What a strange week it's been! I discovered water aerobics last Thursday night, and went to class Saturday morning, Monday evening, and Thursday evening. I also got up and went to the gym to do 30 minutes on the elliptical on Monday morning, and I had a crazy hard workout with Maddie on Friday morning. Oh, and I swam laps on Saturday afternoon and Tuesday evening. So apparently we're starting off with 'the slightly obsessive' part of my week. I am becoming obsessed with earning Activity Points. How crazy is that? This, the laziest of all people ever, is now going to the gym sometimes twice a day. Huh?! We'll see how long this lasts--but it has been fun! I'm thinking about taking kickboxing next week, and I'm really interested in trying out Zumba, too. The Zumba classes aren't at a great time, though, so I don't know what I'll end up doing about that.
So, on to the bad part of the week. I'm realizing that I'm not eating right, and I'm not eating enough of the good stuff. I'm staying within my Points values, but I'm not making great food choices. I really, really need to work on adding in fruits and vegetables. I am going to make an effort to eat at least one fruit and/or veggie every meal this coming week. Maybe that will help keep me from getting these stupid headaches. I think my biggest problem with them is that everyone keeps saying that they help to fill you up, but I've never really noticed that eating an apple or an orange or a salad really has that much of an impact on my hunger levels. I'll give it a try this week and see what happens.
Last night was terrible. I had a headache all day, which I now realize was from not drinking enough. However, I thought maybe it was because I was hungry, so after dinner, I ate everything I could get my hands on. Dinner was a Lean Cuisine pizza. I followed that up with a cupcake from the grocery store. (Kroger now sells single cupcakes, but check this out--there was too much icing and I ended up throwing about half of it away. That counts for something!) Then I ate a little single-serving cup of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream. Surprisingly, what used to be my all-time favorite ice cream wasn't that good anymore. However, I didn't realize it until I was finished with it. Then I moved on to 2 of the 100-calorie packs of chocolate covered pretzels, and 1 of the Ritz cracker snack mix. I wrapped it up with a small bowl of vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup because I still wanted ice cream. When I finished that, I realized I was out of control, and I made myself stop. The lesson I learned here was that when I do this to myself, I feel miserable. I was over-full, and I felt awful. I'm so embarrassed sitting here writing this, but this is accountability in its finest form.
Now, for the good. There's a lot of good. Even though I'm still not eating like I should be, I have cut out so much bad stuff it's incredible! With the exception of last night, no more nightly ice cream (sometimes x2), no more fast food (although I will cop to having my first Quarter Pounder in almost a month yesterday for lunch), no more eating out every single meal. I'm drinking a lot more water, which is great. I quit drinking soda over 2 years ago, but I still never drank enough water. Now I'm feeling pretty well-hydrated, and I'm glad I'm making progress there! I'm looking closely at menus to make healthier choices, and I'm taking my food choices one meal at a time. If I have a bad meal, then it's okay--back on the proverbial horse with the next one. After last night's insanity, I got right back On Plan today, and have eaten only at meals.
I'm down 2 more pounds for a total of 8 so far, and I'm super-proud of myself. Tomorrow I'm planning on going to the gym, either for cardio or kickboxing. I may swim some laps, too, but I haven't decided yet. My mother and brother are coming down on Tuesday for a couple of nights, and I'm making them go to the gym with me Wednesday morning. We can go out to dinner on Wednesday night, but I'll be smart about it. And every other meal we eat here will be healthy!
So, here's to a great week for both of us. I know you're on the road this week, so I'm sending good vibes your way. I can't wait to hear how it goes for you!
Mxx
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Week 3 for M: My Pedometer is Going to Change My Life!
My God, I am a lazy human being. I say this because the ever-patient Maddie, my trainer at the gym, gave me a pedometer to wear, just to see how many steps I walk in a day. We decided that my goal should be 3,500 for this first week, because I really am pretty sedentary. Let's look at how I did:
Tuesday: 4,305
Wednesday: 9,356
Thursday: 5,323
Friday: 4,844
Saturday: 3,778
So, if my goal was 3,500, why do I say that I'm lazy? Because everything I've read says you should aim for 10,000 steps a day if you're trying to lose weight. I obviously have some work to do. (Wednesday, the outlier in this week, happened because I went to the gym and did 30 minutes on the elliptical that morning, and then moved everything out of and then back into my office when the new furniture was delivered.)
