Artemis_Acorn Member

This is good information! It's truly helpful to hear from people who've been there, done that. I am finding that the target zone of 800 - 1000 calories a day has been SUPER easy to hit just by following the 5 + Medifast guidelines, especially now that I'm past the first week. I don't think I could survive with just the…

I was eating my apple cinnamon oatmeal today and found that it wasn't as noxious to me as the last time. I was also thinking that next time I might try making it with some apple cinnamon herbal tea as the liquid instead of water ... it couldn't possibly hurt anything! Great info about how to modify the oatmeal into a baked…

The ones who didn't dump me after almost 7 months AWOL have certainly earned both my gratitude and my loyalty. So ... never.

I substituted Coconut oil for the vegetable oil in some Brownies I took to a potluck at Christmas. People went crazy over them but couldn't quite figure out what it was in them that was so wonderful. I could smell the coconut and thought that that wonderful fragrant aroma would give it away, but nope - many asked for the…

Today I tried 1/2 cup of unsweetened chocolate almond milk with the banana shake. It made all the difference in the world. No odd flavor, no bitter aftertaste, it was actually very good. I might just have to use that trick to get them used up.

The only food I've found that I've felt was nearly inedible is the oatmeal. Maple and brown sugar oatmeal is usually my favorite - I'd never met a variety I didn't like until MF. Yikes, that stuff is NASTY. But even that, I've manage to reclaim to some degree. For the M&BS variety, I make sure I get the texture just right…

I've done the soups in a thermos a couple of times - we're experiencing a terrible cold snap where I'm at, and the soup is wonderfully warm and comforting.

Hi Nicki, I had lost 60 pounds with MFP counting calories, and then got off track and started gaining weight back. I kept trying to get going again but struggled with cravings. I decided to start up on MF in December and placed my order, but due to a family crisis, had to leave town before the meals arrived. I came home on…

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I already use the water / hot herbal tea / diet soda trick, but several of the other ideas will be put to good use on my next hungry day. As it turns out, I came down with the flu the next day, and I wonder if the increased hunger was because my body was trying to fight it off.

Hi Nikki, Glad to meet you. I love to hear success stories like yours - even though you were "off" for a bit, and have modified the program to meet your needs, it sounds like you're making it work for you. That inspires me! I'll probably stick pretty close to guidelines for the most part, but I've got a great health coach,…

Hi Kiwiwizard. You sound so discouraged. I'm really sorry to hear of the struggles you're having, which are understandable - but on the bright side, 42 pounds is nothing to sneeze at. It may not be the degree of success you were hoping for, but it is still success. Have you been checked for thyroid or other endocrine…

I know a lot of people don't believe in love at first sight, but we'll just say I had never reacted to the mere sight of someone in quite the same way before or since. The first time he approached to talk to me, I was giddy, ditto the second. He knew he wanted to marry me within two weeks. I was the holdout - it took me a…

I keep mine at 74 - and it's affordable even though my house is nearly 100 years old, since we put in a new energy-efficient furnace.

Cursive IS faster to write than block/print letters, and I take notes in cursive in meetings at work all the time. If I had to take notes without cursive, I would miss stuff. I also write thank-you notes in cursive, greeting card messages in cursive, checks in cursive etc. They have studied brain activity when someone is…

The Notebook was a waste of time. I didn't get it either. I was just MEH about it, but my daughter absolutely HATED it, and rants about it how bad it was whenever someone brings it up. My idea of a true romance flick is the 1995 Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle.

As a woman who is working toward a healthy weight at the same time as I am working toward a healthy body image, I found the original post and many of the responses to it disturbing and sad. As long as women are objectified and subjected to labels that define them solely based on their body type / weight, we foster a…

One thing to bear in mind with frozen fruits and vegetables - they do retain nearly all of their nutrients, but the best way to augment your natural digestive enzymes is to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. Freezing destroys the enzymes. It's a little thing, but surprising what a difference it makes.

So what word would you prefer when the cake is nice and, um...not dry?

Our culture is messed up that way. I just smile and say that I'm working toward a healthy weight for my height and that I'm not there yet, This approach subtly shifts the conversation from appearance to health and from someone's stated opinion to cold-hard facts. They will often ask me how much more I plan to lose at that…

I would be happy to give you a list of five foods you should never eat: 1. Lard 2. Pork Rinds (This one is on principle) 3. Fugu (aka Pufferfish) 4. Amanitin (a type of wild mushroom) 5. Farmed Salmon

I watch it from time to time, but I do have issues with the very public humiliation they subject their participants to. It's one thing to help someone learn to love the body they inhabit regardless of the state it's in, it's another thing altogether to force them to expose their darkest fears, their deepest shame and most…

Salt & Pepper = well seasoned! And it is so incredibly hot on a man. It implies confidence and maturity. Embrace the gray!

Drink more water, eat low-carb, keep your sodium intake down, keep your potassium intake up, get adequate sleep, and if you'd rather have a mild diuretic effect, use tea or one of the herbal "Zinger" teas. Lemon in hot water will also do the trick.

I lost 10 pounds a month the first three months while set to lose 1.5 pounds a week. The pace doesn't last for most of us, and it tapered off for me too. I say congratulations, you're doing GREAT and enjoy the momentum while you can.

This is a troublesome question. At one point in 2005, I had lost 50 pounds and hit a plateau. Six months later, I was the same weight and I gave up. Since starting MFP, I have had 3 plateaus that lasted 2-3 weeks. Two ended on their own, one ended with a bit of mixing it up. I am currently at the 4 week mark on a plateau…

Mine is because I'm a goddess...and a nut.

Considering the broad groups of the population covered by the various blood types, it would be safe to say that it works for some people, and not for others. For me, the information for blood type O, which happens to be my blood type, is pretty accurate. I actually went vegetarian some years back - a super clean eating…

1. I LOVE turbulence on airplanes. 2. I write fiction and Jane Austen fan fiction. 3. I'm a lot older than I look. 4. I'm a bit obsessed with politics right now. It isn't healthy. 5. I am an excellent bread-maker - a skill that is getting rusty right now because the bread has to many calories and carbs.

These are the bittersweet NSVs - great to have the jeans be too big, but they're not going to reign as your favorites anymore. Gotta invest in a NEW favorite pair of jeans! Congratulations!

Mine has been open to friends since I joined, but am thinking about closing it. I have had a couple of occasions where I regretted that it was open and it invited unwelcome and unneeded analysis. I am not stupid - if I didn't eat many vegetables on a given day, I am fully aware of it - made some other food choices that day…