FluffyChix

Oh wow girl! ((hugs)) It takes as long as it takes. You know? So glad you found the path!!! Six months from now and you won't recognize yourself! So happy for your survivorship. Triple negative is scary larry stuff. Are you still on meds? The doc said I might be on an aromatase inhibitor for life? Mine was ER+/PR+/HER2- (the most common, but it was a very high grade aggressive form). You should talk to your doc about what level of fat in your diet. I think Triple Neg is the only one that is impacted by a high fat diet.

Eight years ago today (Good Friday) I was told by my doctor that I quite likely had breast cancer and needed to have a biopsy asap. She said to get ready, cuz I needed to prepare for the hardest year of my life. She wasn't wrong... Now fast forward to 2019 Good Friday, I'm 3lbs from my 3rd Goal (133lbs) and living a miraculous life in NED. (no evidence of disease). I'm blessed to be here and so happy to walk this journey of healthy living with you all! (Pic ho coming soon--maybe this afternoon after my trip to Old Navy 50% off sale. Woot!!

Yay!!! So glad to hear about your son and DIL! LOL, lucky for me I had to switch to decaff years ago (when I was still using sweet n' low and Coffee Mate). Then the journey to health began (literally 20+ years ago), step by step. I reduced the CM. Broke up with CM. Then reduced the sugar. Broke up with sugar. And ended up drinking coffee black. Then with surgery was surprised at how delightful I thought CocomoJoe was! (Banana Premier Protein Drink in hot or cold coffee with ice). That's really the only way I like sweetened coffee now. Still working on trying to get rid of my sweetener in decaff tea though...it's a journey, right ladies?

Baby steps. Pretty soon, if you use this time to MAXIMIZE your tool and kill the cravings/associations with the things that are not BENEFICIAL to us or to making our goal. We have to teach our inner person to have new behaviors. You have to train your dragon. You can do it. The decision is the beginning of the action. It's the part with all the strength.

Yep! LOL. I totally missed this thread! Good one! Yes and Yes and YES!! Am I yelling? Cut I think I am! I had to break up with all of that. I also had to close my eyes and mute the TV during commercials. I'd also get up and sprint walk during them so I wouldn't see the tempting foods. We also DVR stuff and FF through comms. I also did not look at food mags, cookbooks, and divorced myself from complex comforty foods. I purposely do NOT make low carb keto analogues of former high carb comforts (bread, cake, sweets using artificial sweeteners). In my opinion, even though you are eating low carb or low fat or low cal, whatevs, you're still giving your lizard brain a hit of endorphin pleasure. It confuses it and your body and so it forks up your insulin and bgs which forks up your weight loss and recovery and hunger cues and cravings and head hunger--I could go on for days. So I broke up with tasty. I go simple. Plainly seasoned grilled meats, separate al dente steamed veg (usually) or sometimes roasted, and healthy fats. Everything is separate and done in order: protein with a bit of fat, veg with a bit of fat, fat. It's worked so far. I still had hellah head cravings and hunger. But I believe I have better relationships with food. I do still take pleasure in food--it's a mixture of fuel, pleasure, comfort, familiar. But it is in better balance than before! KISS rules! Bye Felicia! (pssst that's you Food Network)

Yep. Also the 8-10 month lull is a real thing. I've seen it in myself and in so many other sophomores! Bottom line, to lose? I need to be at 600-850cals per day, <25-30g net carbs, 60-75g protein, and healthy fats to fill up the remaining cals. It's about 30-45g fat per day. Absolutely no alcohol. Very little artificial sweeteners. And I do IF. LOL. It helped me get my last 20lbs off. I started IF in my 9th month. I can easily get my protein in from food and get 100+oz water/liquid daily.

Honestly? Don't do much right now until you have your test. You want the test to reveal what you've been living with in the past years, not what you have been living with for the last 2 weeks. So maintain what you are doing now. And then see your doc for a game plan. Often we can get ourselves into a mess by muddying the waters. Right? Sorry you are dealing with regain. But get the test, see the doc, then report back here on what needs to be done. If your esophagus is dilated, then you need to know this and have his professional advice of what to do first so you don't hurt yourself more! ((hugs)) It's only 2 weeks. Maybe spend the next 2 weeks researching eating behaviors and how to change them long term? In case he tells you to restrict your eating quantities to "x" or "y".

My RD says the same thing! It's not unusual for her to have pts doing protein drinks in the morning for 2 years out. She says it takes the protein monkey off their back. Makes sense to me! I'm so happy for you!! I truly believe you've figured it out and will be one of the long term maintaining vets because of your attitude!!! 🍾

Do it! Do it now while it's showing a need. It will save you years of misery and potentially a case of Barrett's! ((hugs))

Piccard!!! ((hugs)) You 2 percenter. hehe. I will buy Mr. F. a free coffee tonight on our date. Oh wait. He's only "strange" - ish. I'm the real strange one!

