Beth's Real Life Journey to Success

[Livywilltim-mom]

Thinking of you...how was the first day???

[monet0329]

Oh Beeethhh.. where are you sweets? I hope that first day was a good one.. ours is tomorrow.. I am part and part .. but its good for them.. ..

hope we hear from you soon.. love yaaa

[seb]

Hope you're having a good week Beth. Miss you.

[Low Carb Mommy]

I'm so sorry I have been absent! Things have been crazy around here. We had some friends who live in NC call us Sunday afternoon and say they were coming to visit. I spent all day yesterday entertaining them. They have 3 children so we went to every kid friendly place we could think of around town.

And yes, yesterday was the first day of school!! What a crazy day it was ! All went well with school though. DS#3 loved his K-5 class. He has 10 boys and 3 girls in the class. They are only going a half a day this week. Then, next week they will get out at 2:50.

This morning I had to help out a friend and keep her 3 year old while she went to the dentist. When she got back we ended up spending most of today together. So, I am finally back and able to come visit with all of my friends!!

This weekend was a disaster regarding my eating. We just won't go into it all. I got back on plan yesterday though, and I have been good today. I need to get these pounds off. My clothes are tight, and I am miserable! I did get back on my treadmill last night. I guess eating right and exercising are helping me to feel better mentally until the physical catches up.

Thanks everyone for checking up on me. Hopefully things will settle down soon. I miss you all when I'm not here. I'll be making my rounds now to see what you are all up to....

Menu from yesterday:

B~Egg salad, coffee w/ HC & DS
L~Salad w/ bacon topping, ranch, wings w/ spices, tea w/ splenda
S~Atkins bar & Diet coke
D~Smoked turkey, salad w/ ranch, water w/ lemon

[Livywilltim-mom]

Oh Beth,

Aren't you just the nicest lady! Your kids went back to school, and you were playing tour guide?? What a blessing you are.

Glad you were able to help your friend, and it sounds like you had a nice visit too.

Your determination and hard work will get those few pounds off.

Love you,

[seb]

We miss you when you're not here also.

Sounds like a very busy time for you with so many things to do, but I hope life settles down soon. Does that happen with four kids? I think it will be years before life settles down. But, enjoy the ride because as you know, it goes WAY too fast.

Love you, sweet friend.

[Low Carb Mommy]

Jaime~It does take hard work to get those pounds off. It's not like it was in the beginning. But all good things come to those who persevere.

Sue~It's funny....now I find myself saying the same thing to younger moms than me....it does go way too fast!! I try to keep that in mind while raising the younger ones. I know I will look back and miss these days even though they are crazy days.


I had another good day yesterday! I think the sweet cravings are about gone. Although they really NEVER leave. They just get manageable. I also got back on my treadmill yesterday. That's two days in a row. I am feeling better. I'm not going to weigh yet. I know where I started. I think just seeing anything above 134 right now will only frustrate me.

I was thinking this morning about maintaining. I remember a time when I was consistent with my diet. I never let myself cheat (it's been a while I know). Basically I was living in fear of carbs....fear of knocking myself out of ketosis....fear of awakening the sweet tooth...fear if I had one thing off plan I would gain the 40 pounds back over night. Although it helped me lose the pounds, I wasn't setting me up for living in the real world. If you haven't read the section in your Atkins book about living out low carb, it is a good read. I was totally afraid of moving up the ladder and on to maintenance. If I gained a half of a pound, I was very upset. I say all of this to say that I think this attitude I had made it harder to live and still stay on plan. When you are so strict on yourself after you have lost the weight (I say after because if you are serious about losing the weight, the best way to do it is DO the plan), you just set yourself up for failure. The best maintenance tip I can give would be to set all things in balance. I know at times I have gone over the top with my cheats....but I have always gotten right back on plan. One thing that cheating does is remind you that your body just operates better without sugar. I think I had to go to the dark side to truly understand this concept. It also helped me settle down and stop being the carb police.

I have been listening to a radio program this week while going to pick up DS#3. It's Focus on the Family broadcast. This week they have had a lady on there talking about Disorder eating. Yes, that's disorder eating not eating disorders (although she talks about that one too). Basically she talks about how we all view food. I realized that when I obsess about food and think about it every minute of every day that that is not healthy and right. I will put the link to hear the broadcast online if anyone wants to listen. It has been very good!

