Countdown to 125 anyone?

[ruby]

Hi,
Is anyone out there in 160's trying to get to 127. I'd like to find someone with same stats, age 45. Hope to hear from you.

[agonycat]

Hey Ruby!

I am pretty close. I am 42, currently at 158 and going down to 130 or so. I have lost 35 pounds so far and hoping to hit goal by April which is about 5 pounds a month.

:)

[ruby]

Hi Agonycat!
This is Ruby. Congratulations! You've made my day. I'm so inspired by you that I'm going to get going. It's my second time around. I went down to 145 from 169 last year and have regained to 162. So now must decide to do it once and for all. I'll start my journal tomorrow. Your reply is just what I need. I'm not sure if you got my last post, I tried to send it via personal message but it wouldn't work. Have a Happy New Year.

[agonycat]

Ruby you need 25 posts before the private messages kick in, so just keep posting :)

I was a bit remiss in following the diet during the holidays so I am back to induction levels as of today, plus I started working out.

Hopefully the last 28 pounds will vanish as easily as the first 35 did :) If you need anything just let me know.

[agonycat]

Okay Ruby where ya at?

I am down 3 pounds since last week. How are you making out?

[ruby]

Hey Agonycat! :wave:
Today is Day 4 of Induction and I'm at 157lbs!!! I cheated on Day 1. I have Huge!! cravings in the evening. But hey! That's 5lbs. in 3 days! I can't complain. :yay:

Hope it keeps up. Good luck and keep me posted.
Bye,
Ruby

[piglet]

I'm a bit above your age (55) but don't think of it like that. I'm trying to lose from 167 to 125. I really need some buddies. I'm starting the induction today if I can get the book today. If not I'll get it tommorow. Can I please join your little buddy group?
:wave:

[tree]

Hey! I'm on a countdown to 125 too. From 164. I'm down to about 155 now, started on 01/07/02. It's great to know who's in the same ball park with start and goal weights. Now I know to watch out for you guys, including you Piglet! I'm sure they'll be your buddies, and so will I. How are things going for you all now? I'm loving this diet. Never felt better, never felt less hungry. :wave: Good to hear from you all!

[rgarlough]

I'm at 152 (down from 160, kinda slow loser :thdown: ) But I'd love to join your quest to get to 125! I'm shooting for a healthy 130 by my wedding date of June 29 but if I could get in a buddy group for additional support, I think it would really help. It's only 5 months away :eek:

I've been debating whether or not to stay in Induction. I lost 8 pounds in the first 2 weeks while on Induction but my clothes are still fitting better everyday. I've started to add 5 more carbs per day so I'm allowing myself up to 25/day. Haven't thrown myself out of ketosis yet so I think I'm doing great! :D

I'm going to try to start on an exercise program and I'm going to use a brisk daily walk as my main workout. Then I'm planning on adding some weight training. Right now, my muscles are all pooped out as I must still be in a transitioning period.

I've started a journal to help me see how I'm doing and to keep me on the right track. I'm anxious to see my improvement as time goes on.

I hope this Countdown to 125 group really gets going because I need all the encouragement I can get!

Thanks everyone,

Annie G.

[piglet]

I finally got the book last night. I am going to the grocery store on Saturday and making that my first day. It will be nice to have others to talk to about what is going on.

Annie it sounds like you are doing great! Hope it works as well for me. My clothes are awfully tight and I'm not buying bigger.

Janet :wave:

[rgarlough]

I got my long awaited book last night too. My Atkins order finally arrived. I'm skipping the bars but using the shakes. I figured that eating the bars 1x per day may have been slowing my fat loss. We'll see next month if it really helped. I'm on day 19 now and I'm at 25 grams of carb a day. I'm thinking of keeping at 25 grams for a while since I feel a ton better at 25 than when I was at 20. Again, I'll see next month if it makes a difference for me.

