*|* South Beach Check-In - June 22nd ~ June 28th *|*

[soozaay]

morning all! just wanted to jump in and say hi....i'll check back with ya later....have a great day!

[RenoMom]

Morning guys.. Thanks for the good thoughts.

Serena - I have been fairly good and not able to drop weight so I am hoping that getting my Thyroid regulated that I will finally be able to drop some. This is also why I have gone 100% OP. I want/need to see some changes.

Well today will be more book work and maybe get out and do a bit of walking. It's suppose to be 90 so this may have to wait till evening, LOL

B - coffee, 2 eggs, 1/2c chili, LF cheese, lf sour cream

L - chicken breast, romaine salad

D - Turkey meatballs, cauliflower

[wiz]

Hello!

Today was a rest day from running, so I just did a light 30-minute workout on my exercise bike. Work is hectic, as usual. Since I am in Sales, the end of each quarter is brutal. Oh well, if it wasn't challenging, they wouldn't need me!!

Serena, we've got a challenging weekend as well. Two parties on Saturday, a graduation and a 50th b-day. That is why I am so frantic every week trying to ensure that I get the previous weekend's "fun" off the scale before a new one rolls around!!

Beth, Stella, I do like quinoa, although my husband isn't crazy about it. Maybe I'll have to give it another try, see if I can sneak it in without him commenting.

Cookie, I'm with you, I really don't know anything about all these protein powders, whey powders, etc.

I'm off at lunch today to buy some new sneakers. With running/walking an average of 120 miles every month - you cannot believe how quickly I go through a pair of sneakers. They are barely dirty on top, but the bottoms get worn out very quickly.

BBL!!

[LinCO]

Hiya friends!
It finally got hot here. I ran the kids to the basketball/cheerleading camp a church is putting on, and when I got home, it was too hot to work out. I did Cardio Callanetics while lightly clothed, but still huh! Poor DS#1 was having a major basketball game w/ the other "youth leaders" when I went to pick them up and he was bright red! He is very proud of his endurance in sports, he'll sprint no matter how tired he is.

I am eating a LOT of protein powder to get my hi protein these days. I'm having this concoction for breakfast: 1/2c cottage cheese, 1/4c all-bran, 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder. Sometimes I add coconut oil and/or sunflower seeds.

Here's another protein powder recipe: 4T peanut butter, 4 scoops chocolate protein powder, 1/2c ground flax, 1t sf vanilla flavor-what's that stuff called? 5T water. This makes 5 "energy bars." Blend it all up and divide it into sandwich bags. I am really enjoying not buying pre-made protein bars, not that I eat them often.

Progress report on high protein: TOM showed up on day 19!! Whassup with that?! I feel really good and am sticking with my plan. I am going to my doctor sometime soon, tho, get the hormone check up.

While the kids were at camp, I spent quality time trying on jeans. Wow! I can totally wear the jeans from courtin' days, pre-maternity, and can also get on the jeans from before courtin' days, a bit skinnier. I have one more pair that has somehow stayed with me, from age 20, I'd like to be able to wear. They are Levi's size 30/30.

Beth, I feel you on the kids bickering. Makes my head fly off my body.

Reno, hope the meds help quick!

XO to everyone else!

[stellamystar]

HI all,
Home from my party and did well eating wise. Yea.

Laurie - thanks for the protein powder ideas! Sounds yummy. I have a bunch of vanilla protein powder to use.

[luisafernanda]

Just stopping in to say hi

Beth - what does quinoa taste like? Is is like oats? I saw some in the supermarket a while back but wasn't sure if it was something I wanted to try or not. I'm not a big cereal eater.

Cookie - call me clueless, too, about protein powder. I don't even think it's something they sell here.

RenoMom - Hope the meds help you!

Wiz and Serena - I have a challenging meal coming up as well. Friday is my friend's birthday and we're going to have lunch...and she has specifically requested lunch at our favorite paella restaurant! I love, love, love their paella (which is, like all paellas, about 80% saffron rice), so it would be hard to resist; but the worst part is that they make it to order and only for two people or more. Guess I'll have to make the sacrifice

No time for more. Hope you all have a great day!

[wiz]

Hello all!

Just finished up a 5-mile run on the boardwalk. I am trying to improve my time, so I pushed hard for the last 2 miles. I am doing a 5-mile race on July 11th, and I don't want to finish last or anything

Luisa, I LOVE really good paella. That would be hard to resist...just pick out all the good seafood and meat, and have a couple of forkfuls of rice. You'll be fine.

I've got to get on a big conference call with folks in India, so it's a quick check-in today. See ya!

[Danipower714]

Morning beachy friends!

Hope everyone is going to have a good day on-plan!

