OK - what does THAT mean?

Hey all!

I've just recently started looking at the menu threads - at almost nine years out I have avoided them because posting what I eat now probably wouldn't be helpful to anyone. Someone had recently mentioned that they are a source of great WLS ideas for recipes though and for the last few days I've been all over them.

At the same time, I realized that even though I have been on OH for a looooonnnng time there are still words and topics and such that I either do not have a definition of or don't fully understand. This morning I realized that if I was still unclear on some stuff, newer people might be as well.

SO in the interest of more knowledge being always good, I'm going to quit skipping over what I don't know and start asking some questions. If anyone else out there is wondering about anything feel free to go ahead and pile on. If not - well, maybe someday someone going through old posts will get some help from this thread.

I'm going to start with "accountability". Being new to menu threads I have yet to understand what this word means (I know the dictionary definition) in the context. Is it commentary on how you did with following your food plan the day before? General comments on your efforts? or moods? progress? attempted goals?

This part of the daily threads seems to be all over the board and honestly whatever works for anyone is great as far as I'm concerned. But what is the intent?

Help?

Just to clarify: I'm not going to be referring to "OH speak" as in board terminology. There is actually a cool little place already set up here that can help folks with that. You'll find that at Message Board Lingo =)

Yes, you got it right. Accountability is just to chime in on whether or not you stuck to your plan. We post our menus but we don't always eat what we planned.

You got it right. I saw accountability as posting something you had that you didn't plan on having. I saw it as that & also people posting food that they knew they shouldn't have had to begin with. Like if I said I was gonna eat fish, then later changed my mind & had roast beef, I'd still put it in the accountability part of my post. Just like if I ate roast beef, then later had a pint of ice cream, both would still go on the accountability part of my post.

However if I planned on having roast beef & then later a serving of ice cream, then that's just what my menu was for that day. It's not the best, but it's what I would've planned for. Of course I'd try to stay away from the ice cream since that's a slippery slope for me, but I'd be foolish to believe that I'd never have something sweet forever.

I think most people have some common sense when it comes to looking at menu threads for ideas. It's helpful to look at a post & see, oh this person is this amount of years out, versus someone who is only a couple of months out. Hopefully when people do post on the menu thread that they'll have somewhere on their ticker/post where they're at weight loss wise. i.e losing regain, maintaining, etc.

I think the menu threads kinda fills in where the chat boards, fell away. It's a kind of light filled banter, but I think you have to post early to get in on the fun!

I don't post on the menu threads. My menu is boring but it works for me. Plus I like to sleep all morning, most of the banter is gone by the time I get to the thread.

Pretty sure it's people commenting on how well they did the day before :)

I write in my "accountability" to report back whether I stuck to my plan or not. I may have wonderful intentions of eating 700 calories and running 2 miles, but at the end of the day I may have actually eaten 1100 and never run a step... For me it's important to admit to those digressions, publicly (feels like it keeps me honest!). But it's also to keep it real for the others who might think they are the only ones who are having a hard time sticking to plan.