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??

Eva: yes you can definitely cause your menstrual cycle to stop if you're not fueling your body. Menstruation is preparation for child birth and if you don't have enough body far or aren't getting enough food then you would have severe health complications if you became pregnant so this is your body's way of protecting itself. Have a plan in mind for getting the calories in. When you're on the low side don't be afraid to add evoo to anything and everything. Olive oil is a flat belly food after all. Also adding nuts, nuts, and more nuts to salads, veggies, pasta, as a snack, in your oats, anywhere. Cooking oats in milk. Having a glass of juice or milk with meals. Trust the dietitian. I do have to ask what made you go anyway?

Sara: so I'm glad you enjoyed work!! I hope you have fun tonight! I think it's cool that you have a close knit group of friends. So your uncle lives nearby then? 

Debra:  Thanks!  As far as not being bored while on the elliptical... well, I usually find a movie on that I like, or watch a program that I recorded... makes time go by much more quickly.  I was watching the movie Sweet November today... it's sad though!

Chrissy:  Thanks for the show link... looks cool.  I'll have to mention it to hubby... of course it's a plus that it's free.  ;)  Yeah, poor hubby today.. stuck w/us gassy females, lol.  We're actually going to Vegas because hubby has a conference he's attending for work... his boss and his wife are going too.  I'm just along for the ride since it was a cheap vacation (after his work part is done) for us... we only have to pay for my airfare and dinners pretty much.

Eva:  Sorry about your period... I've also lost mine in the past.  After I lost the 50 lbs, I think it kind of shocked my body or something.  I went to the doctor and she ran a whole hormone panel & everything... turns out I now have a hormone imbalance, so she had to put me back on birth control (I had been off for a year due to extreme moodiness from it) to balance out my hormones... I also had an ultrasound done on my ovaries and I have the super tiny cysts, so that contributes to my issues I'm sure too.  Anyways, I did get my period back shortly after that and a few months ago I lost it again (briefly), but now it's back, but it's fairly light and doesn't last long.  I would advise you to eat the 2500 and keep your activity very light or maybe even not workout for awhile and see what happens... I've seen a similar post on here somewhere about someone recovering from and ED and someone told her not to run anymore and just rest and eat her recommended calories and it should come back...   I think you should call your doc and ask just to be sure though.

Sarah:  Yeah, gotta love the little black dress.  :)  Glad today was a good day for you and the film thesis went well.  Yay, for your uncle's screening going well too! 

Sarah: I will find a way. :) And then I'll let you know how it goes! I think I'll just wait till my next appointment with her .. Thanks for your suggestion though. Glad you had you good day and hope you rest well from it!

Chrissy: Your confusing me with the names again. Hehehe.. Thanks for the suggestions! Oats as a snack sounds mighty good.. I just put avo AND grapeseed oil in my salad.. and I also had a glass of milk earlier and nut butter. I've been seeing the dietitian for 9 months, since I started losing weight. So it was just one of the check up sessions. It was my last appointment until way next year sometime..  What do you think of exercise though? Should I just stick to walking?

Karey: Thank you for sharing that with me..I'm sorry to hear of your complications! I hope you are dealing with it all okay. I am definetly going to up the cals to 2500 and just do some light walking.. I have an appointment booked in at the end of the week.. I think I'll just wait it out and take it easy until then..

Thank you guys for your support!

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Meal plan

B: pumpkin oatbran w/ almond butter, mixed seeds, slivered sllmonds, apple ~480

S: soy latte ~120

L: chickpeas + salad w/ avo + grapeseed oil, apple, rye crackers, orange ~430

S: pumpkin soup w/walnuts, lentils + rye crackers  ~400

D: mushroom, lentil + capsicum on baked polenta ~550

S: oats w/ nat PB + apple ~310

~2300.. tomorow i'll get 2500..

I FEEL ABSOLUTELY STUFFED! haha..

Eva: sorry about the names...smart phones..haha. well in reference to exercise, until you can consistently get the 2500 that you should be eating i wouldn't do any strenuous exercise. even tonight you could add a cup of milk (or strawberry milk :)  ) and a piece of PB toast...or something. 20 minutes of jogging a few times a week is good for cardiovascular healthy but I wouldn't over do it because it's not necessary to maintain your weight or be in good health. so i'd lay off for a bit and definitely start eating the 2500. 

