Posts by agaffka

 But how much of a difference can muscle really make? I've heard it's really overrated.

 Oooooh, looks like someone just opened a big can of worms...

I agree with the pork tenderloin suggestion. Here's my recipe that always gets a wow from my guests (including my MIL! :D). 2 tbsp of mustard (horseradish mustard works best, but any kind will do),  2 cloves of garlic (or some garlic powder), 1 tbsp thyme, 1 tbsp oregano, 1 tbsp marjoram, black pepper. Mix it all together and spread the paste all over the tenderloin - or just boneless pork loin. Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge for 1/2 hour or up to a day. Pour a tbsp of olive oil in the dish you're gonna roast in it, and roast at 350, basting from time to time with the juices. Voila! It tastes sort of nutty, for some reason. Earthy. Delicious! Mmmm... I might just make it tonight :D Good luck with your dinner!

Congratulations! I'm really happy for you - awesome job!

I had my exciting moment today, too - as of this morning, I lost 45 lbs (130 lbs down from 175). I wanted to lose 50 before October 8, but I'll take the 45 :) What difference does 10% make anyway?

So let's celebrate, 'cause we absolutely ROCK!

I say go for it, girl! While your friends are right and you are by no means fat, I will agree with you - you could stand to lose a few inches here and there. I'm 5'4", and I started off at 175 lbs. I don't remember my measurements when I was 155, but when I was 150, it was roughly 38-30-38 - we seem to have similar figures, so I would imagine that 5 lbs down the road your measurements would be pretty much the same. And I know that I didn't like what I saw in the mirror. My friends would tell me that I looked great - but that's friends for you. Of course I looked great compared to 175 lbs! Yet I didn't stop there. This morning I weighed in at 132 lbs, and it makes a HUGE difference!

While Bulging Brides will probably feed your application to the shredder as soon as they see your stats, don't let anyone stop you if losing weight is what you want. You don't have to live with the rolls! That's what I hated the most - when I'd sit down, my stomach would roll over my waistband  ...

Best of luck on your journey! You can definitely do it :)  

Leftover cocoa butter gets made into cosmetic products or sweetened to create white chocolate.

I had no idea about that! Well, I never liked white chocolate anyway! :) 

BEER! BEER! Definitely beer! Who cares about soda? Pffff... A nice wheat beer with a slice of orange, a creamy, frothy Guinness, and ice-cold lager on a hot day... Aaaahhhh....

To me, that's the definition of heaven :]

Hi hajab :)

Just my two cents here, since I was 168-175 lbs when I started and I'm also 5'4"... I'm down to 138 lbs now, and I never ran a day in my life (not that I'm proud of it or anything like that, it's just that running is the only activity I truly hate. Oh, and I've been smoking for 11 years, so probably that doesn't help). Here's what I did, and what worked wonders: I lost the first 15-18 lbs just by calorie counting (CC is priceless!), and then I hit a wall. After some time I realized I had to add some exercise to my routine. I'm too self-conscious to join a gym, and I hate running - a workout video seemed like the only option. So now I count my calories, and I do Turbo Jam and Turbo Sculpt workouts - one or the other, 5 or 6 times a week. And I walk to and from work, just like you. That's about it. Since I started working out, I've been losing a steady pound or two a week, and I'm getting muscle definition pretty much everywhere.

There are no foods to avoid, as long as you don't go hundreds of calories over your limit. You can find lots of helpful advice on this site (and btw, listen carefully to what gi-jane says - I've never seen her give bad advice, and I read her posts all the time!). Someone suggested a vegan diet - just be careful to eat enough protein. It works, I know it does :)

Good luck to you. Don't worry - it's not as hard as people think it is. Once you start seeing results, it's totally worth it! And it's true that your waistline is in there somewhere - you'll get it back, just like I got mine :) All the best! 

That's outrageous! Don't worry about her at all. She was probably feeling bad about herself and wanted to cheer herself up by shooting somebody else's day to hell... I'm 5'4" and at my heaviest I was 175 lbs - and my thighs are a problem, too. I never looked as good as when I wore a skirt! They conceal thighs perfectly :) Plus, my hubby still thought I was hot and sexy. Screw that b!tch! You're doing great and keep it up!

They also have a new wood grill menu, and it's surprisingly low-cal (for eating out). Usually whenever I go to Red Lobster I have the Seaside Shrimp Trio, which is loaded with calories and fat, but last time I had steak and garlic shrimp with a baked potato - btw, guys, the steak was absolutely awesome! You can eat healthy at Red Lobster, as it turns out... Also, their website provides really good nutritional information, unlike some places. All in all, it's my absolute favourite when I go out to eat :)

I used to work at a cafe that served both egg and tuna sandwiches. And trust me, you will want to go with tuna! It's naturally moist, so less mayo goes into it (I'm pretty sure they would add red and green peppers to it, too). Plus, you never know what kind of eggs your cafeteria uses. The place where I used to work used those ready-to-use eggs, already hard-boiled and somehow preserved (although I have no clue how!). They had an awful greenish hue to them that somehow disappeared once the salad was ready. Ever since, I haven't been able to choke down a store-bought egg salad sandwich :D

Hi there :) It's funny, we're almost "twins"! I'm 23, 5'4", 146 lbs :) But when I first found this website, I was 168 lbs. It's really doable! It took me a while, 'cause I found it really hard to resist all the temptations (very often I would simply give in to them), but I got there. Like you, I'm determined to lose at least 20 more.

