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??
Chrissy: Yeah, I'll try and eat lots of (healthy) yummies when possible. Seems like there is so much bad (unhealthy) food all over the place, but then again, maybe that's just what's catching my eye. lol I haven't been doing too horibbly so far and have been trying to be somewhat mindful of what's going in my mouth. We did a lot of walking down the strip last night, so that was good exercise. ;) Haven't found the hotel w/the clouds on the ceiling and bricks on the floor yet, but probably soon. Oh, I fly back late Saturday.
Wow, that sucks you had to do the floor trainer's duties and about the idot complaining about opening 2 minutes late... Is 2 minutes really going to make that much of a difference in their life??? come on! Haha, I agree w/Eva... douche!!
Eva: Reading your meal plan is making me sooo hungry! I'm starving right now... really need to find some breakfast. That Pumpkin spice oatmeal you had w/banana, etc, sounds yummo!
Sara: Your brunch sounds lovely... so good! Great job on getting to the gym and doing 7 miles, nuts!
Debra: Glad you had a great time at the cottage! Raking leaves doesn't sound like a good time to me, but I'm sure you got a great workout from it. Sounds like you and the kids had some great bonding time and indulged and relaxed a bit. :) Oooh, I used to love the game Trouble!!! So fun!
John: Haha, no Vegas tv commercials for me! Yeah, we're having fun, but so far I LOVED my trip to San Francisco sooo much more. Vegas isn't really my scene, but I'm trying to enjoy it.... just gotta give it more time since I've only been here a day so far.
I hope you're all doing well! :) I'll try and check in again when I can...
Karey; wow...you are going to be there for quite some time. you'll be able to see EVERYTHING!! lucky you! any layovers when you come back? i'm sure you'll be just fine in terms of maintaining and eating good, tasty, food balanced with the less calorific, tasty, healthy food. with all the walking even if you're eating MORE calorific foods than typical I think it will balance out.
John: you are hilarious...i'll tell myself little white lies to make everything more positive and let you know how it goes. haha
Sarah: I am trying to work towards intuitive eating as well! Eventually I'd like to not rely on calorie counters at all.. Well what ever your doing is working, so keep it up. :) Oh please do! Hope the oatmeal was good. The movie was okay, pretty generic. Seth Rogen is so funny. Meal plan looks great!
Chrissy: I see.. I'll have to try this macchiato sometime.. I'm intrigued now. hehe. When you say 'veggie burger' is it just the patty or do you have a bun with it as well? Or just chop it up in with the other stuff?
John: Yep, I'm really eating a lot more.. which will be better for me in the long run. I can understand that! It is sometimes easier to refrain altogether rather than just eat a little bit.. Do you like nut butters? I could eat them all day.. Do you prefer nuts raw or roasted? I haven't tried brazil nuts on their own before.. There's so much variety it's hard to know what to have sometimes. Hehe.
Karey: Yes, The pumpkin spice oatmeal was TO DIE FOR. Such a comforting meal as well. :) Go eat something! Hope your having great time :D
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Meal Plan
B: Pumpkin spice oatbran (again) w/ pumpkin, natural PB, banana, cinnamon, coffee ~580
S: soy latte, apple ~150
L: capsicum, mushroom, tofu, cabbage, tahini risotto ~680
S: orange, soy latte, rye crackers ~250
D: whole baked beet, lentil salad w/ mixture of veggies, avo, almonds, sunflower seeds, lemon, rye crackers, ~500
Eva: if i say veggie burger and it's along with some carb item then it's not on a bun. so veggie burger and spaghetti noodles would not have a bun. it's like my protein source, even though they are high in carbs.
Chrissy: The hotel w/the clouds on the ceiling that looks like its outside is the Paris. I went in and took a few pics, it's so cool. It really does feel like you're outside or kind of like you're under the Eiffel Tower... they have the legs sticking out through the ceiling here and there since it towers above the whole hotel. Cesar's Palace is also really gorgeous. We went to TI, but it was early and the sexy sirens weren't out yet... maybe later. Might be going to Coyote Ugly later, we'll see... Yeah, I've been eating like a little piggy, but hopefully with all the walking I'll be fine and it'll balance out in the end. ;)
Eva: Meal plan is looking good! I see you had the pumpkin oatbran again (not that I'd blame you, lol)! Mmm... soy latte's sound good too. I love a good latte.
