Depressed

TeeniBikini · Fri May 09, 2008 3:39 pm

I think some of my medication may be interfering with my weight loss efforts. I've posted my menu before, but I'll do it again so you can let me know if you spot something wrong...

B = 2 or 3 eggs (usually 2) 1 cup of V8, 1 cup of skim milk
s = cucumbers and hummus, and one cheese stick
L = giant salad with romaine, grape tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives, walnuts (1 tbsp crushed), balsamic or redwine vinaigrette
s = cucumbers and hummus again, or 2 tbsp peanut butter / 1 cheese stick
D = 1 chicken breast, 1 cup black beans, 1.5 cups of other veggies (mushrooms, squash, zucchini, bell peppers, tomatoes, etc)
**usually an hour or so after dinner, I have a cup of yogurt
Dessert - 1 or 2 fudgesicles

Sometimes I mix ricotta in with the vegetables I eat for dinner, and I usually have shredded cheese in the black beans, and 1 tbsp of low fat or ff sour cream on top. I eat cottage cheese instead of eggs in the morning sometimes, and I have almonds instead of peanut butter occasionally.

For P2, I added half of a ww pita shell to dinner.

If I haven't had peanut butter or almonds during the day, I make the peanut butter cup ice cream thing for dessert. Besides slight variations, I eat mostly the same thing everyday.

oldpjams · Fri May 09, 2008 3:42 pm

What's your height and weight and what type of exercise and how much?

TeeniBikini · Fri May 09, 2008 3:50 pm

I'm 5'7", I don't know exactly how much I weigh, but I'm guessing I need to lose 20 - 30 lbs.

I wear a pedometer and try to get 10k steps a day - sometimes I'm a little under, sometimes a little over. I haven't added any new exercise to that.

oldpjams · Fri May 09, 2008 3:53 pm

You should weigh yourself so that you have an idea of how far off you are of the normal ranges for your height. There is a big difference between needing to lose 18lbs and 28lbs. Keeping your menu and exercise exactly the same, there is no reason to think that the next two months are going to be any different than the past two months. You need to make some changes. The easiest change, IMO, is to increase exercise.

TeeniBikini · Fri May 09, 2008 4:00 pm

I think I've got to be eating too much, also.

I know I need to increase the exercise because I used to do more - I'm less active than I was a few months ago when my bike was stolen. But I think I've got to be eating too much.

I'm okay with finding out my BMI, but I can't know how much I weigh...that messes with my brain.

Kimboroni · Fri May 09, 2008 4:19 pm

You haven't been on SB for 2 months, have you? If so, you should have added a lot more p2 foods than just a half pita.

I doubt you're eating too much, unless you're adding a lot of olives and dressing. Both are fats (good fats, but calorie dense), so you do need to watch those.

You should vary your diet a lot more-- eating the same thing all the time isn't conducive to weight loss.

Beans should be 1/3 to 1/2 cup per sitting. Eating two ½ cups separately is different glycemically than eating 1 cup all at once.

A whole chicken breast might be protein overload for your system. I didn't see any protein at lunch, so split it and have half at lunch and half at dinner.

You could be overdoing the added cheeses that you mentioned at the end.

TeeniBikini · Fri May 09, 2008 4:50 pm

Oh - I forgot to say chicken or turkey on my salad. And I can't eat the whole chicken breast unless it's very small.

I was wondering if it's better to eat 1/2 cup of beans a day rather than 1 cup all at once. I can't eat beans at any other meal, unless it's on the weekend and I'm at home.

I definitely don't have more oil on my salad than I'm allowed (because I really don't like it on there at all, I go light on it)...and I always put seven black olives in the salad - I figured that would make up for some of the oil I'm not putting on it.

I've been on SB for more than two months, but I was sick for a while and was mostly off of it during that time. This is how it went:
P1 for a full two weeks
P2 for one week
Off plan for about one whole month
P1 for two weeks, but screwed up both weekends
P1 very strictly for a solid two weeks
Now I'm on day 5 of P2.

