This past week was NOT a good week. I was busy, so I didn't track my food and I ate out a lot. Didn't I just say last week that those are two things I MUST do to succeed on my weight loss journey? Yeah, well, apparently I was just moving my lips. And this week I'm paying the price. I gained this week, and I gained enough that I basically set myself back 2 (or maybe 3) weeks. Curses.
Part of the process is to analyze choices and figure out what would have been the better choice. Without tracking it's hard to be thorough, but here's what I know. I had fast food three times in one week. Not good, and not okay when trying to lose weight. Even the "good" choices at fast food restaurants are weight loss saboteurs. During bunco last Friday, I drank too much wine. That probably wouldn't have been too bad, but considering I had a full meal after munching on the most delightful potato chips, the wine put me over the edge. But friends, those were the BEST potato chips (and I don't even usually eat salty snacks!) . So of course I had too many. And then, during the Superbowl, I didn't eat for a really long time and then gorged because I was so hungry. And I drank vodka lemonade. (Gasp!) Must. Keep. Eating. To. Avoid. Feeling. Starved. At a board meeting last night, I mindlessly snacked on cheese and crackers. I have no idea how much I ate, but it wasn't pretty.
I haven't ruined my first WW milestone - losing 5 pounds - but I should be reaching my second milestone and I'm nowhere close.
It's a "habit" to go hours without eating and then overeat because I am so hungry. It is a "habit" to snack on hors d'ouerves before eating a meal. It's a habit to drink socially and not keep track of how much I've had. It's a habit to leave the house without eating and then stop somewhere for something "quick." It's a habit to eat on the go. Old habits will be the death of me. They must die!
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Project Pound Loss: Week 4 is slow and steady
The good news is, I lost this week. The bad news is, last week's gain slowed me down.
The following observations have become abundantly clear:
1. I must track my food. "Guessing" or "estimating" does not work, partly because I don't know the program well enough yet but also because I forget about little snacks and things that I shove in my mouth along the way.
2. I must prepare my own food. Seriously, it does not matter where you eat - eating "out" is not weight loss friendly. Portions are too big (even of the "healthy" stuff). Even "grilled" things are not dry grilled like you would do at home; the grill is regularly lubed in restaurants so food doesn't stick. Restaurant food is heavily salted (most of the time), which ultimately results in too much sodium for the day.
3. I need to cook several meals - but not the whole week - in one sitting. I need to divide it into proper portions so I can just grab it and throw it in my lunch during the mad morning dash, or pop it in the micro after a long day. If I expect myself to cook dinner every night, I am setting myself up for failure. If I cook for the whole week, however, I get tired of the food and want something else, usually something bad.
4. It is not okay to binge on "bad" food after my weigh-in. This appears to be a pattern developing so I need to nip it.
5. I simply will not lose this weight if I do not find time for exercise.
6. I need to drink more water.
Total pounds lost so far: 7.6 in 4 weeks
The following observations have become abundantly clear:
1. I must track my food. "Guessing" or "estimating" does not work, partly because I don't know the program well enough yet but also because I forget about little snacks and things that I shove in my mouth along the way.
2. I must prepare my own food. Seriously, it does not matter where you eat - eating "out" is not weight loss friendly. Portions are too big (even of the "healthy" stuff). Even "grilled" things are not dry grilled like you would do at home; the grill is regularly lubed in restaurants so food doesn't stick. Restaurant food is heavily salted (most of the time), which ultimately results in too much sodium for the day.
3. I need to cook several meals - but not the whole week - in one sitting. I need to divide it into proper portions so I can just grab it and throw it in my lunch during the mad morning dash, or pop it in the micro after a long day. If I expect myself to cook dinner every night, I am setting myself up for failure. If I cook for the whole week, however, I get tired of the food and want something else, usually something bad.
4. It is not okay to binge on "bad" food after my weigh-in. This appears to be a pattern developing so I need to nip it.
5. I simply will not lose this weight if I do not find time for exercise.
6. I need to drink more water.
Total pounds lost so far: 7.6 in 4 weeks
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Project Pound Loss: Week 2 and we're still friends
The second week of Weight Watchers was a bit more challenging for me because that silly thing called life got in the way. I was really busy. But I noticed a few things along the way ...
The longer I stay away from sugar, the less I want it. My mid-afternoon chocolate craving is almost gone. GOOD. I fall into old habits very easily. I need to be on my game or I will eat too much, of the wrong stuff, and then eat too much again. BAD. I take advantage of every possible excuse to get off track. Oh, I'm busy so I need to grab something quick (read: carbohydrate-y, probably deep-fried-y, greasy, goodness!) BAD. If I really want to change my body and change my life, I cannot drink beer. Seriously, not at all. There is nothing redeeming about beer in terms of value to the body. So it's apparently just another habit I need to break. BAD. If I am not focused, I do not stay on the program. BAD. If I really put my mind to it, I can find a little time in my busy schedule to exercise, at least a couple of times. GOOD.