Luisa, Wiz- Another paella lover here...seafood and saffron rice can't be beat sometimes. Good tip from Wiz, eat mainly the seafood and sample the rice.

[RenoMom]

Morning gang, Off to Reno again today. I packed my lunch so I should be all set.
I plan on taking my son to the Marina and walk after my work is done. It's suppose to be 90 so it will be a HOT one. We are also talking about going to the lake on Sunday to ride the Jet Ski. We usually BBQ so I will have to fins something healthy not the normal cheddar brats LOL. I will also need to stay away from the normal chips and dip.

Okay on to food:

B - turkey meatballs, lc ketsup

L - romaine with Chicken breast

D - turkey chili, LF cheese

Sn - string cheese, pine nuts

I will also increase my water, I am having a problem getting more than 48oz a day and that's not near enough.

I did peak at the scale and show -2.5 but it doesn't count until next Tuesday!

[soozaay]

Is it Friday yet??? Nope...only Thursday...dang it!
I saw the sun this morning, but again, it went away and is now covered by clouds. I don't want to complain too much, cuz I know how it is in the rest of the country...but a day with sun would be wonderful right now!

I'm a paella lover too! I also love jambalaya....I think I found a recipe on here for jambalaya w/o rice...I gotta find it & try it out!

Have a great day everyone! Stay cool if you're in the hot zone, and stay dry if you're in the wet!

[wiz]

Hello all!

I'm doing a test here...my new camera had default settings that were not allowing me to attach photos on LCF any more. I have had to change the pixel setting and photo compression setting. Hopefully this will do the trick now!

Garden photos!

[wiz]

FYI. 3 of my 8 photos I took were still too large of files to be posted! And I am at the most compressed and least amount of pixels I can set. This site is not set up for the latest in photo technology

[soozaay]

GORGEOUS Wiz!!!!! And is that the SUN I see poking through in there too?!? Thanks for sharing!

[luisafernanda]

Wiz, absolutely beautiful!!! You have a gorgeous garden! Lilies in the first pic? I love those, but can't have any in my garden because they're poisonous to cats. And are those astilbes in the last pic? Great color. Thanks so much for posting them.

FYI... I set up an account on photobucket (it's free). You can upload your pics there from your computer and size them as you like (I usually use the "large", I seem to recall). You can also crop them, etc. Then to post them here, all you have to do is copy and past the link that says IMG Code. (Feel free to PM me if you decide to do this and run into problems).

[Serena11]

Oh my, Wiz, those borders are beautiful! So neat! I'm afraid our yard has a bit more of a wild look to it! Thanks to you and Luisa for bringing us a little more cheer with garden beauty this week!

Luisa, paella is so hard to resist! And I imagine you must have the very best where it comes from! All your walking will help with any slight indulgences.

Wiz, you are so good about getting right after the weekend party weight--that's how you stay at maintenance so well.

Reno, I bet you will be feeling better in no time now that you're on the synthroid. Keep us informed about how it's going. Enjoy your walk!

Susie, jambalaya without rice sounds like a fabulous on plan dish! Let us know your recipe if you try it.

Laurie, trying on old jeans that fit! Now there's an activity that has got to put a big grin on your face! Enough to make one want to go out and celebrate by buying new jeans! No, wait... Congrats for your commitment to exercise when it is so hot!

Hi Dani, and Stella, and everyone else--hope you are enjoying your day!

Getting ready to go off to dh's birthday dinner. I ate light today so I could have a little wiggle room tonight. I have no problem avoiding rice, and most of the food will be fish and vegetables, so it should not be too high in calories. Catch y'all later! Serena

[RenoMom]

Wiz - Beautiful garden....

Okay I feel terrible! I think its the pills but I dont know. Im fine until I eat and once I eat I am naseaus (sp?) I did not ewat until 1pm today, I know bad. I didnt feel hungry and was in a rush. I topped at 1pm and ate the salad I packed. It was just lettuce,chicken,red onion,tomatoe and home made honey mustard. I cant stay out of the bathroom. Its terrible. there is no way I can eat dinner tonight the way I feel.

[Danipower714]

Beautiful pics Wiz!!

Like Luisa, I post all my photos on LCF thru my photobucket account...I usually size them at medium or large.

I hope you feel better soon, Reno.

[wiz]

Another test...I cropped these photos to be smaller. I think they will upload now. Although I didn't use photobucket, I did use the Adobe Photoshop I have on my PC. Thanks for the tips, Luisa and Dani!!

[Thefarmerswife]

Beautiful flowers Wiz!!!

Luisa, Quinoa supposedly has a nutty flavor. It smells kind of weird while it's cooking unless you are cooking it with something. I don't really like the texture of quinoa so mixing it with oats is a good way to disguise it. I just like the added protein in the AM because I'm not a big egg eater.