Chrissy: It's okay hehe. Strawberry milk does sound good =]..Ohh maybe I'll get some dark chocolate to have with it.. I've been craving that recently. You only need a little bit of dark chocolate.. thats whats so good about it.   Okay.. so lay off the exercise.. and eat! Yay!(lol) Thanks for your help and suggestions, I really appreciate it.  :D  :D

Eva:  No problem.  :)  Glad you're going to up the cals and just do light walking.  I'm sure they'll give you a much better idea of what you should be doing when you go to your appointment.  ;)

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I'm getting excited to go to Vegas now... one more day of work today, and then I'm leaving early tomorrow!  :)

Karey:  Hang on to dear hubby with all your might!  Those ladies-of-the-evening will snatch him up at first opportunity.  Ha ha!  Just kidding.  The greatest temptation will be all the buffets and cheap food and drinks.  But that is one aspect that makes Vegas a lot of fun.  Remember, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!  If you enjoy gawking as much as I do, then a lot of the fun for me in Vegas was just gawking at the lights, the sights, and the sexy women on the strip.  The women downtown were more laid-back.  (Honestly, folks, I am not deliberately using words like snatch, strip, and laid in any double-meaning!)  Best of luck.  We hope you get some good photos.

30 minutes jog and 20 minutes elliptical today. I'm making a cheesecake :) well this morning actually. I'm going to use my brownies as a crust...pulse them in the blender and add some butter...bake into a crust...then filled with a plain cheesecake. I can't decide if I want to make a no bake or a baked one so I think I will do half and half. I hope it turns out well.

Karey: glad you're excited about your trip. The TI sirens are pretty sexy... You might have to cover the hubby's eyes :)

John: I'm sure you had too much fun in vegas!! I've only been prior to turning 21 but I definitely have experienced the cheap buffets and interesting people

Eva: dark choclate has never been my favorite, unless its on a york peppermint patty...haha. I have some cocoa via sticks in my freezer. I believe they might actually be expired though. I never even opened them.

B: eggs, yogurt. Oatmeal. ~400

L: protein bar, pasta, veggie burger ~500

S: ice cream~300

S: cheesecake ~200

D: chili and grilled squash ~300

S: brownie ~100

I'm so pissed at myself right now. I walked out of my house without food. I work from 10-2 so that would mean I would have to skip lunch entirely or go buy something from like whole foods since its the nearest store. I really wasn't planning on spending the money but hey I guess it might force me to try something new :)

Karey: :) I hope you have an amazing time in Vegas!! I bet your excited.

Chrissy:Good luck on your cheescake.. I hope it turned out good. =] Peppermint patty? What are they? Are cocoa sticks those wafer things with the chocolate in the middle? All these confectionaries that I've never had.. I used to go to Whole Foods all the time! Expensive.. but nice. I used to love their paninis.

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Apart from feeling more than a little bloated.. today will be a good day. =]       & nbsp;      &nbs p; Meal plan:

B: oat bran w/ pumpkin, natural PB, banana, soy latte  ~530

L: apple, veggies w/ lentils, almond butter, pumpkin ~350

S: rye crackers w/ almond butter, soy latte, apple ~ 300

D: tofu w/ cabbage, broccoli, capsicum, soy sauce, 3 small glasses wine ~600

S: oatmeal w/ banana, natural PB, cinnamon ~390

 ~2170.. close enough

 

So I ended up eating a bagel at work. I got it from one of the trainers so I didn't have to spend money :) only about 250 calories though instead of the 500 planned for lunch so ill have another snack or maybe my protein bar when I get home. Walking from getting ice cream right now though. Its quite chilly here. My nose is all red and cold...I'm drinking mint tea and its pretty yummy. I am having an okay day today. I worked with the witch and the guy who came in after me was late and I was hungry because my shift ended at 2 and I had only eaten brakfast and that bagel at 12 which wasn't working too well. I had my ice cream though and oddly enough I'm.not all that hungry. I think ill actually eat my lunch that I had packed since its already prepared. That makes sense. I have tons of cleaning to do so that's on the agenda as well. So eat, clean, eat, CC, and watch youtube clips are on my to do list :)

Eva: a peppermint patty is like a thicker after 8 mint candy. Or an andes candy. Its creamy mint candy surrounded by dark chocolate. Google it. The chocolate stick is just a bar of chocolate in stick form. No wafers or anything, plain.

