Zero points food

"krys" wrote in message
...
I DOUBLE DARE you! *grin*
Carrots are lurvely. Honest.........


Hehe. I think that when I get around to trying other food, carots maybe the
first I try because so much I've read about that I could eat mentioned
carrots.

Geoff.

Geoff you are doing well to make the commitment. It is frightening
when so many people have advice and keep telling you what to do. You
know your body best of all so you are the expert when it comes to YOU!
Keep up the good work you will get there in the end with or without
the vegetables :-)
Michelle : Ozzie in Switzerland
69.8/59.6/61kg

snip

Hi Tracy and thanks for writing all that out for me. I have read it all and
taken it all in and the best thing you wrote was point number 5. You summed
up nicely how I feel at the moment. I know people are trying to help but I
can't be expected to do it all at once, and when I'm bombarded with 'you
must do this' and 'you must do that', it kinda gets to me and actually makes
me feel like giving up, because I just can't do it all. I found in a chat
room recently that was supposed to be about weight loss support, that the
people were on such high horses about it that all they did was complain at
me for not liking certain food and for feeling like I couldn't manage it.
They simply made me feel like not doing this at all.

snip
Thanks again Tracy. I'll try and stick to this but of course it isn't easy.
Geoff.

"Kate Dicey" wrote in message
...
I found that to start with I had real difficulty eating all the points!

Wow, you lucky thing! I WISH that was a problem for me, I'd lose weight
without any trouble at all. My Mother is down to eating 20 points a day and
I just don't know how she manages it. I'll never get that low because I
won't ever weight what she does, thank goodness (not because I can't get
that low but because her weight for a man my height is unrealistic).

It sounds like you had a bad experience with one thing in the past
somewhere (probably as a small child, and too long ago to trace!), and
that put you off. It may be a texture thing: I hated fried eggs as a
child because of the slimy texture of the white!

It is partly a texture thing. I know that I hate the texture of peas anyway,
but the taste is also terrible. I don't mind the texture of runner beans but
I hate how they taste. So maybe it's a bit of both.

This I understand. My Little Sis was a veggie hater as a kid, and
wouldn't eat most 'Sunday Dinner' vegetables.

It's peas and runner beans that I was forced to eat at Sunday Dinner when I
was young. I either swallowed them whole or when my Parents went out of the
room, stuck them down the back of the fireplace!

Email me then! The address above works. Most people won't criticism,
except in a constructive way.

Well some won't but some certainly will, as experience has told me. Part of
the problem is that people take me wrong because they can't see how I really
mean things. I probably take other people wrong too some of the time. Some
people in groups like this can be so difficult and non-understanding of how
I feel that they actually make me feel like giving up before I start.

Frozen grapes are a wonderful thing in the heat
of the summer, and you cannot eat them fast! Grapes are 1 point for
100g.

Oh yeah I forgot about frozen grapes. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH!!! Hehehe. They
are simply amazing! Thanks for reminding me. I'm going shopping later so
will pick some up and weight out 100g to see how much that is.

We do get bigger bananas here, and they have to be pointed higher... q
100g (peeled weight) banana is 1.5 points.

I'm a bit confused now because it depends how I read that. In another post
you wrote, "Here is England" (or something like that), but the above
suggests your not in England? Or I could take it the other way too!
Anyway, I think my best bet with the bananas is to weight what I would call
an average one and work out the points from that, based on what you just
said.

Peel pears as well: I don't like pear skin texture much.

Oh no I don't like pears. Yuk.

Is apples and bananas ok?

Yummy!

GREAT! I'll do that then.

This is why I think that it might be worth trying the meetings: real
live real world support from people on the same journey you are on, who
can help you with the hard parts and cheer the good days. I also want
you to ask yourself why you feel the way you do, and do what you do: it
helps you to realize what your motives are, and that is a step on the
way to changing them. No-one will condemn you for the past, but in
order to change the future, you need to know WHAT went wrong and WHY.

