Munch, I’ve noticed both now, and once before when you posted some of your meal choices, that they seem really “light.”  I know I shouldn’t compare the two of us, but I eat a lot more heavier stuff than you.  But I know you have a cholesterol concern, and I do not, therefore I allow for real eggs & cheeses, 2% milk, lean ground beef, etc. I don’t know exactly what was in your protein/veggie lunch, but overall, it seems like your meals that day wouldn’t be enough for me, and I would be wanting more before bedtime, too.  I will say they sound healthy, not laden with bad fats, but they would leave me wanting more.

Do you ever consider 2 breakfasts/morning meals?  I almost always need 2 morning meals, and also a nutty granola bar mid morning for a snack.  One of my morning meals is usually 2 slices of toast (I use a grainy-texturey kind of bread) with butter (probably 1-1 1/2 T) and large glass o.j.  My second breakfast is usually a DOUBLE portion of oatmeal, with a banana. Then my lunch is often something like pasta (probably 5 oz. dry) with spaghetti sauce that I add lean ground beef to, and I shake on Parmesan cheese-not a skimpy amount. Sometimes I’ll have fruit too, or whole wheat crackers, or almonds, whenever I’m feeling like I need more. Often I make homemade enchiladas, I have 5 different versions that I rotate, all use chicken & real cheese. I do a rice, broccoli and cheese casserole sometimes, and a chicken noodle casserole with a white sauce, and several recipes with spinach, chicken & rice or noodles.  These are just some of my top favorites. I’m wondering if heartier meals are off-limits to you for some reason? Mine are all just ordinary recipes, not lo-cal versions. Do you think because of your high cholesterol you are cutting out fat that you would otherwise be eating if cholesterol wasn’t a concern? 

I’m just saying I would probably be real hungry in the evenings, eating what you are eating during the day, especially since you are exercising too, and the turkey sandwich & banana wouldn’t be enough of a dinner for me.  There are not too many evenings that I eat past 4 or 5 pm, then I’m done for the night.  But you do seem to have a good grasp of NT, so of course I do not want to urge you to eat more than you are hungry for, or to disobey your hunger/fullness signals.

This is just something I happened to notice. I’m not trying to be nit-picky, and comparing is probably wrong, but since I know you are trying to fine tune your eating for optimum results, I’m going to try to point out anything I can to help you.

I tried eating lighter foods all day but found that if I don’t eat more hearty, especially earlier in the day, then I don’t feel satisfied.

Grate-full,

Well, I think I should call you “GREAT-full” for what you are doing to help those women in your group. You could just be keeping all that you have learned to yourself, but instead you are sharing it with others. They are lucky women to have you for a leader, and I’m sure they will be inspired by your leadership and all of the wonderful NT information you will be presenting to them.

I’m glad you brought up other ways of “fasting” i.e, TV, media, because there’s no way I could ever willingly participate in a food fast again.

Kelcy, I tried that at one point too, hoping to speed things up, and it just felt all wrong.

Swan,
I do NOT think you are nit-picky.  In fact, hearing how much you eat early in the day really helps me gain perspective on what I am eating.  Perhaps I still am medicating my hunger.

Maybe I need to listen to my hunger more mid-morning…and figure out what I can eat at work that’s easy to fix.  Oatmeal, toast, seem reasonable…

Are you willing to share some of your recipes with the forum?  Like perhaps your enchaladas?  The ingredients you mention all sound really good to me.  I have noticed on days when I ask myself “what did I eat today that seemed to satisfy me more so I am not so hungry at night?”  Those days are often a burrito with the ingredients you mention.  I’d love to try your recipes if you are willing to share.

My recent lab results indicated my bad cholesterol is a bit higher than 6 months ago and my good cholesterol is a bit lower.  My doc suggested trying to exercise more to see if that’s enough, then we’ll check it again in 6 months.  My back is finally healing to the point where I think I can get back into my exercise routine so I’m hoping that is enough.

