@Cynthia – Hi Cynthia! Thank you for stopping by, and your sage advice on exercise as well. On coffee, I have from time to time moved to black coffee, but I actually think I’m leaning toward going one step further and slowly eliminating it, which I’ve done before. I also get “withdrawals” from going caffeine-free, but I have a few tips that I’ve gathered that may help. I’ll be writing about it soon! And thank you too on the exercise sage advice. I am taking it to heart.

I get over 100g of carbs a day, but much of that is in veggies and some fruit. I don\’t eliminate grains and grain products, but I don\’t eat tons of it either. I think of it more as a moderate carb way of living, rather than low carb. Cutting back a little might jump start you though. And if you are under stress from work, extra veggies and antioxidants won’t hurt a thing!

On the coffee, can you stand it black at all? That might help at least with eliminating the cream calories. And perhaps if you don\’t like it black quite as well, it might discourage intake. If you find you are needing the caffeine (my hubby gets withdrawal headaches if he doesn’t get his coffee), perhaps tapering off with some green tea drinking? Good antioxidants there, much less caffeine! I get 3-4 cups of green tea a day and I sleep like a log. I just try not to drink it in the evenings.

Also, any exercise is better than none. Don\’t feel you have to devote hours to it, just try to get in some each day. Build on that as you can. It’s not an all or nothing proposition. Any movement can be beneficial! This is a lesson I’ve had to learn… I tend to be a full bore or nothing sort, but with my physical limitations, I’ve learned that even a quick few sets of pushups can benefit me. Or bodyweight squats, or a quick 10 minute walk.