Beth's Real Life Journey to Success

[seb]

You're going to be gone until Tuesday??????? How are we going to get along until you get back? I'm going to miss you, dear friend.

[Low Carb Mommy]

I'm signing off! I miss you guys already! Take care! See you on Tuesday! Bye!

[Edwards20]

It's a long time til Tuesday ....

Sorry I missed you this morning and didn't catch you before you left. I will be awaiting your return.

[Livywilltim-mom]

Miss you Beth! Sending prayers and good thoughts!

[Low Carb Mommy]

Hey! Getting to check in with you. We are having a wonderful trip. I am staying on plan (except for a few taste at the mall food court...hehe). We are staying at a beautiful home. It has water on three sides of the house. This morning we set traps and caught crabs. We cooked them and ate them for lunch along with shrimp, sausage, salad, portebella mushrooms, and watermelon. They are definitely feeding us. We got to go to the beach (Ocean City, MD) after breakfast (a couple of blocks away). The ocean was really cold as well as the wind. We had a great time though. Now we are getting ready to go the the boardwalk. There will be many temptations there! The people we are staying with have been telling us about all the sweets we should try....caramel corn, doughnuts, icecream, some famous fries etc. I am going to try to be strong!!! I am trying have the philosophy that I can eat as much as I want of things that are legal...that includes fruits. Well, gotta go for now. I will try to check in later!

[KrystaLyn]

Be strong! You can do it, Beth! But if you happen to have a taste or two, I'll forgive you Glad you're having a great time and can't wait till you're back!

[seb]

Beth, sounds like you're having a lot of fun, and eating good food. Hope things on the boardwalk went well yesterday. But if it didn't, don't beat yourself up. You are greatly missed here.

[Edwards20]

Yes, you are greatly missed. I am hoping that it's tomorrow you will be back.

[KrystaLyn]

I'm with Candy...can't wait till tomorrow!!

[Edwards20]

.... today's the day.

[Tippy Toes]

Welcome home, Beth!

[Low Carb Mommy]

GOOD MORNING MY FRIENDS! I'M BACK!

And it is soooo good to be back! Get ready....this post is going to be a long one! I am trying to figure out where to start. We'll I guess I will give everyone a recap of the trip. I am going to highlight some cheats....yes, there were cheats!

Wednesday:
-Left for Virginia Beach at 1:00
-Went through drive-thru at Zaxby's (had a grilled salad w/ ranch)
-Had a snack of nuts on the way
-Stopped at Golden Corral for dinner (steak, very sm. portions of cabbage, squash, green beans, sour cream, avacado, & coffee w/ 1/2&1/2.
-Got to the hotel around 10:30. My brother came over and stayed a while.
-Snacked on mom's cheeseball and celery.
-Very tired!

Thursday:
-Had breakfast at the hotel(eggs & bacon, coffee w/splenda & 1/2&1/2)
-Brother came over got packed up and left
-Went to Starbucks (I had a Americano w/ SF vanilla & 1/2&1/2 & 3 splendas)
-Went to the mall to the play area w/ kids, shopped, had a snack of mall samples (toothpick of seasame chicken & one bite of brother's sushi), nuts out of diaper bag
-Got up with DH(who was in a meeting) and had lunch at TGIF's (Steak, 1/2 salad, ranch, couple of broc. florets, tea w/ splenda
-Went to go see my brother's production practice (Jamestown settlement) at Fort Story
-Left to go to Ocean City MD around 7:00
-Another snack b/c there was NOWHERE to eat on the way(3-4 vienna sausages-yuck!)!
-Late dinner-finally found a Hardees's(LC thick burger w/tomato, pickle, ketchup, mustard, mayo)
-Got to the house 10:30
-It was a beautiful house on the Cheasapeak Bay (water on three sides)

Friday:
-Our hostess fixed us breakfast! I had an omelet (2 eggs, onions, mushrooms, provolone cheese, seasonings) and 2 cups reg. coffee w/ reg. creamer(theirs) & davinici's(mine)
-Went out to the beach! The water was real cold and it was extremely windy but we had a good time. A studio was out taking pictures and they took our picture. I will post them later.
-Came back from the beach. Pulled out the crab traps and cooked fresh crabs! Also had sausage on the grill(? carb count), shrimp w/ old bay, field greens w/ ceasar dressing & feta cheese, grilled portabellas, smoked moz. cheese, & watermelon & fresh cherries.
-Relaxed and then later went out to the boardwalk
-Boardwalk...so cheated!! 3-4 of the famous fries our hostess talked about, handful of caramel corn (he said was a must have), funnel cake (don't know how much..it was huge), coffee w/ 1/2&1/2 & splenda
-Dinner: on the way back....still hungry....2 hamburger patties w/ cheese

Saturday:
-Our hostess fixed us breakfast again. I had an omelet(eggs, sausage, onions, mushrooms), fresh cherries,watermelon, and then they had fresh bakery bagels....OMG....with homemade strawberry cream cheese....I had 3 bites of my son's!!
-went into town to a craft fair...really neat
-had lunch at a rest. there (hamburger w/o bun w/ crab meat on top & sauce(said nothing about sauce on menu)), side salad w/ ranch, tea w/ splenda
-came back to house and took long nap
-snack set up by hostess: cheese, fresh cherries, grilled chicken, slice ham, coffee w/ reg. creamer & DS
-Dinner: more fresh crabs, turkey burger, hotdog, field greens w/ homemade dressing(?) & feta cheese, watermelon (ate instead of icecream!)
-Had to pack...storm was coming and hostesses were leaving...had to leave tomorrow which was earlier than planned

I am going to stop here because I am afraid that all this might not post at one time....I will post and then keep typing!

