I really need some encouragememnt I am ready to cry! I worked out...and started thinking about my weight patterns...I just CAN"t get this weight to budge...it only goes up with mistakes and stays the same when I diet....I know this is for life but I am ready to give up...I have a ED and am soooo afraid it will rear it's ugly head! I tried on a pair of pants and they didn't even go past my butt!!! I will try so hard to hang on today but I am feeling deserate! Is is possible that I will never lose weight? I HATE the meds that I am on but I HAVE to take them... Any encouragement or ideas will be appreciated !

it will be alright. it appears you are relatively close to your goal and because of that - you will probably have to be pretty strict to get it moving.

unfortunately the closer you get to goal the harder it seems to lose. hey dont feel bad i have screwed up and let myself gain 15 lbs. and am having a hard time becoming that hard core low carber i was.
just keep going. whatever you do dont let yourself gain it back! as long as you maintain and dont gain you have won half the battle.

good luck. dont give up now.

How about taking some vitamin D and leucine complex. That would help build muscle and get rid of fat. It migt also improve your mood. There's info on D in the supplement forum and there's a D experiment oing on in the challenge one.

Thanks...I need to remember that maintaining and losing are the goals...I don't want to gain from being depressed and then pig out as a result...I will only become worse.

I will have to read more on the D...I have seen what you've written here (online) Zul. I have started some other supplementation this last week. Maybe that will help things too...I take a manna cleanse..(for intestines) garlic parsely, dieters advantage (Atkins) and have been drinking alittle green tea...trying to get the green tea daily but I don't like it very much so I have to make an effort to get it in. I will have to add D too...I think Calcium would be good too...I haven't been taking that lately.
I do feel better today...I ate on plan and came home very hungry...but didn't ever go off plan...guess like you said Je'swife that is half the battle!

Thanks again...I felt soooooooooooooo desperate this morning!!!

I seem to remember you going through some of these same feelings last year. You might want to check back in your journal and check it out. If so, you have SAD.

I do know that sad affects me some because when we lived in NE I didn't do well in the winter...esp around Feb...I remember laying in the window of the living rm trying to get some sun lol! Now that we are in AR it is much better!!!! I did well on plan today and am trying to tighten the reins just alittle...esp in the water department...I can feel a difference already...I just pray the scale takes a downward turn...I don't care how slow as long as it goes downward!!!

Sometimes I think looking at the scales isn't a good thing. It is how this WOL is making you feel. Do you have more energy? Feel healthier? Stick to it Pre3, as you said you felt better sticking closer to the guidelines. If you get down start reading CAD again to get some added support.

Hope you have a great weekend

Susan

Hang with it Karen, you can do it. I have noticed that it takes longer for my body to get on the losing trend after falling off; the more I do it. I guess it waits for me to screw up and then after a few wks, I don't then I will be a loser. So just be patient. I know its hard but this plan works

Susan: I guess I need to keep my focus on that...how the plan makes me feel. I LVOE having NO cravings!!!!!!! I was never truly hungry before when I wasn't on plan...they were cravings. But now I get a stomach ache from not eating at times because I don't have the cravings drawing me toward the food...Guess that is worth alot right?
Jill: You are right. I am in this for life so Guess I just need to focus on that and the weight will do what it needs to do! I am more hopeful the last few days now because the cravings are gone and I am feeling alittle stronger and thinner. That is helping alot...dong the plan for just a day...then just another and so on has really helped my attitude (and cravings) I am also watching a few things at my RM that seem to cause more problems for me...that is helping too.
THANKS EVERYONE!

Hi Karen. I posted this in the wrong place - Jill's journal. She has kindly redirected me

You were asking about SF gum.

"I know you're not asking me and I am a newbie BUT I just happened to read today about the SF gum and sweets in Heller's book (Carb Addicts Lifespan Programme) that gum whether it is SF or not, plus the sweets I guess, creates a fake message for the body that a high carb meal is coming and that gets the insulin flowing. They indicate that it brings about stalls. Not sure if that helps..."

Hope you are feeling more encouraged - your journey certainly encourages me. Thanks G

Gabbie

I did read that in the CALP book...doesn't mention it in the CAD book...I was wondering about ice breakers and such because they are not sweet but rather spicy and alittle sweet. Some of them are quite hot!!! I am trying it to see what happens as I have used them last time I did CAD several years ago.
Thanks for the help!

I see. So far I have only been able to find the Card Addicts Life Plan. Is there a discription somewhere of the difference between CAD & CALP? Hope you don't mind me asking here?

Thank you - G

I'm not sure if there is a comparison here but I can tell you a few things...
CAD book: RM should be balanced
diet soda is mentioned at the CM's as being acceptable
lc breads made from soy flour were included as CM items but they had very little flour in them!
Nothing much was said about af.
It is reccomended RM be started with a salad
CALP book:
RM should be balnced 1/3,1/3,1/3
diet soda and sf items ingested only at RM
each meal should be started with a salad
These are just a few things I am pulling from my memory as I loaned my CAD book out.

I started with the CAD a few years ago because I thought it would be easier to live with than no AF. I have tried it lately and the weight loss is slow but things are fitting better after just a week. I am experimenting to see what my body can tolerate. I am trying to balance my RM which is something I didn't do the first time I followed CAD. I was younger then too so I may need to be more strict with myself...I will post in my journal and you can come over and visit to see how things progress

Keep the faith, Karen! I know how hard and frustrating it can be when you're giving your all and the scale isn't budging. Sometimes people plateau for a while being moving on.

Only two things I can think of (a) is your reward meal being eaten strictly within one hour with no snacking in between? (b) there are some fab green teas out there - mixed with other flavors like lemongrass and other herbs. Stash and Tazo make some good ones.

Stay strong, hang in there, and fight the good fight! You'll make it to your goal!

Striking me that something about your metabolism is somewhat brittle, and if that's the case, then ignoring hunger that is bad enough to cause stomach pain is possible NOT a good thing. That's going to set you up for starvation metabolism, which I only partly believe in, but you may find it a useful construct.

I DO try to eat when I'm hungry, and not when I'm not. But I also try to do my part to provide a balanced life for my cells--regular food, "enough" but not too much. I'm learning how much is enough; how many eggs to get me through to lunch, how much lunch to make it to dinner comfortably, etc.

I "tested" the 60-minute rule last night (by deviation) and darn, did I pay!! Couldn't do a darn thing when "dinner" finally ended but crawl to bed and hope today would be better. So far, it is. For me, that part of CAD is massively powerful. I'm testing other foods for the RM--real sugars are OUT.

Good luck.