Talking about pants, I was so excited yesterday since I was able to wear another pair that I bought when I was at 160. They were the same size as my other "fat" pants, but were tight when I tried them on at home. I can't believe I stopped trying on pants at the store because I tired of the looks from those tiny girls at the Dressing room. So I'd buy and return. :mad: Well, I refused to return the "fat" pants for "fatter" pants so I just kept them in the closet. But yesterday I actually fit in them and they weren't tight! :D

I measured myself this morning and now I'll be able to see if I'm losing fat. My weight hasn't changed much but I've always been very muscular and I think I'm getting more muscle in place of fat. Which is fine by me but it'll make my goal weight harder to acheive. Oh well. I'll be happy if I can fit into my favorite jeans that I had to stash away almost 2 years ago. :(

I'm going to the cabin this weekend and I think I'll dig out my snowshoes and go for a hike. That always gets my blood pumping! :cool:

Talk to you all on Monday. There's no web access where I'm going! :wave:

Annie G.

[piglet]

Annie- Hope you had a great weekend. I made it through my first day just fine. I found a great chicken recipe from the lc recipe section and made that for dinner last night. It was great.
Today is day two and is starting off well.
:wave:
Janet

[rgarlough]

I survived my weekend in the sticks. And as a bonus, I lost 3 more pounds!!! :D I thought I gained weight because of my monthly visitor and I had a couple drinks this weekend but I followed my new Atkins books and I lost weight! Can you tell I'm excited. I'm up to 30 carbs per day now and I'm in my 4th week of Atkins. I'm looking for my CCLL or whatever and I'm hoping it's a reasonable number. So far so good though.

Keep up the great work everybody! I'm having a snack.

Annie G.

[piglet]

Annie-
Glad you had a good weekend.
I just looked at you stats and it is such an inspiration. This post came just when I was at a point of wondering if it would work and thinking about giving up. Then I saw that you had lost down to the 140's in 4 weeks. That gave me encouragement. Thank you! :clap:
Janet

[rgarlough]

Janet -

Don't give up! :exclm: Just when I think I'm not doing Atkins right, I just look back at my book or I log in here and read the success stories. For me, I need to see other's struggles and successes to keep me going too. If it wasn't for this group, it would be terribly hard for me to keep going. The constant pressures from all the high-carbers is rough. :( Trust me. My fiance just whipped up a batch of white chocolate macadamia cookies last night and they certainly weren't low carb. It was hell on earth, that smell was so delicious. You know what I did. I broke open the fridge and whipped up some deviled eggs. He looked at me and said "what did you fart or something?" I said "no, and I'm sorry that my deviled eggs don't smell as great as your cookies." I giggled to myself and thought that I'm doing this for me. :D

I'm the one that wants to feel better about my body. I'm in control of what I put in it. If I put good stuff in it, the bad stuff will come off. :cool: Oh it was hard to resist those damn cookies. But I went grocery shopping for low carb ingrediants and I'm going to make some low carb desserts to help me in my struggle. Of course, I was in need of some chocolate after smelling those cookies for hours. I had to settle with half of an Atkins chocolate shake, but it worked til bedtime. I'm not going to tell you that for me everyday is perfect and everyday I'm at the "right" number of carbs. I'm supposed to be at 30 grams this week. Yesterday, I had 43. :thdown: My problem yesterday was Starbucks. I settled with a small breve latte (10 carbs). So I have my "bad" days. I just skip weighing myself and hope for a better day tomorrow. Today, I'll just have to make certain I skip the higher carb items and focus more on my Induction-type snacks. It's hard to watch family member stuff their faces with high carb snacks and it's hard to watch the TV when we're constantly fed the "low fat" is good messages. Makes me want to puke. Tuesday was my worst day yet. I added a scoop of ice cream to my Atkins shake because I was out of regular cream. Well, there's sugar in my Breyers. So I was over my carbs on Tuesday too. Add in my homemade chili (10 grams carbs) and I hit an embarrassing 51 carbs. :eek: Am I disappointed in myself? Yes, to a point. What I like about Atkins is he's trying to help people find a carb level that helps them lose weight and it's not all about Induction. I'm definitely pushing my body and I'm doing it too fast. We'll see if I suffer for it at weigh in on Friday morning. But finding the limits is what we're trying to do here. We're also trying to help ourselves overcome certain addictions too. Granted, some people, once they're off of sugar or high carb items, can't even nibble on them or they're back on the wagon. For others, like myself, I can indulge a bit and walk away. I don't have that "addiction" to certain foods. My biggest fat-inducer is beer. I got into a weekly habit of drinking on Fridays, along with eating high carb "bar foods" like fries every week. Before I knew it, I was fatter than ever. I stopped drinking beer on Fridays and switched to water with a lemon. Of course, this is challenging because I bowl in a couples league with my fiance and we're surrounded by people drinking. :rolleyes: I look quite out of place, let me tell you. But when I tell people that I'm tired of being fat from all the beer drinking, they shut up really fast. Especially when they look down at their beer gut. I did have a couple drinks over the weekend though. I decided to see how the hard alcohol worked with this low carb diet. Boy, one shot is plenty! I nursed my little shot with a can of diet coke with lemon and that drink lasted me all night. :p

