Adoption
jacksjerseygirl
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Diet
jacksjerseygirl
member
in Adoption
Do you feel that through the stress and emotions of TTC and/or the journey of adoption that you have gained/maintained/lost weight?
What kind of regular diet do you try to stick to?
DH and I have gotten really lax lately (may not be tied to adoption but just our schedules). I'm trying to 'recommit' myself to more healthful eating. I'm afraid if we go into parenthood with some bad habits that they might only get worse after baby is home when we really will have a full schedule.
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Re: Diet
Yes! I think its because I havent been working as much now that we are getting prepared for the baby so I snack a lot more than usual but I like to blame it on my anti-rejection meds too
I tried the '30 day shred' but that only lasted a week! I hate to exercise but it did show good results so I might try to take it back up!
I love food too, so I think I am screwed! I am hoping it gets better once the baby is here too, but that might be wishful thinking!
I've found that if I buy quick, healthy foods that I do pretty well since having DD home. I was able to exercise when she was really tiny and slept so much, but now I am lucky to get a peaceful shower in the morning. I didn't get around to it before she came, but it might not be a bad idea to have a few healthy meals frozen in case you get a surprise match. You could always eat them and replace them before they get old. When we first got home people brought meals to us for the first week of two, and then DH got to try his hand at cooking. We only resorted to eating out a few times. Thankfully, my mom had made a ton of food for us to freeze so we didn't starve or eat crap for the first couple of weeks. If you get a match when it is nice outside you can use your stroller and take lots of walks. DD is so much happier when we get out during the day and take a walk.
I want to be healthy for her and show her how to eat and live healthy so I'm trying to make real lifestyle changes. I'm also going to make her baby food when she is ready for it and will try to use organic foods.
I have been doing Weight Watchers and I love it. I also joined curves and love that also. I find if I don't pay attention is when I have problems and make bad choices.Start tracking all that you eat. That is always helpful.
Katie: Is the 30 day Shred as bad as people say?? I am thinking of buying it but wondering if it was worth it. I can say I am a little scared from the posts I read on it..LOL
Amie
THIS! DH and I do eat 90% organic at home but we have been eating out wayyyyyyy tooooooooooo much lately. And ... hangs head in shame ... I have been binge eating during the day pretty bad.
Me too, but over a longer period of time.
umm...its pretty rough but there is a girl doing a modified version and there are 3 levels...you dont have to move up to the next until the one you are on is getting easier.
Another plus is that its only 20 minutes long...so at least its over with in a short time...I really shoud start it up again, I am talking myself back into it!
I bought this but I couldn't really get a good workout with it because so many of the 'moves' I can't do. I have a sensitive lower back and I can't do regular jumping moves because of a bum knee. But I have found that many of the biggest loser workout videos work for me and there are alternative things I can do when there is an exercise that is beyond my physical capability so I can keep my HR up.
I have been up and down the scale (a range of over 100 pounds) in my life more times than I can count. I know how to lose weight, and I certainly know how to pack it on.
Within the last several years, I have become a devote of a lower-carb diet. It helps regulate your blood sugar level (both my husband and I have family histories of diabetes), and as a result keeps you from feeling hungry. I've found I have more energy, and start to feel crumby and sluggish when I go off for a "carb holiday" (I take breaks a few times a year so that I don't feel like I'm depriving myself of certain foods). As a result, a healthy weight is easier to maintain. The first couple weeks are tough, but once you break the sugar craving/addition, you get to a point where you don't even want most your old favorites anymore.
I don't think it was stress more than it was just laziness on my part, but I gained about 10-15 lbs in the first 2 years of marriage/1 year of TTTC. Around that point I started acupuncture and decided to change my diet according to my Eastern medicine "diagnosis". I cut out all dairy, and all refined sugar and flour. Well, OK, I cheat sometimes, but for the most part I have. And most/all alcohol. I started feeling much better, my skin started to clear up, and my allergies went away. I lost about 10-15 lbs in the process. My acu, who is also a nutritionist, said she saw the best results in her clients who cut out dairy and wheat. There's no way I'm cutting out wheat.
The key I found, and I think this works for anyone trying to eat healthier or diet, is to find substitutes. Simply saying I wasn't going to eat Snickers was just going to make me miserable, but saying I'd have organic granola or something else I liked to snack on was really helpful.
There are videos for each season I think. Some are better than others (look an ebay for good deals). They are mostly customizable, so you can select on the dvd player which workout sessions you want, ie: 10 min warm-up, 20 min. level one cardio, 10 min. level two ... and then they have weight lifting ones too.