Do you have a family you need to cook for in the evening?  Is it hard to cook a dinner meal and not eat it?

I sooooo appreciate your suggestions/observations as I continue on the road to recovery.
Munch

Swan - Jul 01, 2010 01:42pm

Munch,

There was no way I felt settled in after a few weeks.  After a few weeks, I had no more binges.  So that was a BIG RELIEF in itself.  I was also relieved to be done with dieting.  There was a peace I felt, to be over and done with battling my body about food, there was time for other things to occupy my mind besides getting weighed, weighing my food, journaling my calories, thinking about food and how to avoid food, and dealing with the hunger and mental issues that accompany traditional dieting. I wasn’t happy when I was restricting, and bingeing surely didn’t make me feel happy either.  Even though I was much bigger and hadn’t lost anything yet, I cherished the freedom, and the normal relationship with food I was developing, and I really did begin to feel much happier, even though I was not yet thin.  I knew NT was the right path for me to be on, and it sounds like you know it is the right path for you, too.

There was a girl I identified with in Food Jail who plateaued for 19 months, but finally lost weight, so I knew I had to hang in there like she did. I was expecting to plateau at least that long. 

I think I had lost maybe 2 pounds at my 1 year point. 

At 1 year and 4 months, I was still in my highest size clothing.  I had maybe lost 3-4 pounds by then, but clothing size did not change.

However, a year later (2 years, 4 months) I am down from a 14 to an 8, and feel naturally thin.

Took awhile, but I made it.

Everyone is different, keep doing what you know is right.

I sometimes wonder what I’d be like if I never found out about NT, and it is a very scary thought.  I would have never in a million years thought I could “enjoy eating” and be thin.

Thank you for sharing your story here, Swan.  I needed to read it.  I am needing encouragement today.  Fears of food/eating/weight gain are surfacing right now.  I just ate something to satisfy a hunger need, but I am not much interested in doing what I need to do to make sure there is plenty of real food available to me the next four days when I will be out of town away from home staying and working in an environment heavily laden with cookies, candy, ice cream, as well as other pleasure and borderline foods.  After reading your story, I am willing to do what I need to do… get my supply of good wholesome foods ready to pack up so that I don’t set myself up for under-eating and make up eating that is sure to occur if I am not prepared.  So off I go to get it done.
Many blessings and much gratitude!
Ela

Munch,

I haven’t forgot about your request for some recipes, but I have a big family reunion I am preparing for on the 4th, plus will have some company over after it.  So I promise as soon as things die down I will gladly post some recipes in the recipe section on this forum.  I just want to preface doing so by saying the recipes are not particularly low-fat, or what you would see in a diet cookbook.  They are ordinary family recipes such as what I used to see in magazines when I was dieting, but once I looked at the calorie content and fat content, I could not allow myself to make them.  Now that I feel like I am living in the real world again, I allow myself to make these recipes that my mouth used to water over, but my self imposed limitation of 20 fat grams total per day did not allow for.  You may make adjustments to any of the recipes to suit your needs, but basically I use the items called for in each recipe.

Hey Munch,

Try two breakfasts, say, one when you get up and then a second when you get hungry again, and then have a lunch a bit later than you are eating now.

Also, for night time hunger, which is unavoidable sometimes, always have good fruit that you like available.  Make a smoothie, with some protein powder if your hunger is substantial.  Or just eat an orange or a banana, or two.

Hope this is helpful.  You’re doing fine. And you won’t be derailed by a cookie.

Jean

Dear Kelcy,

No one loses weight quickly on Naturally Thin!  I didn’t.  It’s not possible for the body to adapt quickly with a history of intermittent famines to a gradual, permanent change in the environmental food supply.

However, I do not believe that people are “naturally stuck” for years and years without end, so I invite you, if you’d like, to contact me via the “contact Jean” option on the home page for coaching.

