Second day of Spring!

Sorry I didn't get a chance to check back in last night.



First, let me address Songberrie, who posted:

Bawdy - Hmm how do I change my signature line? I couldn't figure it out. I don't eat any regular carbs, only the carbs I get in vege's or fruits. I only eat meat, almonds, vege's, fruit, and dairy. I haven't had any low carb breads or any other low carb Atkin's type product, except I have had Russel Stover low carb candy. I haven't craved any breads or sweets, and I was really addicted to them!

To change your signature line, look at the top of the page next to where it says "This is a sugar-free zone." See the buttons to the right? Click the one that says "Profile." When the next window opens, look down under the heading "Active Low-Carber Forums" and you'll see another button that says "Profile." Click that. The next window that opens is where you can change your weight and other stats. Easy.

Now for your next statement. You said you don't eat "regular carbs." Carbs are found in all veggies, in fruit, in nuts, in grains, and even sometimes in meat (like eggs, but it's minimal). It sounds like you're doing fine (as long as you keep the low-carb candy to a minimum -- for some it causes "gastric thunder" . . . I'm sure you can figure out that one!). You really are doing great, but you might want to post a typical menu (like yesterday's, for example) so we can maybe look for things that might cause a problem down the road. But hey, you're doing so well, we should be learning from you!

Edited to add: "Snot" is cooked flaxseeds. Refer to the post on the General Low-Carb board called "Snot (er, I mean Flaxseeds) for Breakfast." It's probably on page 2 now.

And Ursula asked about a few things. Just double-checking that you knew that the 4 ounces of protein was per meal. And way to go on the loss! Now about the water. Yes, it goes right through me, too. And, like you, the more water I drink, the thirstier I get. There's nothing you can do except for limiting liquids after maybe 6:00 pm. They say ("they" refers to all those unnamed experts out there) that after a while, you're body will get accustomed to the extra fluid and will be able to hold more before you need to pee again. The way I see it, the bladder is only so big. If you drink more than it can hold, you need to pee to make more room. So, sorry, but there's really no answer to that.

Lissette, I forgot that your birthday is 1 day (and 11 years) after mine! We had planned on going to this wonderful inn in southern Maine and stay the night. I have a very generous gift certificate that I was given by the vice president of our division at work for a huge project I worked on this past summer and fall. The inn is in Kennebunk (yup, quite close to the Bush estate) and the ocean. Now I'm having second thoughts. It might be nicer to save the gift certificate until the weather is warmer so we can walk on the beach. It will be a nice weekend getaway this summer when I'll really need it.

So no, no huge plans. We'll go out to dinner, but I haven't chosen where yet. Like you, we're rural so there's not much around. And I hate having to drive an hour to go to dinner.

At least we can set aside a time and then toast each other with a large glass of sparkling water!

As for my retail therapy. It was disappointing. One of the things I wanted to get was a new bra. I'm just not happy with the ones I have (alternating between 2 styles right now, and I'm not happy with the fit of either one).

Does any woman enjoy shopping for a new bra? OK, so maybe I did right after my reduction surgery, but not now. The inconsistency of sizes of bras is worse than with regular clothing! And why does every manufacturer think women want their boobs smashed together and shoved right up under their chins?

I'D RATHER GET BEAT UP THAN SHOP FOR A NEW BRA!

So no, I didn't get one. Monday I think I'll go to an actual lingerie shop near where I work. It's never busy in there, you can actually walk around between the racks, and the people there are extremely helpful.

Oh, and the book store I was going to go to to get the CAD book? Gone. Out of business. I stopped at a small bookstore in town, but they didn't have it. So Monday will be a B&B day: bras and books!

OK. Today is confession day. I finally got desperate enough to actually order and receive a bottle of Stacker 2 with ephedra (hands up, don't shoot,please!) I have never taken any kind of diet aid before and, yes, I am fully aware of the recent warnings about this. I decided to start out slowly and see what happens. At the very first sign of any adverse reaction (weird heartbeat, etc. they are going in the trash). I took one this morning before breakfast...2 hours ago...and so far I feel.....mmm...NOTHING! Not sure HOW I'm supposed to feel............ ! I guess I was expecting to start flying like a bird !!Anyway, I will let everyone know what happens with them and if they seem to help in any way. In the meantime I am continuing to eat LC and cutting down a bit on calories and fat.

