**Merrily Making our Way into a MWL March**

[Tessa17]

So today is proving to be a rough day. We just found out that we have to pay a fortune and have the entire house re-piped. As a result, my family is pretty aggravated and is taking it out by eating delicious food. My family just had a delicious dinner and now it's snack time. The whole house smells like popcorn and all I want to do is eat it. I grabbed a bottle of water and am trying my best to avoid the temptation, but this is harder than I thought. I'm just hoping I can make it through the night. I hope everyone else is having a better Friday

[Swirveegrl]

Mary those pics are unbelievable! You and your husband have both been transformed! Both of you look great
Susie your pics are fantastic as well! That cast looks HUGE. It's great that you decided to weigh with it, so you know how much to subtract!
Lins Have you had your blood drawn? You are probably not taking in enough salt. I say this because when you were eating "normal" you did not have dizzy spells. Remember that you are an athlete, with lots of running, and exercising you are losing sodium by persperation. You also said that you have to stand up slowly because you get dizzy? You are describing a medical condition called Orthostatic hypotension. I think you should see your primary care doctor for a physical and have your urine tested, ekg, as well as a complete blood work up. Some people wear compression stockings to help increase blood pressure in the lower extremities, so that your body can compensate quicker from a sitting to a standing position. Orthostatic hypotension, may not seem like a big deal, but you may fall and get hurt. Keep in mind that drinking coffee may help at times of dizziness, because caffeine is a vasoconstrictor (shrinks your blood vessels to return blood to the heart). I'm not trying to replace medical advice from your physician, simply trying to shed some light on your scenario

[Baysidegal]

Originally Posted by Mary T8M

I LOVE the pictures....you look so happy even in the hospital!

I posted a couple of new pictures on my profile too!

Susie and Mary, your pictures give so much inspiration. I have a long way to go, but because you are here for me, I feel that I can keep going and make it.

[sleepygal7]

Hello! I just finished my first week and lost 9 pounds. I'm still shocked with that progress, and I'm determined to keep it going. I've enjoyed reading this site for a few weeks...and now I'm happy to finally share some news. Hope everyone had a great week!

[Baysidegal]

Originally Posted by sleepygal7

Hello! I just finished my first week and lost 9 pounds. I'm still shocked with that progress, and I'm determined to keep it going. I've enjoyed reading this site for a few weeks...and now I'm happy to finally share some news. Hope everyone had a great week!

Congratulations sleepygal7. Keep up the good work. Everyone here is very supportive and helpful. I wouldn't be able to do it without everyones support.

[Swirveegrl]

Originally Posted by Baysidegal

I have been taking blood pressure meds for years and the last two weeks my blood pressure has been low at the center. I have been getting dizzy sometimes too. Lack of sodium?? I will be seeing my primary DR soon so I will ask him about it.

Hi Dear,
Your B/P meds most likely need adjusting to a lower dose. Weight loss and diet change will effect your blood pressure, possibly you will be able to stop these medicines eventually. BUT for now, you should keep a B/P log and see your PHYSICIAN asap. Low Blood Pressure that is abnormal for YOU, can be as severe as HIGH bp. When your Blood Pressure is too low for YOU, your organs can be getting deprived of needed oxygen and nutrients.

Everyone has a different NORMAL b/p range. Some people are accustomed to running lower blood pressures and that is normal for them, however; others do not always fair as well. Abnormally low b/p can lead to fainting which sets you up for falls, which sets you up for other complications.

[cheftrish]

Wow, now you have me worried...dizziness with exercise seems to be running rampant around here and I am no exception. I have been feeling dizzy/nauseous after exercise but thought it was electolytes. I have HBP too...maybe meds need to be adjusted. I will make an app. on Monday.

Welcome Sleepygal and Leslie!! Glad you are here!!

And Tessa, I feel your pain! Hope you get a good quote on the pipes, shop around if you can! Is it an emergency? House woes are never fun. I often wonder why I wanted to buy a house in the first place!? lol! Good luck! Stay Strong! and we are here for you!

