Good morning everyone :)

Matthew I'm glad you went in and were seen....I'm very frustrated with how you were treated though and the flippant response with no testing. Yikes.

So...again, one diabetic to another, you really really really need a good primary care doctor (or endocrinologist) to make sure that you have all the tests you need on a regular basis to manage your diabetes. Look at me....2 months late on my A1c test and advising Matthew....hmmmm.....obviously, it's tough enough to manage even with a good doctor...like the nice butch I have who is going to lecture me and give me that look...again...when I finally get my test done and get in there.

If you're only on metformin, chances are that your diabetes is not too advanced....or you're getting crappo treatment....and it's impossible for any of us to say which is which.

Like I said, I'm not a doctor or a nurse....I'm just a squeamish, struggling to be compliant diabetic. But I do know that you should be having quarterly blood tests that measure A1c, cholesterol, triglycerides, and kidney and liver function. You should also be seen annually by an opthamologist specializing in diabetes to keep an eye on your vision, and a podiatrist who treats diabetic patients to keep an eye on your feet.

That's the minimum of good care as I understand it as a patient.

I definitely am not trying to scare you. I just want to make sure that you get the care you need to keep you healthy and safe.

I totally and completely applaud your resolve to lose weight and be healthier. It's not easy...as all of us here can attest to...especially when you don't have support at home and lots of emotional stuff attached to food...but it's so, so important...especially for those of us who are diabetic.

I'm in your corner Matthew....keep pushing for the good care you deserve....and treat yourself with love and support as you start this journey. We're all here for you! :gimmehug:

:rrose:

And....welcome to the thread Lizzy :)

Your skinned knee/cookie post made me shake my head and laugh to myself....can't tell you how many times I used food to soothe after injury, neglect, pain, sadness.....and can't tell you when it started...so chances are it was very young, and at the hands of others.

I'm still unlearning it.

I'm a craving snacks late at night person too....my new strategy for dealing with that generally involves going to bed! :cheesy: It works, because I can't eat while I'm sleeping....and I know more sleep helps me be healthier too.

Do you get enough sleep?
 

I knew that not getting enough sleep could make us more likely to reach for sugary stuff, caffeine or other comfort foods.....but there's actually a hormone issue that causes weight gain as well!

Check this out...

Sleep and Weight Gain - Will better sleep help you avoid extra pounds?
By Denise Mann

Think about it: If you’re feeling sleepy at work, you may be tempted to reach for a cup of coffee (or several cups) and a doughnut for a quick shot of energy. Later you may skip the gym and pick up takeout on your way home to your family -- no time to cook. When you finally find yourself back in your bed, you are too wound up to sleep.

It’s a vicious cycle, and eventually this sleep deprivation can sabotage your waistline and your health.

It starts out innocently enough. “When you have sleep deprivation and are running on low energy, you automatically go for a bag of potato chips or other comfort foods,” saysSusan Zafarlotfi, PhD, clinical director of the Institute for Sleep and Wake Disorders at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey.

The immediate result? You may be able to fight off sleepiness. The ultimate result? Unwanted pounds as poor food choices coupled with lack of exercise set the stage for obesity and further sleep loss.

“Sleep debt is like credit card debt,” Zafarlotfi says. “If you keep accumulating credit card debt, you will pay high interest rates or your account will be shut down until you pay it all off. If you accumulate too much sleep debt, your body will crash.”

Not getting enough sleep is common -- even talked about with pride -- in the U.S. “We brag about an all-nighter, but we do pay a price for staying up late and getting up early,” says Mark Mahowald, MD, director of the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center in Hennepin County.

Understanding the Sleep-Diet Connection

The sleep-diet connection is regular fodder for diet books and magazine articles. Maybe you have even heard about the sleep diet, which suggests you can lose weight while you catch your ZZZs.

And it’s true, sort of.

“It’s not so much that if you sleep, you will lose weight, but if you are sleep-deprived, meaning that you are not getting enough minutes of sleep or good quality sleep, your metabolism will not function properly,” explains Michael Breus, PhD, author of Beauty Sleepand the clinical director of the sleep division for Arrowhead Health in Glendale, Ariz.

