[karolinakat]

Good attitude Monica

[MonicaC]

Thanks Karolinakat for your support.

It is another day at my current weight again. There is no control of how your body chooses to release the extra weight, it is not a precise result for the amount of effort you put forth no matter how perfectly you choose your meals. We,women have a more complex system, our cycle begins with the menstruation period, then regular days of not menstruation, and then the phase of pre-menstruation period where our body adjusts to the hormonal levels. So with all this happening in one month no wonder the same actions does not yield a precise result on the scale. I think perhaps for my morale that not weighing may be better for me. To step on the scale everyday when you hit a plateau is like waiting for the water in a pot to reach boiling point. It is better to do other things with one's morning than to get caught up in the impatience of waiting for the numbers to turn on the scale. You know that it will happen you just can't always predict when. Here is where faith in all its forms is what I have to lean on. Perhaps with my approaching period I should include foods with more iron and count the additional nutrients that I may need from a more varied vegetable base of foods. I love lentils and with rice on these cool days may be more of what I need now. I can continue to work the rice program with the permissible foods and amounts, listen to my body that I may need some different vitamins and minerals at this time. Staying connected to listening to my energy levels, to what is best for me. I am going to put the scale away as this is too annoying and really is not helpful to my morale. I am instead going to "count" my rice program days and focus on planning the meals well, incorporate some type of movement and just focus on these two things. Working and loving the rice program is my focus and the results will happen in due time. My clothes will be a good indicator of what is happening to my shape as I lose the weight and exercise more. When something is just annoying better to just put it aside for the moment and the scale is just making me quite vulnerable at this time by increasing my frustration. So I am letting the scale go! Well I feel better now that I am not going to struggle with the scale but rather enjoy the program and just do the work of everyday decisions.

[MonicaC]

Feel more peaceful with my decision this morning to modify the rice program to suit me. I made my own my vegetable soup with lots of garlic and ginger and I feel alot better as a result. I love soup in the cooler weather. I have not used any salt and use the raw apple cider vinegar to give it a tangy flavor. I am very happy with the way it turned out. Change is making choices consistently that support your goal one day at a time. That works for me and I am still counting this as a great rice program day. Day 13 is going well. love and light.

[Jenifroufrou]

I am glad you decided to put aside the scale for a little while. It's definitely discouraging to stare at an unchanging number every day.

Since your TOM is approaching, you might want to include extra potassium and magnesium to ward off any hormonal related fluid changes.

p.s. enjoy your homemade soup!

[MonicaC]

Hi Jenifroufrou, Thanks for your post and the tip about uping my potassium and magnesium, the premenstral time is always a bit tough for me.
I get emotionally sensitive, in the past I would gain alot of water in my legs and hands that is not happening this time since today is day 15 of the rice program and that has completely subsided. So yippee for my body that it reacts extremely well to the rice program I suspect that wheat, meat and milk are hard foods for my body as looking back I never feel really great after a meal that has any of items and particularly wheat products once I start eating it is very very difficult for me to stop. I suspect I may have a food sensitivity to these items and so by eliminating then in the beginning phase through the rice program really is insightful to remind me not to go back to these while I am trying to lose weight.
Also the no salt, I am so diligent about this is the key for me to not get bloated it has been really instrumental also in eating without overeating by measuring out. I feel happier today just focusing that I am on day 15 so counting my rice days and so by finishing the two weeks and going into my third I am regaining some confidence in that I can indeed have follow thorugh in this area of my life. I feel alot better since I started and so I know this is what works for me. love and light

[MonicaC]

Another good rice day behind me. Today I have to take my elderly dog to the doctor to the vet for urinary incontinence, the proin meds are not as effective anymore. It is a good reminder of how we want to age that you need to count the vitamins and minerals not just the calories if you want to go into old age well. There are so many bodily issues that get aggravated by imbalances in nutrition. Yet it is not something the most people focus on counting. I saw in a women's world mag stand the article on Vitamin deficiencies linked to overweight issues. This makes sense since a few years ago I was diagnosed with very low vit. d levels and I gained weight in this time period like crazy. So am upping my vit D as I am not doing milk. Something to think about. Love and Light

[Leeney]

Next time you have blood work done, be sure to check the vit D levels again to see if your body is absorbing it. I do not absorb it well so the doc has me on a megadose of vit D weekly, and with that I'm able to maintain a normal count.