[Swirveegrl]

Hey Trish, Didn't mean to make you nervous. I just want you all to be as aware of your body signals, as you are of your calorie counting. Possibly needing BP meds cut to a lower dose is ACTUALLY a wonderful thing, but requires monitoring by your Primary Care Doctor.
I don't mean to be on a BP soap box tonight. But doing what I do for a living, makes me live and breathe the importance of blood pressure management

[lins]

I actually had blood work done and a full physical (urinalsis, and ekg included) at the end of February. And everything came back fine, but my blood pressure was on the low side. On days that I exercise a lot of my fluid comes from powerade zero which has sodium. I really do think it's just a blood pressure thing. I've never felt dizzy while I run, and I never feel like I am going to pass out.

[lins]

Went to my weight-in today and was down -1lb. She told me that I fall into the under 5'3 and can't eat anything catagory. LOL She was joking of course, but she did say that because I'm 5'2 and don't have a lot to lose now that it will probably be slow going. She said I may have a big drop every once in awhile, but that I need to be content with 1-2lbs a week from now on. But I told her that as long as my weight was going down I was happy no matter how little the number is.

Tomorrow is my youngest daughters birthday. She is turning 3. I am having a friend of mine make the cupcakes (so I am not tempted while baking), and she is only making enough for the kids to eat. And the only other food I am serving is fruits and veggies. So I am setting myself up stay on plan.

[lbeetle]

I just finished the day by reading all of your posts today. What a kind, caring group. I had my end of week two weigh-in today and lost 2 pounds, for a total of 13. Goals for week three are to: drink more water, and begin exercising 30 min 3x per week. And stay on the plan. Sorry, Tessa about your house woes! Congrats Lins on your loss, looks like you are closing in on your goal. Way to go, Sleepygal! And, indeed, prayers to all in Japan. Oh: I found bulgarian yogurt at the grocery tonight. Organic, 0% fat, and lower cal and carbs (modestly) than Chobani.

[Ronism]

Happy Saturday, everyone! Wow, you all have been busy!

Congrats on all the weight lost! And Susie, I love your pictures! Everyone is so inspirational. And, as lbeetle just said, very caring. Thanks for your support during my frustration last week.

Today was apparently my day for ups and downs. I stayed up WAY too late cooking for our St. Paddy's Day party we had scheduled for tonight. Then while running the morning car pool I heard about the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. My brother and his family live there. By the time I got home aunts and cousins and family friends were calling me asking if I'd spoken to him. But I couldn't get through. (I guess the recording was saying all lines were down?) I did reach him after work today -- woke him up early on his Saturday morning! They are all fine and just worried about those who aren't. So that was a major low and then high and a roller coaster in between.

Dear hubby (who never gets sick and never misses work) shocked me yesterday by coming home after lunch, sick. He felt a bit better by bedtime, so we put off making a decision about the party until this morning (thus I was up too late cooking!) This morning he woke with a fever and didn't make it to work, again. A trip to the doctor confirmed strep throat. So . . . I spent the morning calling and explaining to friends and we just moved the party to the real St. Paddy's Day.

Meanwhile I had my weigh-in. After last week I was dreading it, and this was not an easy week! But I lost 3.5 pounds, and 4 pounds of fat! So that was high. And now I'm going to bring this day to a close.

Hope everyone has a great weekend of NO lows, wonderful highs or restful even keeled moments -- whatever your preference!
~Roni

[Baysidegal]

Originally Posted by Swirveegrl

Hi Dear,
Your B/P meds most likely need adjusting to a lower dose. Weight loss and diet change will effect your blood pressure, possibly you will be able to stop these medicines eventually. BUT for now, you should keep a B/P log and see your PHYSICIAN asap. Low Blood Pressure that is abnormal for YOU, can be as severe as HIGH bp. When your Blood Pressure is too low for YOU, your organs can be getting deprived of needed oxygen and nutrients.

Everyone has a different NORMAL b/p range. Some people are accustomed to running lower blood pressures and that is normal for them, however; others do not always fair as well. Abnormally low b/p can lead to fainting which sets you up for falls, which sets you up for other complications.