I have noticed that I look at it frequently throughout the day, and I have started trying to figure out ways to get more steps in. Tonight, B and I went to the grocery store, and I made him walk up and down almost all of the aisles. Hey, it's more steps! I am aiming for 4,500 every day this coming week. Since I made that goal 3 out of the 5 days I've tracked, I think it's realistic. I know walking the dog helps me make that goal, plus it gives him some much-needed exercise, too. I'm going to give it a shot. We'll see how it goes.
I discovered water aerobics this week. I love love love swimming, and have wanted to take water aerobics since I joined the gym, but someone once told me that most of the people taking the class are the same overweight women week in and week out, and that no one ever looks like they've lost any weight. It really deterred me from actually getting into one of the classes, but then Maddie taught Thursday night's class. She wanted me to come take it with her since I have frequently told her how much I loved to swim, so I did it. Oh, my gosh! It was actually a workout--I wasn't really expecting it to be at all! The hour flew by, and before I left the gym, I looked to see when the next class was. It was today at 9 a.m. Now, you know me, and you know how much I LOVE to sleep. It was no small sacrifice to set my alarm clock for 8 a.m. on a Saturday morning so I could make that class. But I did it, and you know what? It was totally worth it.
I came home from today's class and did some reading online about swimming, and how it's so very good for you because it helps build muscle and burn fat. I should have been writing a paper, but instead I decided I was more interested in swimming. And you know what? For the first time in my life, I went back to the gym a second time in one day, and I swam 20 laps. I'm a slow swimmer now (this is the first time I've been lap swimming in years), so that took about 50 minutes. But I felt absolutely amazing when I was done. I'm not going to force myself to go tomorrow because I really do need to finish a paper, do some more homework, and spend some time with B. But if I feel like I can carve out 2 hours from my day, then you'll likely find me at the pool again.
I'm going to take water aerobics 2 more times this week, so I'll have a total of 3 times. I'm also planning on swimming some laps after the class, although it probably won't be 20 again since that would mean I'd be in the pool for 2 straight hours. Although who knows? We'll see how motivated I am when I get there. I'm going to do 3 days of cardio, too, so that's 28 minutes on the elliptical and 2 minutes on the step mill. (Oh, how I hate you, step mill.) That'll be six days of working out this week, and I think I can feel proud of that. I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of results that brings.
So now, for the moment of truth. I have lost 5.6 pounds so far! I am so totally excited about it I can't believe it. I seriously doubt that I'm going to lose 4.4 pounds this week to make my first goal of 10 in July, but it's okay. I'll take whatever I can get. I'm just proud of getting this far in a week.
I'm off to take some measurements so I can see what kind of improvements I make month over month. The Weight Tracker on weightwatchers.com has a place for measurements, and the ones they ask for are: dress size, hips, thighs, waist, bust, and arms. Pretty painless to meaure; pretty painful to see the numbers. Next month they will be better! :)
Till next week--
Mxx
Tuesday: 4,305
Wednesday: 9,356
Thursday: 5,323
Friday: 4,844
Saturday: 3,778
So, if my goal was 3,500, why do I say that I'm lazy? Because everything I've read says you should aim for 10,000 steps a day if you're trying to lose weight. I obviously have some work to do. (Wednesday, the outlier in this week, happened because I went to the gym and did 30 minutes on the elliptical that morning, and then moved everything out of and then back into my office when the new furniture was delivered.)
I have noticed that I look at it frequently throughout the day, and I have started trying to figure out ways to get more steps in. Tonight, B and I went to the grocery store, and I made him walk up and down almost all of the aisles. Hey, it's more steps! I am aiming for 4,500 every day this coming week. Since I made that goal 3 out of the 5 days I've tracked, I think it's realistic. I know walking the dog helps me make that goal, plus it gives him some much-needed exercise, too. I'm going to give it a shot. We'll see how it goes.