I lost 2.6 pounds in week 2. I'm only a few pounds from my first goal (and my first reward).
The longer I stay away from sugar, the less I want it. My mid-afternoon chocolate craving is almost gone. GOOD. I fall into old habits very easily. I need to be on my game or I will eat too much, of the wrong stuff, and then eat too much again. BAD. I take advantage of every possible excuse to get off track. Oh, I'm busy so I need to grab something quick (read: carbohydrate-y, probably deep-fried-y, greasy, goodness!) BAD. If I really want to change my body and change my life, I cannot drink beer. Seriously, not at all. There is nothing redeeming about beer in terms of value to the body. So it's apparently just another habit I need to break. BAD. If I am not focused, I do not stay on the program. BAD. If I really put my mind to it, I can find a little time in my busy schedule to exercise, at least a couple of times. GOOD.
I lost 2.6 pounds in week 2. I'm only a few pounds from my first goal (and my first reward).
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Project Pound Loss: Week 1 is my friend
Last year (or maybe it was the year before?) I posted a weekly update on my unsupervised, totally solo efforts to lose weight. (I may have been trying Weight Watchers, I'm not sure. Notice I used the word "trying" as opposed to the word "doing." I'm sure you get the picture.) The posts really didn't add anything to Like Sand in an Hourglass; I just felt like it would make me more accountable if I blogged about it. I'm either an idiot or delusional. Needless to say, once I quit trying to lose weight - like I always do - I went back and read my blog posts. It was pathetic and I deleted them. Then I crawled back into my metaphorical cave of self-loathing and had a cookie. Or 4. What can be so difficult, right? Eat less, move more. Duh.
Here's the skinny (pun intended). I used to be skinny. Then I was thin. Then I was in decent shape. Then I had a few extra pounds. Then I was "a little" overweight. Then I was a fat "skinny person." Then I was a skinny "fat person." Then I just got fat. I didn't gain very much weight when pregnant because those silly little babies already had ample room to grow in there. After delivering each of my children, I lost my pregnancy weight and then an additional 40 or so pounds. Those blasted pounds kept finding me, and they brought their friends!
I'm all out of excuses. Stinker is almost 6 years old, so I can't blame it on post-baby body. I'm not unhappily married anymore, so I can't blame it on my loveless marriage. I'm not lonely, or injured, or any number of things people rely on to explain how they got fat. I'm just unconscious about my eating and too sedentary.
Each year, like millions of other people, I declare it will be the year that I lose the weight. Each year, like millions of other people, I start and then I stop. I make up stories and excuses, I get "too busy," whatever ... I make up some story to explain why I can't stick to any program. IT ALL ENDS NOW.
Have you seen Jennifer Hudson? Damn, that girl looks gooooooood. She is my muse. My body looks like hers did in Dreamgirls - a square block - except I don't have the booty for balance. She is a spokesperson for Weight Watchers so I thought I'd go check out the new Points Plus program. I know what you're thinking: So? You do this every year, and every year you quit. Why should we care that you're starting again? Why should we be supportive when our love and energy will be wasted? My answer: I'm doing a few things differently this time and I'm setting myself up to succeed.
I've joined with a friend, so I actually do have accountability. She's someone I see almost every day, so I have to look her in the eye and confess to my eating sins. I've chosen a center right down the street from where I spend most of my working hours, so it is not a big chunk of my time to stop in and weigh myself. I chose a center that literally has 18 meetings a week; no matter my schedule, it's highly probable I can find a meeting that will work. Plus, in addition to 18 meetings a week, it has 24 "open hours" where I can go weigh in even if I can't make a meeting. No more trying to convince myself to interrupt my Saturday to go to a meeting (ick!) or rushing home in traffic to get the kids, get them fed, take them to grandma's and then get to a meeting on time. Do you see what I did there? I eliminated all of my excuses for not going to meetings! As much as I don't like them, statistics show that people with the best weight loss results regularly attend meetings.
But wait, there's more. (Does that sound like an infomercial?) I'm also working the exercises in A Course of Weight Loss. It's got 21 lessons that are designed to help the reader identify the emotional reasons for overeating, address them and release them so one can lose the weight and not gain it back. If it works, this is a HUGE part of my journey because I am definitely an emotional eater. (Someone once described the phenomenon in a way that makes sense to me [as gross as it is]: Feelings are like cat poop, food is the kitty litter, and the eater is the cat. Whenever we experience unpleasant feelings, we try to bury them with food. OMG - this analogy speaks to me, dear reader.)
