Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie :)  Lovely recipe (and sooo easy to make)

-Julia

I could only vote once so I voted for whole grain products but I also get a lot of fiber from vegetables like peas, broccoli and the like.  There is a recipe on this site that I think is still here for Honey Whole Wheat bread ....FANTABULOUS RECIPE! Loaded with fiber too :)

-Julia

I sympathize greatly...my hubby is also not a morning person and prefers doing his workouts at night, which for us works out better...hmm..have you tried bribing him?  you know, "If you do this then I'll do (whatever he really hates doing) for a week/month" ... If you get him into a regular routin then it might not be so difficult getting him up in the morning.  Just a suggestion. :)  Whatever the outcome I hope everything goes well. :)

-Julia

Hello everyone...I need some information.  I went to my doctor's office yesterday and he told me that I need to exercise everyday for at least 20 minutes and that I need to lose weight (such a cruel doctor)...Well, after I gathered up the pieces of my self esteem from the floor he told me that I should look into the South Beach Diet plan, which is a low glycemic index diet plan but I don't have any information about it...can anyone help me out?  Thanks. :)

-Julia

Yes. Your "test" text did post...

Hi Kathy

Welcome to "Club Forum"!  What kind of motivation do you need?  Do you just need a helpful kick in the pants each morning (like a phone call?) or do you need words of encouragement to keep yourself motivated to get healthy?  Do you have someone at home you can workout with or are you all by your lonesome on the fat burning "trail"?

Losing weight is daunting in and of itself but we need to know how we can help you in order to give advice..If you need a daily kick in the pants just to do the work try setting notes in front of you everywhere so you cannot forget (use little Post-It notes and stick them everywhere you go in your morning routine)..write things on them like "You can do it!!!" ..."Don't Forget to do your Workout Today"..."Have You Exercised Yet?"..those type of things that will make you aware of exercising.

If getting started is not the problem but you need encouragement then here it is:  You CAN do this.  You are NOT alone in this.  You ARE beautiful no matter what the tag says in the shirt/pants/shorts/skirt...and you WILL lose the weight.

For exercise:  20-30 minutes of walking (on scale of 1-10, 1 being sitting on couch and 10 being sprinting, walk at about a 5-6)

Remeber any exercise is better than none at all.

Keep your spirits up!!

-Julia

I know that this is a rather old post but in case you are still wanting some ideas for making quick dinners easier and healthier I have some ideas... 1. Prep ahead -- if you know you are going to be making pork chops/chicken then divide them into freezer bags ahead of time and try using different marinades on them or make your own and save some money and don't forget to write on the bags what marinade you used and when you packaged them.  For example, if you have a zesty cajun marinade that you are giving a try then write on the bag "zesty cajun" and the date it was put in the freezer and then you can plan your meals around the marinade, like red beans and brown rice or balck beans and rice with some type of vegetable or salad .. 2. Make time to plan ahead -- I shop once every two weeks for groceries and I try to make sure that the grocery list is complete when I go to the grocery store.  If you shop on Saturdays then make Friday your day to look over the list and add anything that needs to be added and prepare your marinades the same day then when you do your shopping on Saturdays you really won't have to waste your time preparing the marinades ..3. Make a meal plan -- I grew up in a household where every Monday was chicken or pork chops, Tuesday was meat loaf or tacos, Wed. was spaghetti with meat sauce..well, you get the idea but it helped tremendously with my mom being a single parent she had to find a way to make dinner easy and because I grew up making the meals I have adopted the same routine.  I'm not saying you can't make something different once/twice/three times or even every night of the week but at least have 1 to 2 days that are scheduled to be something specific.  It will make your dinner plans very easy...4. How about salad? -- if you make a pasta salad with italian dressing (fat free of course) and keep it in the fridge for a couple days and serve it with different dinners you will save yourself some time and that kind of salad only gets better as it marinates in the italian dressing.  Salad greens are also an easy way to provide a quick and easy side to dinners.  If your kids like to help you in the kitchen then get them involved (my nephew loves helping with dinners when he is at our house) and it will give them valuable training for when they move out on their own!!  5.  Set a "Eat Out" date -- once a month my mom would have either take out or eat out dates and these were VERY highly prized dinners and it made it more special.  I'm not saying you have to beawful about what you choose to do but you do need to take a day off from cooking every once and a while as well.