On average, we need about 7.5 hours of quality sleep per night, he says. “If you are getting this already, another half hour will not help you lose 10 pounds, but if you are a five-hour sleeper and start to sleep for seven hours a night, you will start dropping weight.”

Exactly how lack of sleep affects our ability to lose weight has a lot to do with our nightly hormones, explains Breus.

The two hormones that are key in this process are ghrelin and leptin. “Ghrelin is the ‘go’ hormone that tells you when to eat, and when you are sleep-deprived, you have more ghrelin,” Breus says. “Leptin is the hormone that tells you to stop eating, and when you are sleep deprived, you have less leptin.”

More ghrelin plus less leptin equals weight gain.

“You are eating more, plus your metabolism is slower when you are sleep-deprived,” Breus says.

The Sleep-Weight Loss Solution - So what can you do about sleep deprivation?

A lot, says Breus. First, look at how much you sleep vs. how well you sleep. “Some people such as new moms may only get to sleep for a four-hour stretch. And there are some people who get 7.5 hours of sleep that is poor quality because of pain or an underlying sleep disorder, and this has the same effect as if they got less sleep,” he says.

Trouble-shoot both with improved sleep hygiene, he says.

For starters, avoid any caffeine in the afternoon because it will keep you in the lighter stages of sleep -- which are associated with poor sleep -- at night. Breus recommends only decaf from 2 p.m. on. Exercise also helps improve sleep quality. How soon before bed should you exercise? It depends -- everyone is different. It’s more important that you exercise than it is when you exercise. Breus says to be safe, don’t exercise right before going to bed. “But some people exercise better before bed and it doesn’t affect their sleep,” he says.

Watch what you eat before bedtime. “Pizza and beer before bedtime is not a good idea,” says Breus. “Neither is eating a big meal close to bedtime.” He suggests eating a few healthy snacks and then having a light meal -- like a bowl of cereal -- if you’re running close to bedtime. Heavy, rich meals before bed can also increase risk of heartburn, which will certainly keep you up all night.

What if you are getting enough hours of sleep but wake up and feel sleepy the next day? “Talk to your doctor about seeing a sleep specialist,” Breus says. After conducting a thorough evaluation and sleep study, in which you are monitored while sleeping, the sleep specialist can help identify any underlying problem. Together you can develop a treatment plan so that you get more high-quality sleep -- and maybe even slim down.

SOURCES:

Susan Zafarlotfi, PhD, clinical director, Institute for Sleep and Wake Disorders, Hackensack University Medical Center, New Jersey.

Michael Breus, PhD, clinical director, sleep division, Arrowhead Health, Glendale, Ariz.; author, Beauty Sleep.

Mark Mahowald, MD, director , Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center, Hennepin County.

Taheri, S. PLoS Medicine; December 2004, vol 1: pp 210-216.

Reviewed on January 19, 2010
© 2010 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved.

Woo Hoo! That's fantastic! :cheer:

Thank you for sharing that website link, Yellow. I didn't realize, I had what is called, pitted edema in my ankles. It stems from when I was hit by a car at the age of 15 and it nearly broke my legs.

Have a great day!

Zimmy

Keep up the good work!

Zimmy

I have found that if I exercise my butt off, I sleep like a baby...Thank you for sharing this article.

Zimmy

Well this is my first post. I usually just stalk Jo and read a couple posts here and there. She also keeps me up to date on things. Ive been complaining about needing to lose weight because ive put on a few lbs since being off work for my back injury. Anyway i had to fast over the weekend,plus drink a JUG of icky stuff to clean myself out. The outcome indicated i needed more fiber and better eating habits. Jo bought me some raw veggies,and fiber one sweet stuff(which are freaking awesome btw) granted its only been 4 days(this is 5th day) but i have dropped 4lbs(most of it from fasting and cleansing but still). im hoping to keep on this trend. My problem is if i make it an obvious,gotta do thing then i wont do it,so i kinda let Jo lead the way and help me do it the healthy way!

:)

The Fiber One bars are great at helping kick a sweet craving. My favorite one is the Oats and chocolate. My roommate loves their 90 calorie bars. When I get my own desk soon, I will be keeping a box of them at work. Now she needs to start nudging you to give up soda...