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So we saw the Hoover Dam yesterday and it was pretty gorgeous there. Last night we walked down the strip for awhile. We also did a ton of walking even further down the strip today... my feet are so sore! I'm so happy for all the walking exercise though. It was really nice out earlier too. We got to see a lot of cool hotels and I found a new store I'm in love with... Lush. They sell all organic/vegan body stuff... really yummy smelling soaps, bath bombs and lotion bars. I think I may treat myself to a nice bath soon before we go out later. Going to go and try to run outside... they have a 1/4 mile track around the pool. That, or maybe find the stairs and run those, but my feet are so sore I don't think I'll be able to do many. Oh, get this - they charge a fee of $20 a DAY to use the gym at the hotel!!! I couldn't believe it! I've never stayed at one where they charge, especially that much a day... one of the other girls I ran into earlier was complaining about it and she said running the stairs or around the hotel was what she was going to do. I guess I'll have to be creative... I can do push-ups, sit-ups, and chair dips in my room and I can run the track or the stairs (if I can find them).
Karey: i'm sure you'll tell us all about the yummy foods that you're eating when you get the chance. 20 BUCKS TO USE AN AMENITY? that is simply absurd...i can't believe it. I could see if it was for your entire stay or something, but daily? sheesh...that's like robbery. I would rather just get creative. the walking will definitely make it much easier for you to stay on track. So, you liked the Paris hotel? It is beautiful. Coyote ugly seemed a bit overrated to me, but there is a ben and jerry's near there i believe, fantastic! :) always puts a smile on my face...haha So what do you do while hubby is out? You should definitely make a trip to the outlets! They aren't too far away.
Chrissy: Yeah, I did eat lots of yummy food... we bought the all day buffet for today, so lots of food. We went right before they started serving lunch, so we got some b-fast stuff too... french toast, blueberry pancakes, bacon, banana nut muffin, pizza, scrambled eggs, eggs benedict... not to mention all of the amazing desserts they had. I was like a kid in a candy store, lol. Of course they had carrot cake, so I HAD to have that one... haha. They had these mini little dessert cup type things too... kind of the size of a reese's pb cup, that was a crusty shell that you ate, filled w/different stuff... one of a rich chocolate w/raspberry sauce, they had tiramisu, coconut cream pie... lots of cookies there, oh, and german chocolate cake. Don't worry, I didn't eat every single dessert I mentioned... I did have the carrot cake, few bites of the rich chocolate cup thing (too rich) and some German Chocolate cake (they were small slices). Oh, and tried the top of a banana nut muffin, but it wasn't worth eating it all, plus I was full. Oh, and I thought of you this afternoon... there's a place in our hotel that has fro-yo and crepes, so we got a little fro-yo - I had a mix of Almond Joy Coconut, Peanut Butter, & Low Fat Chocolate. The PB was the best one. I feel like such a glutton... and we haven't even had dinner yet.
Yeah, the Paris hotel was very pretty inside... really felt like you were outside. So you've been to Coyote Ugly?? Not worth it? Haha, we walked by a Ben & Jerry's down the strip earlier... I didn't have any because we went to Edy's last night and I had a little B-day Cake ice cream and cotton candy ice cream. ;)
I'm waiting for hubby to come back from his conference... while they were gone I got creative and got a workout in. I ended up running laps on the 1/4 mile path outside around the pool... ended up doing 4 laps (1 mile) and then coming back up to the room and doing some dips on the chair, some push-ups, and some bicycle crunches. Yes, having to pay that much a day is robbery for something that's supposed to be an amenity. I saw it when I was running outside and it didn't even look that impressive. Running outside was fine w/me as long as no one jumps out of the bushes and tries to get me, lol. Had the path to myself most of the time and no one else was out running... it was dark and kinda cold, but nice running weather.
i've not been to vegas since coming of age but when i was there coyote ugly seemed overrated. OMG!! the almond joy fro yo would have made me lose it...i've actually never had a "real" crepe...i mean i've had thin pancakes homemade but not actual crepes. mmmmm coconut cream pie...i love coconut!! it's so darn expensive though. i dont think i've ever heard of an all day buffet. so you can leave and come back? that would be cool. Blueberry pancakes...yum!! you and your carrot cake...did it have cream cheese frosting? i love it like that, must be warm though with a glass of vanilla soy milk :) I'm making myself hungry..haha. i don't care for chocolate cake fortunately, never have. I didn't knw there was an Edy's shop. So, do you like the funfetti cake and frosting that comes in a box...it looks like confetti and the frosting almost has little candy pieces in it? that's what the birthday cake ice cream reminds me of.
so you got a workout in? i can imagine you running around...getting to your room and huffing and puffing then eeking out all sorts of strength exercises..haha. i could not imagine you being able to do it in the presence of your hubby since i know i always feel silly when exercising outside of a gym or structured workout area...haha. i feel like i have to sneak the exercises in because i would look funny for exercising in my room...lol
So, what fun shows are lined up for your trip? do you still not know? I like taking the little tram thing from one hotel to another...i think it might be the mirage that has the tram. I remember one of them had the lions that you could watch...and another had an aquarium inside. I've also been to the rainforest cafe, that was kinda neat.