Yesterday's Numbers:
38 carbs
1047 calories
62.8 fat
25 Waist Watcher's Points

Kat

Kat - I am truly compelled to say this to you.....Please reconsider. I know that you are an adult and can make your own decisions but here me out. My husbands ex-wife had a stroke from taking metabolife, she was awarded a large settlement from the company. I also took it for almost two years. At first it helped me to lose a few pounds and I defended using it to anyone who said anything. I was taking it when I met my husband. After awhile I stopped losing weight but because of my high BP didn't feel it was wise to increase the dose. My husband finally convenced me to stop taking it. I started gaining weight almost immediately. After a few months I was so frustrated and was unable to lose any of the weight I was gaining so I unknown to my DH I bought some metabolife. It didn't work, plain and simple. It screwed up my metabolism big time and I still feel I have problems due to using that horrible drug. Please reconsider.

Bawdywench:

Yes, I did gather the 4oz was per meal. I must admit the thought of eating meat 3X a day made me feel ill (I'm avoiding eggs because of the arachidonic acid--and my psoriasis is getting better as a result) so I tried a can of sardines for breakfast. I managed to get them down for a week and then just couldn't favce them any more, but by now I'm quite happy to eat meat 3 times a day.

About bras, you said: "Does any woman enjoy shopping for a new bra? OK, so maybe I did right after my reduction surgery, but not now. The inconsistency of sizes of bras is worse than with regular clothing! And why does every manufacturer think women want their boobs smashed together and shoved right up under their chins?
I'D RATHER GET BEAT UP THAN SHOP FOR A NEW BRA!"

Thank you, BW, for reassuring me that I'm not a freak. I am now 35" around my chest and my latest bra is a 40" one. AND IT STILL FEEL LIKE A TOURNIQUET. Also the straps are always much too short so if I get a bigger size it will pull up over my boobs. And you know what: this is largely an American thing. Look at old pics of Princess Di and you'll see her boobs much nearer her elbows than her shoulders. I noticed this ten years ago and when I was in England in '95 I bought bras which I'm looking forward to getting into again. Meanwhile it's the first thing I take off when I get home and the last thing I put on before I go out (and if it were colder down here I 'd just put on sweaters and forget the bra altogether).

Good afternoon everyone! Thanks to everyone who has welcomed me back so warmly.

Kat-I, too, am concerned for you. I don't have any first-hand experience with ephedra, but I have heard the horror stories. Supporters of ephedra claim that it is safe as long as you only take the prescribed amount, but I am not so convinced. What I do want to let you know is that we are here for you. We all know what it is like to be frustrated. I do not know you well enough to know your whole dieting story, but it sounds like regular Atkins has not given you the results you've been seeking. I think that is very common for people at your weight. I was a similar weight for a very long time, and it didn't matter how strictly I stuck to Atkins or Protein Power. It wasn't until I drastically cut calories, fat, and carbs for awhile that I convinced my body to lose. Later I was then able to increase all of these to more reasonable Protein Power-ish amounts to maintain the loss. It sounds like you have a very reasonable plan right now in terms of calories. I know there are a lot of people who think it is a bad idea to go too low in calories, but I believe that sometimes it is necessary, at least for a small amount of time, to jump-start weightloss. Pay close attention to your body and how it reacts to those pills, and let us know how it goes.

Bawdy-Sorry to hear that your retail therapy didn't go as well as planned. I HATE bra shopping. In the last year, I have lost 20 lbs and inches everywhere, EXCEPT my chest!!!! Most women lose it there first, but of course, I am not so lucky. I am still clinging to a 38C/D, and honestly, they look ridiculous on the rest of my body. There's been so many times that I've just wished they would go away. I never find bras that fit quite right, and I agree that the sizing is completely obscure. There's usually only a couple bras that I own that I even wear at one time, and right now I have two that I alternate. So I feel your pain!!!! The good news is that I bought a new microwave yesterday and I love it! Sorry to hear that you couldn't find the CAD book. I have the 1993 version, but am thinking about getting the Lifespan version sometime. From what I understand, most of the info is in the original CAD, but they've finetuned it in the CALD version, like trigger foods, and other things to help you be successful. The CALD is geared toward 40+, but they also say it doesn't matter, and I am always interested in more reading material. There were several CALD books at the bookstore here but only one copy of the one I got. Good luck in finding it. Really the only thing that was there that cannot be found on the stickies on the CAD forum are the personal accounts, especially of the authors. I found it most interesting that Mrs. Heller had tried a bunch of different diets, including Atkins, and failed before stumbling upon what became CAD.

Well, I gotta go do some planning for school now. Only one more week till spring break!!!! Next week at this exact moment I will be on a plane to Phoenix. Ellie, here I come!

