otrlynn Member

You are doing well, as everyone else said. A pound a week is the kind of loss that you can sustain long term. Did you ask your doctor if you could add in other forms of exercise besides walking? Nothing wrong with walking--just wondered if the doc would let you kick it up a notch.

Spinach lasagna, salad, garlic bread. You could serve some kind of fish in addition to the lasagna, if you think some of your guests would enjoy it. Or do a big pan of homemade macaroni and cheese (contains enough protein for the non-fish eaters) along with a hot vegetable, a salad, and some kind of fish. Any main dish…

Homemade carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. Fortunately I only make it when we have company (so most of it gets eaten by someone other than me), or I make it to take to someone else's house.

No, but I don't agree with any of those anyway!

I can't think of any reason why a meal replacement shake would be better than a "snack" unless one was a serious body builder and was looking for very large amounts of protein after weight lifting. That said, it is certainly better to have a snack based on lean protein, complex carbs, and healthy fats than, say, a bag of…

Oh god yes--laugh outloud funny. In fact probably the funniest thing that I have read since I joined MFP 270 days ago! There was that "making waffles" thread though...

I'm not taking an ADHD medication, but I have a family member who did, and work with children who are this or similar medication. The appetite suppression side effect is quite common, but should diminish with time. Many people find that it helps to eat a big nutritious breakfast before they take the first pill, and a…

If you are losing weight, you are going to lose it all over. That means that your breasts will get smaller too. As someone who is currently in a 34B (hooked on the tightest hook) I speak from experience. Exercising chest muscles can help keep things firm, but might not work for you if you have shoulder problems. In any…

I am 5'4 1/2" and 60 years old. I started at 138 and I have lost about 20 pounds. I thought my goal was going to be 125, but I felt like I could lose some more from my belly and thighs. I'm pretty happy with being at 118 (my lowest in about 25 years). What I'm really happiest about is inches lost, and the fact that I am…

The pumpkin walnut sound delicious! They seem like they have a large quantity of egg--is that because the egg is used for protein, or they don't bake properly without that quantity of egg?

Do what works for you and keeps you satisfied. I do three meals with two planned snacks in between them. It is normally about 6.5 hours between my lunch and my dinner, and I really need something to tide me over until dinner. I try to make the snacks healthy and satisfying by making sure that they have both complex carbs…

Eggs are a good cheap source of protein. I'd probably buy eggs, a small amount of cheese, and some frozen spinach--and them make omelettes. There should be enough left over to buy a loaf of whole wheat bread. Homemade vegetable soup, with pasta and some kind of beans for protein is filling and stretches pretty far.

What a great story! Somehow I suspect that you will never find maple walnut as perfect as you remember...

It is harder to lose weight when you are near your goal or don't have a lot to lose. I would suggest (just from my own experience) that you decrease your calories to a happy medium and see what happens for a couple of weeks. Perhaps try about 1400 or 1450 a day? Also make sure that you are weighing and measuring…

Good for you for overcoming the excuses. Your are being a great role model for the kids. You can add some walking lunges in for variety (with or without hand weights).

Hang in there! I lost most of my weight at the rate of between .5 and 1 lb per week, and I did it on 1200 calories a day ( I'm only 5' 4" and did not have a huge amount to lose). I also ate back about 2/3 of the calories MFP said that I burned while exercising (in case it was an over-estimate). There were weeks when I did…

Overall weight loss will eventually result in smaller thighs. For me, it's the last place I lose weight, and the first place that I gain (sigh). Squats and lunges, as well as using the elliptical with some resistance, are finally making some muscles appear where previously there was only flab. I still have a ways to go,…

Pants shopping is not my favorite activity either. I'm pretty much where I want to be weight wise and it is still challenging. If you have curvy hips and a relatively small waist, look for "curvy fit" rather than straight cut pants/shorts. I have found that stores that cater to somewhat older women (such as Talbots,…

The snacks that I carefully weigh and ration out for myself, because if the husband finds them--poof! They're gone! We do have other food that is fair game lest anyone worry about the poor man starving...

I use Body Fortress Whey Protein Isolate (Walmart's brand). I think the vanilla creme flavor is pretty good. I'm not a body builder, but I had trouble meeting my daily protein goal as well (particularly on gym days) I eat meat, but not a large amount of it, and I'm not really a fan of legumes. I mix it with the soy milk…

I'm about 5' 4.5". I started at 140 and am now at 120. I have a pretty small frame. If you look at my profile pics, I'm at about 140 in the picture with my husband and I standing and waving. In the pics taken in the pool and snorkeling I'm at about 120. I learned to be patient and stuck to my eating plan--and lost about .5…

You can easily sneak a lot of veggies into spaghetti sauce as well. Either slow cook it for hours so that the veggies break down, or cook it so that the veggies are soft and then put it through a blender. FYI, if you are being sneaky about vegetables, avoid strong flavored ones like broccoli and brussel sprouts. I would…

I do not share your difficulties, so perhaps you will get some better responses, but I am wondering whether there is anywhere that you can do exercise in a pool. The water is supportive and should help alleviate stress on your joints. Is there somewhere nearby that offers exercise/aerobics in a pool? If not, can you swim…

I hope that your dress fits and congratulations on the weight that you have lost already! I think the best dress strategy is to seriously commit yourself to establishing how much weight you would like to lose, setting a reasonable monthly weight loss goal, and logging every piece of food that you put in your mouth. You…

If you are right handed, the difference in right arm vs. left is not unusual. Most people have a foot dominance as well. It is the foot that you typically would step up with--particularly if you had to step up onto a high step--also the foot that you would prefer to use to kick a ball. So, leg size difference is not…

Finding out the number of calories in a smoothy should be pretty easy. Go to the food section and "create a recipe" and add in the ingredients that you use in the quantity that you use them. As much as possible try to use exact weights or measures amounts of the ingredients rather than "one banana". Fill in the little box…

Funny how things go in cycles. I am surely dating myself--my grandmother taught me this game at least fifty years ago, but called it ink-dink. Two syllable pair is an inky-dinky, three syllable is inkaroo-inkaroo. So-- inkaroo dinkarro: one who re-starts the laptop.

As tempting as it is, I wouldn't do it. I can't imagine how you would keep your eye on the door continuously. Chances are that nothing negative would happen, and you would become more relaxed about watching the room--at which point anything could happen. An older child could be using inappropriate language or inappropriate…

You can bump up your calories a bit without eating unhealthy stuff (that's probably how you got to the point where you want to lose weight, right?). Add things like peanut butter, nuts, avocados, dried fruit, whole grain bread or crackers, full or reduced fat yogurt. Congratulations on embracing a new way of eating!

I do about half and half Natures Path Smart Bran (found in the organic section of the grocery store) and Kashi Go Lean Cinnamon Crisp, plus about a half a cup of blueberries or strawberries. Do measure the cereal--the Kashi is fairly caloric (but also high in protein). To further add protein, I mix vanilla protein powder…