Congrats and keep up the good work!

Zimmy

Good Morning Sylvie,

Hope you get your appetite back and soon! Until then, try eating some pudding or jello and drink a lot of water.

How is your mouth feeling?

Have a good day,

Zimmy

Another good fiber product is Benefiber.... it mixes with just about anything and has NO taste.

Good morning fellow healthy eaters!
 

Still hanging around 1500 cals per day.

Breakfast, the usual-oatmeal.

Lunch, I enjoy a lot. If u have a Trader Joes around u, the 5 Spice Chicken and Asian Style Noodle salad is awesome & filling. One container is 340 Cals, 8 gm of fat (12 with dressing)& it is good with just a tiny drop of dressing. (The noodles are rice noodles.) It has 22 grams of protein. Protein means I do not get hungry.

I try to keep anything I eat @ or under 10 grams of fat.

Have a great day!

Hugs,

I love Benefiber! Scoote is a jello lover, so my first efforts at upping her fiber intake was to mix in 2 heaping tablespoons when I'm making her jello. She can't detect it at all, even though she knows it's in there....and it makes the jello a high fiber snack/treat.

My mother's side of the family, which my son Rooster takes after, has Crohn's disease and a host of other ailments related to the digestive tract....so I'm overly fixated on fiber and healthy bowels. (Sad, but true!)

A few years ago he was complaining of frequent stomach aches, had bad almost acidic breath and other early warning signs of digestive problems. We took him to the doctor and had some unpleasant tests done. The specialist said no damage (yet) but he's strongly predisposed to trouble....and recommended daily stool softeners and frequent use of Benefiber (in addition to more whole grains and veggies) until the pain was gone....then discontinue the stool softeners and keep on with the Benefiber for life. Rooster's pain stopped in a couple weeks....and he gets Benefiber every day as a precaution, even though he eats whole wheat bread and has always been a good veggie eater.

Benefiber can go in anything that isn't carbonated....so it's easy to stir some into coffee, tea, milk, juice, water....or cook and bake with it. I always put a few big tablespoons into meatloaf, or a little into baked goods (when I remember)...and you literally cannot tell it's there. :)

Another good fiber product is the Fiber Choice pills. My roommate and I go to BJ's and we buy the biggest bottle of them. They are fruit flavored and are great. My roommate also takes Align with his benefiber.

Have a great day,

Zimmy

Because I was so close to my goal weight, I got a little obsessed with stepping on the scale.

I had a small gain last week (like 0.4 or 0.6), and there has been more so far this week.

I don't get it.

One of the reasons I put off my weight program was because I figured there would be a gain, and I knew it would confuse me. Turns out I was right. :seeingstars:

My wife told me just to stay off the scale; it really is making me anxious because I feel like I must be failing somewhere. That's some eff'd up thinking right there.

Sooooo... I'm going to commit to staying off the scale for the next week and a half........until my next weigh-in on Friday, August 26. I gotta get my head right with this shit.

The only time I step on the scale is when I'm trying to make weight for a fight. What we don't realize is exercise builds muscle and it weighs more than fat. I try to keep that in the back of mind. Try going by how you feel and how your clothes fit, this might keep your head where you want it.

Hi Lizzy,

I know all too well about the emotional eating, and to be honest with what happened last night, I'm feeling pretty emotional and yet even with the need right now to eat I'm NOT giving in. Posting here is helping to distract Me, and even when the need gets really strong I refuse to give in ~ oatmeal was what I had for breakfast and I am not touching any more food until lunch. I'm drinking more water, am ignoring any pop that may be in the house and am just learning to pick My battles so to speak. My health is more important than any amount of food I could ever consume, and no one is worth sabotaging My health for. I'm feeling better overall this morning and am starting off this day anew .......... no more excuses for Me, I'm just gonna do it and no matter what I'm going to make sure that I get healthy because I need to for Myself in order to live a long time and be truly happy :-)

You helped more than you will ever know :rrose:

I figured it was more than just something you could sweep under the rug, even though he made it seem like it was no big deal (which I know is not true). I will definately take the time to read the article, thank you for sharing it :-)

Hey Jo,

When I called that Health Links place last night, they gave Me the phone numbers for a couple of endocrinologists so I am going to be phoning them over the next couple of days to get into see them. I also go the phone numbers to a doctor hotline that will help Me to find a primary care doctor other than just My trans doctor. My trans doctor has been both that and My primary care doctor since last year summer when I was just starting to look into transitioning and I felt more comfortable with her so I made him My primary doctor also. Now that I know its almost impossible to get in to see him when I need to, I'm going to go ahead and find another doctor for My main care & keep his current doc for My trans stuff.