Ok well....I don't know. I do keep thinking about joining up properly. I
just don't know. I'll think about it.

Bye for now,
Geoff.

"Michelle Guy" wrote in message
...
Geoff you are doing well to make the commitment. It is frightening
when so many people have advice and keep telling you what to do. You
know your body best of all so you are the expert when it comes to YOU!
Keep up the good work you will get there in the end with or without
the vegetables :-)
Michelle : Ozzie in Switzerland
69.8/59.6/61kg


Thanks Michelle, that's quite encouraging to read. I do agree with people
about the vegetables but I just don't know if I can do it or not, and I'd
like to feel that IF I can't, that I'll still manage to sort my weight out.
If I feel like there is no chance for me UNLESS I eat loads of vegetables,
then to be honest I think I just won't carry on. It's not that I don't think
I'll ever be able to eat them, but right now, I can't and as it's "one day
at a time", the 'right now' is all that matters to me this moment.

Thanks for writing Michelle.
Geoff.

I don't go to meetings, Geoff, if that's what you mean by joining up
properly. I did join the online version, and use their resources, but my
husband didn't. He journals in excel, and uses the points calculator I got
through a link here in this ng, or I tell him the points.

I don't go to meetings because I'm not a people-person, not in groups,
anyway, and also, it would be one more excuse to find not to do something.
Oh, I'm too busy this week, I'll skip the meeting kind of thinking. I
refused to do that to myself. Since I'm on the computer tons anyway, this
was a natural way for me to go.

This group offers me the support I need, and lets me ask questions, and
provides awesome inspiration. I'm glad to see new people here, like you,
Geoff. Best wishes to you on this new journey.

--
Wendy
http://griffinsflight.com/Quilting/quilt1.htm
de-fang email address to reply


"Geoff" wrote in message
...
snipped Ok well....I don't know. I do keep thinking about joining up
properly. I
just don't know. I'll think about it.

Bye for now,
Geoff.

"frood" wrote in message
...
I don't go to meetings, Geoff, if that's what you mean by joining up
properly. I did join the online version, and use their resources, but my
husband didn't. He journals in excel, and uses the points calculator I got
through a link here in this ng, or I tell him the points.

Hi wendy. I'm doing a similar thing as your Husband, but I'm using my
Mother's knowledge and books and points calculator. I've written myself a
database that I enter my points into, and it works out various things such
as points to have each day of the remainer of the week if I go over one day,
and stuff like that. I also have a list of food that I often eat and I just
click on it and it adds the points to what I've had that day. So that's
actually really helping me. I'm actually quite annoyed with WW for charging
my Mother to use their website as well as the normal WW membership!

I don't go to meetings because I'm not a people-person, not in groups,
anyway

Same here. I'm not very sociable at all but I do try to be. I have other
reasons for not going to meetings, especially in the summer, but most people
wouldn't even begin to understand even if I explained.

This group offers me the support I need, and lets me ask questions, and
provides awesome inspiration. I'm glad to see new people here, like you,
Geoff. Best wishes to you on this new journey.

Thanks Wendy, nice to hear from you.
Geoff.

try grated carrots with some sultanas in, and a dressing - I like lemon
juice & balsamic vinegar. the sweetness of the sultanas goes really
well.......

oh - and try roasted butternut squash too - there's a Jamie Oliver recipe
for that which is fab - very low points very filling.......
--
krys

UK 157/128.4/126
Started March 1st 2001
GOAL August 16th 2001
....going down?...

"Geoff" wrote in message
...
"krys" wrote in message
...
I DOUBLE DARE you! *grin*
Carrots are lurvely. Honest.........


Hehe. I think that when I get around to trying other food, carots maybe
the
first I try because so much I've read about that I could eat mentioned
carrots.

Geoff.

anything but those, Lee
krys wrote in message
...
I DOUBLE DARE you! *grin*
Carrots are lurvely. Honest.........

--
krys

UK 157/128.4/126
Started March 1st 2001
GOAL August 16th 2001
...going down?...