Chrissy: It's nice to have a game plan, especially when going into the dining hall, so I know what I'm going for instead of being overwhelmed by all the people and which station has the shortest line.
John: It's Sara. No H.. I'm special like that. It's the Swedish spelling. I guess I've been intuitive eating since I've been at school because I don't know the exact calorie amounts. I've been doing pretty well.. Might be a pound or 2 up, but that's just water/food because some days I'm back down. I underestimate my "goal" for the day when I make a rough plan because I know there may be an extra thing here or there, so it all works out in the end. I log everything after that particular meal, and then sort of adjust my day accordingly as it goes. Good luck with getting back into your window. Do you need to up your calorie intake? I wish I could read my bodies mind and know what it was doing instead of the guessing that it's water weight or food in my stomach.. It'd be much easier than using a website's calculator.
As for movies, Slumdog Millionaire was PHENOMENAL. I absolutely loved it. So good. So powerful. Ahhhh. Australia I loved as well. It had that sort of sweeping epic feel and I really enjoyed it. Mummy-3 I haven't seen so I can't comment.. I don't think I've seen any of the Mummy movies.. I really like breaks because my movie theatre at home has "Free Movie Tuesdays" with our Optimum Rewards Card, so I saw a lot of movies this summer..It was nice.
Karey: Vegas sounds awesome! I'm so jealous of you. I wish I had input about where to go but sadly the farthest west I've been is Amish country in Pennsylvania..A nice bath sounds amazing.. I found a few recipes in a magazine to make bath salts and such. I may have to try those out, but that sounds nothing like Lush! I can't believe they charge $20 a day.. I guess they want to keep people out of the gym and in the casinos, so only the "hardcore" gym goers pay the money. I don't know.. It's all so confusing to me. An all day buffet? Oh god. That sounds like heaven on earth. I think I drooled a bit when you described those desserts.. That fro-yo sounds delicious as well. They finally brought it back in my dining hall today! I'm happy the chocolate soft serve is gone. I'm glad you were able to make up your own work out instead of shelling out those $20!
Eva: You can do it! I think eventually it comes down to the repetition of the act, so that it's eventually ingrained in your body to guesstimate how many calories are in something, particularly if you've logged it a lot, which then leads you to better intuitive eating. At least, that's how it's sort of working out for me. I know something is roughly x-amount of calories, and then I go on CC after I eat and log them in.. It's been working so far! I agree about Seth Rogen - Zach and Miri Make a Porno, Knocked Up.. Sort of generic but original and dirty funny.. Good times.
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Today's been a long day.. I've been reading a lot of 17th century handwriting and their s's look like f's. I've read so much that I don't notice anymore. Ahhh! I'm going crazy.. Rehearsal was good, and other than that, it's been an uneventful day. Oh! I burned my arm this morning on the iron that I use at work to iron the labels onto the spines of the books.. I put cold water on it, and after lunch I went to the Health Center and got some burn lotion for it. it's not too bad.. I'm just hoping it doesn't really scar. =/
Goodnight all!
Chrissy: I've been thinking of buying some veggie patties.. thats all. And make homemade veggie burgers :D
Karey: I think pumpkin is my new obsession.. it may actually be better than peanut butter! :o .. Actually, no, I take that back. :) I hope your having a wonderful time in Vegas! Sounds like your getting some good exercise in. I can't believe they charge to use the gym! I've never heard of that in my life. What a shame.
Sara: I think so too.. It's just getting that confidence I guess! I haven't seen Zach and Miri Make a Porno yet.. Knocked Up I thought was hilarious though! What kind of movies do you like to watch normally? A mixture? I'm sorry you burnt yourself! That sucks.. I hope for your sake it doesn't scar either. Lucas Pawpaw ointment is great for burns if your able to buy it there in the States.. I'm not sure though.
Eva: veggie burgers are convenient but not best thing for you. They are heavily processed and really quite junky!! It would be better for you to just get tofu steaks and use that for your filling with some hummus in a ww pita! :) yum so what have you been doing with pumpkin... I haven't seen any good combos posted;) I love pumpkin too but only sweet NOT savory like in soups or stews.
Chrissy: Thats a good idea. :) I love the marinated thai style tofu.. mm. If I could, I'd put pumpkin in everything. Haha. I've been having it in my oats with banana! Its soooo good. I made it as a soup yesterday, but it wasn't savoury.. it was sweet because of all the cinnamon and spices I put in. Kind of tasted like pumpkin pie.. but without the crust. hehe. I'm going to try and make spaghetti squash today. I've never done it before. Do you know if you use butternut squash for that or is it another type of pumpkin?
