This morning's weigh-in was not what I was hoping it would be. I was very excited on July 3rd, when I weighed 189.8 and was finally out of the 190s. Unfortunately, since then, my weight loss has slowed down again. This morning I weighed 188.4, so I have lost 1.4 pounds in 9 days. Perhaps I should not be frustrated with that, I am still significantly under my line, but my pattern seems to be changing from a slow and steady weight loss to sudden drops of a couple of pounds then a week or two of fluctuation around that new weight. For some reason, that is a lot harder for me. It is much more rewarding, emotionally, to see all of the hard work I am doing result in the steady downward progress of my weight.
One of contributing factors to this trend seems to be my lack of...um...regularity. This is a relatively new problem for me and seems to be a direct result of the change in my diet. I find it odd that I should be suffering from this problem since I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, I would think that I get plenty of fiber in my diet. Yesterday I decided to actively seek out foods that might help this little problem. I found a few prunes in the pantry that Carla left behind and had 5 of those for a snack. I ate the last 4 for my breakfast fruit this morning. Hmmm...they seem to be helping a little already. I'll pick up some more prunes today and use them for my breakfast fruit for a week or so and see if there is an improvement. I also read that ground flax seed helps, too. If any of you have suggestions, please let me know. I already drink plenty of water, so I am sure that is not the problem. Perhaps I am not getting enough fat in my diet, though I am not actively avoiding fats. But I have made a habit of substituting mustard for mayonaise and salsa for salad dressings and that sort of thing, to reduce total calories. There is a possibility that I need to add a little bit of healthy oils into my daily diet. *Sigh* Just when I thought I had things figured out!!!
Other than that, everything is going well. I am exercising 6 days a week, 3 days of strength training and 3 days of cardio. This week's strength training routine actually takes me about 65 minutes, so it is pretty exhausting! For cardio this week I did one day of running on the treadmill for an hour - 4.8 miles, one day of stair master (100 floors level 7) and ellipitical (2500 strides level 7), and one day of running outside - 4.0 miles. I feel pretty good about all that! I have not been recording my calories, as I have felt very in control of my food, but perhaps I should start again to see if there are some surprises there, that I just have not been paying attention to. I have been focusing on making sure I get healthy snacks, so I am not too hungry in the evenings, and keeping my evening meal small.
Maybe I need to think about adding more activity to my day. In spite of the fact that I exercise an hour a day six days a week, I do spend most of the rest of my day sitting at work. I've talked before about adding a walk in the evenings after dinner. That's probably a good idea. I think I may start that now that my weight seems to be getting a little more stubborn.
I'm close to half way! 1.4 pounds to go, and I will be half way to my goal. I guess it is not surprising that I need to change things up a little to keep up the progress...it is just a little frustrating. I'll figure it out, though. I will reach my goal weight by February 4th, 2012!!
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Sunday, July 8, 2012
7/8/2012: Squirrels!!
I can't believe I ever thought squirrels were cute. They are thoughtless creatures!! I have so much more empathy for Elmer Fudd and Mr. Magregor than I ever thought I would when I was a kid. I totally get where they were coming from, now! Shhhh...be vewwy, vewwy quiet...I am hunting wabbits...and squiwwels!
Last Monday, Jack found a cardinal trapped in my tomato garden and had to take the front panel off to let it out. How did it get in there? I examined the cage and, sure enough, there were a couple of holes gnawed through the netting. I immediately patched those holes and when to bed Tuesday night thinking my tomatoes were safe. I thought wrong. This is what I woke up to:
And this...
And this...
Obviously this was unacceptable, so Jack and I spent the 4th of July on yet another squirrel abatement project. We headed to Home Depot, bought chicken wire (only because Jack said razor wire was not a viable option), and spent a couple of hours in 100+ degree hit fortifying the cage. This is what it looks like now:
There are a couple of sections higher up on the cage that don't have chicken wire yet, but, so far, the squirrels have only chewed holes through the sections they could reach from the ground. We did cover the top, so the squirrels couldn't sit up there and chew through. So far, it's held up. I don't think the squirrels can get through the chicken wire, but if they do...I'll think of something else!!
