Geriatric mm warriors (12/30/09)

[kater]

I FINALLY made Jocelyn's turkey chili with soy beans. I made it in the crock-pot yesterday. I like it. Which is a good thing since I never could find the soy beans at Whole Foods or my other local stores, I bought a case on Amazon! Brad just shakes his head at me sometimes. He never says a word though - bless him!

I decided to treat myself yesterday and left my car at the car wash to be washed, waxed and detailed inside. Halle and I walked the 1/2 mile or so from the car wash back to my office so I could do some work while my car was being made beautiful. I got a call about two hours later that my car was done but that there was a problem they would explain to me when I got there. Apparently when they were vacuuming the leaves under the hood (?) someone left a towel on the engine and the towel got sucked into something when they moved the car. By now it is 4:00 p.m. Brad is out of town. I am supposed to be meeting my mom for dinner at 6:00. AAA said the closest car rental place that was open was at the San Francisco airport (which is almost an hour away - I guess I was supposed to take a cab with Halle?). The service department at the BMW dealership was closed. I finally called a friend who has an ownership interest in the local Mitsubishi dealership and he said to have the car towed there and they would give me a loaner. The tow-truck was one of those with a really high cab - it took two of the car wash guys to lift all 82 pounds of Halle up into the cab. I made it to dinner on time and the car wash people have assured me that they will take care of the repairs...... The service guy at the Mitsubishi dealership looked inside and said WOW, your car sure is clean! I had to laugh and tell him why my car was there.

Lisa - I have to agree with a lot of what you have been saying. I MISS fruit. Particularly blackberries. I love them in my yogurt! My naturopathic doctor says to eat "nutrient dense" foods, stay away from refined flours and sugar, and you will be fine! I told Robin awhile back that I couldn't ever see myself being too successful on Step 2 - the scheduling and the counting....

 

[disneyeveryyear]

Beverly, What's a horseshoe? I think we can make an exception once every couple of weeks or so without gaining. It might slow the losing a bit, but you shouldn't have to give up everything you like forever. Moderation is the key, right?

I think I'm going to try a week or so with eating good, sensible food and see what happens because I'm stuck. Maybe it will jar things up? I want to lose more before our vacation!

Good morning! I posted this morning and it's not here! ? That's the first time that has happened to me.

I finally made it to the Museum of NYC yesterday. It was a nice time with my sister and her friends from work.

Today it's going to be in the 50's! The rest of the week is going to be nice too. Yay!

This week I've been on the Primal Blueprint diet with my son for lunch and dinner. At breakfast I still want my 5 gram bread! He lost 5 lbs. in the first 4 days. He's young and a guy, so it's easy for him. (but kinda annoying to me ) As you know, I've been surfing for recipes. All last week dinner was a new recipe. The winner was the Italian porkchops. I made an onion bread with almond flour and arrowroot that is great. He loves it and it's allowed on his diet. I don't know if arrowroot is allowed on MM. This diet suggests eating grassfed beef. I usually buy 'natural' beef, but never had grassfed beef. I bought 2 steaks at the farmer's market ($12/lb.!!). When my son tasted them he said 'this tastes like venison'. As soon as he said it, I could taste it. I stopped eating it. I didn't know that grassfed beef tasted different. I googled it to make sure it just wasn't this stuff and it is true that it tastes gamier. Oh well - I'm not buying it again.

I enjoy Michael Pollan's wisdom too. He also said "Don't ingest foods made in places where everyone is required to wear a surgical cap."

I hope everyone has a great day!

I'm curious to know what a horseshoe is too! It must be something good.

Diane - great to see you. Sorry your post didn't make it. Weird when that happens.

What the heck is a horseshoe?

OK - OK - If I tell you, you have to promise to not kill me. It is a piece of toast topped with meat (typically) we had hamburger, (but I have had turkey, ham, buffalo chix, pork tenderloin, etc. - they even make them with eggs) smothered in cheese sauce and covered in fries. I call it a heart attack on a plate, but if the place makes good cheese sauce it is amazing. It was created here in Springfield and hasn't made it too far (I wonder why). But really yummy. If you have ever had cheese fries with a good homemade cheese sauce you are half-way there.