Jean

Munch, I just posted some recipes in the RECIPE section.  To answer you question, my family does not eat an evening meal together.  My husband gets home from work between 7-8PM, usually it is 8PM, every night, and that is just too late for the rest of us to eat (me and 2 kids).  My son takes summer classes and often works evenings, or does his own thing with friends, and sometimes (rarely) asks me to whip up something he requests.  He shops for groceries himself and can make his own food, which is good because he is the fussy one in our family and doesn’t care for many things the rest of us eat. My daughter eats according to NT principles so the 2 of us cook and eat when we want throughout the day, whatever we want. So what I do is plan what to serve my husband for dinner, and I sometimes cook it early in the day.  As long as there is a plate in the fridge for him to microwave when he gets home, he is happy.  I have tried to have something piping hot, fresh out of the oven for him when he gets home, but he frequently forgets to phone me to say when he is leaving the office, so the timing would often get messed up.  (He works in another town, an hour’s drive away)  If I don’t get something made early in the day and have to make it later, after I have eaten my last meal, it usually does not pose a problem.  I typically make casseroles and there is often leftovers for me to have the next day.  (If I am truly hungry for what I am making him, I will eat some.)  If I fail to get something made for him, I can make him toast and scrambled eggs on the spot, which he loves.  He is just as thrilled with that as a steak dinner.

My husband & I eat breakfast together every morning, and weekend meals, just not weekday dinners.  This is how it has been with him working this job for 9 years so we have all gotten used to it.

Swan,
THANK YOU for posting your recipes - they all sound yummy (less the olives of course!)  :-)  I’m not a big fan of them either.

I’m especially intrigued by your Brown and Wild Rice Chicken Salad recipe.  I’ve never heard of tarragon flavored vinegar. Do you have to purchase that at a specialty store?

I’ll give the recipes a try.

Thanks also for your ideas about eating.  My husband has been working late a lot lately also.  I am usually hungry when I get home from work around 5-ish.  So I just eat.  My husband also loves eggs and is pretty happy just to have something to eat, not too picky, so it works out fine.

Hope your family events went well.

Munch

Munch, the tarragon flavored vinegar I use is Heinz brand, and I’m certain I got it at a regular grocery store, on the shelf with the other vinegar.  But perhaps it is a local thing, since I live near the Heinz plant???

Yea, I think it is a local thing.  I’ve never heard of it.  I looked at my local grocery store as well as a more specialty store and could not find it.  So I substituted Apple Cider Vinegar.  Don’t know what it’s suppose to taste like so I can’t compare, but I think it tastes pretty good. 

I just used a wild rice blend in bulk I bought.  It did not have any seasonings with it.  Does the box of rice you buy have seasoning or is it just the rice?

I made it yesterday and had some about 4:30 p.m. yesterday afternoon.  Yummy!

Thanks again for sharing your recipes.

Munch

I use a 6 oz box of Uncle Ben’s long grain & wild rice, that has a seasoning packet with it.  I’m sure the tarragon flavor (of the vinegar) doesn’t make that much of a difference anyway.

I have developed a method that leaves me with tasty healthy meals in the freezer that Munch (and anyone else) could easily adopt.

Because my husband works 3rd shift (11 pm - 7 am) we NEVER eat together.  He usually eats dinner at work.  So I’ve gotten in the habit of cooking huge meals twice a week and portioning them in the Rubbermaid/Ziploc/whichever oblong containers - approx 5"x8”.  I put an entree portion, a carb and a veggie in each one and pop them in the freezer.  I pretty much have my own Lean Cuisine factory - only they’re not lean, just real food.  This way I only cook 2x a week, and there’s always a yummy meal ready for the microwave and it’s five minutes ‘til I’m eating.  And hubby is well fed whenever he gets hungry - he’s always been NT!!  (My kids are still in the hot dog/chicken nugget phase.)

I wonder, Munch, if there’s a freezer on campus where you can stash your meal and a microwave where you can heat it up.  This would definitely fuel you well for your evening classes.

Keep walking it out, ladies!  You guys are my heroes!

annual