I did have My eyes checked only 3-4 months ago and they did that test to check them since I am diabetic, and the doc said everything looks great so I'm glad for that. When the doctor put Me on the metformin, she said that the diabetes was not advanced or out of control and that since nothing was ever detected before that it must have only happened recently. I'm actually getting really good care from them so I'm confident that everything they've done for Me so far is good. I'm due for My next quarterly blood tests by the beginning of September so I will get in for that probably just after the 8th since thats when My sister is back in school and I'll be able to take the morning to get that done.

I'm so glad that I have everyone here for support :-)

Well its about danged time that you got your butt over here and posted LOL

:D

Today was my 12th day in a row doing 30 minutes of brisk walking on the treadmill. I've been doing the park trail workout which changes the incline between 3 and 5 throughout the walk. Before I started being diligent with my workout I would walk a mile about 3-4 times a week with no incline. This workout takes me about 1.75 miles with an incline. I was the same way with my lifting getting on the weight bench 3-4 times a week. I've lifted everyday for the past 12 days doubling my reps (curls & bench presses) from my old rountine and added sit-ups as well as lifting to work my triceps. The difference in my weight from the first day until today is a loss of 1.4 lbs. I kind of expected it to be more especially since I've been eating smaller portions and healthier meals. I am happy for the loss but I've been working so hard that I was expecting more. 18.4 lbs until I reach my goal.

Maybe you are changing some of the weight to muscle? Muscle and fat (excuse the word, do not know what else to call it) do weigh the same. Take some measurements if you have not already done so, that will start to cheer you up!

Just a thought:)

All is well with me, I went off track alittle this morning, I made sage sausage(that my uncle shot himself) and eggs and toast for my aunt since she broke her elbow..... tonight Im making home made pierogies and kabasa on the grill.

I lost my mind last night at Joe's Crab Shack. But I have returned. I am not enjoying some that calico bass that I caught and salad.

Today was greek yogurt and fruit for breakfast....1 slice whole wheat toast with peanut butter for mid-morning snack.

Lunch was my giant salad....and I do mean giant. It fills a 2 qt. bowl....lettuce, cucumber, diced raw carrot, 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1/2 c. chickpeas, handful of black olives and my homemade dressing.

Dinner will be chili cuz my sweetie is cooking (more beans...yay!)

Late snack.....probably fruit, veggies....maybe some cheese or almonds.

I'm finding this reasonably easy to do. It certainly takes more prep time because of the fruits and veggies, but I'm taking some shortcuts like buying pre-cut fresh fruit salad at the grocery store at times.

Astoundingly, it's a LOT of food to eat, and I don't get everything on the list in each day!

Today was:

Breakfast; strawberry banana Greek yogurt with a 12oz glass of chocolate soymilk and coffee

Lunch; tuna with olive oil mayo, oregano, cheese and black pepper with lettuce on a flour tortilla

Snacks; 90 calorie granola bar, 1 small bowl of popcorn oatmeal square cereal

Dinner; left over rice, corn, peppers cheese and chicken mixed together with a 8oz glass if orange juice

I drank several large glasses of water

I vacuumed the apartment today.

Tonight is gym night! I kicked ass on the exercise bike lastnight until my legs felt like spaghetti noodles!

Zimmy

Hello everybody! Some great news in here and great tips, THANKS!
I hope everyone enjoyed a healthy good day! If you're not losing weight you may be at a plateau and should maybe try different foods with less sugar, less fat, less sodium to see if that helps. Maybe more apples, or a steak! I don't know just heard that somewhere. haha. . and it could be you are losing inches even if you're not losing weight. Check that out. Remember if you are trying to stay away from caffeine and want energy eat an apple!

