<p>I’m having a dinner/birthday party for a friend tonight and made lasagna and meatballs and no I didn’t use light cheese. I hope I can show some self restraint.</p>
<p>Just borrow Kate Winslet’s dress and you can stop worrying about dropping pounds.</p>
<p><a href=“http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/beauty/color-block-dresses-look-10-lbs-thinner-2575878#photoViewer=1[/url]”>http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/beauty/color-block-dresses-look-10-lbs-thinner-2575878#photoViewer=1</a></p>
<p>I think it is a little odd looking, maybe the chest area didn’t need to be even lighter in color, but I do like the Maggie London version.</p>
<p>You are all doing GREAT…I don’t weigh in until Tuesday morning. We had company this week so it’s been a low exercise week. I’ll get back on track…literally on Monday. I did go to Yoga…I NEVER miss that.</p>
<p>Just stopping in to say I have just read this thread, and it is motivating me! But a very dumb question…I cannot believe something I recently read that said that drinking ice cold water aids weight loss because it makes the body burn more calories. Has anyone ever heard that before?</p>
<p>Unfortunately, boysx3, that’s not true. Burning one (kilo)calorie would raise the temperature of one kg (about 1 liter) of water 1 degree Centrigrade. The extra calories spent to bring an 8-oz glass of ice water (0 degrees) to body temp (< 40 degrees) are not significant (< 10 calories=0.1 apple).</p>
<p>NYMom! Wow, I’m impressed!!!</p>
<p>Just started reading this thread and finding it full of lots of good advice. I’m curious about brown rice – does it work well in a rice cooker? My DH struggles a bit with his weight and has been asking me to switch to brown rice.</p>
<p>In terms of reducing carbs, we made the change about five years ago of simply getting rid of bread at dinner. That was pretty traumatic for the family but now no one misses the bowl of rolls and the butter. I’d like to reduce simple carbs further. Have switched to the Barillo whole grain pasta but we love, love, love potatoes. </p>
<p>The other good change we made was to cut way down on cake and pie and cookies. Dessert is usually a frozen ice cream treat, single serving for about 150 calories. Gets a little boring but it’s easy and in the calorie budget.</p>
<p>Welcome, Sewhappy! Glad to have you aboard. The carb thing is instrumental, I think. Cutting back on them gradually is a good idea I truly believe they are addictive.</p>
<p>My H and I hav completely eliminated the empty carb from dinner. We have potato once in a while though. I picked up some brown rice the other day. I haven’t had it in ages but it’s a good option if we are craving a starch. I don’t have a rice cooker so I can’t help you there. Brown rice does take longer to cook, though.</p>
<p>Regular simple rice cookers don’t cook long enough to get brown rice cooked. HOWEVER, we have a fancy schmancy fuzzy logic Zojirushi rice cooker, smaller than the one sold at Costco because we are a small family, so we paid more even online. (If the cooker capacity is significantly greater than what you are cooking, the rice is too dry and not really that good.) My rice cooker has a special setting for brown rice, so it comes out great. It also has settings for white rice, sushi rice, mixed rice, etc. Someday, I plan to try steel cut oats in it. This spendy rice cooker is used a lot, and we have gone through cheapo cookers in a year, so it makes fiscal sense for us to have one. It has multi timer functions and two <em>keep warm</em> functions and you can set it to play a song (drove us nuts!) vs. merely making a sound. It is cute like a Japanese cartoon figure. I would not rush into buying one if you think it might become just another unused appliance taking room on a shelf or in a drawer.</p>
<p>Thanks for the tips, CCSO – we eat rice very frequently. We eat a lot of fish and rice is just always the perfect side dish, it seems. I’m really intrigued by this gadget you’re describing. Sounds like a winner.</p>
<p>I’m jealous of people who can cut bread or pasta or dessert from their diets. We’ve never had bread or rolls with dinner and cut out pasta, rice and most potatoes years ago except for special occasions. I only make dessert about once a week (or for special occasions) and even then really only when the boys are home.</p>
<p>We had a nice fairly low cal meal today. Grilled blue fish, corn on the cob, some grilled eggplant (most of which will actually be eaten tomorrow) and salad. Oh and a chocolate truffle brought back from dh’s last study session with my decaf. </p>
