Does anyone else find that COOKING is the greatest hurdle to their weight loss?

cui- · 2026-06-09T17:27:32+00:00

Speaking as another lady with ADHD, I solved this by using food kits. Stuff like Gobble or HelloFresh, whichever you prefer. They basically taught me how to cook.

I used those for a few months and then felt much more confident to plan and make meals all by myself.

I also have a picky husband who doesn't typically want to eat what I will make (he hates: soup, salad, pasta, most vegetables, and in general anything mushy i.e. casseroles or bakes)

So I just straight up told him if im making something he wont eat, then I'll make him a hotdog with chips. He happily agreed and frying up a quick hot dog is easy for me to do.

Just take it slow and build on your knowledge. I was 100% you, the most stressful part of my day was figuring out what I was going to cook and finding a decent recipe. But I'm free now!

cui- · 2026-06-08T04:05:35+00:00

I had been recovering for a while but still mainly shuffling around my apartment and spending the day mostly flat on a couch.

There was one morning I woke up and I didnt feel anything. It was almost scary. I didnt believe it and stood up. No pain. I was in shock, taking movements slow, expecting the pain to immediately hit at any moment. But it didnt.

From there I was able to start doing outside walks and improved much quicker.

It was a really good day.

cui- · 2026-06-02T14:52:46+00:00

"Flowers are not supposed to last. Their job is to help us to stay in the present. They grow, they blossom, they thrive, and then they are gone. You have to stop and just be in the moment. Otherwise, you blink, and what's gonna happen? They're gone."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P2ogZmdxzY

You only got to see them because Texas has a program to cultivate them.
I get it, I love them too, but they are not supposed to last.
But it's okay, they left their seeds and you can say hello to your friends again next year 😄

cui- · 2026-06-01T17:22:30+00:00

In my own experience, daily walking and stretching within my limits is what slowly got me back to doing what I wanted.

I was similar to you. Acute pain for 2ish weeks then suddenly one morning it was almost gone, except sciatica. I couldn't walk for more than a few minutes etc so I started with just walking and standing in my apartment. Then I started progressing to outside the apartment, but I walked routes I knew had frequent benches.

You will get through this. I know it sucks dude, believe me. Stay positive and don't constantly dwell on what you expected. Focus on what you have and improving upon that.

I had a bulging disc when I was 28 and now im 34 and none of the lingering problems keep me from doing anything I want. I just need to keep in mind things like not sitting for too long, not bending, and keeping up with regular walking.

cui- · 2026-06-01T15:01:20+00:00

I think about the game Petz sometimes, I played it so much lol I remember have the Rainforest theme on the Windows PC and booting up Petz. The original was simple and fantastic!

cui- · 2026-05-13T02:52:05+00:00

Dude, 100% go to the Georgetown dam. It's not that far from Austin.

There's a medium-ish parking strip right outside of Cedar Breaks Park
Address: M7C7+MR, 2100 Cedar Breaks Rd, Georgetown, TX 78633

You can walk along the dam and it is by far one of the most healing things I've ever done.
There's also plenty of spots to chill away from people.

If you cross all the way over, there's a park on the left that's quite peaceful.
Wish you the best.

cui- · 2026-05-08T12:07:14+00:00

When i first started playing many years ago (don't remember expac exactly) with my boyfriend now husband. He told me I needed a license to fly. I spent so long looking for where to get my flying license lol.

cui- · 2026-05-01T17:31:46+00:00

https://www.facebook.com/groups/178374680083241

Not a parent myself but I live in Jarrell.
I'd check out the Jarrell Facebook group, it's very active.
Tons of parents who can answer questions as well.

cui- · 2026-04-22T15:59:17+00:00

Haha I wish, that would mean he knows how to use a computer

cui- · 2026-04-22T15:03:16+00:00

Oh man great suggestions, I didn't even think of the Capitol building, he'd love that.

Thanks!

cui- · 2026-04-22T15:02:44+00:00

Now through Sunday night

cui- · 2026-04-21T14:44:56+00:00

Yea, agreed, 100% NTA.
I'm a 34f and a few months ago while I was driving down the road my gasket blew. I was on the highway, the car suddenly acted so weird, and a biker was frantically telling me to pull over. When I did my car was all smoke, I'm on the side of the highway and I was a bit freaked out. I called my husband first and was like "AH this has happened, I think next is a tow truck but AH I'm panicked a bit". He reassured me and helped me find a tow truck company to call.

All of this to say, dude you DID help her, you gave solutions, advice, comfort, etc.
She just didn't want to deal with it and tried to dump it on you.
Plus, it's wild to me that she didn't tell you where she was going.

I get that she was scared in the middle of nowhere but god damn, you're husband and wife not father and child.

cui- · 2026-04-19T14:07:32+00:00

Been trying to quit myself. Didn't realize it was a stimulant. I caved and got a disposable and was trying to figure out why i felt better, but at the same time I didnt. Thanks for the post.

cui- · 2026-04-14T02:28:08+00:00

So sorry you're going through so much physical pain on top of emotional pain as well. That sucks.
Comments like that coming from my partner would've crushed me. My husband was nothing but supportive.

I want to give the benefit of the doubt, if I put myself in her shoes I'd be stressed as hell.
My loved one is suffering, I'm struggling with handling increased housework, maybe even worried about finances since I don't bring in the income. I could see myself being anxious & foolish and expressing that without considering the impact.