We went to a big party for my husband's graduating class today. It was rough because between Sb and my gluten/corn intolerance, the only thing I could eat was a plain hamburger. I didn't think to bring something, so I was starving by the time we got home (8 hrs later). I ended up eating a ton of stuff tonight including a gluten free brownie I had stashed in the freezer.

Beth ~

[stellamystar]

Hi gang,
YUM. I made the best dinner..
seared some yellowtail tuna and had an avacado. Sooo tasty. I made a little wasabi/soy sauce dressing and drizzled it. Def one of my new fav dinners. I will splurge and get Ahi next time...It stinks being in the Midwest !! Wish we had fresh seafood ....oh well..
I actually had a whole avacado since I opened it up I thought..what the heck it will go brown!

Beth - how did you know you were gluten/corn intolerant? I wonder sometimes...

Reno - if you still are sick go to the dr. These meds are serious..don't believe what the docs say -oh, it's just a little pill - yeah, that YOU HAVE TO HAVE EVERY DAY!. Sheesh

Serena - I am with you on "no rice.." Any Indian buffet or what have you, I can easily resist. Pasta, not so much

[Danipower714]

Originally Posted by wiz

Another test...I cropped these photos to be smaller. I think they will upload now. Although I didn't use photobucket, I did use the Adobe Photoshop I have on my PC. Thanks for the tips, Luisa and Dani!!

Ooooooo, is that the ocean I spot in the background of the first pic??

[Radmom413]

Wiz - OMG - you have some beautiful gardens.......I just do not have the patience or time......and yeah, just where do YOU find the time!

Dani - I believe Wiz is on a lake, but I saw that pic too - how lovely!

Stella - OMG - your dinner sounds so good! I will have to treat myself to something special while my DH is gone.....fish or lamb.....

Beth - I like Quinoa! I bought it by accident one time and said what the heck!

Oh RenoMom - I certainly hope you will find a balance soon!!!

Eating on plan and walking daily; who could ask for anything more!

Happy Friday, and R.I.P. Michael and Farrah!

[wiz]

Good morning!!

It was hot here this morning. I was so happy to see warm weather. Of course, I wilted when I did my 5-mile run, but it was worth it.

I was not happy this morning, I had a great OP day yesterday and was up a pound (instead of down the 1/2 lb I expected...) I can see that my fingers are all swollen up, maybe it is the humidity? Oh well.

Thanks to all of you for the compliments on my gardens. I work very hard on them. And as far as finding the time, Cindy, I do a lot of early morning work on the weekends. I mean REALLY early. Actually my husband and I are in the midst of planning a new bed in an area that used to be my dog's (R.I.P. Whitey...) hangout. He does the digging, I do the planting!

And Dani, that is the Manasquan River in the background. I've enclosed a better view here. The one shot is from my back yard, the other shot is of the sand beach down there. Since I am not a zillionaire, my property does not go all the way up to the water (seriously, the houses next to us go for $2M+ and here we are in our little white 1940s house ) But literally every room in my house has a view of the water, we are very spoiled by it! But the nice thing is that there is a little public sand beach right out back and my neighbors let us use their beach any time we want.

Gotta go, I really want to finish up work early today!!

[LinCO]

Reno-water! water! Use some Crystal Lite or a Celestial Seasonings Zinger to get you over the dehydration hump, and then water will taste good and be easy to drink. Oh wait, now I read you're sick-good luck!!

Wiz, those photos made my heart feel good. Let's don't talk about not having things work, tho, I've been in a disaster of not being able to find a mail receipt-end of discussion!!

Luisa, wow, what flower identification!

Serena, hope you enjoyed your sugar plum's party!

Beth, oops! I am happy with the results figure-wise of all the menu preplanning, but it's really hard mentally and definitely a stress. I hope you were able to socialize, anyway!

Stella, I'm enjoying my tuna 1x/wk but worry about the mercury. I'd eat it a LOT more often if it weren't for that.

Cindy, no early morning workout now?

Yesterday was tough, I'm glad to leave it behind. I was in construction traffic for over an hour and never made it to Pilates, ended up finding out I'd forgotten my shorts. Sob. http://images.lowcarbfriends.com/lcf...lies/frown.gif This traffic is so bizarre, there's maybe 35,000 people in my county!! Hope nobody was hurt. I did the pilates mat workout at home, tho, I posted it on this site under Muscle Matters. Got my endorphin shot. Then had trouble finding DS#2's baseball tourney, needed $$ to get in and the traffic had kept me from the bank earlier. Double sob. http://images.lowcarbfriends.com/lcf...lies/frown.gif Ended up finding a Wells Fargo at 4:57pm and got cash. I said, now do I hafta not be grumpy? http://images.lowcarbfriends.com/lcf...lies/laugh.gif We were stuck playing an undefeated team and it rained, too. DS did a good job in left field, tho, and made 1 good catch. I did share a little popcorn w/ DD, and I think I'm getting too much salt from my cold cuts, also. But I'm drinking a ton of water. I have eaten so much popcorn in my day, what's that saying, enough to float a battleship?! Please note I'm not even talking about paperwork that's going awry. http://images.lowcarbfriends.com/lcf.../see_stars.gif DH is being worked to death, so he's not helping lighten things up.