Kimboroni · Fri May 09, 2008 5:41 pm

Well there's your answer-- that's quite different from the original picture that was painted. You need to just stick to the plan over longterm. All of this yo-yoing isn't good for your body.

RE beans: You do have the hummus as well-- 2 Tbsp is a serving, I believe. That isn't much, but it can be quite calorie dense because of the beans, oils, and sesame seeds.

TeeniBikini · Fri May 09, 2008 10:11 pm

I don't eat the same exact thing everyday, but it's all generally the same on this diet. There's eggs, lean meat, vegetables, cheese, dairy, beans and condiments....how much variation can there be?

I'm entirely frustrated with it (and myself) right now. I'm told cheese is a protein, which is unlimited, and then I see warnings about too much cheese (not just in this thread, I mean). And I don't understand something like hummus - if I can count that as a serving of beans, then do I also count it as a fat, and a condiment? I'm tired of being confused about it all, and I'm tired of not seeing it work. I'm considering just dropping it for now and trying again down the road. I do better on a diet that excludes beans and dairy...at least then I see some results. I think I should slowly add those things in as though they are P2 foods.

Kimboroni · Sat May 10, 2008 12:04 am

You haven't done it for real yet, so what are you dropping?

I think you just need to be straight with yourself and stop glossing over the issues. You consider yourself to have been on SB for over two months, but the truth when you break it down is that you keep cheating yourself with restarts. You say that you "eat mostly the same thing everyday," and then say well, it isn't the exact same thing. But the other meal plan you posted earlier looked nearly identical. There can be LOTS of variation. It depends solely on what you're putting into it.

This is just good old-fashioned healthy eating. What is the alternative?

TeeniBikini · Sat May 10, 2008 3:12 am

The alternative is eating what makes sense to me and not worrying about all these technicalities, which no one here seems to agree on anyway.

As OldPJ pointed out, there's no reason to think the next two months will be any different than the last two, if I don't change something.

It's not the first time I've been told I'm not doing it right, but I've yet to see someone tell me what about it I'm doing that's all wrong. There's a suggestion here and there, like not eating the whole cup of beans in one meal....I take the advice, make the adjustment and move along....no matter what I've changed, it's still not working. If I'm not doing it "for real", then how do I make it "for real"?

This is the very definition of insanity. Look, I've had a very bad week, and I'm not glossing over the issues or trying to BS my way through this or whatever....I'm just irritable, I guess....and I'm really frustrated. I've been honest about my mistakes and I've asked for help. I just can't deal with this right now.

Perhaps by Monday I'll be able to manage a new perspective, and I'll cheat myself with yet another restart. For now, I just don't care.

ladybugnessa · Sat May 10, 2008 12:04 pm

TeeniBikini wrote: The alternative is eating what makes sense to me and not worrying about all these technicalities, which no one here seems to agree on anyway.

As OldPJ pointed out, there's no reason to think the next two months will be any different than the last two, if I don't change something.

It's not the first time I've been told I'm not doing it right, but I've yet to see someone tell me what about it I'm doing that's all wrong. There's a suggestion here and there, like not eating the whole cup of beans in one meal....I take the advice, make the adjustment and move along....no matter what I've changed, it's still not working. If I'm not doing it "for real", then how do I make it "for real"?

This is the very definition of insanity. Look, I've had a very bad week, and I'm not glossing over the issues or trying to BS my way through this or whatever....I'm just irritable, I guess....and I'm really frustrated. I've been honest about my mistakes and I've asked for help. I just can't deal with this right now.