[MonicaC]

Hi Leeney thanks for the reminder to get my bloodwork completed to see if there are any deficiencies. It is such an education to know about the different vitamins and what foods contain which vitamin. I found this website that has your vitamin needs per day and the hyperlink in how to get these vitamins in foods that have concentrations of ex. vitamin B etc. It is very interesting. Here is the website if you need to learn which foods have which vitamins. http://nutritiondata...calories-burned So many helpful tools out there on the website. Alot of times the body wants a very specific mineral or vitamin and you can get intense cravings so it is important to see what could be the physiological reason
behind one's cravings as well. I am reminded to focus on the quality and nutritional value of what I am choosing to eat. Today had to deal with my dog's aging the vet put her on antibiotics and strong medication for the urine issue as there could be two possiblities to this and want to get her health back up. I want her to have the highest quality of life until it is her time to go. Amazing as the choice for her care is so easy for me to figure out yet I did not give my self the "highest quality of self care that I knew that I had to do by eating really well and exercising.
Funny how that happens, comes to my animals and I am all over it and yet it took me this long to restart the rice program and dealing with my excess weight. Parentig ourselves by good self care is a good priority since we have only one body to live in and experience life through. I want to have a high quality daily life and this means that I would like to feel health again and feel great in my body and have the energy and vitality to do the things in my daily life by being there fully me not half way anymore. Love and Light

[MonicaC]

Today went to the bookstore one of my favorite places and bought some books on vitamins and minerals and what foods they are in and what it does in your body. I recall Dr. Oz on one show said it is better to count your nutrition than calories. Yes, you will reduce by reducing calories but you have to look at what kinds of nutritional values the foods you eat contains and so now I have teaked my mind set to not just attain my goal weight but to do it in the most healthy manner and to attain wellness not just thinness. This is a critical difference. As I look at my pets and their aging process I want to age gracefully too. My vet commented on how glossy my dogs fur is. I am impeccable with her food. I am getting my inspiration once again from my animals. I would never feed her the highly processed junk food that are so readily available. Why on earth did I do this to myself? I was so disconnected. I love my water flavored with Bragg's raw apple cider and the partial reason I have been craving this is because I need more potassium. The body knows what it needs but are we listening for the clues. I am openning up to my own body's wisdom and I am starting to feel better. However dealing with the heavy achey period is still a challenge in my life. I am upping my magnesium and potassium.
Here is to a great day and a new mind set. Enjoy your journey so that you can arrive at your goal in style. Love and light

[Leeney]

Monica, are you familiar with Livestron.com? When I track my daily food intake, I use this site and it gives me a nutritional breakdown of everything I've eaten that day. You can enter your own recipes too. There are other sites out there as well; I like this one for its ease of use and the variety of things it offers. I totally agree that it's nutrition and not just calories that we need to watch. Keep up the good work.

[MonicaC]

Hi Leeney, Thanks so much for sharing the website that you use to track calorie and nutrition counts.I will investigate this tomorrow.
I am happy that I am on my road to educating myself on the nutrition aspect as this should help ward off carvings. Good news the medication is working on my elderly dog and she is now "dry" halleluja for the wood floors. It is great to know that we are in this journey with our fellow ricers and all the tips that I get I so appreciate as it is a mutual learning and sharing process. I am grateful for my friends who support me
in this wellness journey. Love and Light

[MonicaC]

Having a good day, added more spinach to my veggie soup and it was a bit thin so added a dollop of nonfat yogurt that I had in the house. I bought it for my dog who I have to give antibiotics to. But thought that I would try to just put some in my soup to thicken it up and it worked. The nonfat greek yogurt is a great thickener for the soup. I am mindful to stick to yogurt as milk is harder on my system. Yogurt seems like it is better to digest plus I am getting the good probiotics in it with the live cultures. I feel better today however my period is so heavy that I am always worried to eat enough iron since I lose so much blood. Therefore I put an entire bunch of spinach and blended it in the soup that I already made. It was tasty and I know that this is huge step ahead for me with my choice in foods since previously with my period I would eat alot of sugars to get me through the days when I did not feel well. But not doing it this time. What I love about the rice prgram, it focuses your palate back to liking simple foods by bringing you back to basics in the initial phases. I am so enjoying the program and that is what is important to find the a way to enjoy the foods that you can have and prepare it in a way that you can enjoy your meals. I realize now that I am never going to get to the point that food is not a big deal to me but it should take it's proper place in my life. The repetitiveness of the meals been eating my soup now for a couple days and that in itself curbs my appetite. I went to starbucks and previously would get the high calorie stuff and now I am taking the Green tea with coconut, ginger and vanilla. Have a pot of tea if you feel out of sorts rather than going for the sugar stuff. The hot water and tea just seems to be quite soothing and you get a chance to switch your focus. The brand that starbucks sells is by Harney and Sons and the flavor is green tea with a thai twist. Quite tasty and so I bought a tin and am having the tea tonight as I wind down. There is still that desire to have something while I watch tv so the tea will be my substitute activity.