<p>We had sushi for lunch, so it’s not like we never eat rice, but it’s definitely not a staple.</p>
<p>Potatoes get a bad rap, but actually they are packed with nutrients (vit C and potassium) and not high in calories. Just do not consume them as chips or au gratin, and you will be fine. Moderation is the key here. ;)</p>
<p>^The main reason I rarely cook potatoes is because I can’t persuade dh that they are healthy! And besides, my favorite way to eat them is mashed with lots of butter, so they are best saved for special occasions and meals where other people will help me eat them.</p>
<p>Cutting down on carbs here too, but I bought something in the frozen foods area at Costco that I’m curious to try - I had been buying their individual serving brown rice packets - in the freezer section - you just had to microwave and it was quite good. </p>
<p>But last week I bought something - I can’t remember the name/ingredients exactly, but it’s a combo of brown rice, coucous, quinoa and herbs. Again, small packets that you microwave and it’s ready in a few minutes. I can take one of these and put either stir fried veggies or chicken with it and stretch out one packet of the starch for a few meals - satisfies me enough.</p>
<p>That sounds yummy. If you get a chance to look at the brand let us know!</p>
<p>Trader Joe’s makes brown rice pasta in several shapes. It’s great, tastes better than whole wheat. </p>
<p>I eat potatoes probably twice a week, but in small portions. My carb intake is around 50% of total calories, not as low as some people have gone, but it feels right to me. These are mostly from “good” sources.</p>
<p>NYMom - That’s what I have done. There is a huge difference between simple carbs and complex carbs. I eat potatoes (primarily as a thickener in soups), corn, etc. I don’t eat sugar and I limit flour. I eat consciously, so if I make pancakes for Sunday brunch, I just eat two with a dab of maple syrup (heated and mixed with unsweetened raspberry preserves) and I am very careful the rest of the day. </p>
<p>It took me a little over three years to get to my current weight. It was four years ago in November that I looked at a picture of myself tailgating at my D’s college football game and realized it was time to get serious. I already had a very healthy diet, but I was just eating too much, too often and far too many simple (worthless) carbs. I easily dropped 5-7 pounds, but the next 7-8 came very, very slowly. I have now been at my current weight for about 8 months and I really think I can stay here. The only downside is that all of my clothes are a little loose. I can’t afford to replace everything, and some things still look OK, but I don’t know if I want to pay for alterations. I am not complaining, I am just constantly surprised at how much my body has changed. I have said this before, but because I have slim arms and legs, I could hide my weight with sweaters and jackets. Sometimes I put a skirt or a pair of slacks on now and I think, “REALLY? This fit me before?”</p>
<p>Hang in there everyone. I know 15 pounds doesn’t sound like a lot, but for those of you with more to lose, the early pounds should be easier. It may take awhile, but you WILL feel great. </p>
<p>Who says we are dummies??</p>
<p>Has anyone tried the quinoa pasta? I was in a hurry at the market so didn’t have a chance to pick up the box and read the ingredients.
Like Mathmom we have never had bread or rolls with dinner. I also don’t put sugar on my oatmeal or in my coffee or drink sugar soft drinks. I don’t have a diet that I can eliminate things easily. I need to look seriously at when I am eating and how much.</p>
<p>mom60, the free food tracker at LiveStrong.com is very helpful. You put in your current weight, desired weekly loss, etc., and it gives you a calorie goal. As the day goes on, you enter everything you eat (easy; they have a huge database) and it tracks total calories, as well as sugars, carbs, protein, fat, etc. It is very revealing and simple to use.</p>
<p>worknprogress, good for you for losing that weight! I agree that the earliest pounds (also the ugliest pounds) come off relatively easily.</p>
<p>NYMomof2- I have a LiveStrong account. I just need to use it!
I have been avoiding the scale since my vacation. Got on this morning. In spite of daily gelato and potatoes, bread and cheese I managed to come back the same weight as when I left. I am very pleased. We did tons of walking which must have helped.</p>