Hi all,

Just wanted to say hello and introduce myself. I'm not really overweight, (I'm at 137) but I also know that I want to be thinner. Like at 123 lbs. THAT would make me happy. When I was in my 20's and 30's, I knew only one way to stay thin (I always weighed around 127) - count calories, and walk off any extra to stay in the 1400 cal. range. It was so simple, and it worked. Now that I'm in my early 40's, it took me about 3 years to realize that something has changed and for some reason, the counting calories/walking plan SIMPLY DOESN'T WORK ANYMORE. I started getting into the 140's....and then the 150's...and even hit 163 and got pretty scared that day. I never had children (by choice) and really didn't do anything out of the ordinary....the only thing that really changed was my age.

The thing that finally made me look at things in a whole new light was when I quickly gained 15 lbs. in one month my simply adding one new food into my diet - yogurt. The GOOD, sweet yogurt, Chobani Flips. Even though I never had much of a sweet tooth (I despise ice cream, icing on cake, white chocolate, etc.) - I had a thing for this yogurt. I looked forward to it every night. And it wasn't high-cal, but it sure was high-carb and (more importantly) high sugar, something my body wasn't even that used to. I have low blood sugar, had it since high school. I don't ever get hungry, I get shaky-hungry, and that's when I know it's time to eat. By the time my stomach starts growling, I'm already weak and shaky. My blood sugar is constantly dropping, every time it's time to eat. I do not have diabetes, been tested over and over again for it, fasting tests, etc. Sugar is always too low. I have hypoglycemia. Yet, when I do eat sugar, that's when I start packing on the pounds. Carbs too. I am obsessed with McDonald's, I'll admit it. But just by taking the bun off of my double cheeseburger and eating only 1/2 the fries, I easily got down to 137 lbs., which is where I am now...and that's how I know low-carb/sugar is the only way I will get to 123 lbs. My awesome goal weight.

*BUT - I can't go too low-carb or low-sugar. My sugar drops enough, so I'm trying to find a comfortable way to do this without getting too weak. I can't go under 80 carbs, when I do, I pass out. It's happened twice now. I fall flat on my face and don't even realize it. So I'm trying to figure out some kind of plan where I can eat and not be hungry/shaky - yet keep all the bad stuff out too. I still walk - I do 1/2 a mile a night. Not much, but I never skip it, and it's only to keep my legs toned. I also do some yoga, light weights (for arm flab) and sit-ups in bed. Religiously.

This is my plan for eating. Rather than asking a bunch of individual questions like, "Would it be okay to eat this? Would it be okay to eat that?" I'll just lay it all out here and if you see anything that could stop me from getting to 123 lbs., please let me know. And please keep in mind that if this seems a little too "carby" - it's because I just can't go too low-carb. My body doesn't do very well, yet it DOES respond well with weight loss when I go "lower" carb/sugar... and then I start losing weight. Okay, here goes:

Baked chicken breast (still trying to find a lower-carb/sugar BBQ sauce.) <Ideas?>

Lots and lots of salad with Bleu Cheese dressing and shredded cheese on top - this goes well with the chicken. ^

Tuna mixed with mayo on lettuce and shredded cheese and hard-boiled egg

1/2 apple cut into slices with chunky peanut butter on top and as much cottage cheese as I want (I love this combo.)

Jimmy Dean scrambled eggs with ham, cheese, and potatoes (18 carbs and sugar combined)

Beef steak (fried) with melted cheese on top and cucumbers and sour cream (I'm a Polish gal.)

Turkey and cheddar sandwich on whole wheat bread (throw the crusts to the birds) and about 5 potato chips.

***Questionable*** ?? -----> Whole wheat noodles with ground beef and Heart Healthy Prego Spaghetti Sauce w/ melted cheese on top (Sort of like a lasagna bake, but there's a lot more meat and cheese than noodles.)
I'm not sure about this last one, afraid it will mess things up because of the noodles and spaghetti sauce. ^

Snack: I just started eating these, and they haven't affected me the way yogurt has in the past: Smart For Life Cookies - 10 net carbs each, and filling, like a meal. Meant to be a meal replacement, but I use them to keep my sugar steady. Here's the link: https://shop.smartforlife.com/produ...ate-cookie.html

So that's about it. PLEASE feel free to let me know if I'm doing anything wrong or if I should add anything, or just a comment in general. I seem to be stuck at 137. For about a month now. I plan on giving up McDonald's completely and following the above plan. Unless you find something wrong. I'm still fairly new to this, I'm just so used to counting calories still.
Thanks in advance and it's great to be here.