Val's Journal (comments welcome)

[vald1977]

Hi,
I haven't posted over here on the WISH board before so I hope it's okay if I jump in. I think having somewhere to talk about this stuff will really motivate me. I'm also very excited to read how you all are doing and what you are eating, etc. to give me some new ideas .

A little about me: I am 26, married, and a mommy to a 4 year old boy. Pre-baby weight was about 108 pounds (I'm short 5') and it has all been down hill from there . Somehow I find myself at 155 lbs presently and I am starting to show signs of diabetes and high blood pressure. I would like to lose weight to get healthy and also to feel good about my appearance again.

My dh started SBD 5 weeks ago and he is doing awesome. He's down 30 pounds and looks great. I'm really proud of him and he has inspired me. Here's the problem though. I tried going on SBD and felt really sick and miserable on it. I had a migraine headache the whole time, dizzy spells where I really thought I was going to pass out, vision problems, no energy, it was bad. I struggled through for three days to see if it would get better and it didn't. I gave up after three days on dr's advice and really felt like a failure. Has anyone else experienced this with SBD? Most of what I have heard has been positive so I was really upset when it didn't work for me.

I have now decided to try and keep to a low-fat diet (not following a specific plan) and daily exercise. My in-laws have leant us their treadmill so I want to get on there everyday. I know I won't lose as fast as dh and I am hoping I don't get discouraged. Did my first day today and so far I feel great. Today I ate:
Breakfast: Lowfat Granola Bar
Lunch: stuffed shells made with fat-free cheeses and a salad with low-cal dressing and cottage cheese
Dinner: stuffed shells with fat-free cheeses and slice of pumpernickel bread

exercise: did 1 mile on treadmill (I know that's not much but since I usually get zero exercise, I was very proud of myself for this).

I also drank about 4 glasses of Crystal Light and 1 glass of water. No soda for me is a big deal .

That's all for now. Wow, I guess I am long-winded today .

 

[Strings]

Hi Val,

Welcome to journaling. You'll find a lot of support on these boards. Good job getting started. The first step on the treaddie is the hardest. Try to drink lots of water, it really helps with weight loss. Keep us posted on how you are doing.

Beth

 

[DavidandDenise]

Welcome, Val! Of course we are happy to have you here. I hope you find journaling to be a great experience for you. congrats on the mile on the treadmill; without the first step you will get no where. Don't get discouraged; remember, we are here for you. SBD is not for everyone. I've never tried it, but I do know that making healthy choices and slowly adding exercise will definitely get you to your goal. If you get bored with the treadmill, try to mix things up--try new things until you find a few that you really enjoy. Water definitely helps, but again, make the changes slowly. Today it was great for you to have CL instead of pop (soda), maybe next week you can start trading off glasses of CL for water. Let us know if you have any specific questions--we are here for you.

 

[R_Judy]

Hi Val. Glad you decided to join us.

 

[vald1977]

Thanks so much for the nice welcome.
Here's my plan today:
Breakfast- low-fat granola bar
Lunch- ham sandwich (low-fat ham, pumpernickel bread), cottage cheese, fat-free pringles, pickle
Dinner- finish off stuffed shells with fat-free cheeses, salad?

I have a sorority meeting tonight so I will have to hurry and do my treadmill between that and dinner. We are supposed to have a healthy dessert at the meeting so depending what it is, I will prob. have a small portion of that. I've already had my first glass of Crystal Light. Think I'll have to try some of those flavored waters or something next week since plain water makes me queasy (sp.?). I am going to go read some of the other journals here to get an idea of what you all are eating. Bye for now.

 

[marsh0013]

hey val, welcome to journaling! and good for you for wanting to be healthier. like the other said, sbd isnt for everyone, so i'm glad you've decided to follow a plan that works for you. good luck, you can do this

 

[vald1977]

I'm back for a few minutes before I have to get the kiddos I watch off the bus. I think I am going to start posting in the morning about the day before like many of you do since I did change what I ate a bit (still healthy, though).

I really wanted to ask a couple of questions for those of you who have been doing this awhile. 1.) Is it okay if I eat my "lunch" at Breakfast time? I find I am most hungry when I wake up so eating the bigger meal then is appealing to me. 2.) I think I should try to eat a couple of snacks a day since I have been feeling hungry in between meals and I know I won't last on the diet if I'm feeling hungry. I plan to load up on some healthy stuff at the grocery store on Friday. What do you find really makes you feel full (fruit, string cheese, veggies)?

I've really been trying to work on the water. I had two glasses today and I'll have another one or two as well.