"Geoff" wrote in message
...
"Kate Dicey" wrote in message
...

Hi Kate. Thanks for your nice long post. I'll go through it bit by
bit...

If you are above the top weights in the charts, see if your mum can
find
out through WW what your points SHOULD be. I know it will mean eating
more to start with, but you need a certain amount to keep working
while
you work on the excess. Here in the UK if you are more than 20 stone
or
280 lbs and a man, you get 36 points, plus whatever bonus points you
earn through exercise.

36 is what I'm working to at the moment. I am above 20 (and a man!) and
although 36 is hard to stick to, I have almost managed it for over 2
weeks
now (have gone a little over on some days). I figured that as I'm just
about
managing it, I won't try to find out if I can eat anymore than that.
Maybe
that isn't the best way to do things because I may not be getting
enough,
but I'm not a huge amount over 20 stone and I do feel like I'm eating
enough
really, however hard it is for me.

My main problem, as with all previous diets, is that I barely like
any
food
that's good for me. That isn't by choice of course, it's just the
way
I
am
and I can't do anything about it.

Yes you can! One of the significant things about like and
dislikes
in food is that MOST of them are LEARNED responses!

Yeah I accept that, but I really do feel physically sick at eating some
vegetables and although I haven't even tried many of them, I am scared
to
because of how I react to some of them. There is probably some deep
reason
why they make me feel physically sick but....well I don't know what to
do.
I
feel that if I can eat my points without touching a vegitable then I'll
stay
away from them. Of course what I asked for is help with zero point
foods,
and I know full well that the majority of people will tell me
'vegitables'.
So I'm a bit stuck.

There are very few
programmed in flavours that are natural and instant dislikes. One of
the things that is quite noticeable is that in families where a LOT of
fresh foods and vegetables are eaten, the kids LIKE things like
Brussels
sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, courgettes, onions and whatever, and in
families where this is NOT encouraged from an early age (as in under a
year old!), the kids profess to dislike them even before trying them!

I agree with you. I'm not saying that I don't like all vegitables
without
trying any though. I used to try things like beans and peas and I would
honestly throw up if I wasn't careful. They really did make me sick
because
I found the taste sooo nasty-Especially peas! I know I need to try
others
but I guess I'm just scared stiff to.

And stop thinking of it as a diet! It's a healthy eating plan FOR
LIFE!
And like all major life changes, it takes time to work into and get
right.

Good point, and that makes me realise that I do need to try different
food
even if I am coping without it at the moment. I know I can't stick at
what
I'm eating at the moment for the rest of my life. I would tell you what
my
daily food roughly is but to be honest, I'll only attract a lot of
replies
from people critisising it when I already know it's stupid.

Potatoes count as a starch in the Great Plan, not a vegetable. They
are
in the same bracket as rice, bread, pasta, and the like. For the sake
of your health, you need to include AT LEAST 5 portions of fruit and
vegetables per day.

I could eat 5 bananas a day if I really had to but that would swallow up
a
lot of my pounts-7.5 to be exact, as I'm sure you know (I'm just proof
reading this now and I know you don't agree with the 1.5 points and I've
mentioned that later). Doesn't sound that bad actually. I know that I
shouldn't just stick to bananas though and I wouldn't want to. I can eat
apples too, although I don't like them very much. It isn't the taste I
don't
like but they are just hard to eat! I'll eat them if I have to though. I
like some other fruits such as grapes, and someone else suggested them
as
a
low points fruit.

You mentioned fiber that you get from vegitables and fruit. How about if
I
get it from cereal? I know that a lot of cereal has fiber in. I don't
know
how much compared to what I need for the day but I have maybe 2 bowls of
cereal a day as part of my current 'plan'.

I can eat some fruit but it seems I only like the fruit with higher
points.
The main fruit I'll eat is bananas but at 1.5 points that isn't
something I
can eat 10 of without it affecting my diet.

