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  #61   ^
Old Mon, Sep-10-12, 00:20
gonwtwindo's Avatar
gonwtwindo gonwtwindo is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 6,671
 
Plan: General Low Carb
Stats: 164/162.6/151 Female 5'3"
BF:Sure is
Progress: 11%
Location: SoCal
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Thank you for posting this, Demi. It's true - when I maintained my 60-lb weight loss for 5 years, I was exercising and lifting weights almost everyday and counting carbs. (under 40)

What got me was the last quote:

“The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are willing to do what the unsuccessful people are not.”
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  #62   ^
Old Mon, Sep-10-12, 06:56
Demi's Avatar
Demi Demi is offline
Posts: 26,664
 
Plan: Muscle Centric
Stats: 238/153/160 Female 5'10"
BF:
Progress: 109%
Location: UK
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gonwtwindo
What got me was the last quote:

“The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are willing to do what the unsuccessful people are not.”
Exactly!

Maintaining your goal weight is hard, and to be successful at it you really do need to be willing to work at it and do whatever it takes.

I work out six days a week, and that includes three weight training sessions. I watch my carbs, keep well away from grains and any processed junk food, and practice mindful eating. I keep an open mind, and am also open to change if I feel that it is something that will work well for me. I work hard at maintenance because I feel the result is most definitely worth it.
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  #63   ^
Old Mon, Sep-10-12, 07:56
Plinge Plinge is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,136
 
Plan: No factory-processed food
Stats: 230/147/147 Male 5' 10"
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: UK
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gonwtwindo
Thank you for posting this, Demi. It's true - when I maintained my 60-lb weight loss for 5 years, I was exercising and lifting weights almost everyday and counting carbs. (under 40)

What got me was the last quote:

“The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are willing to do what the unsuccessful people are not.”


I think of myself as an unsuccessful person, because experience shows that, sooner or later, I fail at everything. So I am slightly surprised--and still very fingers-crossed--that I have now maintained my weight loss since January, and without difficulty.

I don't give much credit to my strength of will or personality. I think my total change of diet changed my psycho-physical relation to food. The key was giving up processed food. That single move seems to have enabled me to eat normally, with almost no visitations of cravings or urges to binge. Happily, I have developed a disapproval of processed food so great that I simply do not want to eat it. The presence of such food in the house doesn't even slightly tempt me to touch it.

I never imagined this could happen. Instead of maintainance turning out to be the unsustainable ordeal I feared, so far it seems almost to be taking care of itself.
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  #64   ^
Old Fri, Oct-26-12, 12:41
Whofan's Avatar
Whofan Whofan is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,550
 
Plan: Low Carb Primal
Stats: 170/135/135 Female 5ft.6in.
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: New York Metro area
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“The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are willing to do what the unsuccessful people are not.”

I came across this thread today and the quote above, just when I finally lost patience with someone who is always "trying" to lose weight. She ate clean low carb for 2 weeks, no grains or sugars at all, lost 8lbs, and reported that some of her joint pain had gone away. Then she spent the next 2 weeks telling me how she thinks she needs to eat grains again (a) for fiber (b) because she's scared of getting constipation (c) because she has a headache (d) because her blood pressure was temporarily a little high (e) because someone "insinuated" that she might have hypoglycemia. I answered every one of her questions and provided articles and links to more information about each issue, doing all the research and googling for her - she didn't have time to do it for herself (red flag right there!). I won't even mention how many reasons she has for never exercising, not even a simple 5 minute walk around the block!

Finally, I had a light bulb moment: she wants to eat carbs and she doesn't want to exercise. Duh! When she came up with her latest complaint disguised in the form of a question, I just said "Sounds like you're looking for excuses, if you want sugar and starch go ahead and eat them, it's your body; at least now you can make informed decisions about what you choose to eat, and it's great that you were open to trying low carb for 2 weeks".