Here is a picture.

Amelia and I did share it, so I only ate about 1/2 of this amount. 1/2 is usually called a pony-shoe. I thought Robin would appreciate that.

I have been back on track today with no ill effects, so back to basics, I guess.

I FINALLY made Jocelyn's turkey chili with soy beans. I made it in the crock-pot yesterday. I like it. Which is a good thing since I never could find the soy beans at Whole Foods or my other local stores, I bought a case on Amazon! Brad just shakes his head at me sometimes. He never says a word though - bless him!

I decided to treat myself yesterday and left my car at the car wash to be washed, waxed and detailed inside. Halle and I walked the 1/2 mile or so from the car wash back to my office so I could do some work while my car was being made beautiful. I got a call about two hours later that my car was done but that there was a problem they would explain to me when I got there. Apparently when they were vacuuming the leaves under the hood (?) someone left a towel on the engine and the towel got sucked into something when they moved the car. By now it is 4:00 p.m. Brad is out of town. I am supposed to be meeting my mom for dinner at 6:00. AAA said the closest car rental place that was open was at the San Francisco airport (which is almost an hour away - I guess I was supposed to take a cab with Halle?). The service department at the BMW dealership was closed. I finally called a friend who has an ownership interest in the local Mitsubishi dealership and he said to have the car towed there and they would give me a loaner. The tow-truck was one of those with a really high cab - it took two of the car wash guys to lift all 82 pounds of Halle up into the cab. I made it to dinner on time and the car wash people have assured me that they will take care of the repairs...... The service guy at the Mitsubishi dealership looked inside and said WOW, your car sure is clean! I had to laugh and tell him why my car was there.

Lisa - I have to agree with a lot of what you have been saying. I MISS fruit. Particularly blackberries. I love them in my yogurt! My naturopathic doctor says to eat "nutrient dense" foods, stay away from refined flours and sugar, and you will be fine! I told Robin awhile back that I couldn't ever see myself being too successful on Step 2 - the scheduling and the counting....

I liked the crock-pot chili also, but I don't use all the extra spices (cinnamon, etc.). I tried it once with all the stuff, but didn't like those flavors, so now I just use the regular seasoning, but I do use the black soy beans. The last batch I made, the beans stayed kind of hard, I don't know what went wrong.

Sorry to hear about your car, but glad you were able to get a loaner and move on.

Well, I am working on end of the year stuff for one of my bookkeeping clients, so I had better get back to work. I'll talk at you later.

 

[Seabreezes]

Hi,

I am home for a couple of hours so have unlimited connection. The ship charges are out of site so just do e-mails off line and then Bob sends everything at one time. I can't sit and read posts off of forums. We did a lot of shopping in CA so had a lot of things to bring back home. I am stocked up on almond meal and sugar free syrups!! YAY

Eating is a challenge and even though I think I am doing OK, I know I have put on some weight the last couple of weeks. The weather was cool and the seas a bit bouncy coming from Los Angeles to Honolulu. We did not get outside and walk much and I don't like the gym on bouncy days as it is on the top deck. The pool could not be filled, either. We leave this evening for Sydney so hope for warmer weather and calmer seas the next 2 weeks.

Didn't Diane say she would not be answering e-mails anymore on her blog? I think those days are gone. She might have gotten too many questions from people who were not doing that well. On the blurbs for all of these diets that say you can lose many pounds a week, you have to weigh a huge number to begin with. I don't think any of us fit that category.

I do find it interesting that Jorge Cruise and Diane have the same philosopy and it is inches and not pounds you lose. Since you count all carbs on his diet you use a lot of carbs in veggies so there is not room for all the cracker type food. The crackers ususally have a lot of sugar in them, too as well as carbs.

I wish I knew what the magic formula was for losing weight, but I do think changing things around a bit wouldn't hurt at all as long as you don't go overboard on white foods ie. bread, potatoes, rice, flour based foods, sugar etc.

