The Maintenance Chatbox… come and share your success with us!

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The Maintenance Chatbox… come and share your success with us!

This topic contains 11,627 replies, has 174 voices, and was last updated by  hermajtomomi 5 months, 4 weeks ago.

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  • Thanks for your concern, folks. I’m not unduly worried as it’s not unusual for me to turn to comfort fasting rather than comfort eating. Also I don’t want to add insult to injury by forcing myself to eat and then feeling as sick as a pig.

    Another reason for having the recent bloods was to check liver function as I understood that liver disfunction might explain the loss of appetite. According to the test results my liver is functioning perfectly and has done for at least the last 10 years.

    As I said, when I do feel like food I try to make it as nutritious and balanced as possible and I did manage to get through the Med veg and lamb yesterday. Here’s the link. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1162648/mediterranean-vegetables-with-lamb I usually include a bit of aubergine and you can use canned tomatoes instead of fresh if you have any that need using up, as I had yesterday.

    Coincidentally, Persiana was on offer on Kindle yesterday for 99p so I went for it. There weren’t too many things I didn’t know already as I’m well into Middle Eastern and North African cuisine, but a few dishes are worth a try.

    Keep going Carol 😊 The cold wind picked up here this afternoon so I rugged up in a ski jacket to stave off cold induced hunger.
    Interestingly they were talking about the phenomenon we were referring to recently…people were ringing to say they have been colder here in houses in winter than Canada, Scotland and Norway. We simply don’t build for the cold, or waste money heating excessively, because our winters are relatively short.
    I didn’t make the dish Herm…. instead I threw together an Indonesian flavoured veg and chicken with miracle noodles. Excellent warmer and filler ☺☺☺ P

    Happy, think about all that beautiful food you’ll have to eat the day after FD, it all sounds lovely to me!

    You’re right Herm – no wow moments in the Persiana book but wish I’d paid 99p instead of $40! 😝

    Purple, ski jacket was a good idea! I was visiting dad – postwar house when no building materials available so it’s not brick, minimal insulation. I had on my coat, scarf and beanie inside the house and still freezing.
    I’m sure that’s part of the reason I struggle lately in the afternoon and evening of FD – I go and see dad every monday, get so cold and then can’t get warm again and just want to eat! I hung in there although I felt like I was dying of starvation when I went to bed lol

    Like the look of that recipe hermaj, have printed it off, thankyou.

    Glad to hear you survived your FD Carol! Mine was an easy one, yeay 😀 Not hungry and not too cold. I had about 200 ml of kefir at 4pm, then busy. OH is away, and it was 8.30 by the time I’d finished my chores, so I decided not to bother eating. I’m bobbing at my top maintenance weight again so need a couple of strict days anyway!

    I know what you mean about getting cold and not warming up. I always have a hot shower in the evening so I at least go to bed warm on a fast day. I am currently coveting an electric heated throw I’ve seen, it says it costs 1p to run for 7 hours, could be just the ticket for winter FDs when I’m working at home!

    P, don’t you light your fire? Or would you just not move?!

    Hermaj, thanks for the recipe link. I do variations on the lamb and veg theme, with roasted veg, sometimes stirred through bulghar wheat, with a spicy harissa sauce, lamb for OH, feta for me increasingly. Yours is definitely one I’ll try.

    Carol, I’m with you on getting so cold that I can’t warm up. I used to be like that when coming back from a school,trip and waiting out school for the last pupils to be picked up. Cold to the bone! I was worried about how I’d maintain on my first winter. Luckily it was too bad, although I tended to be dressed like a bag lady!

    PVE, it’s interesting what you say about building. Hopefully Spring is in the air for you!

    I couldn’t resist seconds of ratatouille yesterday. Just a slice of bread to mop the juices, though. Lunch out today as we prepare our U3A quiz, so need to be careful.

    We live in one of those post WW2 weather board houses Carol! Despite retrofitting insulation when we renovated, and aligning it to take full advantage of sun and breezes, the floorboards, windows and doors let this cold southerly in. Stop sending it my way!