Katlynwebb: If I may (being new) I second Chamellie but from a different perspective. After I quit smoking in 1986 I not only gained weight but started getting asthma quite badly. I took ephedrine for the asthma (drug-quality not the herbal stuff). It stopped the asthma attack but it also made my heart race and speeded up my digestion (you could hear the peristalsis in my intestines!) and similar changes in the autonomic nervous system. This isn't good, although it was probably less life-threatening than an asthma attack at that point. Oh, and I didn't lose any weight, either.

It sounds like your stuff has little to no ephedra in it, so in one sense you lucked out: you are probably safe although the next pill, or the next bottle could be much stronger because it doesn't seem like there's much quality control--or quantity control, rather.

If you're not getting anwhere on Atkins (I wasn't either) try switching to another plan. I'm more-or-less doing Protein Power now and have had initial good results. And if I may, as a newcomer, I'd suggest you read Barry Sears' The Anti-Aging Zone. I'm about half-way through it and it's fascinating about the interrelationship of hormones, and especially eiconosoids. And his diet is easier to handle (i.e. rule of thumb) than the PP approach--although it amounts to the same in the end.

Wasn't ephedra banned? I'm pretty sure it was, and I'm pretty sure they were supposed to pull it all off the shelves.

Edited to add the following info:

• FDA announces plan to prohibit sales of dietary supplements containing ephedra: http://www.fda.gov/oc/initiatives/ephedra/december2003/

The problem with herbal supplements is that there is very little quality control, as Ursula said. You might get minimal quantity of the herb in one dose, and massive quantities in the next dose.

PLEASE try something else instead. It is not worth it! People, lots of people, have died from this. Why risk it? You're not even that much overweight.

OK, let's start from the beginning:

1. Do you use fitday? If so, open it to public viewing so we can see. If not, start (or at least do an Excel spreadsheet or something).
2. What are your average numbers for a full week? Calories, fat, carbs (and ECC), and protein. Or, tell us the average percentages. FOR A WEEK, not just a typical day because if you're like me (and I suspect many others), the typical menus you post are not all that typical.
3. Are you eating off plan? Carb creep is dangerous.
4. Are you limiting yourself to only a couple artificial sweeteners a day? These stall some people.
5. Are you limiting yourself to no more than about 3 ounces of cheese a day? Again, it can stall people.
6. Are you eating any Frankenfoods? Again, stallers.
7. Are you eating a lot of bacon, hot dogs, sausage, and other processed meats? Salt. Stick with the real stuff.
8. Are you eating enough veggies? Salads?
9. Are you exercising?
10. How many times a day do you eat?

OK. That's enough for a start. THROW AWAY THOSE PILLS! This about getting healthy and losing weight, not losing weight and risking your health and your life.

I'm not going to apologize for coming on strong. You need a good swift kick in the rear.

After you throw away those pills, we'll all have a nice big hug waiting for you.

Kat - In re-reading my post I didn't say that I would support you anyway I truly understand your frustration. Let me share my story with you. I have been overweight my entire life. I was the fat kid, the kid everyone said "you have such a pretty face....if only you lost some weight". I started my cycle of yo yo dieting at the early age of 10, I would lose then gain it right back. I am also short barely 5 feet tall. At 14 I was busting out of my womens size 16 pants and wieghed 164 pounds. Being short it is like someone 5'5 weighing over 200 pounds. I put myself on a diet vowing to lose 20 pounds before Jr high graduation and I did. I ate one meal a day, salad, roll, baked chicken and lost. I kept losing after that and by my 16th birthday I was a size 5-7. I also found drugs, diet pills and everytime I started to gain I took the pills. After a very bad time in life involving heavy drug use, I went clean at the ripe old age of 19. I went back to school and also to eating. The weight started creeping back on. At 20 I decided to join the Air Force, best decision I ever made. I was close to my max weight at 128 and had to watch it. I left for basic training at 126.5 and left at 105 pounds. I could never maintain this weight and it slowly crept back up to 115 and I got married. My weight yo yo'd for the next seven years but being active duty I had to keep it under 135. I got out in 91 weighing 127 and wearing a size 9. Over the next few years the weight came back on and in 1995 I went to the doctor and wieghed 162, more than when I delivered my DD and knew I needed to do something about it. I came to the understanding that I will NEVER be able to eat at will and will always have to watch what I eat...a painful but enlightening discovery. I went low fat, low cal with a reward meal once a week. Started exercising and dropped 1 size in three weeks (Jun 95) and by that september was back in a size 10. I managed to maintain that weight until January of 98 when I quit smoking. By March I had gained 30 pounds! I started exercising because that always worked before and...nothing! Just kept gaining until I hit 175 the following January for a gain of 45 pounds in one year. I joined a WW support group and just couldn't seem to lose. By spring I started taking metabolife. At first it didn't work at all. I didn't lose anything. Then things started going really bad in my life , my first marriage fell apart and I lost about 20 pounds. The only sucessful weight loss I had was lowering my calories to 800-1000 which was not sustainable for any length of time. I met my DH in the summer of 2001 at 145 pounds and a size 12. He kept feeding me so my weight slowly creeped back to size 14. I joined a gym in Nov 01 and worked out faithfully and I also gave up metabolife. In the next 6 months I gained and was back to a size 16. Nothing seemed to work and by the time I got married in December I was back to 175 and wore a size 18 when I was married. I started Atkins in January 03 thinking it was the answer to my prayers. I struggled to lose even on Atkins. I initally lost 4 pounds after 3 weeks of induction and then lost nothing but was losing inches. By March I wasn't losing anything and decided to switch to PP. After some tweaking I finally started losing and by July was down to 153 and a size 12. Dropping calories helped me to lose. I gained 5 pounds between Oct - January mainly from my 'reward meals' getting out of hand. In January I cut out the rewards but didn't lose any of the weight I gained so in February I went back on very strict induction and lost the 5 pounds in about 3 weeks. I know that I will continue to struggle for the rest of my life to keep my weight down and that I always have to watch everything I eat. So see, I know your frustration

