The FastDay Forum

I've been stuck at 62.2 for about a week now. I think I must expect things to be a bit slower from now on. This morning, however, I was 62,0 kg. My BMI is still 24.22, so I can afford to lose some more. Sassy. if you want to award me a star, go ahead. I am keeping up with my window, low carb, no sugar. thing.

I'm up 1 pound this week, lol, but that's not unexpected as I have not fasted for a single day this entire week -- no stars for me this week, I guess!

On the bright side, I cooked my first turkey this past week and it turned out perfectly! I was so scared I'd mess it up (I'm not very talented in cooking meats), but it was super easy! Which is great, because we found whole turkeys 90% off at the grocery this past saturday, and bought three 13 pounders for a grand total of about 12 dollars! Three whole chickens would have cost more than that! Good thing we have a chest freezer, lolol!

I really should have started fasting last Monday-Wednesday, knowing that I would have a difficult time fasting while at home the following four days. Oh well, no big deal. I enjoyed my Thanksgiving Day splurge and kept things somewhat within reason for the rest of the days. Sometimes it's nice to have a bit of a rest and reset. I'm fasting today and tomorrow to get right back on track!

Definitely had more alcohol than usual lately, which certainly never helps the waistline! I generally have one drink every couple of months -- not on purpose, that's just how often I tend to have a hankering. But I'm definitely a social drinker, and here I've attended two big gatherings in the past 10 days. I thoroughly enjoyed the buzz, though, so I must say I don't feel any food guilt over it!

I have two more gatherings for the season (and a box of mom's christmas cookies that I'm definitely eating!) and then I should be out the other side of the holidays! Good luck everyone on this coming week!

I like posting my victories here. And there is not so much happening here anyway. So, this morning, to my surprise, I was 61.9kg

Hi,
Well I survived Thanksgiving! Gained a pound, lost a pound, basically back in the same spot. I had planned to eat the meal but to continue to avoid sugar. That didn't work! Those desserts just call out to me! So now I'm back on track, no sugar since Friday! Hoping to drop another pound or two for Xmas. I had lost weight during the summer, so now I'm putting on winter clothes for the first time, and enjoying how big they are!
I'm going to claim one star, for sticking to the eating windows and jumping back on board after only a day and a half of sugar!
Good luck to you guys!

Thanks for the updates everyone. Stars awarded - or not! - @Margotsylvia (thought you had earned two) @Fancyfinch, @nycnyc2013.

Very warm here today, housecleaning chores done, now need to get motivated to start on the Christmas cards.. I do like to get them sent before it gets too crazy busy in the lead up to Christmas.

Fancyfinch, a pound gain doesn't sound too bad for allowing yourself some indulgence, hopefully it is mainly water and will soon go again - as per nycnyc. Great job with the turkey - you must be pleased with yourself. Very handy to have a store of that to call upon,

I think it is very important to take a break from whatever (restrictive) diet you are on fairly regularly. I have read that about every six weeks is a good time - or if your weight loss plateaus and won't shift.

I know what you mean about alcohol - for me it's that I generally "can't" drink without needing something to eat. I am trying to accept that both alcohol and chocolate are substances that I have to avoid if I want to manage my eating okay.

It is very quiet on the forum - again - I guess this is a busy time of year for most of us.

How are you going @Cblasz? I wondered if you had ever tried cognitive behavior therapy techniques for reframing your thoughts around food and eating? The Beck Institute specialises in this and on its Facebook page has daily tips that demonstrate ways of doing this. Well worth a look.

And how are the rest of you doing? @Loz17 (apologies for not yet replying to your PM), @Matillian,@loversghost and @Stowgateresident (not so long since we heard from you tho).

Best wishes all!

Hi Sassy1,
No need to apologise for not replying to my PM. I hadn’t even noticed as a bit busy here with a family problem. Definitely only 1 star for me for each of the last postings due. Either only had one fast day instead of 2, or had too many wines on the odd night to cope with stress (know it doesn’t help in the long run, but softens the edges a tad at the time). Apologies for not posting sooner.
Best wishes,
Loz17

The scale was up on Monday for me, not surprisingly after the weekend. So I'm holding off on officially weighing myself until next weekend. I'm probably not going to be super focused on my goals until after the holidays at this point. But, I will do what I can.

@Sassy1 - I don't think my feelings about food are much different than most people. I think anyone who is on this forum or any sort of diet plan, needs help sticking to healthy foods, etc.

This morning I was 61.6 kg. My BMI is about 24 now. Still ways to go to a BMI of 22. Sassy, by all means do give me two or as many stars as you like. I still keep at my things. Going to go to the city now and not so connected to here for the next couple of days.

I'm just back from a very chilly walk with the dog and thought that I would catch up on what people are doing. Those of you who have celebrated Thanksgiving seem to have negotiated it to no great ill effect and I was pleased to see no mention of suffering 'food guilt' because that is strictly not allowed! If one is intending to eat something that you would normally consider 'off limits' then the least we can do is make sure that we get every bit of enjoyment that we can out of it - otherwise it really is just a waste of calories!

I haven't fasted this week, quite deliberately I should add, because I want my body to get used to more calories before I am off for my Christmas cruise. My weight is holding at just over 147 pounds so that is good. In preparation I have dug out the 'glad rags' and tried them on and found a pair of black velvet trousers which I haven't worn for a few years. They must have been from my 'big' days because I have had to take them in by two inches on the waist and hips. That was very encouraging!

I hope that everybody's week is going well. Soon be the weekend so enjoy yourselves. Stay strong! Onwards and downwards!

