Healthy Maintenance Support Group**

Hi!  I'd like to start a new 'HEALTHY Maintenance Support Group' thread here... We can lend support to one another through-out our maintenance journey, share health and nutrition information, daily food menu's, any interesting recipe's etc....  Most importantly, there will be NO weigh-ins and please NO posting of weights.  The actual number isn't important here... (in other threads I've participated in it actually can get quite discouraging)... so, please, none of that here.  Let's focus on maintaining a healthy weight, being healthy, and living life.   So, who's with me??

hi everyone!  ill post my day today, tomm, i wasnt as active as normal which was my goal, i need to relax about excercise.  tomm im going out for lobster! woo

K9-hi!  YUM cupcakes for real! lol, do u pay for the podcasts?  im really interested it sounds great! thanks!

Hey Agru!  Don't worry if you weren't as active today... we all need a rest day now and then, it's good for us.  I didn't workout today either... too tired from work and too many hormone issues (they're all out of whack).  Have fun going out for lobster tomorrow!  I've never had lobster... wonder if I'd like it?  hmmm  No, I don't pay for the podcast, they're free... check em out.  :)

k9:  That's neat about the podcasts.  Also, those cupcakes sound really out of this world.  My wife made some brownies today to take on a road trip with some fellow quilters or stampers--she is big in those two groups, particularly quilting.  Anyway, she was worried about them because she left out 3 tablespoons of water the recipe called for.  It turned out they were the best brownies I had ever eaten.  I usually don't eat brownies, because I don't like the too gooey ones.  She left 1/3rd of them behind and I ate them all. She was surprised when she got home.  She had a few left over from her trip.....and I ate them, too!  I would eat all your cupcakes too, I have a feeling!!!!!!!!!!!!

agru:  We all definitely need to relax about exercise once in a while.  On Friday I didn't feel like doing much, so I didn't.  Then on Saturday I felt fired up and did a lot.  Lobster!  Yes!!!  When I go to visit my children in the East, I eat lobster every day I am there.  My son bought some 4 lb. lobsters a couple of weeks ago for $4.99 a pound.  Unfortunately, here in the Great Plains I have to pay between $12.99 and $14.99 a pound for live lobster.  I like to steam lobster; also, lobster is a very healthy food as long as I don't put on butter or some type of high-calorie sauce.

Wow!  I just read an interesting article on the Net.  I like searching and researching things about diet, foods, exercise, and healthy living.

"Conclusion: don't count calories! - Thus trying to determine, from food intake and energy expenditure, how much excess energy your body will store as fat will give a completely wrong answer unless these other factors are known and allowed for. But how do you measure these? The simple answer is: you can't. There is no point, therefore, in trying. And calorie counting, which is the foundation of practically every modern slimming diet is a waste of time."

That quotation is from http://www.evfit.com/calories.htm

LOL.  I am still going to count calories, at least some of the time.

Original Post by pilgrimdude:

Wow!  I just read an interesting article on the Net.  I like searching and researching things about diet, foods, exercise, and healthy living.

"Conclusion: don't count calories! - Thus trying to determine, from food intake and energy expenditure, how much excess energy your body will store as fat will give a completely wrong answer unless these other factors are known and allowed for. But how do you measure these? The simple answer is: you can't. There is no point, therefore, in trying. And calorie counting, which is the foundation of practically every modern slimming diet is a waste of time."

That quotation is from http://www.evfit.com/calories.htm

LOL.  I am still going to count calories, at least some of the time.

 John:  That's very interesting... I plan to look at it more later when I have some more time.  I am still going to count calories too... at least the majority of the time, minus a day or two (like the last two days).  I figure that it keeps me more in control of what I'm intaking, otherwise, I think I'd go buck wild and end up right back to where I started...  I know I need to work on my relationship w/food... I'm trying.  I need the most work on the "everything in moderation" part. 

So far I'm doing better today... just downed a HUGE bottle of water and took my dog for a walk.  For breakfast I had some coffee, plain oatmeal packet w/tbsp natural PB mixed in, and Egg Beaters w/lt cheese.  Hubby and I are spending most of the day at the beach, so I'll probably pack a protein bar and we'll probably pick up some cold subs on the way and put them in a small cooler.  Should be a great day!