    On another issue, I’m convinced now that I can never again risk enjoying breakfast. I have to enjoy it vicariously! I plan a fabulous breakfast, then get up, have a black coffee and get busy. I just can’t get away with those extra calories. As a girl who has ALWAYS loved cooked breakfasts, this is a very sad reality. 😑😑 P

    My eyes popped out of my head when I read that you were all preparing/talking about lamb with Mediterranean Vegetables. One of my favorite concoctions — I though I invented it! [so egocentric!] In fact, I had just prepared that post for tomorrow’s blog. Guess all our great minds think alike. Like you, Herma, I add aubergine to mine. So delicious that it goes into Fast breakfasts and a variety of Fast and Slow dinners.

    This past weekend was a real mixed bag of eating. Saturday was normal with cereal, then pizza. Although I ate only 2 instead of 3 slices [less hungry], I had not lost weight by Sunday as I usually do. Then Sunday we were invited for lunch by a neighbor [I hardly ever eat lunch] and then had a cook out at the beach with other neighbors — hot dogs in rolls, raw veggies, S’mores, and more beer than I usually drink. Monday, a good Fast breakfast. But then ODHusband wanted the Bison Burgers [better than beef for Fasting] in rolls with oven-roasted potatoes since it was Labor Day after all. At least we had it early in the day. Today, ODH had suggested that we dine out. OH NO! I’m trying to stay slim before my 50th high school reunion this coming weekend and it looks like a losing battle. But ODH came to his senses, he can be very sensible, and we decided to have a Fast dinner tonight and a Fast dinner on Wednesday. That should bring us back to normal.

    Herma, glad your liver is 100%. Perhaps your tastebuds or sense of smell have changed…?
    Carol & Purple, so sorry to think of you shivering in your winter. I don’t like to be cold. Eat Mexican or Indian or Thai food, which is very warming. Chili for a chilly evening. The weather has really turned here on the Island — strong winds, yesterday with rain. Cooler temps, too.
    Pol, I’d love to know what the U3A Quiz is. Is it an exam that the children must sit?

    Fasting, do you always have breakfast? I am just out of the habit – apart from when in an hotel and it’s paid for! But then I don’t do what I used, namely tuck in! Three coffees fill me until lunch, usually cereal, fruit or eggs at 1 or so.

    Carol and PVE, you’ll be basking in warmth before long, while we’ll be moaning about the cold.

    U3A is university of the third age, an organisation for retired people. It started in France in the 60s, I think and is international. It’s about learning and fun, and self-generated. I coordinate a book group and a poetry group, belong to the quiz, wine tasting, dining, social history, writers and grumpy old women groups. Pretty busy as you can see. I’m also a judge on the Welsh Short Story competition, which has proved to be a bit of a pain this year.

    Purple you know what m talking about when I speak of cold houses then although I’m sure yours is much more comfortable than my parents! My mother was rather frugal so always put in the cheapest floor coverings, window treatments etc. you get the picture! Funnily enough Dad at 95 doesn’t notice it, I think I do because our house is much warmer, faces north south so,gets the winter sun whereas dads faces east west, hot in summer, cold in winter.

    Polly,I have breakfast every day except FD. I love breakfast, probably my most favourite meal/time of the day.

    Happy, pleased you sailed through your FD and the shower at night is a great ideas, thanks!

    Fastingme, Spring is here ( or allegedly 😊), so we’ll be complaining about the heat soon enough lol.

    Pol, yes we always eat breakfast. My ODH is of the school that it is the ‘most important meal of the day.’ His father loved to cook fancy breakfasts on Sundays, and his grandfather invented orange juice concentrate. I know lots of people who can do without it, like you. But my ODH is the one who gets up early to prepare breakfast, so the least I can do is to eat it. Your U3A sounds like a wonderful way to keep the brain active. Good for you. I love as well the list of other groups to which you belong. Such fun to b retired and fill our time with things we want to do.

    As for Carol & PVE who are shivering, in New Hampshire there is a long tradition of not turning on the central heat until October 1st, no matter how chilly it gets, and turning it off April 1st, ditto. Many people we know never have the heat in the house above 18 degrees C, and some peak out at 16 C. Frugal Yankees.

    Purple, are you forgoing breakfast to save calories or because it is unappetizing?

    Our strategy of eating Fast Dinners on a Slow Day has worked so far: down 1/2 pound from yesterday.
    Will do that again tonight.