Time to venture back to the ship. I'll catch up with everyone in a couple of weeks.

Personal e-mails without any attachments are fine to send to me while I am travelling, though.

Hugs to ALL

 

[Simpleone]

Good evening everyone!

...so I've been thinking about you all today. I changed my way of eating in November of 2008. It's taken me 16 months to lose close to 70lbs. That's a very slow loss, for anyone. Don't forget that I have no medical issues at all that I have to watch or monitor that would inhibit my progress. I'm thinking that switching things up a tiny bit can't possibly hurt anyone as long as types of carbs are kept in check at all times. To me the rest is ingrained. I don't think I could keep from looking at the clock each time I eat, if my life depended on it!

I'm so afraid that since I voiced what I've done, I've influenced any of you to go off plan!! All I can say about that is...remember how hard Step I is? That thought alone keeps me from straying too far. I just am skirting the plan, with everything being in moderation.

My other thought was that I was a 'non-eater' to begin with. I would go a day or two without eating anything then sit down to a big plate of beef and noodles and mashed potatoes, then go another day or two and not eat once again. Can you imagine what my metabolism must have been going through? Gads! Being on MM has taught my body to be hungry and mean it and now I listen.

If you do decide to venture away, I hope you do what I did, follow closely the things we know work. Eat as natural as possible, low carbs, no white death stuff, and eat within the five hour range. The break may do you some good.

I think we may be going back to Mexico next weekend. I'm very excited about it. Yay! I've been having two of my grandkids three days a week and over nights. Both parents work nights now and I have to allow them time to sleep. It ties me back to the house so you all will be seeing more of me! lol It will only be for a few more weeks, then she gets to change back to days. Whew! Just in time for the weather to clear and then I can get my cycling career off the ground.

Have a wonderful rest of your evening!

 

[Diane W.]

Diane: I wonder if one can aquire a taste for grassfed beef? QUOTE]
Lisa - I don't think I can! We don't eat beef a lot. When I buy it I go to Whole Foods - it's natural, hormone-free, etc. - not grassfed. My ex was a hunter and we had venison in the freezer, but I never cooked it or ate it. He and my son did. Venison is better for us than beef supposedly, but it's not for me either.

Kate - I hope your car gets fixed quickly! What a pain in the neck.

 

[Wisteria1956]

Diane: I wonder if one can aquire a taste for grassfed beef? QUOTE]
Lisa - I don't think I can! We don't eat beef a lot. When I buy it I go to Whole Foods - it's natural, hormone-free, etc. - not grassfed. My ex was a hunter and we had venison in the freezer, but I never cooked it or ate it. He and my son did. Venison is better for us than beef supposedly, but it's not for me either.

Kate - I hope your car gets fixed quickly! What a pain in the neck.

It sounds like you are buying a superior quality of meat as it is. Better than I do in practice because as Tom doesn't eat red meat, I cave and order it in restaurants once in a while, where I'm not getting the best quality, I'm afraid. Don't you just love Whole Foods??!! My spirit just floats around in there - so unlike other grocery stores. I just know it's full of like-minded people.

 

[Wisteria1956]

I ate three healthy meals today with carbs at two of them totaling about 24 of the kind we count. Didn't want any snacks or bedtime food. We'll see how this works out for a week. I'm trying to exercise every day also for 30 minutes until I'm stronger.

 

[Diane W.]

I didn't get the job! I sent her an email today and she said they filled the position. Crap.

I had plans to do alot today, but now I don't feel like doing anything. I feel brokenhearted. Sounds stupid, but I can't help it. I think she thought back in Nov. that she would never hear from me again and that's why she said all that crap about what a tough decision it was between me and person they chose. I feel like emailing the last man that I interviewed that day who said to me 'in my mind you have the job' and say 'what the heck happened?'. I won't, but I really want to.

