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This is the key phrase finding other things too look forward to. Do you enjoy mystery novels? How about reading them on a nook in your garden at the end of a long work day? I joined a zumba class and it is soo fun! Ever considered joining a local running group? For example, I am in a Black Girls Run chapter in my city, and they dont put pressure on you to run, just to do what you can do and your best. Have a sweet craving? Try sugar free jello, or fat free jello pudding. I usually bring them to work ( long days as well) for a mid afternoon snack. Got pets? I got a silly puppy and he helps me maintain my weight loss goals, just by me having to walk him, and taking him to dog parks. While he's playing with other animals I do several walking laps.
I love to read and do that a lot (more non-fiction but some fiction, too), but I have a 90-minute commute each way so I read on the train most of the time. The only problem with something like a zumba class or a running group (which would have to be a walking group for me) is that it's too late after work to do things like that. I don't get home until around 7 or 7:30, and then have to feed the cats (I'm gone more than 12 hours a day, so I can't have a dog) feed me, get ready for the next day, and get my butt into bed by 9:30 or 10 because I have to get up at 5. I do belong to a local writers' group, but that only meets once a month.
LOL, sorry, I don't eat things that have fake sugar in them. It just skeeves me no end and I don't like the taste. Never did. I do bring apples and other fruit to work for a midafternoon snack.
While we have these days of long light, though, a walk at the end of the day might be a good idea, even without a dog! I have a pleasant neighborhood to walk through. It's a little hard to see taking a walk as "something to look forward to at the end of the day", and of course I'm already walking at lunchtime, but I do find that even when I don't feel like it, if I start walking I'm eventually glad that I did.
I love to read and do that a lot (more non-fiction but some fiction, too), but I have a 90-minute commute each way so I read on the train most of the time. The only problem with something like a zumba class or a running group (which would have to be a walking group for me) is that it's too late after work to do things like that. I don't get home until around 7 or 7:30, and then have to feed the cats (I'm gone more than 12 hours a day, so I can't have a dog) feed me, get ready for the next day, and get my butt into bed by 9:30 or 10 because I have to get up at 5. I do belong to a local writers' group, but that only meets once a month.
LOL, sorry, I don't eat things that have fake sugar in them. It just skeeves me no end and I don't like the taste. Never did. I do bring apples and other fruit to work for a midafternoon snack.
While we have these days of long light, though, a walk at the end of the day might be a good idea, even without a dog! I have a pleasant neighborhood to walk through. It's a little hard to see taking a walk as "something to look forward to at the end of the day", and of course I'm already walking at lunchtime, but I do find that even when I don't feel like it, if I start walking I'm eventually glad that I did.
You remind me so much of my mom. Shes very particular as well. But the good thing about the walking/running group they have weekly schedules. You don't have to attend every event, they host stuff throughout the week so you can catch it when you can. For example, on an off day, or a weekend. I started going to ACTIVE.COM, you can look up activities in you city hosted year round, that range from biking, kayaking, running, etc...> Its a great sight and they tell you all kinds of events in your city. try it.
If you like fruit then i would advise you try different ones. Cut them up and make them portable enough to take as a snack throughout the day. I found out that I LOVE navel oranges. So plump and juicy. A ice cold one is so delectable after i have eaten it, I no longer crave sweets. Also Cranraisins can be thrown into Dannon Fit and Light Yogurt ( Only 80 cals) for a tasty tasty tasty snack.
You remind me so much of my mom. Shes very particular as well. But the good thing about the walking/running group they have weekly schedules. You don't have to attend every event, they host stuff throughout the week so you can catch it when you can. For example, on an off day, or a weekend. I started going to ACTIVE.COM, you can look up activities in you city hosted year round, that range from biking, kayaking, running, etc...> Its a great sight and they tell you all kinds of events in your city. try it.
If you like fruit then i would advise you try different ones. Cut them up and make them portable enough to take as a snack throughout the day. I found out that I LOVE navel oranges. So plump and juicy. A ice cold one is so delectable after i have eaten it, I no longer crave sweets. Also Cranraisins can be thrown into Dannon Fit and Light Yogurt ( Only 80 cals) for a tasty tasty tasty snack.
It may be because we grew up before things like fake sugar were in food, so it is suspect to us! If I'm going to have something sweet, it's going to be actual sugar! There was no such thing as "diet soda" (or little packets of fake sugar, either) when I was growing up. Not that I drink soda much now anyway, but if I do, it's got to be the real thing. If you don't get the sugar rush into the bloodstream, what is the point?