 

[sharoncity]

Hi Val!
Welcome to the journaling board! You are off to a VERY good start. Just keep thinking that it didn't go on overnight, so its not going to come off overnight. Slow and steady will get you to were you want to be and keep you there. Good job on the exercise yesterday. I truly believe that exercise is the key ingredient to losing the weight and keeping it off. Not to mention all the wonderful health benefits of it.
As for your questions, you need to eat on whatever schedule works for you. I am a little crazy in the mornings. I never have time for breakfast. I usually eat a cup of dry honey nut cheerios at my desk around 10 or 11 am. (Its a big joke in the office; they laugh when they hear the bag crinkling. ) Oh, and I find that they really stay with me. Try the foods high in fiber, I think they make you feel full longer. Good low fat foods - 94% FF microwave popcorn, any veggies-broccoli, carrots, cucumber, you could use some FF ranch dressing to dip them in. Hidden Valley FF Ranch is very good. I like Matza crackers (found with the kosher food in the supermarket), spread them with All Fruit Spread (like a jelly) for a sweet tooth craving. I also have a recipe for FF banana bread that I'm all about. BTW, Splenda can be substituted for sugar cup for cup in any recipe to cut down on calories. Oh, and for my ice cream craving, Edy's FF choc fudge made with splenda - YUM! That's a few ideas. Take your time when you go grocery shopping and really look around. Just make sure your not hungry when you go!!
Okay, this post is getting kinda long. Welcome aboard and I'm looking forward to getting to know you!
TTFN_
Sharon

 

[vald1977]

Thanks for the ideas, Sharon. I really appreciate them. Banana bread sounds yummy -- do you use real bananas in it?

Okay, I am going to go down to the treadmill now before I run out of time before the meeting .

 

[sharoncity]

Here's the recipe:
fat free banana bread

Servings = 12
Points per serving = 1

6 very ripe bananas
1 cup Splenda
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup golden raisins - optional

Mash bananas with Splenda. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda. Stir in banana mix and the vanilla. When completely blended, add the raisins. Pour into loaf pan that was sprayed with pam, bake 45 - 60 min at 350 degrees. Cool, remove from pan, let set until completely cool before slicing.

Bake it closer to the 60 min, otherwise I find it to be mushy.
I really enjoy this bread and it is very low cal friendly!
Enjoy!
Sharon

 

[vald1977]

That banana bread sounds great! I'll definitely make that next week. Thanks for the recipe, Sharon.

I did well yesterday. I even drank three glasses of water. I am going to post tomorrow about what I eat today. Yesterday, the only thing I changed was I had some Special K Red Berries cereal instead of my granola bar. I also had a snack of string cheese between lunch and dinner. I'm going to try to follow a schedule of breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, snack since I have been feeling hungry in between lunch and dinner and bedtime.

That's all for now.

 

[DoeWDW]

Valerie, welcome to the WISH Journal board!

You've been getting some great tips and ideas already. The people here are GREAT and always willing to help and support you. I love this board!!

I think you should eat when you're hungry. If you're hungry first thing in the morning and a big breakfast sounds good, then go for it! Also, your idea of snacking is a great one - having legal snacks around can really save you when you're starving and there's lots of tempting junk food staring you in the face. Keep some snacks in your purse - just in case....

Keep up the great work, Valerie, and you'll get where you want to be! You're working to create healthy habits that will stay with you for a lifetime, like drinking water, eating healthy foods, etc. That way, you can say goodbye to your extra weight and health problems for the long haul!

 

[vald1977]

Hi Doreen. Thanks for the nice welcome .

I did pretty good yesterday:
Breakfast - Ham sandwich (low-fat ham on pumpernickel bread), cottage cheese, fat-free pringles, pickles
Lunch - 1 bowl of Special K Red Berries with 1% milk
Snack - low-fat granola bar
Dinner- 1/2 a grilled pork chop, mashed potatoes, green beans
Snack - carrots and celery sticks with ranch dip, 1 reduced fat oreo cookie

I did my 1 mile on the treadmill even though I really didn't feel like doing it since my legs were sore (they aren't used to moving this much ). I also had a really sore throat but I still went down and did it which I am proud of since usually I would have wimped out.

Did good with water yesterday too. Drank about 40 - 50 oz. plus about 40 oz. of Crystal Light. I was in the bathroom about 50 times to prove it too .

This morning I woke up and got on the scale for the first time and I lost about 3 pounds! Yippee ! That just made my day and then I tried my jeans and they did feel a little looser than normal. Today would have been a day where I normally would have probably gotten a fast food breakfast since I was out early but since I see I am making progress, I was able to fight the urge. My legs also feel really good today so I know I will be on the treadmill later. I really want to try and do a mile everyday for 14 days straight and also give up fast food completely for 14 days straight. After that, I will see where I am. Hoping I will have made good progress so I will just keep going.

