Moderation in all things

Hi folks, I haven't been around posting for a while, for a very selfish reason. I wasn't losing. I just wasn't losing. I dropped 10 lbs in 2 weeks back about 1 1/2 months ago and from then on the scale has just absolutely tormented me. I was doing nothing different. Still exercising faithfully 4 times a week, drinking water, taking vitamins, eating perhaps 1200-1400 calories a day. Except there was a difference. I was eating nuts. Okay, so nuts are high in fat but they are also good for you. Mostly the walnuts and almonds of course, but nuts aren't so bad, right? My grocery store put up a "bulk bar", which is a wall in the back of the store that is completely devoted to things in bulk. Nuts, trail mix, couscous, flax seed, granola, etc. Even M&M's. So they had a container of mixed nuts which I liberally chose from when I was shopping. I always had a container on the top of my computer that when I got a little hungry I picked a few nuts. Well, suddenly I am finding myself buying nuts almost every 3 days, and of course I am the only one eating them. My son eats some, but I am under no delusion that he ate nearly as much as I did. So, here goes the scale. My lowest was 219. I was excited, I had struggled to lose to get under 220 and I had. For a day. Then suddenly it was going up up up. One day I was even 228 again. I was freaking out. I struggled hard to figure out what I had been doing and I realized NUTS!!!!! So I went cold turkey. Not a nut in sight. Not low salt, no salt, not a raw almond, nothing. I stayed off of the nuts for a week. Last Saturday morning I had weighed in at 224. I went to NC on vacation on Sunday and just got home yesterday morning. I visited family and I ate very well, not going off of my program at all. My sisters who are both now struggling with their weight were angry at me, saying I was a martyr. We all went shopping and I was the smallest, fitting into clothes and even having some big that they couldn't get into. So, this morning I weighed in at 211. I was excited, shocked, and totally overwhelmed that even after a year (my one year anniversary was on July 7), that I can still continue to learn things about my body. The one thing I learned is that you do not have to consume and absorb 3500 calories to gain a pound. Was my gain truly a gain? Or was it my body reacting to a food eaten not in moderation, and full of salt? I don't know. But I can assure you that it's not lip service when someone says "everything in moderation." I do have to apologize for not being here. I give so much credit to those that struggle and still come here. While I am strong, so strong and motivated, in a lot of things, I really avoided here because the scale wasn't moving. I guess I still have a lot to learn huh? I hope everyone is doing wonderfully. Donna

Hi Donna........... Girl, we all go through struggles as you have detailed today........ You got your focus back, which is the important element in all of this............. Sooooooooooo happy to have you back !!!!!!!!!!! Love ya !!!!!!!! Phyllis

Hi Phyllis Thank you for your post. I know we all cross a mountain every single day in this struggle. I guess since I had all the food demons under wraps I wouldn't falter like this. Who knew? I would have eaten oreos if I knew it would have ended up this way!!! Just kidding. Thank you and I've missed you!! Donna

Hi Donna, First of all, congratulations on getting that scale to move! I've had a plateau for the last month, too, and I finally broke it yestrday. I've come to terms with the fact that this is a never ending battle and that the smaller I get, the longer it takes to lose it. Hang in there! Juli

Hi Juli, Thank you!!! It's weird when the scale doesn't move, no matter what happens. Looking closely and being really diligent helps me to remember all the pitfalls I fell into before. I like being more in touch with myself and realizing what it is that is harming me BEFORE it does its damage. You are doing great as well!!! Donna

Hey Donna, I've missed you. It's hard to control the portion size with nuts. I find it's best for me to not keep them at home very often either. 5 almonds are considered a portion on my plan. I'm still hanging in there working out and maintaining. Lynette

Hi Lynette! 5 almonds huh? Probably should have talked to you before finding those dang mixed nuts so attractive! I won't have them in the house anymore either. They were really just wreaking havoc on me! But that is what this journey is all about I suppose. Figuring out what makes us tick and making changes to sustain us for the long haul, not just the quick fix! I'd love to see some pics of that amazing plastic surgery! I know you are the shy type, unlike me who would probably lift my shirt for strangers to see what were once breasts. I am scheduled for December 18, praying I find enough money to cover!!!! Donna

I can relate to this situation as you can see in my post "my plateau days are over". I had a period of nearly one month where I didnt lose any weight, nothing at all. Just gained a little, lost a little, but never really going under this plateau number on my scale. The weird thing was that I (as you) was doing everything right. I was in fact following my food-plan 99%, and that means I weigh everything I eat and eat a fixed amount of the categories of food (as in 25 oz of vegetables etc.). It was extremely frustrating to be in this situation not seeing any results of my effort, and I really had to be extremely focused on continuing eating according to my plan. Luckily I didnt cheat at all, except for one evening where I tried to eat "Freely" in hope of breaking the plateau (guess I had 2-3 extra fruits, more chicken and I made homemade fries-real potatos and butter in oven), but that just caused me to gain 1-2 lbs. Then finally today I started losing again, 4 lbs gone... Very happy about that. I have been trying to figure out why I wasnt losing weight, and it seems that the only connection I can make is that I was sleeping a lot less in the plateau time, but have been doing an effort lately to get enough sleep. It seems that if you are very tired and dont get enough sleep then the body refuses to lose weight, maybe because it senses that you are under stress. Dont know... But I know for sure that weight loss is a much more physically complicated thing then I would have ever imagined. I have never seen any research conducted on people that are in the process of losing weight, but I think if there would be one the results would surprise us all. Hugs from Iceland Heidrun