The must be VERY big bananas! A small (80g without skin) banana
is
1 point here in the UK.

I was going by one of the WW lists that I THINK says a 'medium' banana
is
1.5 points. What do you think? Is that not correct or (like most
things!)
is
it too Americanised? Do they have larger bananas in America or
something?

Apples are only half a point each, and there are LOTS of different
varieties
about. Try different varieties and see what you can find.

I definately will, thank you.

Peel fruit and chop it up: takes longer to prepare and eat that way!

I would peel the apples anyway because the part I don't like about them
is
the skin! I just need to practise my non-existant peeling skills!

Mix a higher point fruit with a lower point one: a cocktail of apples
and
orange, or kiwi fruit and pear, for example.

Is apples and bananas ok?

Have you tried having a drink instead? Quite often the body gets
confused and asks for food when it's really dehydrated. Have a glass
of
water and wait. If you are still hungry after 20 minutes, eat a raw
carrot!

I can't eat carrots....yet anyway. I do actually drink a lot of
water
and when I'm hungry it does help. I love water with tons of ice in and
that
does really help me. I also drink a lot of diet coke. I know some people
say
that isn't good for me but it's zero points, so when I'm as desperate as
I
am to lose a lot of weight, I'll get the weight off first and then worry
about what's not good for me.

Carrots are quite a good one. If you chop them in slices and eat them
like chips, they taste sweeter and last longer. Swede and carrots
grated take AGES to eat, so make you feel fuller, and they taste
sweeter
than when whole or boiled.

Someone needs to dare me to try a carrot I think! Such a scary thought.

There aren't any really good 'mad munchies' foods that are not
vegetables. I'm going to suggest something here that I want you to
think about really seriously: learn to cook! NOT just to throw a few
simple dishes together, but really learn to prepare and cook
vegetables.
Get a WW vegetarian cookbook, and try lots of different things in
different combinations. If you don't like the 'two veg' of meat and
two
veg dinners, ask yourself why. Do you dislike carrots and broccoli
because they are cooked to a tasteless mush?

If they were a tasteless mush that would be better to be honest.

Thanks for the recipe idea Kate. I don't know how I can eat all that
stuff
at the moment but I DO want to be able to, I really do. I don't know how
to
make myself like vegitables though.

The last thing I can do is say KEEP TRYING! New tastes take a while
to
develop, so don't give up, and try a little at a time.

I will try, but it is tough. I've never managed to lose much weight in
the
past and a big part of me thinks I won't manage this time either. I know
that isn't the way to think but I can't help that. This is why I need
support, but I need 'real' support from friends who really care. I don't
have any local friends though so I'm a bit stuck. I know I can get
support
in some places like this group, but even then SOME people tend to
criticise
rather than help. Some have the attitude, "Why do you think this? Why do
you
do that?" and are harsh about it, rather than trying to understand and
help
me, so then I just get wound up and soon give up totally.

Thanks again for your long post, it's been helpful.
Geoff.

I should have said anything but "cooked" carrots... love the raw ones, Lee
krys wrote in message
...
try grated carrots with some sultanas in, and a dressing - I like lemon
juice & balsamic vinegar. the sweetness of the sultanas goes really
well.......

oh - and try roasted butternut squash too - there's a Jamie Oliver recipe
for that which is fab - very low points very filling.......
--
krys

UK 157/128.4/126
Started March 1st 2001
GOAL August 16th 2001
...going down?...

"Geoff" wrote in message
...
"krys" wrote in message
...
I DOUBLE DARE you! *grin*
Carrots are lurvely. Honest.........


Hehe. I think that when I get around to trying other food, carots maybe
the
first I try because so much I've read about that I could eat mentioned
carrots.

Geoff.

you know in the flex points book it seems they do count corn, potatoes and
sweet peas as vegetable servings. The reason I don't count them is that I
could live on potatoes and if I did count them other green things wouldn't
get eaten, this is a very nice post, Lee
T. Lists wrote in message
om...
Geoff,

I'm going to weigh in (Hah. I made a pun) here and give you my two
cents worth. Warning, it'll be long and rambly. I'm just in that
kind of mood today.