[seb]

Hi Beth. So glad you're back. Can't wait for the "rest of the story."

[Low Carb Mommy]

Sunday:
-This is where it got really bad....my son helped the hostess fix monkey bread! Biscuits cut up with cinnamon, sugar, & butter and then baked in a bundt pan..OH MY! I just had to eat some right? My son made it! I had maybe eight pieces...guessing b/c I didn't count!, then ate an omelet(eggs, onions,feta cheese,porkroll), strawberry yogurt(I guess reg.)w/ bananas & strawberries, coffee w/ reg. creamer & splenda, one bite of son's bagel w/ egg.
-Got packed up...raining very heavy! Left and headed toward Virginia Beach
-Got to see my brother for a little bit
-Left for NC
-Lunch-none...trying to get down the road...snacked on cheesestick & nuts
-Dinner: stopped at Cracker Barrel and had steak, greenbeans, salad, ranch, a couple of carrots, tea w/ splenda
-hotel in Greensboro, NC...had late coffee w/ reg. flavored creamer

Monday:
-had breakfast at hotel-eggs, sausage patty, coffee w/ 1/2&1/2
-left and went to go see my grandmother in Winston Salem
-snack was cheesestick
-stopped for lunch at Fatz Cafe-chicken wings w/ ranch, steak(barely ate), salad w/ ranch, few bites of steamed veggie
-got home in the afternoon
-had snack of LC yogurt w/ tsp. peanut butter
-dinner was another blow-out omelet (eggs, onions, feta cheese, cheddar cheese, mushrooms, bacon), coffee w/ 1/2&1/2 & DS
-home...lots to do

Well, there you go....big recap huh? I have to tell you that my belly felt miserable after all that! In fact, after I drank caffeinated coffee the whole trip and cheated my head started hurting and stayed that way almost the whole trip. Was it worth it....NO!! Did it taste as good as I remembered? Only the monkey bread! The rest....I cheated....not worth it....won't have to cheat on any of it again!

So, lessons learned I guess. The fruit/carrots I put as a cheat because I wouldn't have eaten it on reg. plan, and I ate more than I should! I just ate ALOT of food! Last night I took a dosage of MOM because, I am just backed up bad! My face was even puffy this morning probably because all the salt! I could tell that I was more tired and my energy level dropped from the cheats. I did test my ketones on the trip. Here is a run down of them:
Wed.-small
Thurs.-trace
Fri.-small
Sat.-neg.
Sun.-trace
Mon.-neg
Today-small

And the big question....WHAT IS MY WEIGHT??? I weighed 135.8 this morning....that is a 2 pound gain from Wed. (133.8). I guess it is not all that bad considering! I think that I will go back to Induction levels for the rest of the week (like Krysta) and see if I can get it back off. I know some of it is water...some plumbing....some real weight gain. Overall, I guess I didn't do that bad. There was no going overboard and throwing the diet to the wind. I did learn a lot. Now like Dr. A says, it is time to get back on plan. I have 21 days to lose as much as I can by my deadline. I won't make my 125 goal now but I will get as close as I can to it. Life does go on past my deadline. It is good to be back. It was hard to do carb counts when you are not fixing the food. In a way that was a nice break (from the scales too). It was a good test for me.

I will try to post the picture that we got taken at the beach.(these were not planned or else I would have coordinated everyones bathing suits etc.) I will have to post the ones I took later because we borrowed a friends camera, and I don't have the cord to download them right now. I did get some really good pictures though.

[Low Carb Mommy]

Well, no picture for now...DH took them to work!

[seb]

Beth, a two pound gain is just water weight. No bad at all. On induction level carbs, you'll be back down to sig weight in no time. Glad you had fun, and that you learned some lessons. And, even with those cheats, you were still in ketosis most of the time!

[KrystaLyn]

I think you did a great job! You were conscious of your diet AND had fun and enjoyed yourself! Just think of what you possibly would have eaten if you had done this a YEAR ago, instead of now that you are in total control of what you choose to eat! I bet you are feeling A LOT better than you would have then. The point is, you were aware, and now that you are back to it, you got yourself right back on plan! Give yourself a few days and you will be fine

I, too, will probably not make my goal of 130 by July 21st, but like you, I am not worrying bout it. A few pounds off isn't going to ruin my life. I am glad to see your wonderful attitude about all of this! It shows that you are really thinking of this as a LIFESTYLE instead of some diet with a deadline! You are awesome, Beth, and I'm SO GLAD to have you back!!!