Just got up but im excitied to look at the podcasts!! lol  its pouring here, again!!!    my lack or just not extreme activity yesterday, im not upset really, it was purposeful in an attmept to wean myself from feeling as though i ALWAYS need to do something so hopefully, ill be feeling more relaxed about it all!

K9- youre so lucky its beach weather by you!!!  yes, lobster tastes like butter! lol, not too fishy just delicious!

PILGRIM-yea, i LOVE lobster!  were going to McCormick and Schmicks, i just want a giant lobster, yes it comes w sides that im sure ill devour but mmm, lobster! lol

sat-

B: Bagel w/almond butter+fig preserve, yogurt, apple~650

L: Tofu salad sandwich, fruit, vanilla bean almonds~300

S: Ice cream~200

D: BBQ chicken thigh, mixed veggies, fruit, veg salad~360

S: apple, yogurt, PB~350

Total- 1860

WO-1.6 miles in 16-17mins, 10 min weights, walked my little dog

k9:  At the beach!  Now that sounds like a good way to burn more than a few calories!  I definitely gained weight from yesterday's wine and pizza, so I am, starting tomorrow, going back to fewer calories.  I haven't found any Egg Beaters yet; I thought a new superWallyWorld would have them, but I didn't find them.  Are they in the refrigerated area or are they powdered and in the dry area?   The reason some people don't like lobster is the first couple of times eating it, one has to learn how to break open the shell, etc.  However, if someone wants an easy introduction to eating lobster, he/she can buy, during that season, soft-shelled lobster where you can break them open with just using your fingers.  One time I had a 5 and 1/2 pound hard-shell lobster with such a big, tough claw that I had to use a hammer on it.

agru:  A couple of Christmas time vacations ago, my family bought me a 15 lb. live lobster as a present.  My goodness was that a big fellow!  It was quite tasty, I might add.  Just the other night Alton Brown on "Good Eats" showed  how he prepares lobster.  When I eat lobster, which is usually only when I visit out East, I eat basically just lobster and no sides, although my son sometimes broils in the half shell mussels and clams, and I eat them too.   Sometimes we go really crazy and have king crab AND lobster.  Good job on the 1860.  I am going to shoot for a week of 1500 of only healthy calories until I know for certain I have broken away from the intermittent "party" mode I have been in the last 10 days.

Pilgrim-hi, well ill be at a restaurant where it comes w/ lots of sides, cant just ignore those?

1500 calorie intaje for 1week?  that does not sound healthy for YOU.  that is the minimum for a sedentary male, are u aware of that?  ur not sedentary and there is no reason u should be going that low.  do u mean 1500 healthy cals plus 500 in treats per day?  i may have 1860 as a little lightly active female which u r not, obviously, lol, im not trying to be mean in any way, just hope to shed some light that we r all diff w/diff needs and i think u need way more than 1500, even to lose but w excercise, well i think u should eat more, maybe i misunderstood.

agru:  Yes, I would eat the sides, too, in a restaurant, but at home I would probably just eat several lobsters, with maybe a couple of pieces of good fresh bread as a side.

Yes, I know that 1500 calories are way too low.  But, thanks, for showing concern, because if another male of my weight would have posted that he was exercising 2-3 hours a day and only taking in 1500 calories, I would say the same thing.  For me, trying things like 1500 calories for a week or so is a fun way to play around with my hobby of dieting/exercising.  I have been averaging over 3000 calories a day the last 10 days or so, as far as I can determine, since I have gotten lax on recording my calories.  Again, thanks, for your input.  I am only going to try it for 5-7 days.  I plan to exercise around 3 hours each day and take in only 1500 or 1600 calories at the most per day.  Then I plan on going back to around 2800 calories a day on a more or less permanent basis...until my next experiment.