 

[Wisteria1956]

Diane: I think it's acceptable to ask what you could have done better in the spirit of obtaining feedback. I would think it would be an admirable trait to want to better oneself for the future. If you took that tact, they should be glad to communicate with you. I'm so very sorry you didn't get it this time. Your perfect job is waiting for you.

 

[Diane W.]

Thank you Lisa. I did request feedback the first time from the HR person to help me in future interviews. She's the one who said it was a tough decision and I was their second choice. I interviewed with 5 people that day - the mgr. of the dept., 2 directors, the HR person and the person who was leaving the job. One of the directors said 'in my mind you have the job' - he's the one I was thinking of contacting. THe person who was leaving the job was moving to a better job in the company. When she was walking me to the elevator she squeezed my arm and said, so sincerely, I hope you get the job. That's why I was so devastated when I didn't get it and why I was so excited when it was open again. Uggg. I'm disgusted.

 

[Virginiaponygirl]

Good Monday Morning...where the heck is Kathy? she is usually here first every morning...maybe I missed something and she is gone on vacation?

Pam - dont worry about influencing anyone...we are all big girls and have been reading about each others zigs and zags from the program for months now! Like I said before, I just hope we will all stay here and support each other in WHATEVER we decide individually to do!

Lisa - believe me, my sugar will be checked frequently...but I never usually go much higher than 160 or so and that is not THAT terrible, so it will be interesting to see what happens here. I am going to do the two weeks on Jorge's plan starting next monday...just to see what happens...cant hurt in two weeks can it? I love the way his book is layed out with menus and pictures...I also just added magnesium supplement to my growing bag of daily pills, and that is supposed to help stabilize blood sugar.

Diane - so sorry about the job, but as annoying as it all is, it must NOT have been the job God had in mind for you...keep praying, and I will too!

Bev - I havent been quite sure what to do next either, but the Jorge Cruise is so close to MM...and the book is easy to read and well laid out...amazing how us Met B's can eat all that, feel bloated as heck and still show loss on the scale! LOL, I NEVER EVER weigh! Its so completely inaccurate...I am strictly going by how my clothes feel from now on!

Kate - what a mess with your car...if it was me THEY would have had a rental waiting for me there and THEY would have towed my car to BMW where it belongs!! LOL, Im a brat about stuff like that...you messed it up, you take care of the details!

 

[gettinhealthy]

Hi guys!! I am still here. Just took the weekend off. It has been so nice and warm here!!

Diane, I am so sorry you didn't get the job. It is their loss. I also think you should call and ask for feedback. I will pray that a better job comes along soon for you.

Robin, glad to see you posting! Did you manage to get your computer at home fixed? My vista is running slow as ever

Pam, great to hear from you!!

Jocelyn, I hope you have a blast on your travels.

Lisa, hope the knee is still doing better. Just go easy on the exercises.

Ok, here is my input on the debate of MM. I haven't been following it to a T. I had some whole wheat noodles and a bit of mashed potatoes the other night. No ill effects. I am going to do mostly MM, but right now I'm trying to do the Yeast diet thing. I think right now that is more important for my health. I know it is close to MM. I have been feeling much better and a bit more energetic too. I was wiped out last Thurs and Fri, but Sat I was feeling a bit better.
I also started taking the grapefruit seed extract. That is some nasty stuff!! I got some V8 and drink a small glass of it with 3 drops of the extract in it 3 times a day. I feel as though my body is detoxing. I have had horrible gas, and not quite diarreah. (sorry for tmi)
I have a book, Juicing for Life, and there are a bunch of different detoxes and juices to make for different illnesses/diseases. I think I am going to do the yeast one, then do a detox for a week. The author is very clear on what you should/shouldn't eat.

I feel that if anyone of us goes off plan, we should still stick together. We have come too far to let something like different ways of eating break us all apart.

Robin, I have read Jorge Cruise's books, and actually did one a long time ago. May have to revisit his website and reconsider that WOE. I am losing pounds, but not much in inches. I was wearing a size 16 when I started this in Sept. and my blue jeans are 14 (except 1 pair of 12s) and my swim suit is smaller, but I still have that belly fat. I am losing lots in my legs. The cellulite is almost gone now in my thighs, but that's about all.