I think I met my low-carb goals, more or less, tho! At least it's a new rainy day!

[RenoMom]

Hey there beach goers...

Stella - I am going to give it through the weekend and if things don't change I will call the Dr. Monday. It's funny though, I read all about heart palps, breathing issues etc and I dont feel anything bizarre, its the tummy rumbles and all that goes with it. I did manage to eat 5 Turkey Meatballs last night, but they too didn't stay down.
Weird thing is this morning I feel fine, I took my pill an hour ago. I have not tried to eat yet, I'm almost afraid too..

Lin - I have really downed the water yesterday, with the tummy ache the water actually felt good. I did lose some more pounds LOL but not the way Id like to.

Okay so peeps give me some ideas to pack for me for camping, while others are eating chips and dip what can I have? Ph 1 for another week. I also need some grill ideas, something easy though.

Today I am suppose to meet DH for lunch I have no idea where we are going, but I will keep it OP. I've had a perfect 3 days and I am not messing it up now. I really want to see what I can lose in a week now. If my stomache doesn't feel well after breakfast I will cancel though. If we go to Chinese, is egg drop soup usually okay? Any suggestions?

B - ??? I have to eat something, probably turkey meatballs, as Im thinking the chili would be too much.

L - Going out, Ill post later

D - beef in the crock pot, I will saute some peppers,onion,mushrooms to eat with it, and maybe a nice salad. Depends on what I eat at lunch.

WATER!!!!!

[Thefarmerswife]

Stella, I figured out I had a gluten problem the last time I did Sb. I started adding whole grains back into my diet only to find that they were making me sick (bloated and horrible stomach pain). I eliminated wheat but found I was still sick some of the time. Over a period of 6 months or so, I experimented a lot with elimination diets to determine exactly what was causing my discomfort. I can eat quinoa, rice, and a small amount of organic gluten free oats but Corn and corn products are definitely a trigger, especially high fructose corn syrup. I can eat fresh corn on the cob however, which is weird.
I have not officially been tested for Celiacs, I would have to be full on eating wheat for several weeks to do that and it just isn't worth it to me. I accidentally dipped one carrot in some ranch dressing at my mom's the other day with out knowing the ingredients and was doubled over in pain for about 12 hours. I have to be super careful all the time.
I cook a lot so I have been able to come up with some great gluten free/corn free alternatives but unfortunately I still have a problem with carbs, so I started gaining weight. So now I am trying to get back to the beach...It's easier this time around in some respects because I'm use to not being on a restricted diet but much harder in some ways because I'm trying to do it all natural, unprocessed foods which includes no splenda (because that also makes me sick).
Oh, I also have a reaction to white sugar, it cause me to have horrible body aches to the point where I can hardly function. I can however eat brown sugar, honey and pure maple syrup.
The really bizarre thing with all of this is that my whole adult life I have had problems with light sensitivity and I have never been able to drive at night. Since cutting out wheat, I can see just fine. It sounds crazy, but the only thing I can connect it to is cutting out the wheat.
So... there it is... now your probably sorry you asked!!

Wiz Look like you live in a beautiful place! We are kind of on the water too. LoL! We have an acre pond in our back yard. Not quite the same thing but still pretty. My husband built a bridge over it and our kids love to jump off the bridge and go swimming.

Beth ~

[Thefarmerswife]

Reno, So sorry about your tummy troubles!!

Beth ~

[RenoMom]

Originally Posted by Thefarmerswife

Reno, So sorry about your tummy troubles!!

Beth ~

Thanks

[soozaay]

Wiz...my fingers are swollen today too...I think it's the humidity. My fingers look so pudgy around my rings...yuck!

Reno...The last time I had Chinese, to stay on program I had steamed shrimp & veggies....no rice and no sauce. It was really good & I didn't miss the rice. If I were on Phase 2, I'd have a small bit of brown rice if they have it..but stay away from the white rice & those sauces.

TGIF Beachers!!!

[stellamystar]

Hi ladies,
Yoga went well today - took a basic hatha class and it was fine. I was very rested after but then had to come back to work. .......

B: mixed nuts
L: Shredded Pork, black beans, salad, salsa..cheese

Dinner party - I'm going to make my lamb again, so better get to Costco....I got 4 ladies coming over.