IvoryParchment Member

I used to worry a lot about this. But I just decided it was easier to wash an extra pot and a measuring cup instead of spending time estimating. Just scoop it into an empty pot using a 500 ml/2 cup measure (don't lose count!), then serve your portion.

Don't think of it as jumping in to something that is hard to do, and don't worry about failing to accomplish it. You aren't "on a diet." This is just the way you're going to try to live now. At first, you won't be very good at it. You will need practice, and you will need to establish new habits. Most people's diets are…

A lot of local supermarkets are affiliated with large chains that provide standard recipes for their prepared foods. You might be able to call their consumer hotline and be given information. What supermarket is it?

I'd pick a smaller goal if you're not feeling motivated. Go for 20 lbs and see how much better you feel. Get a backpack and fill it up with bottles of fluid equal to 8 liters. That's not quite 18 lbs. Wear it all day for several days. Then take it off and see how much difference it makes. That's how much better you will…

It helps to have some high protein foods on hand for days you're not up to your goal. Having some unflavored whey powder and fresh frozen fruit on hand is good for making quick, yummy smoothies. Whole Strawberries 3 cup (144g) (this is for fresh; adjust ice if using frozen) Whey Protein Isolate - Unflavored, 14.5 grams…

I'd return to the dietician who was so helpful before. ED is nothing to fool around with.

If you're going to stress over 0.2 lbs, don't eat ramen noodles. A block of ramen noodles with seasoning can be nearly 2000 mg sodium. (Not to mention the fact that the noodles are drenched in fat, too. You would probably enjoy other types of Asian noodles just as much. http://www.foodsubs.com/NoodlesAsianOther.html ) Not…

I would recommend the opposite of a lot of people. Weight yourself several times a day, especially at bedtime and again in the morning. Get an idea of how much weight fluctuation is completely normal. To put things in perspective, a Krispy Kreme glazed donut is 190 calories. To gain a pound, you need 3500 EXCESS calories.…

You're right that being short means you need fewer calories. But the 1200 calorie number came about because it is difficult to get the nutrients you need with fewer calories a day, not because you magically go into starvation mode below 1200 regardless of what your actual requirements are. Most of the daily nutrient…

All calories are the same, but not all people are. The calorie consumption equation assumes everyone keeps their thermostat at the same temperature, that two people of the same age are equally active, that two people of the same weight have the same relative amounts of muscle and fat, etc. It gets you in the neighborhood…

This ^ It is very difficult to measure calories accurately without using a scale. Also, make sure you have accurate data. Some of the calories in the database are just plain wrong, or have the same calories listed for multiple portion sizes. And always log food before you eat it, so you can judge how much you want. That…

I'm eating the Chobani, but my store only has a few flavors of the 0%. (I don't like the taste of fermented fat in regular yogurt.) Yoplait had enough to have variety.

No, the effect is real. Most of the calories you consume go to maintaining body temperature, not doing cardio. That's why warm blooded animals need to eat so much more than cold blooded ones. But the effect is small when you're talking about cold water in a shower where you aren't completely immersed and aren't doing any…

I'm the only one in my house who isn't vegetarian, so I eat very little meat. One thing I have noticed over the years is that I will eventually start having problems with wound healing. When that starts, the only thing that will get them to heal again is eating beef. Dairy products and poultry don't work. I don't know if…

I measure cooked pasta in grams rather than cups, so it's the same for any type of pasta. But the next problem is that it depends how you cook it. Al dente pasta would weigh less that the throw-it-on-the-wall-and-it's-ready-if-it-sticks spaghetti because it would not have absorbed as much water. I suppose that's why it's…

A breakfast place near me serves a quinoa porridge that is to die for, but I'm sure it's high calorie. Hot, buttery, topped with mixed berry compote. I haven't tried to create a low cal alternative yet.

It's worth keeping in touch with your doctor as you lose weight. Make sure you're not diabetic, for instance. Make sure you are still getting all the necessary nutrients. You should be urinating regularly and it should be pale in color if you're drinking enough fluids. I'm assuming you're not trying anything wacky to lose…

I don't have a lot of mirrors in my house, but I've heard that people who do find it motivating to pull down the shades and spend the day doing their housework in the nude, lol.

If he's looking at other women, it's their call to talk to the management. If he's looking at you, it's your call. If he were staring at me, I would call over, "Did you lose something?" And when he says, "No, why?" I would say, "You just seemed to be looking over here pretty intently for some reason. Never mind." My…

Some people drink diet sodas because they are always available in the same places that sell high fat, high cal foods. Every fast food restaurant sells diet drinks. If you "super size it," you automatically get a soft drink. So a lot of diet soda consumption will come just because it's easily available to the people who…

Get some dowel rods and roll it like the Egyptians moved stone blocks for their pyramids?

French bread is yeast, water, wheat flour, salt. And it's the Best. Bread. Ever.

If you crave weird things (or ice cold things), get checked for iron deficiency. As far as the bread addiction, you're going to have to "budget" bread into your diet. It's not reasonable to never eat it for the rest of your life. You have to decide in advance how much and how often. Then whenever you eat it, you know…

Your intestinal tract is a tube. There is no place in there for things to get stuck. Things go in one end and out the other. Each time you start thinking about eating, your bowel starts moving things along (that's why your tummy rumbles). You will tend to move your bowels best after a meal. But the bowel movement won't be…

Buying lunch instead of packing it, and just getting older.

I would suspect that if the ingredients don't say dairy, the statement about containing milk is just to avoid lawsuits from people with dairy allergies. They may process dairy products in the same factory, or they may not be able to be 100% certain none of their suppliers process dairy on their equipment. "Natural flavors"…

Makes sense. Though my experience is that if I continue to stay with the program and not panic and try to change things, eventually the weight loss begins again. But I'm measuring food very precisely with a food scale, so I'm not worried that I'm eating too much, and I have data to show I've already lost more than…

The "ladies" magazines are full of diets that promise to help you lose 10 lbs in two weeks and stuff like that. They print a new one about every month. Why? Because they aren't having any long term impact on their readership. The people following those diets keep gaining it back and never make long term progress. If you…

2600 calories is 2/3 lbs. If you're losing a pound a week, it has set you back 5 days. So use that information to decide how often you're willing to splurge like that. You're going to be eating this way the rest of your life, so there's time to catch up if the good days outnumber the bad days by a sufficient margin. What…

Drinking cold liquids is easier to calculate. To calculate the calorie consumption in a cold shower, you would have to know how much warmer the water going over your body became due to you standing in the shower vs. how much it would warm up if you weren't in the shower. But the cold liquid you drink will be completely…