I'm back. It's been one heck of a 2005 thus far.

I have quit one job to start another one. The second job seemed like an excellent opportunity, until gender discrimination forced me to quit. I then freelanced as a small business consultant for some time, and now I am training to be the GM of a (GASP!) restaurant! No worries though. Even though this chain is notorious for it's ice cream, they also now have low carb dessert options. . .and they have several wonderful low carb entrees as well! And I get it all for free. . .whee!!

Let's see what else. . .my medications were changed as I have been officially been diagnosed (as if there was any question) as bi-polar. The medication I am now taking cause some SERIOUS disruptions in my hunger center causing me to CRAVE FOOD. But I fight it with all my heart and soul.

The Gub is growing like a weed. She is over 2 1/2 now, and tall as I was at her age! She is going to be close to 6' tall (according to the docs). We only want the best for her and I certainly do not want her to have the same weight issues I faced all my life, so we have really begun to scrutinize her eating habits and are trying to foster some change.

Thank you Morgan Spurlock for showing us all the evils of fast, prepackaged, cheap food (once again, as if there was any question) and making us look hard at what we feed our child. I will be sure my daughter brown bags it!

Anyway, thats it in a nutshell. Hope all is well out there with you folks.

John2

Welcome Back John, so manuy of us are making another attempt to finish it off. (In my best Rob Sneider voice) You can do it!

:super: to see you back John !!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

:rofl: elsie - I love that saying - we say it here all the time lol

Beth :dance:

:wave:

nice to see you again!!

Welcome back!!

Hey! Look at you! :) Welcome back!

Welcome back.

Carol

Now get back in here John :whip:

:D

Beth :dance:

Another Day, another life change.

I couldn't do it. the company I was working for was abusive and horrible. they were not training me. Not only that, the leaving restaurant GM was telling everyone I was a company spy sent there to rat everyone out. So the mood was, let's say, a little hostile.

I finally gave up after so much emotional abuse.

But now, my fiancee is working full time so no troubles right?

Incorrect.

She is working in a plastics factory. She came home from her first night LAST night crying. She had blisters all over her hands and her back was a mess. She felt ineffective there and was so upset. I comforted her best I could and assured her I would rather her leave than be miserable.

She is there again tonight struggling. All because I can not be the provider I once was.

In any event, there is a silver lining. I was offered a hotel in Greenfield not to far from where I live now. The down side, it will not be opened until spring. In the meanwhile, I will be working at another of the investors hotels starting in August. This hotel is 2 hours away, forcing me to commute long hours and stay over frequently. More time away from my family.

The food intake is fine. the stress has not caused me to binge (amazingly).

Please, someone, I need words of wisdom and some prayers.

it will not be opened until spring. In the meanwhile, I will be working at another of the investors hotels starting in August. This hotel is 2 hours away, forcing me to commute long hours and stay over frequently. More time away from my family.

The food intake is fine. the stress has not caused me to binge (amazingly).

Please, someone, I need words of wisdom and some prayers.And, earlier in this thread, you remarked my medications were changed as I have been officially been diagnosed (as if there was any question) as bi-polar. The medication I am now taking cause some SERIOUS disruptions in my hunger center causing me to CRAVE FOOD.John,

To help keep a handle on your bi-polar, you might look into meditation or some way to take "time outs" to help cope better when you're feeling stressed out. Stress is enormously damaging, and despite the meds, can not always be well managed. And, if you're able to handle stress better, your doctor may be able to cut back on your meds dosage.

Sorry to hear that the stress caused you to leave your new restaurant job so quickly, but at least you've been able to refrain from bingeing.

Four hours per day commuting time is a lot. Are you taking public transportation, or driving? So as to make lemonade from the lemon of a situation you're now in, you might consider "books on tape" for your enjoyment or as a learning opportunity (eg. a correspondence course). If not, then at least pleasant music ought to help make the journeys tolerable.

Your goal weight looks awfully conservative. Do you have a very muscular build? Have you had a "body composition" test done, to help refine what is an optimal target weight for your build?

rD

ps. Low carbing may not be the optimal diet for someone with bi-polar -- have you had a doctor's advice on this?

To help deal with your cravings during the day, are you having a large breakfast? Breakfast takes 12-36 hours to be fully absorbed by the body, so the beneficial effect of a large breakfast, should not be underestimated.

RD

Yes, Doc okayed the diet and my meds. The stress was not so much "stress" as it were. It was more me not willing to swallow my pride and be the fall guy for this woman who obviously was bitter toward the company and myself.

As far as my goal, I am 6'2 with a VERY broad build. At 215 I will be thin by my standards. My doc told me 220 was a good healthy weight. I figure 215 only because I know myself and I know I would be more comfortable.