It's like using canned cake frosting (although I've broken down a handful of times in my life and have done that when my daughter was little) or instant mashed potatoes (which I would NEVER EVER do!). It just seems so WRONG.
I don't know why you got the idea I don't eat different types of fruit. It's great this time of year because everything is available and you can get it right at the farm stands, at least here in NJ. Right now fresh blueberries go into my yogurt because they are in season.
Thanks for the site link--I can't do much during the week, because as I pointed out, I work and have long days that leave no time for any personal activities, but maybe it would be fun to walk with other people on the weekends. I remember that there is a group who walks on the boardwalk on Sunday mornings and they are people my age. I think I saw them on meetup.com.
There's a shop in Asbury Park that sells used bicycles. I can't remember the last time I rode a bike--probably 30 years ago--but I was thinking about getting one since where I live is coastal and therefore FLAT.
Mightyqueen801 my advice to you is to think of yourself as young! Do not limit yourself because of your age. You can accomplish anything that you set your mind out to do. The weight comes off slower, but it does come off! I did my first triathlon at age 50. If you would have told me I would be doing that when I was 48 I would have laughed hysterically! But I can say I am in without a doubt that I am in the best shape in my life. My gift to myself was to push myself to do a triathlon at the age of 50. It is just beginning for me.
Do not be afraid to push past your comfort zones. I agree with the poster who suggested active.com. When you have a goal to work towards it gives you LOTS of motivation.
It may be because we grew up before things like fake sugar were in food, so it is suspect to us! If I'm going to have something sweet, it's going to be actual sugar! There was no such thing as "diet soda" (or little packets of fake sugar, either) when I was growing up. Not that I drink soda much now anyway, but if I do, it's got to be the real thing. If you don't get the sugar rush into the bloodstream, what is the point?
Yes there was diet soda when you were growing up--you're the same age as I am! Remember TAB and squirt? I know b/c my dad was a juvenile diabetic and he drank that stuff. Diet didn't get popular until aspartame, and I don't trust that stuff either.
I do have an idea for you though MQ--don't give it all up. Make a list of the things you eat over the next few days, or even the things you want to eat and don't b/c you're trying to lose weight. Decide which ones you could give up w/o too much pain and which ones you really love and that make you feel loved and try to schedule those things in or make a diet version. Like, I had absolutely no trouble giving up soda--it's not my favorite beverage anyway, so giving up sweet and diet was no trouble at all. I love cheesecake so I can either make a diet one or get some out but not often. I think that if you feel too deprived you're going to give it all up but you've got to remember that you're in this for the long haul. Oh, and if you really fall off the wagon and have a binge, then don't eat again till you're really hungry and that has a physical and psychological effect that will undo much of the damage.
Yes there was diet soda when you were growing up--you're the same age as I am! Remember TAB and squirt? I know b/c my dad was a juvenile diabetic and he drank that stuff. Diet didn't get popular until aspartame, and I don't trust that stuff either.
I do have an idea for you though MQ--don't give it all up. Make a list of the things you eat over the next few days, or even the things you want to eat and don't b/c you're trying to lose weight. Decide which ones you could give up w/o too much pain and which ones you really love and that make you feel loved and try to schedule those things in or make a diet version. Like, I had absolutely no trouble giving up soda--it's not my favorite beverage anyway, so giving up sweet and diet was no trouble at all. I love cheesecake so I can either make a diet one or get some out but not often. I think that if you feel too deprived you're going to give it all up but you've got to remember that you're in this for the long haul. Oh, and if you really fall off the wagon and have a binge, then don't eat again till you're really hungry and that has a physical and psychological effect that will undo much of the damage.
I forgot about Tab, lol. Never heard of squirt, sounds...gross. Soda was never a big deal to me. We didn't drink it all the time growing up--as a matter of fact, no one in my family was fat growing up, either. Soda was a treat you got once in a blue moon at a family picnic or something, and I never was a big soda drinker anyway. When I was married, my now-ex used to have Coke in the house all the time and I would drink more then, but that's not something I buy normally or miss at all. I mostly drink water and unsweetened iced tea. For a while I got a taste for the sweetened iced tea that Turkey Hill has in the gallon jugs, and I blew up like a balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving parade so I ditched that habit real fast.
