sarahenagy Member

Like others have noted, a cheat DAY is a bad idea for me. I will binge all day long and undo a great deal of hard work in one 12 hour period. I really try to look at my eating habits as a lifestyle change. My weight has yo-yoed somewhat because I "diet" and work out for a few months and loose 20 lbs, then I go right back…

I'm also a teacher and it has been the same for me this week....donuts, bagles, and muffins for breakfast yesterday, gaint subs and pizza for lunch today, cake after school, candy in my mailbox, baked goods from students. I have pretty decent will power, but it's SOOOO hard when it's all the freaking time! I just keep…

Are you eating enough? I know that there is great debate here about "starvation mode," but I have found that, for me at least, if I am not eating enough to support my level of activity (more than about a 500-700 calorie deficit) then the scale won't budge. BTW I am 27.

Google Ellie Krieger macaroni and 4 cheeses. It's lower cal for pasta and cheese and DELICIOUS!

I have an apple, like you mentioned, in the afternoon, and it wasn't enough. I recently added a 50 calorie light string cheese stick along with the apple. That with some water seems to fill me up enough that I dont' gorge when I get home. I am a teacher also and have lunch at 10:45. I just keep the cheese stick in my lunch…

I cycled last summer with a severely sprained ankle. I had to get in the habit of putting down my left foot instead of my right, but there is no side to side and so little up and down movement that it didn't hurt at all, but torched tons of calories. Also, definitely follow the RICE advice. I have sort of ignored sprained…

I simply just can't understand that "I have trouble getting my 1200 calories" thing. I have a reallly hard time not being hungry at 1200 a day! Good for you who can manage on 800-900, but I definitely cannot, I would be starving!

Beans, beans the wonderful fruit! They are full of protein, they go well in lots of dishes, and are super cheap!

I'm not sure about the overall validity of yahoo, but that seems way high to me for breakfast. I love breakfast, it's an essential part of my day, but I only around 250-300 calories for at the start of the day (usually a whole grain cereal with milk or an english muffin or oatmeal with a grapefruit) and a 60 calorie yogurt…

My husband is a food pusher - so I live with it day in and day out. He doesn't do it out of malice at all, he can just eat WAY more than I can and in fact needs more calories than I do. If it were up to him we would go out for drinks or ice cream every night of the week. I have made him aware and it has gotten a little…

I always do fajitas at Mexican restaurants. Although they are grilled in oil it's still chicken and veggies, which is better than anything deep fried or slathered in cheese and/or creamy sauce.

If you like fruity, girly cocktails you probably want to start with white. Try a saviougn blanc or riesling, they are both on the sweeter side. If/when you are ready to try reds start with a medium-bodied merlot or in the pinot noir family. If you go to a higher grade store (something a step up from your regular grocery -…

I am fairly fit already - I have been lifting, doing cardio, classes at the gym, and cycling for well over a year, typically 5-6 days a week, although a little less recently. My friend who does the Chalene system was my workout buddy for a long time, and she jumped right into the program no problem. She just recently…

I do - otherwise I will be creating a deficit and loosing weight again. I have successfully maintained my weight since September by eating up my 1700 cals plus any extra fromw working out.

I'm not sure about the weekly calorie count thing, but my intuition would be to try to make some healthier choices at restaurants in order to not go so far over on one day. I LOVE to eat out and do it often as well and managed to loose 25 lbs last year without feeling like I gave up too much. I just started being more…

I agree with Boss...not only can you not tell an overweight person to just eat when they are hungry, I am a healthy person, at a healthy weight, with a healthy body image and I cannot just eat when I am hungry or I will eat too much. Although I realize that there is no way to know exactly what numbers are going in and out…

There are mixed opinions on this, but in my research and experience, yes you should eat at least some, if not all, of your exercise cals back. 1200 calories already creates a 500 calorie deficit, which is about the highest recommended to avoid the dreaded starvation mode you mentioned. When I was struggling to drop the…

I do one at a time...you obviously don't want to strain/pull the muscle, but muscle grows when it is fatigued and then pushed harder, creating little tears (that's why you get sore after lifting) that then fill in with more muscle to compensate. So I like to do one set, rest for 20 seconds, then do my next set. This allows…

This is a frequent topic here on the MFP message boards and one with varying answers. I do eat back most of my exercise calories. To loose 1 pound a week (recommended and safe) you need a 500 calorie deficit in your daily diet. If you have a bigger deficit than that for several days your body will go into "starvation mode"…

Agreed - definitely eat more. To loose one pound a week you should have around a 500 calorie deficit each day (not too much more or less). MFP builds your deficit into your goal; so if your base is 1200 a day, then to maintain you would need to be eating around 1700. So if you work out you need to eat most (I would say AT…

I do the same thing! For me it's accountability. If I put all of my calories in first thing in the morning then I deviate from my planned (healthy) day I have to go back and put in the extra that I ate and figure out what I have to cut out in order to stay around my calorie goal.

I really like The Biggest Loser Power Sculpt DVD ($10 at Target) - all you need are 5lb hand weights and your own body weight. Combine it with The Biggest Loser Cardio Max for a great total body workout for a one time $30 investment. Both DVDs also have varying levels.

I LOVE pasta as well! I enjoy it, just in moderation. I make a yummy dish I call "balsamic braised pasta." I use 1 cup of whole wheat pasta (so much more filling than regular and you really can't taste the difference), boil to al dente. While it boils I saute a cut up red bell pepper. After I drain the pasta I dump it in…

My new mantra helps....nothing tastes as good as skinny feels...when I am feeling tempted I repeat this and go put my tightest pair of skinny jeans on and remind myself how awful I would feel if I couldn't fit in them after a splurge. That said, I also do not believe in totally depriving myself. I build in treats now and…

I am well endowed, but not quite a D...34C. They do bounce painfully in the wrong bra. I really love Old Navy's line of fitness gear, including the bras. They are pretty simple, but are made of a super sweat wicking material that is thick and supportive. Further, it has a nice thick band around the bottom that also helps.…

I agree with others who say eat more. It seems counter-intuitive but I had this problem and was shocked. I was 5lbs from my goal weight in early August, was going to have to replace all of my work clothes before school started (I'm a teacher) because I had lost 20+ pounds since the previous year, and wanted to take off…

I do tend to eat most of my exercise calories, as others have mentioned if not the body goes into starvation mode. This is especially important for those who very vigorously exercise and burn thousands of calories. For a while I did not eat my exercise calories and I not only did not loose weight, but felt awful. I am a…

I would measure out how much milk you use...either in cups (or fractions of cups) or in fl. oz. and put it in separately that way. You can even save your morning coffee "recipe" (with how much milk, sugar, etc you use) as a meal and then just click on that each morning (assuming you prepare it the same way everyday)!

Breakfast - 1 cup Honey Buches of Oats, 1 cup skim milk Morning snack - Activia Vanilla, fat-free light yogurt, 2 tbsp pumpkin flax granola Lunch - Lean Cuisine mac n' cheese (surprisingly delicious), raw baby carrots, 3 Girl Scout cookies (Treefoils) Afternoon snack - Bolthouse vanilla-chai protein shake (before working…

I eat at my desk as well. I mix up my lunch just about every day as I get bored easily and find myself treking down to the cafeteria (I'm a teacher...school food, not so good for you) if I don't switch it up. I like a simple turkey wrap (whole grain, reduced fat tortilla, fresh deli turkey, a smear of hummus, lettuce, and…