sbrownallison Member

Fighting for one's health is a good thing! Any food (including a breakfast taco) can work in a food plan, so long as it doesn't exceed your calorie allotment -- and it satisfies your hunger. For me, in the past I would eat chocolate cake for breakfast, thinking that as long as I didn't eat anything else all day, I'd still…

Great to hear from you all about your experiences with WW. I did notice at the last meeting that most of the snack bars went from 2 to 3 points. That is a hefty increase. I don't know if they got any smaller! I'm mystified to see people buying these, as they do not seem to make sense for a mindful eating plan. I'll…

So many good things there! We are fortunate to have one near us, so we go frequently. I always try the snack they are demo-ing at the back of the store. I often buy the ingredients to make it at home. We also have a new Whole Foods nearby, but I find the prices ridiculous. TJs prices seem very reasonable...

Thanks for input! I like the idea of evolving one's goals as weight loss is achieved. The idea of health and fitness should be paramount as one proceeds along this journey...

There's a ton of inspiration here. Good on us! I'm 71, overweight since grade school, with many diets, ups and downs of poundage over the years. Many times joining/rejoining Weight Watchers and other "plans" over the years also. Ten years ago I finally reached my WW goal (which I had set at the top of the range for my…

You are definitely NOT the only person with this same issue. There are a number of good ideas among those who've posted, so I hope you find some that will help you. For me, the first strategy I use is to control my environment. I don't normally have any sweets in the house. That helps with at least 70% of the problem. I…

I find that when I log my foods faithfully, I am less apt to overeat. There is something about the control this imposes that helps me. I also try to keep in mind that every time I give in to overeating I am reinforcing this behavior into a habit (a habit that will put back on the pounds I worked so hard to lose). This idea…

I haven't read this entire thread yet, so don't know if anyone has mentioned PB2. It's not exactly new but it is quite an amazing product. It has a nice taste of peanut butter but only 10% of the calories. You can mix it with water and use as a spread -- but I don't care for it that way, as it's kind of unsatisfying (if…

I'm 71, so you're a spring chicken to the likes of me. You can clearly do this, being successful in getting through a cancer diagnosis. Twenty pounds is doable, you! Try to incorporate a few better habits each week and work your way up to more time stepping, logging foods in My Fitness Pal, playing around in the MFP…

I started about three years ago with a Fitbit One (paid $90 I think). I had a great experience with it and found it highly motivating: it accurately counts steps, stairs, distance, calories expended so far that day, plus displays the time of day. I never saw that it tracked any steps while at the computer or otherwise than…

I, too, was a big sweets eater. Over years of being overweight, losing weight, regaining weight, and trying many diets, I realized that when I had sweets in the house, I could not leave them alone. Eating one piece only led to the next until the entire box was gone. Then I was left sickened and filled with regret. Once I…

I'm also not a fan of "energy" bars, snack bars, or meal replacement bars, as I find that even though they contain (for me) a lot of calories, they do not have any satiety value. I appreciate the idea of convenience but I'd rather have real food...

I use the old-fashioned oatmeal and I weigh out what the package says is a serving. Here in the US, it's 40g. I add 8 oz of water and microwave for 4 min. I shake some cinnamon and Splenda in: it's kind of thin with that much water but I find it keeps me just fine until lunch. As a smallish woman, I don't have many daily…

Many of us fall and gain back some, all, or more of the weight back. I count myself among that group. What is important is to get back into the routine of making your health your top priority. You can do this!

I've lost 60 lbs and am more or less at my goal weight. For me, it's been a matter of putting together a bunch of puzzle pieces that work for me. I've been on too many diets to enumerate and been overweight the vast majority of my life. Actually I am now at a normal weight (and sustained it for so far two years) for the…

Interesting to read everyone's take on WW. Having been an off-and-on WW member since the mid-70's, I can tell you that back in the day, there was no alternative to the WW model. It was so simple, so easy, and it worked. If someone had a good recipe, they'd post it on the blackboard (this was before whiteboards, folks!) for…

I log everything into MFP. I just upgraded from a Fitbit One to a Charge HR. Everything works the same, easy peasy...

For me, I find that the key to avoiding a binge is to distance myself from specific foods like bread, cakes, cookies, etc. Over time (several weeks) and eating fresh whole (unprocessed) foods, I lose interest in the binge foods. I try to control my environment and not have those foods easily available. I also find that I…

I like the yogurt thing: 6-oz cup of nonfat yogurt with unsweetened cocoa powder stirred in. Protein helps stave off hunger - and chocolate just because I need it in my life (and get too tempted with other forms of it in my house)...

I agree with most that it's mostly motivational, giving you an idea of where you'd be if you could stick to this day's picture, which is pretty unrealistic given the many variables involved. I kind of like it but I've never "arrived" at what it says!

As an older female, I use 1200 plus whatever exercise calories I earn; virtually no one should go below this. As a younger person, yours may be higher. Your MFP home page should display a caloric formula for you. If you log a given exercise, it should raise the 1200 (or whatever you choose as a healthy amount of calories).…

Great insights, folks! Pav8888 gives a fun link above for a calculator; yes, cheesy graphics but entertaining info. Thanks for playing...

Best of luck with your surgery. We are all in different circumstances and none of us should judge others. This community is to support each other, not judge. I haven't had this surgery but know people at work who have, with great results. Wishing you a quick recovery.

I did a half-hour of low impact aerobics, a half-hour of steps, and an hour of Pilates. I've had my Fitbit Charge HR for a week now and have done at least 10K steps every day since. So far today, I've done 13.5K. I upgraded from a Fitbit One. Love my Fitbit! Always can use more motivation to get off the couch, right?

As an older woman, I found it a challenge to lose weight quickly. What I found was that if I ate to my daily calories and added an hour or more of exercise every day, I was able to consistently lose a pound a week during a goodly portion of my 60-lb loss. As I got thinner, the weight loss slowed down. I also subtracted…

Ditto on what everyone is saying about weighing or measuring food. Look at the nutrition label on a jar of peanut butter and note that it gives a serving size in "tablespoons" and "grams". With a food like peanut butter, it's more accurate to weigh it on a food scale, because we all have a different idea of what a…

Wish you well on your journey. There is much inspiration to be found on this site. For me, as an older person, I found that exercise had become key in losing weight, as well as diet. For motivation to get myself to move more, I got a Fitbit activity monitor and have to say that it does change one's mind about the need to…

So glad to find others with the same struggles. Just wanted to pass on the name of a book I'm currently reading that makes so much sense to me and holds out promise of better understanding of one's binge-eating: Brain Over Binge by Kathryn Hansen.

Excellent job, you!

Had a great active summer but quit logging food and weighing/measuring, so am up a few. Damn, I thought I was done (ha, ha, the truth is we're never done, right?). Am looking from inspiration from this group, so let's help each other... I have not slacked off on exercise, thank God, so continue to go to the Y about five…