good morning,

i am sorry but i have to agree drugs are bad, no matter what kind.

that said, how is everybody this morning??

humm, retail therapy, don' t you need $$money$$ for that?? honestly i think i would enjoy shopping much more if i had the money to spen on whatever it was i am shopping for. and i hate window shopping!!

i tried the homeade snot for breakfast, one scoop vanilla protein powder, one scoop ground flax (3tbs each) one packet of splenda, splash of cinnamon, and 1/4 cup blueberries, pour boiling water over mixture, stir.....uummmmm. it was a little too much protein powdery for me, will need to try to find another bran or someting to add also.

spring is in the air...and unfortunately that also mean the grass is starting to grow, the weeds are comming up, the blackberry vines are creeping in to places they shouldn't ......but it is nice and sunny out!!!!

i rented a couple of movies to watch last night, i got about 5 min into the first one and fell asleep on the couch, so today is movie day!!!

have a great one!!!

Bawdy - thank you for the information. I did change my signature line.

Here's a list of what I ate yesterday -

1 egg
2 oz cream cheese
2 oz ham
1/4 cup pineapple

We ate out, so I don't know the weights
1 polish dog(without bun)
1/4 cup almonds
Wendy's chicken salad, with 2 Tablespoons Ranch Dressing

2 slices of bacon combined with chicken to equal 6 oz.
1/2 cup onion and mushrooms
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon cream

Today -

5 oz ham
1/2 cup cottage cheese

6 oz ground beef cooked in beef broth
1/2 cup mushrooms, red pepper and mushrooms sauted in 1 teaspoon butter
10 small pork rinds

AMEN.....I am trying to convince DH that I don't need or want this 36 h I have in front of me........are you glad you had surgery and how much did your Insurence pay?

Unity, if you're considering reduction surgery, don't let anyone stop you. At the time, my primary care physician wasn't in the "elite" program, so I had to pay around half (maybe $1800). A friend of mine at work had the same surgery, but with a doctor in the elite program and it didn't cost her anything but the original $20 copay. Check around. You might want to change your primary care physician. You can always switch back after the surgery.

And if DH doesn't like it. TOUGH! You're lugging those things around, not him. It is absolutely the very best thing I've ever done. EVER. Before the surgery, I wore a 36DDD, but it was woefully too small. I was probably a 36 I or J. I hid it well. When I went to my first consultation, he asked why I wanted the surgery because I didn't really look very big. Then I took off my top and bra. 'Nuff said.

Songberrie, your menu looks good at first glance, but you might need more protein and some veggies. How about a salad with dinner?

and I am only 5'2

Unity, call your insurance company and your doctor tomorrow. Ask for a referral. Talk to a surgeon. The consultation is free.

When you finally do this, you'll wonder why you didn't have it done years before.

I know probably a half dozen women who have had it done, and not one regrets her decision. Actually, a couple do regret they didn't go smaller! I went down to a full C cup because I was afraid of being flat. Now I weigh less than at my surgery, and yet I'm mostly a D cup. I do wish I had gone down to a B cup.

Keep me posted!