We all have the inner strength to do this! But we do need each other to help us overcome the high carb demon! ;)

Keep your chin up Janet :thup: You can do it!!

Annie G.

[A thin me!]

HI!

How are you doing these days? It looks like you got back on the wagon and see, I told you could do it!!! Keep it up.


A Thin Me

[piglet]

Annie-
Wow! Did I ever need your post. Yesterday there was a cake in the team room at school. I ate a piece. Wierdest thing, instead of satisfying me it made hungrier. I was sorta like when I tried to quit smoking several different times and I would have a cigarette - one wouldn't do...I had to have several in a row. (Thank goodness I think I might have that whipped I haven't smoked now in almost 11 months.) Anyway, tonight was my bowling league night. I got really hungry bowling - I went to the snack bar and asked for a grill cheese sandwich without the bread and not grilled. They handed me a piece of cheese but wouldn't charge me so I bought a drink - rasberry tea. It was too sweet to drink. I should have just gotten plain iced tea. I really don't like diet drinks. I didn't drink it. I got a package of peanuts - felt like that wouldn't be too bad. I got home and ate some sugar free jello and pork rinds and am finally satisfied. It was really hard resisting a candy bar but I did.
I keep thinking about the 40 or so pounds I've gained over the last 5 years and I know I want it off. I really already feel better and think I can tell that some of the bloat and fat are going. All the water I drink really helps.
This summer I did a modified body for life plan from my gym. It was really working but eating every three hours is hard to do at school. ( I teach) It seems I have gotten out of the habit of going to the gym also. I really need to start that again, too. Maybe next week.
Anyway thanks again for much need encouragement.
Janet

[rgarlough]

Oh Janet I hear you loud and clear. Why does it seem like over half the world is trying to sabbotage us low carbers? Thursdays at my work are Doughnut Days and I can smell those little buggers the moment I walk into the office. Then I get to smell them everytime I walk through the breakroom. I finally had one last week (1st time in over 2 months) and it really wasn't what I expected at all. It was actually too sweet and the texture seemed weird to me. I would've been fine if I just ate a bite and tossed the rest. Then over the weekend at the cabin for my sister's birthday party, I had a small piece of cake. I ended up just skipping back to Induction foods for piece of mind. Mostly, I just didn't get all the calories I needed for the day and ended up feeling tired Sunday and into Monday.

But let me tell you how wonderful those Mock Danishes are! :p I don't know why I never tried them before. OMG my breakfast one with cinnamin was delicious. Then I've been trying more low carb recipes and even altering some of my other recipes so they're low carb too. For starters, I made a Swedish meatball recipe low carb last night by replacing the flour for a little cornstarch and then I didn't use the bread crumbs, just a 2 little crackers for the meatballs. I was able to get my 9 carbs per serving recipe down to 8.5 total carbs for the whole recipe! :thup: I was totally pumped! And the recipe was so good the fiance actually said "Delicious dinner, babe". I was shocked. He wasn't too into the idea of low carb when I first started talking about it but he's coming around.

Oh, and dessert... I made a no bake low carb cheesecake. YUMMY and talk about loaded with fat! I love this WOE. And at only 4 carbs for a generous piece, how I can go wrong. Fiance was a little scared but said it was good just not very sweet. Well, I just don't need a heck of a lot of sweet anymore. I found it hard to finish my piece actually. I used a pecan crust and whipped cream and 2 packages of cheese cream for the filling. A scant 1/2 cup of splenda and a splash of vanilla. I don't understand a few things yet like the like why my regular cream cheese has more carbs than the philly light and why the carb counters are wrong about that.

