May/June weight loss thread

[Susan Otcenas]

I don't eat a lot of fruit - it's too high in carbs.

Carbs are our bodies' primary fuel. I try to get 65% or so of my daily caloric intake from carbohydrates. I'm not a believer in low carb diets, though I recognize that they work for others.

Plus I'm pretty picky about it... no blemishes, has to be just theh right firmness...

Nuts have been my latest thing.

I'm picky about my fruit too. Especially the right firmness. I like crunchy apples, crisp grapes, etc.

I loooooove nuts(especially roasted & salted), but eat them only in moderation. Full of good fats, but fats nonetheless. It's very easy for me to have too many and consume a lot of additional unnecessary calories.

Susan

[Reesha]

My favorite nuts are unroasted raw almonds. I don't think I ever eat more than a quarter cup or so. I just think they're so much more fragrant than when they're roasted! I think it's important to be conscious of where your carbohydrates are coming from, rather than eliminating as many of them as possible. I know that my body balloons when I have to many simple, refined carbohydrates. When I have them, I try to make sure they're from fruit or whole grains, but mostly from fruit.

[Veronica]

It wasn't until I really began watching my carb intake that I got leaner. But I was a real sugar junkie - still am. I just keep it under control a lot better. I'm doing roughly 50% carbs, 30% protein, 20% fat. I actually keep track of the grams, so it doesn't quite work out to that - 173 carbs, 100 protein, 40 fat.

Since I really like sugar, I've been limiting the fruit and trying to get more whole grain stuff in. I find it a little more satisfying. I still don't have it quite right - 100 proteins are hard and I like my fats!

Veronica

[Reesha]

I find it really, really hard to cut the fats out of my diet, especially when I use straight olive oil on my salad instead of dressing. I should eat more protein, but it's expensive

I don't know... my fat intake was really high on the raw diet as well but they were all really healthy fats-- olive oil, avocados, nuts. I still lost plenty of weight.

[Veronica]

For me it's about making changes I (and my husband) can live with for the rest of my life.

Everybody is different. Our bodies and brains are all put together differently. I'd go crazy counting Weight Watchers points. Don't ask me why counting three different things is better. I don't have an answer - but it works for me. I guess because after the first week of counting, I just kept eating the same things.

Veronica

[Possegal]

I've had an anaphylactic reaction to tree nuts before, so they are not allowed in my diet. I wish I could eat them since so many experts talk about them as a great snack food. But, I've grown accustomed to the whole inhale then exhale thing, so I've decided to keep doing that and skip the nuts. Anyone else know any other good snacks. I'm finding the 3:00 timeframe at work to be a tough one.

[Reesha]

Edamame hummus and red peppers

[channlluv]

Possegal, can you eat seeds? I've recently started carrying a little Glad container of raw sunflower seeds. They're very satisfying and are a MUFA, so they're one of the healthy fats, and all that.

I'm three days off wheat as of tonight. D*H eliminated wheat and dairy from his diet in February and lost thirty pounds in two months. He was riding a lot, too, and had just gotten an iPhone with the calorie tracking app, so he has become a bit obsessive about tracking everything he eats and all the exercise. He did a 42-mile ride this afternoon and probably lost five pounds or something ridiculous. It's just falling off him. He's lost two whole bikes' worth of weight. His average speed has gone from 18mph to 20+.

Me, well, I'm enjoying long rides every weekend, and I've noticed that I can keep my heartrate higher longer without feeling like I'm about to have a heart attack. My speed hasn't increased much lately, though. I'm on a mountain bike - a 12-year-old Palomar GT. Lavender with white trim. I also have a Schwinn gear bag on the front in which I carry a couple of pounds' worth of tools, a spare tube, my cell phone, a small first aid kit, my arm warmers, and some tissues. Oh, and my keys. Not exactly aero.

So really, off wheat, exercising quite a bit, the weight should start falling off any second now, right? I want to get under 240 before we go to Hawaii on Saturday.

Somebody please say yes.

Roxy

[Susan Otcenas]

For me it's about making changes I (and my husband) can live with for the rest of my life. Veronica

Truer words were never spoken (erm, written...) ! It's not a diet. It's a way of eating healthfully, for life.

Everybody is different. Our bodies and brains are all put together differently. I'd go crazy counting Weight Watchers points. Don't ask me why counting three different things is better. I don't have an answer - but it works for me. I guess because after the first week of counting, I just kept eating the same things.
Veronica

I kept track of my cabs/protein/fat for a short while a few months ago, when I was feeling a little fatigued. It was eye-opening and I'm glad I did it. I discovered I wasn't getting enough protein. And at that point, I *did* start to make an effort to get a little more. I like to get .6-.7 grams per pound of body weight, which puts me at 77-90 grams protein per day, or around 300-350 cals per day of protein. I wasn't always getting that, partially because I sometimes do not eat alot of animal protein. (I'm allergic to cow's milk). So, I've started eating more turkey breast in particular, and have goat yogurt almost every day. Along with beans and tofu, that's usually enough. Also, I never miss an opportunity for sushi, as GLC can attest to. Finally, I joined a beef/pork CSA. I didn't eat beef or pork for about 11 years, but added it back in late last summer. We only eat it once a week, sometimes twice, as I try to limit my saturated fat intake.

I think the most important thing of all is to find something that fits your lifestyle, while being healthy & maintaining a healthy body weight. If it's too hard to keep track of, or if you resent having to do it, it'll feel like work. And we all work enough already - who needs more? I want food to be something that is pleasurable and satisfying, not something that I have to divide into "good" and "bad".

[channlluv]

Maybe that's why I'm so reluctant to start counting calories and points or whatever. It's not a lifestyle choice I want to keep up.

I actually passed up rolled tacos today with my mother-in-law and ate the salad-like garnish only instead. She had bought them from one of her favorite taco stands, and they come five-to-a-plate, mounded high with shredded lettuce and chopped tomatoe, onion, shredded cheese, and guacamole. The salad was delicious, and I honestly didn't miss the taco part all that much. I think I can do the no bread thing.

Roxy

[Susan Otcenas]

Maybe that's why I'm so reluctant to start counting calories and points or whatever. It's not a lifestyle choice I want to keep up.

Nonetheless, you may want to do it for a short period of time, especially if you are having trouble losing. It can be incredibly eye-opening. In my experience, most people eat far more calories, far less veggies, and exercise far less than they think they do.

When you write it all down (whether its points or calories or just a food journal with no "counting" at all) it's all there in black and white. You can study it and maybe discover something that might help you get past a hurdle.

[Reesha]

Maybe that's why I'm so reluctant to start counting calories and points or whatever. It's not a lifestyle choice I want to keep up.

Yeah I hear you-- I can really only do it during the summers when I'm not teaching-- or doing much of anything!!!

I am also capable of having all kinds of discipline for about 2 weeks and then I get bored with what I'm doing. At least I generally eat pretty well!

Shootingstar-- doesn't it always seem like a lot of work cutting out all that stuff at first? I always sink back on that stuff, particularly when it's that time of the month. It's like the easy fall back thing! It stores nicely, cooks without much of a fuss... I just need to keep faster and healthier stuff around when I want to feel full.

Watermelon has been doing a really nice job of keeping me full lately! Oh summer, how I love thee.