I am going to make every calorie I take in be a healthy one!  In other words, I will eat a lot of fruit and vegetables.  I will eat no nosugar gelatin, nonfat Cool Whip, cookies, etc.  Since I am going to only take in 1500, I want them to be very good ones.  It's just an experiment I am trying; I don't want to screw up my metabolism, so I will eat most of my protein in the first meal.  I think I need to rock my metabolism a bit, however, and change things up.  I do know that over a period of weeks, that a 1500 calorie diet would not be good; but for 1 week, if I can pull it off, I think it will be interesting.  Thanks again for your support and good points.

Hey guys!  Just got back from the beach, what a great day!  I think hubby got bit by a crab or something in the water because it really hurt and his foot was cut and bleeding some, but he's okay.  Must have been a big crab though... he was a bit hungry, lol! 

Agru:  Good eats yesterday (much much better than I, lol) and how was the lobster?  Did you get a chance to listen to any of the podcast?  I downloaded a bunch of old episodes from the website and listened to two of them in the car today... one on acid reflux and one on calories and whey protein.  I'm thinking of looking into getting his cookbook too, but I'm not sure how expensive it is yet... he has a lot of good ideas for cooking healthy stuff and "powercooking" (cooking a large quantity at once to freeze). 

John:  Yeah, I think I burned some good calories at the beach today... we played catch w/the football out in the waves for awhile and we took a 45 minute walk down the beach...  plus, I did some relaxing things, like read my book, etc.  I wouldn't worry about the wine and pizza weight, it's probably from a lot of sodium... lots of water most likely.  I purposely haven't weighed myself in the last couple days because I know it'll be higher due to water weight and I don't want to get myself all worked up over it.  I'll check again mid-week.  As for the Egg Beaters, they are found in the refrigerated section near the eggs and cheeses usually or by the yogurt type stuff.  They're usually in a yellowish carton. 

Hi All!  i was hoping wed get some new members, maybe we should add to the title something like, "group always open"?  well dinner was great, lobster is delic and i enjoyed myself too!

K9- oh no, crab bite!! yikes, i hope hes ok! u have to get ur husband to take u for lobster, i get the whole lobster, in the shell so it may turn u off seeing the head and all but its soooo good! i downloaded some of the podcasts, i never knew there was so much free stuff on itunes?! i never put any new stuff on mine bc i dont wanna pay but im so glad u introduced me to this, i havent listened to any yet tho! lol  those topics sound great, i hate cooking and have acid reflux! lol  ur day sounds so great!! what book r u reading?

B: 1/2 Bagel w/ almond butter+fig preserve, bowl of cereal+milk, yogurt, apple~600

L: tofu salad sandwich, fruit~330

D: small peice sourdough bread+butter, 1 whole lobster, red potato then a few big bites of each of the following: corn +seafood chowder, salmon burger+bun, french fries+ketchup, corn on the cob w/butter, buttery string beans~ Dont know?

S: apple, yogurt, vanilla bean almonds~350

Total ?

WO: 30 Day Shred level 2 but couldnt do the cardio bc my dad said iwas shaking the house lol!, 1.7mile walk/jog

Hi!  I edited the title of this thread to add "Group always open, come on in" in hopes of getting some new memebers and fresh ideas/experiences in here.  :)

Tried to go running this afternoon and it kind of looked like it was wanting to rain, but I figured I'd make it before then - WRONG!  I was gone about 5 minutes and then it just downpoured and I was soaked.  I wasn't worried about me being so wet, but I was concerned about my ipod and my GoWear Fit getting ruined.  It was raining so hard I could barely see!  Luckily, hubby saw that it started raining and knew my route, so he came and picked me up in the truck.  :)  Gotta love him! 

Agru:  Yeah, hubby is okay... kinda freaky though.  The lobster sounds really good, but I don't think I could eat it if it was looking at me and looked like a whole animal... it's one of those things... I just can't ever order a steak anywhere either because it's just the thought.  Weird, I know.  Maybe if I could get it broken up or at least w/no head, etc...  Glad you enjoyed it though!  Glad you were able to sample some other foods at dinner too!  I think those podcasts are great... you can get them on itunes or older episodes are all posted on their website too... hubby downloaded all the back episodes so now I have a ton to listen to.  I listened to one on Fat Burners this afternoon... they're all so interesting.... I think you'll find some that you like.  The podcast also turned me on to powercooking and making my meals for the week and freezing them.  Currently looking around for chicken breast in the crockpot recipes... found a couple that I like.  The book I'm reading now is called 'ELEGANCE' a novel by Kathleen Tessaro... it's pretty entertaining so far. 

