Dieting success
 

It is with a great deal of pleasure that I tell you that on this morning, May 15, 2007, my bathroom scale has noted that I weigh 198 pounds. I am below 200 for the first time in longer than I can remember, and down from around 260 only two years ago. I'm going to celebrate later... but not at a pastry shop. 8D

It's amazing what one can accomplish with the right inspiration. :frankiesmile:

rock on Cass!

:-*

thats really good!

That *is* impressive. :terrsmile: It seemed that when I was in my 20's I could lose 10, 20, even 30 pounds when I put my mind to it, but since 30 - *nothing* I do makes the pounds go away. I haven't been under 200 since college sometime. Congrats.

Nice work, dude. Keep it up. :up:

Ditto. :)

:D WTG! Congratulations on your weight loss success!

Wow, that is impressive. Congratulations!:bloogrin:

Good work on the weight-loss. Congrats.

Awesome!! Congrats on your hard work!

Not trying to steal your glory but rather just be on topic, I've done kind of the same thing as well but on a smaller scale. I recently have gone from 130 to 115 and have noticed all the difference.

It's a great feeling, isn't it?

Hehe I'll admit the truth... my inspiration to get healthier came from Wilt!

Nice to see that I'm not the only one who finds his/her favorite character to be that inspiring. Granted, saying "You know, Frankie might like you more if you lost some weight" isn't going to motivate most people to drop 60+ pounds, but it worked for me. :frankiesmile:

The actual method I use is pretty simple; consume fewer calories. That's it. It takes some planning and research, however. Breakfast cereal is a good example. The number of calories per serving varies wildly, from a low of 60 up to one brand that's about 230. But what constitutes a serving varies, too, anywhere from a quarter cup to a full cup. When you factor both together, it turns out that for a given amount, they're all about the same, at least for the brands I looked at. I ended up dropping cereal altogether. I switched to rye bread instead of wheat; the savings is only 10 calories per slice, but it does add up over time, and I like rye better anyway. It's the same story with a lot of products, be it pasta, canned soup, juice, fish, whatever; you may save only a few calories per serving, but over time it does add up. This is particularly important when your major form of exercise is posting on a message board. 8D Learning to live with less is very helpful, too, like maybe not making that sandwich quite so thick. Vegetables are your best friend; tuna salad has fewer calories per bite if you add more diced celery and onion to the mix (and pickles and olives in my recipe). It tastes better, too. And don't forget the classic lettuce salad; it's only 25 calories per cup. The dressing I use is calorie-free, too. The whole process of losing weight requires some work, but with a little thought and the right motivation, it can be done, and the fact that I've dropped over 60 pounds proves it. :frankiesmile:

That's awesome! Congrats, Cass! Kudos to you for not putting it off or making excuses like some people. You are inspiring. 8)

Yeah, I agree Cassini - it does take some definite planning! My method is not necessarily calories, but fat grams. I try to stay away from saturated fats as much as possible and eat NOTHING fried. I eat a lot of fresh foods, and if I do end up cooking something, it's grilled rather than fried. I got really lucky in the job department, as well, because I'm a waitress and we get lots of exercise there, and I get on a treadmill at least once a week and run.

I'm glad Frankie helped in her own special way ;) My character inspiration wasn't necessarily "Wilt would like me more if I lost weight", but rather "What would Wilt do?" Lol... I need a bracelet that says "W.W.W.D." because that is my philosophy on a lot of things, including health.

Once again, I'm so happy your hard work has paid off!! Congrats again!

i need to start counting calories. I work out and try to hike at least once a week, but i haven't been keeping track of my calories. Need to start doin' that.

I avoid saturated fats entirely, not just because of the calorie level but for cardiovascular health, too. There isn't all that much of the other kinds of fat in my diet anymore, either, but I don't think it's either possible or wise to avoid them entirely; some fats, chiefly from olive oil or fish, do offer health benefits in exchange for their caloric content.

For those interested, tonight's dinner will consist of a steamed orange roughy filet accompanied by rice, both of which I'm using as an excuse to try out some new Japanese seasonings I discovered at a local Asian market less than an hour ago. :D

mmmm... sounds good!