Welcome to Focus on the Family

Click on the button to the left that says "Listen to Daily Broadcast". It will bring up a screen and will actually start playing today's broadcast. You can go down to the bottom and see the broadcast listed. It's the one that says "Breaking free from Chronic Dieting". They may have a list somewhere in there that list them all. Anyway...


Menu from yesterday:

B~2 eggs, bacon, coffee w/ HC & DS
L~Grilled chicken topped with peppers and onions and bacon, sm. salad w/ ranch, tea w/ splenda
S~Atkins bar
D~ HAMBURGER-BROCCOLI ALFREDO CASSEROLE: Linda's Low Carb Menus & Recipes


Gotta go for now! Talk to you all later!

[Livywilltim-mom]

Oh Beth,

Thanks for your thoughtful post and the link!

Great job exercising...you are doing so well, KUTGW!

How's school going?

Hugs

[NewYorkGiants32]

Hello Beth!

My dad listens to Focus on the Family all the time...James Dobson right?

Your menu looks good, I am confident you will get to goal inthe very near future!

[godsbeloved79]

Morning Beth,

WTG on a good day ! Thanks for the link to the broadcast. I will make sure to listen. I wanted to make sure you were keeping active (treadmill) as well? I love low carbing, but it's just something about making it a combo with exercise that just has me on cloud nine these days. I jogged 2.5 laps yesterday evening. Take care and chat with you soon .

[seb]

I don't listen to Focus on the Family often, but the broadcasts are always so good when I do listen.

You will miss these days, even if they are crazy. I didn't think I would miss the days when the kids were younger, but is was a simpler life; I do miss that.

Good job getting back on plan. Sugar does evil things to us! But, you're right. I don't think we will ever get rid of those cravings, especially when around others eating things that look and smell so good.

[Low Carb Mommy]

Jaime~School is going good. The kids just jumped right in without any glitches. I'm am so thankful!

Jennifer~Yes, that broadcast is James Dobson. He is excellent! When we went to Denver, we visited over in Colorado Springs. It happened to be Sunday so they were closed.

Lyn~Oh, you're checking up on me huh? Keep on me girl! You are my idol right now when it comes to exercise!

Sue~I'm sticking to plan. I am worried about my birthday coming up. Already my parents have a planned night out with us Saturday, and my friends are planning a cookout on Sunday. I am going to do my best.


Another day on plan yesterday. I did stretch my diet out a little last night when I had some blueberries and cream. It was only a half of a cup and I covered it in fat too! I guess I will be OK.

I peeked at my weight this morning. I was feeling much better in my tummy area so I decided to see what was going on. I would surmise that I probably reached 138 after my last round with sugar . This morning I weighed 135.2 after being back on plan since Thursday. I was very happy!!!!!! I am well on my way back to 134 again! And most importantly feeling SO much better!

I didn't exercise yesterday, but I tell you I did a lot of running around and walking. I will get back on my treadmill tonight, so I don't get off track. I have been working my behind off today cleaning. I couldn't stand the garage anymore so I got out there. OH, the spiders!!! I hate spiders!!! Well, back to work on the inside now....


Menu from yesterday:

B~2 cups of coffee w/ HC & DS....forgot to eat after that!
L~Hamburger steak w/ mushrooms, sm. salad w/ ranch, tea w/ splenda
S~Atkins Carmel Mocha Shake
D~Cola Chicken, collard greens, tea w/ splenda
D~1/2 cup frozen blueberries w/ about a 1/2 cup of HC....taste like blueberry ice cream


Here is the recipe for the Cola Chicken if anyone wants it. It's easy and taste like yummy BBQ chicken.

Cola BBQ Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I used boneless skinless thighs)
1 cup 1 carb Ketchup
12 oz. can diet cola

Put chicken in nonstick skillet with a little EVOO. Brown the chicken a little first before pouring the ketchup and diet cola mixture over the top. Bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat and cook for 30 minutes or so. Uncover, turn up the heat and continue cooking until the sauce becomes thick and adheres to the chicken. It turns into the most incredible BBQ sauce.

Note: I double the recipe....we have a family of 6!