After all my cooking and "baking" last night I was at 30 carbs - 2 fiber carbs = 28 total carbs! I couldn't believe it. I'm finally getting into this WOE and feeling great. My energy is total up. My calories are like 1800 to 2000 per day. My carbs are around 30 and I'm cooking! :D

I've never felt like this on a "diet" before. I'm totally getting into this WOL. :p

Keep up the good work everyone.

Annie G.

PS - Of course, it's weigh in for me tomorrow. I'm measuring too. My attitude may change.

[piglet]

Annie-
That cheese cake sounds delicious. Can I have the recipe?
I love the Mock Danishes also.
Today was not a good day for me. We have 2 days of inservice at school. During break I walked down to the coffee area and foolishly had a kolache then another ! :p At lunch we had chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes/gravy, green beans, and a roll. I was going to ask for just the steak and green beans and take the breading off the steak. Before I could do that I was handed my plate with everything on it. So of course I ate it! :rolleyes: Tommorow I'm going prepared with pig skins, cheese, a mock danish for break. I'm NOT going to the coffee area. Lunch will be fajitas so that should be much easier. I hope this doesn't set me back to much. I think I will just add a day to my induction. :wave:
JanetM

[rgarlough]

The recipe I used was from somewhere on the lowcarbluxury site. Can't find it, but it's easy to remember.

1 pint of whipping cream
2 packages of cream cheese (i used 1 philly reg, 1 philly light)
1/2 to 3/4 cup Splenda (i used 1/2 cup)
1 T of vanilla (1 used 1 teaspoon)
That's it for the filling.
Blend cream cheese, vanilla and Splenda in food processor or mixer. Whip cream to medium-stiff peak stage. (i messed up and didn't whip it enough) Fold in cream cheese mix.

Crust
1 cup of chopped pecans
2-3 T of melted butter
1 T of Splenda
Chop pecans further in food processor til consistancy of graham cracker crumbs. Mix all in pan (supposed to be springform, i used a pie pan) Spread and press into pan.

Pour in cream cheese/whipped cream mix. Let set in freezer for 1-2 hours or in fridge overnight.

Very simple.

I cut it into 8 pieces and figured with my "easy on the Splenda" about 4 grams of carbs but a little fiber from the nuts got it down a bit, maybe 3 grams. Don't know for sure. But YUM it's good. Not quite as firm as real baked cheesecake but it works for me, taste wise.

Annie

PS - at weigh in this morning, still 149. at least i didn't gain :thup:

[piglet]

Good for you and the weight.
I weighed 160 this morning so I guess it didn't hurt me either. I did much better today and actually have more energy. We had fajitas so I took my salad and just got a plate of meat and ate that with the salad. It was good.
Now for the weekend.
Thanks for the recipe.
:wave:
Janet

[ruby]

Hi Everyone!

Just dropped in to let you know. I started January 1 at 162lbs and it's now February 8 and I'm at 148.5. So down 13.5 lbs.
I'm pretty happy with that. Fell off the wagon a few times too, but still very satisfied with my results.

Hope you're all doing well. I'm looking to August for goal fo 125.

Where are you at Agonycat? Piglet?

Good luck to all of you.

Ruby

[piglet]

:cheer: Ruby..way to go! I am down to 160. Yesterday was a bad day as far as eating went but it's better today. Keep checking back with us.
Janet

[Jonee]