    Fasting….MY breakfasts are ALWAYS stunning! That’s the problem ☺☺ I realised long ago when I reached my healthy goal that I could no longer avoid gaining weight if I ate three times a day. Breakfast is the logical one to drop. P

    Schools won’t out heating on until 2st October and off again on 30th April! We’ve shivered and let kids keep their costs on many times!

    I’m envious of your house PVE. My brother in law is truly green and eventually fulfilled his ambition of building an Eco-house. Thick walls, solar panels ground heat thingy. It looks traditional as it had to fit in the street,

    We’ve had a lovely dinner – roast peppers, courgettes and onions,,with cheese and salsa in fajitas. Bit spicy, so forced to eat two peaches to cool my tongue.

    Fasting_me,

    ‘Breakfast is the most important meal of the day’ was apparently coined in a health periodical edited by Dr Kellogg. An early example of the populace being taken in by marketing. And people are still repeating it 100 years on…because a man flogging breakfast cereal said we had to eat first thing in the morning?!

    If you think about it, breakfast is break fast, i.e. the first meal you eat following a period of abstention from food. I break my fast when I’m hungry, not according to the clock. And I never eat just to please someone else 😀

    If you are eating fast day meals on non-fast days it sounds as if you’re straying into the territory of daily calorie restriction? Or had you just starting overeating on non-fast days and are now cutting back?

    Morning, all. Two lunches out and one dinner, still lost a bit, so seem maintain around 126-8 lbs.

    Horrible drive to yesterday’s restaurant. Classified as a B road, it was a very narrow lane and much further than we’d thought. Very autumnal here this weekend.

    Hi Pol
    We are at the opposite end…lovely sunny early Spring day for outdoor activities and now gluwein by the fire in the evening. Homemade focaccia and veg soup for dinner. Doesn’t get much better than that. Have a good weekend everyone. P

    Homemade focaccia! Wow! Very impressive! And the gluwein! Enjoy, but you’ve probably had it and are fast asleep.

    I saw the focaccia recipe made on River Cottage Australia, so I gave it a go. (Recipe :Paul West’s focaccia SBS). He used masses of olive oil in it and even proved it sitting in oil. I used rosemary sprigs, sea salt, garlic and chilli flakes as the surface dressing at the final rise. Really simple to make and delicious with soup.
    Local elections here today, so an easy distraction from eaying ☺☺ P

    You’ve just reminded me, I’ve got to tackle that damn rosemary bush which has sprawled over a path and the chive and oregano patch. Luckily, the oregano has seeded in umpteen places in the garden.

    Well, I actually had sticky toffee pudding and custard last night! We went to a lovely pub, up,the hills and run by a couple of ex-pupils. The girl cooks just at the weekend and, my god, she is good. Sadly, my meal was an adventurous effort but didn’t really come off. I knew her pudding would be brilliant, so I was forced to have it so I could enthuse as usual! ( if you can believe that – ahem). It was so light!

    Lovely views, too, right across the Cheshire Plain one way, the other across the Wirral to Liverpool and beyond.

    Mmm…you “had to” eh Pol? 😂😂😂
    I envy your oregano. Mine never takes off. I get a new one each year. I’m clearly doing something wrong. 😑
    I reheated the focaccia at lunch today. All that oil meant it didn’t lose any freshness.
    Post election parties tonight…no matter the results 🍷🍸🍹🍺 We HAVE TO! !☺🤗

    Deffo! We sat wth our wine and French bread and cheese all night after the Maybot’s daft election on 8th June. It was scary, as the exit poll said ‘no overall control’ so,bad for Tories, but they’d done well in Wales! And both Wrexham and Flintshire had been taken my them! It was a long night – but relief all round.

    Still looks as if the county is committing a slow suicide by Brexit! 😪😡

    Morning, all. Wel, I’ve pushed the top of my wriggle-room twice this week, having got just 4ozs away!
    Did a strict FD yesterday, probably more like 600 calories as I had the whole banana! Weight recording day today was fine, though.

    Busy week, so it’s flown. I’ve finally finished my judging job on the short stories and sent them off. It’s our quiz tonight – no excuse to have a glass of wine, but I probably will do.

    PVE, were you happy with election results?

