The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[DogMa]

I'm so glad you're back, DeDe!!!!

[DogMa]

129.2, but my body fat dropped a teeny bit. Maybe. I'm going to give the higher calories a little more time to work, but I'm thinking about switching back to the BFL ratio (lower fat, higher carbs) to see if it makes any difference. I'll wait till after the weekend, though.

Did the treadmill, but wasn't feeling the running, so I walked uphill for half an hour instead. I miss the sweat and the breathlessness, though.

Anyway, I'll try to check in from work later, but I don't think I'll have much computer access during my trip, so I'll say goodbye now. Have a good holiday, everyone!!

[Serendipity]

Hey, Robin.

There's no hurry on this, but I've been wondering about something and I thought you would have the answer without having to look it up.

In a 1200 calorie and 1500 calorie diet, what would the proper carb count be to keep things balanced? I know next to nothing about carbs bacause I was never on Atkins. Is a carb gram equal to a protein gram if you are trying to stay balanced between the two?

So in other words:

1200 calorie diet:
#of fat grams ____
#of carbs ______
#of protein _____

and the same for 1500 calorie diets.

[DogMa]

Answered in your journal, Jo.

Just had to post. We had Thanksgiving dinner at work tonight. I was out of chicken breasts at home, so I figured I'd bring my string beans and just eat some turkey breast with it. But wound up getting caught up and decided to just go ahead and enjoy, in moderation, figuring I really want to start working on just eating healthy some of the time and not obsessing about every bite. Then, for kicks, I did my best to enter it all into FitDay, and it turns out I did really well.

I had:
2 smallish slices of turkey breast
1 small spoonful of mashed potatoes
1 small spoonful of stuffing (and I didn't like it much, so I only ate a bite of it)
1 big spoonful of green beans (with more fat than I'd cook them with, but I figured that was OK)
Less than a tablespoon of gravy

I skipped the desserts, figuring I'd rather wait till the real thing. Ate what I took, other than stuffing, and will not be getting seconds. I'm too full, even if I wanted to.

If I stay on target the rest of the day (soy crisps in a few hours and of course pudding when I get home), I'll be somewhere around 1250 calories for the day. Slightly higher carbs and fat than normal, but still under 30 percent for carbs and just over 30 percent for fat.

[DogMa]

Wow. Even after five days of not tracking (and really not being all that good; I made some good choices and plenty of not-so-good ones), and missing my workouts except one day (when I actually ran outside!) AND flying, I'm at 130.6 today, which is lower than I usually am after just one free day, let alone five. How amazing is that?

I'm going to blow off my run today, though. I feel dehydrated and exhausted, and I think I need a day of normalcy before I get back on the treadmill. I haven't had a real night's sleep in almost a week.

[dede4wd]

Glad you're back Robin, how was your weekend?

DeDe

[DogMa]

Hi, DeDe! It was nice. I paid a lot less attention to food than I meant to, but apparently I did OK. Spent lots of time with my brother just hanging out, went up to Chinatown for an afternoon, went to a holiday sing-along/concert hosted by Harry Shearer in the city. Nice. How was your holiday? Are you enjoying being home for a bit?

And one addendum to above. I decided to run, after all. Did the whole thing, too, up to 5.2 mph at my level 10. I think it might be getting time to bump things up again, though.

[DogMa]

Yipes. 131.0. Can't say I'm happy about that, but I'm sure I'm still recovering from the trip, plus yesterday I switched back to the BFL ratios so I had more carbs and less fat. The good news is Tanita says my body fat is down, so I can't be too concerned about the weight.

Today is gym day for upper-body weights. My sinuses are horrible today and I have a headache, because of the changing weather. But I'm going to make sure I go anyway.

[PJinCali]

Hey Robin!

I think you promised us some beautiful photos of you. When are we going to see you?

Inquiring minds need to know! Walking the floor and waiting



PJ

[DogMa]

Oh. Errr, ummmm, hmmmmm. I look pretty much like my last pictures I posted, back in September, I think. I haven't had the time (or maybe the nerve) to go to Glamour Shots.

Meanwhile, I hope the BFL food plan works with the higher calories. Because I SO prefer eating this way, and it's a lot easier to control my sodium for some reason, too. Today's menu (look away if you'll be tempted; I'm just so darn proud of it):

Egg Beaters with spinach, red onion, a tablespoon of low-fat feta and a low-carb tortilla
A packet of apple slices with 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter
Chicken breast baked with artichoke hearts, fresh mushrooms, diced tomatoes, fresh garlic and a little wine (and the marinade from a jar of artichoke hearts, but I also threw in a whole pack of frozen ones for four chicken breasts) PLUS butternut squash baked with a little salt, pepper, rosemary and lemon
Two bags of Stacy's soy crisps
Medifast pudding (vanilla with a spoonful of pistachio pudding mix)
Medifast pudding (chocolate with raspberry Crystal Light instead of water)

I loved dinner so much that I already packed up chicken for the next two nights at work, plus I'm baking some more squash to have with it. And I've already cut up red onions and a few bell peppers for breakfast for the next few days (I throw 'em all in with the spinach and Egg Beaters).

I'm SO excited to be cooking again, after a year and a half of grilled chicken breast and veggies.

[dede4wd]

Wow, Yummy Robin! I can't wait to hear the difference between the rations between MF & BFL for maintenance and what tanita says (of course).

DeDe

[Nova]

I know exactly how you feel, Robin. I'm sitting in meetings and my mind is wandering thinking about how I can concoct an oatmeal-protein-pudding cookie concoction that's healthy and tasty and in the right ratios for maintenance. Or I'll browse the foodtv website looking at the holiday recipes and figuring out how I could make them healthy. Cooking is my new favorite hobby. And I'm still in the L&G phase. One more week.

[DogMa]

I like the epicurious site. Tons of recipes, and you can search based on all kinds of criteria. And they're all rated by users, who also include comments on things they did differently. I based my chicken on all their comments plus made a few changes of my own, and it was fantastic.

I also can have fruit now that I'm back to 40 percent carbs. I'm not a huge fruit eater, but I have to admit, the apple with PB was delicious. And felt so healthy.


Today: 130.0, so the weekend weight is coming right back off, which is great. Did treadmill today and pushed a little harder.

Food today will be almost exactly yesterday's, except a chili instead of one of the puddings and some peppers in my eggs now that I got to the supermarket. Otherwise, it was just too good to not have it again! Plus the ratios worked out EXACTLY.

[DogMa]

Nice side benefit to the bad weather. I got to work in the Arlington newsroom instead of having to drive to Fort Worth. Which was nice in itself, but it also meant I got to see someone I haven't seen in months. Who commented on how "different" I look. He was trying to figure out what was changed, and I just told him I'd lost some weight.

And then he was practically drooling over my dinner. Which I suspect is going to become a staple in my house. It was extremely easy to make, very healthy - and delicious, to boot. (Not OK for a lean and green, though, unfortunately, because of the artichoke hearts. But I LOVE artichoke hearts.)

[DogMa]

130.0 again. I was really hoping to be back in the 120s today, but so be it. I'm having my usual issue, so maybe that's it.

Anyway, treadmill today. Food same as yesterday's, except I had to make a few small adjustments because I'm out of Stacy's soy crisps.