I discovered water aerobics this week. I love love love swimming, and have wanted to take water aerobics since I joined the gym, but someone once told me that most of the people taking the class are the same overweight women week in and week out, and that no one ever looks like they've lost any weight. It really deterred me from actually getting into one of the classes, but then Maddie taught Thursday night's class. She wanted me to come take it with her since I have frequently told her how much I loved to swim, so I did it. Oh, my gosh! It was actually a workout--I wasn't really expecting it to be at all! The hour flew by, and before I left the gym, I looked to see when the next class was. It was today at 9 a.m. Now, you know me, and you know how much I LOVE to sleep. It was no small sacrifice to set my alarm clock for 8 a.m. on a Saturday morning so I could make that class. But I did it, and you know what? It was totally worth it.
I came home from today's class and did some reading online about swimming, and how it's so very good for you because it helps build muscle and burn fat. I should have been writing a paper, but instead I decided I was more interested in swimming. And you know what? For the first time in my life, I went back to the gym a second time in one day, and I swam 20 laps. I'm a slow swimmer now (this is the first time I've been lap swimming in years), so that took about 50 minutes. But I felt absolutely amazing when I was done. I'm not going to force myself to go tomorrow because I really do need to finish a paper, do some more homework, and spend some time with B. But if I feel like I can carve out 2 hours from my day, then you'll likely find me at the pool again.
I'm going to take water aerobics 2 more times this week, so I'll have a total of 3 times. I'm also planning on swimming some laps after the class, although it probably won't be 20 again since that would mean I'd be in the pool for 2 straight hours. Although who knows? We'll see how motivated I am when I get there. I'm going to do 3 days of cardio, too, so that's 28 minutes on the elliptical and 2 minutes on the step mill. (Oh, how I hate you, step mill.) That'll be six days of working out this week, and I think I can feel proud of that. I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of results that brings.
So now, for the moment of truth. I have lost 5.6 pounds so far! I am so totally excited about it I can't believe it. I seriously doubt that I'm going to lose 4.4 pounds this week to make my first goal of 10 in July, but it's okay. I'll take whatever I can get. I'm just proud of getting this far in a week.
I'm off to take some measurements so I can see what kind of improvements I make month over month. The Weight Tracker on weightwatchers.com has a place for measurements, and the ones they ask for are: dress size, hips, thighs, waist, bust, and arms. Pretty painless to meaure; pretty painful to see the numbers. Next month they will be better! :)
Till next week--
Mxx
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Week 2: Counting Points on the Road
What an exciting week! I got to go to Chicago for a training class, and had the chance to meet some of my new coworkers. I can't wait for them to see me at the big meeting in the end of March looking many pounds lighter!
I remember now how hard it can be to eat healthy when you're on the road. I started each morning off with an English muffin with margarine and jam, yogurt, and eggs. Lunch was a Chicken Cashew salad one day, a Potbelly's TKY sandwich and Baked Lays one day, and 3/4 of a personal Margherita pizza the third day. Dinner was my big downfall. The first night, I had a Chicken Enchilada stack (OMG), the second night was 2 pieces of pepperoni pizza from Giordano's, and the third night was a sinfully amazing Italian dinner made of gnocchi, mascarpone cream sauce, basil, dried apricots, some kind of nuts, and parmesan cheese on top. I will say that I only ate until I was full every night, and I was amazed that the gnocchi dish filled me up quickly even though I only ate a few of them. I was proud of myself for ignoring the bread. (I did have some of the Caprese salad, though, which was tomato, mozzarella and basil.) So, it wasn't perfect. But you know what? It was better than my normal track record where I stuff myself and regret it later!
I didn't get any exercise in last week except for the walk back to the hotel from Giordano's. That was about 3/4 of a mile, so I guess it was better than nothing. I was disappointed in myself for not exercising more, though, because I had plenty of opportunities. This week I have 2 sessions set up with Maddie (Monday and Wednesday at 5:30) so there's 2 hours of exercise right there. I'm aiming for one more cardio session at the gym past that. I'm also going to see if there's a class at the gym that looks interesting. I really enjoyed that Kickboxing class, so maybe I'll try that.
