Pat - Good for you for getting out for walks. I'm glad to hear that they put you in a "losing" mindset. I'm sorry to hear that you are still having problems with the insurance company.

I had a so-so day yesterday. I didn't have many points left after dinner since lunch was kind of high point. I did do the whole new aerobic tape and did some abs afterwards which basically wiped out my deficit. I did follow my strategy (especially with the water) and it helped until the end of the evening. The salty & sweet cravings took the better of me and I ended up eating my activity points so I still have a 6 point deficit. I was beating myself up a little bit about it last night but decided that wasn't going to get me anywhere. I'm telecommuting today so it should be easy to have a low point lunch and dinner is pretty low point too. I plan on getting some exercise and maybe I can whittle down the deficit a little. At least I drank enough water so that I don't feel too bloated after yesterday's lunch. Now if only TOM would get here!

Have a great Think Thin Thursday,
Judy

Hi! It definately helped me to get back on line and posting to this great group :-) I did 40 min of exercise yesterday (2 days in a row for me), and managed to bank 2 food pts! (egg beater omelet for dinner made the difference). Challenge: I've been putting off going out to lunch with "the guys" (our maintenance staff) since I got serious about WW (last couple of months). I decided to accept today because (1) I felt ungracious (sp?) and (2) if this is a lifestyle change, I better learn how to eat at a restaurant for lunch without blowing the program! Eeek -- my comfort zone is staytrim bread sandwiches or subway! I'm going to make the best choices I can, but I'm not bringing my WW supplies into the restaurant or making any issue about what I "can or can't" eat. I'm crossing my fingers that the restaurant they pick will have healthy choices. (I may smuggle in 0 pt salad dressing if my purse is large enough! LOL ) On the bright side, I'm babysitting this P.M. for my SIL, and she is making me a healthy stir fry.

Keep up the good work everyone :-) Holly

PS to Carla: my friend at work says that she orders her chinese food "healthy," at a local restaurant. They don't use any oil, and the "gravy" is made without fat. You might ask if they can accomodate preparing food in such a way.

Back to the salt mines...

Hi everyone -

Jan, congrats on a maintain. You may have overeaten last week, but you must have did more things right than wrong. You are one busy lady. You're right - we have to figure out how to eat properly in the midst of the craziness of life - not wait until things slow down. When do they ever slow down? Good for you for surfing the web rather than cashing it in on Monday.

Judy - Thanks for the pep talk! Sorry to hear that the salty/sweet cravings got to you yesterday. Keep plugging away and you'll make up that deficit.

Holly - I hope lunch went well for you today. It's always disconcerting to find ourselves out of our point-friendly comfort zone. Thanks for the suggestion on the Chinese food. I'm not sure that the place I go to for lunch could/would accomodate special requests like that. I could get the veggie stir fry there and that would be healthier. Unfortunately, when I crave Chinese food for lunch I'm really craving a couple of specific things: Kung Pao Chicken and Spicy Chicken. I love spicy food. Fortunately, I recently discovered a Thai restaurant by my office that has some healthier options that they'll spice up as much as I want.

I'm doing better today - both aggrevation wise and food wise. Things have calmed down here at work for the moment and I haven't been stuffing everything that isn't nailed down into my face. Since it's inevitable that the craziness will strike again, and probably sooner rather than later, I have to work on better coping strategies.

Here's to a successful rest of the week for us all.

Carla

Holly - you're doing great! Two days in a row for exercise - Wooohoooo! I agree with you about going out for lunch or dinner - it's not realistic to think that you're never going out for meals. I hope you did OK. What I try to do (if there's time) is call the restaurant in advance and ask them to fax the menu to me. I've never had anyone say they couldn't do it. That way, I can try to plan what I'm going to have. I have never brought anything with me to a restaurant. I always ask for dressing on the side (and dip my fork into it) and I ask for salsa for my baked potato. Good luck!

I went out for a run/walk at lunchtime - the weather is in the low 60's and sunny - it was really nice to get outside and I managed to ear 4 activity points which will go a long way towards erasing my deficit. I hope I can stop work early enough to do some rose pruning. The forsythia (sp?) is in bloom and it's time to prune!

Judy

Carla - we must have been posting at the same time. I'm glad to hear that things are a little better today. You're right about the coping strategies though. Have you been bringing some low point snacks with you? I've found a couple of things that have been pretty satisfying snacks that might be good in a work frenzy pinch. One is Pirate's Booty cheese puff things - of course, I only buy them in the small bags (2 pts) - I can't trust myself with the big bag! They are as close as I think you can get to cheese doodles (which I love) and be healthy and low point. My other new favorite is Glenny's Soy Chips - they come in bar-b-que, lightly alted, garlic & onion and for a sweet snack, apple cinnamon. They are high in soy protein, all natural and I really like them. Oh, and 2 points a bag. I don't know how widely available they are - they're made here on LI.
OK, enough snack talk!