Hi!

I weighed 77 kg. I have struggled to eat well these days, my water intake is good, I have walked a lot. I would give me one star because I really need to keep in check my eating

Have a nice day!

Star awarded to @Matillian! Sorry to hear you are struggling to eat well - if you are happy to tell us about it, we could give more support and maybe some suggestions to help.

@Stowgateresident - you don't need to be fasting or losing weight to earn stars - I assume you have kept up with (at least some of) your other strategies?

@Loz17 - 2 stars awarded. And no need for you to apologize for not posting!! Sounds like you are doing fine, all things considered.

@Margotsylvia, you do seem to be on a roll now - plateaus do happen but you have shown that you don't have to stay on them!!

@Loversghost, how are you doing?

And if anyone thinks I have not awarded them enough stars, please let me know.

@Cblasz, and everyone. Here are some of the daily tips from the Beck Institute that show (to me anyway!) how CBT can be useful in reframing how we think about food and eating.

Wednesday Sabotage: I don’t want to have to work on healthy eating during the holidays.
Response: While it’s true I don’t want to have to think about healthy eating, I so much more don’t want to not fit into my pants, not like the way I look, avoid being in pictures, feel out of control of my eating, etc. While maintaining healthy eating this time of year is hard, it’s still so much better than the alternative!

Monday Motivation: When you’re working on losing weight, there are a lot of hard moments. Moments at parties, at events, when you’re having a craving, when you’re feeling stressed or anxious and want to eat. But there are also so, so many great moments. When you bend over and your stomach doesn’t get in the way. When you get a compliment. When you feel great at the end of the day. When you get on the scale stress-free. When you overcome a craving and feel really proud. Make sure you pay attention to the great moments! What are some of yours?

Friday Weekend Warm-up: If you think, “I just don’t want the burden of thinking about dieting this weekend,” remind yourself: Eating right is a burden, but being overweight is a burden too (physically, psychologically, financially, etc.) EITHER WAY I’M BURDENED, but at least in one way I get to be thinner, healthier, and feel good about myself.

PS Wet wet wet here in Melbourne! And supposed to stay that way for two more days. We have postponed (and shortened) our beach stay for a few days - bonus there is that I have Internet access for a couple more days.

Thanks Sassy1 for all of your efforts.
Feeling back on track now and highly motivated.
Will report back in a week or so.
Cheers (without the alcohol [incompatible emoji removed] ),
Loz17

@Sassy1 - thanks for posting that. It kinda confirms what I said though. It takes a lot of effort to eat healthy. But, we (or I) continue to try to because I do want to look/feel better. It doesn't make it any easier though!

@Cblasz, I think something that can make managing your eating less of a burden, is the habit aspect, that you raised before. I just finished reading a book "Foodist" which promotes the idea that once good eating becomes a habit, then that requires a lot less mental energy and less effort in general.

There is also a focus on eating the best quality food you can. I recall you are not keen on a lot of vegetables. The book suggests buying from Farmers Markets, where the food is seasonal and likely to be a lot more tasty than supermarkets produce.

I dont believe that good eating habits need to be a burden most of the time - and if we examine the times which, for us, they are, then we can come up with strategies to deal with these.

For me, it does seem that I am less likely to snack in the evening (my main everyday eating challenge) if:
- I have a large chunk of protein for dinner (steak or chicken appear to be the most effective for me)
- I don't eat dinner too early
- I keep my hands busy (not with food! )
- I don't drink any wine or have any chocolate (sob!!)
- I don't read a novel
- and I really think about whether I am hungry or not.

Despite all the "don't"s there, I do still sometimes manage to have a small glass of wine and some chocolate with no adverse results.

I do hope you are able to find some way of making "good" eating easier.

@Cblasz,
For me, it does seem that I am less likely to snack in the evening (my main everyday eating challenge) if:
- I have a large chunk of protein for dinner (steak or chicken appear to be the most effective for me)
- I don't eat dinner too early
- I keep my hands busy (not with food! )
- I don't drink any wine or have any chocolate (sob!!)
- I don't read a novel
- and I really think about whether I am hungry or not.

@Sassy1 - thank you again for your advice. I'm not sure if I explained myself well. It's not that I can't eat healthily or even that I dislike it. It's just that it doesn't come 2nd nature to me, like it does for some people. I'm not the person who actually prefers a salad to a cheeseburger. And it doesn't mean I eat horribly all the time either. If I did, I'd weight a lot more. All I'm saying is that when I am trying to lose weight, it needs to be a very purposeful and deliberate thing. It requires a lot of thinking about what I will eat, planning and tracking, and sometimes resisting eating something (or at some time) that would not be in accordance with that goal. I do certainly employ strategies to do this and create habits in order to stick to it and make it easier.

But, it still requires effort. To me, based on what you said above, it seems like it also requires a lot of effort for you to avoid eating chocolate at night. And I know if we want to accomplish something worthwhile then we need to put in that effort. Right now, with work and the holidays it is very hard for me to put the full effort in to lose weight. That doesn't mean I will completely throw all good eating/exercise habits out the window. Over many, many years of dieting, my eating habits have changed for the better, just not enough to lose the weight I need to. I'm looking forward to restarting after the holidays and trying to improve them even more.

Re: farmer's markets, we only have those around here in the summer and that would certainly require a lot of effort. Although you are convinced (and remind me often) that I need to eat more vegetables, I am actually quite comfortable with the amount of vegetables that I eat.

I hope that kind of explains better what I meant.