Rachel, I will follow your advise. When I go to the clinic today for my weigh in, I will ask them for my last 3 blood pressure results then call my DR on Monday. It is unusual for me to have a BP of 100/ anything. I am usually in the 116-120 area. It's amazing how losing weight changes everything. I LIKE IT!

[Baysidegal]

Originally Posted by Swirveegrl

Hey Trish, Didn't mean to make you nervous. I just want you all to be as aware of your body signals, as you are of your calorie counting. Possibly needing BP meds cut to a lower dose is ACTUALLY a wonderful thing, but requires monitoring by your Primary Care Doctor.
I don't mean to be on a BP soap box tonight. But doing what I do for a living, makes me live and breathe the importance of blood pressure management

Rachel, I am so glad you are here. We non-medical people can only benefit from your insight.

[Baysidegal]

Originally Posted by lbeetle

I just finished the day by reading all of your posts today. What a kind, caring group. I had my end of week two weigh-in today and lost 2 pounds, for a total of 13. Goals for week three are to: drink more water, and begin exercising 30 min 3x per week. And stay on the plan. Sorry, Tessa about your house woes! Congrats Lins on your loss, looks like you are closing in on your goal. Way to go, Sleepygal! And, indeed, prayers to all in Japan. Oh: I found bulgarian yogurt at the grocery tonight. Organic, 0% fat, and lower cal and carbs (modestly) than Chobani.

Welcom lbeetle, we help each other and anyone that joins. You know that Bible saying "Seek and ye shall find". It really means something on this board.

Jeanie

[Swirveegrl]

Jeanie- Happy I can give you some useful reminders. Always better safe than sorry!
Roni- That's great that you were able to reach your brother. I can imagine how worried you must have been. Hope your husband gets better soon.

All these ups and downs really test us and our committment to MEDI.

Tessa-The stresses of being a homeowner on an older home, sure do SUCK at times. I hope it gets fixed soon, and affordably.

I think I'm going to experiment with oopsie rolls again this morning, this time I think I will use the muffin pan and see how they come out

[Tessa17]

Thanks for the encouragement everyone. I think we are going to get a few more quotes on the house before we make any decisions. I did however make it through the night without giving in and eating unhealthy. Congrats everyone on the great weight loss this week. I'm so happy how well Medi seems to be helping everyone and I can't wait for my next weigh in. I hope everyone has a great weekend

[kbhayward]

Originally Posted by Swirveegrl

I think I'm going to experiment with oopsie rolls again this morning, this time I think I will use the muffin pan and see how they come out

I did the same thing this morning and had an awesome breakfast. Made the Oopsie rolls in a muffin top pan, took one, added egg beater and slice of bacon for the most unbelievable Bacon and Egg Sammie - YUMMO!

[kelly4me]

Originally Posted by Baysidegal

Rachel, I will follow your advise. When I go to the clinic today for my weigh in, I will ask them for my last 3 blood pressure results then call my DR on Monday. It is unusual for me to have a BP of 100/ anything. I am usually in the 116-120 area. It's amazing how losing weight changes everything. I LIKE IT!

Jeanie - if you log into the Medi website you can see all of your stats for blood pressure, pulse and weight since your started the program in their "statistics" area for as long as you are regularly going to the clinic. I've found this very helpful.

[Swirveegrl]

IMG00115-20110312-1052.jpg

IMG00117-20110312-1052.jpg

Click on the images to enlarge them.

Crustless Quiche I made these from the breakfast recipes thread Yummy and VLC/VLC

I think these would be awesome with southwestern style egg beaters, and a few other spices. I'm going to do a search on quiche recipes, to get some ideas of what else could be added.

[Ronism]

Originally Posted by SDC2

Not to sound harsh because I truely feel for all of you and want you all to experience the success I experienced. grfgrl, as I recall this is only your 2nd or 3rd week and you already caved in week 1 or 2. You said that you had lost 20 pounds almost effortlessly last year, but quit because money was an issue.

Every time you cave, your cost goes up and your sticktoitness goes down. Everytime you cheat (and that does not include a planned divergence within your calorie and carb budget), your willingness to cheat in the future goes up too. The plan loses its effectiveness because you are not seeing the results you should have, you end up spending more and more money, and eventually give up because of the extended costs.