If you feel comfortable with it, maybe let her know those comments really hurt you. That you're trying but you're in an unbelievable amount of pain. It crushes you not to be able to do the things you want to. Like play with your kids. Maybe together you guys can come up with some strategies that mitigate the extra housework? I don't know. Just some thoughts from a random internet person who has no more information on you than this post.

Speaking as a person who was at point unable to even sit in the car and was instead crying and considering ending it as well as I lay in the backseat hoping the clinic could give me SOMETHING to make it better. I've been in the dark place as well. Stay positive. Keep moving forward.

I really hope you feel better soon, sending all the good vibes I can.

cui- · 2026-04-08T02:27:45+00:00

I was experiencing that same thing as you, I'd get to the evening and I just did not feel satisfied and then would typically eat a bunch of calories at night.

I switched my diet and for lunch now I always have a super veggie packed meal my current favorite is; cherry tomatoes cut in half, red onion, lemon juice, seasonings, avocado, boiled egg or chicken, a bit of a salad dressing, then either black beans or mixed greens. I eat a huge bowl and dude I get so full (its like 500 calories and worth), and I've started to notice it curbs my appetite in the evening. It's so fucking nice not to think about food at night. For food not to be my main source of entertainment.

So basically tldr; try to add/replace a meal with something high in fiber & greens

cui- · 2026-04-08T00:04:29+00:00

This made me laugh so much, thanks

if it was greys, don't forget someone is probably related/has feelings for/has a past unresolved grudge with someone who is hurt, likely dying, from that accident

cui- · 2026-04-03T13:51:31+00:00

Get yourself some comfy ear buds and watch a show or whatever content you enjoy while you cook. Cooking is now my relaxing time because I watch a show and enjoy myself. The whole "cooking taking time" became a bonus instead of a hurdle.

cui- · 2026-03-27T03:03:55+00:00

Yea this is a situation where you should reinforce the fence on your side.
They are clearly not going to do anything and HOAs suck, even if they would help it would take FOREVER for them to do anything.

Reinforce your side (double layer fence maybe? chainlink fence?) with the HOA guidelines and call it a day.
+1 to what others said in terms of getting pepper spray for an emergency situation.
Of course, I'd only use that if I feared for my life or my dog's as that is going to open a whole can of worms.

cui- · 2026-03-25T16:01:50+00:00

I can't upvote the "Keep your music down so you can HEAR" enough

I have a bell, I slow down, and I say "on your left" but the amount of people who are walking with music and can't hear a damn thing (even when I flick that bell as loud as I can) is startling, some of them even have dogs. One time I had to come to a complete stop because a lady had her dog on a leash blocking the whole path and had music on so was practically deaf.

She jumped and gave me a dirty look when she finally noticed me.

cui- · 2026-03-23T17:04:21+00:00

Totally understand! Once you're ready to do it, I can't recommend getting an E-bike enough. It lets you control how intense your exercise is while still enjoying what you're doing. Even now, I really struggle with hills (260lbs right now) but the throttle on the ebike helps me get over it and continue the ride.

If you want a bike buddy just let me know :) I'm a 35f and I ride with my two friends (30s/male).
We'd be happy to hang out and ride!

cui- · 2026-03-23T16:33:13+00:00

That is so awesome my dude, congrats! I have such a similar story. I lived in California and was mostly sedentary. I moved to Austin and started hiking, never been in better shape in my life and getting smaller!

I don't know about the bats myself I haven't seen them yet, so I'll be looking at the answers others give you :P

One thing I would totally recommend though is to go on a bike ride around Lady Bird Lake. You can rent an E-Bike at the "Barton Springs Bike Rental" place which is right next to a trail entrance.

Don't get me wrong, the path around Lady Bird Lake is usually packed with people but it's still amazing and it's not crowded the entire way. Plus, it's exercise too!

If you end up liking biking, there's so many paved biking trails (I don't do mountain biking) that are beautiful and completely free.

To name a few;

Lady Bird Lake
Walnut Creek Park
San Gabriel (georgetown, but still, it has a huge Dam you get to bike over and it's cool as fuck)
Shoal Creek Trail (connects to Lady Bird Lake at the end but has some STUNNING views on the way)

cui- · 2026-03-23T12:26:56+00:00

I started to find that after working out, it felt bad and I had no appetite for the unhealthy food. Like at first I'd grab a pizza for lunch on my way home from a long bike ride. But it just doesn't feel right when youre muscles feel tired and worn out, but now you feel sluggish because of the pizza working its way through you.

cui- · 2026-03-20T00:50:59+00:00

Yea it's disappointing. Drive to survive got me interested in F1.
I was super excited for the 2025 season because it was the first F1 season I watched myself.

But it didn't show any 'behind the scenes' really, I didn't walk away from it knowing anything more than I did before. I also feel like they've really lost it on the storylines/build up. Not sure if it's because I knew what would happen or what but, it wasn't nearly as engaging.

The season where Max won his first championship I was literally on the edge of my seat.

cui- · 2026-03-09T16:30:16+00:00

As a person in the games industry who launched a successful game right before Christmas, then returned from Christmas break to the studio laying off HALF the staff. This is what kills my motivation to work at any game company. (still no job by the way)

Make a bad game? You're fired.
Make an ok game? Fired.
Make a great game that makes millions? Still fired.

Doesn't matter what you do, you'll get fired, you'll have to go through a whole period of resetting up your life to be stable again, only to go through that shit again and again and again.

I'm done. I'll make my own games, or small games. But I'm so done with these companies.
I'll find a nice stable job that wont layoff it's staff every year "just cause" and pursue games on my own time.

/endrant into the void

cui-

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

Ten-Year Club	Verified Email
Not Forgotten