bsexton3 Member

I am a pastor and served a church in Scotland right out of school for a year. I would visit the older members of the church in the afternoons--all cakes and biscuits. I would come home for dinner and my wife would get mad that I was full on sweets. Needless to say, that year added a lot of weight. In simply keeping sweets…

Welcome to the site. I never introduced myself, just found some topics to chat on. Learned a lot simply by reading around. Hope you are finding the time to exercise. One thing I have learned, it is not a diet, it is a lifestyle. I don't want to be that guy that sat and watched TV all the time, not eating healthy. I kind of…

Good luck. I have changed my diet since finding this site in August. Once or twice a week is about it. Once in a while, I will have a BM two days in a row, but not very often. I saw the doctor, and he said not to worry about it. So, I don't. Figure one of these days, my body might adjust to new diet. Or maybe saving on TP…

I rode in three last year as organized rides, and a total of 3,300 miles thus far. I wrecked my knee in college, so running is out. Don't know if I will ride in an organized century in the new year. They are fund raisers, and a long drive. So, I will probably just plan my own.

3,500 calories equals one pound. If you eat 3,500 more calories, in a given time, than you burn, you will gain one pound. And if you eat 3,500 less, you will lose. That is if you don't shut down your metabolism. A slower metabolism will actually use less calories. From what I have read, learned, etc., you would need to be…

Take your question to MFP Cycling Club in message boards. Do a search for it. Don't know how to post the links. We have talked about bike purchasing in the past couple months, and always willing to again. In my humble opinion, the best advice is to find the right bike shop. You aren't buying a bike, you are buying a bike…

Hi Allison, I see the holidays as four or five days. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years Day and the big Christmas party. You might have more. I figure those four days will not kill me on the scales. It takes 3500 to gain a pound. That is on top of the 2300 I am allowed to eat in a day and not gain any weight. Even eating…

For less acidic coffee look into Coffee Toddy. It is a cold brew process that makes strong coffee with less acid, oils and caffeine. You can keep it in the fridge for 3 weeks. I mix it 3 to 1 with boiling water to make a great cup of coffee. Works great for iced coffees, etc. I always have it in the fridge for when I want…

I have been sitting with 20 pounds to go for a long while. It is time for me to get motivated to lose the rest as well. I am glad I lost what I did, now, to get to where I fully want.

Always check the labels. The store I went to had two greek style yogurts. One had twice the calories and added sugar. Always check the labels.

Welcome. Good luck on your journey. Try to keep at your calories. Don't abuse yourself when you go over. Just pick yourself up the next day and try to stay at your calories. After calories, add exercise. A lot are doing C25K (couch to 5 K) if really out of shape. Good luck

We bought the individual bags of chips. Then, when I really have the cravings, I know exactly how many calories I am eating. And, one bag is enough for the craving. Over time, my cravings have gone down. Maybe it is getting the salt down in all my diet.

It takes checking the labels. I picked up on "plain greek" yoghurt that had 240 calories for a cup. Another had 120. Our costco just added a new greek yoghurt at 120 with high protein, low calories and no cholesterol. It is called Fage. I have been eating Mountain High and it is good. I just got Nancy lowfat, and it has…

Keep up the good work. Congratulations.

I would cut out most the Weight Watchers things. They look like they have a lot of sodium in them. Also, I learned from this site it is not just losing weight, it is about changing my lifestyle. With that said, is this going to be your diet for the rest of your life? If not, you might lose weight, but when you get back to…

I ride my bike for 8 hours a couple times a year, just for the fun of it. Three things I have learned when cycling. One, eat about 200 calories every hour after the first hour. I usually eat things like bananas, other fruit or bagels. One other thing I eat is homemade energy bars by Ellie on foodnetwork.com. I have read a…

I have never done the Master Cleanse, but have read the booklet on it. I have two friends who do this every year for Lent (the 40 days before Easter). They have done it for over 5 years. It is more about realizing the blessings of food and cleaning the gunk out of their bodies. Neither of them need weight lose. Good luck.

Welcome. I have learned that losing weight is not a diet, it is a lifestyle. I no longer think about cutting out "bad" food, whether that is carbs or sweets. I do watch what I eat and count calories. That means I eat a lot less carbs and sweets. Sweets are to be a treat. One good link on here for newcomers is:…

I work out at home. The closest gym is 20 miles away. So, I have built my own gym over the past few years. I got a trainer for my bike, so I can ride all winter long. I got a treadmill a few years ago for my wife. Now, I am using it. This past summer, I got a bowflex through craigslist for the cost of a one year…

With kids and their friends in and out of the house, I can't put up things like that, but wish I could. Just know, that in our culture, you are a freak. :laugh: Last month, I was up visiting the in-laws. We went out for Sunday lunch after church. I asked the waitress to see a calorie menu. My father-in-law laughed and…

Do a web search on C25K. It is a start jogging program. Many here have used it. I personally have a bad knee so cannot start jogging until I take some more weight off. Good luck.

One last thing. A good cook is simply someone who was a bad cook once but kept trying. When someone makes something you like, ask them for the recipe. If it doesn't come out the same, ask them for ideas. Be free to laugh at yourself, throw something out and start over. Years ago, my wife made a curry dish with way too much…

Great ideas. To mix things up, we cook cous cous, rice medleys, etc. from Trader Joe's as side dishes. We recently won a Traeger (I know they are expensive), but they cook meat with a lot more flavor than a grill and just as quick. Another way to cook quick and cheap is to cook slow--meaning slow cooker or crock pot. We…

Found it interesting that when I put in my starting weight of MFP in August, my ideal weight was 200. My current weight has my ideal as 190. It continues to go down until I hit 175, then my ideal weight is actually heavier. I am 6'0". My BMI is 140-184. I don't know what is being used as a calculator, but I don't take it.…

Welcome to the club. I got there about two months ago. It sure feels great. First time not over 30 BMI in probably 15 years. Keep up the good job.

Had old fashioned oats with 1/2 as much pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice this morning. Never tried it before, and I really liked it. Will have again.

1200 is the lowest you should go exercise or not. Exercise calories are added to this. Below 1200 i starvation mode. Have you read the newbie articles that answer a number of questions?

I try to stay 100 on either side of my given MFP calories. I update my goals whenever I lose 5 pounds because it drops my calories by about 10 a day. When I exercise, I eat less than half my exercise calories. Lost 2 pounds a week for the first 8 weeks. Then 2 pounds over the next six weeks. Then nothing. This week it…

Check for other types of oatmeal or hot cereal out there. Living in the Northwest US, we have Bob's Red Mill. Can be ordered online. They have different grains. One is apple cinnamon. It is wonderful and healthy. Also, muesli is good. I eat it warm or cold. Usually in my yoghurt. When I have plain rolled oats, I like old…

Welcome. One of the big things I have learned here is that eating is not a diet, but a lifestyle. I am losing weight, though not as fast as I would like. I had stayed the same for three weeks, and now it is coming off again. Some on here tell you to eat strict like a diet. For me, that just doesn't work. I like a donut, a…