I'm struggling with eating all of my points. I get 38, which is an obscene number of points. Even if I split that up into 5 meals, it's 7 or 8 points each. It's a lot of points. But I need to figure out how to get them all in! I have a great opportunity this week, because Brad's going to be gone from Monday-Thursday. I can spend some time working on recipes and eating right and focusing on things the way I want to. It'll be awesome. AND the best part is that he's actually been supportive of this effort this time. He's asking what I want to eat, and how certain foods will fit into my diet. I have explained that it's not a diet this time, and that's making a difference for me. Approaching it this way is really so much better. I know if I really want something, I can eat it--but I have to cut back elsewhere.
So, knowing that I was on the road and then had pizza for dinner on Friday night, my weigh-in this week wasn't awesome. I gained .8 of a pound. HOWEVER, I'm not beating myself up over it, because I know I had a rough week. I'll get rid of it this week, and start heading in the right direction! I'm still motivated, and I'm still confident that I'm going to get this weight off this time. Bring on the GM conference!! :)
All in all, it's been a good week. I've been very conscious of what I've eaten. I stayed away from all of the sugary breakfast foods I usually go to when I'm in a hotel. I ate like a normal person and didn't spend the entire week overeating. I didn't eat candy all day long in class. I had a lot of victories this week, even if they're not reflected in the scale. Hopefully next week I'll start to see some improvement in that area, too!
Here's to a great week 3!
M
I remember now how hard it can be to eat healthy when you're on the road. I started each morning off with an English muffin with margarine and jam, yogurt, and eggs. Lunch was a Chicken Cashew salad one day, a Potbelly's TKY sandwich and Baked Lays one day, and 3/4 of a personal Margherita pizza the third day. Dinner was my big downfall. The first night, I had a Chicken Enchilada stack (OMG), the second night was 2 pieces of pepperoni pizza from Giordano's, and the third night was a sinfully amazing Italian dinner made of gnocchi, mascarpone cream sauce, basil, dried apricots, some kind of nuts, and parmesan cheese on top. I will say that I only ate until I was full every night, and I was amazed that the gnocchi dish filled me up quickly even though I only ate a few of them. I was proud of myself for ignoring the bread. (I did have some of the Caprese salad, though, which was tomato, mozzarella and basil.) So, it wasn't perfect. But you know what? It was better than my normal track record where I stuff myself and regret it later!
I didn't get any exercise in last week except for the walk back to the hotel from Giordano's. That was about 3/4 of a mile, so I guess it was better than nothing. I was disappointed in myself for not exercising more, though, because I had plenty of opportunities. This week I have 2 sessions set up with Maddie (Monday and Wednesday at 5:30) so there's 2 hours of exercise right there. I'm aiming for one more cardio session at the gym past that. I'm also going to see if there's a class at the gym that looks interesting. I really enjoyed that Kickboxing class, so maybe I'll try that.
I'm struggling with eating all of my points. I get 38, which is an obscene number of points. Even if I split that up into 5 meals, it's 7 or 8 points each. It's a lot of points. But I need to figure out how to get them all in! I have a great opportunity this week, because Brad's going to be gone from Monday-Thursday. I can spend some time working on recipes and eating right and focusing on things the way I want to. It'll be awesome. AND the best part is that he's actually been supportive of this effort this time. He's asking what I want to eat, and how certain foods will fit into my diet. I have explained that it's not a diet this time, and that's making a difference for me. Approaching it this way is really so much better. I know if I really want something, I can eat it--but I have to cut back elsewhere.
So, knowing that I was on the road and then had pizza for dinner on Friday night, my weigh-in this week wasn't awesome. I gained .8 of a pound. HOWEVER, I'm not beating myself up over it, because I know I had a rough week. I'll get rid of it this week, and start heading in the right direction! I'm still motivated, and I'm still confident that I'm going to get this weight off this time. Bring on the GM conference!! :)
All in all, it's been a good week. I've been very conscious of what I've eaten. I stayed away from all of the sugary breakfast foods I usually go to when I'm in a hotel. I ate like a normal person and didn't spend the entire week overeating. I didn't eat candy all day long in class. I had a lot of victories this week, even if they're not reflected in the scale. Hopefully next week I'll start to see some improvement in that area, too!
Here's to a great week 3!
M
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Tired of my excuses.... Week 1 for D
Loved reading your post about your week one insights and VICTORY! (Way to go at Applesbees! that was a HUGE success)... I too am thrilled to be on this journey with you! We are going to do this, one step (and one pound) at a time. I have faith in both of us!
