scolaris Member

It comes down to genetics. Just keep losing. And lifting helps a lot. Seeing muscle ripple through those arms as you move goes a long way toward defining them. But Hilary Duff is never going to have Megan Fox's upper arms, even with all the money & training in the world. Be grateful for your health!

9 days is nothing. Make a plan & commit to 6-9 weeks before you evaluate making changes.

Metabolisms don't break easily. Stop all the claptrap and eat at a consistent modest deficit.

Youve got 'three weeks' on the brain. Lose that mentality and stick with eating in a deficit. It's not going to be quick & catchy.

Have you made a whole scale change of diet? Eating more 'wholesome' foods eg, more fresh vegetables, more whole grains, etc can impact satiety because of increased food volume & fiber. If this is the case, you'll adjust in a few weeks. This comes up a lot on these boards, and obviously if you're here to lose weight eating…

I have a lot of workout wear from Costco. Good quality.

Stop the 'all or nothing' thinking Some days will be better than others. No quitting.

For me the logging helps me be more circumspect in my eating after I've gone over, and that helps balance things out... I encourage diet breaks all the time on these boards. They are a great pressure reliever & mood enhancer. But you've got to take them under these terms: First, weigh every day... Second, log every day...…

I would explore hypnotherapy if I were you. The life you are describing would make me sad. Veggies have amazing health benefits & are a great source of eating pleasure. Plus you have to constantly self identify as picky whenever veggies are served in social settings, which would cause me a great deal of anxiety.

Wallaby organic whole milk plain or vanilla Greek yogurts. I keep both on hand at all times. Love their culture!

Also: food is NOT the devil. All or nothing thinking is a much bigger devil in my opinion!

Whenever I've felt what you describe, kind of an all over oppositional sentiment, welling up inside I've taken a break and gone to maintenance calories and eased up my workout routines. I've also played around with deficits at different points. I always do two things, however: I always weigh myself everyday unless I'm…

Yep,that was it for me too. Once you've 'seen' the whole notion of energy balance you can't un-see it. LOL

@middlehaitch I give you permission to brag a little. Your story is worth it!

Yes, I have a bikini arsenal too, but in recent years I've been mixing & matching tankini tops in. Right now I've got lots of 'm' or landsend 8 bottoms, and a few size 10 tops. It's all gotten really roomy. Yay! I'm going to Kuaui in August. May get something new then. Ideally I would be really near my 150 lb, but that's…

Oh noes! The mean people of MFP are at it again! Keeping some poor lady & her unsung hero of a liver from parting with their cash. How do we live with ourselves? We're monsters! LOL Keep up the good work...

I've gone on three 'vacations' since I started MFP... One was a traditional one, a week in DC; the second just flying out to meet my husband as he moved back home from a work assignment so a very rushed road trip really; the third was a week in the snow at our family cabin. I lost a little weight on the first one and…

FYI There are 52 weeks in my years...

I think water is any body's best bet. But once enough water has been had, i don't see any harm in a tea or diet soda in moderation. My current favorite is Professor Fizz from Whole Foods. Very refreshing!

Walking will contribute to your deficit. I walk 100k steps a week most weeks. I get about half those steps with an active job (substitute teacher) and half taking purposeful walks or hikes. Most of your weight loss will need to come from the energy balance side of eating less than you burn. But walking can be a wonderful &…

I've only tried white chocolate raspberry... blech!

I even thought my Fitbit HR was a tad high. I told it I was two inches shorter than my actual height & am happy with the results. I have mine set to sedentary & take calories from steps; I don't add in free weight training or yoga save for the few steps they might generate. I agree both your logging could be buttoned down…

It's just water weight or hormonal driven. You really need to chill here. At your current size I would imagine you could vary 3-5 lbs easily. Try weighing more often & use an app like happy scale to track the trend.

I would modify the recipe. Enchiladas don't have to be so rich!

I personally believe diet breaks are a good thing if they are maintenance focused, meaning you still log, you still work out. You need to pace yourself to get this finished. Congrats on coming so far!

I do the theme rotation too: Hispanic food Mondays, usually Mexican or Cuban; diner or 'blue plate special' comfort foods on Tuesdays; world cuisine Wednesdays like Arabic, Thai, etc.; Italian on Thursdays; fresh fish on Fridays; a grilled cut of meat Saturdays; some sort of chicken dinner on Sundays. I work two jobs & for…

I haven't, but I want to encourage you... First, you did this once before. You can do this again! Second, you've weathered some big big life changes, both good & not so good. Don't waste time beating yourself up now. Just go forward... It sounds like you have a lot of resources available. But they don't make a difference…

Yes, I take days off but not always the same day of the week. And I still log everything so I can classify them in my head. Some are maintenance days which look like I went over but actually just wiped out my normal deficit and then there are really over days. Like yesterday :# I try not to have too many of those but they…

Recently I've been stocking up on toiletries at Target. They run things like deodorant and shampoo on sale, and then offer a $5 target gift card if you buy four. The best part is you can spend the gift card on whatever you want! LOL

I get the very best prices on food storage items at the restaurant supply outlet Cash & Carry. And it's not even a membership type place. But we don't get coupon doubling anywhere in this market. That could be a game changer.