As far as the commute, I have Portuguese language tapes I am dying to listen to!

Thank you for your honest candid tone in your advice!

John

i am so sorry that things are stressful right now John..i have been in a similar situation lately with my husband not having as much work and me working hours that i wouldnt normally..it is hard but toughing it out to keep food on the table is how we are looking at it right now..
sending lots of good vibes your way..anyway for your partner to find another job that isnt so stressful for her??? thats a long commute for you but sometimes you have to take what you can get til something better comes along.
best of luck pal..
p.s its great to see you back here at DT!
hugs bell :)

I am 6'2 with a VERY broad build. At 215 I will be thin by my standards. My doc told me 220 was a good healthy weight. I figure 215 only because I know myself and I know I would be more comfortable.
John,

Of course, you must take your doctor's advice first and consider it the most important.

And yet, if you are readily able to have a "body composition" test done (your local YMCA certainly does it though they often include 'counselling' which adds greatly to the cost, many fitness centers offer to do it for free or a nominal fee -- it involves a sequence of pinch calipers to measure skin folds), you would know your "lean body mass" (fat free) and be able to add back a reasonable fat percentage (say 12-15% for us men) to arrive at the another opinion of what is a "healthy weight" for yourself.

What happens in most doctors' offices, and of course, I cannot speak for your doctor's practice, is extreme frustration on their part. They know with an absolute certainty that many if not most of their patients need to lose weight. But the doctors are busy, and cannot fail to have noticed that the vast majority of their patients simply cannot or will not follow repeated, strict instructions on this matter.

So, what happens? Many doctors compromise, by figuring that well, if I can at least get most of my patients to lose some weight, they will improve their health somewhat, and, that smaller amount of weight loss is within my persuasive abilities and the limits of my patience.

What I'm saying, John, is that if next time you saw your doctor, and you showed him a YMCA "body composition" test result's measurements coming up with a lean body mass of say, 160 pounds + 15% fat = 184 pounds, he would likely look at that and say, well, yes, you're right of course. If you're able to get your weight down to that level, that certainly would be the healthiest weight for you, and your blood chemistry would become that of someone twenty years younger (reducing your risk of stroke and heart attack).

rD

ps. For a different approach: Forget all that, and just consider your waist measurement. If it's under 34", there's no room for improvement. If it's under 36", there may or may not be room for improvement. If it's much over 36", well, there's absolutely no question about losing weight being healthier, imho.

pps. I'm 6'2", with a medium build, but, I have had a body composition test done (= 155 lbs lean body weight).

My Y does a body comp test on a scale, and doesn't get into all that eval stuff...But then, that's Tacoma... I think it's fair and reasonable to set a fair and reasonable goal waeight :)

GO JOHN!! (sorry for the strsses)

Body composition test done at the Greenfield Y - 210 lbs is about right.

I was not far off!

There you have it!

John

Body composition test done at the Greenfield Y - 210 lbs is about right.

I was not far off!

There you have it!

JohnJohn,

That's great! Confirmation from an independant source on a critical issue.

And as you remarked earlier, you felt 215 would be more comfortable for you than your doctor's suggested 220 pounds. I think it's just possible that you might (or might not) feel even better if you targetted 210 pounds, and found out how that feels for a few weeks.

The Y's composition measurements are really pretty good (far better than simple population screening methods like using BMI, imho), and you likely won't benefit from redoing the session more frequently than every decade or so (unless you felt you lost a lot of muscle mass sooner than that).

I know myself, that I just feel so much more full of energy when the weight's off, that even a five pound difference is noticeable.

rD

John i am sure you can work out what goal weight is reasonable for you as you get closer..its such an individual thing as i am sure you realise..i dont see any point in struggling to get to a lower goal weight if you are going to be in constant turmoil to stay there..i played around with my goal weight for a while..i find for me that 140 with my frame is maintainable without obsessing 24/7 over food..when i tried to stay at 135 i was just about killing myself to maintain it..you have to be able to live.. good for you on keeping a realistic goal weight...only YOU know whats attainable for YOU!
hugs bell :)

Hopefully August will be a good month.

Ran out of my meds last week. Got new health insurance so I needed Prior approval to get it filled, leaving me on a bi-polar bender for 5 days.

I kept the eating in check, but unfortunately lost it a few times for no good reason.

But I am back on the meds and doing well.

In any event, I have decided to stop eating foods with sugar alcohols. I am convinced they are the main reason for this three week plateau I have been riding. I will keep all updated on my progress after the removal of all the fake sugars.

Again, I need to find more carb concious recipes. I know and love the basics, but I need to come up with more than red meat, cheese, chicken, and eggs. Gotta do some research.

Anywho, will keep myself in line and keep updating as things happen (or not happen).

I vote, "vegetables." :D