1. Even though it may not be one, I count potatoes as vegtables. I
don't eat them that often, and I figure it doesn't hurt in the long
run. Plus, you might want to try sweet potatoes. I've heard they are
one of the most nutritious things you can eat.

2. There is never a good time to diet. You'll always find excuses
why you don't wanna. But it sounds like you have come to the
realization that we all came to here - if you're going to do it, then
by god, just do it. Somewhere along the line I just got fed up with
being fat and tired and so unhappy that it was time to do something
else. I was finally ready. Looks like you are at that point now.
Good for you. It's going to seem like an impossible task at times,
but you have to keep chipping away at it, and sooner, rather than
later - it WILL start to get easier. Remember, progress not
perfection.

3. It may sound like a lot of the advice you have gotten here has
been a bit harsh. What you have to remember is that everyone here
that has had any smidge of success at weight loss has been right where
you are right now. If it sounds like you are being fussed at, it's
only because the excuses that you are putting out are ones that
everyone here has said to themselves at one point or another. A lot
of people have managed to work through their issues with food and
weight loss and they are only trying to impart some of the wisdom they
have learned in their own journey. Take only what you need and leave
the rest.

4. As many others have said, there is no magical wonderful delicious
food that has zero points. The zero point ones pretty much all fall
into the vegetable category. There are some very high fiber cereals
that can come out to be .5 points per serving. If there were some
wonderful no-point food that tasted great then I never would have
gotten in the shape I did. Doesn't seem fair, does it?

5. This is the most important point I will make in my long ramble
here. If you've skimmed the rest of it, pay attention here.
Don't try to do it all at once.
Pick a couple of things to work on, and focus on them. If eating
vegetables is such a big issue to you (and it sounds like it is), just
forget about that 5-a-day recommendation for now. Deal with it later.
Focus your engergies on eating your points target instead. Don't
worry so much about where you are getting your points from, or if it's
particularly nutritious - just eat the points you are allowed. Once
you get that point-thing down pat, then you can work on something
else. Maybe pick drinking water or exercising as your next goal to
work on. My point is that you don't have to cause yourself unecessary
grief because you feel like you aren't doing everything exactly the
"Weight Watchers" way. Pick small attainable goals (eating your
points, drinking your water) and when you get one of them down then
pick another. I found my weight loss journey to be much easier when I
gave myself a freakin' break. Exercise happened to be my thing that I
just didn't want to do. So, for a long time, I just didn't do it.
But, as the journey wore on, and I started feeling better, and I began
to realize that I lost MORE weight when I exercised, I worked at
finding an activity that I didn't mind doing.

I won't lie to you, it won't be an easy journey. The easy journey got
you to where you are now, and obviously you are not happy with those
results. I know I wasn't. This will be work. This will be a
conscious effort on your part to do SOMETHING DIFFERENT from what you
were doing before. What I've discovered, though, is that "something
different" does not equate to "something bad". It's just different,
and the more you do it the easier it gets. And, eventually, you may
find that you really like some of the changes you've made. You may
develop a taste for vegetables, and will wonder why in the heck you
used to dislike them so much.

Good luck - and don't give up. Lord knows if I can do it, anyone can.

Tracy
225/155/154
Goal 5/7/04





Unfortunately I don't like salsa. I keep seeing pineapple mention
actually and I'm not honestly sure if I like that or not, so I will get
one
and try, so thanks for the suggestion.

I wouldn't have said potatoes were veggies either but it's just
something
I've heard in the past.

As you say, maybe it isn't a good time to try and diet but to be honest
I
don't know when in the last 3 years would be a good time, so I'm doing
it
now and have managed for over 2 weeks now. I know that isn't long but
it's
not bad considering my past record and keeping up diets so I'm quite
pleased
with myself so far.

Cheers Fred,
Geoff.