I'm no longer getting an e-mail when there are new posts here. I checked and I'm still signed up for them. Ah well, the vagaries of computers!

I like bone broth also. It tastes richer than broth (unless it's my homemade). I like Sam's Club rotisserie chicken and keep the bones in the freezer. When I get 4 or 5 carcasses, I throw them in the Instant Pot with water, celery, and onion and slow cook all day. Best stock ever!

Carol - I agree with you about fair food. I go to the fair once a year. I will choose one or two items to eat that are out right treats. I like funnel cakes and if I'm with a friend will share one. I also enjoy fajitas and tacos. As long as I don't allow it to trigger me into eating off-plan I figure I'm fine. Several years ago when I was super strict, I went to the fair and didn't eat anything. I was so virtuous! Then I just couldn't get the funnel cake out of my mind. I ended up making one, but you can't just make one, so I ate two funnel cakes in the same day. Learned my lesson with that one -- share one at the fair and get that itch scratched.

I'm down another pound but am not claiming it until Monday as I have a pot luck to go to Sunday evening. I'll probably have a rebound Monday, so will weigh again on Tuesday.

I'm taking a break from the soup and am eating moderate carb low fat. I don't usually bother about fat, but had been hitting the cheese pretty hard until last week, so I've curtailed it.

JL, here's my take on fair food. If I'm going somewhere like that, I eat appropriately the day before and the morning of, and then don't make a big deal about what I eat at the fair. I rarely eat "sweets" or "junk food" so I just make the best choice I can of the fair food. I know people who take their own food to a gathering so they don't have to go off plan, and I think that's being obsessive.

Um, that would be me! I knew from one of the other people I went with that there would be roasted-on-a-spit chicken, but I'd been eating chicken for two days previous so that didn't appeal. I did ok though; had some very lightly breaded fish that was quite tasty. I went back to the car to drink the choc protein shake I'd brought with me too as I've been emphasizing protein lately. It really helps me not get hungry or have the feeling "I want something, what do I want?" too soon after I've just eaten.

My friends (fellow members of my weight loss group) had sweet treats, including about the biggest ice cream cones I ever saw, but I wasn't tempted by that any more than I usually am. I am a total sugar addict. I've proven it to myself for decades, over and over, that I can't have just something once in a while. If I had had ice cream, I would have gone home and had another quart. And so on, day after day. I quit sugar when I was diagnosed diabetic and am at peace with it. It feels like freedom actually. (I'm not a total purist; I have a small amounts from time to time in tomato sauce, canned baked beans or whatever, and it doesn't seem to start the craving.)

I had been really struggling to get back on track for months of regaining weight - sometimes 5 pounds a week! - when my mother was dying and I still feel a little precarious, though I am feeling on firmer ground all the time. Anyway, it was worth it - I lost 4 and a half pounds last week! (Well, I think some of that was the vagaries of the scale, but I definitely did lose. )

I've lost a few lbs this past week, getting stricter on my food plan. I'm back down to what my stats have said already, and hoping to see the 180s soon.

I am doing something different. I'm working on changing a few bad habits that contribute to my weight problem. 1) I'm trying to eat only when hungry, not when others are eating, or just because something comes into my line of vision. 2) I'm trying to leave something, even one little morsel, on my plate at each meal, telling myself that I don't have to eat everything just because it's on my plate. I realize that some things don't really taste that good, so why am I finishing them? I'm not doing 100% of these changes, but when I remember to do them, it makes me feel good that I'm changing things. When and how much I eat have a much bigger effect that what I eat.

This morning we went out to breakfast. I got scrambled eggs and turkey sausage, with a bagel. This restaurant has the best bagels. They are big, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. I did not eat the bagel, but brought it home and froze it for a day when I'm doing really well, and have a craving for a bagel treat. I can eat half of it at a time. I could have just said "No bread" but it came with the cost of the meal and I was paying for it. There will be a time when I really want it and it will be nice for it to be there without buying a whole package of bagels that will just tempt me.

Good for you, Carol. I've been a bit under the weather with a broken tooth this week and finally got it pulled yesterday. I've lost 4# in the past week due to not wanting to eat much. So I am down go my mini goal of 150 and hope I can stay there -- or better yet lose even more.

I have tried to eat only when hungry but don't last long as I'm naturally a snacker, especially in the evenings. My mother used to call it being peckish -- eating when not really hungry but wanting something. I no longer eat supper since I know I'm going to snack afterwards, so why not skip that meal. I'm almost 70 and decided there's no way I can break the clean plate habit. So kudos to you for leaving a little bit on the plate.