I'm on day 2 of my diet and this is what I ate today:

Breakfast: dark roast coffee, cantaloupe
Lunch: Grilled shrimp, yellow squash
Snack: 1 grissini breadstick
Dinner: Chicken breast with a spicy tomato sauce
Snack/Dessert: watermelon or a peach.

I ate everything I wanted before I started my diet (loaded up for 2 days) and I weighed this morning and had lost 3.6 lbs. after being on a diet 1 day. I'll see what tomorrow brings. I don't expect to keep losing this much every day, especially as my body gets used to the change in food, sugar, fat. It's a great feeling though to know it can be done. I think I may go ahead and do my ab workout before bed also.

Have a good evening everybody!

Off to the gym I go!!

Zimmy

Perogies and kielbasa? I'll be right over LOL ;)

I'll try and give a basic rundown of what I ate today:

Breakfast (9am) ~ 1 pkg raisin & spice oatmeal and a 500ml bottle of water

Snack (10:30am) ~ a 100 calorie pack of chocolate chip cookies

Lunch (12:30) ~ Chef Boyardee mini ravioli w/ meatballs and a glass of Chocolate Almond Milk

Supper (in about 15-20 mins) ~ chicken nuggets (5 or 6 small ones), mac 'n cheese (a little bit) and mixxed veggies (green beans, carrots and peas) and a bottle of water mixed with Nestea drink mix (blueberry pomegranate)

Snack (probably about 9pm or so) ~ Special K 100 cal pack strawberry fruit crisps


This is My first day without pepsi and so far I haven't missed it ~ I will allow Myself little sips here and there if I really have a craving for it but so far so good, no craving it right now ......... I'm happy :-)

I need to start weighing myself again.I have just been going by how my clothes feel but sometimes it takes a significant amount of weight for my clothes to actually feel tight as it usually goes straight to my chest and then to my butt.I get really bad backaches when my weight goes up.I got my genes from Dads side of the family.They are all Italians with a lot of "curves".My sister of course took after my mothers side of the family and has always been a size 0 or a 2.But I must admit she does have extremely healthy habits.She has never liked Soda,she doesn't like candy and she never eats fast food.She use to never have to work out but now she does yoga 7 days a week.So my goal this week is to put a battery in my scale and actually use it at least once a week.

When I had my second son I gained ......gulp.....80 pounds!!!! I was addicted to Coke in the can which I never drank before I was pregnant.I was out of control with food.When my son was 12 weeks old he got RSV and was in the hospital for 12days under an oxygen tent.I had already lost a child at 5months of pregnency so there was no way I could handle losing my son.The first six months of his life I couldn't let anyone near him so I stayed home a lot and ate.I was now 100 pounds up and I could barely move.I am only 5'2 and I have a very small frame.My body was in pain 24-7.I was so depressed so then I would eat and the viscious cycle continued.One day my son was looking at some pictures of a weekend trip we took him on, he was only four years old and he said"Mommy how come you didn't come with us?"I was never willing to have my photo taken because I didn't want to see myself.I was trying to ignore the problem.I decided in that minute to join WW.I joined in July and by the following May I had lost 100pounds.I was just really driven.I made sure no matter what to exercise an hour a day and I always swithched up my exercise routine.I walked,I played tennis,I took water areobics,I took country line dancing lessons with my mother.I even tried to rollerskate with my dog(that didn't work out so good for me)I gave up all candy and only drank water with lemons,most importantly I never skipped a meeting.I have found I am really good at losing weight, but I am not that great at mainting my weight.I am hoping that talking about my issues with food and new tips from everyone will help me stay on track.

This morning I had for breakfast was a bowl of cottage cheese and fresh peaches 8:30am at 10:00am I had 1/2 cup of capt.crunch cereal no milk just plain(only 21 carbs a 1cup bowl so its was 10 carbs..besides it was good) I went to the gym and rode the cross trainer for 3 miles and 100 calories gone.Then got on the street exercycle and rode 9 miles with the loss of 225 calories.Once I caught my breath and could stand and walk I went to the weight room then did a fue things liek the siting abb cruncher 10 at 30 pounda..10 at 50 pounda and back to 10 at 30 to finish it out.The next thing I used was some free weights arm curls with 15pounds (30each arm) the 20 leg presses at 70 pounds.I said I was going to keep it an easy day cause its been a coupel of weeks since ive been to the gym cause of my sore shoulder,but I felt good so I kept going,I know I will feel it tomorrow.

