A WOW and a question

First the WOW. So I go to weigh this a.m. on my oh-so-unfriendly-scale. No clothes. Discouraged by the stupid scale, I glance at myself in the mirror on the way out of my bathroom. My panni hang-over apron flap thing on the right side is GONE. Totally gone. All that's there is smooth wonderful skin. No sag, no droop, no fat. Disappeared over night. Ok, so it's still there on the left side - but I have hopes of it going away there too! What a great boost!!! Who cares what the scale says??? Now the question: Ok, I care what the scale says. I haven't lost any weight since my 8 lb drop after my hysterectomy six weeks ago. I'm cleared for exercise as of this week and my muscles are telling me about it. My food intake has gone well, with minimal 'slip ups'. Thanksgiving was a breeze. I've done the 5 day pouch test, loved it, but didn't lose any weight on it. SO, I'm back to wondering what/if I'm doing something wrong. The only thing I come up with is maybe I'm not eating enough. SO...those of you who have decided to eat more - approx. how many calories do you eat in a day and what is the calorie/percentage breakdown? When I try to eat more - as far as calories, I tend to eat more carbs. It tends to make me snack - which is a problem area for me. If you don't mind, could you share what you eat, when you eat, how much you eat, and what the totals look like? Thanks! Y'all are great!! Margaret

Hey Margaret... Okay, you asked for it! This is how I typically eat: * 1200-1400 calories...around my period probably more like 1600 for a day or two Mostly I try to keep the majority of calories protein based. I don't break it down by %, I just aim for the majority of my meals to be protein forward, then a small serving of fruit and/or veggie, carbs are last...maybe a tbsp. or two. * White carbs are the !! I try to avoid anything that isn't brown: * Splenda whenever possible, even in baked goods. I haven't had a problem yet with a recipe not turning out right. Occasionally, I will use a small amount of honey, molasses, or brown sugar, but even then I try to replace some of what is called for with Splenda or apple sauce. * I use only whole wheat flour which I mix with 1/3 soy flour when baking, and I also add protein powder. * I avoid white pasta, choosing only whole wheat, soy, or one of the lower glycemic pastas in the healthfood section. * Brown rice, wild rice, and quinoa (a complete protein grain) only for grains. * Never use commercial bread crumbs in cooking (meatloaf, meatballs). I make whole wheat crumbs for meatballs, use quinoa in meatloaf, and I use ground Fiber One cereal as fillers. They all taste better than white bread crumbs anyway! * I find that once I start over-indulging in carbs...they start calling to me...my pouch really likes them and I can pack them in because they go down so easy! So, that said, once I see that I am craving them and using them as my go-to choices...I go cold turkey and cut those suckers out completely for a while. Sort of a detox! * I have tried to transfer the need for simple carbs over to fruit, apples particularly. They satisfy my want for more simple sugars in my system, and yet give me the benefits of more fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Simple carbs are just simply crap. * I eat a lot of shrimp! They fill me up, taste good even plain, and are loaded with protein for little calories. I adore shrimp!! * I still eat a lot of things from the early days: cottage cheese (often with mandarine orange segments on top), plain yogurt w/mixed frozen berries, Splenda, and granola, string cheese, sliced deli meats (turkey, roast beef, etc.), protein shake EVERY morning to start the day off with a big dose of protein, Quaker Weight Control oatmeal, soy crisps for snacks, fiber cakes from TJ's if I need something muffin-like, nuts for snacks, sf popsicles, ISS Oh Yeah protein bars in Chocolate Caramel flavor for the chocolate cravings...I really coud go on and on. I hope that this may give you some new ideas...I know that I am always trying to adopt food tips from those that are successful, without becoming a food nazi! I refuse to eat like I am on a diet. I never count fat grams!! I at least want what little food I eat to taste good! That type of eating may not work for everyone, but it does work for me. Don't be afraid to do what really works for you...we can't all eat the same, so don't let someone else's eating plan do anything except inspire you with new ideas. I know that some people would cringe at the thoughts of not counting fat, eating something just because it tastes good (sometimes I do that ), and even having real chocolate with real sugar! But, it has been working for me and it keeps me happy about what I eat. So, try to find what works for you. ~Suz

Thanks so much Suz! That's a lot of good information. I don't count fat grams either. Fat helps keep me regular, and I believe keeps my skin looking good. And chocolate - hello!!! - I think I would die without chocolate now and then. That was one of my pre-op nightmares, that chocolate would make me dump. Not so - thank you Lord! As long as I only eat one or two, I'm fine. Would you mind sharing how often you eat? Do you eat snacks? Or just 3 meals. I appreciate your wisdom about not trying to copy anyone else "diet" but rather fine tuning my own bodies needs - finding what works for me. That is so true! I feel like I just haven't found that yet - or maybe I'm ignoring the signals. Crunchy, salty or crunch sweet snacks are my downfall. Even good ones like Kashi granola bars or whatever. They still just trigger the old grazing habit for me. Meals aren't a problem for me - protein first, then a bite or two of veggies. It's the snacks, if I have them, that are sabotaging me I think. thoughts? suggestions?? I also like your idea of a protein shake for breakfast rather than eating. I think I'll try that. I workout in the a.m., so that'll "feed" that well also. It also means I can save my yogurt/granola "breakfast" as a snack later in the morning if I need it. Thanks again! Margaret