Hey girls,
Can I pleassssse join your club? I have been searching everywhere for a place to fit in!! I am so glad I found you all! I have added you all to my buddy list(now all I have to do is figure out how to work THAT), but anyway... I am in day 15 of induction. After no luck AT ALL for 2 weeks, when I was reading everyone else's success stories, I was really getting bummed out. I had a
couple of things stalling me at the start, such as weaning off a presciption medication(pre-menopausal) that my Dr. said was responsible for my weight gain. I am still not in ketosis(I broke down and bought the stix) even tho I drown myself in water. I think the meds may have had something to do with that. Anyway, I was getting so discouraged. Does anyone else feel that the first 2 weeks of induction feel like 2 months? :q:
I kept seaching all the links(turtle club, newbies, etc) and a few people were mentioning that they tried the Reversal Technique to jump start themselves, like filling up on extra carbs for a day or so, and they saw instant weight loss. Soooo, I decided what the heck, let's try it. I had made Beef Stew for my family last Weds nite, and decided to indulge with them. I ate mostly meat, but did have some of the potatoes and carrots, no bread, and the next morning had rice chex(1/2 cup with 1% milk), just enough to satisfy but not fill me up. So, that was Thurs morning, and Friday morning, when I weighed myself, I had dropped 5 LBS!!!! My first weight loss!!! Maybe it was a coincidence, maybe not!! And yes, I have cheated all along and have weighed myself everyday, mostly because I needed to know why I wasn't losing weight. So, I don't plan on doing this Reversal all the time, but I have added a few wheat thins to my daily snack(about 8-10). I am also following some advice I read and I am eliminating most eggs and cheese for awhile. I will still make my crustless quiche, which is wonderful, and I can take it to work with me. Well, now that I have bored you all to death, please do not kick me out of the club. I do tend to get lengthy, but I promise I will work on that. I am turning 50 tomorrow, so have mercy on me!!! LOL Best of luck to all of you. You girls seem to be doing awesome. I will be your cheerleader!!! :cheer:

Talk to you soon!!

Jonee

[piglet]

Welcome to our little group Jonee! :wave:
It's amazing how posting helps. It's good to hear how others are doing also. I am really trying to stay with this. It's been pretty easy this weekend. I walked yesterday afternoon and got up this morning and walked again. It was really cold here (well cold for central Texas) and the wind was blowing so I only walked about 3/4 of a mile but I figure that was better than sitting around. My next step is to get back to exercise.
How did you do the Buddy list thing. I haven't done that but guess I will try to figure it out.
Janet

[Jonee]

Hey Piglet,
Thanks so much for your welcome!! I was hoping to hear from one of you!! I checked your profile, and we have the same starting date(Jan 26). We can challenge each other to keep going!
I don't know how the buddy list works/ I have to figure that out. But at the bottom of each post, there is a buddy icon that will place the person's sn in your buddy list. Boy, are we classic newbies or what! We'll get the hang of it. I will catch up with you soon. Good luck. I will be rooting for you. :wave:

[piglet]

Jonee-
I finally figured out how to get the Buddy thing to work on Sunday. Or at least how to add people to my buddy list. Like you I'm not sure about how to make it work but I'm sure we will figure it out. We went out to work with a friend last night. We went to a chineese buffet. I managed really well with crab legs and shrimp instead of soup and then beef and brocoli,ect.
I can tell this is working. The bloating is going away. Now if I could just get my exercise program jump started.
Janet

[Jonee]

Janet,

About the bloating relief, that is what is keeping me going. Even if the scale doesn't move, just to bend down and not have my stomach knock me over if great. A month ago, I could not suck my stomach in because it was so full, now I can( I guess that is what is considered water weight). I wore pants to work yester day that were too tight to wear all fall and winter, and they were pretty comfortable---but tight by the end of the day-that's ok tho. Now I just wish I would go into Ketosis. It still doesn't register, but maybe this week. I don't get that at all. Oh well, you sound like you are doing great! Keep is up---talk to you soon.

Jonee

[piglet]

Jonee-
I am in low keotsis ( I never spell that right but you get the idea). My clothes are fitting better. I have a pair of pants that I got for Christmas that I have not worn because they are too tight. Hopefully soon they will fit. My weight is staying the same but maybe that will change soon. I don't think I'm drinking quite enough water and maybe getting too many carbs. I really need to start doing the carb counting thing. Maybe I'll get it started this weekend and will be able to keep up with it.
Janet

[Jonee]

Janet, We got too excited at those first 5 lbs. Last nite I weighed myself when I went to bed(wrong thing to do at the end of the day), and got bummed cuz there was weight gain, but this morning it evened out. I put a nylon jogging suit on today that I got about 2 years ago. The pants have been tight and that makes them shorter, but I wore them occasionally anyway. Well, today, they fit real nice and the length was coming down(am I making any sense)? So, even tho those stupid little sticks stay beige(I'm really hating them), I guess I am in ketosis a bit, huh? If not, let's just pretend we are like everyone else!!! Sounds like a plan... Keep those Xmas pants hanging out where you can see them and try them on once a week--betcha fit in them sooner than you think. Like you, I don't think I eat correctly all the time. But as long as we aren't cheating with breads or sweets, we will be ok. Did you find the link fitday.com yet? It's pretty cool. You can calculate all your carb intake each day. Well pal, I will talk to you soon. DRINK!!!!!!!!!!!

