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Where are you in Michigan?

Hi- i live in ann arbor....

Traverse City. My Dad teaches at UofM.

Deb,
I lived in Ann Arbor for 15 years and it is my favorite place to live. I owned a home near the corner of W. Washington and 7th. on the west side of town. All my closest friends live there and I drive in when I can. I live about an hour away in a small town which is 4 miles past the ends of the earth. I just started this new way of eating and some days are a struggle. I noticed that our weight and goals are close to each other. Maybe we could support each other.
Judi

Hey all. I'm from East Lansing.



-Rebecca

Hi

I'm in Hamburg (Brighton) and work in Ann Arbor.

I'm in Warren, Michigan... I'm sure there are more than the few of us from the great lake state!!!

does anyone know of any meetings/support groups for those on a LC program? There's weight watchers, over-eaters, etc... I can't find anything in the area for LC-ers

Have a great day!!!

Linny

I would love some good advice on how to get started. I have been trying forever it seems....but can never get through the first two weeks...without giving up! I have a an addition to wheat and sugar I think, almost like an alcoholic would be for a drink. I can't stop at just a little. As soon as I take any in, I'm doomed for the rest of the day...I go on a frenzy. Is there any support groups in the down river area? Like there is for AA? If so please let me no. Vassy

Vassy -

Oh don't I know how you feel!!!

I don't have too many words of wisdom for ya, other than we all have to find our own way and sometimes, similar to an alcoholic, we have to hit bottom before it clicks.

I did find the first 3-4 days to be the absolute worst!!! If I was going to quit, it would have been during those first few days... but... after I got all that sugar out of my body, I REALLY stopped craving it. It took a lot of planning though... I got a low-glycemic reference guide for fruits and veggies and took it to the store with me and stocked up on a TON of legal stuff... I bought about 5 bags of pork rinds for snacking... I gave a lot of food in my cupboards to my kids to take home, I kept nothing that had rice or pasta in it... got rid of my huge popcorn stash and made sure that the only thing in my house was legal stuff... but LOTS of it so I could still feel satisfied. It's rough, I admit. I don't know if I could have done this while my kids were still living at home.

The best suggestion I can give is to set up some sort of support system... family, friends, complete strangers!!! haha

I find that the more I discuss what I'm doing and why I'm doing it and what food does for and to my body... that I get better and better at controlling what I eat.

and exercise... I HATED TO EXERCISE... I made a promise to myself to give it 30 days. Exercise and eat right for 30 days and see what happens... after 10 days ONLY 10 days... I swear... I saw a muscle moving under the flab in my arm and I was HOOKED!!! It's been 45 days and counting for me... I've slipped, I've eaten things I shouldn't, I've blown off exercising... but I haven't given up and that's the most important thing... I know you can do it too.. if I can... ANYONE can. I am one of the least disciplined people I know of!!!

The other day, in the shower, I reached back to wash my back and I felt bumps... it actually made me say, outloud, "what the heck?", and then I realized it's my back ribs... I could feel the bumps of my ribs (still surrounded by a substantial amount of fat) but... I hadn't felt them in YEARS!!!

You can do this... trust me... plan ahead, write down everything you need to do, what you want to accomplish each week and check it off as you reach the goal... if you have even ONE check mark on the "good" side at the end of the week... you will have accomplished more than if you hadn't tried at all.

By the way... I did this very gradually. The first thing I did was give up pop completely a year ago... no regular, no diet... then I gave up all candy... and so on... so, when I finally decided to try the Atkin's play, I was already on my way to being free from those addictions... pasta and rice were the only two things I really had to work on. And... I never did the induction of 2 weeks, no carbs allowed... my doctor wouldn't let me... I went right into the week 2 of low carb and I'm still doing that... I'm down 20+ pounds and have lost tons of inches!!!

Please keep trying... what the heck... the rest of your life is gonna get here whether you try or not right??? might as well.

Please let me know if I can help at all... Trust me, this board has been a great help for me.

Have a great day!!!

Linny

My son has just moved out also, perhaps it will be easier for me too, however, my husband is also a problem.....he is a diabetic but still only eats junk...no fish, chicken, ribs, ham, veggies, steak, just hamburger. I mean thats it!. Fixing two meals all the time is very hard, and he wants that stuff in the fridge. That's why I have always had a hard time finding success, too tempting. Its hard to cook things and not eat them, especially when they are things you love. lol But, I think I will get rid of it all anyway. It's time I start watching out for myself and taking care of my own health. Wish me luck .......... My starting date is tomorrow. Vassy

Vassy - I do know what you are going through... like i said, i don't know if I could have done this well if someone else was living with me and I had to take their diet into account. It was easy for me to cleanse the house of the "bad" stuff... hahaha

Here's some words of wisdom... you can't take care of anyone if you don't take care of yourself first. Generally, if people are unhealthy eaters, they don't feel well, they're grouchy, they're non-responsive partners. Also, what if something happened and you DID get sick??? how would you care for your husband then??? You are right when you say you need to take time for you. Put yourself first, husband second. He will probably resist at first so you'll have to find a calm way to remind him that you aren't only doing this for you... but for him too. It's hard I know!!!

It's also difficult for a partner when the other wants to make such a drastic change to themselves... there's always that insecurity thing going on... "will she leave me when she gets skinny" how I HATED hearing that... so some reassurance might be in order. Not saying that will be something you experience... just speaking from my own experiences.

I know it's difficult to cook two meals... but possibly you could make a dinner for yourself that will last 2-3 days and just continue to cook daily for him... just a thought. (I always make tons of chicken and put it in the fridge, it will last me 3 days for lunches and dinner) and i can't imagine the temptation if I had to cook pasta or rice for dinner and NOT EAT IT!!! ahhhhhhhhhh that might be too much.

It does get easier... I know you can do it!!!

Let me know how it's going..

Linny