My day...

B-fast: Oatmeal w/PB mixed in, Egg Beaters w/lt cheese, coffee
Snack: Clif Mountain Mix Bar
Lunch: Subway 6" Turkey Breast sub on wheat w/out mayo or cheese & lots of veggies
Snack: Starbucks Grande Skinny Vanilla Latte & Luna Bar
Dinner: Tuna Salad w/miracle whip on ww bread
Snack: Strawberry/Banana Smoothie (nonfat yogurt, skim milk, strawberries, banana, splenda)

K9- good stuff!  like u said, im hoping the addition to the title will grab some new members+some fresh new ideas.  i forgot to add, ur new picture looks great, so beachy!!  ohh, what a drag about the rain+no run, u were super active at the beach tho so no worries there.  i love lobster but i hear ya on getting skeeved out by seeing the face, there were times where i just couldnt do it+im the same way w/ any steak or chop.  i just started reading a book, finally, i was watching cnn a while back and Obama said he read this book so i picked it up at B+N, its called Netherland, ive read a bit of it and like it so far. im going to try +listen to some of the podcasts today.  so just a question when it comes to maintenance, im guessing ur day yesterday was around 1650, i could be way off, but do u sort of cycle it like 1 day 2100 and then the next much lower or shoot for a steady middle range or just see how the day goes? lol  well have a great day!

I know all of us are in different time periods as far as how long we have been maintaining.  But I am curious as to how you handled or are handling your buying of new clothes and getting rid of the old wardrobes.  Since I basically just wear gym shorts, safari/cargo shorts, blue jeans, and T-shirts, I haven't done much in either regard.  I did buy 3 pair of safari/cargo shorts with a 33 inch waist (32 would have been better--but close enough) to replace 3 pairs of 36 inch shorts I bought last summer.  I also, for the family reunion I attended, bought 2 medium T-shirts so they would fit tight (LOL) to show off my weight loss.  Almost all my T-shirts are either X or XX and are fairly baggy on me even after all the washings.

Have you gotten rid of any of your clothes that are too big now?  Are you going to buy any new fall and/or winter clothes?  My wife and I do periodically take clothes and other items down to two different thrift stores in town (both are nonprofit charities) so they can get them to people looking for good bargains.  Do any of you do that or have garage sales?

Agru:  Thanks for the compliment on my new pic!  :)  I guess no one else wants to join us... we must smell or something, lol.  I'll look into seeing if I can recruit a few other peeps...  Yeah, you're almost right on w/the calorie guess, you're pretty good!  I had such crazy and bad high calorie days recently, that I thought I'd drop down a bit again to shake it up a little... I also heard on one of the podcasts that the nutritionist said it's good to vary the calorie intake and eat different amounts each day so your body doesn't adapt to it... gotta keep it guessing.  Cycling is a good term, or zig-zagging...    I've heard of that book, Netherland, but don't know what it's about or anything... I love Obama.  :)  Let me know if you'd recommend it. 

John:  Losing weight has been very costly for me... I had to get a completely new wardrobe, with other sizes inbetween that I hardley even wore some of them.  I went from a size 14/16 to a 4... so a big difference.  Everything was falling off of me, especially pants and shorts... I had a lot of the sizes inbetween that were a waste, but I needed something that fit in the mean time.  I donated all of my old clothes and put them into one of those big white donation bins on the side of the road... 