Why do I fight so hard to win the war against the squirrels? Because I love preparing meals with veggies that I picked that day from my garden. Here are five of the vegetables from my garden that were in tonight's dinner:
And here are the dishes they went into:
This salad contains four items from my garden; carrots and beets (obviously), mint, and chives. It was delicious!!!!
This is just a simple tossed salad, but the tomatoes, cucumbers, and green peppers were all picked today! The only sad thing is that it is too late for lettuce, we ate it earlier in the spring, so the greens came from the market.
In addition to the items above, we had left overs from last night, broccoli (I harvested a beautiful head yesterday) and rosemary chicken (yep - you guessed it, the rosemary was from the garden, too).
I get a huge kick out of the fact that I grew 9 of the ingredients that were part of our dinner tonight. So bring it on, squirrels, I am not giving up the fight!!!!
Last Monday, Jack found a cardinal trapped in my tomato garden and had to take the front panel off to let it out. How did it get in there? I examined the cage and, sure enough, there were a couple of holes gnawed through the netting. I immediately patched those holes and when to bed Tuesday night thinking my tomatoes were safe. I thought wrong. This is what I woke up to:
And this...
Why do I fight so hard to win the war against the squirrels? Because I love preparing meals with veggies that I picked that day from my garden. Here are five of the vegetables from my garden that were in tonight's dinner:
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| Minty Carrot and Beet Salad |
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| Tossed salad |
In addition to the items above, we had left overs from last night, broccoli (I harvested a beautiful head yesterday) and rosemary chicken (yep - you guessed it, the rosemary was from the garden, too).
I get a huge kick out of the fact that I grew 9 of the ingredients that were part of our dinner tonight. So bring it on, squirrels, I am not giving up the fight!!!!
7/8/2012: Photo - End of Week 19
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| 7/8/2012 Week 19 |
And that is where the challenge lies; sometimes it's hard to imagine maintaining the discipline that I need to maintain for another 20 - 30 weeks. I don't know why it's hard, because each day, on its own, is not so bad. It's not like on the days that I am disciplined I go to bed wishing I hadn't exercised or that I had over-eaten. It's just that, for some reason, there are times when I just feel like being lazy, skipping the workout, and eating whatever I want. So far, I haven't skipped any workouts, with the exception of a couple of travel days; but I have had days, here or there, that I have overeaten. I don't feel good on those days...so I can't really say why I wish I could do it more often...yet there is that part of my brain that says, "I wish I didn't have to do this for another 20-some weeks."
I combated that feeling today by updating my chart and getting ready for my next ten weeks. It really did help to extend my trend line for the next ten weeks, and get my mini-grid set up. It reaffirmed my goals and gave me the opportunity to visualize success. I am looking forward to being in the low 170s when Jack and I go on vacation in mid-September. So much of this is a mind game. By spending about an hour updating my chart today, I was able to get my mind more firmly entrenched in the game.
I have one more week left in my second 10 weeks. It looks very possible that by the end of week 20 I will have lost 37 pounds, which is half-way to my goal; 4 weeks ahead of schedule. That is very exciting!!!
Until tomorrow's weigh in...
Thursday, July 5, 2012
7/5/2012: Weighing in After 18.5 Weeks
After 18.5 weeks of exercising an hour a day, 6 days a week, and trying to consume approximately 1,500 calories or less per day, I have lost 35 pounds. I weighed in this morning at 189.0 pounds! Two more pounds and I will be half way to my goal of 150 pounds. I look and feel so much better today than I did 35 pounds ago it is hard to imagine what it is going to be like to lose 39 more, but I am looking forward to it!!
I appreciate all of your encouragement and support!! This would be incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to do by myself!
Now it is back to work for a couple of days. But, Hey! It's Thursday already!!
I appreciate all of your encouragement and support!! This would be incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to do by myself!
Now it is back to work for a couple of days. But, Hey! It's Thursday already!!
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
7/3/2012: Hello One-Eighties!!!