I'm not done. I'm also following a biggest-loser type of program that 24 Hour Fitness will be hosting. I get extra Points Plus for exercise - bonus! I get to eat more! - AND I'm 40-something and realize that no matter what I do with food, the weight will not come off if I do not exercise regularly.
And speaking of Biggest Loser, if all else fails and I can't get a grip on this weight loss issue, I'm going to the Biggest Loser ranch in Utah in the fall! So there.
So here's the status for Week 1: I lost 4.8 pounds! Woo hoo. I didn't have a perfect week - I had bunco with the girls last week plus I baked chocolate chip cookies for the boys (masochist, I know!) - but in the grand scheme I worked the program, and it worked me. I know I won't continue to lose so much each week as I progress in the program, but a nearly 5-pound loss is definitely motivation to carry on.
Oh, and I have some rewards for myself for each milestone I hit (5%, 10%, etc.) Alas, those are for another day.
Here's the skinny (pun intended). I used to be skinny. Then I was thin. Then I was in decent shape. Then I had a few extra pounds. Then I was "a little" overweight. Then I was a fat "skinny person." Then I was a skinny "fat person." Then I just got fat. I didn't gain very much weight when pregnant because those silly little babies already had ample room to grow in there. After delivering each of my children, I lost my pregnancy weight and then an additional 40 or so pounds. Those blasted pounds kept finding me, and they brought their friends!
I'm all out of excuses. Stinker is almost 6 years old, so I can't blame it on post-baby body. I'm not unhappily married anymore, so I can't blame it on my loveless marriage. I'm not lonely, or injured, or any number of things people rely on to explain how they got fat. I'm just unconscious about my eating and too sedentary.
Each year, like millions of other people, I declare it will be the year that I lose the weight. Each year, like millions of other people, I start and then I stop. I make up stories and excuses, I get "too busy," whatever ... I make up some story to explain why I can't stick to any program. IT ALL ENDS NOW.
Have you seen Jennifer Hudson? Damn, that girl looks gooooooood. She is my muse. My body looks like hers did in Dreamgirls - a square block - except I don't have the booty for balance. She is a spokesperson for Weight Watchers so I thought I'd go check out the new Points Plus program. I know what you're thinking: So? You do this every year, and every year you quit. Why should we care that you're starting again? Why should we be supportive when our love and energy will be wasted? My answer: I'm doing a few things differently this time and I'm setting myself up to succeed.
I've joined with a friend, so I actually do have accountability. She's someone I see almost every day, so I have to look her in the eye and confess to my eating sins. I've chosen a center right down the street from where I spend most of my working hours, so it is not a big chunk of my time to stop in and weigh myself. I chose a center that literally has 18 meetings a week; no matter my schedule, it's highly probable I can find a meeting that will work. Plus, in addition to 18 meetings a week, it has 24 "open hours" where I can go weigh in even if I can't make a meeting. No more trying to convince myself to interrupt my Saturday to go to a meeting (ick!) or rushing home in traffic to get the kids, get them fed, take them to grandma's and then get to a meeting on time. Do you see what I did there? I eliminated all of my excuses for not going to meetings! As much as I don't like them, statistics show that people with the best weight loss results regularly attend meetings.
But wait, there's more. (Does that sound like an infomercial?) I'm also working the exercises in A Course of Weight Loss. It's got 21 lessons that are designed to help the reader identify the emotional reasons for overeating, address them and release them so one can lose the weight and not gain it back. If it works, this is a HUGE part of my journey because I am definitely an emotional eater. (Someone once described the phenomenon in a way that makes sense to me [as gross as it is]: Feelings are like cat poop, food is the kitty litter, and the eater is the cat. Whenever we experience unpleasant feelings, we try to bury them with food. OMG - this analogy speaks to me, dear reader.)
I'm not done. I'm also following a biggest-loser type of program that 24 Hour Fitness will be hosting. I get extra Points Plus for exercise - bonus! I get to eat more! - AND I'm 40-something and realize that no matter what I do with food, the weight will not come off if I do not exercise regularly.
And speaking of Biggest Loser, if all else fails and I can't get a grip on this weight loss issue, I'm going to the Biggest Loser ranch in Utah in the fall! So there.
So here's the status for Week 1: I lost 4.8 pounds! Woo hoo. I didn't have a perfect week - I had bunco with the girls last week plus I baked chocolate chip cookies for the boys (masochist, I know!) - but in the grand scheme I worked the program, and it worked me. I know I won't continue to lose so much each week as I progress in the program, but a nearly 5-pound loss is definitely motivation to carry on.
Oh, and I have some rewards for myself for each milestone I hit (5%, 10%, etc.) Alas, those are for another day.
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