Week 1 was hard, in particular those first few days where I wanted to eat everything I had been eatting. I have this bad addiction to not wasting food, therefore rather than throw it out, I feel like it's more economical to eat it. While this is true, it's not better for my weight! Luckily this go round I did not have a TON of shit in the pantry / fridge.
My struggle right now is exercising. I know exactly what walking alone can do for me, yet I have an excuse all the time. I'm really tired of hearing myself say "I'm just too busy" - WHY am I too busy to take care of myself, to love myself, to make sure that I'm going to be around in a healthy body for the next 30 years??? It's absolutely rediculous! It's time to put me first again. At a minimum a walk around the block helps me clear my head and Bailey absolutely loves it! :)
My goal(s) this week - 3 walks at minimum; more water; hitting that smiley face with my fruits and veggies!
You are going to do great this coming week. Lynnette used to be a fairly big girl and lost a ton of weight. I'm pretty sure she's still on a healthy lifestyle kick! You two are going to love each other (I think)!
Let's check back in next week!
XO ~ D
Week 1 was hard, in particular those first few days where I wanted to eat everything I had been eatting. I have this bad addiction to not wasting food, therefore rather than throw it out, I feel like it's more economical to eat it. While this is true, it's not better for my weight! Luckily this go round I did not have a TON of shit in the pantry / fridge.
My struggle right now is exercising. I know exactly what walking alone can do for me, yet I have an excuse all the time. I'm really tired of hearing myself say "I'm just too busy" - WHY am I too busy to take care of myself, to love myself, to make sure that I'm going to be around in a healthy body for the next 30 years??? It's absolutely rediculous! It's time to put me first again. At a minimum a walk around the block helps me clear my head and Bailey absolutely loves it! :)
My goal(s) this week - 3 walks at minimum; more water; hitting that smiley face with my fruits and veggies!
You are going to do great this coming week. Lynnette used to be a fairly big girl and lost a ton of weight. I'm pretty sure she's still on a healthy lifestyle kick! You two are going to love each other (I think)!
Let's check back in next week!
XO ~ D
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Starting a New Journey: M's Reflections on Week 1
The whole point of this 'project' that we are undertaking is to get healthy. I'm looking at this as a chance to get healthy from a lot of different perspectives: physical, emotional, financial, and even occupational. I've taken steps lately in most of these areas (although buying a new car certainly did not count toward financial health), and I have to say that I'm really excited about what the future is going to hold for me--and for us!
We started Weight Watchers together this week, and I will admit that I did a terrible job until Friday. I've been feeling strange lately, and I don't know how to really explain it, other than to say that I haven't been myself. I just haven't felt good about myself, and that really colors your outlook on life. I am about 4 pounds shy of my highest weight, and I just can't face going back to that number. I've been feeling so poorly about myself that I just haven't had any motivation to do much of anything but eat. Being down in the dumps for the last couple of weeks certainly hasn't helped do me any favors.
But then something clicked. I woke up one day and realized that things were starting to come together. I have a brand new job that I know I'm going to love, I'm going to work with people I can't wait to meet, and my finances are starting to look up (thank goodness for that raise!). I had some time alone this week to reflect on what has been bothering me, and I pinned it all on feeling terrible about myself. Then I realized that there's no reason for it. At the risk of sounding arrogant, it occurred to me that I'm actually a pretty great person, all things considered, and that, by God, I am worth the effort to feel better! Then I got my hair cut on Thursday evening and had a heart-to-heart with my stylist, who has just lost 62 pounds herself. Her perspective was so inspiring, and I couldn't help but get motivated all over again.
So, here I am. I'm on Day 2 of Weight Watchers, and it's just like it has been all the other times I've done it. The first few days are the worst because I'm eating a lot less, and I'm eating differently. My head aches, but I know that it's finite. Very soon, I'm going to be used to this again, and the headaches will go away. I'm drinking a lot more water than normal, which I needed to do anyway! And this time, I'm not looking at it as a diet. This time, it's a lifestyle change. This could be where I've gone wrong in the past. Only time will tell.