Chrissy: Good that you didn't have to spend money! I love mint tea :D Ohh like Mint slices.. oh they are too good. I haven't had them in forever.. I like your to do list today.. sounds a lot like mine! :D

Eva: not sure what mint slices are but maybe. haha. i got my to do list completed. how about you?

 

I was able to borrow my friend's car this morning, so I was able to get to my volunteering today! It was gorgeous out.. Really crisp and brisk, but I had enough layers on. Both horses behaved and the kids did well. I went to the gym and got 6.5 miles in, and then I brought left over food from an event on campus to a shelter. Got my psychology and theatre homework done, and I'm working on my history right now.. I went to a little chinese place with two of my friends.. ate so much food but it was good. I may go out later, but if not, I'm content with getting work done.. There's so much to do all the time! 

Chrissy: My uncle lives about two hours away. It was close enough for him to come for the day, but it's a drive. I really lucked out I think, with the people I've met at school. My friends from home are great, but some of them are still stuck in high school mentality and haven't been able to form friendships as easily. I hope your cheesecake turned out well! I really want to make one, I just don't have the springform pan that they recommend for it. I can't wait to have my own kitchen some day.. That's awesome you didn't have to spend money! Free food is always awesome.

Eva: Congrats on getting to the 2300! That's awesome! My calories have been up there.. I've been feeling it though.. I may have to adjust and see how my body responds. I wish I had a scale that was electric, because my scale leaves so much up to interpretation so I can't monitor how my body is reacting to maintenance. 

Karey: Vegas is so soon! That's going to be so much fun! I can't wait to hear all your great stories.. It seems like a crazy (in a good way) place.

Does anyone know how to change your username? I want to change it to sarabobara or something silly that at least has my name in it.

Sara: you sound like such a sweetheart that it must be really easy for you to make friends!! I don't have a springform pan which is probably why my cheesecake turned out like crud...it tastes OK but not fantastic. i think the brownie crust would make anything taste decent. I think you can change your username by going to my account tab, my home and then it might have your profile pop up and you can change it there. If i'm not mistaken. What did you get at the chinese restaurant? was it like an authentic place or kinda chinese-ish? haha.

Hey guys!  Just stopping by to say a quick "hi" and thanks for all the well wishes!  :)  I just finished packing... have to get up at 4am, ugh.  I think we'll have a blast though and I'm excited.  I do miss my pets already though... I'm watching my doggy sleeping right now (she's in a webcame room). 

Don't know how often I'll be able to post, but I can read them on my phone, just can't reply from there.  Hope you all have a great week and stay healthy!  ;)

Chrissy: I guess mint slices are the similar to peppermint pattys. Haha. Yep.. Mines done. Didn't wash the car though. I'll do that tomorow.. hehe

Sarah: Thank you! I feel a little bloated from the extra food though.. What are your maintenance calories? Around the same? You don't have scales? Or they just aren't digital? Ahh geez, that would get too much for me.. I'd get so curious/anxious to know. Your so good at getting things done!!.. I wish I could just sit down and do work..  Glad you had a good day and have fun if you go out later!

Karey: Take care and have a wonderful time!! :D

Karey: i know you're going to have a great time. eat lots of yummies at the buffets...lots of veggie stir frys and such. One of my favorite places to go is the hotel that looks like you're outside...there's clouds painted on the ceiling and the ground is like bricks...i can't think of what it's called. there's tons of amazing stores!! right near the strip, well about 10 miles i think, there is an outlet mall...love that place! :) travel safely hun and i'll be sending wishes of a fantastic time!! when do you return?

Eva: you drive? what kind of car? your pics are very nice :) 

Chrissy: I do drive.. but I share my Mum's car. It's an old Mitsubishi Magna.. thing.. or something. I don't know car models. Haha. I need a job so I can get my own. Thank you :D I need some more recent photos actually.. Cute swimsuit by the way! Does it get very cold in LA?

Eva: thanks. those pics are so old. i've gained about 5 pounds since then. I should probably take them down. haha.

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I am so irritated at the moment. When we open there's supposed to be a floor trainer here to do the floor duties but of course nope, not today. So, i had to do the floor trainer's duties as well and i only have 30 minutes from the time i get here until opening. i open literally 2 minutes past the hour and one of the old members is like...what clock do you go by? it's after 7. This is not acceptable. Come on....2 minutes!! are you joking?? what a jerk!