Glad thanks so much - this is my first cold in 10 years ! I forgot how rough they are and the only exercise I'm getting is lifting that Thera-flu glass...I'm so worried my husband will get it but I guess it's too late for that now....

After Smoochin on my little Nephew Christmas day - then seeing the typical glassy eyes and runny nose 4 hours later.... I just had a feeling my 10 year record of not being sick would be broken !

Good for you, Deb!
 

You are preparing your food in a very healthy way! Nicely done! High FIVES to you, girlfriend!! :D

Someone earlier suggested mashing the cauliflower much like you would potatoes, so that would indicate using a butter substitute like Smart Squeeze. I also make a yummy cheese sauce with fat free milk and fat free shredded cheddar and a little garlic powder. mmmmmmm. Broccolli and cauliflower would benefit from the added sauce, and so would your calcium intake! Beans are great with a little cider vinegar. I also like to saute them with fat free cooking spray and put a little garlic and ginger on them. mmmmmmm

I'm a garlic freak! If you put garlic on it, I will eat it! :D

Good call on the pickles, you are absolutely correct. However, if you are a pickle nut, you can find lower sodium pickles out there but you have to read the labels and make the healthy choice.

You're doing a great job, Deb! Keep up the good work! :p

Wow!! Ten Years????
 

Wow, that is truly amazing! You have a wonderful immune system, but I guess you were due!

Feel better FAST! :D

:getwellso :getwellso :getwellso

This has only been day 2 for me. I hit the gym last night with my sister. Sweated out butts off for an hour & a half. No weight loss as of yet. Hoping to see somethin by Sunday.

WOW!! Excellent job at the gym!!
 

Now don't be tooo dissapointed if there is no weight loss by Sunday! :p Sometimes it takes a while for your body to notice the changes.

CONGRATS on all the positive steps you and everyone else are taking!! I am really proud of this great group! :D

Link for recipes
 

I have gotten multiple requests for vegetable recipes, and thought I would share with you an on-line recipe archive I use constantly. http://www.fatfree.com/

Enjoy, and if you try a particular recipe and LOVE it, please post to the recipe thread! :D

Sounds like a lot of you are getting with the program. Remember - we're taking care of our bodies.

My husband and I didn't eat healthy earlier in our lives and look where I ended up with all these serious health problems. So for me, it's something that is absolute necessary if I want to stay alive. Yes, it does get that serious.

I have a couple recipes I can share but can't do it today.

We went back to Gold's Gym this morning and had a good work-out. We're both happy to be back with my cardiac rehab group.

This is like a support group and I'm sure we can all help each other.

Remember - this is not a diet plan! This is for "Lifestyle Changes" - for better eating habits! I guess it's something similar to what Dr Phil had on his TV show.

Don't expect too much too soon. It takes time for the body to adjust. I normally didn't lose but about a pound a week but it's stayed off.

Thanks for everyone's input. And good luck!

I never addressed this question
 

I think come Sunday when we make our public reports (for any of us who do want to do so :D ) that would be a good time to separate the members from the non-members. Otherwise, I think I would prefer to leave this thread here for all the information we have gathered, and not split it out. Is that OK with all of you?

Private (PMed) and public weight reports will go onto the Club Progress Chart and will be emailed to all of those who have sent me their email address (make sure you PM me if you haven't already) :D

I went to fatfree.com and they do have a lot of recipes. I'll have to check them out!

Glad, where do you want us to put the recipes? Have you started a thread for that or want them PM'd or what?

Hi folks, I'm just seeing this thread today - but I want in!

Here's my story. I'm 27, 5'2" and 172 lbs (!). I'm getting married in October. I need to not look like I do now - then. I don't eat meat- so I wind up eating lots of pasta. I do eat seafood. I called the gym yesterday, but it is WAY out of my pricerange. I just can't afford it. Yesterday I started taking the stairs at work (7 flights) and it's been torture. I've tried weight watchers, and lost about 8 pounds last year, but I put it bcak on and then some. I love to cook. Please help! I don't know where to begin & I only have 10 months until my wedding!! I'd like to lose at least 30 lbs - impossible?

Welcome to the group! Glad will be responding to you, I'm sure. I'm sorry to hear that you don't like meat and are eating a lot of pasta!!!

I'll tell you my big change for the past 3 months... I stopped eating WHITE bread, WHITE potatoes, WHITE rice, PASTA and the sodas!! Yes and I've lost 16 lbs since October but I have been walking on the treadmill a mile 3 times a day. This morning we got back to Gold's Gym finally.

I'm not sure if you went back to the beginning of the thread. If not, it might be a good idea for anyone new to the group. That way, you'll be up to date with everything that's already been said.

I personally eat Atkins cereal (1/2 cup serving size) with extra vanilla soy milk and a protein drink made with the same milk. For lunch, I'm eating 2 scramblers (egg), a piece of Ezekiel w/raisin bread and another Protein drink. For supper I have a small piece of meat and 2-3 frozen (steamed vegetables. For snacks, I eat apples. Sometimes will eat a pretzel rod which are 40 calories. We don\'t eat out very often. We definitely haven\'t visited the fast food places in years!

Unfortunately I\'ve had to watch the fat, sodium and cholesterol for years.

I\'m just now learning how important the CALORIE count is!!! That\'ll get you every time.

And remember to watch the serving size - and no seconds!!

Anyone else want to tell us what they eat for different meals.

This is a really good thread! I currently do moderate low carb meals...not Atkins, per se, but not many processed foods or white foods. I have really good eating habits and keep my son and hubby on a strict diet otherwise they are out of control. Once my son gets his hands on junky foods, his behaviour is wild and with my husband, if he gets on those processed snacks, he is moody and crabby.

We eat a lot of fish, pork and chicken but not that much beef...as mentioned before, NO trans fats, they are bad and are actually toxic in your system. LOTS OF VEGGIES! I think that the most important thing for healthy eating is keep it simple and not all fats are bad, your body actually needs fat to burn fat. I also don\'t subscribe to depravation. If I want cookies, I actually break out a bowl and make them with REAL ingredients, real butter, real eggs...at least it\'s organic and not from a package that\'s been sitting on a shelf for 4 years!

Healthy eating habits are essential for your well being and remember if you have small children and they see you eating in a healthy way, they will follow that lead and that is the best gift you can give them!

Good luck to you all!

Just thought I\'d tell you what I started doing about my snacks. I didn\'t have any control over my snacking as I didn\'t have much will power. I would just grab the whole bag of snack food and head for my Laz-Y Boy chair. To bring that to an end, I started putting serving sizes of 1 thing into a "Snack Size Baggie". Then, whenever I got hungry for something, I would go grab a "baggie".

Best thing to fill you up in between meals? Water, water & more water!

Something is working for me!
 

I wanted to share something that is working for me. I decided that I was going to start slow, and I was going to commit myself to making ONE change at each meal. Wheither it was portion size, not go for seconds, add a salad, eat more veggies, skip desert, whatever, I was going to do one thing different at each meal I eat. It keeps me thinking about my healthy eating goal each time I eat and I\'m proud of myself at each meal for doing something good for myself. Just wanted to share that.

I like that! That way you are constantly accomplishing something...