 

[marsh0013]

hey valerie, i love your goal of 14 days of 1 mile and no fast food! that is a very attainable goal, i'm sure you can do it! it may be a little tough to motivate yourself, but think of it as something that has to be a part of your day. like, you have to wake up, you have to eat, well, you have to do that 1 mile too . then who knows? you may love how it feels and you may just keep it up longer than that! wouldn't that be great!?!

you're doing a really great job so far, and 3 pounds gone!!! how exciting! keep up the great work

 

[sharoncity]

Val, you are doing a great job and really making this work for you! 3lbs gone!! WOOHOO! WTG!!
I love the idea of 1 mile everyday for 14 days. I really think you'll see some great rewards from that. Make sure you take your measurements as well. You may end up seeing more inches lost instead of pounds, but hey that's okay, right?!
Excellent job with the water too! That is a great habit to get into, weight loss or not.
Keep going Val! You are making great progress!!!!
TTFN-
Sharon

 

[tkd lisa]

Val, great job so far! Welcome to WISH and journalling. As far as eating more in the morning, that's actually a very good thing to do. Most experts will tell you that it's better to have more calories early in the day so that you're actually fueled for your day, and burning them off throughout the day. The standard American mode of heavy dinners means that we just go to sleep with lots of calories in us that have nothing to do but turn to fat!!

Congrats on keeping up with the exercise as well. Set goals based on what you can do, and then gradually increase them. Listen to your body. If you're too sore to do something the next day, then you need to cut down and build up gradually. Hang in there, and wonderful news about the 3 pounds gone already!

 

[vald1977]

Hi Lisa! Thanks for the welcome .

Here's my daily check-in:
Yesterday wasn't a great day, but I guess it could have been worse.
Breakfast: low-fat granola bar
Lunch: half pork chop, large serving green beans, mashed potatoes
Snack: handful of fat-free pingles and a reduced fat oreo (not the best snack choice but I really had the salty/sweet craving dut to TOM)
Dinner: 4 oz. steak, large serving sauteed mushrooms, large serving brussel sprouts, corn, mashed potatoes (This dinner was probably high on calories too since I ate so much although I did try to load up on the veggies and mushrooms and not so much on the mashed potatoes and steak.)
Snack: two graham crackers with peanut butter and choc. chips on them and some fat-free cool whip (Really should have skipped this, not a great choice)

Seems like I am always starving when it is that TOM ! I did drink some extra water to make up for it. Did the treadmill for 1 mile. I also went to the grocery store today so I'll have some healthier stuff on hand for cravings tonight. Got the ingredients to make the banana bread (just have to get the bananas to ripen a bit), 94% f-f popcorn, some more veggies, salad fixings, some low-fat frozen yogurt in case I get a sweet craving (instead of eating that snack from last night). Hope I didn't totally blow it.

 

[marsh0013]

hey val, you definitely didn't "totally blow it"! during TOM, especially if you're extra hungry, you have to listen to your body. sure you could have made better choices, but it's not like you binged. you had a couple snacks that were probably high-cal, but really, you didn't do so bad! they were small snacks, just enough to stop the craving. and most of the time, if it's a real craving, it's good to give in and have a bit, to avoid a binge later . so i think you did the right thing.

and very good idea to buy those healthy snacks. i myself am getting ready to make sharon's banana bread too, just waiting for the bananas to be ready . i'm really looking forward to it, if sharon loves it, i'm sure i will too

hope you have a great day today

 

[vald1977]

Well, you know that three pounds I lost? Somehow 2 of them found their way back since I got on the scale this morning and I was back where I was minus 1 pound . This really stinks. Maybe I'm expecting too much or maybe it's TOM weight but I was still pretty discouraged. Still going to stick to my 14 day plan of no fast food and a mile a day. Hope I can get somewhere.

Yesterday's report:
breakfast -- small piece of steak (2 oz.), large serving of brussel sprouts, corn
lunch -- banana
dinner -- cheese burger (using lean meat and fat-free cheese), I ate about 3/4 of the burger but stopped when I was full and also removed quite a bit of the bun so I wasn't eating a ton of bread, oven - baked steak fries, pickle
snack -- a couple of bites of low-fat frozen yogurt

Did okay with water and did the treadmill.

 

[sharoncity]

Okay Val, looks like you really need to concentrate on getting the water in. 1.) to help flush out the bad stuff from yesterday and 2.) to help the whoosh fairy take care on TOM weight gain. I too had a bad day yesterday and I'm trying to get my water in today to make up for it.
Your day wasn't too bad. At least it was small portions of the bad stuff. You've got your pantry stocked with some legal snacks now. You just have to MAKE yourslef have them instead of the bad stuff. I will admit, it is hard at first, but after awhile, it does become easier. I was the QUEEN of late night snacking. But after a few days of simply resisting the urge (and it was NOT easy! ), I did conquer the snack monster! I'm not always perfect, but I sure am alot better about than I was 7 weeks ago!
Hang in there Val! It will pay off for you. Maybe not as quick as we'd like, but we get there.
Have a great day! Open the windows and enjoy the fresh air!!
TTFN-
Sharon