BusyRaeNOTBusty Member

Get down to 160 and see how you feel. You might like it. There's no reason to second guess at this point.

I think logically you know the answer. You should gain weight. But there appears to be a little illogical part of your brain that is making you doubt yourself. You just have to work on ignoring it. The more you ignore it the easier it will be to ignore.

No. You should not eat less than 1200 calories.

Applebee's Fiesta Lime Chicken. It was essentially rice and grilled chicken. I knew it was restaurant food, and the chicken had cheese on it but surely it couldn't be that bad. 1140 calories.

My method is just to not have any friends.

If you are storing fat on your shoulders, then yes, they'll get smaller. But some of use do just have bigger, boarder shoulders and they aren't bad. It's just how we are. No reason getting upset about it. But I know when I'm at a healthy weight my shoulders make my waist look smaller. And who knows, the 80's styles are…

You already have some muscle. When we lose weight, we lose both fat and muscle. Lifting while trying to lose weight helps limit the loss of muscle and maximize fat loss which will lead to better results in the end (both for your health and your appearance).

Sadly I've had to cut the super yummy sugary drinks except for special occasions. It's very hard to make them fit into my calorie goals. I usually stick to light beer, red wine, or mixed drinks with diet soda.

Just lift weights. Don't worry about what being "too muscular" at this point. I'd recommend the book New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women. The lifting program gets a little convoluted after the first phase but the text of the book contains solid information and helps settle a lot of the concerns women have about lifting.

What about replacing your cream with half & half or milk?

Get down to 174 and then decide if you want to keep going or not.

I put 1/4 cup of skim milk in my coffee. That'd only be about 100 calories for 5 cups, right?

What is your lifting routine? 5 days of lifting is a LOT for a beginner. You should be sure not to hit the same muscles two days in a row. You'd probably be better off doing 3-days of full-body lifting Mon, Wed, Fri.

Yup. That's what I was going to ask. You could probably eat more, still lose weight at a reasonable pace and not have all these other issues.

Yup, adherence (sticking with it for the long term) is more important than speed of loss.

<- See profile picture.

2300 to 2500 not including exercise calories. I am 5'9", 157lbs and 37 years old.

I am 5'9" and am very "pear shape". I do not carry much fat in my midsection and have large hips, large shoulders and rib cage but a very small natural waist (a few inches above my belly button). I haven't measured in a long time but last time I did my natural waist was 29" and my hips were 41". Of course this is not where…

I have a history of hypertension and just really started watching it a few weeks ago. I think as long as your healthy I wouldn't worry about it too much. It's very hard to avoid. Basically you can't eat out anywhere and can't eat pre-packaged food. Things like sandwich meat, sausage are horrible. Chips, salsa, ketchup, not…

And who gave you this idea? Magazines? Model statistics?

And how old were you when you were 130? Are you sure this protruding stomach wasn't due to your internal organs sticking out of a skinny body? I am 5'9" and my goal is 150lbs. I am larger framed (big shoulders, hips, head, etc).

I feel like I think about food way too much. I'm always planning for and thinking about the next meal or snack. That being said I've never had a serious weight problem. But I just can't fathom people who plan things without including food. My husband's family planned a funeral that ran from 10am with a "luncheon" at 4pm.…

Sounds like you've developed an unhealthy relationship with food. You started dieting to fit into a dress that was ordered wrong. While this isn't a great reason, you've already reached your goal. Why are you continuing to diet? You have "guilt" over your food choices, you have trouble controlling your weight loss and you…

AH! Well than I direct my comments at the gal who bumped the post up. Chances are, she too is suffering for an unrealistic desire for perfection.

This is good too: http://www.precisionnutrition.com/metabolic-damage

Judging by the pictures in your profile, I'd guess it's a combination of body dis-morphia and just expecting/wanting to be "perfect". No one is perfect. Even the models in magazines don't look like that in real life. All of us are going to have little "imperfections", small fat stores, "flaws", etc that are perfectly…

I dislike anything but skim. But I definitely understand the effects on satiety that fat has. I find it keeps me more satisfied even than protein.

I've been trying to aim for low to moderate salt levels, and higher potassium for a few weeks. I've also cut back on drinking, caffiene and started taking Q10, and drinking match green tea.

This part isn't true. Look up the Twinkie diet. Eating "healthier" foods often makes it easier to come in under your calories though. If he doesn't take you up on your offer to make lunches or ask for additional help, let it go.

Regular coffee, 1/4 cup skim milk, Splenda. Less than 50 calories.