I've been more mindful this week of getting in protein since my eating has not been regular. I found a protein water at Sam's Club that I like much more than regular protein shakes. Protein2O. It has 15 grams of protein and 1 gram of carb and isn't as sweet tasting as other protein drinks I've tried.

I've been doing ok too. I've lost about 25 lbs now. Paying attention to having extra protein - whether I want it or not - has been helping me feel full (along with added fiber). I don't eat in the morning but drink tea with lemon instead. This feels better to me than when I was trying to eat something in the morning. This way too, I have an 8 hr eating window.

Carol, I think you're right about habits. Everybody says that's the key. I'm trying to be mindful that whatever I do to lose weight is what I will have to continue doing - only eating even less as I lose, as my BMR will drop.

I haven't posted here in ages, but I have to tell you what I discovered recently. I've been more focused on dieting for health reasons (stupid trigeminal neuropathy) rather than losing weight, and plateaued around 140 lbs for quite a while. I've been eating a diet that I would describe as Primal, not terribly low carb.

Recently I tightened up my diet, dropped all grains except for white rice completely. I also dropped almost all dairy--I only use butter and a bit of cheese that is goat or sheep (A-2 casein if anyone is curious). I even dropped the small amount of HWC in my coffee and switched to butter, a la "bulletproof" coffee.

But the pounds just seemed to melt off! I was thinking I must have lost some weight and I was down to 132 lbs and dropping! Currently about 130 lbs and not sure where I want to end up at. I swear just dropping the HWC made a difference, dairy is insulinogenic.

I don't particularly count carbs, I eat a fair amount of fruit, and I certainly don't count calories. I have no problem eating a huge fatty grass-fed rib-eye steak. and lots of butter. I do skip breakfast a couple of times a week and am very active.

Unfortunately the neuropathy seems unmoved, but I'm amazed at how effective these changes were for weight loss.

That's some awesome losses, Kitty! I've been wondering if the dairy was slowing me (I get almost all my protein that way since I don't like much meat). I'll have to look into that.

Hello! I found this thread today and felt like I found my people! I too am trying to find my sweet spot with carbs. Is anyone interested in a check-in where we could discuss our progress and thoughts on the journey?

Hi Alene

I would be happy to chat to you about this woe anytime.

Welcome to the board

Hi, Alene. I think I know you from LCN. I post here occasionally but seem to forget about it. Glad to see you here.

Hi Kitty. I'm sorry to hear you are dealing with the neurapathy. I've never heard of this and had to google to understand it. I hope you can find something to give you relief.

I'm impressed with the weight loss that seemingly came from limiting dairy. I do eat some butter and cheese. I may have to rethink that.

I am still working on changing my bad eating habits. It's not as easy as saying I'm not going to do it. I fall back into it so easily and have to be very aware of what I'm doing. I can usually leave at least a bite of food on my plate. I'm still having trouble eating only when hungry. Food is too available and I seem to just pop things in my mouth because they are there. I did notice that food tastes so much better if I'm hungry, but I'm amazed at how infrequent I get that true feeling of hunger. It's more appetite than hunger. We just don't realize how lucky we are in this country that there is so much food available.

I remember after I had surgery the surgeon told me to chew my food thoroughly. That's another good habit to develop. He told me that because it makes the food easier to digest, plus it makes you feel full sooner and you automatically eat less. I know it works, but too often I'm thinking of the next bite instead of taking my time and chewing thoroughly.

I was reading a book about resetting my metabolism. It says to go back to 3 meals a day of healthy food and include a carb at each meal. I do not see this as a carb fest. I have been eating 2 meals a day so the 3rd meal will be small, more of a snack. Everything I read says I should be eating 1800 calories a day. If I did that I would blow up like a parade balloon! So I think all these years of dieting has really killed my metabolism. I will say, first sign of an uptick and it's all over!!

I think this: "I will say, first sign of an uptick and it's all over!!"

Feeds into this:

"So I think all these years of dieting has really killed my metabolism."

and can create a pernicious loop. I wonder how there's a way out of that.

sorry it's not a semi-low carb thing but you point out a very interesting situation that many people seem to be in. I wish you the best working it out!

How are you all doing? Is semi low carb working for you?

I seem to do better on semi low carb, particularly when I need to find a lifetime way of eating that is sustainable. I just wimp out at the thought of never eating bread, potatoes etc. Those things I can control, not so with sweets, cake etc. Constantly trying to find what gives me mental satisfaction, whilst eating sensibly and in a manner that leads to weight loss.