Ok, off to read emails, FB and just try to catch up everywhere. I have to help Mike's niece move this coming Sat, so I won't be around much that day

I'll be back in a while.

 

[Wisteria1956]

Kathy: You can get grapefruit seed extract in pill form. If you use the drops, read the label, because I seem to remember using 30 drops at a time. You might not be getting enough with only 3 drops. I told you it tasted bad, LOL! But it's amazing. My sis took it to India to keep from getting sick from the water, I think it was.

Kate: I was impressed with your problem solving skills for sure and horrified that you had to experience that situation with the car. What a nightmare!

I'm not eating anything off plan - just trying to skip some added carbs this week to see what happens. I gained a pound the first day, so I should probably have eaten a horseshoe instead, LOL!

I'll post more later to catch up with everyone. Tons of work stuff going on.

 

[gettinhealthy]

Kathy: You can get grapefruit seed extract in pill form. If you use the drops, read the label, because I seem to remember using 30 drops at a time. You might not be getting enough with only 3 drops. I told you it tasted bad, LOL! But it's amazing. My sis took it to India to keep from getting sick from the water, I think it was

Lisa, I will look for the pill form. Mike used it the other day. He was getting sick, a sore throat, and I found a site online (extremely informative) and it said to put 5 drops in 8 oz. water and gargle it. Then swallow it. His sore throat left, but he has a nasty chest cold.
The taste reminds me of the one and only time I juiced a grapefruit with the skin on. I took 1 drink of it and it made me sicker than a dog. It was horrible I can't even describe the taste. Well, you do know if you've put in 30 drops LOL. I read the directions on the label and it said 5-10 drops per 8 oz. I thought I'd work my way up. I even used it when I brushed my teeth. It made them feel sooo clean!! I can give you the link if you're interested. There are a million things it's good for. I know we aren't to have tomatoes on step 1, but it really satisfied me. I am going to make my own V8. I'll have to wait until payday though. I need to get as many nutrients as I can through veges, and I think juicing would do it. I will have to read my juicing book again. It is a really good book.

 

[Virginiaponygirl]

Good to see you Kath! The belly fat is whats making me crazy too...I have lost 30 pounds but cannot for the life of me figure out where it went...definitely in my legs, some in the butt, my arms and wrists, fingers, earlobes and toenails...but as long as this belly is sticking out, there is no way for me to go down another pant size...and I am sick of looking at it quite frankly! so Jorge is making me promises I just cant resist and I figure two weeks cant hurt...he claims results in one week, so if I see nothing after two weeks, then I will reconsider again...Im not even LOOKING at the scale, just want to feel that looser waistband and be able to see my darn toes without sucking in my gut! LOL, still posting from work only...trying to keep my cool and not throw the home computer out the window!!

Lisa - Im thinking that your idea is a good one...that sticking with the timing and all is the hard part, so maybe now that we KNOW what to stay away from and what the basic premise is, maybe it isnt a huge deal to waver a bit on the timing..I mean seriously, why should we HAVE to have something if we arent hungry and dont want it? Wasnt listening to our bodies and eating when we are hungry part of the idea? I know starving myself is not the answer and causes metabolism to slow down, but geez if I am truly not hungry why am I forcing mysefl to eat something? Thats how I felt finally about that whole middle of the night thing...I just could NOT do it...I have not eaten at 3am since I was in college and I just cant do it now!

Hope you guys have a good day tomorrow, I am off and who knows if I will be able to post from home! Off at 9pm now, so off to the gym and able to be home a little earlier...plus 2 Saturdays off a month! Yay!

