jessicawrites Member

My big weight-loss win wasn't with the help of any external plan or diet. Senior year my best friend and I decided to work out together to lose college weight for graduation. We motivated each other to hit the gym 5 times a week for 30 minutes, and I pledged to eat a big salad for lunch 3 times a week and give up…

What are you washing your face with? It took me a little experimentation, because some face washes overdry/irritate my face, but washing just with water wasn't quite working, either. Now I use a gentle cleanser after workouts and don't worry about getting a scrub before.

yoga!

Depends on the week! AM workouts are my ideal because I love the rush of productivity in the morning and the free evening to relax. Once I factor in life, though, whenever I get to the gym feels like a success. A PM workout is just as good for me.

My mom makes a delicious salad with spinach, sliced strawberries, crushed pecans or walnuts, and a little bit of raspberry vinaigrette. Such a good spring/summer dish.

Shrimp is low-cal, and melon balls or pear slices wrapped in a little bit of prosciutto are good too.

Check out the library as well for healthy-eating cookbooks.

This is a tiny bit more advanced, but intervals have been very helpful for me in building cardiovascular strength. You can customize them for any level--just alternate between a few minutes of moving at a moderate pace and a short burst (as in, 10 or 20 seconds) moving hard.

I check so I don't end up eating two or three times as many calories as I want to be. I wouldn't share it with the server, though. In most chain restaurants not even the cooks have much say in how the food is prepared, so I don't see the point of embarrassing a server who can't affect how the restaurant is run.

My family just hopped on board with me! My fiance is also very supportive (pouring water right away at dinnertime since I've temporarily given up juice, cooking the meals I've planned so I can get homework done, etc.). I'm lucky :).

It's a matter of getting (even) more creative, and of course keeping an eye on portion control. Use your knowledge of outstanding flavor pairings to put together leaner meals that still feel luxurious, or experiment with cooking foods from other countries that will be exotic but still healthy. I'm on an Indian/curry kick…

I'm not particularly concerned about the macros right now. I do my best to keep to the calorie guidelines, but choose foods I think are healthy (as well as a treat or two) and trust that the content balances out. The exception for me is calcium, because I sometimes have a hard time getting enough.

I'd rather take belly dance. Something actually flirty, not just a choreographed version of slutty club dancing (nothing wrong with slutty club dancing, it just loses something when you've got a trainer barking "now SCOOP--hair flip!").

Have you already tried asking the people who work at your gym? I know at Planet Fitness, the staff can act as trainers in the way you describe (low-key sessions to show you how things work), which would save you the cash of Craigslist hunting. Other gyms might be similar.

Playing Frisbee is fun. I like reading and writing, and friends of mine knit.

Absolutely! I am trying to learn how to eat so that I can maintain it through weekends without feeling like I'm not getting a treat. I'm doing Monday weigh-ins so I hold myself accountable, but it is definitely a struggle!

First and foremost, I am not a nutritionist or health care professional, so anything I say is from my own experience and reading of nutrition books/magazines. That said, there's a few important variables here, I think. The first is what "hungry" means. There's a difference between feeling starving/tummy rumbling/simply not…

1. Thai peanut sauce 2. sweet chili sauce 3. cocktail sauce

Yoga pants or sweatpants and a reasonably tight-fitting shirt (it bothers me if a loose shirt is flapping around when I am exercising).

Non-food rewards. I am in the finals boat, too. My plan for tonight is eat a healthy dinner, then get to work. My treats are a bath with my new bath oil in it, a foot rub from the fiance, and reading a trashy, guilty-pleasure magazine when I am done. Full disclosure: I will probably have a vanilla-rum-and-coke while I'm…

I wonder that sometimes myself...my guy is 6' tall and about 145--right on the cusp of being underweight. He's definitely lean, but he has muscles and doesn't look skeletal or anything. His dad is fit-to-average, and his mom is naturally tall and very slim, so I think genetics has a lot to play. The standard charts to me…

I gave up McDonald's and Burger King years ago and haven't missed them for a second. Once in a blue moon I'll have some chili, fries, and a frosty at Wendy's, but that happens about three times a year, tops. I am learning that I need to rework my relationship with pizza! When I was growing up, pizza night was rush night,…

Everyone's made awesome suggestions! My last thought to include (it's implied with everyone's responses, but I don't think anyone came right out and said it yet) is to be deliberate about variety. Broccoli every day of the week is boring. As we get into the summer, there are so many beautiful ripe veggies around. Try as…

More than Useless by Reliant K

My gym doesn't provide soap. I keep travel-sized shower gel in my gym bag.

I'll pass on the Brussels sprouts and asparagus, but add on artichokes, string beans, peas, zucchini, leeks, and radishes.

I've noticed that, too *blush*. The sense I get is that when you change your eating habits, your body needs a little time to adjust, and *cleaning house* is one way to do that.

Makes sense to me!

I heard rumors artificial sweeteners have a chemical that enhances appetite not found in regular sugar. I can't substantiate, so take me with a grain of salt, but it's an interesting thought.

Usually nothing...if I eat popcorn I get thirsty, if I get thirsty I have to use the bathroom, which means missing part of the movie, which was the whole reason I went in the first place.