Week 6

I knew this was coming.  I could have written this last night or two days ago.

I gained weight. 

Starting weight: 272 lbs.
Current weight: 260.7 lbs.
Weekly loss: +2 lbs.
Total loss: 11 lbs.

For the first time in 6 weeks I gained weight.  After my realization last week about eating my way through the weekends, I made a decision that I wasn't going to do that.  And I didn't.  But I also didn't really watch my food intake for the week and I certainly didn't exercise.  I wanted to lose a big number this week because I'm going on vacation next week and needed a weight buffer.

I'm disappointed that I didn't try this week.  I've still lost more than 10 pounds but I hate the fact that I crossed back into the 260's.  But instead of giving up, I will keep going.  Obviously there will be ups and downs on this journey as there are in any facet of life.  No one said this was going to be easy.

Short term goal #1:  Get back into the 250's before I leave for vacation on Monday.
Short term goal #2:  Return from vacation still in the 250's.  (I.E. Don't gain weight!)

Week 5

I had a tough time this week.  I ate my way through the weekend, watching movies and shirking all forms of exercise.  When I stepped on the scale on Monday I was disappointed at what seems to have become a habit over the last two weeks.  I do my official weigh in on Thursday morning then I eat until Sunday.  

I realized this past week that cheat meals and days are acting as a catalyst for a weekend free-for-all.  I am obsessed with pasta and could eat it forever and ever.  I tried limiting myself to one pasta dish a week but the result of that was that I would eat as much pasta as I could, knowing that I wouldn't allow myself to have it again for a whole week.

While I know that pasta is definitely my weakness, I am not ready to eliminate it from my diet altogether.  Perhaps in the future I will decide that it is worth giving up pasta.  That I want to be thin and healthy more than I want to eat pasta.  But for now my mindset is "don't do anything on a diet that you can't/won't do for the rest of your life."  And there is no way that I will ever stop eating pasta forever.

Rather than allowing myself cheat meals or cheat days, I am going to attempt the moderation route.  One 2-oz serving of pasta once or twice a week (with a protein and a veggie of course!).  What I am slowly coming to realize is that losing weight is an individual process.  I need to learn what works for me.  And when something doesn't work, I need to recognize my mistakes and chart a new course.

With that said, I would have put money on me posting my first weight gain this week.  I ate poorly through Sunday and aside from walking around the mall a few times, I did no exercise.  Somehow, the Scale Gods were being kind this week and I weighed in at:

Starting weight:  272 lbs.

Current weight:  258.7 lbs.  

Weekly loss:  2.8 lbs.

Total loss:  13.3 lbs.

   

Week 4

This was a strange week.  I had (and gave into) my first real cravings this week.  My cheat meal turned into a cheat weekend.  I ate ice cream, I ate pasta, I ate frozen orange chicken.  On Monday, my diet was reflected on the scale by a one pound weight gain.  It made me feel terrible knowing that my food choices were the direct cause of the increase.

But I spent Monday-Thursday trying to make good food choices (even though I ate out 2 of those 4 days).  I did some walking and I did two days of Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred which kicked my ass and I could barely move on day three!  The workout is tough and though I spent at least 5 of the 20 minutes lying on the carpet trying to catch my breath, it seems to be quite effective.  This coming week I plan to do 30 Day Shred four times on non-consecutive days.

My efforts during the second half of the week resulted in a loss!

Starting weight:  272 lbs.
Current weight:  261.5 lbs.
Weekly loss:  2 lbs.
Total loss:  10.5 lbs.

I accomplished last week's goal of losing more than 1.5 lbs which means I've lost 10 pounds in the past month!  While I know that I probably could have lost more weight this month if I worked out harder, I am proud of the progress that I have made.

 

Week 3

Coming off last week I was feeling pretty down despite my buck-up camper blog post.  I was convinced once again that loosing a significant amount of weight was something that would never happen.  But an interesting thing happened.  I didn't give up and binge eat because although I didn't lose any weight last week I felt better.

Week three was full of travel and temptations.  I did my best to make good choices with my eating and I accomplished my goal of 4 days of exercise for at least 30 minutes. And it paid off!