[godsbeloved79]

Originally Posted by Low Carb Mommy

Lyn~Oh, you're checking up on me huh? Keep on me girl! You are my idol right now when it comes to exercise!

Yeah in a good way though . Just making sure that you are keeping busy. I have to opted for in-house exercise today, it's storming real bad here in FL. You are my idol all around the board .

[Low Carb Mommy]

Lyn~It's OK....I want you to check up on me.

We have had a few sprinkles here today. Definitely don't go out in the storm! Just take this day to rest those muscles!

[Livywilltim-mom]

Happy Fat Burnin' Friday dear Beth!

Oooo, thanks so much for that recipe. It sounds delicious, and so easy. I have to do some grocery shopping later today, so I will be sure to get those few ingredients.

What a blessing that your children are so happy and transition well. You and DH should be very proud of your parenting. We are all so much more than LC friends...I am constantly learning and growing in so many ways thanks to all of you wonderful ladies.

Love you

[monet0329]

Good morning Bethy.... I have made that recipe.. and its very good ..

I hope you have a wonderful day sweetie..

[seb]

Your birthday is coming up really soon. Can you get a SF ice cream cake anywhere? That would be a nice treat.

Your weight is coming down, that's good news.

I enjoy the cola chicken recipe, especially with lots of sauce to dip the chicken in. And, the longer it cooks, the thicker the sauce gets. I've added cream cheese to the sauce to get more fat in, and like it that way also.

[godsbeloved79]

Hello Beth,

Hope all is well today. Have a great weekend !

[Livywilltim-mom]

Blessed Monday!

[NewYorkGiants32]

Hello Beth, hope you had a good weekend!

[seb]

to you
to you
dearest Beth
to you

And I hope you have a wonderful day!

[Low Carb Mommy]

Thank you Sue for the birthday wishes!!!

Boy, does time fly. I can't believe it is Wednesday and I haven't been on here. I have been so busy! My weekend was filled with celebration. We believe in having a birthday week around here. My mom's birthday was the 16th-Sat. (and mine was the 18th-Mon). My mom and I always find a place we liked to go to eat for our birthdays. Saturday night we went to this place called The Blue Willow Blue Willow Inn - Southern Buffet Restaurant - Social Circle Georgia Louis and Billie Van ****. It's a very famous place here down in South Georgia. Several magazines have written accolades about this place as well as the writer Lewis Grizzard. Anyway, we had a wonderful southern meal in this gorgeous house. It was a great time with our whole family.

Sunday our best friends (and business partners) surprised me by bringing over dinner. They grilled steaks and had lots of sides. For desert we had some sf chocolates I had picked up at a confectionery near where were we ate Sat. They were so good! Then, I got presents...book and jewelry. I felt very loved!

Monday...my actual birthday....some of our company took me out for lunch. And DH spent some of the afternoon off work with me. I think overall it was the best birthday I have had in years.

Well, I have to tell you that I am glad all the celebrations are over! Vacations...anniversary....birthdays.....OVER! My diet cannot handle anymore cheating. I know, I could have chosen not to cheat....and wished on some of those events I had not cheated! Maybe with time I can get stronger about cheating, but this summer I definitely blew it!! Now back to real life!

Today is DS#3 first full day of K-5. He went out the door with his kinder-mat and book bag this morning. I just looked at him and couldn't believe how big he looked. He is so sweet. He gives me lots of kisses like he won't see me in a LONG time. I remember when my bigger boys used to kiss me like that. I guess God knew I needed some extra years of loving, so he gave me him (and DD).

Plan for the week.....get rid of sugar! I started back yesterday....won't go back and go into all the damage details I did. I haven't weighed and won't until next Monday. Then, I will probably go back to the strict....weighing every day...posting menus and carb counts. I am serious about this losing!


Menu from yesterday:

B~Atkins shake
L~Baked fish & shrimp scampi, salad w/ ranch, tea w/ splenda
S~Atkins Endulge bar, homemade iced coffee
D~Grilled chicken, salad w/ ranch, water w/ lemon
S~Atkins shake

Can you tell I was fighting the sweet tooth yesterday. At least I didn't give in to it. Thank God for Atkins junk food!

[godsbeloved79]

Oh man, I missed your B-day . Sorry . And blessings for many more 2 come .

[Debralynn]

Hi there pretty lady! Missed you! You are doing fab as always!