). It is not a substitute for sticking to a good programme, but it helps me understand why sometimes it is hard to.

I have lost nearly 30 lbs all in all since I started posting here on this board. That was last august. Not bad! I am glad to be 30 pounds lighter.

Love to everyone - oh by the way fromage frais is a sort of soft cheese a bit like very mild yoghurt. It is good in soups or to cook with (and some people I know use it a lot in desserts).
love
Lilac

Today's menu:

Breakfast: Ice cream sandwich

Lunch: Bean burrito, diet cola

Dinner: Pressed turkey/bacon/cheese sandwich, WOW Tortilla chips

I'm hoping to exercise today as well but dunno when as yet.

Busy, busy, busy!!

Hi Everyone:
I'm brand new here and am not sure of the etiquette. Is this a closed thread or are you welcoming new folks? I have 142 more lbs. to lose - have already lost 14. I use the WW point system but am not currently a member. I am 48 years old, work full-time at a charity, have three children who are all in University (I'm financially strapped!) and live in S. Ontario, Canada - a ten-minute drive to Niagara Falls. I would like to give and receive support if you are all willing. Please let me know.
Stasia

GREETINGS STASIA,

You are more than welcome to jump right in and join us. We're a pretty international group and always welcome new "faces".

I'm not too far from you. Near Syracuse. My best friend is a Torontonian who is on maint. at WW after losing about 50 lbs. several yrs. ago. She helps me get past some of the "Hard spots" along the way. It helps to know that she still goes to meetings 2 or 3 times a month if she needs the support.

If you've followed the group you knw that we all have many lbs. to lose. Some weeks we are very successful other weeks we are greatful to just maintain what we've lost, and sometimes we need help remembering why we need to complete our journeys to good health. You've made a super start. That's 14 lbs. you'll never wear again, aye <g>.

Stop in often. Glad you found us.

Off to WI now.

If they would let me in here, they will take anybody.
Well, today is my first day on both Meridia and Metformin. The first to help control my appetite and the second to help get my blood glucose back down into a safe range. One of them is making me quite dizzy and I think it's the Meridia. There's a warning of this side effect. FUnny thing though. Another side effect mentioned is increased appetite. Can you figure that for a weight loss aid?
Here's my menu for today....roughly. Nothing is set in concrete.

Breakfast:
Pre swim:
1 slice high fiber toast with light Philly & a dab of jelly.
AFter Swim: (40 min in pool)
1 slice high fiber toast
1 poached egg
1 oz ham
1 tsp light Becel margarine

Lunch
Bowl of WW veggie soup
Sandwich with high fiber bread
2 oz deli turkey
tomato, lettuce and fat free mayo
(Couldn't eat it all so have saved half for later or tomorrow)

Planned Snack
1 apple
1/2 cup n.f. yogurt

Planned Dinner
3 oz ground lean turkey patty
Stir-fry of mushrooms, zucchini, onions, carrots & asparagus
1/2 cup rice

Planned Snack
1/2 cup sugar free/fat free pudding with Light Cool Whip

Thanks for sharing your daily menus with me. I'm really planning to get totally focussed on this. I'll worry about loving myself as I am after I lose some weight.
Lilac, not really making fun of you. I've been through the same black funk as you seem to be and I'm just pulling myself out of it. It's really difficult and especially hard if you've convinced yourself that you've been OP and then gain weight. But, as you said, usually our weight gain is because we've gotten a bit "fuzzy around the edges" and perhaps haven't journalled everything as honestly as we should. Just for this week, Lilac, try to go back to the basic program with me, guzzling water, writing it all down, eating low carb veggies and fruit and all the recommended milk products. We'll get back in the groove together....AND love ourselves doing it. OK?

Hi ladies,

Just a quick note to say that I've got three decent OP days under my belt. I even have a few banked points. Woohoo!! All the menu posting has helped.

All else is going well. I've been working on paperwork this evening. I did get a good walk in with the dog this evening. A beautiful springish evening.

Linda - We love the George Foreman grill. DH does all the cooking on it. He does chicken breasts, boneless pork chops and hamburgers the most. Its great for making fast meals and it does drain the fat off. I think we have the medium sized one. I know its not the largest but I'm not sure about it being the smallest. Its a good size for two. I'm with you on the protein. I have to be careful and get enough protein at each meal or I get weirded out. Thanks for getting us pulled back on track with the menu requests.

Stashia - Welcome to the group. We'll do our best with the support. I've been posting to this group since Aug 2000. Great group of ladies.

Bunny - Wow, I'm truly impressed with 10 flights of stairs. My knees would never take it. You go girl!! I love your breakfast ice cream sandwich.

J-Ann - Do you buy your venison or hunt it? I miss not having any deer meat this year because DH missed on his one chance at a nice buck.

I better get my stuff done and off to bed.

Have a great OP day tomorrow.