P.s.s.s I had a huge salad at 3:00pm so im not any way hungry for dinner.

BB and I are on our annual vacation with my mom to Montauk this week. I've managed to eat healthy the whole time thus far, which is good because I'm not getting as much exercise being away from the gym. I'm a creature of habit so I have a hard time jumping into alternative exercise routines while away.

My aunt stayed with us a few days, and even though it was raining we took a nice walk on the beach by the ocean in our swimsuits! We had the beach all to ourselves, as it was cold too. I must say it was kinda nice to have my fat during that adventure because it kept me warm! Then today I jumped waves in the ocean for about an hour and kinda kept my legs moving in the pool with one of those foam pool "noodles" (Noodles, yum, tee hee).

I've been cooking for all of us almost every night instead of going out. Tonight I made quinoa mixed with Greek yogurt (has a very comfort food texture) with veggie chili on top (kidney beans, tomatos, onions, peppers, red wine vinegar, garlic, cumin). I think it really helps to go on a vacation to a place that has a kitchen. Having the time on a vacation to do a lot of cooking is also relaxing.

Good morning all!

Note on pound of fat vs. Pound of muscle. Both equal one pound. The difference is that fat is more dense than muscle and a pound of muscle helps make us look leaner than a pound of fat:)

That being said: I was in Costco at lunch yesterday and went crazy! I had one of their 100% all beef hotdogs with mustard and onions. So good! Yes, I know it was probably full of mystery parts and tons of fat but it was yummy. I do not beat myself up for an occasional detour. Beating ourselves up can =giving up and I will not do that.

In my own headspace, I can eat something like that and jump back on my healthy eating train, no problem. Have not done that in ages. For dinner I had grilled shrimp and sliced tomatoes-also yum.

As long as I do not eat sugar-my personal trigger-I am fine.

Have a great healthy eating day all (me included)!

Hugs,

Amen to that!

Yesterday I was craving chocolate....so I had a tiny serving of good, dark Godiva chocolate....and savored every minute, let it melt on my tongue....and then got right back on the eating plan.

The scale this morning says no problem with that...and I'm back to greek yogurt, fruit and coffee for breakfast.

Tonight's dinner will be baked chicken and veggies (probably potatoes for Scoote and the Prince....but I might take a tiny serving if I've had no bread today).

My "official" weigh in won't be until Saturday but so far the scale has gone down every morning this week....so I'm happy. My "unofficial" weight loss since Saturday (5 days on this plan) is 4.5 lbs....which is kind of amazing. I know initial weight loss is often bigger but it sure feels nice!

It just occurred to me... I have not craved chocolate in quite some time. This is a miracle of sorts. Seriously...

I can't remember if I mentioned in here that I put the scale away......on a shelf out in the garage. Anyway... It was strange to go in this morning and fix my coffee because the scale wasn't there. I realized just how good it was to put it away because, obviously, I had gotten into the habit of getting on it every morning.

No good.

When it passed through my mind this morning and I remembered it was gone and reminded myself why, I then thought to myself.......F*ck that thing. ;)

The wife and I were talking about how many calories make a pound and how many calories, on average, I burn due to exercise and general activity; and gaining 3 pounds in 3 days is RIDICULOUS and does not make sense. It's just one of those weird body things going on, and I don't need to subject myself to all of that on such a regular basis.

So that's that!!!

I think that's a great way to look at it, and putting the scale away is a good idea in your case. You're right....gaining 3 lbs. in 3 days is crazy unless you were eating an additional 3500 calories a day worth of food - which I think you'd notice! :)

Our bodies do odd things....some days they hang onto water, some days they don't. Hormones play a huge role that I'm not convinced we totally understand.

I think it's easy to make ourselves crazy over things we don't have understanding of or control over.

If you know that you're eating right, exercising well, getting enough sleep....I'd say you're on the right track, and your body will organize itself around and find its own best place. Health is the goal...and you're doing GREAT! :rrose: