Dee,
I can only imagine how easy it would be to buy a 'house' of stones. Everytime I go to Mt Ida, Arkansas I bring home lots of crystals. I have them everywhere now! I bought several large amathyst geodes in Parsborough (spelling?), Nova Scotia. Maybe it was the rate of exchange or something, but the prices were better than Arkansas or New Mexico. Have you been to ARK for gems? I've found and dug out several of them myself.

Your jewlery sounds wonderful. It's the only artform that you can wear. What do you think of buying stones over E-bay?

BTW-if your losing in inches, you're losing weight. You're probably replacing fat with muscle now. :thup:

Fat Vs. Muscle
 

The thing about losing inches without seeming to lose weight is that a pound of fat is a LOT bulkier than a pound of muscle. SO if you're using your fat stores, you're taking off bulk.

If you're into exercising--I mean resistance and weight training--you will tone the muscle you have and build new muscle. The new muscle will burn more calories and take up less space at the same time! Also, when the fat's burned off, you'll have nice, toned muscles showing, rather than flabby ones.

Now, if only I could practice what I preach! :rolleyes:

Seriously though, there was a conversation earlier in this thread about tummy flab. If you work your ab muscles hard, it'll seem like your pooch is smaller because the muscles are tighter. Does that make sense to anyone?

This WOL is all about being healthier. I truly believe that burning off my fat stores is the way to go. I know I'll still have plenty of fat left even when I'm close to my goal, so I'm not worried about making myself sick!

The second part of the equation, though, is working the muscles. I'm not there yet, but I'm thinking about it :p.

:wave:

Buying stones on E-Bay is buyer beware. There is some nice material there, and there is some junk, so you have to know what you are buying. I got on the scale today and still no change. I'm ok with that as long as it is not a gain. I have added more caloried and carbs (using how I feel as a guide) and I use fitday.com to make sure I'm covering all bases. The only thing that I need to have checked this fall is my throid level. Years ago I was told that it was low-normal. I don't remember ever having it checked since then, so it is on my "list" of things to do. I got on the about.com site about low throid and the site is VERY informative. I'm also going to explore it more in regard to how certain foods affect throid function. I have just been a little too busy to spend as much time on it as I want right now. I love jewelry, and it's funny that only recently have I started to wear it myself again. I just never felt comfortable wearing it, but I loved to make it for other people to wear. We had a beautiful Halloween here. It was in the 70's and high 60's at night and a few little goblins came by. I didn't give out candy this year. I made red, white and blue friendship bracelets strung on embroidery floss and gave them out instead. They are my lo-carb alternative

Dee
 

thanks for the word of caution about e-bay and stones. the prices are so tempting, I wasn't sure if it was safe or not, or if you knew any companies that were good.

Dee-I'm there, too. THe scales aren't going up any more. :p

Twenty pounds is a lot. How long have you been doing this WOE? Your bracelets are lots better for them too. And hand made halloween gifts! Well I thought those days were long gone. I hope that the kids appreciate the labor involved and enjoy them all the more because of it.

Here's a link to the forum on about thyroid. http://forum.lowcarber.org/forumdis...p?forumid=76&s=



Information in this article on thyroid testing may help you and your doc when you decide to test your levels.

Laboratory Tests for Thyroid Function
By Elaine A. Moore

Normally, the thyroid gland pumps enough thyroid hormone into the blood to cover all of the body’s needs. Thyroid hormones include T4 (tetraiodothyronine, thyroxine) and T3 (triiodothyronine). T4 and T3 circulate in the blood primarily bound or linked to protein molecules. Thyroid carrier proteins include thyroxine binding globulin (TBG), albumin, or transthyretin (TTR). Linked to these proteins, thyroid hormone isn’t available to the body’s cells. Measurement of this protein bound thyroid hormone is referred to as a "total" level. Total T4 and to a lesser extent total T3 levels are affected by the concentrations of protein in the blood. Certain medications, hormones such as estrogen, other non-thyroidal illnesses and liver problems can cause alterations in protein concentration. Influenced by protein alterations, the total T4 and T3 measurements may not accurately represent thyroid function.

The free or unbound portion (free T4 or FT4 and free T3 or FT3) more accurately represents what the body’s true thyroid hormone levels are. Levels of free hormone represent the active hormone available to react with cell receptors in the body.

Certain circumstances, including stress, trauma, medications, infections, and temperature fluctuations change the amount of thyroid hormone required by the body. The hypothalamus in the brain ensures that normal levels are maintained via a negative feedback mechanism. The hypothalamus releases a hormone known as thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH) when it detects low levels of thyroid hormone in the blood. TRH, in turn, causes the pituitary to release a hormone known as thyrotropin or thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). As its name implies, TSH stimulates the thyroid gland to produce and release more thyroid hormone into the blood circulation.

When blood levels of thyroid hormone are low (in hypothyroidism), the pituitary produces and releases excess TSH, and blood levels of TSH rise above the normal range. In hyperthyroidism, a condition of excess blood thyroid hormone, the hypothalamus orders the pituitary to stop releasing TSH, and blood TSH levels are low, often suppressed to levels < 0.01 mIU/L.

Although TSH is considered a valuable indicator of thyroid function, its results can be misleading. TSH levels as a measurement of thyroid function were originally designed to detect chronic cases of hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. However, it generally takes 6 weeks for TSH levels to reflect the status of thyroid hormone in the blood. This is because TSH in normally released in a pulsatile fashion, peaking during the night, and the changes in response are subtle, with TSH gradually responding to excess or diminished thyroid hormone. In patients undergoing medication changes or who are undergoing treatment for hyperthyroidism, TSH levels may take many weeks to many months to reflect thyroid hormone changes.

Thus, patients with abnormal thyroid function or abnormal thyroid hormone levels may have normal TSH levels in the early stages of thyroid dysfunction and after medication and treatment changes. For this reason, a FT4 and/or FT3 determination is also recommended.

The thyroid gland produces primarily T4 with only scant amounts of T3. The majority of T3 present in the blood is produced by conversion of T4 to T3 in peripheral (away from the thyroid) tissue, primarily the liver. Selenium deficiency, certain medical disorders, and certain medications suppress the conversion of T4 to T3, and it is important that levels of FT3 be measured in patients exhibiting symptoms of hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism and normal T4 results.

Reference ranges for laboratory tests are established by testing a segment of the normal population, generally hospital workers, and averaging their results. For thyroid patients undergoing treatment, there are flaws in comparing patient results to this reference range.

There is a recent trend to discount TSH results and treat patients on the basis of their actual free thyroid hormone levels or their symptoms.

The following reference ranges represent commonly used thyroid function reference ranges. However, ranges and units of measurement may vary from one laboratory to another. Patient results must be compared to the reference range of the appropriate testing facility.

Adult Reference Ranges:

T4 = 5.6-13.7 ug/dl (mcg/dl)

FT4 = 0.8-1.5 ng/dl

T3= 87-180 ng/dl

FT3 = 230-420 pg/d;

TSH = 0.4-4.5 mIU/L (mU/L)

Copyright, Elaine A. Moore, July, 2000.

HTH,
Katherine

Ruth, I hope your right about your body wanting to stay at a weight that you once stayed at for a long time. I was at 170 for a couple of years after my son was born (gained 40lbs during my pregnancy) and then I fluctuated between 170 and 140 for several years after that. Maybe If I can hold out till I hit 160 it will start to come off faster. :daze: I guess all I can do is hope, and keep off the carbs. :)

I hate stalls too. I seemed to lose quickly at first, then snail down slowly although everything says that losing it slowly is the way to go, but I hate just sitting at the same weight day after day and not moving. I also agree with one of the entries that it gets boring when you don't eat all those foods listed as the "possible reasons for the stalls"; there just don't seem to be enough interesting, good tasting foods to eat while being extra careful. It is on sheer determination that I am on this diet, although I have experienced a few cheating times, but no gorging times as in the past, Praise the Lord! I am encouraged that others experience these stalls, so thank you for sharing with everyone.
God bless you!

Would someone tell me what you CAN eat when you are in a stall as I am reading that caffeine, sodas, peanuts, cheese, etc are all contributors to stalls. What can one eat? It is very difficult to remain in a stall, practically starve yourself (not really) but to keep wondering, "Is this or that going to contribute more to my stall?" I welcome any suggestions as to what I should eat. Thanks and God bless you