See-saw, Margery Daw,

That is me--on a seesaw. Up and Down, over and over, it appears.

I lost 1.25 lbs last week, not impressive, just surprising. I was so discourage the week before that I ate fast food waaaay too much.

There was that gift card from Cracker Barrel that I had not finished using, so I went there. Then, I got a rebate and spent it on a Dominos pizza. Another windfall sent me for a Big Mac. Then, there were the two bags of chips I ate. You see, I am out of control. Period.

That was all just before the weigh-in where I lost weight. I have been out-of-control this week but none of it involves fast food. The impending weigh-in always spurs me to scale back on the stuff I KNOW I should not eat.

Now, Labor Day weekend will be different. I am going nowhere, so there will be no outside temptations, just what is in my head.

Wish me luck. Anyone else having a difficult time?

And, I gained weight!

It is sad, so sad and so true. That makes about three pounds I have lost in two months. This kind of progress is no progress at all. I must mull this over and decide if I will remain in TOPS, or just not go anymore. There are issues there!

Got any solutions?

Yes, I lost weight!

Granted, it was only 1.5 lbs, but it was a loss. Tops motivates!

Each week there is some sort of game that involves teamwork. Right now, we have a baseball game where a weight loss is a strike and players get to move around bases according to how many players in the lineup have a loss.

Gaining weight is not good. The team depends on a weight loss from each member. Last Tuesday, all eleven players on our team lost weight. Even the other team only had one weight gain.

All is well with my weight loss efforts, so I expect another loss at TOPS this week. I keep forgetting to buy bread. Maybe that will work out to be a really good thing! If I buy bread at the bread store, it is about one-third cheaper and still in date. My freezer keeps the excess fresh.

Is anyone else working hard to lose weight? It seems I am not really working as hard as I should! Drinking more water and tea and less Coke is on the agenda.

I know you are out there! Let's lose weight!

Did I Lose?

This is the over-riding question every Tuesday. Several changes I have made might make a difference in my weight.

* Last week was my first week without chocolate milk.
* Besides all the fruit I usually eat, two or more peaches have found
their way into my stomach each day.
* I rarely had bread.
* I ate less ice cream.
* I ate less cheese.

Only the drinking of less chocolate milk was a conscious decision. We sill see how I have done tonight!

Do you see any difference in your consumption of certain foods this week?

I am a Turtle

That means I stayed the same weight at my TOPS meeting! I neither lost nor gained! Yay for me!

I am not sure how I stayed the same because I ate ice cream three days. One was a single serve from the freezer case--some sort of taco thing with a waffles taco, ice cream inside, and dipped in chocolate along the open edge after the waffle taco was folded.

Another day, I bought a six-pack of ice cream sandwiches and ate all six immediately. They sure were cold and it sure was hot that day.

Several things have changed in my diet. When I ran out of the Hershey's Quik, I bought no more. Just not having the Quik means I drink less milk. Score!

I ate a whole bowl of pimento cheese that I made, all in one day. But, I did not buy the chips that I love with pimiento cheese sandwiches. Score!

Since I live alone, I do eat strange things at odd times. This morning, I had two glasses of milk, two raspberry twists, and 1/4 cup cashews. Lunch: two little pizzas I made with canned pizza sauce, thin bread rounds that come in a package, and five cheese italian pizza.

I will probably have some strawberry marshmallows that I inherited. Why, oh why did I even open the bag!? Dinner will be pork chops, oven potatoes with a coating, green beans, carrots, and cole slaw. After that, I will eat an apple, then a smoothie with banana, mango, strawberry, oj,and yogurt. So far, so good. We all have to keep up with what we eat this month. sigh

Since I have been outside, sweating, and toiling in the 99 degree heat, nothing but water has passed through my lips.

There is more to do today, so this was my break.

Is there anyone who is single, eating alone who eats strange things for meals? Tell me what it is.

Yes,I am moving like a turtle in this heat. In the South we have a saying:
Move slow and stay in the shade.
I am.

Summer Fruits and Vegetables and ramblings

My scales are so wacky that it is hard to tell some days if I have lost weight. Plus, I weigh at home with few clothes. At TOPS I am fully clothed except for shoes. However, I truly believe I am losing weight.

That brings me to the title of the post--all the wonderful fresh summer fruits and vegetables given to me the last few days. Two friends called and said to come get a gallon of figs. Oh, Happy Day! I took them a pint of fig preserves from last season. While I was there, they gave me a dozen tomatoes and a huge mess of Purple Hull Peas.

The tomatoes have inspired me to eat more salads. However, the tomatoes are inspiring me to buy bacon for BLTs. It is worth the chance of gaining weight to buy bacon and think about stuffing myself with sandwiches!

However, not eating much pasta and limiting my milk to just white will help me to lose weight and enjoy summer sandwiches. After all, when else is a BLT so delicious?

I really regret not planting anything this year. However, it has been so hot that many friends report their tomatoes are splitting and the whole plant is dying with tomatoes intact.

Tomorrow will be peas and tomato day! Cole slaw will work with that. Of course, I cooked four chicken breasts earlier in the week and still eat those with meals.

Crab apples wait for me to pick. I was going to pick them today, but never did. So, that is pushed forward to Saturday if it does not rain.

What are you "putting up" this summer?

A really good loss this week

Despite eating things that are not conducive to weight loss, I lost 3 lbs this week. However, I did eat more fruits and vegetables. Balancing the foods in my life is the key to loss. If I eat a pint of ice cream, most likely I will be satisfied for the rest of the evening.

However, in the past I have just eaten more food that evening even though I was not hungry. This works for me. The extra calories I consume on top of too many calories are all calories in fruits and vegetables.

This may be wrong-thinking, but I depend on the fiber to move things along so the calories and fat have less of a chance to stick with me. It seems to work.

Plus, I sort of plan in my head most days what I will eat for the day. This plan always has a banana, apple, strawberries, mango, oj, and blueberries. Grapes and cherries may be included. You recognize some smoothie ingredients? Right! At the TOPS meeting last night, the idea of planning out and writing out the days eating plan was brought up. I have always done this when I wanted to lose weight. It is sort of like packing all meals and snacks for the day. I have done that, too. In the past, I have written down my plan some days; other days the plan stays in my head.

This last week, I added prunes to the daily menu. Gotta keep the food moving along.

A salad was included everyday with either chicken or tuna salad for that meal.

I must admit I buy the bagged greens. I will eat salad greens if they are ready to go. I usually have radicchio, romaine, and carrots. There are carrots in the bag, but I add carrot straws I have bought at the store. Since both hands are injured, they don't last through the day if I do too much with them. Yes, I type. Yes, food/vegetables costs more if bought prepared.

Facing hard facts and remembering vegetables gone bad, this is the most practical and prudent way to go. There is only me eating this, so it is not like I am buying bagged salad greens every day for multiple people. Adding a fresh tomato makes my meal complete. Of course, a little cheese grated on the top makes a meal with all sorts of nutrients and categories of food.

So, I am happy and encouraged by my success. How about you? Have you been successful in losing weight this week?