Hip-Hip-Hooray!!! My two week stay in the one-ninety-ones is finally over!! This morning when I got on the scale I weighed 189.8 pounds! Wow, I even have trouble typing those numbers in the right order I am so used to typing the one and then the nine!! Oh my goodness...it feels so good to finally see that change on the scale.
It's been a frustrating few weeks for me, with regard to the numbers on the scale. Starting over two weeks ago there was a sudden drop in weight into the 191s, which caused me to go, "Whoa...where did that come from?" It was fun to see those numbers, but it was unexpected and seemed too soon. Ever since then I've been bouncing around 191.4/191.6. Sometimes a little more, even getting back up into the 192.somethings, sometimes a little less, but staying in the neighborhood. My chart helped ease my frustrations a lot, because I only record my weight on my chart on Mondays and Thursdays, and by looking at my chart I could see that I was still close to my predicted trajectory and also still well below my line. Yesterday morning was the first time I was a little disappointed that I had not actually broken through the 191 mark. After a weekend of pretty extreme discipline on the road (with the exception of the wedding party itself, in which I did indulge) I was hoping to see some positive movement on the scale. Unfortunately, my body thought differently and when I marked my chart yesterday, I was still in the 191s; my line was definitely flattening out. My response to that was a renewed sense of discipline. Yesterday, I hit the gym hard, made good food choices all day, and saw the results on the scale this morning. Finally!!
I have a tendency to retain water and I know that is part of the day-to-day fluctuation in my weight. I try to avoid processed food at home and try to make healthy choices in restaurants, avoiding foods with a lot of sauces on them. Even salads can be tough, considering the fact that you have no idea what is in the salad dressings. I usually order my salad dressing on the side so I can control how much I use and just assume that it is about 100 calories a tablespoon (all oil). On Sunday, Jack and I ended up eating lunch in the airport, it was unavoidable. I made the best choice I could, a pre-packaged salad from California Pizza Kitchen that was only supposed to have 380 calories in it. I believe that part, but who knows how much sodium was in the dressing? Also, I have long suspected that they treat pre-packaged lettuce with something to keep it from turning brown and I think "that something" as an impact on my water weight. Perhaps, also, just flying caused some water retention. Whatever it was, it's gone now and this morning's weigh-in was much closer to what I was expecting and hoping to see. It's a little sad that it came on a Tuesday, a non-mark-my-chart day, but I did put a little dot on my chart to mark the occasion. I also dotted my chart when I dropped below 200 for the first time. I weighed 199.8 pounds five and a half weeks ago. Ten pounds in 5 1/2 weeks...that's not too bad...
It's seems odd to me that controlling what I eat is much more frustrating for me when we are traveling than when I am at home. There is something about being on the road that causes me to want to eat more or less constantly. Is it the comfort of eating that makes up for the discomfort of being away from home? I don't really know. Whatever it is, it makes me feel like I should get more of a reward (on the scale) for behaving well while I am on the road than when I do the exact same things at home. Silly, I know, but just where are those gold stars? Today, when I got on the scale and saw 189.8, I felt like I got my gold star for being careful and diligent about my health plan while away from home. I feel better now.
Thankfully, Jack and I decided to turn Pat and Heather's wedding into an excuse to take several days off from work. We got home late Sunday night and we took off yesterday and today, in addition to the holiday, tomorrow. It feels good to be away from work for several days. I'm feeling relaxed, recharged, and energized. I know being home will make it easy for me to take care of myself for the next couple of days and that on Thursday, when I get to mark my chart "for reals" (as Sharlynne would say), I will be well established in the one-eighties!
Next mini-goal? 187.0. That will be half-way to 150!!!!