Hope anyone who reads this gets some useful tips :)

-Julia

Hello JJ

Well, that's quite a pickle to be in...have you always worked out? or have you been working out a lot in say the last 9 months? .. the reason I ask is because plateauing is a common occurrence when you have been working out for a while..also, you already know that men and women "hold" fat differently - men convert more fat into lean muscle and women just seem to "shape" down but still keep all the curves and the annoying "fat" around the hips, thighs and chest...do you have access to gym equipment such as resistance equipment?  I have found that women (myself being one) respond to resistance very well when it comes to slimming down and the best part is it tones and "lifts" those pain in the (excuse the expression) butt areas that always seem to stay no matter what you do.  For cardio, if you cannot run try a fast walk.. try a 2-3 minute "warm-up" walk that will slightly raise your heartrate (like you have an appt. you are trying to get to) then for 20-25 minutes walk fast (on scale of 1-10, about a 7 or 8 with 1 being sitting on the couch and 10 being an all out run) then cool down for about 2-3 minutes to your original "warm up" pace .. It's March and if you stay on track with this for a few months you should notice a difference.

Good luck and I hope this helps.

-Julia

Andrea, oh my gosh..that is so funny (about the "mtn. dew thing") my hubby is addicted (I'm talking like crack cocaine) to Coca Cola...he has been a lot better about and only drinks it when he has a headache or maybe like once a week...anyway, when he goes for his run in the mornings is there enough time when he gets back for you to take a walk or jog aroung the block and back? Are you getting enough iron in your diet? I do not have children (yet) but I have taken care of nieces and nephews who are below the age of 4 and they can zap the energy right out of you in 30 minutes! but still want to continue "playing"...I take a women's multi-vitamin daily and that helps with the low energy levels but I also know that when your little one has a fever or is sick in the middle of the night there's no going to sleep until the child is asleep (and even then there is no guarantee she will stay asleep)...tell me, do you have an exercise program that you are wanting to incorporate? are you trying to take too much on at once? I read on one of these posts that someone suggested about the "whole family eating better" thing that you should start incorporating healthier options slooooowwwllyyy...like if you make spaghetti with meat sauce, instead of using all ground beef use 75% ground beef and 25% ground turkey (99% fat free if you can find it)...for milk it's a little harder (my husband loved the whole milk) ..I had to slowly decrease the % milk fat but am happy to say that we are now a fat-free milk household.

Take your time with this. Men are very hard(headed) when it comes to changing anything about their lifestyles but be persistent let him know that you are serious about changing your health and keep coming on to this site because they have lots of yummy recipes to use.

-Julia

I work full-time go to school part time and have a husband who thinks that a healthy meal is delivered pizza with vegetables on it, know what I mean?  So, needless to say, I do the cooking and because my schedule is so hectic it's hard to find time to cook really healthy dinners in 30 minutes or less (now that I've found this site though I've been on a healthy cooking rampage) ... one ? i have is when you are in a busy household what do you stock your pantries with for a man who doesn't want to cook for himself that is healthy (or relatively healthy)?  He's not really into canned soups (or soups period) so what is a wife to do for her hubby to keep him healthy when she's not there all the time?

(ok that was two questions)

- Julia

I voted for working out with my husband the best but it was kind of a draw because I like working out by myself as well ... I like working out with my husband because he is a great motivator to do one more push up or one more crunch but because I am younger than he is (I'm 25 and he is 30) and I have eaten better and worked out more frequently than he has he gets tired faster than I do so I find that I have to encourage him more than he really needs to encourage me in our workouts.  I think it may be that I need to have some exercise time by myself so that I can lose more weight.

I love, love, LOVE a nice bowl of cold cereal with skim milk at night...It's my favorite midnight-munch..and the type of cereal?  Either Kellogg's Special K with Red Berries or Total Whole Grain Cereal flakes...it has the perfect balance of sweet and crunch (the cereal, that is) ... yum, yum!!

- Julia

I've been using whole wheat flour in my baking and the only thing I have had to adjust is the milk in my recipes...The whole wheat flour is a lot more dense than regular flour and requires more milk but I have not needed to adjust the baking powder or salt...I haven't made the bread yet so I cannot tell you if it reacts the same.  Hope this helps.

- Julia

Good for you on the eating better but bad on only consuming 1200 calories a day!!  The post about the correct calorie intake is correct..anywhere from 2200 to 2800 calories depending on your activity level is where you should be on your calorie consumption.  Also, the post about the 6 small meals is great advice..you will actually find yourself having a hard time eating that often at first.  Make sure to eat lots of fiber... fiber keeps you full without filling out the waistline (beans, veggies) and eat whole grains (whole wheat cereal or bread)..