[MonicaC]

Well, curiosity got me going this morning and so took out the scale and lost two pounds. This is great since having faith in the program and doing the program will get you to keep moving forward to goal. I am not sure if I should use the yogurt and 1 piece of rye bread as I felt the stiffness return as I walked down the stairs this morning. I did not have this in my joints when I did the straight vegetables. I am wondering if the stiffness is my body's way of letting me know that these items could be a food sensitivity trigger for me. Time to listen to my body and eliminate these two foods. I know that I have issues with wheat as it is hard for me to just have one portion. If you can't stop with a particular food than likely that your body has a food sensitivity to it. So eliminating these again. I also had a very painful discovery that my dog with the meds had a wet night and soaked her dog bed. I was so hopeful with the new meds. It is so hard to see your beloved pet have health issues. I have another appt on Tuesday for her with her regular vet and hope that some how can get this issue handled. If anyone knows of any homeopathic remedies or anything that would be helpful for dog uninary incontinence please let me know as this is so hard for me to watch my dog with this issue. I know that it is age as she is quite elderly. Love and Light

[Jenifroufrou]

I don't know any homeopathic dog remedies, but I hope he is feeling better soon. I know how difficult it is to have a sick animal. Back in March I spent a lot of $$$ to save a septic kitten's life. The kitten survived...but he cost me quite a lot of overtime!

Glad to hear about your additional 2 pound loss

[MonicaC]

Hi Jenifroufrou, Thanks for your supportive words. It is a trial and error with my female dog who I adopted as a senior from the spca in 2008. This last half year I see a big change in her progressively getting slower and the urinary incontinence gets worse as she ages. She is a sheltie mix and so that type of dog gets the urinary issues worse. So now I have been trying a different medication and she had a good evening last night and was dry. So doing what the vet instructed with the dosage and going to the regular vet on Tuesday to see what else we can do for her. It puts alot of things in perspective to want to restore your pet's health. I am encouraged by her dry night and lets see if the medication will stablize it all.
Health is just the most important aspect of life. If you have your health than all else is possible. It is something to be grateful for. We spend time in those things that we place value in by how we spend our time. I consider shopping and preparing my meals an investment in my health and well being. It is something that we have to make time for and know that it is part of our health living to select foods that nourish us and makes us feel better. We are our own investigators to our well being in finding out from our past and trying new things what works for us. I really enjoy the rice program different phases it gives me time to test foods as I progress in the weeks to see what foods work with my system and what doesn't.
As far as goals are concerned the goal is to have a great rice day rather tha losing weight by a specified time. How my body reacts is not within my control. I have to remind myself not to be result oriented but rather processed oriented and the results will happen. I still would love to be "thin by tomorrow" but it doesn't happen that way. I did have a pair of pants that did not fit me and now it fits me most of the way up. It has a real zipper and waistband and I am not exclusively in my elastic waistband pants anymore. So that is a bit of encouragement to see that my body is reshaping abit due to the 16 pound lost. I feel still tender on this diet as their are alot of my friends that like to eat out and I want to be very clear with myself that I can make the rice program choices while out in a dining situation. That takes faith in that I am relearning my lessons. lov and light.

[Leeney]

Congrats on your progress, Monica. I think you have the right attitude about taking it a day at a time. I agree with you about the wheat, too. I limit myself to Ezekial bread in its many forms. Anything else just seems to trigger overeating for me. I also limit my dairy. I went a long time without using it at all, but currently I have some in my coffee every morning...I know, I know!

You must be a kind person to adopt a senior dog. I sympathize with you. It tears your heart out to watch them degenerate and feel helpless to do anything for them. We lost our standard poodle last year after 14 wonderful years. We were driving around this weekend and as I glanced out the window, I saw a smudge on the glass. I broke into tears because I miss her and the smudges she used to leave on the windows when she rode in the car with us! I hope you find a solution to your doggie's problem.

