mylittlerainbow Member

Your diary isn't open, so I can't see what you ARE eating. Possibly you're having animal protein at every meal? I only have that at most once a day, and most days I have none (I have a semi-vegetarian life where I occasionally will eat fish or chicken but never any mammals). There is still some protein in vegetables, so…

How wonderful that you're almost there, and how awful that you got the flu. Not a fun way to lose weight! As long as you kept hydrated while you were sick (so important anyway when you're sick) and keep drinking lots of water now, going back to your planned calories shouldn't put any 'real' (i.e., long-term) weight back on…

Protein bars are great and so handy. And the protein powder I usually blend into my smoothies or it can be sprinkled onto and mixed into anything that you might eat like cottage cheese, cereal, etc. It doesn't contribute much if any flavor when mixed into something else as a supplement.

I have been to a nutritionist, which I guess is the same thing. I asked her how many calories a day I should eat and how to break that down into the various food groups and then for suggestions of best things to eat from within each food group. She had me keep a food journal, which was very useful and instructive (but we…

I personally have the opposite issue - as a "secret eater", I eat almost nothing out in public settings like that but scarf it all down at home. But one of my close friends has a "3 bite rule" - you take 3 bites of anything that you really want to try and that's all. That's usually enough to please your taste buds if not…

Congrats on the 5k! As for the overeating, just log it and then the next day is another day with no calories in it yet!

I bake all the time, because I can't go too long without doing that! Then I freeze everything for later or get it out of the house (bring to meetings or whatever). I also tend to bake a lot of things that I can't eat, like chocolate - most people like that but I'm allergic to it, so it's safe to bake and know that it will…

Yes, it's over and done with, and also might even give you greater energy for whatever you do for a living!

Agree with the above - calories are what count and carbs are not inherently evil if they fit into your daily allowance. But you might think about whether you're drinking enough water - sometimes downing a tall glass of water can push the munchies away.

I'm lucky - I get almost nauseous after I've worked out and have to wait for a while before I even feel much like eating. Perhaps you shouldn't work out so late at night? Doing it earlier might be better for boosting your metabolism for the day and then you can avoid the late night munchies - maybe at 6 AM before you go to…

I'm very pleased to be reading this (timely to me) thread - I have put Beachbody videos on my wish list at Amazon and it's great to know that I don't have to spend that kind of money!

You have come to the right place! Let MFP set a calorie and nutrient limit for you for each day depending on how fast you want to lose the 15 pounds, how active you are, etc. Then eat a balanced diet within those parameters and measure and log every meal and snack. As for exercise, I don't know what you're already doing -…

If you set MFP for losing 2 pounds per week, then it should have factored in your current statistics and created a sufficient deficit in calories so that 1780 IS the pace for losing 2 pounds per week. Many don't eat back their exercise calories (or eat back only half of them), because depending on where you get them from,…

I love kale! Two things that seem to help with others (like my family and guests): (1) Mature kale - steam it rather than eating it raw. (2) Baby kale - it's like baby spinach, soft and almost sweet, and I've looked it up and it has the same nutrients. You can throw it into your salad!

That's one of the actual advantages of having to log everything you eat. When you face the thought of having to take the time to look it all up and write it down, it sometimes doesn't seem worth the effort to eat anything! Be gentle on yourself - this is probably a long-time habit of yours (or you wouldn't want to be…

I guess the things you want to avoid are substances like aspartame? I used to drink flavored waters but stopped mainly because of the expense. I now keep tap water run through a Britta with half a lemon cut up in the bottom and that's good enough flavoring for me.

I'm almost 5'1". I weighed 97 until I retired, and then apparently I had license to eat all day long. I am back down to 115 now and am also aiming at 105 (where I was for most of my young adult life - the 97 seemed excessive because I didn't like all the bones showing as I got older, but I loved wearing the tiny clothes!).

Everybody has given you fantastic advice. All that I can add is that the cravings die out pretty quickly when you have avoided those trigger foods for a matter of days - not all that long. The things I thought I couldn't live without are thoughts in my mind but not actual cravings that I have to resist any longer. So one…

I buy the super firm pre-cut into cubes. Then I divide that package into quarters and put 1/4 into my salad each day for the next four days. It absorbs whatever other flavors you include in your salad, so it's great with hummus (my salad dressing of choice) or balsamic vinegar. You don't need to cook it! (I can cut it…

I don't drink. People at my office knew this, and I would go to events and socialize (fun plus politically expedient!) but wouldn't drink. Nobody paid any attention to what was in my glass because they were all concerned with what they were having, the conversation, etc. So I think you can be quiet about it, not…

You will do it - what we all have in common is not the impossibility of weight loss, but the lifestyle changes needed to MAINTAIN that lower weight. I resolve that this is my last time here for weight loss purposes! Meaning that I'll have to track my food and weigh myself regularly for the rest of my life so as not to have…

What is your TDEE? How much below that is the 1200-1500 calories per day that you're setting as your ceiling? Or - as I do - eat the number of calories to support the weight that you WANT to be. If I want to weigh 120 pounds, the number of calories I can eat each day at my activity level will be different from the number…

Agree heartily with the logging/tracking - you don't eat much and you only eat lunch and dinner, but how much do you eat at lunch and at dinner? Where in the food pyramids do those meals fall? What about beverages? The first step is to find out what you're already eating by logging on here. Then you can start to adjust as…

Diet Coke has sodium in it (though not much else!) and tends to make your body retain fluids. That's why you can't count it in your daily liquids. So yes, I could see it slowing down weight loss if you drink a lot of it (like daily) and you weren't prior to that.

Welcome back, Paula! I'm here for my second round, too. Had done great losing and maintaining - until I retired. Then all barriers were dropped and I put back on half the weight I'd lost! This site is fabulous for being motivating and making you feel accountable. Good luck!

I have heard that this happens when you've lost at least 10% of your body weight, but you might feel it in your clothes prior to that.

What are you saying, KrisiAnn? That you're supposed to eat fewer calories as you get closer to your goal?

I have read that making a soupy mixture of apple cider vinegar and shredded cucumbers can help with a plateau. (If nothing else, it could shock your body into wanting to shed more pounds!) A whole month on a plateau sounds like a long time but not unheard of. (I've certainly been there.) Patience - hard, I know! I made…

Oh, YIKES. I went to that TDEE calculator and it came out 1273. All the others have come out in the 1400-1500 range (I've averaged them to 1440). So that calculator wants me to eat 1018 calories per day to lose weight! MFP has set me at 1200 (which is what it does at minimum) but I'm really eating 1000-1100 per day and…

I will read it, too - thanks! I was down to 97 pounds at one point (about 5 feet tall) and STILL had that belly. My Pilates instructor tells me "pull it in, don't push it out", presses her hand into my belly, and says, "OH!" This has been the bane of my existence. I'm now watching other inches go down but not that…