I'm with ya' on the successful week - let's make it one!
Judy

Hi Judy -

I usually have SmartPop popcorn in my desk. I'm out of it, so I must get to the store. I love Pirate's Booty. I've only found it in the large bags so it's a danger for me. But I do measure out a single portion when I'm bringing it to work. Ana likes it too! I haven't seen those soy chips - I'll definitely have to be on the lookout. Terra also makes some great 50% less fat Yukon Gold potato chips and Garlic and Onion chips. They're three points for an ounce, which is only a point more than the baked chips (and the same amount of the baked Lays seasoned chips) and they're a thicker chip, which I love. Yikes - salt cravings coming on. Must restrain myself.

Carla

Judy - Sorry to hear those cravings got to you. I'm sure with the low point meals and exercise you'll cut into the deficit. Way to go getting outside for your run/walk.

Holly - Way to go getting in the exercise and banking points. How did the lunch go? I eat out a LOT and found that once I made note of some low point foods at different restaurants I was able to stay OP. Some times it means balancing the day out with a low point dinner, but when I stopped eating out to lose weight I've always gone back to my old ways and gained it back.

Carla - Glad things have calmed down some. Good idea to try to think of ways to cope better next time.

The insurance company has finally agreed to pay the damages to our car. Darrell finally got hold of the claims adjuster's supervisor. At first he said they hadn't determined who was at fault. Darrell told him the police report clearly said it was the other lady's fault and the adjuster informed him that the police report had no bearing on whether they paid a claim! He did promise to get the adjuster to call their insured for a recorded statement. When they called back they said they would pay the claim. Now we just have to find time when we can do without the car for four or five days.

I got out for another walk today and also did some work in the yard. Now to hang on for the weekend.

Pat

Carla - I'm afraid to bring one of the large bags of Pirate's Booty into the house - I know I could spit it up into portions but I'd probably put it off and then ….. I hope you can find the soy chips - they're thicker than the usual chip and really yummy.

Pat - I'm so glad to hear the insurance company is finally going to pay up! I don't get it - if the police report has no bearing on whether or not they pay the claim, why do insurance companies want them?? Grrrr, they just make me mad. Way to go on getting out for a walk and do some yard work!

I had a good day yesterday and I can't figure out why. I know that sounds funny but it's true. Tony and I had dinner at the normal time and I tried to eat more slowly (I caught myself starting to wolf it down and then gave myself a good though silent talking to). I had some mini chocolate rice cakes after dinner and then picked up my knitting. Tony and I had some fruit later in the evening but I just didn't think about snacking. I know the knitting helped but usually knitting doesn't take my mind off snacking, just my hands. I just didn't think about having anything! Anyway, I ended the day with 1 food point banked. I think my deficit is down to 1 point but I forgot my food journal so I'm not positive. This weekend will be a bit of a challenge. Passover starts Saturday night and we'll be at my mom's for the seder - I'm making the cake from a WW magazine recipe so it shouldn't be too bad an evening. Passover is tough on points though - 1 matzoh is 2 points…

Have a great Fiber Filled Finally Friday,
Judy

Hi everyone.

Pat - I'm glad the insurance company is finally coming through for you. We're lucky in that my SIL works in risk management for a major insurance company so at least we have someone to help us filter out the BS. I'm glad we haven't had to file a claim in a while. I'm sending you positive vibes for the weekend.

Judy - I'm so glad to hear that you had an easy good day yesterday. Isn't it odd how we struggle and struggle and then some days are just a breeze. Oh well, I guess we have to be grateful when we have them. I'll send positive vibes to you too for the weekend as well as best wishes for a blessed Passover.

I'm still doing so/so. My minor victory is that I made M&M cookies for a bake sale at Ana's school and only ate two. Given that I started baking at 3:00 in the morning I find my restraint surprising. John had also committed to baking an apple pie and we're not organized enough to do anything ahead of time. So he did the dinner dishes and started his baking while I got Ana bathed and put to bed. At least I took a nap while he was baking his pie. I have to tell you, our house smelled really good this morning.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Carla

Way to go Carla! I think just having 2 M&M cookies while baking them at 3:00 in the morning is a triumph, pure and simple! How can you keep your eyes open today?? I'll bet you're not only tired but probably a little dehydrated too. Guzzle that water girlfriend - I always find it harder to stay OP when I'm tired. I hope you're doing OK. I'm sending lots of {{{{HUGS}}}}} and {ZZZZZZZZZ's} to you. Get some sleep tonight! Thanks for your good wishes for Passover. This is going to be an interesting week - Passover all week (and there aren't any high fiber sweet things out there) and the week culminates with Easter at my sil's! I'm glad today is TOM - the cravings should be gone and by next week I hope to be back at exercising more at "full speed" (while still being cautious) - I'm going to need those activity points!

Have a great weekend everyone!
Judy