[nanacoon]

My thoughts are with you both about the dog sentiments, I hope the vet finds a solution to help you have more quality time with your dog Monica. And Leeney, I definitely know how you felt about The Woofer - I've shed buckets and buckets of tears over my wonderful pets ... even the wild ones that showed up everyday on the lawn and in our woods. I enjoy reading about your progress Monica. It's good to be on the Forum and be able to share our experiences with each other. Bonnie

[MonicaC]

Hello Leeney and Nancoon, thanks so much for your support. Today accompanied my friend to the vet to pick up her dog's ashes. What a really tough moment she had to put her dog down the vet suggested it due to multiple problems. Somethings are just more important in life and to support her we went together and then had lunch. I ate normal food and just felt couldn't be perfect today and that it was ok as just tough and we do bond over food. I ate 1/2 of the fries, 1/4 of one dessert and salad with veggie burger with a ton of iced tea. Was I perfect no. Was I alot better than before absolutely yes. I actually left food on my plate and debunned the veggie burger and ate salad items. These were the choices to make the high fat foods like the fries less of the meal by adding the salad. I am not beating myself up for this. This is the best I could do for today.
I think that I was tired today since I slept downstairs on the sofa next to my sheltie mix doggie bed to see if she needed to go outside during the night at 3am she was stirring about and went to pee outside and thus she had a "dry" night last night. I am also cutting her water supply after 8pm so she is not sneaking water and then having a full bladder late at night. I am trying different strategies so that I can get her situation stablized and get her to have a better chance at bladder control. I love her so; she is always at my side. I am so glad that I went to www.petfinder.com and found her. There are so many wonderful adoptable animals out there waiting for a good home. I love the spca who gave this dog a chance by actually posting her photo which I saw the last week that she had to be adopted. Her sweetness made it so hard for spca to put her down and I am so grateful for everyday that I have her in my life. She is actually an alpha dog but you only see her sweetness until another dog went after my 64 pound puppy and she my little sheltie charged the other dog which was a belgian shepherd and made the male dog back down. She risked her life to save the big puppy by this. She is just the most courageous little dog and I never knew until that moment that she was actual an alpha dog. My sheltie mix is the gentlest with all animals deers, cats, dogs, doesn't disturb anyone however go after her buddy my puppy that is a border collie afghan mix who is 64 pounds and she defended her. She gets alot of treats, cooked eggs today and her chicken that she loves mixed into her dog dry food. She is loved and she is well cared for. She is lucky and I am luckier. She carries her dog power lightly and uses it only when she has to. She is so gentle and her eyes so soulful. She is a loving soul who teaches me alot. Leeney I know how hard it is to lose a dog and I am so sorry to hear of your beloved poodle went last year. It is the risk of opening one's heart to a pet they only have so many years with us. I know how painful I lost my cat after 16 years to pancreatitus. If you like poodles petfinder has so many waiting for adoption. love and light.

[MonicaC]

Here I am today wanted to assess the "damage" of my outing yesterday. Well two pounds up, I suspect that the sodium in the foods is the culprit.
No secret that my body is extremely sensitive to high sodium and high fat foods since I have been eating so cleanly. It happened it does not give me carte blanche to go hog wild today so I am not. I am returning to the foods that are good for me and it will be ok. I am not going to spin around in self pity, not going to question my ability to lose weight, I clearly can. I need to handle it like any other hiccup in my life it happens and time to move on. In the past this would have thrown me for a big "detour". Not going there, been there done that it is not a good reaction and I still want to continue to my journey to wellness and my healthy weight. I guess emotional maturity about food is another underlying goal of this program to attain. There is today to focus on and I am going to make this the best day possible. And life goes on.
Love and light.

[MonicaC]

My sleeping is off as we had a terrible storm that was hard and the lights flickered off. I did not sleep in my bed as I wanted to see how my dogs were doing and see if shelby needed to go out. This morning felt very exhausted and thus my fruit drink that I blend up did not do the trick. Felt like I needed more food so ate my lunch early today. Am going to take my dog out for a nice long walk as I need to start some type of exercise program. Walking is all I can handle as I have not exercised consistently in years. Part of the reason I gained this amount of weight over the last couple of years. As a person who is now mid forties we either move our muscles and maintain our muscle mass or we will lose it and replace it with fat tissue. It is something I don't associate with pleasure however will have to find a way to do it. My body is not going to just lose weight only with diet I can see my body stopping and not wanting to do the restrictive diet very easily anymore. So walking here I come.