Thanks!

Hopefully there'll be enough accumulation for snowmen. DS still likes to stick baby carrots up his nose and insist we call him Mr. Snowman. It was cute when he was 2, but now it's just disgusting!

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

Well helllooooo TOM.
I guess my cycle is changing because I haven't had it this late since before Michael was born.
It's odd, my dh was really sad this time. He's been calling me several times/day from work to find out, even though he knew the pregnancy test was absolutely, no question negative. He didn't want to give up hope. And this morning he gave me the biggest hug before leaving with a little tear in his eye.

DH said the oddest thing at dinner last night. We were making plans for our family reunion in December, and I mentioned I wanted to reserve a suite at the hotel that comes with a little kitchenette so I'd be able to fix some lc meals and snacks. He said, "You're still going to be doing this in December?"

Despite the lovely spring snow outside, I'm depressed. My weight was up so far this a.m. I'm not even going to document what it is. I'm going to chalk it all up to TOM and move on. But the thing is, I really haven't lost any weight since February and that is very depressing. I have been eating mainly on plan with a few hiccups here and there, but why can't I lose? I've been exercising 3-5 days/week and drinking tons of water. I haven't had a Coke since January 5 (I used to drink 3 a day!), I don't snack like I used to, and the scale just won't move. I know going back to induction carb levels this week will get me back to my signature line only, which isn't even my lowest since starting this woe. My lowest was 145 (I only saw that once, so never really owned it). I read the stories about those on this site that stall for months and months and months, but don't give up. I guess I'll just have to be like those people. I don't know how they do it.

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

Yesterday was on plan despite the bad mood:
B-1 cup leaded, 3 cups decaf, Atkins cereal
L-sauteed cabbage and sausage, cheddar slices
D-2 cups romaine, 1 tbsp creamy italian dressing, cauliflower/cheese/sour cream bake, 1/2 hamburger patty
water-64 oz, not enough
Snack-1 mug flavored coffee (bad-this had 7 carbs, I thoroughly enjoyed every last drop. I guess this means I sabotage my eating when depressed. Didn't lead to cravings, though)

DS and I built the most adorable snowman! We even had a corncob pipe and a red plaid scarf. The head is melting now, though, because it's 49 degrees out.

Today will be much better. Did 30 minutes of cardio this morning (beautiful weather) and upper body weight training.
B-decaf, cereal
L-sauteed yellow squash/onion, leftover roast beef
D-will be grilled salmon, zucchini fritters and salad
water-64 oz so far and the day is only 1/2 over

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

Emily, Good for you!

Even though I got off-track yesterday, I'm back on plan today. Haven't seen TOM yet, but got TOM-like cramps at 5am this morning... so PDS (pretty darn sure) will see TOM before bedtime. :(

Have a great day!

Debby

Emily... forgot to ask you before... do you have a recipe for that cauliflower/cheese/sour cream bake? I'm a recipe kind of gal, and it sounds like it would be good. If you do, I'd love it. You could PM me or post it in my journal. Thanks!
Debby
PS - still no TOM

__________________
Debby

Sunday night. Another week gone by. ....Sigh...
Still not losing TOM weight. I bought a spiffy new notebook today and I'm going to start heavy journaling tomorrow - moods, thoughts, what I eat daily, exercise, weight, etc. I need to find out where I'm failing. My goal is to do this for 2 weeks. Can't do it forever because i don't want to . Don't want to be a slave to thinking about food every minute of every day. I just want to be like 1/2 the world who can eat without thinking and maintain a normal weight.

I haven't been keeping precise track of portions recently and am probably guilty of carb creep.

Today:
B-2 eggs, 1 sausage link
L-2 ham slices, zucchini, 1 tbsp Michael's peanut butter
S-lc bar
D-steak, sauteed spinach w/ garlic, salad
S-staring at some almonds knowing I shouldn't eat any

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

Emily,

I think you have a great goal with your journaling. Good luck with it!

Quote:

Can't do it forever because i don't want to . Don't want to be a slave to thinking about food every minute of every day. I just want to be like 1/2 the world who can eat without thinking and maintain a normal weight

Totally understand that! You're going to make it, you know. Just hang in there.
BTW, I sent you a PM.
Have a great week!
Debby

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Debby

Yesterday was awful. High fever, chills, nausea. Felt so bad for ds because I let him watch too much TV while I felt sorry for myself. Only got in 14 carbs, and most of that was coffee and Atkins cereal. Didn't feel like eating much. Went to bed at 7:45 after dh came home.

Today is a little better. Fever is down, throat hurts. I've got to plan some better activities for ds. We'll take a stroll to a park.