I feel amazing right now! I've stuck with this for two days so far, and the beginning is always the hardest for me. B and I went out to dinner tonight, and I had a Santa Fe Chicken Salad at RubyTuesday's. That salad would ordinarily be 16 points!! I didn't eat the avocado, wonton crisps, most of the cheese, and most of the ranch dressing, so I'm hoping I knocked maybe 4 points off of it. Even if I didn't, let's do this math real quick. When we go there, I usually have the Smokehouse Burger and fries. At 1461 calories, 97 grams of fat (!!), and 7 grams of fiber, that burger alone would have been 37 points. Add the fries, and my typical dinner there is 46 points. So tonight, I got out of there at no more than 16. That, my dear friend, is a victory!
As for the coming week, I have two goals. One, since I'm traveling 4 days this week, is to make healthier food choices while I'm on the road. I'm debating taking some oatmeal and energy bars with me, but I haven't made up my mind yet. Two, I want to start working toward the 300 minutes of cardio I need to get in every week, according to my trainer. I'm going to aim for 3 30-minute cardio workouts this week. That's only 30% of my goal, but it's better than 0%. The exercise is what's going to be hardest for me.
I'm so glad we're on this path together. I feel like we'll be able to motivate each other, pick each other up when we're down, and be there to make sure that we both succeed. I can't think of a better friend to do this with, and I'm excited for both of us!
M
We started Weight Watchers together this week, and I will admit that I did a terrible job until Friday. I've been feeling strange lately, and I don't know how to really explain it, other than to say that I haven't been myself. I just haven't felt good about myself, and that really colors your outlook on life. I am about 4 pounds shy of my highest weight, and I just can't face going back to that number. I've been feeling so poorly about myself that I just haven't had any motivation to do much of anything but eat. Being down in the dumps for the last couple of weeks certainly hasn't helped do me any favors.
But then something clicked. I woke up one day and realized that things were starting to come together. I have a brand new job that I know I'm going to love, I'm going to work with people I can't wait to meet, and my finances are starting to look up (thank goodness for that raise!). I had some time alone this week to reflect on what has been bothering me, and I pinned it all on feeling terrible about myself. Then I realized that there's no reason for it. At the risk of sounding arrogant, it occurred to me that I'm actually a pretty great person, all things considered, and that, by God, I am worth the effort to feel better! Then I got my hair cut on Thursday evening and had a heart-to-heart with my stylist, who has just lost 62 pounds herself. Her perspective was so inspiring, and I couldn't help but get motivated all over again.
So, here I am. I'm on Day 2 of Weight Watchers, and it's just like it has been all the other times I've done it. The first few days are the worst because I'm eating a lot less, and I'm eating differently. My head aches, but I know that it's finite. Very soon, I'm going to be used to this again, and the headaches will go away. I'm drinking a lot more water than normal, which I needed to do anyway! And this time, I'm not looking at it as a diet. This time, it's a lifestyle change. This could be where I've gone wrong in the past. Only time will tell.
I feel amazing right now! I've stuck with this for two days so far, and the beginning is always the hardest for me. B and I went out to dinner tonight, and I had a Santa Fe Chicken Salad at RubyTuesday's. That salad would ordinarily be 16 points!! I didn't eat the avocado, wonton crisps, most of the cheese, and most of the ranch dressing, so I'm hoping I knocked maybe 4 points off of it. Even if I didn't, let's do this math real quick. When we go there, I usually have the Smokehouse Burger and fries. At 1461 calories, 97 grams of fat (!!), and 7 grams of fiber, that burger alone would have been 37 points. Add the fries, and my typical dinner there is 46 points. So tonight, I got out of there at no more than 16. That, my dear friend, is a victory!
As for the coming week, I have two goals. One, since I'm traveling 4 days this week, is to make healthier food choices while I'm on the road. I'm debating taking some oatmeal and energy bars with me, but I haven't made up my mind yet. Two, I want to start working toward the 300 minutes of cardio I need to get in every week, according to my trainer. I'm going to aim for 3 30-minute cardio workouts this week. That's only 30% of my goal, but it's better than 0%. The exercise is what's going to be hardest for me.
I'm so glad we're on this path together. I feel like we'll be able to motivate each other, pick each other up when we're down, and be there to make sure that we both succeed. I can't think of a better friend to do this with, and I'm excited for both of us!
M
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