Posts by yoho

well, I can relate but I can't really help.  My problem is different but it causes the same symptoms.  I eat for the texture.  It took me a long time to figure out why I would still eat when full, eat fast, and eat certain foods a lot but then it makes sense when I realize that the actual feeling of having chewed food at the back of my mouth is what I want... that feeling of the ball of food right at the brink of going down.  I'm not sure why and there's no way to get it there and not swallow it but I miss that feeling when I'm not eating.  So, maybe it sounds really strange!  Anyway, when I crave food I ask myself if it's because I'm hungry or if I really want that food in my stomach or if I just want it in my mouth.  If it's really just the mouth thing then I try to do something else that I enjoy.  A cup of hot tea also helps. 

Good luck with your last 25 pounds.

It's not easy and I am not in your boat - I am fortunate to have a husband who helps a lot and my kids are younger but my job is highly demanding.  However, your real problem sounds like a time management issue.

Time management is SO important.  You need to force yourself to follow a routine that schedules time in for the most important things.  Start by making an outline - on paper - of what your ideal routine would be.  Then try it out and see if it works.  Make adjustments over a week or two.  You may even need to write out the schedule and carry it with you, crossing things off as you do them until you create habits.  You should get a watch that allows you to set multiple alarms to help you switch gears so you don't end up spending too long on one activity and forgetting the others. 

The hard part is you have to give up some of your spontanaity but the reward is that when you have all your responsibilities handles and managed, you are free to be way more spontaneous and without the guilt and negative consequences. 

If the routine gets thrown off by your kids etc., post the routine on your fridge and show it to them so they can see what you are trying to do.  Ask for support and you may be surprised in a good way.  Kids can often see when a parent is having trouble and they usually want to help. 

It is not easy to get on track but it is SO worth it and so are you and your family. 

Oh, and make a list of all the things you need to get done and break things down by frequency - daily, weekly, monthly (work on yearly later).  Then prioritize them and make sure that doing something to make yourself happy is on there at least once a week and that it gets done.  If you can't fit all your priorities into your time frame, you need to eliminate or reduce some of the items.  Maybe you don't have to clean your oven every month - make it every 6 months.  Maybe you don't have to vacuum twice a week - maybe once a week is enough, etc.  Can you go for longer before doing laundry, etc.  Maybe you need to cut yourself some slack.

Good luck!

It's very interesting to read what people have written on this topic.  I have found some changes too.

I bought a huge platter of deep fried foods - thinking it would be a delectable treat - and even though I ate some, it was a huge let down.  It just had a weird taste and a bad texture.  It left my mouth feeling coated and nothing else tasted good until after I brushed my teeth. 

However, I had a major craving for poutine last week and I indulged it at Costco.  I didn't eat all of it but those white cheese curds covered with thick gravy and those crispy fries.... yum!  It was SO good.  Yet strangely, I used to detest gravy and would never eat poutine.  I suspect my body was craving something - maybe the saturated fats - that I've cut back on so drastically. 

I'm actually losing my taste for chocolate - hard to believe from someone who used to be called "Chocky" back in the day.  It just has the wrong texture somehow - I think it's the fat. 

I've gained a huge taste for fish.  I always liked it but now I can even eat the skin and any kind at all - it's SO good. 

I'm trying to gain a taste for wheat germ next!

Just do workout mode.  It tracks your calories for you.  On Basic level, I  burn about 100 calories in 10 songs.  I can burn more if I add extra steps, jumps, and hand motions (Wii version).  It will actually track for you based on your weight and how much you step & punch.  I've played with this to see that it REALLY does track it properly.  DDR is my favourite way to exercise. 
Have fun!

It doesn't matter if you can burn it off or not.  It kills you.  Trans fat is poison.  At least, according to this article it is:  http://www.treelight.com/health/nutrition/Tra nsFats.html.

I think there is some truth to the whole BMR minimum.  I have recently discovered that the ONLY way I can lose weight is by creating the calorie deficit through exercise.  That's because when I starve myself (eat 500 cals below BMR without exercise), I get tired, hungry, and grumpy.  I can only manage that way for 2 or 3 days before I have to binge.  However, if I eat my BMR and exercise to create a deficit, I'm not starving or miserable!  It also helps if I eat lots of FIBRE.  Hmmm, I think there's something to be said for what kind of calories you eat too.  It's not just about the deficit.  I also have to pay close attention to when I eat certain foods and even what foods I combine.  I never thought nutrition would be this complicated.

Thanks to this website, I have turned from being a 'dieting to lose' to a 'dieting for health' person.

Thank you for that information.  I understood the pie part.  It's the other part (when you mouse over the analysis) with the daily percentages for vitamins, sodium, etc. that I am worried about.  If I reduce my caloric intake to lose weight, I seem to have to eat food that is much more dense in nutritients in order to meet the daily needs.  I am concerned with how to get enough iron and calcium without increasing my fat intake too much. 

This website is so wonderful because I am actually learning how to eat properly for the first time in my life.  It's great to have access to knowledgable people like you.

I am not a pro so feel free to disregard my opinion.  However, I recommend you use the BURN tool to calculate what your Basal Metabolic requirements are each day without exercise.  Then eat that amount PLUS whatever calories you burn in that day.  Calculate how many calories you burn based on adding ALL your activities (except for sleeping or sitting) to the activity log.  It makes more sense to vary your eating to match how much you exercise each day. 

I do the above and I also go with my 'gut' -- if I'm really hungry, I just eat a *little* extra and I never force myself to eat when I'm not really hungry regardless of my calorie intake/burn status. 

 ;)

I'm not celiac but I have a friend who is.  She has to be extremely cautious eating or she gets the gastric illness to the point of having to go home and stay there until it passes.  I saw her have a reaction once because there was a toast crumb in the margarine and it got in with what she was eating.  She says she even has to avoid any prepared foods that include 'modified starches' on the label.  She said anything modified often has gluten in it.  I agree with the person above that you need to eliminate it for a week or two and then try it and see what happens.  Then you'll know for sure if it's celiac or not. 

Some restaurants will prepare gluten free meals if you book in advance.  You can buy gluten free pasta and of course gluten free breads etc.  There is actually a ton of great foods you can eat without eating it.  I wish you luck in figuring out what the cause of your troubles has been.

I want to repeat what someone above said, good for you for realizing that you have a problem (or two or three)!  This is the first step towards solving them! 

As for pot, I have past experience and I know many heavy pot users.  Most of them are self-medicating.  Unfortunately, pot is not a cure.  It is only going to make you feel better without getting at the underlying problem which can mutate to rear its ugly head in time despite your self medicating efforts.  Also, pot DOES have very serious side effects.  I have witnessed a couple of good friends stagnate in their lives due to heavy pot smoking.  One lost his short term memory - like the opposite of alzheimers sort of and very sad to see in a relatively young person (this person is now in his early 40s but has been a heavy daily user for his entire adult life).  The other I met in University and he was on the Dean's list for amazing academics - sharp as a needle and straight to the point.  Within one year of trying his first dope, he stopped studying and let himself coast on Bs.  Sure, he finished school and got a good job and is managing fine but WHAT A WASTE of a great mind.  Both of these guys had their ambition in life CRIPPLED completely.  Both suffer from the short term memory loss but have found coping strategies.

Now I am nobody to say that without the pot, things would have been better for them - only god can know what might have been.  However, you have a choice now.  In a year or so, the choice will be gone because for many people, especially those self-medicating, pot use is habit forming (read addictive).  You can always go back to pot later if the other methods don't work.  But you may not be able to choose to get off pot later if you aren't satisfied down the road. 

Good luck in your choices.