Keep up the good work!!

-Julia

Maybe I'm a bit out of fashion but has anyone considered baking their own bread?  Substitute enriched flour for whole wheat flour (unless you have wheat allergies) ... I've found that since I've been on this site it's not so much more expensive if you are willing to work a little harder to get what you want..without sacrificing taste.  Some things I believe are a little silly...I know organic is the "in" thing to do these days but when you are talking about feeding a house full of people some things you just can't substitute without paying out the wazoo!  So, frozen veggies in a bag at Wal-Mart is much less expensive than buying organic frozen veggies or fresh veggies...only buy fruit that is in season (you pay less that way) ...my husband and I have some veggie plants growing (we live in Florida..I know, I know the envy of the Northeasterners is being felt right now) we are growing bell pepper plants (all colors) and tomatoes (Roma and some other kind) ...we bought the peppers and tomatoes from Publix grocery store and dried the seeds ourselves and planted them..when they start giving fruit it will be a wonderful day! :)

-Julia

I'm sorry I'm a month late with my response but when I was losing serious weight I always felt hungry right after my workout and found that either a smoothie or something protein-rich helped the hunger..also, it happens sometimes now when I know my body needs something..like I might crave ice cream or something bad like that but I'll drink a glass of skim milk and the craving goes away...It could be that your body is trying to tell you it needs something...When you feel like this is there something specific you are hungry for?  Also, if you are working out more than what you are intaking (calorie-wise) than you body is starving for nutrients...I love carrots and celery stalks as much as the next girl but after an hour of intense workout my body doesn't want rabbit food it wants something with substance! Also I would suggest eating more fiber like beans and whole grain foods because they keep you feeling full without giving you the "full" waistline, know what I mean?  Also, try drinking a gallon of water (or flavored water if you do not like the taste of regular water, just make sure it's calorie and sugar/sodium free) a day  It will keep your muscles hydrated after your workouts and will keep you feeling full so you cannot overeat. :)

Keep up the good work with the workout regime.

-Julia

You are very welcome.. sorry I haven't posted in a month..but I'm very proud of your weight loss..I remember when I was losing weight every pound felt like another monkey off my back.. keep up the good work and I'll try not to be a stranger on this forum. :)

- Julia

I have tried a few different recipes off this site... Peanut Butter and Banana wrap, Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie (awesome), Santa Fe Foldover (also, very good), Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins (my 8 yr old nephew loved these!!) .. Now I know that some of these are not low carb but maybe when you take a break from the low carb and need to get some these would be very good. :)

- Julia

First off, let me extend my condolences to you for your loss.. I've not experieinced what it is like to lose my mother or one of my aunts yet but I know it will be difficult when the day comes...I can definitely tell you that plateauing is the absolute worst feeling.. I was 220 lbs and lost 100lbs in the span of a year..I kept it off for 5 years and now the weight has come back and I'm 180 now.

I can tell you that when I was exercising and I plateaued I had to step up the intensity of my workouts in order to continue losing weight.. when I finally reached my goal I just did maintenance workouts...so, how did I battle my "spirits of laziness and procrastination"?

I had a large mirror that I worked out in front of..I didn't self-recriminate I would just look at myself in the mirror while I worked out and it worked..Each workout would give me the strength to continue and do the workouts for the next night.  Someone once told me that if you think of your food as fuel and not something to enjoy that it can help you rethink what your eating.  You don't put sewage in your gas tank when you go to fill 'er up do you?  Well, you can't put sewage into your body and expect it to run at its' optimum either...I'm not saying you cannot enjoy what you eat but remember that it is only fuel for your body, for your skin, for your cells, for your muscles, and for your nerves and do what you can to keep those parts in check...

Berries...great anti-oxidants good for skin good for hair good for nails

Whole grains... cholesterol fighters, possible cancer fighters, great for digestive health

Veggies... great for fiber great for digestive health great for vitamins and minerals

Dairy... great for vitamins (use skim so as not to have too much bad fats)

Oils & Fats... the less proceesed the better but make sure not to have too many
 as too much of anything is not good for you

As for the train of thought remember this God created you to be you not to be the embodiment of your mother.. you DO deserve to be healthy and you DO deserve to be happy and God wants that for you. :)

Blessings

-Julia

I love that you do this.. Whenever I go to Wal-Mart or some place that has a very large parking lot I always park as far away as I can and walk to the front door.. you know what?  It helps and I never have to worry about coming out to a dented car door!! :)