Did you indulge when you lost 20 pounds on Medi before? Every time you are tempted to stray, ask yourself if it is worth the additional $70+ dollars it costs to extend the program another week.

I hope I didn't offend you. I just want you to take an honest look at what straying from the program costs. You might want to ask your clinic why they think this is happening. Your meds might not be quite right or you may still have carbs in your system and need another purge.

I started the program a week before Thanksgiving, but was so motivated that by Christmas was down 25 pounds (best Christmas present to myself ever!)

Pull out your journal from when you were so successful last year and try to recreate your feelings and motivation. Good luck to you and feel free to post or message me any time.

Catching up and I just read this! LOVE it! I often think of time in Acute as more $$$, but it's good to hear it put into an amount! And I love Lins's "$70" brownie.

Once I actually calculated the calories/carbs in 1 chocolate chip! LOL But you know, it just didn't taste any better than the Medi or Atkins bars. I tell myself that a LOT during my TOM!
~Roni

[lbeetle]

Hello, again. I am sitting in my office on a fabulous sunny spring day trying to finish a report, while my five year old and DH play. I mentioned that I have been in a ten year job situation that was very intense and very, very challenging. I am almost on the other side with "partner". On this other side, I found myself obese, with anxiety/depression, and sedentary. Thank god for my family, as they are my joy and what made me work so hard. However, this work has come at a price to my mental and physical health. As I begin MWL, and dig out from under a disorganized office, house, and some grief (too long to go into, but my profession is not at all friendly to women---sorry, don't mean to offend anyone or sound like a victim, but this it's true---from research and not only my own experience--and it's not personal, it's just very much a hazing game for women and minorities---and I am in a "helping" profession!), I realize how I am needing to reorient to a "normal" life. A new beginning---the proverb, "just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterly" has been my mantra for about a year.

Sorry, my post is now becoming long. Thanks for reading/"listening".

Now I sit here in this office, staring at my data and this report that will not write itself, and I am struck so hard by the fact that for literally ten years it has been "food in, words out on the page". And I must change this. And I also want to change things so I have more balance in my life, for excercise, spirituality and play. My work has meaning---I help people by what I do---but it has been so, so, so toxic an environment.

So, I want that butterly to emerge, and I want to create an environment and a body for her to spread her wings.

But for the moment, I am struggling not to put food in to get words out. So, off to make a cup of tea. Words of wisdome welcome.

[grfxgrl]

hey lbeetle, where did you get your avatar? Im a member too

Well even with my cheat, im still on track. I have to admit that I will be thinking twice about full disclosure here. I mean, nobody is perfect.

I bought the items to make the Medi brownies last weekend but havent made them yet anyone made them recently? I am very excited about them, but ive had the ingredients for a full week now. I wonder what the heck I am waiting for?

I am having a uhm... lack of fiber issue. :blush: In the acute phase, anyone else had/have this issue? This isnt a new issue for me, kind of had this problem for as long as I can remember but always blamed it on my crappy diet. I figured once I got on this everything would resume being normal. I am taking the colon cleanser ever ynight but it doesnt seem to be working on me this week. Can I take some benefiber or something? Open to ideas

[lbeetle]

Hi, Tricia. For my avatar I went into my account profile and chose that one (they have something like 60 to choose from, some related to weight loss, but lots of others, too).

I'm only starting week 3 just now, but I asked about the constipation issue, too. Liquids and exercise---and the fact that you won't go as frequently as you are eating less and your body is using more of the nutrients. I also went (with permission fro MWLC) on acidophillus/lacto-bacillus, and three days later, I feel more "normal". Need more time/data on this...but seemed to help me. And it's great for the body more generally! Hope this helps. (One other totally weird thought---when I go swiming I almost always "go" soon thereafter. Relaxation and stretching that goes with swimming? Who knows!) Good luck. I am sure that other folks here know more about this, given that I am totally newbie. But congrats on the ten+ pounds! You go, girl!