I just done the maths and converted your pounds to my more familiar kilos. That's very impressive and I'd recommend your diet to anyone but it does seem to require more discipline than most people could impose on themselves. I include myself in that, I couldn't face this life without the disgusting saturated fat and MSG that turns peasant slop into joyous bounty. It's kind of balanced by the fact I get lots of exercise whether I like it or not and eat loads of fruit and veg but not enough to save me from the unhealthy hangover of yesterday's squalid and seedy scenes.

.

Great job! :D That's very impressive! :bloogrin:

Mmm... tasty! Wish I could come join you! Asian food/seasonings = yummy fo shizzle.

If you're ever in Connecticut, feel free to drop by. Just give me notice so I can hire a hazmat crew to take care of some cleaning that I've neglected. :bloocross:

Another pound seems to have mysteriously vanished overnight. :D My original goal was to break the 200 mark but I changed that to 180 some time back. It will be interesting to see how far down I can get by the time Comic Con 2007 starts. I don't expect I can lose very much in just two months, but you never know. :)

Sounds like you've done very well for yourself, Cass. Congratulations. :D

Congratulations on your success, Cass!:D I've been watching my weight too. I haven't actually looked at a scale in ages but I feel healthier and whenever I see my mom she's always going on about how much weight I'm loosing.
I don't go out of my way, but I do try to eat less junk food and more juice and water. I still enjoy hearty meals like a good ol' BBQ full of steak and potatoes but I try to limit my intake. I used to have 2 steaks and 2-3 potatoes, for example. Now I usually have 1 steak and 1-2 potatoes.
And I eat healthier breakfasts too. Cheerio's and bran cereals are my breakfast of choice and is usually followed by a bagel and coffee for lunch. I'm really going to have to get that scale out... I do splurge and eat more some days, though. Again, congrats, Cass!:D

Thanks. I do that, too, splurge once in awhile. Sometimes you've gotta say "Oh the heck with it" and indulge yourself. The last time I did that was just a few nights ago, when I went to one of our local restaurants and plowed through a large pile of fried clams and an even larger pile of steak fries. There's a bit of a guilty feeling after doing something like that, but an occasional indulgence is okay, I think, as long as you don't make a habit of it. I checked my weight the day after, and it was actually lower than before the meal, albeit by only a quarter or a half a pound or so. Still, it's nice to smirk and think that I got away with something. :slybendy:

Oh definitely! I've been feeling kinda guilty because for the last two days I've been eating more cookies then I should be. But I have been doing some sit-ups and eating healthy meals so I don't think those three big, soft, doughy, chocolaty cookie's will hurt too much... *right eye and leg twitches*

My problem is with portion control (it's definitely not exercise, I bike about 10 miles several times a week and my doctor says that's excellent). So I'm buckling down starting today and cooking a whole bunch of meat, brown rice, and veggies and portioning it all out by the ounce in divided containers. Thing is I'm also an insulin-dependent diabetic, and if I don't eat *enough* it's bad. So sometimes I have to eat more than I should just so I don't...you know...have to go to the hospital. :jk: I'd be happy if I just stop *gaining* weight at this point, even if I don't lose any.

Yeah, portion control is important because as food portions get huger and huger, so do our appetites. Food companies need to realize that we aren't BEARS and we don't need all of the food they're pushing at us!! It's so easy to overeat whenever things are like that.

I knew that if I wanted to get healthy and/or lose weight, I'd have to cut back on portions, too. A problem of mine was, because I work in a restaurant where there is no such thing as a "lunch break", scarfing food. At work, I have to wolf down food if I want to eat it while it's still hot and not have to get up and wait on customers in the middle of my meal. I'd end up eating way more than I needed to because my stomach didn't realize it was full until it was too late (it takes about 30 minutes to feel the full effects of a meal!) I cut back on portions, and while I still wolf down food out of habit, I found out I need to stop while I still feel a tiny bit hungry so that when my stomach catches up to my brain, I'll feel satisfied but not overstuffed.