    Pol. 💁🏼

    Thanks for asking Poll. We got 3 local Greens elected. At last some chance of reducing the every growing destruction of our beautiful bushland.
    I’m also sitting at my top weight, despite sleepless nights after good fasts.
    Currently sitting at the airport waiting for an International flight. Can’t wait. P

    Oooh, where are you off to, purple? Have a good time wherever it is. My nephew stood for the Green Party in his town. Brother-in-law is truly green, built own Eco-house and won’t fly.

    Won’t fly! Wow that’s fairly extreme Polly, restricts a lot of experiences.

    UK PUrple? Hope your weight starts to drop off again if it’s worrying you – these little tests are sent to us every now and then I find!

    All the talk of you people being able to drink and still lose/maintain weight is a bit sad as I am finally realising, albeit grudgingly, that alcohol is s big weight gainer for me. One glass a couple of nights a week seems to be ok but any more than that shows on the scales. Oh well, I can live with that I guess 😄

    I’m doing a presentation at my local council next month – ‘Looking and feeling fantastic at any age’.

    I will be talking about my 5:2 experience as weight gain/redistribution will be a topic of concern for some of the audience I’m sure. May recruit a few converts! 😊

    Hi, Carol. BIL loves his train journeys and will take the ferry to Europe to do those, as well as walking holidays. It’s a shame that you can’t drink without weight gain. When I was actively losing I’d have the odd vodka.

    Your presentation sounds great. IF is inspirational, anyway so I’m sure you inspire others.

    It was our quiz last night. I had to admit that my sections, on children’s literature and geography, were a bit too difficult, earning the lowest scores. I was particularly surprised by the lit one.

    Pol. 💁🏼

    Sticking to the Pacific this year Poll. Will even catch up with Barata again. ☺
    My upper limit doesn’t stress me too much Carol. I figure it will reduce once summer hits.
    We just caught a local island bus to the markets to stock up on salads and extras (incl wine😉) to make some meals ourselves. Buying every meal on trips is too problematic.
    I agree that it is very easy to gain weight with wine if not very careful watching total weekly consumption. It is self limiting with the prices in tourist places like this!! 😉😉
    Cheers P

    Hi, Everyone. I’m back from my 50th reunion. One man, after a greeting hug, said, “You’ve lost weight since high school!” I’ll take that as a compliment.

    Purple, we enjoy breakfast, so we eat it.
    Yes, Happy, it is Corporate America which brainwashed us in the 1800s to think that breakfast was so important. And they continue to brainwash us to this day. Anyhow, my ODH loves breakfast and since he is the one who rises early to prepare it while I sleep in or sit up reading in bed, the least I can do is eat it. Therefore the meal that goes by the wayside is lunch. I haven’t eaten 3 meals a day in about 4 years.

    Have gained weight recently [3 days of tasting at wineries; then some parties to attend; then off to the reunion; then 5-course meal at a fabulous local restaurant by Celebrity Chef], so we are being cautious about what we eat. Hence the Fast Meals on Slow Days. Mindful of snacking, dinners of meat and veg. Still enjoying the glass of wine! That doesn’t do too much to my weight. Not like the beer. Want to get below my Target Weight. Maybe this week…

    Glad to hear all this good talk about Green Living. I knew you were the right sort of people.
    Carol, your presentation is sure to be a winner. Especially with you as living proof.
    PVE, where in the Pacific are you?
    Pol, your climate must be temperate if you have a rampant rosemary. I sometimes can’t even get them to winter over inside the house!

    Good on you Carol. We must spread the word. I love dropping fasting into conversations and seeing the different responses. The most common is, “Oh, but I love food!” (Who doesn’t? ) “I’d get really tired/shakey/cranky if I didn’t eat.” (Humans evolved to survive periods of no/low food supply.) “I have a family to feed, so I have to cook for them.” (But you don’t have to EAT for them!)
    When I start listing the health benefits and the possibility of starting small (try to skip just one meal only for a while), they start to get really interested.
    Good luck with your presentation. P

    Like you, Purple, I like to tell people about the diet. there are others on other threads who seem so reluctant to spread the word. People don’t think worse of us for dieting: most are envious.
    Carol, let us know how the presentation goes.

