another one of those posts

Ok so everyone can start throwing things at me. I need advice. I feel like I'm doing everything right, I need to up my water a little but nothing crazy and I have been losing and gaining the same 3lbs and today I was even heavier then that. On Sunday I was 189 now I'm up to 192 whats going on?? Is this it? I'm afraid. Don't get me wrong I'm tickled pink that I have lost 73lbs of the 110 I wanted to lose but I'm only 4 months out. I don't eat sugar, I'm doing low fat/high protein, exercising & watching my portions so why have I stopped losing? Maybe this is it. *Cry* I hit my 4th month on the 9th. Thanks for listening to me wine. Hugs to you all. It's been a fun ride! Rebecca

Rebecca, It is not over. I have read enough around here at OH that I can tell you that it stops when you let it stop. Right after I had my surgery I came across a post that I pasted into a Word document so I could retrieve it just for an occasion like this. I don't know who wrote it or who should get the credit for it, but it is shown below and may offer some tips to help you. If your calories are in the right range, your body has no choice but to give up the weight. Just have fun and enjoy. Getting to goal won't be that much more fun than what you are enjoying right now. You will get things going again and I don't need to remind you that plateaus are just a natural part of the process. Also, there is a young lady that is over on the RNY board whose name is MelissaF. She says in her story that everyone started out by jumping ahead of her. Then she just stayed with the plan and eventually she passed all of those early jackrabbits. She has an interesting story and I would encourage you to read that as well....it is inspirational. I'm also a big fan of cabbage soup as a jumpstarter. I did that in my Weigh****cher days and had great success. I also did it when I got back from Michigan and lost 22 pounds in the past 6 weeks. John +++++++++++++++++++++++ How to break a plateau #1 - Do this for 10 days to break a plateau #2 - Drink 2 quarts of water a day #3 - You must have 45 grams of protein supplement and all your vitamins/minerals supplements each day #4 - You may consume up to 3 oz of the following high protein foods, 5x a day beef pork chicken turkey lamb fish eggs low fat cheese cottage cheese plain yogurt or artificially sweetened (?) peanut butter beans/legumes You may also have: sugar free popsicles tea or coffee sugar free soda sugar free jello broths/bullion (sp?) crystal light drinks #5 - If it's not on the list, you can't have it for 10 days!!!! #6 - Keep a food diary and try to get up to 30 mins of exercise daily

Thank you John, I know your right and I love reading MelissaF's posts. What is in your cabbage soup? Can I put chicken in it or any protein?

Rebecca, I make my soups a bit different each time, but they are pretty simple. I use one head of cabbage and 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil (I learned years ago in Weigh****chers that oil/fat is a MAJOR ingredient to steady weight losses). Also, I use about 5-6 chicken boulion cubes. Then I season with spices to my taste..I like basil, thyme, oregano and also a couple of bay leaves which I remove after cooking. Then I blend it up in the blender and eat from that for a few days. I measure everything and run a calorie count on fitday and divide by the cup serving. This is not all that pretty, but I do enjoy it for my afternoon snack. I did use it with some unflavored Unjury protein and it was just "okay". You could add some chicken chunks in after cooking to give it that extra protein. Thanks for the idea. Also, when I get an idea of something I would like to try, I search at recipesource.com and I always find 5-10 recipies that have the base ingredients around what I'm trying to build. Then I print off my favorite one and jot a few ingredients down from the other recipes and attack the kitchen. Everything always turns out this way and I'm assured that I won't put in too much of any one ingredient. I hope that helps. Now go out there and break that stall...you will be back in a week or two giving us you positive report. John

Are you taking fiber? I started losing after I started fiber. I am not one of the fortunate ones that gets the runs. Hugs, Esther

Thanks for the plateau breaker John! I'm having a HORRIBLE time. I swear the more I walk, the worse my plateau gets. I'm so disgusted. I'll start trying this. I'm getting in my vitamins and the liquids and everything but I must be doing something wrong. * Cyndi *