I had had to "luck out" and get my traits from my mom's side of the family while my brothers got my dad's. They can eat as much of whatever they want and not gain a single pound. Our natural physiques are different in the fact that they're twigs and I'm a big guy, but it certainly is annoying that their food doesn't catch up to them.:scaryberry:
I eat much healthier then my first brother (lots of bread, carrots, juice and yogurt) while roughly 80% of what he eats is literally what he buys at the local pizza parlor and Chinese restaurant. The main key that I need is more exercise. Right now it's summer, the time of year that I spend most of my time in doors to escape the heat. But I do a lot of walking in the spring and fall.:D

The hardest part for me IS self-control. And the fact that I'm Italian and pasta and every variation of it is usually in my house.

And I'm a chocoholic. I swear, I can inhale about 5 Hershey kisses in 30 seconds (okay, I don't actually know that... but you get my drift).

I don't eat terribly, but exercising can be an issue. I mean, I'm a pretty avid dancer and in the studio about three or four hours a week. And there's the daily hour or two of DDR that keeps me occupied. But I really need to stop staring at my computer screen and run a few miles.

Then there's the pressure of LOOKING like a dancer, and LOOKING like I belong on stage (I love to act- I'm in every play and musical).

And I'm only 4 ft 11, which doesn't help.

So... I guess I can keep trying...

-Marty:goo:

Don't think like that. Some of the best and most famous performers in the world are big people. It's all just an unrealistic vision of perfection that the media has made for performers. Trying to look nice is one thing, but many people really hurt themselves by trying to lose pounds that just aren't there by purging and so on. I personally try to lose weight for my health. The extra notches on my belt are just a plus.:D

Speaking of which, I had to drill a new hole in my belt the other day. Since I started this thread, I've lost an additional 9 pounds, give or take a pound, probably because I recently switched from orange juice to diet iced tea. Doing so eliminated about 800 calories per day from my diet.

Really? I would have thought that orange juice would have been better for than iced-tea. Do oranges naturally have sugar in them or something?

Yeah that's why I can't have them (I'm diabetic).

One cup of orange juice contains about 110 calories, and I was going through eight cups per day, sometimes more, while diet Snapple is calorie-free. Orange juice is also rich in Vitamin C and is an excellent source of potassium and other nutrients, so unless calories or sugars are your major concern you're better off with the juice than the tea.

Congrats, Brian! (*goes to play The Sims 2 and sends Cassini to work out*)

I can't take back my hunger, sadly. My weight is normal, though, if it wasn't for my Mom telling me to get below 60 kilos (man, I am 174 cms tall, it's not that much, is it?)

I mean no disrespect to your mom, but I find that a tad disturbing, as that's not overweight by any stretch of the imagination.

And today, I made it. My thanks to the makers of Minute Rice, instant mashed potatoes, and bagged salads, not to mention the New Asia restaurant for many pints of steamed broccoli. And, of course, to a wonderfully inspiring red-haired lady in a violet skirt. :-*

w00t!

go celebrate with a brew! :D

better make that a "lite" brew :(

well, better make that a Mich Ultra :wiltshock:

ech. nevermind.

Congrats are in order, Cassini! What a great feeling it is to realize how much weight you've lost.

Aah, I remember my Senior year in academy (with graduation coming up) I went on a diet of nothing but bread, water, grapefruit and multi-vitamins for about two months. With the help of extra exercise, I lost a lot of weight, more than I thought I might. I don't recommend it though. It took a LOT of discipline and determination, it was REALLY HARD, and even though I was getting my grains (with traces amount of fat), fruit and vitamins, I know I wasn't getting all the nutrients I needed. But oh, I remember how excited I was when I put on a certain dress and *gasp!* it was BIG on me. I ran up and down the hallway of my dormitory, telling all my friends, and showing them what the dress looked like on me now. That was such a great feeling. ;)

I hope I'll have that feeling again someday. Hopefully soon. I can tell I've gained weight while on my vacay (doing little else but chill, and also cooked/baked some sinful food), hopefully going back to work will help. But I rrreeeaaalllyyyy should start my power-walking again. Wish me luck. :rolleyes:

I'm only 4'11" and weigh around 90 pounds. I think that's my normal bodyweight. Before hand I had to GAIN weight, since I was underweight. (NOT because of strict diet) This is because, for me, it's as hard for me to GAIN weight, as it is hard for others to LOSE it. XDD