Laura: where are you? How are you? Any feedback from job prospects?
Ok, I had to jump in here. Pumpkin! It made me think of two things I love consuming.
1) My wife makes the most incredible pumpkin--walnut--chocolate chip soft cookie! I don't ask her to make them very often (the last time was when our son was home a few months ago), because they grab my soul.
2) There is a pumpkin-spice ale (not the bud one) made, I think, by Shipyard or Dogfish?); anyway, there are a lot of pumpkin spice ales on the market, but most are seasonal. The last 3 times I had the good pumpkin ale, it was tooooooooooooooooo darnnnnnnnnnnn good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If you see Jack, tell him, O, I found his lantern.
John: what is ale? is that like beer? soda? sorry, i'm a bit ignorant sometimes. I LOVE pumpkin. I think I want to go buy some today and make a pumpkin pie.
Yes, ale is a beer. Now that you are old at 21, why not find a bottle of good pumpkin ale and try one? Well, maybe you don't drink any alc., so I would suggest you continue on that line, if so. By the way, I love pumpkin pie, too, but only if I have a whipped topping such as Cool-Whip to put on it.
Chrissy: So it looks like butter nut squash? Like a... over sized pear? lol Hmm.. I thought you used a fork to make the spaghetti things? I wasn't sure about the sauce yet.. I'm not exactly sure what it goes well with.. have you eaten it before somewhere?
John: I loved your joke. I don't think my stomach could handle ale.. is ale a type of beer? Uhh nevermind just saw Chrissy's question! It sounds kind of nice... I don't like beer too much though. And those soft cookies sound absolutely amazing.. I couldn't make them though.. Wouldn't be able to resist.. Haha.
Okay so I stopped by the store and bought a pie pan, some pumpkin, baking soda and now I'm going to another store to get canned fruit, graham crackers, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, and maybe some canned fruit. I also might pick up some cream cheese, cottage cheese, and evaporated milk.
I am on a baking extravaganze. Haha. I want to make too many things..lol
Chrissy: Yep, I actually got a workout in the last two days. :) On Monday I ran the 1/4 mile loop around the pool area, and then yesterday I went into the stairwell and went up and down a section of them for about 20-25 minutes. It was a good workout no one seems to ever go in there. I also walked for hours and hours yesterday... hubby was in his seminar thing, so I went down Las Vegas Blvd. and went to one of the malls. I bought two brazillian dresses (the kind that are silk and wrap around you in all different styles - basically a bunch of dresses in one). I was looking for some light brown leather boots to wear w/them, but haven't found any that i like that fit me yet.... the search continues. haha.
The buffet wasn't all it's cracked up to be... it was $38 per person for the day and you can only go a max of three times... they give you a card that they punch. We went twice, the first time was at the end of b-fast, beginning of lunch... the b-fast stuff wasn't bad, kind of yummy. The lunch stuff wasn't very good. We had to go back for dinner and that was horrible.... the food tasted really cheap and gross, half of it was cold or kind of hard... yuck. Even the carrot cake tasted kind of funny... don't think it was real cream cheese on top either. Absolutely horrible. My breakfast yesterday was really yummy... we went to this cafe in our hotel and I had an egg white omelette w/spinach and mushroom w/some potatoes and OJ. Pricey though... I think my b-fast alone was $20. That's one thing - Vegas is sooo expensive. The food costs a fortune and a lot of it isn't even that good. Oh, I thought of you Chrissy, last night... we had Ben & Jerry's ;). The Edy's shop the other day was a tiny little stand- type place in a food court off of Las Vegas Blvd... Yeah, the b-day cake ice cream does remind me of the funfetti cake frosting... mmm.
No shows lined up right now... I saw the lions in the MGM though. Feel kinda bad for them, it's such a small area. The rainforest cafe is there too. The aquarium and shark reef is at the hotel I'm in... haven't seen it yet though. Saw the Belagio's fountain show at night and it was gorgeous! It was going to "viva las vegas" that time. :)
So what are you baking w/the pumpkin and the spaghetti squash??
Sara: Yay, glad they brought your fro-yo back in the dining hall... love that stuff now since Chrissy got me hooked, haha. Yeah, I'm glad I was creative w/my workouts too... I'd rather spend the $20 on shopping and getting something I like. :) Hope your burn is feeling better now... hopefully if you keep putting lotion and stuff on it, it'll heal over nicely.
Eva: I LOVE pumpkin too! It goes well in sooo many things. I love to bake w/pumpkin... I sometimes make these really yummy pumpkin cranberry muffins... they're soo good!
John: Your wife's pumpkin /walnut/choc chip cookies sound amazing!! I like the pumpkin spice type ales... yum.
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