 

[Wisteria1956]

Lisa, I will look for the pill form. Mike used it the other day. He was getting sick, a sore throat, and I found a site online (extremely informative) and it said to put 5 drops in 8 oz. water and gargle it. Then swallow it. His sore throat left, but he has a nasty chest cold.
The taste reminds me of the one and only time I juiced a grapefruit with the skin on. I took 1 drink of it and it made me sicker than a dog. It was horrible I can't even describe the taste. Well, you do know if you've put in 30 drops LOL. I read the directions on the label and it said 5-10 drops per 8 oz. I thought I'd work my way up. I even used it when I brushed my teeth. It made them feel sooo clean!! I can give you the link if you're interested. There are a million things it's good for. I know we aren't to have tomatoes on step 1, but it really satisfied me. I am going to make my own V8. I'll have to wait until payday though. I need to get as many nutrients as I can through veges, and I think juicing would do it. I will have to read my juicing book again. It is a really good book.

That makes sense. I used the 30 drops in water for the other end, as we discussed, lol! TMI! Mostly, if I'm going to swallow it, I use the pills now. Glad you found so many uses for it! It's amazing stuff. Another example of how everything we need has been provided for us. I love that!

 

[Cindycin]

My best guess is that it would involve a fairly low carb intake. I followed Dr. Perricone's advice for a good while and lost 35 lbs. I ate oatmeal with blueberries and flax seed, a salad with mixed greens, chicken, olive oil and lemon juice for dressing and a dinner of fish or chicken with veggies. Also barley instead of rice when I made his stuffed peppers. Homemade lentil soup. I ate an apple at night. Upon review, I guess I would say it's the Mediterranean diet to a large degree. Just the last couple of days, I've been feeling pulled to do that again. I skipped the carb snack last night - just not feeling like it for some reason. I don't know why???

Hi Lisa and girls! Well I've basically started a vegetarian diet. I've read a couple books and decided that it's the fats, carbs and meats that are killing me. I'm reading Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman and it makes sense to me. So I'm on my 2nd day. I've been reading everyone's posts but haven't had a chance to write anything.

Anyway, I had surgery 2 weeks ago...elective cause having 4 babies really did a number on my bladder muscles so I haven't been able to exercise nor will I be able to for about 4-6 weeks. Can't believe how rough it really is!

Hope everyone is well!

 

[kater]

like i said before, i just hope we will all stay here and support each other in whatever we decide individually to do!

amen!

 

[kater]

Oh, I just hate it when bad things happen to my kids. My 21 year old just lost a job that she loved. The owner didn't even have the decency to tell her by phone or in person - she sent her a text message. Demi is so upset and my heart is just breaking for her. The part that hurts the most is that I am pretty sure that Demi's part in it is that she doesn't have a lot of patience with other people and she ends up not getting along with one or two co-workers. The same thing happened at her last job but she quit that one. I am worried that if I try to talk to her about it she won't understand what I am talking about? The things I am talking about are things that have been part of her personality for as long as I can remember. I don't think she sees it..... I just want to fix it so she isn't so upset....

 

[gettinhealthy]

That makes sense. I used the 30 drops in water for the other end, as we discussed, lol! TMI! Mostly, if I'm going to swallow it, I use the pills now. Glad you found so many uses for it! It's amazing stuff. Another example of how everything we need has been provided for us. I love that!

Lisa, you made me chuckle with the TMI. LOL I am not sure if it's the GFSE making me go more or if it's the other pills I'm taking. The store was out of my probiotic for about a week. The distributor was out!! I did research the company that makes it (Douglas Labs) and was surprised to see they are manufactured in Pittsburgh! I put 10 drops into my vege juice this morning, and I could taste a bit of the bitterness. But not too bad.

I stopped in yesterday and they had 2 bottles in the store. I only got 1 as it's $30 per bottle! My other 2 are also $30 each. So I am putting out close to $200/month out in supplements. I know it won't be forever, so that's why I keep doing it. Wonder of wonders, I have been feeling better. I am now having about 2 or 3 "down days" a week instead of 2 or 3 good days. It is great!!
Here is a link to the site I found about the GFSE if anyone is interested. I couldn't believe how many uses it has!!

http://www.nutriteam.com/index2.html

Thanks for all your knowledge Lisa. I also believe in natural healing. God provided us with this for a reason. He didn't give us prescriptions. Although I do realize there are times where man made is needed too