CLinND

Hi Novembers, It's been a while since I checked in, and I'm getting motivated again after catching up on the posts. I am also at a plateau, but mostly of my own doing. I haven't exercised or really watched what I ate since June. Summer is hard! It's time to get back to my exercise schedule and watching what I eat. Cindy

Hi Novembers, I was wondering how the Memorial Day/June First people were doing with their weight loss. Unfortunately, I am not going to make my goal, but I am only about 5 pounds away and I am happy with that. Good luck to everyone else. Cindy

Hi Novembers, Well, I am back on track after the week-end. Not that I did that badly, but I did relax a little and had pizza on Friday night with the grand kids. I used to eat four or five slices, easily, and this time I splurged, had two pieces and felt really full for the rest of the evening. I am really fighting the mind set that if I don't feel stuffed, I must be hungry and need to eat. I have a hard time diferentiating between hungry, not hungry and full. I think the Memorial Day/June challenge is helping me though. I need those short term goals to keep me on track and making the better meal choices. Even though I am eating less, I still have a hard time steering away from the high fat items. Anyone have any good suggestions for a mayonnaise substitute? I absolutely can't stand the fat free stuff and threw it out. I am going to try the reduced fat this week.

Hi Jewels, I had the band place on Nov. 12th and I am down 37 pounds since I started the pre-op liquid diet. I am down 27 pounds since the surgery itself. I feel great and have decreased both the blood pressure meds and the diabetes meds. I try to exercise about 5 times a week and have a stationary bike and a rowing machine at home. I am soooo looking forward to spring and being able to get outside! ND winters are not fun!

Hi Novembers, Can I join the Challenge? I would love to hit 175 by Memorial Weekend. That's a goal of 22 pounds for me. My big hurdle is getting away from the "one bite of this, and one bite of that". I can't have anything sitting out on my counters or I nibble. If I can get everthing out of sight, I can do it, and have a clean kitchen besides. :w00t:) Cindy

Thanks for the info on the pouch test and also the tips on the South Beach plan. My husband is working out of town this week, so this is the perfect time to try it out. I am sure that some of the other "Grammas" out there are also suffering from the slower metabolism, like I am. It sure makes weight loss a lot slower and a lot more work! Thanks again, Cindy

Hi Novembers, Can someone tell me what the pouch test is? I haven't heard of it before. I can sympathize with the people who are stuck at a plateau. I took my grand kids on a vacation two weeks ago and came back two pounds heavier. I don't have any restriction and I found myself eating and drinking things that weren't the best choices for me. I also had been drinking water with my meals. Not the best thing to be doing. Since I got back, I have dropped those two pounds and am back on track but his puts me at about a month with very little weight loss. Had a little talk with myself and then moved on. No sense crying over what I can't go back and change. Congrats to all of you who are doing so well! Does anyone have any hints on what to have when you have the urge for something sweet. It doesn't happen to me often, but when it does, fruit or yogurt just don't satisfy the urge. Cindy

Thanks for the link to protein recipes. The vanilla protein powder mixes into the coffee fairly well, but the chocolate is another story. I ended up with small grainy clumps that never really mixed in. Yuch! Recently, I have been mixing a scoop of either vanilla or chocolate powder into sugar free coffee creamer and stirring it well and then mixing the whole thing into the coffee. That has been working really well for me. My Doctor never said anything to me about avoiding coffee. I will have to double check with him next time I have an appointment.

Hi Novembers, Does anyone know of any problems with putting protein powder in coffee? I have been mixing a scoop into my sugar free coffee creamer and then stirring into my coffee. I usually take my pills with unsweetened juice in the morning and then have an ounce or two of deli meat. When I get to work I have my coffee and protein creamer, but I have been wondering if the protein powder loses anything when it is put in a hot liquid. I was making protein shakes/smoothies, but they were time consuming and my husband kept adding so much to the blender that the calories started to creep way up. The protein coffee really sticks with me most of the morning and the coffee seems to cut the sickeningly sweet flavor.

Hi Novembers, I sure can relate to all the posts on the Christmas goodies. My big downfall is Chex Mix and nuts. I think we all deserve a pat on the back for downsizing from a dozen cookies to two, or a reduction in whatever was our biggest temptation. I'm thrilled to just maintain what I have lost prior to the holidays. We will all be back on track by next week. :tongue2:

Hi Novembers, I have had my ups and downs also. I haven't had a fill yet and I have no restriction. The odd thing is, the day I upped my calorie intake to 1100 calories and ate pizza at the Holiday Party at work was the day I dropped two pounds. I think sometimes I might have my body thinking it is going into starvation mode. I make sure I keep up with my protein, vitamins and exercise and even if scale doesn't change, my pants are still getting looser. Thank goodness for consignment stores!

Thanks for the update WannaB, I don't have a fill until Jan and I am starting to get a little nervous. It's great to hear from people who are doing so well. Thanks again, Cindy

I haven't scheduled my first fill yet, so I am really glad to hear some stories about how it goes. I'm not having any problems with anything I eat, so I am really watching my intake. I make sure to chart as much as I can (food and exercise) and it really seems to help me. I've been doing this since last spring, so it gotten to be a habit. I have the Realize band, so I am using that web site right now, but I have used others in the past and they work pretty well also.