Starting weight: 272 lbs.
Current weight: 263.5 lbs.
Weekly loss: 2.5 lbs.
Total loss: 8.5 lbs.

Was I hoping that my weight loss would be higher?  Of course.  But I think that 2.5 lbs is a reasonable loss that I will be able to maintain week to week.  I didn't feel deprived this week, and although I could have eaten better/less and worked out more, I feel like I found a balance this week (longer post about this coming shortly).

Overall, I am proud of the progress I made this week.  Going into week four, I want to exercise 4 times during the week for at least 30 minutes.

My smart, healthy, rational goal for next week is to lose 1.5 lbs which will total 10 lbs lost in a month.  My I will have to work hard to achieve it goal, is to lose 3.5 lbs so I will be out of the 260's.

Week 2

Okay so...let's just start with the number I suppose.

 

Starting weight: 272 lbs.

Current weight: 266 lbs.

Weekly loss: 0 lbs.

Total loss: 6 lbs.

Minus zero.  Obviously not what I hoped for but as the week went on it was what I expected.

According to Weight Watchers, if you stay within your allotted points for the week you will lose 1-2 pounds per week.  So why did eating a lower amount of calories all week not produce any change this week?  I know that I need to compound exercise with healthy eating but I've read over and over again that diet is more important for losing weight (and exercise for maintaining weight).  Hopefully after the initial shock of dropping 6 pounds the first week, my body will adjust to the fact that it's losing weight time this week.

In the past this is the point where I would usually throw in the towel.  I would have a great first week then lose nothing the second week and decide that I am destined to be fat for the rest of my life.  I would give up now because the thought of reaching the end of week 3 with no results would depress me even more.  But this time I am going to make a life change.  Which means that I don't beat myself up over week 2 and I don't give up.  Instead, I examine what went right and what went wrong, then keep moving forward with a new plan.

What went right:  I continued to eat really well this week.  I planned ahead for the outings I took this week. I brought watermelon to the movies, packed a PB roll-up and an apple for my day trip, and made good choices when eating out.

What went wrong:  I was quite busy this week and made no effort to fit in any physical activity.  It has been super hot all week which makes getting outside to exercise even harder.

Moving forward my plan is to get at least 30 minutes of physical activity at least 4 days between today and next Thursday.  I know if I am serious about losing weight I should commit to at least an hour a day 7 days a week.  But I don't think that is being realistic for me at this point.

Week 1

One week ago I weighed 272 pounds.  It is a number I will never forget.

This past week I made good decisions.  I set a calorie goal, stuck to it, and started to move more.  And guess what?  It worked!

 

Starting Weight: 272 lbs.

Current Weight: 266 lbs.

Weekly Loss: 6 lbs.

Total Loss: 6 lbs.

Go team!  And by team...I mean me.

 

Starting Weight

There are few instances in my life where I actually remember my weight. 

In 5th grade we had to do fitness testing and I volunteered to collect the data for the class.  This was in part because I liked being the teacher's pet but more for the fact that, even at age 11, I didn't want any of my classmates to know how much I weighed.  At that time I weighed 110 pounds (I'm 5' 4" as an adult).  I specifically remember this because a girl named Jenny in my class weighed only 55 pounds...exactly half my weight.

In 11th grade I weighed 220 pounds.  It was the first time I realized that I weighed more than my dad.  In an effort to weigh my dog (who surprise surprise was overweight) my dad picked up the pup and weighed them both then subtracted his weight.  I think he weighed just under 200 pounds and I couldn't believe that as a 17 year old girl I weighed more than a grown man.

During my junior year of college I weighed 197 pounds.  I worked out like a mad woman, ate plain chicken breasts cooked on a George Forman in the dorm, and lost 40 pounds.  I was below 200 pounds for the first time in my life and I felt wonderful.  Granted my eating habits were still not what one would consider normal but I didn't care if what I was doing was unhealthy.

And then I gained, and gained, and gained.  The highest number I ever saw on the scale was 276.  This was a few months ago and I was appalled that I was about to cross the 280 mark.  I made a half-hearted effort at calorie counting and lost only a few pounds.

Last Thursday I weighed in at 272 pounds, which is my "official" starting weight.

110.
220.
197.
276.
272.

These are numbers I will never forget.