As a successful maintainer (only one year so far, but still...) I think the quote in bold is very apt.
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  #65   ^
Old Sat, Oct-27-12, 00:22
Brinethery's Avatar
Brinethery Brinethery is offline
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Posts: 1,387
 
Plan: 160g animal protein/day
Stats: 185/167/165 Female 5'10
BF:35
Progress: 90%
Location: Algona, WA, US
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hutchinson

Does anyone really think that wild animals living on their natural diets, in their natural environments have to count calories in, fat content or plan their meals?
Neither do we, if we understand the basics of what a low carb paleo style diet is all about.


I think you have a point... to a degree. Now bear in mind that I'm not trying to say that we're all "victims" to our food environment, but let me just say this. Animals out in the wild have never had access to white flour. Sure, maybe sugar cane in tropical climates and fruit. Just like our ancestors, animals today do not have the access to the high-carb junk food we have today. It's everywhere, it's ready, and it's highly accessible.

With that being said, I do agree that we can retrain our system/appetite such that the cravings aren't as strong. But unless we're super-strict with taking the right vitamins, eating the right macros, doing the right kind of wellness therapy (be that yoga, aerobic, or weight-bearing exercise), we are susceptible to cravings. I know this firsthand because I have a period every month and my craving for chocolate is INTENSE. And I'm not perfect with taking my magnesium (which is probably why I crave chocolate in the first place).

Anyway, for those of us that are human and tend to have slip-ups due to craving and stress, we need to have some sort of structure. Not like food weighing or methodical calorie-counting... but perhaps "taking inventory" on our habits once a week or once a month along with weighing. Just something that keeps us from going off the deep end.
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  #66   ^
Old Sat, Oct-27-12, 00:33
Brinethery's Avatar
Brinethery Brinethery is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,387
 
Plan: 160g animal protein/day
Stats: 185/167/165 Female 5'10
BF:35
Progress: 90%
Location: Algona, WA, US
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Whofan
“The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are willing to do what the unsuccessful people are not.”


I just failed a physics quiz, so that is very relevant to me especially right now.
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  #67   ^
Old Sat, Oct-27-12, 06:30
Whofan's Avatar
Whofan Whofan is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,550
 
Plan: Low Carb Primal
Stats: 170/135/135 Female 5ft.6in.
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: New York Metro area
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Sorry to hear you failed the test, Brigitta, but you're an extremely bright student and honest enough to know what went wrong this time, so if you want to pass it next time I'd bet money that you will.

I've failed at many things in my life and, looking back, I can only admit it was because I wasn't willing to do everything that was needed to succeed. Any successes I have had were because I wanted them enough to give them my all. That, and a bit of luck sometimes.
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  #68   ^
Old Sat, Oct-27-12, 07:03
WereBear's Avatar
WereBear WereBear is offline
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Posts: 14,605
 
Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
BF:
Progress: 136%
Location: USA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brinethery
I just failed a physics quiz, so that is very relevant to me especially right now.


For complicated stuff like that, I got a pad of those GIANT post it notes, like for presentations? And a bunch of markers, so I color-coded and drew little pictures and even made up songs about the different processes and equations.

Then I plastered my home with them. So every time I went to bed I went over them, every time I went to the bathroom I could go over something, every time I waited for the microwave I could refresh my memory.

By the time the final came, I ACED that sucker!

----------------------------------

Quote:
Originally Posted by Whofan
“The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are willing to do what the unsuccessful people are not.”


I have to totally agree.

What your friend has to do is give up the crap; and she can't see that. She doesn't believe that the future will be better than what she has right now.

As a peer counselor, I see it all the time. We have to open our hand to grasp something new. And then, for a bit, our hand is empty.

Many people cannot take the empty hand.
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  #69   ^
Old Sun, Oct-28-12, 12:35
Brinethery's Avatar
Brinethery Brinethery is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,387
 
Plan: 160g animal protein/day
Stats: 185/167/165 Female 5'10
BF:35
Progress: 90%
Location: Algona, WA, US
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WereBear
For complicated stuff like that, I got a pad of those GIANT post it notes, like for presentations? And a bunch of markers, so I color-coded and drew little pictures and even made up songs about the different processes and equations.