Busy morning -- two large orders through our website (yippee!yipee!!). I just finished breakfast (Cheerios, skim milk, water) but I'm not yet sure about the rest of the day. I expect to exercise today (probably elliptical trainer at the gym). Lunch will either be Taco Bell or Subway. Dinner -- we have friends coming and I haven't decided what to serve as yet. They come about twice a month and I've served them all my "star" meals -- so I'm at a loss. I considered making something new but I'm afraid -- what if it turns out so badly (as a couple new ones I've tried have) that we then have to order pizza?

Anyway -- enough of that.

Stasia -- We're delighted you came! One of the coolest things about the internet is how easy it is for a wide variety of people to get together to talk about something that matters to them, ya know?

J-Ann -- I hope your weigh-in went well. I'm dreading mine tomorrow.

Linda -- I love your menu -- 'cause it looks like I wish mine did. I'm a picky, picky eater -- don't like fruit, don't like many veggies, not fond of meat. Really, I'd live on bread if I could! Getting more variety in my meals is my biggest challenge.

Terri -- Great to see ya!

I don't know if I've mentioned this but a few days ago my doctor recommended I try the drug Meridia to help me jump start my weight loss. I've only taken it for a couple of days and so far I've experienced some dizzyness, which I was told could be a side effect. I've also managed to stay totally OP which is encouraging as I've really been having a struggle with cravings lately. Giving the credit to the Meridia. I still got hungry at meal times though so it doesn't totally kill appetite.
I realise that WW doesn't promote the use of diet drugs but I've really been at a standstill and even gaining lately. I have to get my weight down in order to control my diabetes. He also put me on Metformin (sp?) to help control the diabetes so with my thyroid meds and these two new ones, I'm afraid I'll turn into a druggie.
Today's menus
Breakfast
2 slices hi fiber toast
2 tsp light Becel margarine
2 tbsp light Philly cream cheese
2 tsp jelly

Snack
1/2 cup yogurt
1 cup strawberries

Lunch (planned)
0 point WW veggie soup
2 hi fiber bread
2 oz turkey deli slice
tomato & lettuce & non fat mayo

Snack
1 cup cooked oatmeal
1/2 cup 2% milk
1 tbsp raisins

Dinner
Reheated turkey patty with mushrooms
baked potato
2 tsp butter (need butter on baked potato)
3 tbsp light sour cream(need sour cream on baked spud)
green salad with 1 tsp olive oil & balsamic vinegar
some kind of veggie

Snack
1/2 cup diet pudding with Light Cool Whip

I actually dragged myself off to the swimming pool yesterday morning and managed 40 minutes of light exercise in the deep end (mostly yacking with my friend)

Today, I go and have my fitting for orthotics, so hopefully in a couple of weeks I will be able to walk without so much pain.
Have a nice day.
LindaBC

Thank you all for the words of welcome. I weighed in today and am down at the mouth because I only lost 1 lb. I know, I know...it's a long process. I've been telling myself this all day and trying all the remotivation techniques I know to counteract this unreasonable disappointment. I'm down 15 lbs. but it's taken me seven long weeks of religious point keeping to get there. I keep looking at the big picture and imagine myself still counting points and losing 1/2 lb. a week until the year 2093 - and still not at goal! Well this pity party I'm having is not a good way of introducing myself to everyone...sorry, I'm not usually this negative.
Anne: I noticed you're a fellow Canuck. I didn't know Meridia was available here. It's something I have been considering but I don't know how helpful it will be as I seem to eat whether or not I'm hungry.
I'll post my menu today to see if that helps me to stay on track:

Breakfast: 1 boiled egg
Slice high fibre bread
1 tsp. light becel
Lunch: 2 slices high fibre bread
1 tbsp. lite peanut butter
1 tsp. honey
1/2 banana
Supper: (planned, but not yet eaten)
2 small taco shells (soft)
3 oz. lean ground turkey
low-fat sour cream
2 tbsp. shredded low-fat cheddar
salsa, lettuce, tomato
small salad with fat-free italien dressing
Scheduled Snacks: 1 c. tomato soup
fat-free, sugar-free yogurt
pear
Hopefully, that will be it! Even if I have to go to bed at 7 p.m. that's all I'm going to eat.
Best Wishes to you all,
Stasia

Oh Stasia, wouldn't I have loved to have had your pound loss yesterday. I wear my emotions on my sleeve, always have, always will. I've been gaining and losing the same 2 lbs for about 10 weeks. The last two were perfectly OP weeks. When the leader told me I'd gained a lb. I almost lost it right there at the scale over 1 stupid little lb. For once she was concerned and we chatted about what I'd been doing. She's going to review my journal next week but this is the best part: Here I was sitting in the car, trying to regain the composure I'd lost upon leaving the building. She'd given me the "Breaking Through" pamphlet about getting over plateaus. Sounds great. It asks a bunch of questions. Then it says if you answered no to all questions go to the last page. Okay, I thought, finally we're getting somewhere. Well I got to the last page and it basically says; you're doing fine, just stick with the program and you'll lose. Good thing the car widows were up. I actually said "big fxxxing deal" as I threw the pamphlet across the car. It was not what I expected to read and I don't usually lower myself to crude profanities, YEP I was UPSET!