[Low Carb Mommy]

Thanks for the encouragement! You guys make me feel so much better about it.

I was really scared to weigh this morning! I felt so bad last night, and I was mad at myself that I wasn't stronger. I really have to fight that attitude that I deserve a certain food because of a certain event. I don't want food to have that much control over me.

It might have been better if I had planned a cheat rather than the spur of the moment cheats. I would have had a big slice of pizza and a thick brownie. I guess I am just mad over what I had for my cheat! It was stupid stuff. I am not beating myself over it now, but I learned that if you are going to cheat, then make it something that is worth your body feeling bad and your emotions hurt as well!

One thing that I have got to get back to doing is drinking my water. I have really let that slide. So, I am going to start keeping up with it and posting it in my journal until I can get back used to drinking the needed amount!

[KrystaLyn]

You are right, Beth, planned cheats are WAY better. I have definitely learned that! I knew going to my sisters wedding that I was only going to have a small piece of cake and a chocolate covered steawberry...ok, so I had TWO chocolate covered strawberries, but still... It really helped me to know that I was "allowing" myself to have some of the cake if I wanted it at the wedding. And that after I ate it, I would stay on plan and not let it cause me to get off plan any more. Which I did. I didn't eat anything off plan before OR after the wedding.

I think when you have UNplanned cheats, you lose the control you have over what you will let yourself eat, even if it's just psychologically. When you KNOW you are going to eat something, you plan to eat only that...and to enjoy it! When you have unplanned cheats you feel bad that you were "weak" and ate something you weren't planning, so then you figure, "oh well, I might as well eat something else bad!" and a binge can ensue! At least that's how it is for me.

Talk about a great oppourtunity for planning....I am really happy, because I found out that at the place we are going for our vacation, you can request the weekly menu the week before you go! My sister and I are going to do it so that we can PLAN what we can/want to eat based on what they are offering. That way, we aren't going into the situation totally blind. We will be armed with the knowledge of what they are offering for the entire day, so then we can plan what will be best for us to choose, and if we want a "cheat" that day, we will know ahead of time what we can enjoy in relation to the entire day's menu. Pretty cool, huh?

[Low Carb Mommy]

Man, that is neat! When we go to Calif. later this month we will be staying in a resort hotel. I am sure it will have a frig., but all of my meals will be out. I will just have to stick with foods that are "clean". I know that I will have some hidden carbs, but mostly I will be able to control what I pick to eat.

I love that we can eat fruit. That was such a treat on this trip. I can pass up the desserts as long as I have that. Like you I will just plan when I am going to cheat. Like I love Japanese food. That would be a great cheat for me! I don't have to have the rice as much as the sauces! And maybe one treat for a dessert (not at the same time)....I miss brownies w/ icecream & chocolate fudge. I will have to have that one time. I am going to make this a lifestyle, so it will be working it out to suit. Maybe one day it won't matter to me at all (hopefully). The important thing is that we get back on plan the next meal and don't tell ourselves that we might as well forget it. I don't have that fear really. I know that I like how I feel and look and never want to go back.

[Low Carb Mommy]

Ok, I had to figure my weekly loss and monthly loss since I wasn't at home to weigh. This is what I came to about it.

I set my monthly weight at 134 since I was 133.8 on Wed., and I had one little cheat on Thursday. So, that puts me at a 4 pound loss for this month. Then, I on my weekly I go from Sunday to Sunday, so I just put my weight at what I started this week with since it was so close to my weight today. I set it at 135.4. That made my losses for this week at 0. It would have been 1.6 loss if I had stayed the same from Wed. to Sun. But maybe I can get back to that weight soon with Induction levels. The lowest the scales have been is 133. So, I won't be happy until I can get back there.

[Livywilltim-mom]

Yeah Beth!

You did so well. Sue and Krysta have already so eloquently posted about what a wonderful job you are doing, and how learning how to LIVE this WOE is what it is all about ultimately, and you are rockin' it!!

I am glad to have you back!
Hugs,

[Low Carb Mommy]

Good to see you on here Jaime! Thanks for the encouragement. You are always so sweet and kind! I'm glad you are my friend on here! Missed you too!

[seb]

Beth, a four pound loss is wonderful. Congrats. Hoping for 133 for you soon. With eating higher carb, then lower, you might see a whoosh pretty soon.

[Edwards20]

Beth, I am sooooo glad you are back. I don't know where to begin to express how much I missed you .......
Sounds like you had a wonderful trip. So, why do you think watermelon was a cheat ? Cause I thought it was a melon and that we could have it already ?
Hmmm ...... I have only had it once or twice, but maybe I should look it back up. Wonder if it is only cantaloupe and honeydew ?
Anywhoo .. back to you. Sue and Krysta pretty much summed it up. Overall, looks like you did pretty good, and I think the main thing is that you are comfortable with this as a way of life and you realize when you mess up. You'll have those 2lbs gone before you know up. Again, I missed you so very much.