I've been a low carb'er too for probably about 7 years. lol now ask how long I stick to it! ha. My doctors have all put me on low carb/sugar for weight/pcos. I know it works but I can never stick to it. I seriously, not in a joking manner, think that I really have an addiction to food. I need to go to food rehab. I do well for awhile, then I have that one restricted item and it just goes down hill gradually from there. One piece of pizza, one candy bar, one night of chinese, then comes the binging when no one is around. Blah.
I am detoxing off of carbs and refined sugars as we type, I realized this past weekend that I really have gotten far off track and man was I feeling it. I've been so tired and sick feeling. It's hard because DH is okay with his weight, so I still make him a carb side for dinner (rice, potato, etc).
I know that by next week I will be feeling much better, and not feeling like I want to kill someone for a box of donuts lol but it is just getting to that point and then staying there that I have a hard time with.
5 M/C in 18 months + progesterone injections and prednisone for 6 months = ColoRxGirl + 50 lbs since wedding in 2005
Mostly due to laziness and eating out too much. My Dr. gave me a (very gentle and kind) talking to at my last annual exam. So, I ordered and started doing those TurboJam videos. Been at it for a few weeks now - and definitely cut back on fast food (I know, the horror).
I really do want to teach my child good habits, so I'm trying to improve my own behaviors before placement.
I forgot to say: CONGRATULATIONS! I feel like one pound loss is really hard, I would be over the moon with a 20 pound loss!
What kind of exercise/diet program are you using to help you?
What's this 30 day shred you all speak of? I have these grand hopes up losing a little weight for a wedding in the fall. I had been good about the gym for the last several months until the craziness of a son came about! I don't want to put him in the childcare room at the gym for a while so I'm trying to figure out ways to work out at home. I think we will be taking a lot of walks.?
Diet is out of the question for me. I just love to eat way too much. And I'm too lazy to give it all up. I do try and use my Cooking Light magazine as much as I can but these two weeks have killed that!?
I treat sugar and carby foods as no-goes, or as my husband says, "poison." It's true that if you have it just one time, it will trigger a cycle in your body and the cravings will return. So, unless I find myself in a situation where there truly is nothing else to eat (a work function at a pizza place, for example), I avoid high-carb meals like the plague.
As for your husband, is it possible you make him a side that satisfies his carb-craving, while still not being awful for you if you have just a little? Something like sweet potato or butternut squash comes to mind. Then he can indulge in "real" carbs at lunch, when you're not sharing a meal.
Ok, keeping weight out of my advice and focusing on the health of the matter. I am allergic to synthetic preservatives and when I have too many -- even some crackers or whatever - I have digestion issues that could clear a room and make me so sluggish and disgusting.
So in order to counteract that, I eat at home 3 times a day with infrequent exception. And when we do go out I pick the freshest items on the menu.
Look into a CSA. (localharvest.org) We have a box of farm-fresh produce delivered to our doorstep twice a month. Because it's fresh and So Good (seriously - the best carrots ever) and organic, we prefer to eat that rather than watching it rot in the kitchen. Because it's local, the offerings change with the season so we don't get bored. Often, it's also less expensive than buying your veg at the store, too. We get a large box that's almost too much food for the two of us for two weeks (I do a lot of preserving and baking) and it's less than half of our bill but provides 80% of our meals. (Meat, Fish, and dairy - spices, condiments, etc being the other 20%)
Like the PP said - it's about substitution. Why have a snickers when you have a bushel of ripe, juicy strawberries that need to be eaten or they'll go bad? You won't regret eating a bowl of strawberries, your digestive fires will be healthy, and any other number of good associations.
I'm not familiar with the 30 day shred, but I do advocate exercise. Not only because it'll keep you in shape, but because - to quote Elle: "Exercise releases endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don't kill their husbands."
It's also a popular belief among the yoga community that daily sun salutations help stave off mental illness. If it works for people who would otherwise be medicated, imagine how it would work for people who are having situational stress?
yogatoday.com and yoga journal are both helpful and free. The former has a new 1-hour session streaming every day.
HTH!
There's a lot of iffy studies about low-carb diets, and I don't think anyone really knows everything yet about how it affects the body. You are right to urge caution; a low carb diet is best to be tried under the supervision of a doctor--especially for cholesterol levels (some people's go up while other drop). I've had a couple doctors actually recommend this diet to me (becasue of my GERD and famly diabetic history), and have my blood checked periodically.