Do any of you make your lunches or dinners for the week ahead of time and freeze them??  I'm trying to get into doing this, but I'm not sure what you freeze them in??  I'm just not much of a cook...  I'm also trying to find some easy, but really healthy balanced meal ideas that I can do in the crockpot, preferably.  I have one I got off the podcast I listen to... think I'll give that one a try.  Also will try Chicken Picante in the crockpot eventually w/maybe some whole grain rice or black beans on the side... I've realized how important it is to have balanced meals with a healthy lean protein and complex carb at each meal... now I just have to try and implement that.

hi guys! ahh, so my brother called today and said he thinks he sprained his ankle, were going to paris on Wed!!!  ahh, it cant be that bad if hes waiting til morning to go to the doctor or whoever. im having a relaxing day but have done NO packing, i hate packing!! lol  regarding diff sized clothing, i have everything from size 16 down to where i am now, i gave away what i had when i was really sick bc i never want to get back down there but i figure everything else, even the size 14, is healthy and for jeans, worth holding onto, maybe im a packrat, lol, idk

K9-ha, yea, we smell, its so funny, when i smile at work i feel like ppl get mad/resent me for being happy, maybe no one wants to be healthy?? lol at least not healthy in a healthy way w/o harming themselves on the way. ugh, im nuts w/ counting cals, at least for foods i eat, restaurant food or cakes and stuff i really dont know the counts.  for the cooking, during the week i eat the same lunches pretty much which are grab and go, either sandwich+yogurt or one w/almonds+fruit and i make it the night before.  there r tons of crockpot recipes out there and u can make big bowls of tuna/egg/tofu salad and keep in the fridge.  ppl also predivide portions and keep in tupperware in the fridge.  u can do the same w/ a big pot of rice/pasta +put in fridge, cook 5 chicken breasts and put in fridge and we've made chicken+just put it in a freezer ziplock bag in the fridge and it worked.  really everything will stay precooked for a week or so, casseroles, make 3 mains and rotate for the week.

today do far-

B: cereal+milk, greek yogurt, apple~450

L: tofu salad sandwich, lots of diff fruit, chocolate/mocha almonds, Drumstick ice cream~430

WO- 30 Day shred level 2

Hey Agru!  Aw, that's too bad that your brother sprained his ankle!  I can't believe you're going to Paris on Wednesday, I'm soooo jealous!!  I'm going to miss you around here too...  :(  I hate packing too, lol.  Wow, I never knew you were as big as I was... thought you were always on the smaller side.  Guess I learned something new about you today!  :)  Maybe you are a packrat, lol.  I got rid of all my large sized clothes because I never want to be that big again... that way if I start gaining weight, I'll have nothing to wear and I'll have to get back down again, or break down and buy a bigger size.  I think it's good you're happy and walking around smiling at work... wish more people would be like that.  Good ideas for the foods...  I'm cooking in my crockpot right now.  I found a recipe for Crockpot Chicken and Brown Rice Casserole...  I'm just adding in some fresh broccoli to it too... didn't realize how high in calories stupid flour was, so now I'm wishing I would have left that out or used whole wheat instead... grrr.  Oh well... it'll be okay... I'm dividing it into 6 small meals I think, so it's about 420 cals or something per meal.  I think I'm going to do a burrito too... cook some black beans, whole grain brown rice, chicken breast slices, and some fresh salsa in a whole wheat high fiber tortilla...  mmmm.  I think those should freeze well in a ziplock bag, I hope.  Maybe I'll do a Chicken Picante w/a side of black beans or rice too... Fresh chicken breasts were on sale at the grocery store today, so I lucked out w/that.

I invited a few others to join us over here, so we'll see...  I don't think we smell too bad, do we??  LOL

Paris!  Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-------------------------

Here are the things that I most regularly prepare and freeze...and then thaw out in time for any particular meal:

1) onions, red-orange-yellow bell peppers, sliced mushrooms--I diced these and put them in freezer bags.  I put these in soups and stir fries and on pizzas and salads.

2) whole wheat dough balls for pizzas

3) cooked and seasoned ground beef--I put this with beans, on pizzas, in soups, in sloppy joes, etc.

4) homemade soups

John:  Thanks for the ideas... I was actually thinking about making some more homemade broccoli soup in my Magic Bullet and freezing it.  Only problem I have is that I always have to try and find something else not too high in cals that has a decent amount of protein to have with it... I'm always hungry after the soup, it never fills me up.