elainecroft Member

Plan and schedule so that you don't have to rely on willpower to make good choices. Put exercise in your schedule as one more 'appointment' for the day. Keep healthy food around as much as possible. Celebrate the good choices you do make - every time you eat an apple instead of chips, that is a victory! Every time you work…

For cheap and easy protein I think beans are a good way to go - you just have to get creative. Beans and peppers are easy, fast, and delicious. You can get canned beans and frozen peppers, rinse them off and put them in a sauce pan and cook for a while. Add salad dressing, olive oil, or any spices that you like. Peas also…

This can only be improved by adding MORE SWORDS!

Could be, although if you did 2 workouts that makes more sense that you would be close to 600.

How are you calculating exercise calories? 600 is a lot - depending on your weight, it is generally hard to get to that number from a video (even insanity), so you may be overestimating.

I also struggled with this, but have made it better by only cooking food that I can eat. So, if I can fit pancakes into my day, I will make them. If I can't, then they can make them themselves or eat whatever I am making. Also, we keep a huge stash of granola bars for just this issue.

When the conversation starts going in that direction, just END IT. If he starts being critical, just tell him "I am not going to have this conversation with you again. I am doing this for me." And then don't. And then believe it. You are doing it for you - if he is not supportive, don't give him fodder to be critical.

As someone who also has trouble losing, even with exercise/measuring/all of those things that people assume that you are not doing...I sympathize. Sometimes it is just hard. And it is even harder for people who have had positive experiences to not think that you are doing something wrong because you aren't doing what…

I eat cheese sticks (60-80 calories) or greek yogurt with fruti (or both) in the morning, because with anything else I get hungry before 10 AM. The combination of protein and dairy is key for me.

When I was a similar weight, the amount I had to eat to *maintain* was about 2200. I started eating at 1700 to lose. So starting around 2000 and working your way down from there is probably a good way to go - good luck!

Put it on your calendar, just like a meeting. Make it a date that you can't miss and start to think about it that way.

What do you do to workout? You say you burn 350 calories - how is this calculated? Can you up the intensity of your workouts, e.g. do interval training?

Yes educated people can be poor, but it often the combination of a lack of education and poverty that leads to poor eating habits. I know I could eat healthily for dirt cheap if I had to, but that's because I have had the resources to learn how to do so. If your struggle is with whether you have enough money to eat…

Mmm Founders. I just went up to Grand Rapids for work and got a few growlers on my way back home - so good!!!

I love good beer, particularly a tasty belgian or porter. I live close to Wisconsin, which as someone already mentioned has some great beers that you can't get out of state. Nothing like camping in the north woods with some darn good local beer. :)

So, at 7 pm the light switch turns off in your digestive system? What about daylight savings time?

I add black beans to almost every soup/salad that I eat. They are easily available at the cafeteria at lunch, so I take advantage!

You can't build muscle without eating X number of calories. The best is when it is combined with the phrase "you can only make the muscles you have stronger". So, in my mind I imagine your body sitting there saying "Haha workout all you want, you can't get stronger", and then you say "oh yeah?" and eat a piece of pie which…

I would do interval training - 45 min of high intensity intervals does wonders to your body.

Enjoy yourself, but just try to make good choices. For example, eat a ton of the raw/ grilled seafood, but not the fried. Drink light beer or wine instead of cocktails, or try to interspace cocktails with other drinks. The no-seconds idea is good too - I am going to steal that one!

No! That being, you probably shouldn't say "here are my fat clothes I thought you would want them!" Many of my best work clothes are from a friend who has much better shopping taste than I do, lost a ton of weight on MFP (and looks AWESOME!), and so let me go "shopping" in her closet. :) :)

Tea - 2 cups black or green in the morning Tea - herbal in the afternoon Seltzer water - I drink 2-4 cans a day. Highly recommend it for anyone trying to break the soda habit. It may take a few days to get used to because it is less sweet, but now I prefer it.

Guiness is about 130 calories. If you are a light beer drinker, some belgians/blonde ales are around that too. Just stay away from the IPAs. :)

I feel similar - I went into Title Nine (similar to Athlea in the outdoorsy - athletic clothes) yesterday, and wanted all of the clothes in the store!

cheese sticks, nuts, yogurt, carrots in 100 calorie guacamole packs

I get super grumpy unless I eat enough - I don't understand people who force themselves to eat as little as possible. My plan is to practice eating near to maintenance for the weight I want to be, because I want to be able to stay that weight when I get there. For me, this works out to about 1800 calories a day (before…

In your diary you have a ton of calories from sugar - sweet tea, etc. Try to add more protein to your diet - some days you are only getting 24 grams. Try to add in veggies as much as possible too.

You can use a ton of broccoli and other veggies instead of the rice. I do this all of the time because I love stir fry but don't like rice enough to eat the calories. And seriously, you can stir fry almost ANYTHING and it will be delicious. I've stir-fried in bbq sauce when I didn't have anything else and it was still…

I run 10-12 min miles. You can call it whatever you want and your boyfriend is being dumb.

I used to always be hungry during the day, but I really upped my protein and that helped. I eat 1 cup greek yogurt every day for breakfast, and snack on cheese sticks, PB2, and nuts throughout the day. Also, your cheat days may be worse than you think they are if you aren't logging. Log every day, even if it a bad day.