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

Emily, glad you're feeling a little bit better. Still praying for you to get over this bug soon!
Take care,
Debby

I think I have some sort of stomach ailment. Fever is down, but bad stomach cramps and some plumbing problems. Feeling better than yesterday, though. Hopefully tomorrow I'll wake up feeling normal and can get in some exercise.

Took Michael to the zoo today for 3 hours. We packed a little lc picnic and had a great time.

Stayed on plan today - and I'm going to bed before I blow it.
B-decaf, 2 scrambled eggs
L-romaine, grilled chicken, red peppers, ranch dressing, cheese
S-Apple crisp bar
D-Chicken parmigiana made w/ crushed pork rinds (dh loved this!), salad
water-64 oz

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

3rd day in a row with no cheating!!
And better than that, I haven't even wanted to cheat!

OK, maybe being sick had a little to do with that, but today I'm back to normal and did well all day, mentally and physically.

I'm starting to lose all the pounds I gained last week, but I'm still a couple pounds from my signature weight. I'm confident I can get rid of that by the end of the weekend.

B-Decaf, cereal
L-zucchini fritters, 2 small beef sausages, apple skin from ds's 1/2 apple (doing some math from FitDay raw apples w/ skin and w/out skin, the skin on a medium apple has ~0.75 net carbs, so I'm not sweating this any more)
S-cheddar
D-hamburger patty w/ pepper jack cheese on top, 2 cups romaine, 1 tbsp dressing
water-80 oz
exercise-42 minutes cardio

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

Still going great and dropping weight, little by little. Yeeahhh! The only thing I've had the past week which could be considered a minor cheat is an Atkins Apple Crisp bar. I love these things. They only have 1g of sugar alcohol and 4g of glycerine which is a lot less than the typical 18g in a lc bar. Plus they have 6g of fiber which i need. So I'm going to continue having these as my indulgence.

I've kept at 20g net carbs or under this week while sort of re-inducting. I say sort-of because of the low carb level, not the food choices. I'll start upping my carbs again on Monday.

Tonight I'm going to be daring and cook some of the Dreamfields pasta everyone is raving about in the Low Carb Cooking forum. I'm making a penne, ground beef, ricotta, cheese, pasta sauce bake, so there'll be lots of protein to offset the carbs. Plus a big salad with romaine, raw spinach and raw broccoli. I've been in ketosis since Tuesday, so we'll see if this kicks me out. If so, all the Dreamfields goes in the garbage!

Got in a good jog/walk this morning before the snow and rain started.

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

My husband is such a dear man. He's not lc-ing, but he hasn't complained one bit about the dinners I fix him. And he used to be a big bread, pasta and potatoes kind of guy. He even complements my lc concoctions and says, "you can fix this again!". Last night we grillled steak outside (and drizzled it w/ garlic butter, mmmmm!) and he didn't complain there was no baked potato to go along with it. I made steamed broccoli and sauteed yellow squash/onion.

Anyway, weighing in at 148.5, which is one pound from signature weight. I promised myself I would be rid of that by Monday morning, but that may not happen. 1 pound in one day is unusual for me. Unless I starve myself or get dehydrated, which I'm not going to do. So i'll aim for 148, which was my starting weight for the Memorial Day Challenge. I'll take it.

The Dreamfield's Friday night was awesome! It didn't knock me out of ketosis and I am down 1/2 a pound. So it must not have a bad effect, at least in the short term. I don't plan on making it a staple, maybe just a once in awhile treat. Of course, there's lots of leftover penne bake in the fridge I'm hoping dh demolishes soon.

Today is morning jog, church, housecleaning, yardwork, company this afternoon, and some healthy lc eating.

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

I upped my carbs this week, and after 2 days at 35-40g I gained a pound! Plus, I'm out of ketosis. So, today i'm dropping back to 20 to see what happens.

I find my mood matches whatever my weight is doing. Last week I was high as a kite after losing 4 1/2 pounds. Everything was right with the world. This week I'm down again. I feel worthless, and that I have a boring, uninteresting life. Nothing has changed, except my weight. Unhealthy attitude.

My nagging cold is back, too. Frustrating.

On a good note - my roses, lilacs and viburnum are blooming! Springtime in the Rockies.

__________________
Emily
Current: Size 10
Goal: Size 8

Emily, I'm so sorry... about the weight and the stupid cold. Keep your chin up! You are a wonderful person. ... and heck, your legs look better than mine! Hang in there!
BTW, I'm jealous of your lilacs. Sure wish I had a bush or two. I just love 'em.
(((hugs)))
Debby