    Good morning, all. Should be feeling a little smug this morning, as today is the anniversary of reaching my target – that was the original target, losing 2st, 28lb. I then lost another 7, deciding that 126 would be the bottom marker.

    As I’ve posted many times, it’s been reasonably easy, but I’ve had a dreadful week for some reason – friend for lunch on Tuesday – ate too much, then finished Monday’s leftovers for dinner. Transit problems followed. Wednesday and yesterday I just ate once a day, then bad stomach and horrendous nights’ sleep. Ironic!

    Still, little treat today – I’m having a facial, not in the lovely ‘posh’ place, but a little single-owner place in town. She has a poster saying ‘over 65, means you’re wiser as well as older, so we rewards you with 15% discount’.

    Hope you’re having a great holiday, PVE. Fasting, your compliments must have felt great!
    Pol. 🙋🏼

    Happy anniversary Polly! 🎂

    We all hit the doldrums occasionally so just be patient, you’ll come out the other end again (lol no pun intended)!

    Wish I could find somewhere that gives discounts on facials! A facial is a rare treat for me now I’ve finished work. I pay $100 here for a facial, curious as to what you pay over there Polly?

    Hi, Carol. My favourite place, a luxurious spa is about £70. The place I went today is much simpler, though. £25. Although I prefer the luxury, I think I will become a regular at the cheaper place, I can probably manage once a month there.

    I still have a voucher from my 70th birthday to use, but that’s for a place a good distance away. Need to get that organised. Daughter is coming with me, so dates are awkward and she’s some professional exam coming up soon, so hard to take time off work.

    Last night I finally twigged why I’d put on weight initially, one reason. I have tinnitus and problems sleeping, do was having Horlicks or Ovaline at night.

    Sensible eating today!

    Pol.

    Pol, you are an inspiration to us all: even when you have a set-back, your attitude and determination bring you through. Happy anniversary.

    Back from our mini-vacation to a lovely out-of-the-way place at the edge of the map. Tried not to over-eat. Our 4.5 years on the Fast Diet anniversary is coming up in early October. That’s when we measure ourselves to see how we’re doing. We do that 2x/year. Of course I should be doing more strength & core exercises to tighten things up. Should start tomorrow.

    Happy Equinox to each of you. Hope you all feel ‘in balance.’

    Fasting! 4.5 years is marvellous! It really is a way of life, isn’t it. I remember when I had to make Fibre Fill on the F Plan when I was coming up to 50. An unbelievable 20 years ago. The big flaw with that diet was almost being encouraged to snack before bed – plus, of course, no maintenance strategy.

    I am naughty about tightening exercises, too. Many of the Qui Gong exercises tighten the body as well as working on strength.

    Good weekend, all. I’ll be enjoying the first Strictly tonight! 💃

    Pol.

    Congratulations on your anniversary Polly! Another person demonstrating it is possible to lose weight and maintain the loss 😀

    Fasting_me, no, I’m sorry! You’re just made my head hurt with your 4.5 year anniversary! Obviously it’s great that you’ve been fasting for so long, but… an anniversary is a celebration of something that last happened a year ago…you can’t have an anniversary every six months…so is start October actually just the anniversary of when you started measuring yourself?! Or am I just being completely dense…?

    Nothing to report here. Happy maintaining. I haven’t got any anniversaries until January (4 years fasting) or May (4 years at goal) 😀

    However, I can very happily report that today is the fourth anniversary of my journey with 5:2. We will never look back from this way of life, even though OH is still bouncing around at about 4-5kgs below his starting weight. I suppose without 5:2 he would have put on weight over the last two years since he joined me. I don’t think he’s insulin-resistant, as his markers are fine, so I believe it to be the artificial sweeteners, and his determination not to drink water!

    So another general election over, but now we wait to see which party the one with the balance of power will opt for. I think he will go with the right, which will mean another three years of inadequate funding for health, particularly mental health, social housing, and lack of urgency addressing environmental issues. 🙁 Lying works – they took a leaf from the Trump handbook of winning elections.

    Whoever decided to hold the election on the weekend when we move our clocks forward was not thinking ahead. The country is full of exhausted pundits and politicians.