Then I plastered my home with them. So every time I went to bed I went over them, every time I went to the bathroom I could go over something, every time I waited for the microwave I could refresh my memory.

By the time the final came, I ACED that sucker!



Thanks :-). The problem isn't just with physics but with mechanics of materials. In MoM, the problems aren't hard but just tricky. You have to be visual and get your rotational forces (otherwise known as moments or torque) right otherwise you end up getting the problem wrong. I guess you could say it's "visually tricky." I keep looking in the solutions manual and asking... why did they make this a negative torque, or why was this positive?! So you beat your head against the wall over little stuff.

For physics, it's not so much about memory. In our class, we were given easier homework problems and then more difficult quizzes. I just felt so unprepared. The midterm is the week after next so I have no clue how THAT's gonna go! I found a pdf copy of Schaum's outline of college physics online and I also found a instructor solutions manual for an excellent physics textbook (Physics 4th ed by James S. Walker) and plan to look over how the harder problems were solved so at least I have some clue of what to do when I go in to the test.

Let's just say that I felt a lot more comfortable in organic chemistry even though your hand would get sore from the 20 pages of homework you'd have to write up and the crazy amount of memorization. I took that class a while ago because I was pre-pharmacy, but then realized it was not the field for me. I couldn't imagine standing 8 hrs a day in a white room with shelves of pill bottles, illegal Mexicans coming in to get free drugs for their kids (the kids didn't do anything wrong, I just get angry with the people who don't pay into the system and plan on everyone else paying for their kids), and NOW after going low carb, people coming in to get drugs to treat the "diseases of civilization" like type II, heart disease, hbp, etc. At this point, it would infuriate me to have to deal with these people on a daily basis who clearly want a quick fix for their medical conditions.

I am sorry I went OT, just had a lot on my mind.
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  #70   ^
Old Sun, Oct-28-12, 12:41
Brinethery's Avatar
Brinethery Brinethery is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,387
 
Plan: 160g animal protein/day
Stats: 185/167/165 Female 5'10
BF:35
Progress: 90%
Location: Algona, WA, US
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Whofan
Sorry to hear you failed the test, Brigitta, but you're an extremely bright student and honest enough to know what went wrong this time, so if you want to pass it next time I'd bet money that you will.

I've failed at many things in my life and, looking back, I can only admit it was because I wasn't willing to do everything that was needed to succeed. Any successes I have had were because I wanted them enough to give them my all. That, and a bit of luck sometimes.



Yeah, but I really hope I don't fail this class. I had to retake linear algebra last year and I'm hoping I don't have to retake another class (at least for a while lol). But I get what you're saying. Nothing worth getting ever comes easy.
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  #71   ^
Old Sun, Oct-28-12, 14:58
Whofan's Avatar
Whofan Whofan is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,550
 
Plan: Low Carb Primal
Stats: 170/135/135 Female 5ft.6in.
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: New York Metro area
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brinethery
Nothing worth getting ever comes easy.


You said it! You're decades younger than me and I only learned this truth comparatively recently. Retaking classes SUCKS. I went to college (not back to college) when I was 39. The first year of required courses were repeats of what I had learned in my last year of high school in England 23 years earlier. So that was a bit frustrating because I was in a hurry. The other classes were difficult and challenged me more than anything I'd ever experienced before academically. But I wanted to get a degree, get out of there, and get hired in my chosen field (mid-life change of profession) so badly I could taste it! There was one thing I had to pass in order to graduate. I took it at the beginning, failed. Again the following year, failed. Again at the end, passed!

Keeping my eye on the prize made it non-negotiable to knuckle down and do whatever I had to do to succeed. The surprising bonus was that the entire four years were actually fun - but that was mostly because my fellow students were so accepting and supportive even though I was so much older than them. Some of them are still my friends 20 years later! One calls me every year on my birthday!