[Kellycolle]

Responding to your stats. We are pretty close. I'm 40. My goal wt was 25 but I think, after talking to friends, 30 is better for me. I currently weigh 158. So If you'd like to chat sometime, email me at
..Kellyc~i-love-cats.com
good luck, we can do it! Kelly

[ruby]

Hi Kelly,
Thanks for contacting me. I'm wondering about the 125 goal myself. I weighed that when I was 26 (just turned 45 today!) so maybe it's a bit low. I'm currently at 147.5 (started this round at 162, but last year my high was 169 (when my husband got on the scale and weighed 170, and I was 169, (he's 5'11" I knew it was time.) Induction went very well. I'm rehearsing a play right now so my days are very long and go late into the night. I'd love to email you but it probably won't be till later. I'd like to hear details about your induction and rate of weight loss.

Good luck

Ruby :wave:

[piglet]

Jonee-
Yes I have been to fitday and did the carb thing a couple of times but haven't done it regularly. I will make time to do it. I totally understand about the pants and the legnth.
Janet

[Jonee]

Hey girls,
I haven't posted to the club for awhile, cuz I had nothing to report until today. After my initial 5 lb loss 2 weeks ago, I had stalled again. But today I dropped another 2 lbs. It is not alot, but I hadn't lost anything in 2 weeks. How are you all doing? I have been reading alot of posts, and it really seems to me that everyone in our range (160s to 125 goal and our age group) seem to have the slowest loss. I have been in Induction since 1/26, and I think I am going to stay in Induction for a while. I am adjusted to it now, so why rock the boat? Last week, I took my mom out for lunch, had the salad bar(such a good girl), but did cheat and indulge in a mozzarella stick and a couple spoonfuls of my moms choc. pudding(hey, it was Valentine's Day and my b'day). Anyway, within 10-15 min, I felt so sick! I couldn't believe it!! Has anyone experienced that? I hadn't cheated before or after that, and if anything, it has given me encouragement to maintain this way of eating. Well, hope everyone is doing well.. Keep in touch.

Jonee

[piglet]

Hi Jonee! :wave:
I have been stalled at 159 but can sure tell a difference in the way my clothes fit. I've lost a lot of the bloating and my stomach is actually going down. Today I got in a pair of pants that have been too tight to wear to school so that is a good feeling. I'm also still doing induction but not worrying if I do a couple of carbs over 20. I've really tried to stay on the straight and narrow this week though and it's helping I understand completely about the too sweet stuff. If I indulge with even a bite of something though I seem to want more and it does tend to make me sorta sick feeling. I had some unsweetened iced tea at a restaurant last Saturday and it really tasted good. I usually have Splenda with me but had run out. I'm beginning to walk more and that is helping too. I'm glad you posted today. I haven't had much time to even read posts.
Janet

[Jonee]

Janet,
I was so hoping to hear from you. We are still running close enough to each other--I just finally caught up. We will make it by June, I am confident. I am going to try to wish for 2 lbs/week, and not worry anymore about big jumps in weight loss. I am so glad you can feel the difference. I definitely feel my stomach going down and also my lovehandles. As long as I can see it in the mirror, I feel good. Well, let's try to keep in touch at least once a week or so.
Jonee

[piglet]

Jonee I am trying for a couple of pounds a week also. My love handles are going down also. Now I just need to keep on the diet and pick up my exercise. I'll post again in a few days.
Janet

[Cinderella]

I noticed this thread and want to join your group but it looks as if no one is posting here anymore.

Just ant to know if this thread is still open.

Hugs..Cin :wave:

[shanny]

I am at 133 and trying desperately to get to 125. I am going much slower that I want but I don't have that much to lose.....things could be worse. It seems those last 10 are the hardest. I am going to cut out my salami & cheese night snack b/c I think it's holding me back. :roll:
I'm NOT giving up even if this takes a long time.

I have a goal of being in the 120's by June 7th b/c I have a big shindig that day. Want to join me?