RE: HELP / JAMES

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Hi ! Thanks for replying! It's exciting getting a reply from you. I'm a big fan. I've been reading your replies for months. You are always so helpful and caring!

Nope. When I restarted I didn't want to go back to Phase One again. If I ever see another egg or glass of V-8 it'll be too soon. LOL. I know, there are other choices. I'm thinking I should have jumped back on Phase One. I'm going to try that now.

Yeah, recording what I eat in a day is VERY helpful to me. It's nice too that Nutridary and Fitday keep a running total of your stats. I've found that my total fat has been WAY high. Sometimes I have up to 3 or 4 servings of nuts in a day. I know, I know. BAD, BAD, BAD. Plus I was adding peanut butter to the ricotta dessert and having almost a cup a day of that. DOUBLE BAD. I think it is because I have been having really bad cravings (evidently from not going back on Phase One).

I bagged up all our nuts in serving size baggies. I'm going to see if that works. Otherwise, bye bye nuts! I swithced from almonds to pistachios because my husband and I were getting burned out on them and needed a change. But man! Pistachios are so hard to control. They're sooooooo good!

And sugar free fudgesicles, they're out of here! Can't control those either. I'm just exchanging "legal" sweet treats for all the junk I used to eat before. That's what got me into being this heavy. My big weakness is night time TV. I've always snacked a lot at night while watching my favorite shows or movies.

Water is the only thing I drink. I don't drink coffee, tea or soda. I just have trouble drinking a lot of it. I'm a sipper and if I don't push myself I only end up drinking 2-3 glasses a day.

I weigh 352 and I want to get down to 135. I'm 39 years old and 5'7" tall. I used to weigh that back when I was more athletic in my twenties. Then between going through years of depressions and being a guinnea pig with different medications that packed on the pounds I ended up in a place I never dreamed I'd ever be. But, I'm not quitting until I get back where I want to be. I know I can do this. I just have to be patient and never give up.

Thank you for all your help . It means a lot. :-)

Kim S.

-- RE: HELP

> Background: I started SBD December 2004. Lost 27 pounds. Went

> back to my old WOE for a couple of months. Didn't gain anything

> back. That was good! :-) Just got back on a week ago. And

> gained 4 pounds. What the heck!

If you've just restarted, did you do another P1?

I wouldn't let that 4 pound gain get you down -- it happens. Just work on

taking it back off and keep on truckin'!

> I started using Nutridiary (tried both Fitday and Nutridiary,

> like Nutridiary best) to see if I can find some problems.

That's good. Although I don't think newbies should be using these tools,

they're good for folks who are more established in the diet or who are

having problems within their meal plans. You'll have to post some of your

stats for us, let us see how things are coming -- I'll be this really helps

you get down to the nitty gritty.

> Nuts (didn't have a problem limiting almonds, but now I

> bought some pistachios)

Pistachios are like <insert illegal substance of choice> -- once you start,

you just can't stop. They're so small and innocuous -- they couldn't EVER

be a problem. If you did fine with almonds, why switch off?

With nuts you can also pre-make your servings in sandwich bags. At that

point, you just need to have the willpower not to go back out to the kitchen

and get another serving.

> Sugar Free Fudgesicles

> Ricotta Dessert

I've always thought that these sweet treats were a bad idea for folks with a

lot of weight to lose. I understand the reasoning behind them being in

there and all, but they're not necessary and have limited nutritive value.

The whole idea behind something like the SBD is to eliminate the excesses

and change the bad habits that formed in the previous, unhealthy lifestyle.

I could see it on occasion, but every day? All the "sugar free" stuff and

desserts just seem to be a substitute for more of the same. <Shrug> That's

just my 1.3 cents (adjusted for inflation).

> I also struggle getting in 8 glasses of water a day.

What all do you drink besides water?

> Maybe I need to make sure I don't buy the things I have problems

> limiting. But, my husband is also following this WOE and likes

> having those things around. Not sure where he could hide them

> that I wouldn't find them. I don't know??????

His and her pantries -- it's the only way to go. Give him his own small

cabinet for those items -- then stay out of it. If you can't control

yourself, have him put a lock on it.

> I'd love to get your thoughts on the whole situation. I feel

> really discouraged and frustrating having gained 4 pounds back.

> I have so much to lose that I don't want this to take centuries.

> You know?

Like I said -- don't sweat it. You'll get there, you just have to be

patient. You've clearly identified some of your problems already -- now you

just need to take appropriate actions to remedy problem areas. In the long

run, you're probably looking to take off half of what you currently weigh --

right? It wasn't put on overnight, and it isn't going to come off over

night. If you can lose between 5-10 pounds a month, it won't take

"centuries" and you'll keep it off.

Last year at this time, my weight soared to an all time high of 245ish.

Over the course of the year, I yo-yo'd up and down until I finally ended up

at about 225 at the beginning of this year. I then yo-yo'd between 217-223.

I started SBD back at the end of January and now I'm at 206ish. Bear in

mind -- this has all been without exercise as well (I've only recently

REALLY been able to exercise and I'm putting together a serious workout

schedule).

I realize it takes time and even more importantly, I want to make sure it is

done in a healthy way. Every once in a while, my weight pops back up -- I

just tighten things up a little bit and work it back down. I've found this

occurs mostly when I get sick (and I spent a lot of time sick at the end of

this winter -- it was a tough first couple of months on the SBD for me).

I've been sick the last several days and sure enough -- my weight is up. I

was ready to scream when I saw 212 on that scale again for the first time in

months -- that's SIX pounds gained and it happened in just a few days' time.

That goes well beyond the typical 1-2 pound daily fluctuations in weight.

Rather than becoming discouraged though, I just pulled back and started

streamlining -- being extra cautious about what I'm eating, watching out for

those things that I might get too much of, monitoring my sodium (heart

problems), and so forth. See, I've learned what foods and such trigger my

weight gain. Probably my big issue this last week has been sodium -- I've

been getting higher amounts and for ME that's not a good thing. I've also

had a couple of servings of pasta and rice -- another problem spot for me.

I got it back down to 208 again and by the time I get to my Wednesday

weigh-in, I should be back to level at 206. In the end, I'll have lost a

week because I over did it a bit while I was sick but guess what? That's

just one week -- a single, simple, solitary week. Do I get depressed,

discouraged and devastated? Nah -- I just work it back off again and dive

right back into the plan.

That's what you just have to do -- keep on keepin' on. Keep the faith and

know that no matter what rough spots you hit along the way, there IS a light

at the end of that tunnel. So hang in there and keep pushin' forward!