It's been a frustrating few weeks for me, with regard to the numbers on the scale. Starting over two weeks ago there was a sudden drop in weight into the 191s, which caused me to go, "Whoa...where did that come from?" It was fun to see those numbers, but it was unexpected and seemed too soon. Ever since then I've been bouncing around 191.4/191.6. Sometimes a little more, even getting back up into the 192.somethings, sometimes a little less, but staying in the neighborhood. My chart helped ease my frustrations a lot, because I only record my weight on my chart on Mondays and Thursdays, and by looking at my chart I could see that I was still close to my predicted trajectory and also still well below my line. Yesterday morning was the first time I was a little disappointed that I had not actually broken through the 191 mark. After a weekend of pretty extreme discipline on the road (with the exception of the wedding party itself, in which I did indulge) I was hoping to see some positive movement on the scale. Unfortunately, my body thought differently and when I marked my chart yesterday, I was still in the 191s; my line was definitely flattening out. My response to that was a renewed sense of discipline. Yesterday, I hit the gym hard, made good food choices all day, and saw the results on the scale this morning. Finally!!
I have a tendency to retain water and I know that is part of the day-to-day fluctuation in my weight. I try to avoid processed food at home and try to make healthy choices in restaurants, avoiding foods with a lot of sauces on them. Even salads can be tough, considering the fact that you have no idea what is in the salad dressings. I usually order my salad dressing on the side so I can control how much I use and just assume that it is about 100 calories a tablespoon (all oil). On Sunday, Jack and I ended up eating lunch in the airport, it was unavoidable. I made the best choice I could, a pre-packaged salad from California Pizza Kitchen that was only supposed to have 380 calories in it. I believe that part, but who knows how much sodium was in the dressing? Also, I have long suspected that they treat pre-packaged lettuce with something to keep it from turning brown and I think "that something" as an impact on my water weight. Perhaps, also, just flying caused some water retention. Whatever it was, it's gone now and this morning's weigh-in was much closer to what I was expecting and hoping to see. It's a little sad that it came on a Tuesday, a non-mark-my-chart day, but I did put a little dot on my chart to mark the occasion. I also dotted my chart when I dropped below 200 for the first time. I weighed 199.8 pounds five and a half weeks ago. Ten pounds in 5 1/2 weeks...that's not too bad...
It's seems odd to me that controlling what I eat is much more frustrating for me when we are traveling than when I am at home. There is something about being on the road that causes me to want to eat more or less constantly. Is it the comfort of eating that makes up for the discomfort of being away from home? I don't really know. Whatever it is, it makes me feel like I should get more of a reward (on the scale) for behaving well while I am on the road than when I do the exact same things at home. Silly, I know, but just where are those gold stars? Today, when I got on the scale and saw 189.8, I felt like I got my gold star for being careful and diligent about my health plan while away from home. I feel better now.
Thankfully, Jack and I decided to turn Pat and Heather's wedding into an excuse to take several days off from work. We got home late Sunday night and we took off yesterday and today, in addition to the holiday, tomorrow. It feels good to be away from work for several days. I'm feeling relaxed, recharged, and energized. I know being home will make it easy for me to take care of myself for the next couple of days and that on Thursday, when I get to mark my chart "for reals" (as Sharlynne would say), I will be well established in the one-eighties!
Next mini-goal? 187.0. That will be half-way to 150!!!!
Monday, July 2, 2012
7/2/12: Week 18 Photo
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| 7/2/2012: End of Week 18 |
I worked hard at the gym today, we went bowling with Alix and Nicholas, and we are enjoying our time off.
Looking forward to the fireworks on Wednesday!!
7/2/2012: Steady as She Goes
The wedding weekend wasn't too damaging, but it did not result in any weight loss, either. With the exception of the wedding celebration itself, I was very careful about what I ate while away from home. The wedding was Saturday night and I did indulge in a few (or more) glasses of wine and a piece of wedding cake, in addition to the dinner that was served. I am pretty sure those calories got burned off with all of the dancing though! Jack was a dancing machine and it was all I could do to more or less keep up with him! In addition to the dancing I jogged for about on hour on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. I was hoping to see at least a little bit of a weight loss this morning, but it was not to be. This morning I weighed 191.6 pounds. Staying on the bright side of things, it's always good to go on vacation and not gain weight, right? Also, I am far enough below my line that I can maintain my weight for three weeks before I hit it. So, even though I am a little disappointed that my efforts at staying on my path this weekend were not rewarded by a drop on the scale this morning, I am not discouraged. Today is a new day and those one-eighties are right around the corner!
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