EmmaFitzwilliam Member

Have you tried baked chicken? I use this method: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook-the-best-chicken-breasts-in-the-oven-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-211453 The chicken stays fairly moist, and picks up a lot of flavor from whatever spices you use before you bake it. Because I'm not averse to canned or pre-prepped…

Why do you call it a "salad of sadness"? Maybe you haven't found the right mix. Some options - bay shrimp plus pico de gallo. Off the shelf easy, and super-healthy. I have actually grown pretty fond of my cucumber/roma tomato/red bell pepper/red onion salad (I make a huge batch on Sunday afternoon, and portion of 3-5…

BMI down 11%; body fat down 9%. Of course, the goal is another 13%. Ouch. But still - progress.

*shrugs*. You can enjoy your ascetic deprivation if that's what works for you. I enjoy the occasional deliberate indulgence. That something has 50% fat doesn't make it a non-option for me. Sure, my macros are frequently not optimal, but that's between me, my scale, and my doctor. Enjoy the real thing in moderation is a…

Honestly? Some things just aren't worth substituting out. Have them as an occasional indulgence, and enjoy them all the more when you do have them. :)

^^^ This. Knowledge is power. You know what happened, and why. Learn from it, and move on. Success is not about never exceeding the calorie goal, or never making the indulgent choice. It's about making informed choices and accepting the trade-offs.

Seats are also an inch lower! I already have trouble at certain restaurants because I have such a short torso - at Outback, the table top is pretty much aligned with my bust (or armpit!). It's like always being at the kid's table. :neutral: But the number of times I have gone to sit down and then fallen that last inch is…

I struggle with this - I had some really bad incidents in childhood. But - "waste or waist". You choose. Sometimes you can mitigate with portion control and eating leftovers; sometimes that doesn't work and leftovers are just a detour to the waste bin. But if it comes down to "waste or waist", I take a deep breath and…

I would log a meat pie/pasty as a comparable and rock on. Or you can estimate a ?6inch? pie crust with lard/shortening, and make a guess at the fillings, then add ?150? calories for frying (which may be overstating it, as there is not *necessarily* that much oil retention in fried foods, but allowing for it doesn't hurt)…

Heck, too much *water* can kill you. It takes a *lot* of water - more than any of us is likely to ever drink on our own - but it *does* happen. (There was an infamous radio contest in California in which a contestant consumed an excess volume, and there are guidelines for people who live in places with a high heat index…

I don't use "motivation" or "willpower". I use determination and information. I want to achieve a healthy BMI, and maintain a healthy body fat percentage. My food choices support that goal, or they do not. Sometimes they do not, and that's okay. Life is more than BMI or body fat. But BMI and body fat are important to me,…

Personally, I wouldn't bother. I think (this is my opinion, not a statement of fact or a prediction) a restrictive diet to kick the last few pounds is more likely to do more harm than good. Weight loss and maintenance are not about reaching number "x", but about *maintaining* (your preferred metric here). I believe (again,…

Why are you worried about it? You ate and acted like you were on vacation; you are not on vacation every day. You know your actions were short term, not habits or patterns, and your relationship with gravity reflected a status quo, vacation behavior notwithstanding. As noted, weight loss is not linear. Seriously, if it…

Waste or Waist. Free food still has calories. Knowledge is power. Choices; consequences. Does it really taste that good? Do I have time to enjoy it?

My experience is that I cannot out exercise my "fork lifts". Do the math. How many calories can you realistically burn (even accepting the most optimistic numbers as 100% accurate), given the time you have to devote to your preferred exercise? Even without taking into consideration the muscle tissue damage which may also…

::Hugs:: Please don't feel ashamed about your weight. You weigh what you weigh. There are choices, consequences, and circumstances. There is knowledge base, and body chemistry. Your weight does not make you a lesser person. It's a lot easier to make this journey if you proceed with love for yourself.

This. I weigh myself daily; I like the data. Even fluctuations give me a good picture of my progress. My weight may be stalled over any given week (or even a month), but I can still see a general trend.

Find things to do with your hands that require keeping your hands clean. Puzzles, correspondence, video games, whatever works for you. I also knit, crochet, and do other string crafts as well.

One trick that helped me - but may not suit your circumstances - is that I established a policy of not eating anything if I wasn't prepared to focus on it. This year, I developed a habit of being conscious of every bite, and more so if I was eating a high calorie food.

Make certain you are getting enough fat and protein so you feel sated. What snacks do you choose, and why? A bag of snack chips is "sugar, fat, and salt" and/or a "bag o' calories". Are you wanting more fat and/or more salt? Is your body accustomed to having those? Are you feeling bored? Hungry? Do you want dessert? Are…

Portion control your snacks. Set up a "snack shelf" or "snack basket" with snacks of various calories. Or grab a piece of fruit or vegetable sticks and hummus. 9 tortilla chips have 140 calories. A bag of (snack chip here) is, essentially, a bag of "sugar, fat, and salt" and/or a "bag o' calories". Those visualizations may…

This may sound weird, but "soft fat in my calves". Which tells me that I may actually be able to slim my calves some, despite the amount of walking I have done.

::hugs:: Knowledge is power. For me, food logging (and weighing portions) works because my weight gain was primarily a result of unwise portion choices. I've been able to feel very positive about my loss and about my calorie guidelines. I hope your experience is similar.

I'm actually fond of salads, but I really don't care for leafy greens. My current favorites are black bean salad (which can be virtually no-prep) and cucumber salad. Making a week's portion of both takes a bit over 2 hours' prep on Sunday, but a lot of that is seeding the tomatoes. Time consuming, but really worth it. I…

Pretty much spot on. :)

Someone posted about not being able to eat when depressed. I am experiencing that right now. I started the morning in an icy fury, but have no desire for sugar carbs or chocolate. Kickboxing (which I don't actually do, so I would just hurt myself), but not food. It takes some doing (and is tied in to other facets of my…

Amazon has a very small "travel" scale. It measures - at a guess - 8 inches by 12 inches.

61.5 inches. My goal weight bottoms out at 125. Fantasies of dropping to 118, but those are improbable. Worried more about body fat percentage than weight or bmi.

I certainly haven't given up sweets. Now, admittedly, I don't worry about my sugar grams, or even that much about my macros, though I generally aim for the 50/30/20 carbs/fat/protein balance. I have a Nothing Bundt Cakes bundtlet in my refrigerator right now, and a fair bit of ice cream. And when I have 200-400 calories…