It took me a few hrs. to cool off but I'm back in the real world. OP and trying hard to convince myself that eventually my body will let go of some of the weight it's so determinedly hanging on to. It's not like I'm 10 lbs. from goal. Geez, maybe 125 lbs to go, maybe even more. I'll admit to a popcorn with real butter (God, did I get sick) pity party last night. It was my dinner

Today, I'm back in control, journaling, eating carefully and e×ercising but I still would LOVE to have that pound loss.

Terri: We have a freezer full of nice, lean, elk and venison. One of my housemates hunts "for the table" and the other is a fantastic cook. No one ever leaves our table saying anything about the meat tasting "gamey" cause marinated, and cooked properly it's delicious.

Linda: Sounds lke you're doing alot for yourself I won't do any type of drug to lose wright but if it works for you, and doesn't make you ill, I say "Go or it!". I just worry to about the side effects that you don't hear about til the stuff's been around a while. Be sure to keep in close touch with your Dr. Hope the orthotics help. I've started to walk a little. Did 3/4 hrs today at a slow stroll thru the woods out behind our home. It was great to be out and about.

Stasia: Be sure you are eating a least to the low end of your point range. You'll pay later if you don't. To be onest, I lost the best when I ate a he top of my range.

Off to beddy bye,

Hello everyone! Welcome Stashia. I am also new here to this board.

This week has been eventful. My husband had a doctors appt. for a problem he was having and while at the doctors office his blood pressure was up as well as his weight. My dh has NEVER had to watch his weight because he has been in construction since his teens. BUT since his accident and change of employment he is more sedentary. THUS the weight gain. So as of 3/13/02 he is doing WW with me. Yippeee!~ We are doing it at home and basically he asks me what the points are and I record it for him. So far, so good. It is so great knowing that he now understands that this is not so easy. He said that even if he loses his weight first (which he will) that he will keep on helping me. I really love this guy!!!!

I'm sorry I have not posted my menu's. This week has been pretty stressful. Cottage cheese/fruit/Oatmeal for Breakfast, soup (garden veggie) & tuna salad for lunch & homemade chef salad or chicken or pork chops for dinner with sweat potatoes and vegetables.

J-Ann & Terri - My dh usually brings home venison at least once a year. I miss it. It is SO LEAN better than chicken in fact. And like you'll said prepared right it is wonderful. My dh got a wild pig this year. The meat is fantastic. Lean, white & low fat. In fact the ground meat we have is better than hamburger.

We own 60 acres so we have plenty of land for the pigs. We also have a pet deer named Honey. We do not pen her up she is allowed to run free, but she chooses to run with our cattle.

I've been OP for several days now and my scale shows a 1# loss this week.

Now, I just want to express myself. I just wanted to be part of a group that is going through the same struggles as I am. It's hard and we all need support. BUT, I feel unwelcome here. If you don't want me here just let me know and I'll move on to a new board. I've tried to be encouraging and if I've offended anyone I apologize.

Sincerely
Joyce

HEY JOYCE ..... HI

Please don't feel unwelcome. I'll be the first to admit that when I post I usually don't have a lot of time so I sometimes miss things. Yep, even new folks.

You are more than welcome here and very lucky that your dh now understands what you are trying to do and is not only supportive but joining you in your journey.

Please stay with us .... we really aren't trying to be mean, Forgetful, well ... that's another whole post.

Glad you've joined us.

Joyce -- I know I'm bad at gettin' everyone into a post when I reply; I mostly do it by memory (not the best choice) and sometimes I expect I even get the names wrong (I'm bad at both names and details). My apologies if this has in any way made you uncomfortable. Truth be told, I'm thrilled each and every time we have someone new come and join us -- its wonderful to get extra bits o' support and new perspectives. It can be daunting (I felt the same way when I joined this board and yes, there's a thread or two that I joined for a little while and then left because the fit wasn't right -- not their fault, not mine, we just didn't mix properly) to be the new gal on the block. Keep comin' back -- I know I enjoy reading what's new with you.

Linda -- you do whatever you and your doc feel is right for you. You knew that alreay and definitely didn't need my permission -- but if I'd gone on meds, I'd want support in it -- so I'm offering it up to you as best I can.

J-Ann -- I just hate some parts of the WW program!!! You've put your finger on one of them -- simply saying "keep on doing what you are already, it will work" isn't nearly as helpful as they seem to think it is! I mean -- it makes me feel like who ever is writing and approving these materials can't have had much to lose ever!! Dang. I expect you've tried all manner of things (and reported on it but my memory isn't letting me know which you've told us before)... My sister swears by fruit for breakfast as a way of getting past a plateau (when she plateau'd, she'd eat only fruit before noon and then "normally" for the remainder of the day). I always try for a fifteen minute walk after each meal -- sorta encouraging the food to digest and exit ASAP. There's that nifty eating plan with very high and very low points -- I haven't tried that one yet but I hear good things about it.

Stasia -- Thank you for reminding me that soup can make a great snack!! I always forget that there are other low point snacks besides popcorn.

I gotta go -- work calls!