That being said, if a person goes on a low-carb diet, it is essential that they don't just stop eating all carbs. Vegetables have carbs, and must be factored in to a balanced low carb diet. After the first several weeks, it's even okay to have certain whole-wheat or multi-grain products. Quinoa makes a good rice/couscous alternative in moderation. Sweet potatoes can take the place of potatoes, and butternut squash is even better. There are substitute thickeners, sweeteners, and even products that can be used as rice alternatives. The key is to learn about ways to keep the diet fresh and interesting (I'm not as good about this as I wish, but when I hit a real low, I know where to find information and products to mix it up!). All this is key to eating low-carb healthily.
https://www.amazon.com/Jillian-Michaels-30-Day-Shred/dp/B00127RAJY
Two of my previous three doctors over the couse of the past 7 years, including my nutritionist praise low carb/sugar diets. Low does not = no - which is where a lot of people mess up. I am not diabetic, but I suppose at my weight and love of carbs/sugar along with PCOS that I could easily become such. I think that people have to becareful with everything that they do. Nothing is ever all or nothing, but making sure to have regular doctor visits will help make sure that no matter what eating/exercise plan you have it can be monitored by a professional.
My body reacts in a positive way to lower carb/sugar diet which is full of veggies, low glycemic indexed fruits and balanced with proteins.
I am sooooo glad summer is here, I grow my own organic veggies. Mmmm
Thanks Emmie. I was more so asking or starting this thread to hear about what other people's weight/diet issues were and/or what they were doing for themselves as opposed to seeking advice for me specifically
I actually grow my own organic veggies but my friend does CSA and loves it since she lives in an apartment is not able to have a garden.
I workout with biggest loser videos and my elliptical trainer. On the weekends, DH and I go to our local walking reservation or we go into the city and spend the day in Central Park. Despite my weight and weight gain, I am very active.
I agree exercise really does make you feel better (ugh not before or during) after you are done. lol If only that feel good feeling existed at 5am to get you out of bed! Ha!
Sometimes substitutions do not work for people who have binge issues or strong reactions to their trigger foods. But I understand what you are saying and if that substitution food would satisfy you then I agree it is a good option. But sometimes, triggers and binges are only aided by going cold turkey. You wouldn't tell an alcoholic whose drink of choice is vodka to calm their cravings for it by drinking beer. (I know drastic comparision but for the brain, the addiction registers the same).
I gained a bit after getting married, and am still working on getting back down! I have always worked out, but get lazy during our long, cold winters.
When we realized that birthmom was due in less than 2 months, we decided that we'll need a lot of energy for what's ahead. So we've picked up the ante on our nightly walks and diet. I like South Beach . . . doesn't feel too extreme to me, and I think cutting out the sugar is the key for me.
Also love 30 day shred. I do the weight part with 15 pound weights, and find it to be an excellent workout on days when my time is short.
Our dogs have finally taken off their winter weight, too. ;-)
I have had migraines since I was 7. I follow a migraine avoidance diet and one thing that is a huge part of it is actually following higher protein, lower carbs. There is a difference between low carb diets and Atkins I believe. ?The migraine avoidance "plan" (it's not really a "diet" as much as a lifestyle) has foods to avoid as well as substitutions on it. It helps you find foods that might be triggers for you and helps you avoid them of course..with help you also develop a plan of how to eat at certain times--always mixing the proper ratio of carbs to protein so that you are never hungry--b/c at a certain level of hunger--that can trip a migraine as well. ?
Yes, thank you I am a highly educated person. If you read my previous posts then you would see that I do have a doctor. My binging does not require therapy.
Aww I'm sorry!
I get left-sided migraines from time to time. I was on yasmin for several years and I think that encouraged my migraines.
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Ugh that stinks!! I'm so sorry. I bash on your migraines and endo pain!
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I did not ask for people's opinions or suggestions about MY life, thus your response about therapy and what not 'sounded' like you were suggesting that I wasn't aware that binge eating could be a disorder in which requires professional aid. Binge eating can have a spectrum from 0 to 10. I am not a 10.
I started a general thread about diet. I specifically asked if people felt that they had gained, maintained or lost weight during their TTC or adoption journey. I also asked what people do FOR THEMSELVES in the way of diet and exercise. I then stated where I was at.
So you can see, I did not ask for you to provide me specifically with suggestions about my own life. But I appreciate your concern and apologize if I appeared defensive, though from my seat your response to me appeared to be a bit out of place.
Oh...sorry. I just saw everyone start making suggestions and I got caught up. :-)
I'm so jealous that you can grow things. I have a black thumb.
Good luck!