I have always eaten at least 5 times a day, many days more often than that. But, they are like mini-meals for me at around 200-250 calories each. Most of my "snacks" average about 100-190 calories, so if I am really hungry I can, for example, have a 100 calorie snack pack of something crunchy or sweet, or maybe just a measured portion of soy crisps, and also a large apple. That only add up to 200 calories but it fills up the pouch. I still measure my snacks because they can be my downfall, too. But, I certainly feel less guilt about eating something just because it tastes good because I know precisely how much I ate. Basically, if you want a "snack"...have it! Just remember that it counts, so measure, measure, measure!!! And, be very diligent about the choices that you make for them. Having "snacks" has saved me a lot of hunger and frustration...I can't fit an entire "meal" in my pouch unless its filled with lightweight carbs...so mini-meals are the way to go for me! My goal is to eat in as normal a fashion as possible...quality not quantity. For the most part, I think that I have already achieved that. Most of the time, I eat what I like and want to eat...everything that I can't or don't eat...I am getting to the point that I couldn't care less about those things. I just figure out ways to make the foods that I like in a way that supports my nutritional needs. The strange part for me is that I ate pretty much like I do know, before surgery...just in much more frequent and massive quantities!! The only big changes for me have been the vitamins I take regularly, and the additions of protein powder to anything that it will taste decent in! Oh, and I neglected to say it before....YEAH for only 1/2 a panni left!!! I wish mine would just disappear overnight....no such luck so far! I think that the two c-sections I had already did me in with that more than being fat did! *singing* "All I want for Christmas is a new tum-my! A new tum-my! Oh, all I want for Christmas is a new tum-my!!"

Margaret, I am excited that you are halfway to absolutely no panni! My scale is finally moving after a couple of months. Grrr. But I know what I was doing wrong. I wasn't calculating all my food calories and was just counting protein. Since I was eating carb "slider foods" like oatmeal, I was eating too much. I have gone back to where I realize I need to live: LOTS of water, protein, protein, protein before any carbs. I have cut out crackers and carb snacks along with pasta. I have starting looking up every food value. Was I shocked to find that Starbucks decaf sugar free nonfat lattes had caffeine and 190 calories! That is like drinking a soda. I have upped my exercise slightly. I added another round at Curves and am walking more often and doing more reps with weights. In just a few days, I have dropped a couple of pounds below where I was stuck. So with all that said, here I am to what I wanted to ask you....how's your water intake? Hugs, Katy B

Cutting out crackers.... so sad. But probably what I need to do. I only eat whole grain ones, and usually it's with a meal - like with chicken salad or whatever. But I think they ARE sliders for me. And also feed my desire for more, if that makes sense. Yep re: Starbucks. I try not to drink my calories unless it's my protein shake. I do have a latte now and then, but only a "short" and limit it to once a week. My water intake is sporadic, so that's a really really good point. I did really well when I was doing the 5dpt, but it's slacked off some since then. I do better at getting it all in when I'm exercising, especially if I exercise more than once per day. I've just been cleared for exercise following my recent surgery - so that's back up to twice per day on most days (my target is 6 days per week). I'm hoping that will kick start me! Thanks so much for your input. And congrats on getting unstuck!!! Margaret

Hi Margaret!!!!!! WOOOHOO on losing half of the panni!! Hopefully you'll wake up and the other half will be gone too! : ) I really don't count calories at this point, but I probably get between 1000-1400 on a given day. I pretty much stick to the same foods, Wheat Waffle or Kashi cereal for breakfast, no am snack, lunch, I usually have a Healthy Chioce, Smart One, or Lean Cuisine micro meal. I can eat almost a whole one, is that normal? For dinner I pretty much eat what the family eats unless it's pasta or rice or potatoes. Two of my fav meals are chicken teriaki and chicken fajitas. Good luck !!!!

Janie, So do you have no snacks at all? Your calorie intake (and your food choices) looks a lot like mine. Probably around 1000 most days with a bump up to 1400 some days. I can't seem to eat more than 1000 or so if I don't have "snacks". Thanks for the help! Margaret

oh yeah, I forgot, I also have a nightly snack of grapes, a couple slices of ham (think lunchmeat, Healthy choice and pastachios. I eat it everynight. I can't believe I'm not tired of it yet!

Wow Margaret half of your panni gone woooohooooo!!! I wish that was me...but don't think that will happen. I found lately I have been having a hard time with making bad food choices and have decided to go back to basics. I am going to try to get 2 protein shakes in during the day. I always have one first thing in the morning then later after I get to work I have one small cup of coffee. Then I have a small container of lowfat cottage cheese with the mandarin oranges....yummy. For lunch it is usually a salad or all protein. Think I will go back to all protein for now. Dinners are hard going to go back to early days there as well to see if that helps. Hope you find a good way to do it Margaret. Let us know!! Anna