Now about restricting and depriving yourself of favourite foods. Well, there's planty of people in here who will be able to give you better advice as far as all the data and numbers go, I just want to offer support. You know, the best thing about counting calories - as opposed to being on some ridiculous all-grapefruit diet - is that you don't really have to deprive yourself of anything :) You just have to make sure it fits into your calorie allowance for the day. You can significantly increase that allowance by adding exercise, but I'm guessing you don't have much time for it with your baby son around :) You know what I've been doing, especially at the beginning, when it was so hard? When I craved a burger, I had the damned burger - but on a whole wheat bun and with a huge salad on the side. Now I won't even eat my dinner without two or three different veggies on my plate - they fill you up and are very low in calories. Also, "diet" food doesn't have to be boring! There are so many low-cal things we can eat, and so many different ways to cook them :) I cook two sets of meals at home - one for me, one for my hubby, but it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make.

You know, once you start seeing results, it will get much easier. The hardest part is to stay motivated. Do whatever it takes for you. Set yourself some mini-goals. Set a deadline. Put your most horrible picture (or your best one ever) on the fridge door - just stay with the program. It's really really worth it! And don't worry about your family and friends - they would never tell you you should lose some weight, would they? :D Although technically they are right - your BMI is 24.9, so you are not overweight :)

Damn, it's getting too long :D Just one last thing: if you can, exercise! I never did and now I wish I had. I only started seriously working out two weeks ago, and it's been nothing but a blessing. All I do is the Turbo Jam and Turbo Sculpt videos, and in the two short weeks they have worked wonders. Besides a nicer body, a good workout gives you this incredible feeling of euphoria, the pride of accomplishment - and it sounds like you could use a healthy dose of both right now :)

Good luck on your journey. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you! YOU CAN DO IT!!!

I wasn'y going to add anything, but I just have to! I respect people's right to make their own decision about their sex life, but the advice to wait until marriage made me literally laugh out loud... Yes, you are young, but if you really want to do it, you'll do it no matter what anyone says. Just make sure you use condoms, that's crucial. It is. The last thing you need is a pregnancy scare at the age of 15! Yes, it does hurt, but the pain eventually goes away and when the pleasure starts, you'll find out it was totally worth it! :)

Now the marriage thing... Having sex before you get married doesn't mean you don't respect yourself!!! All you do is repress your sexual urges, setting yourself up for a hell of a frustration, really. Besides, do you really want to get married to a guy without knowing if you two are sexually compatible? It sounds shallow, I know, but it's true. Unsatisfying sex life is a major marriage-breaker. What's more, at some point you'd probably find yourself wondering what it would be like with someone else, especially if your husband lacks the skills or the enthusiasm... I've known a number of such couples. Curiosity doesn't only kill the cat.

I hope that whatever decision you make, it will work out for you. Good luck :)

My hubby and I met online, in a chatroom. I was 17, he was 33. I was in Poland, he was in Canada. Fast-forward to now: we've been married for 3.5 years, and we're one of the happiest couples you could possibly imagine. I cannot begin to describe all the hellish nightmare I had to go through just to be with him, but it was worth it. My parents obviously were trying to keep me home, my friends all of a sudden decided that I was being delusional "'cause internet relationships just don't work" and were trying really hard to split us up. Then of course there were the stupid immigration procedures! Oh, and I had to drop out of university, too :D

But it was all worth it! Don't worry about your youth, holbee. I was young too, but I knew he was the one, and I knew that I would do everything to be with him. And damn all the friends and family who tell you otherwise!

I have never had any regrets. Not even for a minute :)

I got married at 20 because I was in love. My husband was 36 at the time. Over three years later, and we're still in love :) Just last night, just before he drifted off to sleep, he whispered to me, "You can't imagine how happy I am with you and how much I love you!" I guess I must say I do believe in "The One". We met online, lived on two different continents, had totally different lives. In order to be together, we had to fight our respective families, and overcome hundreds of hurdles, including stupid immigration rules and regulations. I haven't hesiatated for even a second. I just knew it was worth it. I don't know how I knew. He proposed to me online, three weeks after we met, for goodness' sake! :D Call it fate, call it destiny, call it whatever you want to call it.

He is The One. And I'm his :) That's for sure.

You know girls, they really DO love us just the way we are! No matter how much we hate that pudgy monster that's staring at us from the mirror, they think we're beautiful. I never thought it would be possible. When I met my hubby, I was probably around 130 lbs. When we were getting married three years ago, I was 160. When I started CC a few months ago, I was close to 170. I was 170 for at least a year - and still my hubby would tell me that I'm beautiful and he finds me really desirable (which he would prove right after =]). But deep inside I always thought, what a crock of @%*@. He's barely 150 lbs (having gained 40 lbs when he quit smoking), very athletic, in excellent shape. I wanted to stop being the whale wife. So here I am, 20 lbs later, and he's actually  c o m p l a i n i n g !!!!! Half-jokingly, but still! Mainly he doesn't like my boobs getting smaller and smaller. (lol) And he says that he can feel my ribs and my hip bones in certain situations. I love it when he says that! But at the same time, he says I look beautiful and he finds me desirable etc. - just like before! Nothing changed. I thought he would like me better, but he likes me just the same. Hmph. I guess I lucked out with a wonderful hubby like that! :)

Bottom line is, if they didn't like us, they wouldn't be with us. Right?