You've done awesome and are retaining or regaining metabolic flexibility! I wanna be you when I grow up! I still use protein shakes when I want/need them too! Are your meals at home any different now that you are at goal? Are you using IF to maintain now? And is maintenance even harder than losing phase?

How are you enjoying life right now lady? Are you doing well?

Oh yeah, fat + carbs will bring it on for sure! But yeah, I get you. I'm the same way!! I'm so ingrained to "reach goal" and keep low carb, healthy fats and keep protein adequate only! It's harder and harder to purposely eat counter to my goal! ((hugs)) Hope they get it figured out and your tests show you can get surgery and get it taken care of so you feel better! Congrats on your amazing and inspirational success!!!

Read more about Dr. F. He says that if you do IF and then also have feast days, you won't reduce your BMR. Any calorie deficit is accessible through the ketones (fat burning) + the autophagy (protein recycling). Try to work toward getting your carbs <50g total per day or net (veggies/fiber) to 25-35ish? Sounds like you're doing it. I'd also go back to having a protein drink during your eating window until you figure things out? Yay that you still have restriction and that you can have your triggers in the house! Tipping my hat to you!!

Enjoying a cup of my Bergamot and Green Tea. YUM!! It's working its magic to take the edge off my hunger and rule in the head stuff. Something about hot liquids. Are they soothing, appetite suppressing to y'all?

How long have you been doing IF? And did it help you lose your 8lbs!? That's fantastic, btw! Congrats on getting back and getting right back to beeswax!!! How is it doing on your hunger? Hope you'll stick around with us!

Yeah, that's what we usually do, and we probably still will and I'll get a cup of tortilla soup no tortillas. Then will just have a bite or two of his fajitas and guac/pico. Usually does me. But they have some yummy fish dishes like grilled fish with chimichurri and veggies and avocado. (Come to Mama!) And also have a good looking salmon salad, so will have to decide on the fly. Will likely be good, cuz I'm at a new low today and I don't want to completely screw it up.

Yum! That looks and sounds great!! Great! Now I'm hungry! haha! I'm gonna eat between 1-2 today. Today is a feast day for me, so looking to really max protein and will have 2 meals + small snack (salad). Lunch will be a can of sardines in water + yellow mustard and a hb egg with maybe a couple slices of cucumber. Dinner we're going out for Mexican and I haven't decided yet on my poison meal. LOL. It's a new place but it looks like there are really healthy choices there, so maybe not so bad!

Awesome that you are figuring things out and what works for you! We're all so brilliantly unique!! Good that you are figuring out how to up your protein game a smidge! Do you hydrate really well before drinking anything?

I think TRE is a good thing for most of us as long as we're meeting our protein needs on average each day whatever that definition is? One thing you might do is use some Premier Protein in coffee-just try 1 ounce or 1 1/2 oz. That way you are still drinking a thin liquid, but it's helping meet your protein needs! For the longest time I would do that in the early morning and then wouldn't eat until 11. Please feel free to jump in here even if you can't IF yet.

Congrats!!! IKR? The longest I've been able to do was 42hours and I didn't feel so great. I kept worrying about my blood pressure and maybe being malnourished? My bp went very high. But I'm losing, so I just keep working on building my fasting muscle. How do you feel? Welcome back btw!!

Congrats girlie!!! Can't wait to hear everyone's reply!!

The weight regain between years 2-5 is a common phenomenon. You know what to do. You simply must muster the will to motivate yourself into losing it again. Go back to the extreme basics of your "regular food" stage with all the rules. Start planning, logging, weighing, and measuring and make sure to hydrate and move! Walk at least! Consider IF as well. You can do it. Tackle it now.

Embrace this time. Cuz it will likely not come again! Try to fill your time with things and pursuits other than food. Concentrate on hydration. Being hydrated helps you eat more and makes your tool "slippery" so that food goes down easier. But you are still early out. Just relax into it. Don't push progression too quickly and stay the course. If you need to eat every 2hours, do it. Eventually you will heal and be able to eat WAY too much and will worry about that!

Honestly? I think you are eating too many calories and carbs. Fat is fine. Protein is high unless you are a dude and super athlete. But 5'4" even as a male, 90+ grams protein seems high. Yep another one here who has to keep an eye peeled to eat to my cals/macros. I personally lose best in the sweet spot between 600-850ish. At 1000cals I'm in maintenance or else losing so slow that I lose momentum and focus and get frustrated. (I'm a 5'4" woman, 56 years old with a tanked metabolism). I also walk about an hour per day. I try to keep the following: protein 60-75g net carbs to <20-30g roughly healthy fats to make up the balance of calories up to 600-850 I also IF and weigh, measure, plan and log everything and continually mix things up. The last 20lbs has been even more challenging than the entire weight loss combined. I'm determined to hit between 123-125lbs (my top secret Barbie Dreamgirl weight). Here's my TDEE from KetoGains and if I want to do a 500cal/day deficit, I have to really max nutrition. This is pretty close to get me to the ballpark but still too high on protein for me.