[grfxgrl]

Originally Posted by lbeetle

Hello, again. I am sitting in my office on a fabulous sunny spring day trying to finish a report, while my five year old and DH play. I mentioned that I have been in a ten year job situation that was very intense and very, very challenging. I am almost on the other side with "partner". On this other side, I found myself obese, with anxiety/depression, and sedentary. Thank god for my family, as they are my joy and what made me work so hard. However, this work has come at a price to my mental and physical health. As I begin MWL, and dig out from under a disorganized office, house, and some grief (too long to go into, but my profession is not at all friendly to women---sorry, don't mean to offend anyone or sound like a victim, but this it's true---from research and not only my own experience--and it's not personal, it's just very much a hazing game for women and minorities---and I am in a "helping" profession!), I realize how I am needing to reorient to a "normal" life. A new beginning---the proverb, "just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterly" has been my mantra for about a year.

Sorry, my post is now becoming long. Thanks for reading/"listening".

Now I sit here in this office, staring at my data and this report that will not write itself, and I am struck so hard by the fact that for literally ten years it has been "food in, words out on the page". And I must change this. And I also want to change things so I have more balance in my life, for excercise, spirituality and play. My work has meaning---I help people by what I do---but it has been so, so, so toxic an environment.

So, I want that butterly to emerge, and I want to create an environment and a body for her to spread her wings.

But for the moment, I am struggling not to put food in to get words out. So, off to make a cup of tea. Words of wisdome welcome.

If snacking is part of your writing process, rather than changing that process that has worked for you for a decade, maybe try changing the food that is going in your mouth?

What about dicing up some apples and eating each piece one by one with a tbsp. of peanut butter? Or some celery pieces with laughing cow cheese? Because our quanitities are small, i recommend maybe cutting up everything into small bite size pieces just to make it feel like you're eating more than you are?

I had to do these kinds of behavior changes when i quit smoking a year and a half ago. I had weird triggers, after a meal, once i got in the car after work, I wanted to smoke. And since those are things I cant stop doing -- eating or leaving work. I decided to reward myself in a different way, that way the outcome of happy was the same but was treated in a more healthy way.

Hope this helps

[Baysidegal]

Originally Posted by kelly4me

Jeanie - if you log into the Medi website you can see all of your stats for blood pressure, pulse and weight since your started the program in their "statistics" area for as long as you are regularly going to the clinic. I've found this very helpful.

Thanks Kelly, I did not know that. My clinic gave me a list anyway. Thanks for the info.

I lost another 4 pounds this week with a total of 16.8 lost in 4 weeks. I am in shock! I thought for sure I had overdone carbs and sodium this week, but my water weight was down as well as % of fat.

[kbhayward]

Does anyone know what Medi's take on avocados are? Can you count a slice as a healthy fat, similar to almonds? I love to add a slice onto grilled chicken or even in a salad.

[mommy2princesses]

Tricia - your "lack of fiber" issue is a common conversation here.....if you read past monthly threads you'll definitely see it talked about frequently. Mary had recently told us about taking a magnesium supplement daily which I have been doing and it definitely works. I don't (and never did) use the colon cleanse one from the clinic. Try the magnesium, easy fix.

[SDC2]

Hi all,

Thanks for all the wonderful comments.

As for the questions... I am 5' 7.5". I used to be 5' 8", but shrinking in my old age.

Typing is a challenge, but it beats trying to write with my left hand.

Avocado is a healthy fat and can be incorporated in place of nuts or olive oil. This is per Medi's materials. I don't remember the recommended serving size though.

Congrats to all the losers and to those who have posted life struggles, please know I keep you in my prayers.

[Baysidegal]

Hi everyone, I started week 5 today but I have had some nausea once or twice during the last 4 weeks. I had thought that I had a stomach bug, but I now have nausea again this morning and I really don't know why. So far I have had my RX and fat burner pills. I started feeling sick and then figured I needed to eat so I made an eggbeaters omelet with a little RF cheese and leftover asparagus. It was a small portion, but it didn't seem to help. Now I feel worse so I can't figure out what triggered this.

One thing (common I know) is a little constipation...I wonder if that might be it...