Posts by nat1968

Hi there, I'm back!

First I wanted to say that the system you suggested GI-Jane is working very well for me, and has allowed me to free myself of calorie-counting, which was beginning to feel a bit obsessional. So thanks!

In the last four months, I have gained four pounds; not the end of the world, but I would rather not carry on gaining in this way.

I undestand that it takes a surplus of 3500 cals to gain a pound, so I estimate that I am eating roughly 120 cals extra a day, from what I should to maintain my weight. Is this right?

My second and last question is this: is this weight gain likely to carry on ad infinitum, or is it likely to settle at some point?

My BMI four months ago was 19.1 and it is now 19.8. I am 41 and a woman.

Cheers!

Many thanks for this! It's a big relief actually, as I now want to go back to normal and not allow worry about food to dominate my life. It looks relatively simple! I suppose the idea is that extras such as chocolate, cereal bars, ice cream, etc. have to be very occasional and therefore not factored in... I am worried that if I don't have one or two such desserts each day I might end up craving them...

I'll give this a try anyway, and if I find that I am not ready and too anxious, I will wait for therapy to provide the support that I need.

Thanks again!

Thanks for your answers. I'll have a look in Planet Organic. I would be surprised not to find the soy crisps there.

And the homemade potato chips recipe looks nice! There again, I don't think we have such a thing as 'cooking spray' around here, but I guess it's easy enough to make! I have a cooking brush, though, which is probably just as good!

Original Post by adolphs:

If you like fries/crisps/chips or whatever, you can make your own by baking them in the oven rather than frying them.  Use butternut squash, sweet potatoes, or regular white potatoes and your favorite seasonings.

So, do you just cut thin slices of potato, place them on an oven tray and bake them? Or is there more to it than that?

Well, I may be weird but I increased my intake from somewhere below 1200 (before I joined CC in February and was restricting as much as I possibly could), to currently 1800, without gaining a pound. I went gradually: two weeks on 1400, two weeks on 1600, and I have now been on 1800 for roughly two months. It was hard work as my stomach had shrunk so much, and I still have to make a conscious effort to get to 1800 sometimes, but I was given lots of excellent tips on this forum on eating calorie dense foods. These are not bulky but highly calorific, so they don't fill you up too much.

Bear in mind that if you are clinically underweight, you will need to actually gain weight, as you may be putting your health/life at risk. Also, 1200 calories a day is most likely not enough for a healthy lifestyle. Finally, if you are only eating 600 calories at the moment, it is conceivable that you have an eating disorder, in which case you need to look for help from a health professional.

If you answer Fidget84's questions, she will be able to point you in the right direction.

Good luck!

Wow, thanks for all the suggestions! They all sound more tempting than what I normally have...

I am going for the toasted pitta triangles with chilli & cumin tonight. And my husband asked me to make enough for him, which I'm pleased about!

Cheers!

Original Post by mrgcat:

What about Traditional Chex Mix? Less calories and fat than potato chips and they're my favorite. Of course, everything in moderation.

Thanks! No idea what they are but will google them! Probably American?

Edit: Just googled them and I don't think we have them around here. Pity, they looked perfect!

I agree entirely with what Rosieblue said, and I don't think everyone has a favourite either.

It's very likely that your easy little one will catch up at some point and become a little monster for a while, and that your little girl will settle down for a bit and give you a break. They tend to take it in turns... In fact, I strongly believe that they can sense when the time has come for them to either take their turn or ease off!

Out of my three kids, there is ALWAYS one of them who is being particularly demanding or unbearable at any given time! It's an unspoken conspiracy between the three of them to keep us on our toes at all times... No rest for the wicked...

Good luck!

Yes, I've got the same problem, all my grades have gone down a notch! I had A- for the whole of last month and it is now B-!

The last two days are pretty bad grades too, and they were not at the time. And I wasted quite a lot of time earlier today trying to understand why a perfectly healthy meal plan for the day was only giving me a B!

Something's gone wrong, help!

Original Post by artofphire:

Hot weather -> More sweat -> Dehydration -> Water weight retention.

In short, drinking MORE water should lead to 'water weight' loss, right?

Ah, that would make sense as I am obviously drinking a lot more water at the moment (usually I only have tea in between meals)... Although I assumed that I was only replacing the water that I was losing through perspiration, thus ruling out water weight to explain my weight gain...

Interesting that carbs make you feel sluggish when it's warm. How much do you reduce them by?

Thanks! No, I am currently working on getting back on track with what I hope is a healthy diet and sufficient calories, but I am getting recommendations here and there that multi-vitamins might be helpful too. I suppose there is no harm in trying; the worst that can happen is that it is a waste of my money!

33-50% is very low. Is that because most people already have the vitamins they need anyway?

Thanks, it's good to know which ones are recommended by health professionals!

I had a quick look at the various websites and Centrum is not suitable for vegetarians so that narrows down the choice.

I'll check the other two out at Boots tomorrow! I need something really powerful!

Nbkt, that means your BMI is 14.5, which is VERY serious. I don't understand how on earth your doctor could have failed to notice how dangerously underweight you are!

I am sure someone will come along soon to give you advice as to what the correct course of action is for someone in your case.

Keep checking!

PS: You may want to change the title of your post to attract people's attention, e.g. 'My BMI is 14.5. What do I do?'

Hey nbkt

Are you talking in kilograms? I don't know what your height is but 36 kg at 19 sounds incredibly low. You would probably be anaemic and have lots of other problems at that weight!

I assume you are using another unit of measure, or your doctor would probably not have sent you home telling you not to eat fried foods, chocolate and almonds...

Good luck! I am sure you will get plenty of advice from more experienced CC forum users.