From your posts here on the forum, I don't doubt you'll achieve everything you want to achieve, Brigitta. Keep your eyes on the prize.
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  #72   ^
Old Sat, Dec-22-12, 19:13
Judynyc's Avatar
Judynyc Judynyc is offline
Attitude is a Choice
Posts: 30,111
 
Plan: No sugar, flour, wheat
Stats: 228.4/209.0/170 Female 5'6"
BF:stl/too/mch
Progress: 33%
Location: NYC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Demi
Quote:
The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are willing to do what the unsuccessful people are not.”


Exactly!

Maintaining your goal weight is hard, and to be successful at it you really do need to be willing to work at it and do whatever it takes.

I work out six days a week, and that includes three weight training sessions. I watch my carbs, keep well away from grains and any processed junk food, and practice mindful eating. I keep an open mind, and am also open to change if I feel that it is something that will work well for me. I work hard at maintenance because I feel the result is most definitely worth it.


I'm bumping this thread up again because it is right on target for where I am today. Last week, 12/18 was my 7th year since hitting my goal weight and not going back over it since then, not once!
Boasting much? yup!

I am not an anomaly of long term weight loss maintenance. Yes, the stats say that I am .....but I am not.
95% fail rate of dieters in keeping it off? No, I don't accept that because I've been there and been one of those failures, several times, at least.
The difference for me this time was that I decided to get my head out of the sand and face my reality ...stopped living in denial about it and get on the scale at least 3 times a week.
As I lost my weight, I learned many things...no processed foods, learned how to cook, no bars or shakes....I learned how much starch and fruit I can eat a day. I did not stay at Induction level of carbs during my 20 months of weight loss. I used the carb ladder and followed phase II of SBD...but greatly limited the whole grains stuff and now avoid wheat although I am not gluten free.

I've got more to say on this but if you are reading here, I highly suggest that you read this thread from the start.
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  #73   ^
Old Sun, Dec-23-12, 14:13
Whofan's Avatar
Whofan Whofan is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,550
 
Plan: Low Carb Primal
Stats: 170/135/135 Female 5ft.6in.
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: New York Metro area
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Good bump, Judy. I've found that maintenance is really, truly, hard. There's no magic moment when you can start eating sugar and starch again and your body won't notice. Seven years - you are an inspiration!
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  #74   ^
Old Sun, Dec-23-12, 14:31
Judynyc's Avatar
Judynyc Judynyc is offline
Attitude is a Choice
Posts: 30,111
 
Plan: No sugar, flour, wheat
Stats: 228.4/209.0/170 Female 5'6"
BF:stl/too/mch
Progress: 33%
Location: NYC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Whofan
Good bump, Judy. I've found that maintenance is really, truly, hard. There's no magic moment when you can start eating sugar and starch again and your body won't notice. Seven years - you are an inspiration!

Exactly. There is no moment nor will there ever be one.

Do I eat an off plan food once in a while? You bet I do! I am not perfect and am human. But what I still do is make allowances for that off plan food and don't allow one crappy choice to derail me from my eating plan in general.
Getting on the scale regularly helps me to keep my head in reality and not in denial as it so easy to go there.


Thank you!
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  #75   ^
Old Wed, Jan-09-13, 03:54
corsair915's Avatar
corsair915 corsair915 is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 139
 
Plan: Protein Power
Stats: 156/118/120 Female 65 inches
BF:36%/22%/18%
Progress: 106%
Location: Seattle, WA
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Gosh this thread is great! I just jumped back into the forum because I missed all the great folks, and because I really need more advanced information relative to intensive exercise training and proper dietary cycling (I have a 3 hour prize fight in Feb). I admit I drifted away because I was in maintenance and felt a bit irrelevant. I never noticed this part of the forum in the past and certainly would love to join the other "old farts" who are hanging tough and showing that commitment=success.
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