Milvardea

At my heaviest, right after I quit smoking and packed on 15 extra pounds, I was 216 pounds. That was about five months ago. I haven't had a cigarette and I am down to 210 in five months. I have a long way to go, but we can do it together! Totally friend me!

I'm going to start taking my fish oil every day. :wink: Thank you, everyone, and I wish all of you luck too, in dealing with your depression.

Also, just an update, I managed to get to the gym last night, and I feel loads better. I had a good friend drag me there, and she forced me to get on the machines and go things. I felt massively better afterwards. I'm still not quite out of it, but I have improved enough to re-kickstart my efforts to weight loss all over…

Yeah, my depression is linked very closely with period and those hormones. Instead of getting testy or hungry or mean like most women seem to during PMS, I get severe, empty awful depression. It comes and goes, and although it always comes back, it leaves me alone for long periods of time too, for which I count myself very…

Good luck to you, friend. I hope you find some kind of motivation to keep going.

Thank you, everyone. It is day 3 dealing with this, and I'm still continuing to go through the motions and trying to power through. It's a lot harder to get off of the couch and exercise when my emotions are dead and I don't care, but I think it is helping. I'm going to do (not try, but do, like Yoda says) some gentle yoga…

Hollywood snacks! They are little boxes with grapes, cheddar cheese blocks, apple slices, and pretzels. (You can get these at places like Sheetz and Wawa too, super convenient) I also like Fig bars, because they are whole wheat and filled with fruit things. (I get them on Boxed.com for super cheap in bulk; you can $20 off…

Have you tried having "up" days on occasion to reset your metabolism? I can't eat the same number of calories every day, because my body adjusts to it. I have "up" days" (2100 calories ish) and "down" days (1700 calories) to shock my metabolism. Also, you might want to up your calories to compensate for all of the exercise…

Congrats!

Try to walk the long way around them, so you don't have to see them. That helps a lot. Don't let anyone park snacks near your desk. Make healthy snack foods more accessible than the junky stuff. If you have to walk by the snacks, try really hard not to look at them, and repeat your goal over and over in your head while you…

Think Thin has some wonderful protein snack bars too, if you ever want to move away from shakes.

Good luck; we're thinking about you. I'm sorry to hear about your father, but know he wouldn't want you to be unhealthy. I know you can do it!

My SO is the same way. He's super supportive of me though, so he is willing to try my healthy dinner "experimentations" and go on walks with me. He wants me to be happy, so he has decided to help as much as he can. Are there days I can't get him off of the couch? Absolutely. I go by myself. Are there times he doesn't like…

I gained about 15 pounds while quitting as well, but in a weird way, it was totally worth it. It won't be as hard to lose those pounds again now that I don't get out of breath just walking up the stairs from smoker's lung. I'm well on my way to losing back those 15 plus more! And if I can do it, trust me ANYONE can.

I found stuff to chew on that wasn't so bad for me. A lot of gum, pretzels, and lollipops. Focusing on both losing weight and quitting smoking was too much for me, so I decided to focus on getting rid of the smokes first, then worry about the weight. I've been smoke-free for more than four months, and I just restarted my…

Congrats!

Yeah, if you have roast chicken somewhere, you just need another source of chicken stock. If you use the premade stuff, it has a lot of salt, which is why I use the recipe to make my own. I'm sure it would be yummy though, and it's super easy. If you try it, let me know what your family thinks!

I'm pretty sure that this falls under a different category, since it's not a chicken pot pie. It's a chicken and ham pot pie. Second of all, I don't like ham or dijon mustard or mushrooms, so I doubt I would share your opinion. But thanks for the share.

Good luck; I'm cheering for you! Congrats on all of your success so far!

The most amazing use for edamame EVER. This is so good, I'm drooling thinking about it. 4 small sweet potatoes 1 large mango ½ c shelled edamame 2 T plus 1 T olive oil Salt & pepper Juice of 1 lemon 2 T honey 1 T rice vinegar (I use white vinegar once too, and it was fine) Small handful of finely chopped cilantro Preheat…

If you don't like sweets for breakfast, that's an easy fix. -Try making your own egg muffin sandwiches at home and freezing them or refrigerating them. Reheat in the microwave. -Make a mix of 1/2 of unflavored, plain oatmeal, with 1 teaspoon of dried milk. Mix in hot water in the morning and add 1 tablespoon of a nut…

You are amazing!

But no single formula fits everyone's needs, for sure.

Well, the reason your pee is all stinky in the AM is because your liver, kidneys, and most of your organs shut down or slow way down during sleep, so that you won't have to get up to pee while you're sleeping. It stinks because you have been laying around with it sitting in your body all evening. As for the topic of…

Are we actually burning more calories just from having our periods? I've never heard that before! It makes sense though. Good to know. I'll have to schedule my 2000 calorie days accordingly from now on (I fluctuate calories every few days since my body adjusts to deficiencies so quickly). Thanks for the advice!

You are welcome! I hope my achievments can motivate others. I like to write down what I've accomplished already every day, then write down what I want to accomplish every day next to it. It feels really good to move one thing from one list to the other!

They probably use the vanilla on top; it's too sweet to be plain, for sure. I'll have to estimate it.

Thank you, thank you! I've been feeling a little down lately because I haven't lost any weight (I even gained a little when I quit smoking), so it feels good to just line up all of your accomplishments and feel proud of them. Everyday, I'm a little bit closer to where I want to be. I love this community, and thank you for…

Congrats!

If I loved it, I wouldn't give it up. I don't even like most desserts!