Thanks for your tips. I am trying to do other things at night so I don't miss candy. Really, having candy is my biggest downfall. Sometimes it's just chocolate, like a Hershey bar, but I also usually keep a bag of hard candy around, like Jolly Ranchers or butterscotch. It's all sugar, and I haven't been buying it, but it's just been amazing to me how much I miss it. It's also amazing to me how much food/sweets have become my "Friend" or substitute therefor, so it's a little sad to not have these sugary Friends around.
I forgot about Tab, lol. Never heard of squirt, sounds...gross. Soda was never a big deal to me. We didn't drink it all the time growing up--as a matter of fact, no one in my family was fat growing up, either. Soda was a treat you got once in a blue moon at a family picnic or something, and I never was a big soda drinker anyway. When I was married, my now-ex used to have Coke in the house all the time and I would drink more then, but that's not something I buy normally or miss at all. I mostly drink water and unsweetened iced tea. For a while I got a taste for the sweetened iced tea that Turkey Hill has in the gallon jugs, and I blew up like a balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving parade so I ditched that habit real fast.
Thanks for your tips. I am trying to do other things at night so I don't miss candy. Really, having candy is my biggest downfall. Sometimes it's just chocolate, like a Hershey bar, but I also usually keep a bag of hard candy around, like Jolly Ranchers or butterscotch. It's all sugar, and I haven't been buying it, but it's just been amazing to me how much I miss it. It's also amazing to me how much food/sweets have become my "Friend" or substitute therefor, so it's a little sad to not have these sugary Friends around.
Hey do you have a Trader Joe's where you live? They make an excellent low carb/sugarfree chocolate bar that I can't really tell is sugar free. And squirt is still around--it's grapefruit flavored and I actually like it but I really try to minimize soda though sometimes I will mix it 50/50 with ruby red grapefruit juice and lots of ice for a great summer drink.
I know what you mean about candy though--I love the stuff but it's not good for me so I really try to stay off--it literally makes me stupid and I can test that with sudoku puzzles and dance moves. I dunno--is there some sort of substitute sweet that you could do to get thru the bad moments--or a planned indulgence that would make you feel loved and satiated? A great little bakery that has your favorite cinnamon rolls for instance? Maybe the knowledge that you can do that sometimes would make you feel less deprived.
I don't see why you can't have the treats you want. Maybe not every day, but sometimes. It wasn't a sweet treat here and there that made me gain weight, it was a habit of eating too much every day. If I want a treat, I just make allowances for it by eating less earlier in the day or eating it INSTEAD OF a meal. I know some won't agree with that, but everything in life is about choices, including what you eat. You can't eat a normal plus PLUS a sweet treat. But once in a while it doesn't hurt you to have your sweet treat instead of a meal. You can't have everything you want, but you can have SOME of what you want. I just have to be careful not to make it a treat and not a habit, because I can easily get back into the habit of eating everything I want.
I don't see why you can't have the treats you want. Maybe not every day, but sometimes. It wasn't a sweet treat here and there that made me gain weight, it was a habit of eating too much every day. If I want a treat, I just make allowances for it by eating less earlier in the day or eating it INSTEAD OF a meal. I know some won't agree with that, but everything in life is about choices, including what you eat. You can't eat a normal plus PLUS a sweet treat. But once in a while it doesn't hurt you to have your sweet treat instead of a meal. You can't have everything you want, but you can have SOME of what you want. I just have to be careful not to make it a treat and not a habit, because I can easily get back into the habit of eating everything I want.
LOL, yes, well, that's the problem in a nutshell, isn't it. Eating too much!
Anyway, the thread wasn't about dieting and what you can and can't have. People seem to have not been able to grasp the concept of my topic, but that's OK.
Personally, I don't keep many sweets in the house at all (I usually have a couple of chocolate bars around, and they take me a month or two to eat usually -- usually I eat them at that time of the month). I only have them when I am out.
My "sweet treat" at the end of the day is fruit (or jam) with some greek yogurt and or a lightly sweetened dessert-y tea (fruit, vanilla or chocolate flavored).
I end up eating sweets about 2X a week (I love scones and pastries!)
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Shes very particular as well. But the good thing about the walking/running group they have weekly schedules. You don't have to attend every event, they host stuff throughout the week so you can catch it when you can. For example, on an off day, or a weekend. I started going to ACTIVE.COM, you can look up activities in you city hosted year round, that range from biking, kayaking, running, etc...> Its a great sight and they tell you all kinds of events in your city. try it.
There was no such thing as "diet soda" (or little packets of fake sugar, either) when I was growing up. Not that I drink soda much now anyway, but if I do, it's got to be the real thing. If you don't get the sugar rush into the bloodstream, what is the point?