Perhaps by Monday I'll be able to manage a new perspective, and I'll cheat myself with yet another restart. For now, I just don't care.

this is the way it works:

you read the book
you read the faq and the stickies
you use the food lists in conjunction with the GREAT meal planning template
you create meals that match the meal planning template

in phase 1:

breakfast is
dairy
veggie
protein
maybe some fat

snack
is veggie and protein or veggie and hummus or veggie and dairy

lunch is
protein
veggie
fat

snack
is veggie and protein or veggie and hummus or veggie and dairy

dinner is
protein
veggie
fat

snack
is veggie and protein or veggie and hummus or veggie and dairy

make sure you drink enough water
make sure you move your body

in phase 2 you add your fruits and grains slowly either to meals or snacks
until you are up to 2-3 fruits per day and 3-4 grains per day

make sure you drink enough water
make sure you get serious exercise both walking and resistance training of some sort

oh and the magic key to this: YOU CONSISTENTLY DO IT FOREVER.

i have been doing this for over 2 years. on weeks and months where i treat I do not lose. i had a good 6 month period where i did not lose because i had a treat every week.

some very wise person taught me to string my clean days together... i'm doing it. and it works....

it works slowly.
there is no magic
but it works..... you have to be receptive and patient.

IndigoElectron · Sat May 10, 2008 5:12 pm

I agree. I do understand your frustration, in fact I was thinking today how bored I sometimes get with always having to monitor what I eat. It somehow doesn't seem fair that I will have to do that for the rest of my life. But you know what - sometimes life isn't fair. And I do have an alternative (just like you do), which is to eat whatever I want, whenever I want, gain weight, and be unhappy with the way I look and feel. When I think of it like that, it doesn't seem like such a good alternative, and it motivates me to carry on.

I think you have the same problem as me, which is the weekend (though I'm addressing this problem). I'm fine during the week but I get to the weekend and decide to 'treat myself'. Same with 'special occasions', which for me are meals out, birthdays, celebrating something at work or to do with my study - the list goes on! The problem with this pattern is that there are too many 'treats' or 'special occasions', and you end up yo-yoing, losing weight, gaining it, etc etc. I've been fighting to lose about 12 pounds or so for the last 15 years! What has to change is your mindset - you need to stop fooling yourself (which I mean in the kindest and most supportive way). You've admitted yourself you've had several cheats and restarts, which I suspect is your real problem, rather than it not working or you not understanding it. You really can't have it both ways. And be patient - we all want quick results but it just doesn't happen like that.

I truly believe SB is a sustainable and effective way of eating that you can maintain for life, and you need to do that alongside some kind of exercise regime and positive thinking. For me, I walk and do yoga once a week, as I hate the gym. In terms of the positive thinking, I strongly recommend the Beck Diet Solution - you can buy the book from Amazon, and there is a support group here:

http://www.southbeachfriends.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=331&t=2950&st=0&sk=t&sd=a

which Nessa set up and is going really well.

Also take Nessa's advice - read the stickies and use the meal planner. It's really not that complicated when you take time to learn it - it's pretty much second nature to me now, and I've only been doing SB for a couple of months.

As for proof of it working - look at people like RedRox, Maltaguy and Nessa - all of them have lost a lot of weight and kept it off doing SB. I recommend you look at the Results and Photos section of the forum, it's truly inspirational.

Very good luck!

Donnakk · Sat May 10, 2008 11:35 pm

Teenie!

Why can you have beans only when home? I take my beans with me! They are very good cold, especially lima beans! Aldi's lima beans are the best! I add beans to my salads a lot too. with the limas you can eat them like any finger food. I sometimes make my salad up and add the beans right away when i pack a lunch! DH and i both like them cold now and i eliminate a pot to wash!

We must all hang in here for we will be healthier for it in the long run!

TeeniBikini · Tue May 13, 2008 5:47 pm

I've just had some tough times lately, and I wasn't in a position to accept criticism whether it was intended to be constructive or not.

I bought a new bike over the weekend and I've added a 45 minute ride back into my daily activities. Eventually, I'll add another morning workout to my day. I'm not going to have beans or milk in my diet for at least a week...after that, I will try to add them slowly. I know it's not the accepted SB way of doing it, but I have to do what makes sense to me, and go with my best judgment.

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