    The word ‘anniversary’ is based on the latin word for ‘year’, so you are right about that, Happy. But an anniversary marks yearly events — like a wedding anniversary, even if you weren’t married last year. Now the semi-annual observance of something, every 1/2 year, is that the quibble? Then what do you call that??? I’m open to suggestions! Anyhow, we started Fasting 4 years ago last April, so October will be 4.5 years.

    You too, Barata! Hooray for your 5 years. Let’s hope that in a few years we will all still be at our target weight [spouses included] and that lying will no longer be sanctioned for politicians. Higher standards would be so refreshing.

    A flawless autumn day here on PEI. Hope you all had a good one.

    Very disappointing election result Barata, but it hasn’t stopped the beautiful people (us included ) basking in Auckland’s sunlight. Perfect first day of daylight savings.
    We’ve been 5:2ing for 4 1/2 years also. It still hasn’t stopped me over indulging this trip. C’est la vie! Mr P’s bloodsugars are still perfect, so some 4:3s and we’ll be trim for our summer. P ☺☺

    Barata, congratulations on your four year fasting anniversary!

    Fasting_me, congratulations on your upcoming semi-annual observance of when you began fasting 😀

    Barata, I think Trump learned from our UKIP, Boris and Gove. Lying is dead,,it’s all alternative facts, don’t ya know! Minority governments and coalitions are awkward to say the least.

    Re half years, I have a lovely voucher from Prezzo for a bottle of wine to celebrate my half birthday. Good ,eh?

    Well, for some reason, I’m really suffering with constipation this week. It was only a problem in my early days on 5:2. It seems that two day out of my routine has completely thrown me. Looks like I cannot do a single meal any day.

    OH looks a bit slimmer on the gut, but the scales are the same.

    Certainly alternative facts were to the fore from one party, Polly, and guess which one won! Have a kiwifruit or two, they are supposed to be good for this.

    Thanks, Happy. I am sooooo grateful to have found it. And all of the dear friends I have also found on the forum.

    And welcome to the North Island, P. At least we are not ‘enjoying’ the mid-30s as my son posted from Sydney today. Not sure what winter you are escaping 🙂 See you on Sunday. 🙂

    All this talk of anniversaries got me wondering how long I’ve been maintaining.

    As I’m poor at making note of significant dates I had to scroll through the thread to find when I first joined. Took me a while to do but I joined this thread August 2014, so Ive just had my three year maintenance anniversary, but been doing 5:2 for 4.25 years 😊

    You long-term maintainers are an inspiration!

    Aren’t we a crew of happy ‘losers’! Good job, all of you.

    Am losing the weight gained during the mini-vacation. 1/2 pound more to go. Of course tomorrow will be a Fast Day, so that should help.

    Wow, Purple, NZ is on Daylight Savings already?! Do you do that on the Equinoxes? Fascinating how that varies around the world. We are still on Summer Time here in Canada and the US. US will go to Standard Time sometime in October. I’d just as soon get rid of the time changing and keep it all at Standard Time. Springing forward is no fun. The school children don’t take it well, either.

    As I’m not a Kiwi, Fast, I don’t know. Just visiting.
    Yep. See you on Sunday Barata ☺☺

    My fourth anniversary was 1 February this year. I’m not really a maintainer. It’s just that I found shelter here among all you grown-ups after I’d managed to offend a couple of delicate flowers on other threads by being a tad too honest. They were too dim-witted and up themselves to notice I was critiquing myself as much as anyone else.

    I probably hold the record for the slowest loss and the longest plateaux. But having started at BMI 34-35 I’m now 4.7 kilos in sight of BMI 24.9. I’m not even going to try going lower than that. It might take another year or more, after which I will have legitimately earned my “Maintainer” badge. After following 5:2, combined with other versions of intermittent fasting, my body has learned not to over-indulge, so much so that if I do go over the top, I feel so dreadful that I’m unlikely to do it again any time soon.

    Which probably entitles you to be a maintainer, Herm ☺☺
    I’m pretty sure it was Happy who pointed out thay a maintainer is anyone who isn’t gaining weight.
    Your 4 years of experiences are gold. P 😊🙄

    I’ll go along with Happy’s definition, P.

    I’d always assumed that maintainers had already reached their target weight and were just doing what was required to stay there. Glad I got it wrong. 🙂

    You’re a maintainer, herm. 👏

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